Henrik Norlander got a failed start to the competition with 73 strokes and risked missing the qualifying limit, the cut.

But then he played up.

On Friday he advanced 67 places, on Saturday 28 and in the final round ten.

The Swede went the last round on 69 strokes, three under par, with six birdies and half as many bogeys.

Despite a finish with two straight birdies, he never really had a chance to threaten the winner Reed.

The 33-year-old was thus content to touch on his best result on the PGA Tour.

Also on Sea Island, Georgia, he finished second, in November 2016.

Norén lost

Norlander shares second place with Norwegian Viktor Hovland and Americans Tony Finau, Ryan Palmer and Xander Schauffele.

The tournament's second Swede, Alex Norén, performed worse on Sunday and lost after a 73-round, two under par, ten places from Saturday and ends in a shared place 37.

For Reed, the victory was a good sign for the US Open, which in June is played on the same course and the American is likely to be one of the favorites then.

But Reed is also focused on what happened earlier this weekend.

- What I am most pleased with today was that I managed to focus mentally and that my close play saved me a number of times at the end, it shows that I am on the right track, he said according to Swedish Golf and referred to Saturday's snack ice cream.

Questioned behavior

Then many teammates reacted to the American's behavior when he hit the ruff to the left of the green on the tenth hole.

In the TV pictures, it looked like the ball bounced, but Reed picked up his ball to check if it was plugged into the ground.

He showed it to the competition judges and pointed to a mark of impact and was allowed to drip without duty, in a slightly better position.

He did not break any rules, but rather the golf's unwritten rules about sporting behavior.

- Of course, the talk between the players is not very positive, says runner-up Xander Schauffele according to AFP.

Reed has previously been penalized for illegally acquiring advantageous positions and world number six Rory McIlroy - who finished 16th in San Diego - is also reacting.

- Our sport is about integrity and doing the right thing.

The worst thing that can happen in golf is to get the reputation of being a cheater.