Hale Irwin, who nearly ruined his chances after six holes, recovered with a 3-under-par 68 Sunday for a record-setting victory at the Heritage Classic at Hilton Head Island, N.C.
The 48-year-old PGA Tour veteran finished with a record 18-under 266 at Harbour Town Golf Links, two strokes ahead of Greg Norman. It was the third time Irwin won the Heritage.Norman, who led Irwin by three strokes with 11 holes left, closed with 13 straight pars for a 68 and 268. Loren Roberts, with a 62-269, was a surprising third after nearly tying a course-record set two days earlier.
Defending champion David Edward aced the par-3 No. 7 hole on the way to a 64. He ended tied for fourth at 270 along with Nolan Henke and David Frost.
Irwin's total was two better than Payne Stewart's performance in 1989. Like many others in the field, Irwin benefited from the absence of of Harbour Town's ordinarily treacherous winds.
Irwin, who began the day with a two-stroke lead, made bogeys on three of the first six holes. Norman, meanwhile, birdied Nos, 2, 3 and 5 to move in front.
"After the first six holes, I pretty much buried myself," Irwin said. "I didn't have one foot in the grave, I had both feet in. But somehow, the spirit came out, the competitiveness came out and I got it done."
Irwin dunked his tee shot in a water hazard on the sixth hole, hanging his head after coming up short on a saving par putt. However, he righted himself with a birdie on the eighth hole and charged ahead on the back nine.
The precise iron shots that helped him win three U.S. Opens made their appearance at Harbour Town. He knocked it six feet from the flag on No. 13 for a tying birdie. Irwin left approach shots two feet from the pin on the 15th hole and inches from the cup on No. 16, converting both birdies for a two-stroke edge.
He shook his fist after dropping a pitching wedge within two inches on the 16th hole.
"I didn't think that locked the door," Irwin said. "But I knew it was pretty close."
So did Norman, who heard the cheers and tried desperately to end his string of often stylish pars. However, he missed chances on the final two holes and provided Irwin with a two-stroke cushion walking up the final hole.
"It was not as strange as it was 23 years ago," said Irwin, who won his first two tour events at Harbour Town. "But it was just as nice as today."
Irwin earned $225,000. For Norman, it was his fifth top 10 finish in PGA Tour events this season. He won $135,000 and pushed his money-list leading total to $725,676.
"I played good today," Norman said. "I just got nothing in the hole on the back nine. That's going to happen sometimes."
Starting more than an hour before the final group, Roberts went 5-under by the turn and crept within one of the lead when he finished.
"I was feeling good all week and I just wanted to stay focused," Roberts said. "But I knew it was going to come up a little short."
Edwards made a charge, knocking a 4-iron into the cup for an ace on the 180-yard No. 7 hole. But his run slowed on the back nine, and he never came closer to the lead than two shots.
Lee Trevino got the PGA Seniors Championship as a gift Sunday from Ray Floyd.
"Christmas came early," Trevino said after Floyd hit three balls into the water on the final four holes at the PGA National Golf Club. "Raymond was Santa Claus."
Floyd admitted he succumbed to pressure, losing seven strokes to Trevino in a six-hole stretch. He went from four ahead after nine holes to three behind after 15.
Trevino, who played without a major error over the back-nine, cruised in to a one-stroke victory, shooting 70 and completing the tournament with a 9-under-par 279 total.
Floyd, poised for a run-away at the turn, shot 42 on the back side and skidded into a tie for third in perhaps the most embarassing performance of his career.
But he learned something, Floyd said.
"I've been playing professional golf for 30-something years. Under pressure, when I hit a bad shot, it's usually to the right. Until today, I never really knew why," he said.
After hitting his third shot into the water in a stretch of three holes, it came to him.
"For some reason, under pressure, I get the ball too close to me. My lower body gets ahead on the swing and I can't catch up. I block it.
"After I'd moved up to drop on the 17th, it hit me. I moved the ball away - it felt like 3 or 4 inches, but it probably was just an inch - and it freed up my swing."
By then, however, the damage had been done - a quadruple bogey-7 on the par-3 15th and a double bogey-5 on the 17th - and the title chase was over.
"Hey, it's a golf tournament," Floyd said. "I learned something today. I'm taking it as a positive.
"If I stay healthy, I'll play a lot more golf tournaments. Hopefully, I'll put myself in this position again," he said after a 6-over-par 42 on the back finished off a round of 75.
Jim Colbert, never really in the title hunt, came on to take second at 280, after a bogey-free final round of 67. Floyd was tied at 282 with Dave Stockton, who matched par 72.
The group at 283 included Dale Douglass, Isao Aoki of Japan, DeWitt Weaver and Chi Chi Rodriguez. Aoki closed up with a 66. Weaver birdied four of the first five holes and shot 68. Rodriguez had a 69 and Douglass shot 72.
Trevino, who won this title for the second time, collected $115,000 from the total purse of $850,000 and increased his leading money-winning total $381,017.
But he knew it was a gift.
"He gave it to me on a silver platter," Trevino said. "I was as shocked as he was."
The gift-giving took place on par-3s. From four back, Trevino pulled within one stroke with birdies on the 10th and 12th, while Floyd bogeyed the 11th from a fairway bunker.
That's when the pressure built up and the ball crept closer to Floyd's feet.
"Put the onus on pressure," Floyd said. "That's the only reason I can think of."
On the 15th, Floyd hit a 5-iron into the water on the right.
"I figured he'd made 5 and I would be a shot up," Trevino said.
But, after moving up to the front tee for a drop, Floyd hit a 6-iron over the green and into the pond again.
The loss of four shots to par put him three back and essentially settled the tournament.
He birdied the 16th, then hit a 7-iron tee shot into the water, again on the right, on the 17th.
The double bogey gave him a total of 12 - double par - on the two par-3s.
"I did all the damage," Floyd said. "He didn't."
At Stockbridge, Ga., Val Skinner birdied five holes and closed with a 4-under-par 68 Sunday to win the LPGA Women's Championship by one stroke over Liselotte Neumann.
Skinner completed the three rounds in 10-under 206. Her only bogey Sunday came on the par-4 17th.
Neumann had a chance to pull even on that hole, but the Swede also bogeyed and finished at 71.
Neumann held the lead entering the final round after shooting a 67 for a two-round total of 136. But she had a triple-bogey 7 on the 400-yard first hole and never caught up despite shooting 33 on the back nine at the Eagle's Landing Country Club Course, south of Atlanta.
Judy Dickinson, who was in second place, one shot behind Neumann, heading into the final round, shot a 73 and finished at 210. Skinner had a 68 Saturday and was third at 138 going into the final round.
Skinner of La Quinta, Calif., posted her first victory since the 1993 Lady Keystone Open. She won $97,500 while Neumann won $60,510.
The second round was completed Sunday after play was suspended Saturday because of darkness. Rain interrupted Friday's opening round.