JB Holmes took victory in a play-off at the Shell Houston Open when Johnson Wagner saw a four-foot putt lip out . Holmes , who started the day six shots off the lead but ripped through the first half of the course to make the turn in 29 , had moments before missed from 10 foot but 2008 winner Wagner could not save par to take the play-off to a third hole . Overnight leader Jordan Spieth , who hit a fine putt to par the 18th and make it a three-way play-off , had been eliminated on the first hole . J B Holmes poses with the Houston Open trophy after a thrilling climax saw him take the title . Holmes bumps fists with his caddie to celebrate winning the Houston Open after two play-off holes . Johnson Wagner watches his putt go by the hole on the second play-off , handing the title to Holmes . Spieth 's one-shot overnight lead evaporated almost before he had time to warm up on the course thanks to Holmes ' blistering start . Six birdies on the first seven holes saw Holmes tear into an outright lead as Spieth was easing into proceedings with his second par in as many holes . Holmes picked up a further shot on the eighth on his way to finishing the front nine on a seven-under 29 to tie the nine-hole course record with Fred Couples . The 32-year-old had a less prolific back nine , but he still picked up two further birdies , with a bogey on the 16th his only blot on a fine day 's golf . He returned to the clubhouse with a two-shot lead having carded 64 , but back-to-back birdies on 13 and 14 saw Spieth join Holmes on 16 under overall with four holes remaining . Holmes began the day six shots off the lead but stormed up the leaderboard with a brilliant start . Overnight leader Jordan Spieth saw his advantage go before he was on the course , but made a play-off . The 21-year-old , who could have gone second in the world rankings with victory in Houston , just missed taxing birdie shots on 16 and 17 to take it all down to his final hole . And just after his tee shot narrowly avoided the bunker , Wagner dramatically birdied the par-four 18th with a 25ft putt to card a 69 and create a three-way tie at the top of the leaderboard . Spieth still had the chance to win it outright but found a bunker , and he needed a fine 42ft chip and then a 12ft putt to rescue par and join the play-off . Once it began , things quickly went south for the Texan . He found the greenside bunker with his second shot , and then made a poor shot out from a difficult lie , claiming something had distracted him during his backswing . He would be eliminated with a bogey . Wagner had also run into trouble with his second shot but salvaged a par , and when Holmes missed from 10ft they headed back to the tee to try again . Spieth was the first to drop out in the play-offs , after bogeying the first hole to fall out of contention . Johnson Wagner celebrates his birdie at the eighteenth , to earn a place in the play-off , but he fell just short . Neither man had dramas on the way to the green this time but Holmes got much closer to the hole with his second approach shot , and after Wagner over-hit a long putt Holmes again had the chance to win it from 10ft . His putt drifted a couple of inches wide but Wagner 's putt from four feet lipped out and Holmes could celebrate . ' I knew I had to play a really low round to have a chance , but I started out great and it worked out for me , ' Holmes said on Sky Sports 4 before turning his attention to next week 's Masters . 'It 's great any time you get a week where you can win going into a major . I went there Monday and Tuesday and saw the course so hopefully I 'm ready . I 'm hitting it well , and looking forward to it . '
Johnson Wagner loses out to JB Holmes after second playoff hole . Jordan Spieth had crashed out on first hole after all three finish 16 under . Englishman Paul Casey is best-placed Brit , finishing four shots back .