Jerry Kelly, right, shares a laugh with his caddy on the 16th hole during the Kaulig Companies Championship pro-am at Firestone Country Club, Wednesday, July 10, 2024, in Akron, Ohio. Jerry Kelly capitalized on his hot tournament start, shooting a 5-under-par 67 Sunday to close out a one-stroke victory at the Mitsubishi Electric Classic in Duluth, Ga.
In winning his first tournament of the 2025 season, and his 13th overall in the PGA Tour Champions, Kelly recorded six birdies against a single bogey Sunday to finish at 20-under-par 196 for the event.
“I definitely wanted to win this one so it was nice to get it done,” Kelly said.
Kelly, 58, set both the tournament scoring record and the TPC Sugarloaf course record with a 10-under-par 62 on Friday, before following up on Saturday with a 5-under 67.
His play on Sunday secured him a 20 under, a tournament record.
By his own admission, Kelly didn’t feel entirely comfortable out there Saturday, but he did find a strong enough form to close out the victory Sunday, which he credited to some familial advice.
“Really, my wife just gave me some good ideas last night to just be easy with everything,” Kelly said. “I came out here and whether it was a struggle or not, it was much easier than it was yesterday. I didn’t get in my own way quite as much. I hit a couple good putts that didn’t go in on that stretch I was making pars.
“But even my son, Coop, got into the act a little bit. I tried to ask him last night what’s going on and he said, ‘You’re fine.’ So, it’s a family affair out here and they both helped, it was great.”
Kelly opened his day with four birdies among his first five holes to apply early pressure to his opponents, weathered a bogey on Hole 9, then got two more birdies on 15 and 17, taking a two-stroke lead over closest competition Ernie Els into the final hole.
Els, of South Africa, scored birdies on Holes 3 and 13 as well as an eagle on No. 6 before he pocketed a birdie on Hole 18 to force Kelly to sink his final putt to make par and earn the win without a playoff.
“I’ll tell you what, Ernie is one of the best people out here and I respect the heck out of him,” Kelly said. “To go head-to-head with him, it’s like Ernie, it’s hard not to get caught up in just being with him.”
Kelly got to within a foot of the hole on his fourth shot, and he calmly made par from that distance, wrapping up just his second Champions win in the last three years.
He again credited his wife and his improved posture for the win.
“I really just tried to stay in posture more, let the swing happen,” Kelly said. “I know I was getting out of it quite a bit. That was the main thing she told me is I was out of posture on most of my shots, so that helped.”
Els, who came into the day tied for the overall lead with Kelly, shot a 4-under 68 to finish second at 19 under. He had one bogey, on Hole 2.
New Zealand’s Steven Alker (65) finished four strokes back at 16-under 200 for third place.
Argentina’s Angel Cabrera (68) was fourth at 15 under, while Fiji’s Vijay Singh (70) was fifth at 13 under.
Davis Love III, 61, shot 1-over 73 to finish 2-over for the tournament (T60), less than three months after undergoing open-heart surgery to repair a leaky valve.
–Field Level Media
