(Reuters) – Chilean Joaquin Niemann, fresh off a second PGA Tour title that came over two years after bagging his first, said on Tuesday his wire-to-wire victory against a stacked field has given him a new sense of confidence.
A near-flawless Niemann enjoyed a two-shot victory last week at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California, where his 19-under 265 total was one short of the oldest tournament scoring record on the PGA Tour, set by Lanny Watkins in 1985.
“Obviously winning at Riviera and how big that tournament is, all the players that were playing … it made me prove a lot of things and knowing that I can win there I think you can win anywhere,” Niemann told reporters ahead of this week’s Honda Classic in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
“That’s going to be a good boost of more confidence for what is coming and, yeah, I mean, if I keep playing the way I played that week I know I could be on the top.”
With his win at the Genesis Invitational, Niemann rose 12 spots to 20th in the world rankings and arrives at PGA National this week for the start of the Florida swing eager to add more hardware to his trophy case.
The par-70 Champion layout — whose “Bear Trap” is known as one of the most demanding three-hole stretches in golf — is one of tougher ones on tour but relishes playing on courses where the winning score could easily be one digit under par.
“I always like playing challenging courses,” said Niemann, who loves about a 10-minute drive from PGA National.
“It reflects and it pays a lot to guys that hit it good off the tee and good irons. So I think it could fit good my game, hopefully have a good week and why not go back-to-back?”
Niemann will play the opening two rounds this week alongside four-times major champion Brooks Koepka and Canadian Mackenzie Hughes.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
