The Corales Puntacana Championship concluded with Garrick Higgo emerging victorious. He got off to a strong start, shooting a 64 in the opening round. However, his momentum slowed in the second round, allowing American golfer Joel Dahmen to climb the leaderboard. As the tournament progressed, Dahmen stumbled in the final round with a 76, giving Higgo the perfect opportunity to capitalize and secure the win and take $720,000 as the prize. But…

Witnessing the fans’ belief, it wasn’t the South Africans’ skills that granted him the win, but Dahmen’s whiff instead. Initially, Higgo didn’t have the lead. However, when Dahmen missed a 1-foot par putt on the par-3 17th for his second straight bogey, Higgo found the opportunity to claim the lead. It was still anyone’s game.

Joel Dahmen needed to sink an 8-foot putt for par on the par-4 18th, but he missed, resulting in a bogey instead. Thanks to that, Garrick Higgo became the eventual champion.  After the PGA Tour shared the post saying, “A champion on TOUR once again,” the community started to voice their opinion, and the comment section was filled with similar kinds of reactions. 

Garrick Higgo was on a winless streak after the 2021 Palmetto Championship. Although he came close at the Puerto Rico Open, finishing T12, the winless streak finally finished at the Corales Puntacana Championship after four years of waiting. Despite that long wait, he isn’t getting the praise after claiming the title.

What do fans have to say about Garrick Higgo’s win?

Dahmen had a bogey-free second round with six birdies to his name. However, the 37-year-old started to lose momentum from the third round. To this, one fan added, “He didn’t win. Joel completely choked. Sad to see. Was cheering HARD for Joel.” Highlighting, had he carried his form, he would have finally won his second title after 2021. Expressing similar sentiments, another added, “Dahmen total collapse.” 

Joel Dahmen was off to an incredible start. He carded ten birdies in the first round and finished with a 62. Witnessing this form, this fan found it hard to believe that Dahmen couldn’t win and shockingly added, “Damn Joel coughed it up??” He indeed shot three bogeys in the third round, but he still had the lead. However, after he missed the crucial putt on the par-4 18th, he collapsed and was unable to win.

Joel Dahmen made headlines during the first two days of the tournament, going bogey-free in both rounds and showing impressive form. But after Friday, everything changed dramatically. One fan summed it up bluntly: “BRUTAL collapse for Joel Dahmen. Five bogeys on the way in. May never recover from that.” Despite his strong start, the 37-year-old unraveled in the final round, carding six bogeys and losing his grip on the lead. His back-to-back bogeys on the 16th, 17th, and 18th holes drew even more attention, with another fan commenting, “Joel choked in the last few holes? lol.”

Do you think it was Joel Dahmen’s collapse that granted Garrick Higgo the win? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!