COLLEGE GROVE, Tenn. — Tyrrell Hatton complained about the celebratory champagne getting in his eyes, but he admitted it was sweet to taste victory again.
Hatton captured his first professional men’s golf win in more than three years and his first on the LIV Golf tour, finishing Nashville’s three-round tournament at 19-under 71 to clear the field by six shots at The Grove on Sunday.
The Englishman’s previous professional win had been at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship on the DP World Tour in 2021. He joined LIV in January.
“It was nice to play the last few holes and it not be super tight,” said Hatton, who was mobbed by Legion XIII teammates with bottles of champagne after completing the 18th hole. “I guess having not won for 3½ years, it feels — you wonder if you’d be able to do it again in some way. So, I was happy that I had sort of proved (that) to myself.”
Next, Hatton and LIV Golf have two weeks off before his lead-up to The Open Championship at Royal Troon Golf Club in Scotland, the season’s final major.
Hatton is still searching for his first major title. His best finish was tying for fifth in The Open at Royal Troon in 2016.
He tied for ninth at this year’s Masters and tied for 26th at last week’s U.S. Open, when he fell out of contention with a final-round 77.
“Bouncing back after the disappointment of last Sunday, that was (big),” Hatton said. “That was going to be a really important day for me, and I struggled.”
Little about his win at The Grove will translate to the links-style competition he will see at Royal Troon. He will play LIV’s event at Real Club Valderrama in Sotogrande, Spain, ahead of The Open.
Hatton collected $4 million for winning LIV Nashville’s individual title. He and Legion XIII teammates Jon Rahm, former Tennessee star Caleb Surratt and Kieran Vincent won the team competition with a cumulative 40 under to earn $3 million.
Hatton rose to the occasion on what was a birdie fest in the final round. He began the day with a three-shot lead over John Catlin, and a four-shot lead over U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau and Rahm.
Hatton made eight birdies Sunday to pull away with ease. Joaquin Niemann made 10 birdies, surging into a tie for third with Rahm, DeChambeau and Lee Westwood.
DeChambeau was a fan favorite all week after his dramatic U.S. Open win at Pinehurst No. 2. He drew huge galleries, helping LIV Nashville set the attendance record for the league’s United States events to date.
Rahm made an early run at the lead with birdies on three of his first four holes, but made a double bogey on the par-4 6th hole, followed by two more bogeys in his round.
Hatton’s only trouble came during an early stretch on the back nine. He hit his tee shot on No. 10 into the left fairway bunker, then skulled his approach behind the green but was able to save par. He bogeyed the par-4 12th hole but birdied three of his last five holes.
“He earned this win and he deserved this win,” Rahm said.
