Tyrrell Hatton wins Arnold Palmer Invitational in swift riposte to Paul Azinger's scorn
- Published
Paul Azinger, eat your heart out. A week after the former US Ryder Cup captain questioned whether the young Englishmen from the European Tour have “what it takes” to win on the PGA Tour, so Tyrrell Hatton provided an emphatic answer at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
This was some response for his country and his continent. It is hard to remember a regular tournament on the US circuit when the conditions were so tough and the garlands so difficult to earn. But Hatton, the 28-year-old from Buckinghamshire, showed his mettle to claim the £1.25m prize, fending off players of the quality of Marc Leishman and the previous week’s winner in Im Sung-jae, as well as world No1 Rory McIlroy.
So much for “thatEuropean Tour” as Azinger referred to it live on air, in his ill-advised rant when Tommy Fleetwood failed to convert his 54-hole lead at the Honda Classic the previous Sunday. With four European Tour tiles under his belt, Hatton knew exactly how to survive the glare in Orlando.
“It's an incredible feeling to win at such an iconic venue and with obviously Arnie's name to it,” Hatton said. “It’s an amazing feeling and it's very surreal to win this week.”
With the Bay Hill gusts swirling, the rough thick and juicy and the greens drying almost to the point of insanity, Hatton shot a battling 74 for a four-under total and a one-shot victory over Leishman (73), with 21-year-old Im in third (73) on two-under and McIlroy (76) in fifth on level par.
After a nervy start, Hatton seemed impervious to both the pressure and the harsh nature of the challenge when he recovered to play the first 10 holes in level par. But then he located the water off the 11th, resulting in a double bogey, and suddenly this very expressive young man began to throw his arms around and berate the gods.