JACKSON, Miss. — A couple of little birdies — one to force a playoff and another to win — told Kevin Yu he’d earned the victory at the Sanderson Farms Championship on Sunday, his first PGA Tour triumph.
For the third year in a row, and fourth time in six years, 72 holes weren’t enough to decide the tournament at The Country Club of Jackson.
Yu and Beau Hossler both finished 23-under 265 on Sunday, adding an extra hole of suspense before the rooster trophy and $1.368 million were awarded to the winner.
Hossler, too, was going for his first PGA Tour victory but parred the playoff hole.
“I’m excited inside my mind but I’m trying to be as calm as possible from outside,” Yu said. “I feel like I took a little break from last month, (it) really helped me. I feel like I was playing great and just mentally I was just kind of tired, frustrated, and just feel like momentum couldn’t going anywhere in the last maybe six months.”
Sanderson Farms: Leaderboard | Photos
That wasn’t so during four days at The Country Club of Jackson, where Yu, who played at Arizona State and finished third in the NCAA Division I men’s championship in 2019, became the third Taiwanese player to win on the PGA Tour.
“It’s literally a dream come true,” Yu said. “I’ve been dreaming of this moment since I was 5. I think this is the dream for all the golfers, to win on the PGA.
“And then I did it today and I’m really thankful for my parents right there right now. Without them, I don’t think I could’ve done this, win this tournament.”
Yu is the 12th first-time winner on PGA Tour in 2024. He’s the 14th player to make the Sanderson Farms Championship his first PGA Tour title, but the first since 2019 (Sebastian Munoz).
Keith Mitchell, who led going into the final round, finished tied for third with Lucas Glover at 22 under after he bogeyed his final hole. Alex Smalley’s 9-under 63 was the lowest round of the day and pushed him into a fifth-place tie with Bud Cauley at 21 under.
A tournament that began with David Skinns shooting a course-record 60 ended with a first-time champion.
Along with the win, Yu also slides up into No. 60 in the FedEx Cup standings, a key position because golfers Nos. 51 through 60 get tee times in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and Genesis Invitational, the first two signature events of 2025. Yu was 96th when the week started. He’s up to No. 71 in the Official World Golf Ranking.
