Russell Henley chips-in for eagle to snag Arnold Palmer Invitational from Collin Morikawa

USA Today

10-03-2025

Russell Henley chips-in for eagle to snag Arnold Palmer Invitational from Collin Morikawa
ORLANDO — Moments after making a nervy 4-foot par putt to win the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational on Sunday, Russell Henley's three kids rushed on to the 18th green at Bay Hill Lodge & Club. Ruth, his five-year-old daughter, wrapped her arms around her daddy first and squealed with delight. Framed by a soft blue sky, Henley next spread his arms wide to hug wife Teil. It was a moment he long dreamed of enjoying and when he was asked what it meant to have his family witness him chip-in for eagle at 16 and win by one stroke over Collin Morikawa, Henley said of his wife, 'She puts steel in my spine.'
Teil Henley said she struggles like many in the world with fear and anxiety and so when she sees it in others, she likes to say the words that would make her feel better. Sometimes those words consist of tough love and about two years ago, while she and her husband were talking in bed about his putting woes ahead of the Players Championship, she sensed such an occasion.
'I felt the nudge to say, 'Russ, if that is the attitude you are going to carry around, then we should just go home. Because it's dog eat dog out here. These people want to beat you, they want to see you fail, so you have to be an animal. Otherwise, if you're going to open that door to all the negativity, we might as well pack and go home,'' she recounted to Golfweek after her husband completed his winner's press conference. 'He got out of bed and said, 'Thanks, I needed that.' '
Henley, 35, has worked hard at every part of his game, becoming one of the best ballstrikers on Tour in recent years. But to improve his putting, Henley sought help from one of the top putting instructors, Phil Kenyon.
'I've just tried to listen to everything he said. From the start, working with Phil, I've just said, 'What do you want me to do?' Because I was just so lost with my game, with my putting a few years back and just super inconsistent, didn't really have a great plan,' explained Henley, who ranked 10th in Strokes Gained: putting this week.
With his repeatable action and pinpoint control, Henley has transformed his game into one of the most consistent golfers on Tour. He was tied for the most top 10s without a win since 2024 — 10 — with Sungjae Im. All told, he'd made 47 starts since his last win, a total of 854 days. Last year, Jim Furyk didn't hesitate to use a captain's pick for the U.S. Presidents Cup team on Henley, a rookie in international competition, who reminded Furyk of himself.
'He's quiet, he goes to the course and gets his business done, gets out. But if you put players in categories, we'd be in the same one: Doesn't make a lot of mistakes, doesn't beat himself, mentally tough, hits the ball straight and I thought he'd be a good teammate,' Furyk said.
He paired Henley with world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and Henley more than held his own.
'That week I'm trying to not throw up basically, I'm so nervous,' Henley said. 'You definitely, the more you play golf when you're nervous in big tournaments I think the more comfortable you get…I think the more I can try to put myself there, the better I'll get at it.'
Henley has dealt with pressure, sometimes better than others. Take the third round of the 2017 Masters. Henley was treading water at around 20th place when he blocked his tee right at the par-5 13th. He and his caddie at the time, Todd Gjesvold, surveyed the situation and decided to go for it. He hit a great shot on the green but it's what happened next that is most memorable.
'My caddie pulled me over and said, 'Hey, Pro, that's our last ball.' I was like, 'How did that happen?' He said, 'I lost track, didn't get any before the round.' I still had 15 and 16 and 18 to play. Somehow I didn't lose a ball. That was very daunting.'
So, too, was trying to chase down Morikawa, the 54-hole leader, who holed out a bunker shot at the first and took a three-stroke lead to the back nine at Arnie's Place. Henley had made bogeys at both of the par 5s on the front nine, including making two disastrous chips at No. 6.
'I didn't really feel like I had a great chance at that point,' he said.
Neither did the fans, who barely acknowledged his shots. When he nailed a long iron to 28 feet at the ninth, his caddie Andy Sanders noticed that nobody clapped. 'I was like, what do you think? He's like, 'Well, they think Collin is playing with a marker out here,' ' Sanders recalled.
But it's become a mistake to underestimate Henley, one of the most underrated players on Tour. With his victory he moved to No. 7 in the world but even Henley said he doesn't think of himself as one of the top 10 in the world. Sanders has been on the bag for more than two years and his nickname for Henley is Casper the Ghost. 'Because nobody knows who he is,' Sanders said.
It will be hard to overlook Henley much longer. He's playing with great purpose and focus and despite admitting that his heart was racing, he project the sphynx-like demeanor of a champion. After holing his eagle chip from 54 feet, Sanders slapped Henley's hand but that was the extent of his celebration.
"I didn't feel like there was much to smile about at that point, just because if I go to the next hole and hit it in the water and then hit it in the water again on 18, then I'm not sitting here, and there's just a lot of really tough golf ahead of me," Henley explained. "I felt like it was time to get really focused on what I need to do on my next shot."
Two hard-earned pars sealed the deal for a final-round 2-under 70 and 72-hole total of 11-under 277 for his fifth career Tour title. He played the last seven holes in 4 under to win on a big-boy course against a strong signature event field. He's fixed his putting, his confidence is soaring and his spine is as strong as steel. As he slipped into the red alpaca sweater awarded to the winner, he finally smiled and wondered aloud, "Do I button the top button?"