Tournament of Champions 2019: Xander Schauffele Bests Gary Woodland to Earn Win

Xander Schauffele continued his hot start to the season with a first-place finish at the 2019 Tournament of Champions.

The American topped a loaded list of golfers in the 33-person field at Kapalua Resort in Hawaii, edging out Gary Woodland for the win by one stroke thanks to his 62 in the final round Sunday, which tied a course record. Justin Thomas, Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy also finished in the top five.

Schauffele now has two wins in his first four official starts this season, which could signal a big 2019 for the 25-year-old.

Final Leaderboard

1. Xander Schauffele (-23)

2. Gary Woodland (-22)

3. Justin Thomas (-18)

T4. Dustin Johnson (-15)

T4. Rory McIlroy (-15)

T4. Marc Leishman (-15)

7. Bryson DeChambeau (-14)

T8. Webb Simpson (-13)

T8. Jon Rahm (-13)

T8. Patton Kizzire (-13)

Full results available at PGATour.com.

Woodland appeared to be in good shape entering the final day with a three-stroke lead over McIlroy. He continued to make his birdies, although the tournament got closer thanks to the performance of the rest of the field.

Schauffele was the most impressive after beginning the fourth round five strokes back and in fourth place.

After bogeying the first hole, he caught fire with eight birdies and two eagles for the rest of the round.

He was seemingly making shots from anywhere on the course:

Those watching along were impressed by his confidence:

This was enough to match Woodland and eventually move ahead over the final few holes.

While Woodland tried to keep pace, Schauffele closed it out with birdies in his final two holes, with this shot on 18 really standing out:

Woodland had a 10-foot putt on the 18th hole to potentially force a playoff but missed it to end up in second place.

Justin Thomas finished off the lead, but he had an impressive run up the leaderboard Sunday as well, shooting a 65 to get into third place.

The golfers will get some nice relaxation as the PGA Tour remains in Hawaii for another week. The Sony Open will kick off Thursday from Honolulu.