Hunter Mahan came from four strokes back to beat Rickie Fowler by a shot to claim the Phoenix Open title on Sunday.
The 27-year-old Mahan had an eagle and a pair of birdies in a late four-hole span to finish at 16-under 268 for his second PGA Tour victory. The first came at the Travelers Championship in 2007.
Mahan closed with consecutive 6-under 65s to finish at 16 under.
He is the eighth US-born player still in his 20s to win more than one tournament.
Fowler, just 21 and a tour rookie, had a final-round 68 for the second runner-up finish of his young career, both of them in Arizona.
South Korea’s Y.E. Yang also shot a 65 to finish at 14 under, two off the pace.
Last year’s PGA Championship winner, Yang led until his tee shot went in the water at No. 17.
Mathew Goggin, Chris Couch and Charles Howell III shared fourth at 13 under.
Third-round leader Brandt Snedeker struggled mightily at TPC Scottsdale with a 78 to wind up far back at 7 under.
Although he hasn’t won, Mahan has played well the past two years.
He played on the 2008 Ryder Cup team and had six top-10s last year, including a runner-up finish at the AT&T National.
“It’s just finding a way to win. I just haven’t been able to do it,” he said.
“So obviously it feels great to get off the year on my fifth tournament to win. It gives me a lot of confidence in myself that I’m doing the right things in my game, and it feels great, it really does,” Mahan added.
Heavy rain fell overnight at TPC Scottsdale and sprinkles lingered in the morning. However, the rain subsided by the time the leaders teed off at noon.
The tournament, in its 75th year, was known as the FBR Open but returned to its longtime Phoenix Open name when Waste Management Inc took over as the title sponsor this year.
The poor weather held the estimated final-round crowd to just under 44,000, well off last year’s 60,000-plus.
That brought the week’s total attendance to nearly 426,000, down from 470,000 a year ago at the rowdy event that always draws the biggest crowds on the tour.
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