Denis Watson heard too often that he'd never play golf again. It took 23 years to prove everyone wrong.
Watson took advantage of Eduardo Romero's late mistakes to take the Senior PGA Championship, his first U.S. victory since winning three times on the PGA Tour in 1984.
Senior PGA scores
1. D. Watson (-9)
2. Romero (-7)
3. Price (-6)
4. Ozaki (-4)
5. Simpson (-2)
• Complete scores
"This validates my golfing career," Watson said. "It's gratifying to know that I've still got it after all these years."
The 51-year-old Watson was as a rising star in the 1980s when he won the Buick Open, World Series of Golf and the Las Vegas Invitational. The next year, he tied for second at the U.S. Open. Later in 1985, though, Watson's rise ended when he hit into a hidden stump during a tournament in South Africa.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Monday, May 21, 2007
Golfer
Johnson won the AT&T Classic on Sunday, beating Ryuji Imada with a birdie on the first hole of a playoff.
AT&T Classic scores
1. x-Johnson (-15)2. Imada (-15)T-3. Villegas (-12)T-3. Kuchar (-12)T-3. Matteson (-12)x-won on first playoff hole• Complete scores
Johnson, also the 2004 winner, closed with a 5-under 67 to match Imada (70) at 15-under 273 on the TPC Sugarloaf.
In the playoff on the par-5 18th, Johnson hit his second shot above the pin, then rolled a 60-footer for eagle within 5 inches of the hole. He had his third PGA Tour victory, each of them coming in Georgia.
Imada could only offer a congratulatory handshake. His tee shot landed in the left-side rough and his 3-wood failed to clear the water in front of the green.
Laying up was not an option, Imada thought, because with Johnson in the middle of the fairway, there seemed little chance his opponent would make par.
"I don't want to second-guess myself," Imada said. "If I laid up, it was going to be a tough shot regardless. The green on 18, front left, is pretty hard. I mean having a 15-footer for birdie, you know, your chances are not good."
Seeking to become just the third player from Japan to win on the PGA Tour, Imada lost a critical stroke with a drop that all but nullified his next approach, which landed 13 feet from the pin.
AT&T Classic scores
1. x-Johnson (-15)2. Imada (-15)T-3. Villegas (-12)T-3. Kuchar (-12)T-3. Matteson (-12)x-won on first playoff hole• Complete scores
Johnson, also the 2004 winner, closed with a 5-under 67 to match Imada (70) at 15-under 273 on the TPC Sugarloaf.
In the playoff on the par-5 18th, Johnson hit his second shot above the pin, then rolled a 60-footer for eagle within 5 inches of the hole. He had his third PGA Tour victory, each of them coming in Georgia.
Imada could only offer a congratulatory handshake. His tee shot landed in the left-side rough and his 3-wood failed to clear the water in front of the green.
Laying up was not an option, Imada thought, because with Johnson in the middle of the fairway, there seemed little chance his opponent would make par.
"I don't want to second-guess myself," Imada said. "If I laid up, it was going to be a tough shot regardless. The green on 18, front left, is pretty hard. I mean having a 15-footer for birdie, you know, your chances are not good."
Seeking to become just the third player from Japan to win on the PGA Tour, Imada lost a critical stroke with a drop that all but nullified his next approach, which landed 13 feet from the pin.
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