The Zurich Classic of New Orleans was the ultimate redemption story.
In the PGA Tour’s lone team event, the tandem of Andrew Novak and Ben Griffin each notched their maiden wins, finishing at 28 under, one stroke ahead of Danish twins Nicolai and Rasmus Højgaard at TPC Louisiana.
“It’s just a full-circle moment,” Griffin said. “Andrew said that earlier, of us sitting up here together getting our first win. I feel like we’ve had similar tracks to where we are today.”
MORE: Final results, payouts from TPC Louisiana
Let’s start with Novak. He lost in a playoff to Justin Thomas last week at the RBC Heritage after finishing third in his previous start, the Valero Texas Open. The 30-year-old is now the first player to win the week after losing in a playoff since Patrick Cantlay in 2022. Coincidentally, Cantlay fell short at the RBC Heritage that year, then won the Zurich with Xander Schauffele.
Now, Novak is finally a Tour winner after 100 career starts.
“You never really know when you’re going to get your first one,” Novak said, “but we put ourselves in position again. Luckily, I had Ben there for me today, and he carried down the stretch. So exciting to get our first win together.”
One win, one dream 👏
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) April 27, 2025
The putt that seals the deal for first-time TOUR winners, @BenGriffinGolf
and @AndrewNovakGolf. pic.twitter.com/5uvu0Kmxhv
Griffin, meanwhile, quit competitive golf nearly four years ago and became a mortgage loan officer after limited success on the PGA Tour Latinoamérica. However, he found his way back on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2022 and earned his Tour card for the 2023 season.
Cracking the top 60 in the world rankings, he’s one of the Tour’s ironmen, making 14 starts already this season, including a stretch of 13 consecutive weeks.
Griffin and Novak have known each other since they were teenagers growing up in North Carolina, playing Carolinas Golf Association events together. In later years, both lived in Sea Island, Ga., and trained with the same strength coach, which helped bring this partnership to fruition.
The Zurich Classic does not reward world ranking points, but Griffin and Novak each earned two-year exemptions and 500 FedExCup points with the victory, not to mention a $1,329,400 payday for both.
But most importantly, their names are forever etched on the long list of Tour winners, a goal that each player never gave up on.
“It seems like a movie, really,” Novak said. “It seems like a movie script, like it’s not real. But it’s just perfect how it all came together.”
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Andrew Novak, Ben Griffin Get Long-Awaited First PGA Tour Wins at Zurich Classic.
