With the final pairing several holes into the final round of the Rocket Classic, it was anyone’s guess who was going to emerge victorious. 

That’s because there were 26 players within three strokes of the lead. 

Some of the names challenging for the win were 54-hole leader Aldrich Potgieter, Chris Kirk, Max Greyserman, Michael Thorbjornsen, Jake Knapp, Collin Morikawa, Nico Echavarria and Jackson Suber. 

But after Detroit Golf Club weeded out the contenders and pretenders, Potgieter was the one left hoisting the trophy. 

MORE: Final results, payouts from the Rocket Classic

The 20-year-old South African, the youngest player on Tour, bested Max Greyserman on the fifth playoff hole with a 17-foot birdie putt. 

“Definitely a tough day,” Potgieter said afterward. “The start didn’t go my way, I struggled to make putts, left a lot short. Finally got one to the hole, and I just saw the ball roll end over end and I knew it was going to go in.”

How did this play out? 

Potgieter was leading at 22 under on the par-3 15th in regulation, but duffed his chip from the rough and made bogey, dropping into a three-way tie with Kirk and Thorbjornsen, who birdied Nos. 16 and 17 and took the clubhouse lead with a two-putt par putt from 45 feet on the last. 

Moments later, Kirk birdied the par-5 17th to take the lead and parred the last to walk off the course leading by one at 22 under. 

Meanwhile, Greyserman dropped a 35-footer on No. 16 to get within one of Kirk and Knapp, who shot a course-record 61 in Round 2, missed a 10-footer for eagle on No. 17 to tie the lead, but made birdie. Then, Greyserman and Potgieter birdied 17 to tie the lead as Knapp failed to convert a 12-footer on No. 18 to join them. 

That meant the final pairing of Greyserman and Potgieter controlled their own destiny on the 72nd hole. Each hit their drives in the fairway, but Potgieter’s approach fell 41 feet from the cup and  Greyserman’s landed 11 feet. 

They both made par, with a three-way playoff ensuing—shortly after a wardrobe malfunction from Greyserman, who lost a spike in the scoring tent. 

On the 18th, each made par; Kirk, though, had the best look, hitting his second shot to 11 feet. 

To the 15th hole they went. 

Potgieter flew the green and chipped to 6 feet to salvage par, Greyserman missed a 12-footer for the win and Kirk made bogey three-putting to 56 feet. 

So Potgieter and Greyserman, a 30-year-old New Jerseyan looking for his first win in 150 starts, headed to No. 16th, where they both made par. 

Running out of daylight wasn’t an issue, as sunset was 9:13 p.m. in Detroit. However, if they went 11 holes in Motown like the 1949 Motor City Open, the longest playoff in PGA Tour history, there might be a cause for concern. 

But history wouldn’t repeat itself. 

On the 558-yard 17th, each reached the green in two and made birdie, meaning they would head back to No. 15 for the fifth bonus hole. 

And it was there that the South African claimed his maiden win with an indelible putt. The longest hitter on Tour, averaging 326.6 yards off the tee, Potgieter fulfilled lofty expectations after becoming the youngest Korn Ferry Tour winner in history last year. In February, he fell in a playoff to Brian Campbell at the Mexico Open. 

But he got his vengeance in Detroit in just his 20th Tour start. And though he’s known for being a long-hitter, it was his flatstick that helped him get over the finish line. 

“I'm just happy to walk away as a winner,” he said. 

Of course, there's the flip side.

“This one’s going to sting for a little bit,” Greyserman said.

That’s something the bevy of names on the leaderboard earlier this afternoon can agree on—except Potgieter.


This article was originally published on www.si.com as Long-hitting Aldrich Potgieter, 20, Prevails After Five-Hole Playoff at Rocket Classic.

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