AVONDALE, La. - Billy Horschel sensed the time had come for him to win his first PGA Tour event. This could explain the composure he displayed in the face of two final-round weather delays and a 27-foot putt he had to make on the 18th hole to avert a playoff.
Horschel tied a course record at the TPC Louisiana with an 8-under 64 in the final round of the Zurich Classic on Sunday, which was good enough to win by one stroke over D.A. Points.
Points put pressure on Horschel by hitting out of a bunker to set up a 5-foot birdie putt on the par-5 18th. Then Horschel rolled in his long victory-sealing putt, pumping his arms and letting out a triumphant yell before sinking into a crouch and briefly pulling his cap over his face as the crowd roared.
“I hadn’t made a long one all week and I said, ‘I’m due,’ ” Horschel said. “I was like, ‘If it’s my time, this putt needs to go in.’
Soon after, he saw a video replay of his celebration.
“I know it was pretty intense,” he said. “There was a lot going on. It’s celebration time now.”
Horschel, a 26-year-old former Florida Gator, began the day two shots behind third round leader Lucas Glover and surged into the lead with six consecutive birdies after the first weather delay. He finished at 20 under, narrowly holding off Points, who won the Shell Houston Open last month by a stroke over Horschel and Henrik Stenson.
“When a player goes out and shoots 8 under and birdies the last hole to win, hats off to Billy,” said Points, who had a 65. “He’s played great all year. He was one shot shy of me at Houston and I’m a shot shy of him here. It’s just the way it goes.”
The second delay, for lightning, happened before Horschel could take his second shot on the 18th hole, giving him 52 minutes to reflect on what was at stake - $1.19 million and a two-year exemption.
Kyle Stanley shot a 5-under 67 to finish third, while 14-year-old amateur Guan Tianlang of China finished 71st after making his second cut in two PGA events, the first coming at the Masters.
Ken Duke (Arkadelphia, Henderson State) had four birdies on the day and finished in a tie for 21st place at 11 under, earning $58,740.
LPGA Park tops Ciganda
IRVING, Texas - Inbee Park shot a bogey-free 4-under 67 on Sunday to win the inaugural North Texas LPGA Shootout by a stroke over Carlota Ciganda, whose chance for a first LPGA victory was wiped out in a two hole stretch.
Park, who supplanted Stacy Lewis as the world’s No. 1 women’s player three weeks ago, finished at 13-under 271 for her third victory this season and fifth in her past 18 starts. Park, a 24-year-old South Korean, sank a 4-foot birdie putt on the par-5 18th after Ciganda birdied despite hitting her drive into the right rough
Park started the day two strokes behind Ciganda, but Park went ahead to stay with pars on Nos. 14 and 15, while her playing partner Ciganda had bogey and double bogey on those holes, part of her 70.
Fifth-ranked Suzann Pettersen from Norway, the winner in Hawaii last week, had a closing 66 to get to 10 under and finish third. Hee Young Park (64) and So Yeon Ryu (68) tied for fourth at 275.
Park’s $195,000 first-place check boosted her above $6 million in career earnings and ensured her stay at No. 1 in the world for another week.
Lewis, the Texas native and No. 2 player in the world, had a closing 66 when all six birdies and her only bogey came between Nos. 7-17. Lewis (Arkansas Razorbacks) tied for seventh for her sixth top-10 finish this season, earning $31,019.
Third-ranked Na Yeon Choi, among the four players tied for seventh, had 44 consecutive bogey-free holes and was 9 under before consecutive bogeys at Nos. 10-12. She went on to finish a round of 72.
CHAMPIONS TOUR Sluman, Faxon team up
SAVANNAH, Ga. - After teaming with Craig Stadler for two runner-up finishes in three tries at the Liberty Mutual Insurance Legends of Golf, Jeff Sluman decided it was time for a change.
He called Brad Faxon nearly two years ago to court him as a teammate for the Champion Tour’s annual team competition and the new pairing paid off on Sunday as they combined for a final-round 7-under-par 65 to finish at 23-under for a one-stroke victory at the Club at Savannah Harbor.
Fred Funk and Mike Goodes combined for a 63 and Gene Sauers and Kenny Perry had a 62 to finished in a tie for second, one shot behind.
Stadler and teammate Kirk Triplett came to the final hole needing a birdie to force a playoff, but both missed the fairway off the tee, which forced them to play aggressively around the green. They made bogey, dropping them into a tie for fourth, two shots behind the winners.
Sunday’s windy conditions and difficult pin positions impacted play as well. The Legends is contested on a low, flat course located on an island in the middle of the Savannah River, just upstream from the Atlantic Ocean. Only three teams broke 65 Sunday after 13 teams shot 64 or better in the second round.
WEB.COM TOUR Wilcox pulls off victory
VALDOSTA, Ga. - Will Wilcox won the South Georgia Classic on Sunday for his first victory on the Web.com Tour. He shot a 1-over 73 in the final round to finish four strokes ahead of Zack Sucher, D.J. Brigman and Michael Putnam, who tied for second at 11 under.
Wilcox, 26, earned $117,000 and moved from No. 55 to No. 3 on the money list. The top 25 at the end of the year get a spot on the PGA Tour for 2014.
Sucher shot a 65 for the best round of the day. He had four birdies and an eagle on the front nine. The top-25 finish put him in the field for the upcoming Stadion Classic in Athens.
Ron Whittaker (Little Rock) shot a 2-over 74 and finished 14 strokes behind Wilcox, $3,640. John Daly (Dardanelle, Arkansas Razorbacks) was even on Sunday and finished 4 over for the tournament, good for $2,140.
EUROPEAN TOUR Rumford flies with eagle
Australia’s Brett Rumford eagled the first hole of a three-way playoff to win the Ballantine’s Championship in South Korea on Sunday.
Rumford was leading by two shots when he double-bogeyed No. 17. He holed a 10-foot par putt at the last to finish at 11-under 277 and force a playoff with Marcus Fraser of Australia and Peter Whiteford of Scotland.
Rumford then holed a 4-foot eagle to earn the victory.
Rumford is the first Australian to win on the European Tour in two years and he drew on the inspiration of Adam Scott who became the first Australian to win the Masters earlier this month.
Sports, Pages 13 on 04/29/2013