Back to back: Berger gives FSU two straight wins on PGA Tour

When Daniel Berger sank a clutch 30-foot eagle putt on No. 18 at Pebble Beach on Sunday, not only did it give him his fourth win on the PGA Tour, but it gave Florida State's golf program a second straight victory as well.

The week before, in Phoenix, four-time major champion Brooks Koepka made a dramatic charge on the back-nine to get back in the winner's circle.

It marked the first time two former collegiate teammates had won back-to-back on the PGA Tour since ... Berger and Koepka in 2017. That year, it was Berger winning first, on June 11, and Koepka following by winning a little tournament called the U.S. Open.

Three-and-a-half years later, the duo pulled off the rare feat again.

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Berger is now ranked No. 10 in the Fed Ex Cup Standings; Koepka is 13th. They both seem to have regained their form after struggling to be fully healthy in recent years.

Berger, who has had to overcome a wrist injury, had just one Top 10 finish in 2019; and Koepka, who dealt with a serious knee injury, had just two Top 25s in 2020.

Now, they've won on consecutive weeks on the PGA Tour.

And both were in dramatic fashion.

Berger, a 27-year-old former FSU star, was down two strokes when the day started on Sunday. And despite being 5-under through the first 17 holes, he was still just tied for the lead heading to No. 18.

It was the same hole he had hit out of bounds on Saturday, leading to a costly double-bogey. But on Sunday, when it mattered most, Berger ripped a perfect driver off the tee and then hit what he called an all-time great 3-wood to get on the green in two.

Knowing he needed just a two-putt to win, Berger went ahead and sank the eagle putt anyway. It was his fourth eagle of the weekend -- a feat that has only been achieved three other times on the PGA Tour in the last 30 years.

"I feel like I got a little bit of revenge on the 18th," Berger told reporters afterward. "I knew it was going to be a tight finish, and I just stepped up there and hit a great drive and hit maybe the best 3-wood I've ever hit in my life. And the putter was just kind of icing on the cake."

Not only was it his fourth win on Tour, but it put Berger in the Top 10 of the current U.S. Ryder Cup standings as well. He's currently at No. 8. HIs former teammate, Koepka, is No. 3.

So there's a chance the two might be on the same team again for the first time since 2012, when they helped FSU to a 9th-place finish at the NCAA Championships.

Berger was a freshman on that team. Koepka was the upperclassman who won three times that year and then turned pro afterward.

Now, nine years later, they are once again two of the best players on the PGA Tour.

And while Berger isn't as well known as his former college teammate (winning four majors has a way of making you a household name), he doesn't seem to mind being a bit under the radar.

"I do feel like I'm underrated, but that's OK with me," Berger said on Sunday. "I think it just puts a little chip on my shoulder, which is totally fine. ... You look at some of the other (better known) guys and what they have accomplished, I'm kind of right in line with that. So, I just want to continue to get better.

"I feel like my goal has always been to be the No. 1 player in the world. Some people will laugh at that, and that's fine. But that's something that every day I wake up and strive for."

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