SURREY, British Columbia — Gene Sauers won what might have been the last Air Canada Championship, closing with a 2-under 69 on Sunday for a one-stroke victory over Steve Lowery.
The 40-year-old Sauers, who hasn't had a full PGA Tour card since 1996, finished with a 15-under 267 for his third tour victory and first since 1989. The 13-year gap between wins is the third longest in tour history.
Lowery, who also finished second to Joel Edwards last year, shot a 68, missing an 8-foot birdie putt on the final hole.
Craig Barlow (68) bogeyed the final hole to fall to 13 under and into a three-way tie for third with Fiji's Vijay Singh (65) and Australian Robert Allenby (70).
Sauers, who came into the week 217th on the money list after playing just three events this year, earned $630,000 his biggest payday ever and almost as much as he made in the last eight years.
He might not get a chance to defend the title, with the future of the event in serious doubt. Air Canada's four-year sponsorship ended this week, and Royal Bank's decision not to increase its financial commitment leaves the event without a title sponsor.
"I would be sad," said Fred Funk, who finished his fourth appearance in the event at 8 under. "But we had a dinner meeting the other night with a bunch of corporate people here and they are still interested in saving it and maybe they can do it with a community effort."
The wind picked up and the greens firmed up in the afternoon sun on the Arnold-Palmer-designed Northview Golf and Country Club course, but it didn't appear to bother Sauers.
He opened with six straight pars before finally finding a birdie on the 584-yard, par-5 seventh. He saved par out of the sand on No. 8 and got up-and-down for par with a 10-foot putt on No. 9.
Sauers birdied the 548-yard, par-5 12th, then ran off six straight pars for the victory.
Lowery, who started the day one group ahead, and two strokes behind Sauers, was tied for the lead before a bogey out of the greenside bunker on the par-3 16th. After the near miss on 18, he watched from just behind the green as Sauers completed the win with a two-putt par.
Sauers started the week as the seventh alternate and didn't find out he would be playing until Monday afternoon. He arrived in Vancouver one day later, but his clubs didn't make it until Wednesday because of a luggage mix-up.
STATE FARM CLASSIC: At Springfield, Ill., France's Patricia Meunier-Labouc won her first LPGA Tour title, shooting a 5-under 67 for a two-stroke victory in the State Farm Classic.
Meunier-Labouc, playing her second season on the LPGA Tour after winning five times on the Ladies European Tour, had an 18-under 270 total on the Rail Golf Course.
South Korean stars Se Ri Pak and Mi Hyun Kim tied for second. Pak shot a 65, and Kim, the 1999 tournament winner, had a 69.
Emilee Klein played her way onto the U.S. Solheim Cup team, closing with a 69 to tie for fourth at 15 under with rookie Beth Bauer (67) and England's Laura Davies (67).
Klein, who began the week 13th in the race for the 10 automatic spots, jumped to 10th, with the top 11 earning shots because No. 5 Dottie Pepper is sidelined by a shoulder injury. Patty Sheehan completed the squad by adding Kelly Robbins, who dropped to 12th when Klein moved up, and Pat Hurst as captain's picks.
Juli Inkster, Laura Diaz, Rosie Jones, Michele Redman, Cristie Kerr, Meg Mallon, Beth Daniel, Wendy Ward and Kelli Kuehne also earned automatic spots on the U.S. team for the Sept. 20-22 matches against Europe at Interlachen in Edina, Minn.
ALLIANZ CHAMPIONSHIP: At West Des Moines, Iowa, Bob Gilder shot a 4-under 67 in a tense duel with South Africa's John Bland to win the Allianz Championship by one stroke.
Gilder, who played with Bland in the final group, had to nail a 4-foot putt for par on 18 to secure his third victory on the Senior PGA Tour this year. He rallied from two strokes down with eight holes to play and finished at 13-under 200.
Bland, seeking his first win since 1996, fell out of the lead when he bogeyed 17 after hitting his second shot into the rough right of the green. He closed with a 70 after shooting a 63 on Saturday, his best round on the senior tour.
Hale Irwin, the leading money winner, fell out of contention with a double bogey on 14 and finished at 10 under after a 69.
BMW INTERNATIONAL OPEN: At Nord-EIchenried, Germany, Denmark's Thomas Bjorn snapped an 18-month title drought, shooting a 6-under 66 for a four-stroke victory in the BMW International Open.
The European Ryder Cup player had a 24-under 264 total, and earned $300,000 for his eighth PGA European Tour victory.
Germany's Bernhard Langer (68) and England's John Bickerton (66) tied for second. John Daly, the 2001 winner, closed with a 69 to finish 10 strokes back at 14-under 274.