Straka rallies to win the Honda Classic

Sepp Straka is going back to Georgia in a few weeks. He's headed to the Masters, after pulling off a huge comeback to win the Honda Classic.

Straka, down by five shots entering the final round, tapped in for birdie in the rain on the final hole and ended up beating Shane Lowry by one shot to become the first Austrian winner in PGA Tour history. He shot a 4-under 66 on Sunday to finish at 10 under and earn $1.44 million US.

"The words aren't really coming to me right now," Straka said. "It's just crazy. I really don't know what to think."

He sure knew how to play.

A first-round 71 was followed by a 64 on Friday, 69 on Saturday and then then 66 on Sunday. He was 4 under in his final 10 holes, 3 under over the final five, finishing with a flourish while most others sputtered.

Lowry shot his third consecutive round of 67, finishing the week 9 under. First-round leader Kurt Kitayama (68) was alone in third at 8 under, and Daniel Berger — who led by six shots with 19 holes left in the tournament — simply fell apart Sunday, his round of 74 leaving him 7 under for the week and three shots behind Straka.

"Just a poor round," Berger said. "It can happen at any time. I'm not going to dwell on it too much. Just didn't hit quality shots at the right time. Probably would've had a chance to win if I made a few more putts. I don't think I made a single putt today."

He didn't. Berger made two birdies Sunday — both chip-ins, one from the sand, one from a grassy slope.

Lowry needed to make a 45-footer for birdie on the final hole to force a playoff. It missed, and with that, the Honda had a new champion — one who came into the week ranked No. 176 in the world, has never been higher than No. 129 on that list, and whose claim to fame as a