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| Sports ExtraSunday, March 18, 2007 6:47 PM CDT |
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Singh wins Palmer Invite; Tiger's round worst in 4 years
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Vijay Singh was so good in the middle that it didn't matter how bad it got in the end. All he cared about was winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational, which has caused him so much grief over the years. Singh got it done Sunday with a terrific run of birdies to build a commanding lead, closing with a 3-under 67 for a two-shot victory over Rocco Mediate. Three times a runner-up at Bay Hill, the 44-year-old Fijian became the first multiple winner on the PGA Tour this year, and his 31st career victory tied him with Harry ''Lighthorse'' Cooper for most by foreign-born players. Singh also exorcised a few demons along the way. His bogey-bogey finish in 1994 left him one shot behind. Two years ago, he hit 7-iron into the water on the 18th hole and lost to Kenny Perry. There was no chance of the bogeyman showing up on a gorgeous afternoon at Arnie's course, not with the lead Singh build. He ran off four birdies in a five-hole stretch to close out the front nine and stretched his lead to four shots with a sand wedge that spun back with the slope to 2 feet on the 15th. That gave him plenty of room for error, and Singh's bogey-bogey-par finish only affected the margin of victory. ''I love this place,'' Singh said. ''I hate the 18th hole, but I love the rest of it. It feels great. Having won Jack's tournament (Memorial) and now Arnie's, it's a great one to get.'' Mediate made three clutch par saves to keep alive his hopes, only to find trouble on the 18th for a bogey. Mediate also shot 67. Singh finished at 8-under 272 and moved atop the money list with $2.6 million. Vaughn Taylor, who had a two-shot lead over Ben Curtis going into the final round, didn't make a birdie until the 15th hole, and he followed that with two bogeys that cost him a spot in the World Golf Championship next week at Doral. Taylor birdied the final hole for a 73 to finish alone in third, but he needed second place alone to move into the top 50 in the world. Curtis made one birdie in his round of 72 to finish alone in fourth. Tiger Woods delivered a dramatic finish, but not the kind anyone expected. His tournament ended a few hours earlier with a three-putt double bogey on the 11th, and a bad day then got even worse. Woods hit his tee shot into the water on the par-3 17th and made double bogey. After chipping out of the rough on the 18th, he hit his third into the water and made triple bogey. That gave him a 43 on the back nine for a 6-over 76, his highest score in a regular PGA Tour event since a 76 in the third round of the Memorial four years ago. He tied for 22nd, ending his streak of 13 straight top 10s worldwide, nine of those on the PGA Tour. Woods left the course without comment. In a career that seems to have no end, Singh now has 19 victories since turning 40 -- the same as Davis Love III, Ben Crenshaw and Tom Kite won in their entire careers. Singh also won the season-opening Mercedes-Benz Championship, but he has not contended since then. The consolation for Mediate was his $594,000 for second place, more than enough for him to secure a job the rest of the year. Mediate started the season on a minor medical exemption because of a back injury last year, and he was given 10 tournaments to earn the equivalent of 125th on the 2006 money list. ''Ridiculous satisfaction,'' Mediate said. ''This is huge.'' He wanted more and gave it his best shot. One shot behind on the back nine, he saved par from the right rough on the 15th, from left of the 16th green when his ball stopped a yard from going into the water, and from short of the 17th green. But his tee shot sailed well to the right on the 18th, he had to chip back to the fairway and wound up with bogey. Sergio Garcia also tried to make a run and got within two shots with a 15-foot birdie on the 13th. But he bogeyed the next two holes, missing a 4-foot par putt on the 15th, and finishing his round of 71 by missing another 4-footer on the 18th. He tied for fifth with John Rollins (71) and Tom Lehman (72). Woods needed to match his largest comeback (five shots) on the PGA Tour, and he looked determined with birdies on his first two holes. But his round stalled, and his tournament ended on the 11th when a tee shot barely found the right rough. He had to hack out, then he compounded the error with a three-putt for double bogey. It was about that time that Singh began to pull away. His string of birdies began with a 25-footer up the slope at No. 5. He got up-and-down from the bunker on the par-5 sixth, spun back a short iron to 5 feet on the eighth and rolled in a putt from 18 feet on the ninth. Equally important was a par on the seventh. Singh rolled his 60-foot birdie putt some 5 feet by, and made it coming back. The key at Bay Hill was avoiding mistakes, especially with so many people in the mix. Singh made his share late, but by then it no longer mattered. He finally got to see Palmer on the 18th green with something to celebrate.< Divots: Singh tied for best score of the day each of the last two rounds, both times with a 67. ... The winning score would have been 16 under if Palmer had not changed par to a 70. The winning score last year was 14-under 274. ... Mediate went 18 straight holes without a bogey until the 72nd hole. ... J.B. Holmes shot 49 on the front nine and was 15 over through his first 10 holes before he played his eight holes in 2 under for an 83. E-mail this story | Print this story | Search archives | RSS Show comments |  Hide comments | Hide comments on all stories |
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