Anirban Lahiri's Gutsy Display Falls One Shot Shy Of Historic Win At THE PLAYERS Championship

Coming into the final round with a one-shot lead, Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri gave it his all but fell short by a stroke to end second at the USD 20 million THE PLAYERS Championship. This was nonetheless an impressive return to form for the seasoned pro as he walked away with a career-best USD 2.18 million in earnings. Lahiri (69) needed a birdie on the 18th hole, the 72nd of the tournament, to force a play-off with a charged-up Cameron Smith of Australia, who began the final round with four birdies in a row.

Smith carded 66 and totalled 13-under, despite a nervous bogey on the 18th, while Lahiri ended at 12-under after a superb birdie on the iconic Island Green on 17th and a par on the 18th.

"I want to win. I've been here seven years; haven't gotten over the line yet. That's definitely a monkey I want to get off my back. Today was as good an opportunity as any," said a disappointed Lahiri, who was bidding to become the second Indian after Arjun Atwal to win on the PGA TOUR.

But the performance overall was a major boost to his confidence.

"I'm just relieved. I've gone through two years of playing horrible. The last time I contended in a field this good was at Memorial maybe, five years ago, or even that was a back-door second. I shot 7-under on Sunday. It's been a long time since I've been in this position in a quality field like this," he said.

It was the 34-year-old's second career runner-up finish following the 2017 Memorial Tournament and pushed him up to 45th position on the FedExCup with 330 points.

After finishing the last seven holes of the third round with one more birdie and one more bogey, Lahiri ended the 54 holes of the weather-disrupted USD 20 million flagship event with a one-shot lead over the field.

Smi