It took the No. 2-ranked golfer in the world to block Andrew Landry’s path to his first PGA Tour victory and all the spoils that go with it Sunday in La Quinta, California.

Rapidly rising Spanish star Jon Rahm, caught by Landry’s clutch birdie on the 72nd hole of the Career Builder Challenge, finally turned back the Groves native with a birdie on the fourth hole of a sudden death playoff. With Rahm shooting 67 and Landry 68 in the final round, the pair had finished two shots clear of their closest pursuers with 22-under-par totals of 266.

Landry, who made numerous clutch shots throughout the day, missed a couple of good chances to win in sudden death, most notably when he was unable to sink an 8-foot birdie putt the second time the duo played the par-4, 18th hole. His consolation prize was a whopping $637,200 check that swells his bottom line for the season to $1,090,606.

“That putt on 18, I am not sure what happened,” Landry said. “It was tricky because the pin was in kind of a funny spot. From short of the hole, the ball didn’t break. From the back of the hole it broke a lot.”

If there is such a thing as a moral victory in golf, Landry no doubt scored one with the way he hung in with the highly regarded Rahm and several other more experienced players who made serious charges at them throughout the day.

Rahm led Landry by a shot most of the back nine, until the treacherous, par-4, 18th.

When Rahm playing in the group ahead of him made par at 18, Landry stood on the tee in a do-or-die birdie situation. He hit a solid drive that trickled into the right rough, then delivered an 8-iron from 158 yards to 11 feet. The biggest putt of his life crawled into the right side of the cup as the gallery roared.

“It was fun all day being in that situation,” Landry said. “I have conquered all the fears of nervousness. I felt like I belonged. Jon Rahm is a great player, I guess he’s now No. 2 in the world. But I feel like I am a top-10 player in the world. I played flawless all week. One bogey in 76 holes is remarkable.

“Sure there is some disappointment because of the Masters and things like that. But there are so many positives for me that came out of this week. I played good enough to win a PGA Tour event. This is just another step. I know I am going to win. It is just a matter of time.”

Landry had stayed within striking distance of the long-hitting Rahm by sinking a 45-foot birdie putt on the 13th hole. Before the pressure putt at 18, however, he missed very makable birdie putts from 9 feet on the par-5, 16th and from 15 feet on the water-guarded par-3, 17th.

Trailing another former Arkansas Razorback Austin Cook by one stroke when the day began, Landry had quickly gained a share of the lead by draining a 32-foot birdie on the first hole. He took sole possession of the top spot with a 5-foot birdie on the par 5, fifth.

The lead was short lived, though, On the par-3, sixth Landry made his first and only bogey of the tournament, failing to get up-and-down for the first time all week. The missed putt was from 10 feet but he offset that with an 8-foot birdie at the par-4, ninth.

In the playoff, both players were flawless tee to green, with neither having more than a 20-foot birdie attempt on any of the four holes. Rahm missed a 10-footer the first time they played 18, then Landry couldn’t get an 8-footer down the next time. When the playoff moved to 10, both were off target from the 20-foot range.

“I have no regrets,” said Landry. “The only shot I’d like back, other than the one putt on 18, is the poor chip on 6 that led to the bogey. Otherwise I played really well. My whole goal to start the year was to lock up my card for next year before our baby is born. That goal has now been accomplished.

“The next goal is to get into the top 64 in the world before the Match Play Championship in Austin in late March. As well as I am playing, I really believe that is possible. I will be a better player this week in San Diego and in the weeks ahead because of the experience of this week.”

While Landry finished the week on a high note, fellow Groves native Chris Stroud struggled to a final round 74 and finished tied for 69th. Stroud, however, did have an upbeat finish with birdies on his final three holes. He won $11,000.