Andrew Novak teamed up with Ben Griffin as the pair secured the first-ever PGA Tour victory of their careers. This was Novak’s first win in his 100th career start and Griffin’s first in his 90th career start. The duo closed with a final-round 71 to finish 28 under overall as they won the Zurich Classic at TPC Louisiana on Sunday.
Novak’s and Griffin’s Long Walk From Contenders To Champions
Just a week ago, Andrew Novak watched in dispair as his first career PGA Tour victory slipped away from him after losing to Justin Thomas in Hilton Head. It took him another seven days to take advantage of his next opportunity, becoming the first player since Patrick Cantlay in 2022 to lose in a play-off and win the following week.
The pair had come close to victory on the PGA Tour on different occasions in the past, and no one really tipped them to be champions this time around. However, they finally managed to emerge victorious through their collective talents in a thrilling finale at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans on Sunday.
Novak has never made it into the FedEx Cup Playoffs despite scraping by between the Canadian Tour and Korn Ferry ranks for several years. But the 30-year-old has been in impressive form this year, finishing two shots back of the lead at the Farmers Insurance Open. He also clinched a T13 at consecutive signature events in Pebble Beach and Torrey Pines but was the last player in the field at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Novak made up for his disappointing show at the Arnold Palmer Invitational by bouncing back with a T3 at the Valero Texas Open before a playoff heartbreak loss to Justin Thomas last week.
Griffin knew he was due for a win coming into the tournament. The 28-year-old has had 11 top 20’s last year and two top-five finishes this spring. Novak, ranked 56th in the world and Griffin, ranked 34th in the world secured a $1.329 million windfall each and also bagged 400 FedEx Cup points each after a final-round one-under 71 in the foursomes format.
How Novak’s and Griffin’s Journey To Victory Unfolded
Novak and Griffin started the day with a three-shot lead. However that was quickly reduced to one after the opening par-4 hole as the Hojgaard brothers birdied their first two holes. The pair restored their lead to three with birdies at No. 2, 5, and 7 before facing an 18-foot par putt on the eighth hole when play was suspended at 3:42 p.m ET due to the weather.
Novak immediately missed the par attempt at the eighth when play resumed at 5:15 p.m. ET at TPC Louisiana. It didn’t take long for him to miss a three-foot par save at the ninth as part of a three-putt effort by him and Griffin as they watched their lead slip to one stroke. After completely losing their lead after Knapp and Cappan birdied the 10th, Griffin executed the key strokes down the stretch to see off their challenges with a 35-foot birdie putt on the par-3 17th hole before his tap-in for par at the par-5 home hole secured their first-ever PGA Tour win with a 28-under 260 total.
Main Photo Credit: © Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images
