Tiger Woods could not end his victory drought, but 51-year-old Davis Love snapped his on Sunday with a one-stroke win in the Wyndham Championship that made him the third-oldest winner in US PGA Tour history.
All eyes were on Woods at Sedgefield Country Club, where the 14-time major champion was in contention on Sunday for a first US PGA Tour win since 2013.
The former world No. 1, coming off a missed cut at the PGA Championship that marked his third straight early exit from a major, needed the victory to make the US PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup playoffs.
Photo: AFP
Woods’s chances effectively ended with a triple-bogey seven at the par-four 11th hole. That was followed by a bogey at the 12th, and even a storming finish that included four birdies in his last six holes was not enough.
Woods closed with an even-par 70 for 13-under 267, his tie for 10th his best finish of a disappointing campaign this year.
While Woods’ US season is over, Love is headed to the playoffs after grabbing his first US PGA Tour victory since 2008.
Photo: AFP
“Incredible” was Love’s verdict on the win, achieved with a six-under par final round of 64 that included eagles at both of Sedgefield’s two par-fives.
“Any victory is going to be really sweet when you’re over 50,” Love said.
His 17-under total of 263 gave him a one-shot win over Jason Gore, the overnight leader who carded a one-under 69.
“I’ve been working to try to get my game back,” said Love, who had foot surgery in March and was out of action for two months. “You just wonder if the body is going to wear out.”
South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel carded a 66 for 265, where he was joined by England’s Paul Casey (67) and the US’ Scott Brown (68).
Love’s third Greensboro title — after wins in 1992 and 2006 at Forest Oaks Country Club — was finally secure once Gore missed his 50-foot birdie attempt at the final hole.
“I was nervous,” said Gore, whose solo second-place finish was enough to retain his tour card. “We weren’t just playing for a tournament, we were playing for a job next year.”
Love’s 21st career victory saw him jump into the top 125 in the FedEx Cup rankings, earning his spot in the opening event of the series, next week’s Barclays.
At 51 years, four months and 10 days old, Love trails only Sam Snead and Art Wall as the oldest winners on the US tour.
Snead was 52 years old when he won the last of his eight Greensboro titles in 1965, while Wall was 51 years and seven months old when he won in Milwaukee in 1975.
Love started the day four shots off the lead and finished his round with four birdies and two bogeys in addition to his two eagles.
Woods began the day two adrift, but could not get things going as he parred the first six holes.
“I just wasn’t able to get any kind of roll early,” Woods said. “I had my chances to get it going. I just never did.”
He dropped a shot at the par-three seventh, where his tee shot sailed into the crowd.
After a birdie at the ninth, Woods made the turn three off the lead held by Gore and Woods’ playing partner Brown, who had aced the par-three third.
Things got worse for Woods at the 11th, where his approach left him off the green and his attempt to pitch on rolled through the green and into the opposite rough.
He ended up three-putting for triple-bogey.
“I gave myself a chance and I had all the opportunity in the world today to do it,” Woods said. “I didn’t get it done.”
RECORD DEFEAT: The Shanghai-based ‘Oriental Sports Daily’ said the drubbing was so disastrous, and taste so bitter, that all that is left is ‘numbness’ Chinese soccer fans and media rounded on the national team yesterday after they experienced fresh humiliation in a 7-0 thrashing to rivals Japan in their opening Group C match in the third phase of Asian qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. The humiliation in Saitama on Thursday against Asia’s top-ranked team was China’s worst defeat in World Cup qualifying and only a goal short of their record 8-0 loss to Brazil in 2012. Chinese President Xi Jinping once said he wanted China to host and even win the World Cup one day, but that ambition looked further away than ever after a
‘KHELIFMANIA’: In the weeks since the Algerian boxer won gold in Paris, national enthusiasm is inspiring newfound interest in the sport, particularly among women In the weeks since Algeria’s Imane Khelif won an Olympic gold medal in women’s boxing, athletes and coaches in the North African nation say national enthusiasm is inspiring newfound interest in the sport, particularly among women. Khelif’s image is practically everywhere, featured in advertisements at airports, on highway billboards and in boxing gyms. The 25-year-old welterweight’s success in Paris has vaulted her to national hero status, especially after Algerians rallied behind her in the face of uninformed speculation about her gender and eligibility to compete. Amateur boxer Zougar Amina, a medical student who has been practicing for a year, called Khelif an
Taiwanese badminton superstar Lee Yang broke down in tears after publicly retiring from the sport on Sunday. The two-time Olympic gold medalist held a retirement ceremony at the Taipei Arena after the final matches of the Taipei Open. Accompanied by friends, family and former badminton partners, Lee burst into tears while watching a video celebrating key moments in his professional sporting career that also featured messages from international players such as Malaysia’s Teo Ee Yi, Hong Kong’s Tang Chun-man, and Indonesia’s Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan. “I hope that in the future when the world thinks about me, they will
GOING GLOBAL: The regular season fixture is part of the football league’s increasingly ambitious plans to spread the sport to international destinations The US National Football League (NFL) breaks new ground in its global expansion strategy tomorrow when the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers face off in the first-ever grid-iron game staged in Brazil. For one night only, the land of Pele and ‘The Beautiful Game’ will get a rare glimpse into the bone-crunching world of American football as the Packers and Eagles collide at Sao Paulo’s Neo Quimica Arena, the 46,000-seat home of soccer club Corinthians. The regular season fixture is part of the NFL’s increasingly ambitious plans to spread the US’ most popular sport to new territories following previous international fixtures
RSS