More of the Same

Former Fort Collins resident Sam Saunders resides in Florida these days, but given how his visits to Puerto Rico have gone in recent years, he obviously feels right at home on the island.

A week after serving as unofficial host of the Arnold Palmer Invitational after his seven-time-major-winning grandfather pass away in September, Saunders tied for fifth Sunday in the PGA Tour’s Puerto Rico Open.

He has now posted two top-five finishes in his PGA Tour career, and both of them have come at the Puerto Rico Open. He placed second in a playoff on the island in 2015.

In just three appearances at the Puerto Rico Open, Saunders has earned $318,900, which accounts for more than one-fifth of his career earnings on the PGA Tour.

Saunders went bogey-free for his final 26 holes and shot a 7-under-par 65 on Sunday. That gave him a 17-under-par 271 total, which left him three strokes behind champion D.A. Points.

Sunday marked Saunders’ first top-40 finish on the PGA Tour in the 2016-17 wraparound season.