Carl Pettersson staked his claim for a place on the European Ryder Cup team with a two-stroke victory in the Wyndham Championship on Sunday.
Recovering from two successive soft bogeys that left him behind with seven holes left, Pettersson, a Swede who has lived in North Carolina for half his of his 30 years, roared back with three late birdies to beat Scott McCarron (68) by two strokes, picking up US dollars 918,000 for his third PGA Tour victory.
"I'm thrilled. This is home for me," he said after carding 68 to finish at 21-under-par 259, a record low score in the historic event that dates back to 1938.
Pettersson is the third Swede to win on the PGA Tour this year, and the second to prevail in Greensboro, following 1999 champion Jesper Parnevik.
And though Pettersson remains a long shot to earn an automatic berth on the European side, he must be one of the names Nick Faldo will consider when he makes his two captain's picks in two weeks time.
Pettersson, who moved to Greensboro at the age of 15 when his father, a Volvo executive, received a job transfer, admits he feels more American than European, but that does not mean he wants to sit out the Ryder cup.
"I'm Swedish, but I really feel American, to be honest with you," he said. "My heritage is European and I would love to play on Nick's team. I'm going to be playing hard for Europe if I make that team."