Lucas Glover finishes with a 64 at John Deere Classic to end winless drought
SILVIS, Ill. — Lucas Glover ended 10 years without a victory Sunday when he birdied five of his last seven holes for a 7-under 64 to win the John Deere Classic by two shots.
Glover won for the fourth time in his career, the most recent in 2011 at Quail Hollow.
He was among two dozen players separated by three shots on the rain-softened TPC Deere Run when the former U.S. Open champion went on a tear.
It started with a 15-foot birdie putt on the par-3 12th hole. He hit his approach into 4 feet and 7 feet on the next two holes, and then flushed a 7-iron to 3 feet on the 15th hole to take the lead.
Longtime UCLA donor Alan Robbins says he is guilty of nothing more than winking frequently after his behavior was questioned in a wrongful termination lawsuit filed by the Bruins’ former spirit squad coach.
Glover finished his run with a 12-foot birdie on the par-5 17th, and a 6-foot putt to save par from the bunker on the 18th that he figured would come in handy.
It never got to that. No one could catch him.
Glover kept it simple, with his game and his observations, saying he “ironed†it well and made a bunch of putts. That’s the recipe on a course with smooth greens and soft conditions.
“They went in and I kept the pedal down,†Glover said when he finished at 19-under 265. “There’s a lot of birdies out there, a lot of great players coming in.â€
Kevin Na tried to make a run with three birdies in four holes until he was slowed by a bogey on the 15th and couldn’t make up enough ground. He shot a 68. Ryan Moore also closed with a 68 for a runner-up finish.
Sebastian Munoz of Colombia, who started the final round with a one-shot lead, hit a shank from an awkward stance with the ball above his feet on the first hole. He made bogey and it was a sign of struggles to come. He closed with a 71 and tied for fourth, three shots back.
“Took me three holes to readjust from that, and then did a good job from there,†Munoz said.
Also finishing three shots behind were Adam Schenk (67), Luke List (68) and Scott Brown (69).
CHAMPIONS TOUR
OMAHA, Neb. — Jim Furyk recovered from a rough start in the final round of the U.S. Senior Open to hold off Retief Goosen and Mike Weir and win by three strokes.
Making his debut in the event, Furyk closed with a 1-over 71 to become the eighth player to win both the U.S. Open and Senior Open, joining the likes of Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino, Billy Casper and Gary Player.
Furyk finished at 7-under 273 at Omaha Country Club.
He won the U.S. Open in 2003 at Olympia Fields south of Chicago, is a 17-time winner on the PGA Tour and won his first two PGA Tour Champions events upon turning 50 last year. This was the third senior major he’s played. He tied for 16th in the Senior PGA and was sixth in the Senior Players Championship.
The victory makes Furyk exempt into the U.S. Open next year at The Country Club outside Boston, where in 1999 he won a key singles match against Sergio Garcia when the American rallied to win the Ryder Cup.
LPGA Tour
SYLVANIA, Ohio — Nasa Hataoka of Japan was declared the winner of the Marathon LPGA Classic when the final round was washed out by relentless, heavy rain.
Hataoka had a six-shot lead over Elizabeth Szokol and Mina Harigae. She won for the fourth time on the LPGA Tour, and her first LPGA title in two years.
The final round began at 7 a.m. with hopes of beating the rain. That lasted only a few hours before Highland Meadows was soaked, and soon became unplayable.
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