Elite head to Sawgrass for Players Championship after suffering Bay Hill humbling at hands of Kurt Kitayama

Kurt Kitayama emerged triumphant from a congested Arnold Palmer Invitational leaderboard on Sunday – the 200-1 outsider ending up as the toast of bookmakers after defeating an elite field at Bay Hill.

The vast majority of the golf punting community were supporting others, with Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy among those jostling with Kitayama for the title, but the 30-year-old PGA Tour maiden edged to victory by a shot.

A birdie at the 17th hole put Kitayama in control, then he made an easy par at the 18th to seal his breakthrough success.

Numerous others held favouritism during a remarkable final round. Jordan Spieth played the final five holes in three over par to blow his chance, Tyrrell Hatton surrendered favouritism with back-to-back bogeys at the 12th and 13th, while Scheffler and McIlroy also suffered late setbacks.

The PGA Tour's other event – the Puerto Rico Open – was won by Nico Echavarria. The Colombian rookie was a 125-1 chance ante-post.

This week the DP World Tour returns with the Kenya Open, which features Scottish duo Robert MacIntyre and Richie Ramsay, but most of the golfing spotlight falls on the Players Championship at Sawgrass.

The battle for world-number-one status will continue at Sawgrass. Jon Rahm remained top dog despite finishing 39th at Bay Hill, but Scheffler and McIlroy are snapping at his heels. A $25m prize fund is on offer for the Players, with $4.5m going to the winner.

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