Tiger Woods has arrived at Southern Hills. Woods made his latest competitive comeback at last month’s Masters, after suffering severe injuries to both legs in a single-car accident in February 2021. While he never made a formal announcement about his intention to play this week’s PGA Championship, he did make an early scouting trip to Southern Hills and his name appeared in each field list released by the PGA of America. He’s now on the grounds, the site of his 2007 PGA Championship triumph, which marked his 13th of 15 major championship titles. “I’ve gotten a lot stronger since the Masters,” Woods told Golfweek as he traversed the front nine at Southern Hills on Sunday, with temperatures hovering around and above 90 degrees. “We went back to work on Tuesday (after the Masters). Monday was awful; I did nothing and Tuesday was leg day. “So we went right back after it. Everything is better.” According to Golfweek’s report, Woods spent considerable focus on and around the greens during his practice session; Southern Hills’ contoured green complexes are expected to sternly test the 156-player PGA Championship field. The course underwent a dramatic Gil Hanse renovation since last hosting the PGA 15 years ago. Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis reported that Woods’ swing speed appeared robust, including a 358-yard drive at the par-4 second hole. Woods played the front nine at Southern Hills on Sunday; he was joined by Gary Woodland on No. 5. “Hundred percent I see him stronger,” added caddie Joe LaCava in a session with reporters. “I just think the endurance is there now. I don’t think he’s getting quite as tired as quickly. “Other than the fact that he won here in 2007, I think it’s the stamina and endurance thing that excites him the most.” Woods thrilled fans with an opening-round 71 in his competitive return at the Masters, his first round on TOUR since the (November) 2020 Masters. His endurance appeared to wane throughout the week; he followed with rounds of 74-78-78, finishing in 47th place. But he made the cut and successfully walked 72 holes at Augusta National. In his post-round remarks that Sunday, he committed to competing at the Open Championship at St Andrews in July. He proceeded with caution as to the PGA Championship. Now he’s set to proceed into competition. “Am I ever going to have full mobility? No. Never again,” Woods said Sunday at Southern Hills. “But I’ll be able to get stronger. It’s going to ache, but that’s the way it’s going to be. “I’m excited about (the week). I’m not going to play that much going forward, so anytime I do play, it’s going to be fun to play and to compete. There are only so many money games you can play at home.”

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MCKINNEY, Texas — Something about the AT&T Byron Nelson brings out the best in K.H. Lee. He won it last year. He won it again Sunday. He beat a stout field with a final-round 63 that included two clutch putts in the last three holes and a two-putt birdie on the par-5 18th. Lee knew he would need it. In the group behind him, Jordan Spieth nipped at Lee’s lead throughout the back nine as other players faded. Lee figured Spieth would birdie the last hole — so he would need to, too. He coasted his 24-foot putt to 4 inches. Lee won by a shot at 26 under par. He joined Tom Watson, Jack Nicklaus and Sam Snead as back-to-back winners of the AT&T Byron Nelson. He also moved up 88 spots on the FedExCup points list, from No. 116 to No. 28. Lee, who was born and educated in South Korea, said his second career victory modified his goals for the current season. He wants to make the cut in the PGA Championship, which he missed last year. He also said he intends to make the TOUR Championship, which he missed last season by one spot. “Hopefully this season will be better than last year,” he said. Lee proved to himself Sunday that he can achieve his goals. He wanted a solid front nine. He made five birdies. He wanted to keep his momentum on the back. He played it in 32 strokes, including an eagle on the par-5 12th. He had a tricky putt of 11 feet on the par-3 17th. He said a short prayer and buried it. He held off a number of tested players, most of them with more wins than he, on a day when low rounds were plentiful. The leaderboards around TPC Craig Ranch could barely register scores fast enough. Xander Schauffele and Hideki Matsuyama, who played early, ascended. Charl Schwartzel, Alex Noren (64), Matt Kuchar (64), Peter Malnati (66) and Christiaan Bezuidenhout (67) made charges as the blazing afternoon wore on. But those who started near the lead kept pace. Those players — Jordan Spieth, Sebastian Munoz, Justin Thomas and James Hahn — had their own opportunities. With the entire field clear through the front nine, 10 contestants had a realistic chance to win. Schauffele, who survived the cut on the number, shot a near-flawless 61 to lead briefly. Spieth tied Lee minutes later at the ninth with a birdie, his fourth in five holes, and when Spieth took three putts from 8 feet for a bogey on the next hole, Matsuyama birdied the 15th to replace him. The race was on. Then Lee eagled No. 12 to reach 24-under. Schauffele was done. Lee birdied the 13th. He was now the one to catch. No one could. “Last year I missed the cut at the PGA Championship,” Lee said. “So my first goal is next week play well, hopefully make the cut.” There are two other majors. Then the FedExCup Playoffs. “This helps,” Lee said. “This is really good.”

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MCKINNEY, Texas — Before his round Sunday, Jordan Spieth wanted to be 25 under par on the 72nd tee. He missed by one. One was the difference. A birdie on the last hole of the AT&T Byron Nelson gave him second place alone and a sting he said he’d feel for a while. Spieth shot 5-under 67 to finish 25-under total, one stroke back of K.H. Lee, who became the first back-to-back winner of the tournament since Tom Watson achieved the Texas two-step in 1979 and 1980. While disappointing to lose a meaningful tournament in his hometown, the one that gave him a sponsor exemption when he was in high school, Spieth said his performance through four rounds at TPC Craig Ranch gave him confidence, purpose and a sense of calm as he starts to focus on next week’s PGA Championship at Southern Hills. “Good momentum going into next week,” said Spieth, who lacks only the PGA in a quest for the career Grand Slam. Spieth started the fourth round in the final group, one stroke off the lead held by fellow Dallas resident Sebastian Munoz. He shared the lead at times on a topsy-turvy afternoon. He showed glimpses of the Jordan Spieth of old, the one who putted boldly and delivered one quality iron shot after another. He also made three bogeys through 10 holes. But the mistakes were past him at that point. “I played the holes from there exactly how they were supposed to be played,” Spieth said. “Grabbed three more birdies and it just wasn’t quite good enough.” The drama built throughout the round and reached its apex at the tee of No. 14. Spieth was two shots behind Lee when he reached the short par 4. The group ahead, which included the defending champion, allowed the final group to play in. Spieth drove the green. He marked his ball. Then he watched Lee three-putt. The par by the leader kept Spieth in the chase. He two-putted for birdie, reaching 24 under, a shot behind Lee. It was that way until the end. Spieth saw Lee make a 6-footer for par on the long 16th and a gritty 12-footer for par on the short 17th. He watched from 245 yards away in the par-5 18th fairway as Lee lined up his putt for eagle. Lee two-putted for birdie, granting Spieth one more chance. Spieth cut a 3-metal. It stalled in the crosswind. His ball landed just short of the green, near a seam in the grass, 30 feet from the hole. He chipped it close but not in. “I would love to win it someday,” Spieth said. “I had a good chance here.” He goes to Tulsa, Oklahoma, with a recent win (the RBC Heritage in April) and a pair of runners-up, including the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February. He appears well clear of the winless streak of 83 starts that ended at the 2021 Valero Texas Open, his 12th PGA TOUR title. He is making putts he used to miss. “I thought I made some really nice 5-foot sliders down the stretch,” Spieth said. “Those are ones that I just put good fluid strokes, more judging line than speed. I was more outwardly focused than stroke focused. So that’s really important under pressure as I look into a major.” Spieth said last spring that he was seeking the swing of his youth. He said Sunday he felt much closer to that goal. “I feel like I’ve got every shot,” he said. He made an eagle and 29 birdies at the AT&T Byron Nelson. TPC Craig Ranch and Southern Hills Country Club are two different courses, but Spieth said he trusts his game to travel intact to Oklahoma. “I don’t feel like I have to go change much,” he said. “I just feel like I’m doing the right things.”

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McKINNEY, Texas (AP) — K.H. Lee ran across the fairway to try to get a better view of the key shot in his second consecutive victory in the AT&T Byron Nelson. The South Korean must have known it would be close, same as the low-scoring drama around him that included hometown favorite Jordan Spieth and a couple of other major winners in Hideki Matsuyama and Justin Thomas. Lee’s 240-yard shot on the par-5 12th hole stopped less than 5 feet from the pin, and the eagle put him in front for good Sunday on the way to a 9-under 63 and a one-shot victory over Spieth at TPC Craig Ranch. Lee earned 500 FedExCup points in the win and moved from No. 116 to No. 28. Spieth shot a 67 to finish a stroke ahead of Matsuyama (62) and Sebastián Muñoz (69), who held or shared the lead the first three rounds. Xander Schauffele had a career-best 61 and tied for fifth with Ryan Palmer (66) and Thomas (67). A year ago, Lee was playing for a spot in the PGA Championship, where he’ll be again next week at Southern Hills in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This time it was for a place in history as the 30-year-old joined Sam Snead (1957-58), Jack Nicklaus (1970-71) and Tom Watson (1978-80) as the only repeat winners at the AT&T Byron Nelson. Lee finished at 26 under, one shot better than last year. Spieth had to settle for another career-best finish in the event he so badly wants to win, a year after the three-time major champion was ninth but never really close in a disappointing final round. This final round was really close. Leading by one, Lee made a curling 12-foot putt to save par on the par-3 17th after a short chip ran long when Lee tried to find his footing in the sand with the ball above his feet just outside the bunker. Spieth missed a 9-foot birdie putt on 17 that would have pulled him even, then had to have eagle on the par-5 18th after Lee’s tap-in birdie. Spieth’s eagle chip stayed left of the hole. With short par 4s and reachable par 5s, the birdies never stopped at TPC Craig Ranch, the second-year home of the Nelson. There were 2,228 birdies after 2,007 a year ago, which was the most on the PGA TOUR last season. Eagles were plentiful, too. Last year, six players reached 20 under. This time it was 14. Even missed chances at eagles were costly, such as on No. 12 when Muñoz’s 6-footer circled the cup and stayed out, leaving him a stroke behind not long after Lee followed his clutch shot by making the short putt. Schauffele posted a clubhouse lead at 23 under with a birdie on 18 just as the last groups were making the turn. The 12-ranked player said he didn’t figure on hanging around long with birdies — and eagles — so plentiful at TPC Craig Ranch. He was free to go after Matsuyama’s eagle at 18 put the 2021 Masters champion a shot ahead. Still, Schauffele’s turnaround was remarkable in his first event since teaming with Patrick Cantlay to win the Zurich Classic of New Orelans. The reigning Olympic champion was 26 under over the final 49 holes, starting with eight birdies from No. 6 on in the second round to rally from 3 over and make the cut on the number (5 under). He began the final round nine shots back. Schauffele holed a 97-yard wedge for eagle on the short par-4 sixth then added eight birdies over the last 11 holes for the third score of 61 or better this week. Muñoz opened with his second 60 of the season, a first on tour. “I had no pressure to shoot a low score,” Schauffele said. “The leaders are expected to shoot at least five or six (under) to kind of keep the pace. So I was literally just trying to birdie as many holes as possible while being smart as well.” Justin Lower recorded the second of two aces in the round in the stadium setting on 17, landing a low 9-iron from 135 yards just right of the pin before the ball backed up and rolled in. Marc Leishman had the first hole-in-one on the 213-yard 15th, land a 7-iron short and watching it roll in. It was Leishman’s second career ace and the first at the Nelson since Tyler Duncan in 2018.

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