Roberts takes Senior Players by 6 shots
Loren Roberts made it apparent very early that there would be no suspense in the final round of the Senior Players Championship.
Roberts made 4 straight birdies during a sizzling front nine Sunday and cruised to an easy victory, shooting a 3-under 67 to defeat Tom Watson by 6 strokes.
Starting with a 3-shot lead, Roberts parred No. 1 before beginning his run of birdies. After tapping in a short putt for a birdie on No. 9, he made the turn at 30 with a 7-shot lead.
"He just closed the door early in the round, and locked it with that birdie on No. 9," Watson said.
Roberts finished with a 13-under 267 total to claim the $390,000 winner's check.
A year ago, Roberts took a 2-stroke lead into the final round of the Senior Players Championship and shot a 74 to finish in a tie for third. That bitter collapse lingered in his mind right until he walked off the course Sunday.
"For me personally, I really exorcised some demons today," Roberts said. "To come here today and start out with a 3-shot lead and get the job done, that goes a long way for me in being able to get over a little bit of a hurdle that I had from last year."
Texas Open: Justin Leonard won the Texas Open for the third time, beating Jesper Parnevik with a 10-foot birdie putt on the third hole of a playoff at San Antonio. Leonard, also the 2000 and '01 winner at LaCantera Golf Club Resort Course, closed with a 5-under 65 to match Parnevik at 19-under 261. Parnevik, who opened with a 61 and led after each of the first three rounds, finished with a 69. Leonard had plenty of opportunities to win before finally finishing off Parnevik for his 11th PGA Tour title and first since 2005.
On the final hole of regulation, the Texan's 14-foot birdie putt to win just slid by the hole. On the first extra hole, Parnevik took an unplayable lie after driving into the trees left of the fairway. But he hit a 153-yard approach to 3 feet to set up a par. Leonard chipped from the greenside rough to set up his par. Leonard, 1-4 in playoffs after the victory, missed a 5-foot birdie putt on the second hole. Parnevik had a 28-footer for birdie to keep the playoff going on the third extra hole but left it a foot short.
Dunhill Links Championship: England's Nick Dougherty won the Dunhill Links Championship for his second European Tour title, closing with a 1-under 71 at St. Andrews (Scotland) for a two-stroke victory over countryman Justin Rose. Dougherty finished with an 18-under 270 total. Rose shot a 69, and 18-year-old Rory McIlroy of the Northern Ireland had a 67 to finish third at 15 under.