Larson edges Buescher at the line at Kansas Speedway in closest finish in NASCAR Cup Series history

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Kyle Larson came roaring around the outside of Chris Buescher on the final lap at Kansas Speedway, banging doors with him all the way to the finish line, only to be told by his team over the radio that everything he had given was not quite enough.

It wasn't until Larson was in Turn 3 of the cool-down lap that he saw his spotter, Tyler Monn, dancing high above the track.

In the closest finish in NASCAR history, one that only became official with a grainy black-and-white photo at the line, the No. 5 car was declared the winner by a thousandth of a second — every bit as close as the Kentucky Derby a day earlier, and an even more dramatic finish than the three-at-the-line conclusion to the Cup Series race at Atlanta earlier this season.

“Had no clue if I won or not," Larson said, "but honestly didn't really care. I was like, ‘Man, that was frickin' awesome.'”

Not so awesome for Buescher's team, which had begun celebrating before the result became official. His crew chief, Scott Graves, asked to meet with NASCAR officials in their hauler. Shown the finish-line photo, he accepted the outcome.

“I don’t know what to say right now,” Buescher said, shaking his head while standing beside his No. 17 car. “I haven’t seen a replay other than just the picture, and I sure can’t see in that picture. That sucks to be that close.”

The edge-of-your-seat finish came after a caution for Kyle Busch's spin forced the green-white-checkered finish. Larson had pulled behind Buescher on the backstretch of the last lap, then came around him in the final corner. To the naked eye, Buescher looked as if he had edged ahead, and even Larson had started to congratulate his team on a strong second-place run.

A few minutes later, he was doing a celebratory burnout on the front stretch.

It was a brilliant start to a busy month of May for Larson, who will attempt to run the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 on the same day Memorial Day weekend. The win was his second of the season for Hendrick Motorsports, and it gave him a bit of retribution after finishing second to Denny Hamlin last week at Dover and in the spring race at Kansas a year ago.

Martin Truex Jr. finished fourth Sunday and Hamlin, who had the lead on the final restart, faded back to fifth place.

“Had a great view of the finish,” Hamlin said with a smile.

Making the finish an even bigger bummer for Buescher was the fact that he had overcome a big miscue midway through the race. He had just won the second stage and led the field to pit road when a crew member came over the wall early. The penalty sent him to the rear, and Buescher had to spend much of the final stage working his way back to the front.

Ultimately, Buescher's team opted for a different pit strategy than the other leaders. So did Hamlin's team, which had survived its own share of pit problems. And it might have worked out for both of them had the race finished under green.

Instead, the late caution forced the leaders to pit, and set up a finish that went down in NASCAR history.

“I mean, I'll always remember this, for sure," Larson said. "There's definitely wins that you can kind of get lost in the distance a little bit, but when you finish and have the closest finish in Cup Series history, I don't think you're ever going to forget about it, even if it gets broken someday. Great to be on this side of it.”

BEST OF THE REST

Christopher Bell started on the pole but struggled to run up front all day in a race that began after a 3 1/2-hour rain delay. He finished sixth, and was followed by Alex Bowman and Kyle Busch, whose spin brought out the last caution. Noah Gragson and Michael McDowell joined Buescher in giving Ford, which has yet to win this season, three cars in the top 10.

YELLOW FLAGS

There were no cautions other than for stage breaks until Jimmie Johnson wrecked with 91 laps to go. The seven-time champion, back in the No. 84 for the second consecutive week, was hit from behind by Corey LaJoie after he had checked up.

“Just trying to set up for the corner, I got a little help from behind and just kind of hanging on from there,” Johnson said.

The yellow flags then came in quickly: Hamlin made contact with Austin Cindric, sending the No. 2 into a wreck that spun out Bubba Wallace and McDowell. Harrison Burton wrecked on the restart, then Joey Logano did on the next one.

ODDS AND ENDS

Corey Heim, who won the Truck Series race Saturday night, finished 22nd while subbing for Erik Jones in the No. 43 car for Legacy Motor Club. ... Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was 16th in his first race since signing a contract extension with JTG Daugherty Racing. He also did it after going for a wild ride in his sprint car Saturday night at nearby Lakeside Speedway. ... Gragson has had strong back-to-back weeks after finishing sixth at Dover. ... The series heads to Darlington next for its annual throwback weekend.

AP NASCAR: https://apnews.com/hub/nascar-racing

Multiple racers wreck coming out of Turn 3 during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., Sunday, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

Joey Logano (22) spins out after hitting the wall in Turn 4 during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., Sunday, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

Kyle Larson, center, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., Sunday, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

Ross Chastain, left, along with other drivers and crews stand along pit road during the playing of the National Anthem before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., Sunday, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

Kyle Larson climbs into his car before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., Sunday, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

NASCAR Cup Series points leader Kyle Larson, center, walks to a track meeting as rain falls before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., Sunday, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

Kyle Larson (5) crosses the finish line milliseconds in front of Chris Buescher (17) for the win during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., Sunday, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

Ross Chastain waits along pit road as drivers prepare for a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., Sunday, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

Kyle Larson, center, visits with his pit crew along pit road before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., Sunday, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

Water pools near the garage area as rain delays a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., Sunday, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

Racers head toward Turn 1 at the start of a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., Sunday, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Scottie Scheffler arrived at the golf course in plenty of time. Once he got there, nothing felt quite right.

A day after he powered through his odyssey to the jailhouse, then back to the course just in time to get to the opening tee box, Scheffler enjoyed a more regular schedule but struggled to keep things together at the PGA Championship.

He shot 2-over 73 in Saturday's third round to close at 7 under for the tournament and drop from fourth to a tie for 24th with the leaders still on the course. It snapped a string of 42 straight rounds of par or better for the world's top player, dating to Saturday at the Tour Championship last year.

Though he said his arrest and trip to a holding cell the day before left his heart thumping and his head spinning, it didn't show on the course or the scoreboard; he shot 66 in Round 2. A day later, he was still adjusting to the stunning events of the previous 36 hours.

“I definitely did not feel like myself today,” he said. “Yesterday happened, I did my best to recover from it and come out and compete. This morning was not my usual routine for a round. At the end of the day, I came out hoping to have a good round but I wasn't able to get it done, which was frustrating.”

He started losing ground even before he stepped onto the course.

Justin Rose and Shane Lowry led the way, shooting 64 and 62 in a group more than an hour ahead of Scheffler's.

But this was no day for going low for the reigning Masters champion.

He made two bogeys and a double over his first four holes, finished the front nine in 38 and shot his worst round of the season. Even though he struggled, he still felt the love. Chants of “Scottie, Scottie, Scottie,” were scattered across the course, never louder than when he made a short birdie putt on 18 to close the day.

Before that, it was an ugly mix of missed tee shots, bad lies in the rough and a few struggles with the putter that had more or less gone away during a season in which he has won four times.

“I was battling as hard as I could all day but every time I'd make a birdie, I’d bogey the next hole,” he said. “Way too many mistakes today. Obviously I'm pretty frustrated with the result.”

His struggles started on the par-4 second, where his approach shot landed deep in the rough to the left of the green. It took him two shots to get to the putting surface and he made double bogey.

On No. 4, his tee shot landed left of a fence in a penalty area to the left of the green. After taking a drop, Scheffler chunked the next chip. He made a 10-foot putt to save bogey.

He made two birdies after that, but three-putted from 30 feet on the par-3 eighth, the second putt a push from 3 feet that took a 270-degree spin and stayed out.

Scheffler's 73 was better than only five players in the 78-man field.

One possible boost for Sunday will be the return of his caddie, Ted Scott. Scott left town to attend his daughter's high school reunion, leaving the bag duties to Scheffler's friend, the tour chaplain Brad Payne.

Scott is scheduled to return for the final round, which will start much earlier than Scheffler might have expected on a week where very little has gone to plan.

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Scottie Scheffler hits from the bunker on the seventh hole during the third round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at the Valhalla Golf Club, Saturday, May 18, 2024, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Scottie Scheffler watches his tee shot on the third hole during the third round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at the Valhalla Golf Club, Saturday, May 18, 2024, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Scottie Scheffler waits to play on the second hole during the third round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at the Valhalla Golf Club, Saturday, May 18, 2024, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)