FJ Blog

Byrd Wins in a Playoff, Take 2

Jonathan Byrd (DryJoys Tour) tapped in for par on the second playoff hole to defeat fellow FJ player Robert Garrigus and win the season-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions. He closed with a final round 6-under 67 en route to winning his second consecutive PGA Tour start. You may recall Byrd won last fall at the season-ending event in Las Vegas with a hole-in-one in sudden death to earn the invite to Kapalua.  At the time, Byrd was fighting to keep his Tour card, sitting outside the top 125 on the money list.

Jonathan Byrd has now recorded the first two official wins for the new DryJoys Tour golf shoes from FootJoy. In shops this week, DryJoys Tour were "Built for the Tour That Inspired Them," and add to the long history of success for the DryJoys brand. In addition to Byrd, Steve Stricker, Tim Clark and Zach Johnson also wore the new DryJoys Tour this week in Hawaii. For more, click here to visit DryJoysTour.com.

This was Byrd's fifth career victory and definitely the biggest. He had never won an event before July. He had never beaten a field this strong, with only PGA TOUR winners from last year. And this one came with some perks. Byrd earned an automatic invitation to the Masters, and with his second win in the last two months, he is exempt for the U.S. Open.

Steve Stricker, tied with Byrd and Garrigus going into the final round, shot 71 and tied for fourth. Ian Poulter closed with a 66 to tie for sixth -- he hasn't finished worse than that in his last five tournaments.