Latest news with #J.J.Spaun
USA Today
10-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Who won the par 3 contest at Masters 2025? Nico Echavarria's victory may be a bad omen.
Who won the par 3 contest at Masters 2025? Nico Echavarria's victory may be a bad omen. Thursday marked the start of the 89th Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club, but the competition on the famed course got started on Wednesday with the annual Par 3 Contest before the major tournament. While the Wednesday event is a family-oriented event that features more laughs and smiles than intensity, any chance to claim a title at ANGC is one worth taking seriously. Nicolas Echavarria struck the perfect balance there as he won the Par 3 contest in a playoff against J.J. Spaun. Echavarria was five-under par through nine holes and took down Spaun, who bogeyed the second playoff as Nico birdied for the win. Par 3 Contest Leaderboard: T-1. Nicolas Hechavarria, -5 T-1. J.J. Spaun, -5 3. Tyrell Hatton, -4 T-4. Bubba Watson, -3 T-4. Mark O'Meara, -3 T-4. Davis Riley, -3 T-4. Matt McCarty, -3 T-4. Laurie Canter, -3 T-9. Rasmus Højgaard, -2 T-9. Justin Rose, -2 T-9. Bryson DeChambeau, -2 While it's true no one has ever won the Par 3 Contest and the green jacket in the same year, Echavarria was already facing the weight of history at Augusta before collecting the crystal on Wednesday evening. The 30-year-old from Colombia is hoping to become the first Masters debutant to win the tournament since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979. Maybe two negatives will equal a positive for Echavarria as he looks to wow Augusta in his first time out.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Masters 2025: Nico Echavarria beats J.J. Spaun in a playoff to win the Par 3 Contest at Augusta National
AUGUSTA, Ga. — Nico Echavarria is now (almost certainly) out of the running for the green jacket. While the 89th edition of the Masters hasn't even started yet, Echavarria will at least get to head home from Augusta National Golf Course in Georgia with some hardware. Advertisement Echavarria beat J.J. Spaun in a playoff to win the annual Par 3 Contest on Wednesday at the Masters. Both Echavarria and Spain went 5-under in regulation on the short par-3 course situated just to the east of the clubhouse, and then the two needed a pair of playoff holes to settle the event. Eventually, it was Echavarria who stuck his tee shot right next to the cup for an easy birdie. That earned him the crystal pedestal bowl. That win, while a great feat, now means that Echavarria is the latest victim of the 'Par 3 Curse.' No golfer has ever won the Par 3 Contest and then gone on to win the Masters in the same year, which has created an infamous lore among many golfers and led to the event becoming wholly unserious — which is what makes it great. Golfers bring their families and young kids to essentially mess around on the par-3 course at Augusta National and relax ahead of the start of the tournament. Naturally, that makes things a bit chaotic. At the ninth green, Sam Burns' wife had to hustle a bit to catch up to their toddler who had started crawling to the edge of the lake. Many golfers pass off shots to their kids or their wives, which takes them out of the running for the title, but is almost always worth it. Just ask Aaron Rai, who swapped roles with his wife after she outdid him, or Billy Horschel's daughter, who erupted after sinking a deep putt. Poppy McIlroy even drained a deep putt at the final green that she just barely tapped with the help of her dad, which sparked a huge celebration from everybody except for her. Gary Player, who is perhaps the fittest 89-year-old on the planet, was throwing darts on the course and loving every minute of it. There were, of course, thee aces on the day. The first one came from Keegan Bradley at the sixth, which Brooks Koepka matched later in the afternoon, and then Tom Hoge drained one at the fourth. Echavarria has won twice on the PGA Tour in his career, most recently at the ZOZO Championship last year. He's made six cuts in 10 starts on Tour this season, and he fell in a playoff at the Sony Open in Hawaii back in January. Echavarria is playing in his first Masters this week, too, and he'll tee off with Danny Willett and Davis Thompson early on Thursday morning. Though a run at the green jacket is now going to be extremely tough, Echavarria's first Masters trip is going to be a memorable one. As for J.J. Spaun, he's still in the running in what was a rare win despite losing in the playoff.
NBC Sports
25-03-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Support making Spaun 'hungrier' as Masters nears
Ahead of the Texas Children's Houston Open, J.J. Spaun tells Kira K. Dixon he's focusing on the positives from The Players and using the outpouring of support as fuel as he tunes up for The Masters at Augusta.
USA Today
25-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
More zero-torque putters on tour, 2025 wedges, and Good Good Golf's $40 million funding
Eight days ago, J.J. Spaun nearly became the first golfer to win a Players Championship using a zero-torque putter, a L.A.B. DF3, but his putt on the 72nd hole Sunday came up 3 inches short. Spaun wound up losing to Rory McIlroy the following day in a three-hole playoff. For decades, putters have been categorized as either blades or mallets, but last summer, while doing some research on zero-torque putters, I asked a putter designer with over 20 years of experience if he thought rotation-reducing putters were on the cusp of becoming a third category. "I think so," the veteran said without much hesitation. "They've gained traction on the PGA Tour and are getting a lot of visibility. I think there's something to them." I was surprised, but not shocked, because while seeing elite golfers on TV using a new type of putter is one thing, I had started seeing zero-torque putters being used by recreational golfers in my area last summer and fall. Still, the weekend players I talked with said they hated the look of zero-torque putters, and some even said they would be embarrassed to, "have something like that in my bag." Fast forward to today, and zero-torque putters constitute one of the hottest and most-talked-about categories in golf, and from a performance standpoint, it makes sense. Golfers can learn to love the look of a putter if it helps them make a better stroke and enhances their consistency. As Peter Kostis once told me, "It's a scorecard, not a postcard," meaning that it's what you shoot, not how you shot it, that counts. If you are not happy about the way you're putting, it might be time to talk with a custom fitter and see if a zero-torque putter like a Bettinardi Antidote, Evnroll Zero, Odyssey Ai ONE Square 2 Square, L.A.B. OZ.1 or PXG Allan is right for you.
USA Today
18-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
2025 Valspar Championship Start Time Thursday, Tee Times, Pairings & ESPN+ Live Streaming Coverage
2025 Valspar Championship Start Time Thursday, Tee Times, Pairings & ESPN+ Live Streaming Coverage It's an $8.7M purse up for grabs at the 2025 Valspar Championship. Innisbrook Resort (Copperhead Course) is a par-71 course covering 7,352 yards. The tourney is set for March 20-23. At TPC Sawgrass (THE PLAYERS Stadium Course), Rory McIlroy shot -12 to pick up a tournament win at THE PLAYERS Championship, with J.J. Spaun finishing second. Player tee times, TV and streaming info, and anything else you need to know ahead of the first round of the 2025 Valspar Championship is available right here. Watch the PGA Tour all season long without cable! Start watching now on Fubo. And catch PGA Tour Live streaming, plus tons of other live sports and programming, with ESPN+. Tee times and pairings Hole 1 Round 1 TV & streaming information You can watch Golf Channel and more on Fubo. ESPN+ is the exclusive home for PGA Tour Live streaming.
