Jaeger family celebrates
photo by Golf Channel
Whatever Stephan Jaeger’s plans were for next week, his schedule will look a lot different following Sunday afternoon.
Jaegar, the former Baylor School and University of Tennessee at Chattanooga golfer who still resides in the Scenic City, claimed his first PGA Tour victory winning the Texas Children’s Houston Open by one shot over world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler.
The victory for the 34-year-old Jaeger not only earned him $1,638,000 and entry into the remaining four signature events this season, but qualifies him for the upcoming Masters Tournament.
Scheffler, trying to become the first player in seven years to win three straight starts, missed a 5-footer on 18 that would have forced a playoff. Jaeger parred the final hole to shoot 3-under 67 on Sunday, finishing at 12-under for the tournament.
“It feels amazing,” Jaeger said. “I couldn’t have thought … dreamed up a better week to do it. Obviously playing Scottie last couple days, he’s been on a tear, so to kind of slay the dragon a little bit this week was amazing. He’s such a good dude, such a good player. I was just happy to play with him a couple days.”
Jaegar had six wins on the Korn Ferry Tour before finally claiming his first PGA Tour victory in his 135th start. He moved into the top 50 in the world rankings for the first time in his career and is currently 10th in the FedEx Cup standings.
Jaeger joins fellow Baylor alums Harris English (4 wins), Luke List (2 wins) and Keith Mitchell (1 win) as former Red Raider golfers to win a PGA tournament.
The German native who moved to the United States to attend Baylor when he was 16, celebrated the win with his wife, Shelby, and their 16-month-old son, Harrison.
“Being able to enjoy this moment with my wife and son was a life-changer,” Jaeger said in the post-tournament press conference. “My wife has seen the worst and she’s seen me win on the Korn Ferry Tour. She’s been my biggest supporter and my biggest critic to set me straight. To be able to celebrate with the two most important people in my life was special.”
Jaeger, who has a pair of third-place finishes this season, was one of five players tied for the lead entering the final round. He shot 3-under on the opening nine, then recorded nine consecutive pars to close his round.
Jaeger turned professional after graduating from UTC in 2012, and his victory is particularly meaningful for current Mocs golf coach Blaine Woodruff.
“It’s huge for our program,” Woodruff said. “Stephan practices at our facility a ton and plays the same courses in our rotation when he’s in town. It just shows that our facilities are not only good enough to get you to the Tour but helps you prepare to win on the Tour. It’s really encouraging for our guys to have spent a bunch of time around Stephan and to see what it takes to win.”
John Houk, a senior on the UTC squad, viewed Jaeger’s win with pride in seeing a former Mocs golfer close out the victory.
“Seeing him get it done against the best player in the world was special for our program to witness,” Houk said. “Seeing how hard he works each day is a testament to our program that we have what it takes in our facilities, community and surrounding courses to become a top golfer. That is super exciting for me, and I’m sure the rest of the players on my team as well.”
Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com