It was Lefty in a landslide.
Setting tournament records for the third straight day, Phil Mickelson cruised to victory Sunday in the Sprint International and secured a Ryder Cup berth in the process.The left-handed Mickelson had five birdies and a bogey in his final round - worth nine points under the modified Stableford scoring system used in this event - and finished with 48 points for a 7-point winning margin over Stuart Appleby.
Skip Kendall, the only player to put any heat on Mickelson during the final round, finished with 38.
"This one was really important to me," Mickelson said. "It hasn't been that spectacular of a year. I wanted to get that second win nailed down, and this really was the last chance I had before the PGA (championship) to make Ryder Cup points."
Posting the 11th PGA Tour victory of his career and his second this season, Mickelson locked up a berth on the U.S. Ryder Cup team after having slipped to ninth place in the race for the 10 automatic spots. His victory was worth 150 points, vaulting him to fifth place behind Tiger Woods, Tom Lehman, Justin Leonard and Jim Furyk.
Mickelson, 27, became the first multiple winner of the International in its 12-year history.
Mickelson, who set tournament scoring records for 36 holes (27 points) and 54 holes (39 points), also exceeded his own 72-hole record of 45 points, which he set in winning in 1993.
The scoring system awards five points for an eagle, two for a birdie, 0 for a par, minus-1 for a bogey and minus-3 for a double bogey or worse.
BankBoston Classic
CONCORD, Mass. - Hale Irwin birdied the last two holes Sunday for a two-stroke victory over Jerry McGee and Bob Wynn in the $1 million BankBoston Classic.
Irwin, who shared the lead of the Senior PGA Tour event with Bob Betley heading into the final round, dropped into a three-way tie with McGee and Wynn when he bogeyed the 16th hole, his first of the tournament at Nashawatuc Country Club.
But the closing birdies gave Irwin a closing 5-under-par 67, a 54-hole total of 13-under 203 and his sixth victory in 15 senior starts this year. The first prize of $150,000 boosted his tour-leading 1997 earnings to nearly $1.5 million while closing in on the $10 million career mark since joining the PGA Tour in 1968.
McGee and Wynn, playing just ahead of Irwin, parred the last two holes and stood by while the 52-year-old favorite staged his fabulous finish. McGee had a 67 and Wynn a 66 in tying for second at 205.
Tom Wargo, the 1996 runner-up here, had a closing 69 and finished fourth at 206. Betley, the 1993 winner of this event slipped to a 71 and was alone at 207. Hubert Green had a 65, the lowest round of tournament, and Bob Murphy had a 66, to finish tied at 208.
"On the 18th tee I knew I had a one-shot lead, but I didn't know what Jerry and Bob were doing ahead of me," Irwin said. "I knew someone was going to birdie the last hole, whether it was me or one of them. I didn't hear any cheers from the crowd so I just didn't want to do something stupid. Then I learned that they finished in par and I managed a birdie."
LPGA-du Maurier Classic
OAKVILLE, Ontario - Colleen Walker pulled away from a crowded leaderboard with a near-record final round of 8-under-par 65 Sunday and won the du Maurier Classic by two strokes over Liselotte Neumann of Sweden.
A 40-year-old native of Jacksonville, Fla., Walker hadn't won on the LPGA tour since 1992 and had only two top-20 finishes in her last 17 events. Now she has a major title to her credit and over $2 million in career earnings.
Walker, who won $16,000 all last year as she gave birth to a son in October 1996, took the winner's share of $180,000 with a 14-under 278 total at the 6,267-yard Glen Abbey Golf Club course.
"The ball went everywhere I wanted it to," Walker said, who won her eighth LPGA event. "Everytime I was close I made the putt. This is one of the best rounds of golf I've ever played."
Her 8-under 65 was one stroke off the best final round ever recorded in an LPGA major, a 9-under 64 by JoAnne Carner in the 1978 du Maurier in Toronto.
Walker had eight birdies, including 20-foot putts on Nos. 7 and 18, the latter the one that sealed the victory.