May 22, 2022; Tulsa, OK, USA; Mito Pereira plays his shot from the seventh tee during the final round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at Southern Hills Country Club. Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

Mito Pereira loses PGA Championship lead with double-bogey on 18

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Larry Brown | Last updated 5/22/22

Mito Pereira looked like he had the PGA Championship locked up on Sunday, but then he blew it on the 72nd hole of the tournament.

The 27-year-old golfer entered Sunday’s final round as the 54-hole leader at 9-under par. Mito’s great score was secured by an impressive 6-under 64 during the second round on Saturday.

But Pereira slowly started to see his lead dwindle on the final day.

Pereira shot 2-over on the front nine and then was 1-over on the back nine until arriving at the 18th hole. He was still in position to win until completely melting down.

Mito opted for his driver on 18, then had a weird follow through and hit his drive into the water.

Mito Pereira finds the water with his drive on the 18th. pic.twitter.com/TU9lYYbSfI

— GOLF on CBS (@GOLFonCBS) May 22, 2022

Pereira ended up double-bogeying the hole to finish the round at 5-over par, putting him at minus-4 for the tournament. That was enough to drop him below Justin Thomas and Will Zalatoris, who finished at 5-under and went to a playoff to determine the winner.

This was Pereira’s first time playing in the PGA Championship and just his second ever major.

“It’s tough to finish like that,” Pereira said after his round.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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