Tim O’Neal gained his revenge for his sad loss at the Farmers Insurance Invitational at Torrey Pines on Jan 30 – the APGA’s inaugural nationally broadcast event.
O’Neal won the event with a 5-foot birdie putt on the final hole, but on Tuesday, he won the APGA’s opening event of the 2022 Lexus Cup season, shooting 9-under 135 at TPC Harding Park, the site of Collin Morikawa’s victory in the 2020 PGA Championship. O’Neal, who has been a member of the APGA Tour since its start in 2010, had 15 birdies in all, including two 25-foot putts.
The 49-year-old has almost 200 mini-tour starts under his belt and eight PGA Tour outings, including the 2015 U.S. Open. And, if he continues to play well, O’Neal might be able to add to his resume via the PGA Tour Champions after he turns 50 on Aug. 3.
Following his victory, O’Neal told PGATour.com, “In my view, I still have a long way to go.” “I’m simply trying to improve every day so I can compete,” she says.
O’Neal missed out on the $30,000 first-place prize at Torrey Pines, but he will still play on the Korn Ferry Tour in May as Patrick Newcomb, the Farmers Insurance Invitational champion, granted him an exemption into the Simmons Bank Open, which he won.
O’Neal was able to make up for his loss at Torrey Pines two weeks later by winning the first-place prize of $7,500 in San Francisco, and he’ll look to add to that amount in the tour’s next tournament on March 7-8 at TPC Louisiana.
“Coming in, I was in a good place in terms of confidence,” O’Neal said. “At the end of the day, I’m in good shape if I can make putts.”
