Gabriel Hjertstedt figured he was headed back to tour school. Now he's going to the Masters.
Hjertstedt recovered from bogeys on his first two holes Sunday and shot a 2-under-par 70 to win the B.C. Open by one stroke over Andrew Magee, Lee Rinker and Chris Perry.Hjertstedt (pronounced YET'-shtead) became the first Swede to win on the PGA Tour and his first-place check of $234,000 moved him from 226th on the money list to 84th with $261,144. Hjertstedt's birdie on the treacherous 312-yard No. 16 at En-Joie Golf Club broke a four-way tie for the lead.
Hjertstedt, 26, who finished at 275, sank a 5-foot putt for birdie on 16, which is surrounded by nine sand traps. That put him at 13-under and he parred out for his first win as a pro, which will give him his tour card for two more years and qualifies him for the Masters.
"This is a great moment for me," he said. "When I came into this week I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to play next week. My ranking wasn't good enough."
Emerald Coast Seniors
MILTON, Fla. - Isao Aoki made an 18-foot birdie on the first hole of a playoff with Gil Morgan on Sunday to win the Emerald Coast Classic.
Aoki, who set a Senior PGA Tour record with a 10-under-par 60 on Saturday, shot a 65 for a 54-hole score of 14-under 196.
"That was not a fluke," the Japanese star said of his first victory in a frustrating year that has included five second-place finishes. He earned $165,000 to boost his season total to $1,137,728.
Hale Irwin, a seven time winner this year who leads the money list with a record $1,778,864, tied for third with Bob Duval, Jay Sigel and Simon Hobday at 10-under 200. Vicente Fernandez and Dave Eichelberger followed at 201.
Fieldcrest Classic
CORNELIUS, N.C. - Wendy Ward finished off her first LPGA victory in grand fashion Sunday, recording the lowest total in relation to par in the 47-year history of the tour.
A 2-under-par 70 was all Ward needed to wrap up a two-shot victory over Rosie Jones and Jane Geddes in the Fieldcrest Cannon Classic.
Ward also matched Kelly Robbins' LPGA record for the lowest 72-hole total. Robbins shot a 265 this year in the Jamie Farr Kroger Classic, played on a par-71 course.