Thomas Detry has always been on fast-forward while he was in contention. His mind was focused on the future rather than the present, and his heart was pounding.
Before his final 2 rounds at the boisterous TPC Scottsdale, the Belgian took an ice bath and meditated, knowing what was on the line.
With his first PGA TOUR victory, everything paid off.
Calm all day, Detry scored a 6-under 65 on Sunday to win the WM Phoenix Open by seven strokes, almost acing the boisterous 16th hole in a string of four closing birdies.
“I was more attentive today. I performed the exact same exercise yesterday morning and felt fairly at ease, actually feeling at ease on the first tee. I was genuinely nerve-free.” Detry said.
Players were greeted by ideal weather at the crowded Stadium Course a year after numerous delays caused by rainy conditions. At the PGA TOUR’s wildest stop after a chaotic 2024 tournament, the spectators were likewise being as polite as they can be.
Detry capitalised on the favourable circumstances and managed to cut through the noise to take a five-shot lead going into the final round. Jordan Spieth, Daniel Berger, and top-ranked Scottie Scheffler all charged, but Detry hammered it to 16 inches on 16 to win for the first time in 68 PGA TOUR outings.
Detry became the first Belgian to win on the TOUR after making 2 more birdies to finish at 24-under 260.
“I made an effort to exert pressure on him, but each time I thought I had made a birdie, he responded with another. He deserved to win this since he was playing excellent golf today.” Berger said.
At 17-under, Berger shot 67 and was tied for second with Michael Kim (67). In his second tournament since undergoing wrist surgery last summer, Spieth shot 68 to tie for 4th place at 16 under.
On 18, Justin Thomas shot 65, tying for 6th place at 15-under after holeing out from 103 yards for an eagle.
“This week, I felt like I accomplished a lot of really good things and played a lot of fantastic golf, and I think we kind of deserved that.” Thomas said.
Detry had been anticipating this.
The 32-year-old finished second on the PGA TOUR twice, most recently at the 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open, and won the European Challenge Tour’s Bridgestone Challenge in 2016. He also represented Belgium at the Olympics twice.
A victory was all that was lacking.
With excellent ball-striking and putting in the desert, Detry positioned himself. He was 18 under going into the 3rd round, and he quickly increased it by making a 12-foot birdie putt on No. 1. On the 2nd par-4 he was unable to get up-and-down from a greenside bunker, but he recovered with a birdie on the 3rd par-5.
Detry held a 4-shot lead going into the back 9 after shooting 1-under 34. He made a 2-putt birdie on 15 before his near-ace on 16 and achieved 20 under with a birdie on the course’s hardest hole, the 470-yard, par-4 11th.
Detry closed up in style with a 9-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole after getting up-and-down for birdie on the short 17th par-4.
“There are birdies on this course, but it may catch up with you if you start missing the tough greens, fairways, and those challenging pin positions. I could therefore sort of rely on that and trust my game.” Detry said.
As they rose up the scoreboard, a number of players attempted to make things tough on Detry.
Berger made the final charge.
After making birdies on Nos. 12 and 13, he narrowly missed his third shot out of a greenside bunker and chipped in for par on No. 14. On the par-5 15th hole, he made a birdie to briefly extend the lead, but Detry added another to keep it at 3.
Berger’s comeback attempt ended when he bogeyed No. 16 after his tee shot bounced through the green.
“Spieth shot a scorching 33 on the front to reach 15-under, but he only got 1 birdie on his final 11 holes.” Spieth said.
Scheffler reached 14 under after shooting 31 on the first 9 shots, but he faded. In his 2nd start since he hurt his hand on a broken wineglass while cooking ravioli for Christmas, he shot a 5-over 41 on the back nine to finish with a 72, falling all the way to 25th.
Scheffler or anyone else had little chance of catching Detry, even with a good back nine.
