Harold Varner wins LIV Golf DC, $4 million prize

LIV Golf's inaugural foray into the D.C. area wrapped up Sunday with Harold Varner III making a birdie on the final hole to secure a one-stroke victory at Trump National Golf Club in Sterling.

Varner collected the first win on American soil of his professional career with a one-foot putt at the par-5 18th and then celebrated claiming the $4 million winner's check with son Liam and wife Amanda. His final stroke broke a tie with South Africa's Branden Grace and left Varner at 12 under par for the 54-hole event. Grace was alone in second, and Chile's Mito Pereira was third at 10 under.

"Don't f---ing miss," Varner, who emerged from the structure used for scoring wielding two cans of beer, said of his thought process standing over his winning putt. "It crept in. Those are the battles of golf. It's just like: ‘I want to go home, and if I make this, I get to go home sooner. Just make the putt.’ "

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Varner spoke extensively about putting a considerable portion of his winnings toward his charitable initiative. His HV3 Foundation provides underserved youth affordable access to golf while also providing mentorship in and around Charlotte.

"Twenty years from now, no one is going to remember who won this tournament, who won any tournament," the 32-year-old said. "They’re going to remember how you helped them. I’ve always said that. It costs a lot of money to help a lot of people."

In the team competition, Torque — led by captain Joaquin Niemann and also featuring David Puig, Sebastián Muñoz and Pereira — prevailed at 27 under. The foursome beat Stinger (Grace, Dean Burmester, Charl Schwartzel and captain Louis Oosthuizen) by three strokes.

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Organizers of the breakaway circuit, which is bankrolled by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, had to be pleased with Sunday's leader board. During one stretch, seven players were within a stroke of the lead, and among them were major championship winners Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka and Cameron Smith.

DeChambeau began the round five shots back of Pereira, the 36-hole leader, in his first tournament since he tied for fourth at last week's PGA Championship for his best finish at a major since he won the 2020 U.S. Open. He faltered starting with a bogey on No. 10 and finished six shots behind Varner.

Koepka, the PGA Championship winner and now a five-time major champion, opened with consecutive birdies but ended up at 5 under.

Playing three holes behind Koepka was Smith, last year's British Open champion. His eagle at No. 3 vaulted him up a crowded leader board, but three bogeys over the next six holes extinguished any aspirations for a victory. He finished at 6 under.

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It's unclear whether LIV Golf, which typically does not release fan attendance numbers, will be back in the D.C. area next year, per Ron Cross, the circuit's chief events officer. But the reception from the area's golf fans — Sunday's gallery reached upward of three rows deep — certainly will be a factor when next season's schedule is determined.

"Not too long ago we just figured out the 2023 schedule," Cross said. "Hoping to figure out the ’24 very soon, but we’ve still got some work to do and lot of moving parts. So we’re still working through that the next few months, but I would say this market is absolutely a market in the future that we’d like to come back to."