Lee Hodges called his maiden PGA Tour win at the 3M Open a “dream week from start to finish”.

But the actual finish produced the most disrespectful news alert from a Minneapolis paper. Lee, if you’re reading, you might want to look away right now. Heck, if you played in the tournament, you might want to look away.

Actually, Lee probably won’t care much after hoisting the trophy, winning $1.4 million and earning a first Masters invite. But golf fans in the area certainly did a double take when they got this social media push from the Star Tribune. Check it out:

Someone on push notification duty at the Minneapolis paper was in a grumpy mood yesterday, or just finishing up a summer internship and going out with a bang. pic.twitter.com/BcgieuS6Ul

— The Shotgun Start (@TheShotgunStart) July 31, 2023

“Golfer no one has ever heard of blows out no-name competition at Minnesota’s PGA Tour event.” That’s cold.

OK, so we’re guessing that wasn’t meant to be sent out. That being said, a few years back the Palm Beach Post went with the headline “No-Name Champion” when Keith Mitchell won the Honda Classic. Rough. That newspaper later apologised.

But again, this was probably just a mistake by one person putting out a breaking news alert. Hey, at least they gave Hodges’ seven-shot win the “breaking news” treatment. And as you can see, they followed it up with a “re-sent to correct headline”. Here were the other headlines on the Star Tribune’s website on Sunday:

“Lee Hodges completes wire-to-wire victory at 3M Open, sets tournament scoring record.”

And:

“This PGA Tour victory could be the first of many for 3M Open champions Lee Hodges.”

The “first of many”! Now that’s some R-E-S-P-E-C-T!

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Lee Hodges played so impeccably for four days at the 3M Open that he seemed destined to win easily, and, sure enough, in closing out his wire-to-wire victory Sunday, his margin of victory was seven strokes. That’s the most of any winner on the PGA Tour in nearly three years. Impressive stuff. Especially in notching his maiden tour title. But we promise you, it’s unlikely there has ever been a more nerve-racking seven-shot win in tour history.

Despite holding a five-stroke lead entering the final round, Hodges promised to stay aggressive. And it was a good thing he did. Thanks to a pair of eagles, Hodges was able to weather a wobbly putter down the stretch and finish off a record-setting performance at TPC Twin Cities. With a final-round 67, capped by a tap-in birdie on the 72nd hole, Hodges set the tournament record with a 24-under 260 total to register the event’s first wire-to-wire win.

From high school sweethearts to their first PGA TOUR win

A special moment for Lee Hodges and his wife, Savannah @3MOpen. pic.twitter.com/3TyQlmBXih

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 30, 2023

“It’s just a dream week, the whole thing,” said Hodges, a second-year tour player who won in his 65th career tour start. “I mean, I played … honestly, from Monday to Sunday I played really good golf, even in practice rounds. The pro-am I made a bunch of birdies and then I made a bunch of birdies in the tournament with not many bogeys, so it was just one of those weeks.”

The 28-year-old Alabama native began the week 74th in the FedEx Cup standings with the goal of simply improving his chances of moving into the top 70 for a playoff berth when the regular season ends after next week’s Wyndham Championship. Instead, Hodges catapulted himself 41 spots to 33rd with one event remaining in the regular season. In the process, he earned $1.404 million and became the 11th first-time winner in the 2022-23 tour season. His is the largest winning margin since Dustin Johnson lapped the field by 11 shots at the 2020 Northern Trust at TPC Boston.

Though he led the field with 25 birdies, it was those pair of eagles that saved Hodges considerable angst on a sunny afternoon in Blaine, Minnesota. Both were set up by 3-wood second shots from the exact same distance, 257 yards. The first, at the par-5 sixth, yielded an 11-footer that he rolled in to extend his advantage over his nearest pursuer, JT Poston, to seven strokes. Then at the par-5 12th, he executed even better, nestling the approach to less than three feet.

“Those were two of the greatest shots I ever hit,” Hodges said. “Wish I maybe would have been a little less aggressive with my putter; I ran a couple by there late, but whatever, it all worked out.”

He’s referring to three-putt bogeys at the 15th and 17th holes that, combined with birdies by Poston at 15 and 16, suddenly made the proceedings far from a done deal as Hodges’ lead dwindled to three.

And then, just like that, sweaty palms time was over.

Poston sure helped in that regard at the par-5 home hole by leaving himself a tricky lie with the ball below his feet after pushing his tee shot to the edge of the water right of the fairway. He thought he had enough to cover the hazard with his approach, but the ball came out on a low trajectory and ricocheted off the rocks and into the penalty area.

No doubt breathing easier, Hodges, after laying up, stuffed his approach from 115 yards to 16 inches for a closing birdie.

A nightmare ensued for Poston, who decided to lay up with his fourth shot. He came up short-left of the green with his fifth and then needed three more strokes, all with his putter, to find the hole. His triple-bogey eight dropped him into a tie for second place at 17-under 267, costing him $260,000 (the difference between solo second and a three-way tie). He closed with a 69.

“We’re not coming here to finish second. At the end of the day we were trying to do something special and try and win,” Poston said. “I wouldn’t want to be sleeping tonight wondering “what if” if I had just laid it up instead of trying to go for it. No regrets on the decision. You know, tried to do what we could to win.”

Martin Laird and Kevin Streelman were the beneficiaries of Poston’s stumble to gain a share of second — and also improve their prospects for keeping their tour cards. Laird fired a 64 and moved up 46 places from outside the top 150 to 111th in the standings. Streelman, meanwhile, went from a precarious 120th to 84th.

Finishing in the top 125 after a series of seven autumn events still earns a full exemption for the following season that begins in January.

Several other players improved their lot heading into the Wyndham Championship, perhaps none more so than Cameron Davis. The Australian shot a closing 65 and got himself inside the all-important top 70. He is 69th after finishing T-10 at 14-under 270. Meanwhile, Poston, Keith Mitchell (T-5) and Sam Ryder (T-7), who all were lurking in the 60s in the standings, moved farther from the bubble. Poston went from 60th to 49th, Mitchell, after 67-268, climbed from 66 to 57, and Ryder, thanks to a 68-269, moved seven places to 62nd.

Of course, no one enjoyed a more fulfilling week than Hodges. He’s securely in the playoffs, has set himself up to finish in the top 50 — which qualifies for all of the designated events next year — and can think about chasing a spot in the Tour Championship. Oh, and he also earned invitations to next year’s Masters, PGA Championship and the Players Championship.

First things first, however. “Just get ready for the playoffs. I think we’re as ready as we can be,” he said when asked about what comes next on his agenda. “I’m playing some really good golf. I’m excited to have the opportunity to do some special things in the playoffs now. I mean, anytime you win, you really set yourself up for some special stuff.

“My caddie was telling me on 18, I honestly didn’t even think about it, we get to play Augusta next year. That’s something else. That was probably the coolest thing I heard all day. Yeah, I’m just really thankful. Everything that comes with a win is unbelievable.”

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If you’re vying for your first PGA Tour title, a five-stroke lead has to afford you a relative feeling of comfort. Perhaps that’s one reason why Lee Hodges doesn’t expect to be overly nervous heading into Sunday’s final round of the 3M Open.

It probably doesn’t hurt that he’s playing the best golf of his young career. He’s definitely playing the best golf this event has ever seen.

Hodges doesn’t have the penultimate event of the tour’s regular season sewn up just yet, but the golf he has stitched together through 54 holes at TPC Twin Cities makes for a swell security blanket. With five birdies on his inward nine, Hodges carded a third-round five-under 66 and continued to stretch his lead over the competition in Blaine, Minnesota.

At 20-under 193, Hodges eclipsed the previous tournament 54-hole record of 195 that Scott Piercy set a year ago. JT Poston is the closest pursuer at 198 after a 66, while defending champion Tony Finau is another stroke back following a 67.

It’s probably worth noting that Finau erased a five-stroke deficit last year during a wind-swept final round. So danger lurks. But who is more dangerous than a guy who has converted 22 birdies and leads the field in strokes gained/total at plus 10.180?

No wonder Hodges, 28, shrugged when asked about the pressure he’ll face. Will he be OK sleeping on the lead for the third night in a row?

“I honestly don’t think I’ll be that nervous tonight,” said the Alabama native, who is 74th in the FedEx Cup standings and ranked 110th in the world. “I’ll hang out with my wife; we’ll go do something fun. I mean, yeah, it’s just golf at the end of the day. I’m lucky to be here.”

The tournament record is 21-under, so Hodges has been more than lucky. He can’t recall ever having a lead as large as the one he currently enjoys — “not even in junior golf,” he said.

Even with that, he promised to stay aggressive. “I’m not going to try and make pars because pars aren’t going to get it done tomorrow. I’m going to have to keep making birdies,” said Hodges, who holds his second 54-hole lead of the season. He was the 54-hole co-leader at The American Express in January before ending up T-3.

“I have nothing to lose,” he added, furthering the notion that he won’t be tentative in the final round. “I’m out here playing with house money. I have a job next year on the PGA TOUR, this is all great. This is just icing on the cake.”

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By Tod Leonard
We’ve all probably got golfer friends who think they’re just a little bit cheekier than the rest of us. On a tight runway, they’ll putt with a fairway wood from 40 yards. Our favourite, though, is using a putter in a bunker when the lip is seemingly low. (Forgive us, please, for the quiet chuckle when it doesn’t work out.)

Lee Hodges was that guy on Sunday in the Honda Classic in Florida, and his bravado—or was it just overthinking?—probably cost him thousands of dollars while he contended for a sizeable paycheck.

Hodges was looking at a possible second top-10 finish of the PGA Tour season when he arrived at PGA National’s par-3 15th. He pulled his tee shot into the left greenside bunker, and though we didn’t see on the NBC broadcast how Hodges’ discussion with his caddie went in choosing the shot, we do know it was a delicate proposition—a downhill lie to a downhill slope on the green with water behind it. Pretty much everyone’s worst nightmare.

Hodges opted to use his putter but didn’t try to roll the ball out. He took a half-swing and the ball came out just as you might expect—low and much too quick. It rolled across the green and slowed down—but not enough to keep it from toppling over the bank and into a couple of inches of water and mud.

? File this under: Things you don’t usually see. pic.twitter.com/myAPphpe14

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 27, 2022

Adding to the ignominy, Hodges had to hike up his right pant leg, take off his shoes and socks and step into the goop. Considering the lie, he handled that OK, but still left himself an 18-footer for bogey. He missed it and made double. Damn you, Bear Trap.

To Hodges’ everlasting credit, he steadied himself after that with three pars, shot even-par 70 and did get that top-10—with a tie for ninth.

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