Martin Laird Wins Valero Texas Open & Books Trip To Augusta

A -9 under par 63 is a good score in any round, but on Sunday with a chance to win a PGA Golf tournament, and an invitation to The Masters, a -9 under par 63 is a great score. Martin Laird came out on Sunday morning at The Valero Texas Open with one thing on his mind. Another trip to Augusta. The 31-year-old from Glasgow put nine birdies on his card, and no bogeys at TPC San Antonio, and won both

May 12, 2012; Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, USA; Martin Laird tees off on the 1st hole during the third round of the PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports /

Laird got it going early with birdies at two and three, and late, with a hat trick and birdies at 16, 17 , and 18. He got into a bit of trouble at 14, but worked his way through it and made par. 54 hole leader, and my favorite to win today, Billy Horschel made a ton of long putts, but wasn’t able to put up enough birdies. He finished in third place behind Rory McIlroy, and will have to wait until next year for another opportunity to go to Augusta.

The Scotsman, who went to college at Colorado State, and currently resides in Scottsdale, ended the American dominance of the 2013 season. In fact, the winning streak went two tournaments back into 2012 and totaled 16, 14 on this season. It is the 11th time a player has won the week before the year’s first major to get into the field at the Masters. It also helped keep a streak of major appearances alive for the 30-year-old, who will be playing in his 11th straight major.

In eight starts this season, Laird missed the cut in half of them. In the other half, his best finish was a tie for 34th. Sunday, however, Laird made nine birdies and no bogeys on a difficult TPC San Antonio course that annually ranks among the toughest on the PGA TOUR.

Rory McIlroy started to look a little like the old Rory on Sunday. As usual, he was having trouble keeping his drives in the fairway, but his short game, and putter were looking pretty good. McIlroy shot a -6 under 66, and was sitting in the fairway on the 18th hole with the longest drive of the day when Laird drained his birdie to virtually put the tournament out of reach. McIlroy would have to have double eagle to tie by the time he hit his 247 yard approach shot. He missed his eagle putt, but did make birdie. He ended his day with sole possession of second place.

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