Emotional Gary Woodland wins first PGA Tour title since brain surgery at Houston Open

The American closed with a three under 67 around Memorial Park, enough to take him to 21 under for the tournament, with Nicolai Hojgaard a distant five strokes adrift.

It was a two-horse race on Sunday in Houston, but Hojgaard virtually fell out of the race with a double bogey on the par-three seventh while Woodland rolled in a birdie. He drained two more gains on the eighth and ninth to extend the lead and never looked back.

Hojgaard and defending champion Min Woo Lee chose to hang back on their way to the 18th green to give Woodland the stage. The crowd took a break from chanting his name and Woodland sank a five-foot par putt to close out proceedings.

"We thought it was appropriate to let him have his moment," said Hojgaard.

"It was a pretty cool moment for Gary, and it was cool to see. I'm really happy for him."

Woodland had a brain lesion removed in 2023 and has openly struggled with anxiety and PTSD since. The win marked somewhat a return to his life before the trauma, where he was a US Open champion and multiple PGA Tour winner.

"We play an individual sport out here, but I wasn't alone today," quipped an emotional Woodland.

"Anyone struggling with something, I hope they see me and don't give up. Just keep fighting.

"It's just another day. Today was a good day. But I've got a big fight ahead of me, and I'm going to keep going. But I'm proud of myself right now."

The victory makes Woodland eligible for the Masters in two weeks time.