Sabbatini wins Byron Nelson

BY Bruce Young | US PGA Tour | 2009 HP Byron Nelson Championship | Round Four | 25 May 2009

Local Dallas resident, Rory Sabbatini, bounced back from consecutive missed cuts to win the HP Byron Nelson Championship by two shots over Englishman Brian Davis and by three over D.A. Points.

Sabbatini started the final round tied with John Mallinger but a slow start from Mallinger, who was looking for his first win on the PGA Tour, and a solid front nine from the South African had Sabbatini in front at the turn. The South African continued his pursuit of the title with five birdies over his back nine and was afforded the luxury of a bogey at the last and yet still won by two.

It was Sabbatini’s fifth PGA Tour title, his second in his adopted home state of Texas and augurs well for next week’s Crowne Plaza Colonial which he won in 2007.

It was a thoughtful and even emotional Sabbatini who met the press after his round.

“Obviously this tournament is very special. I’ve had reasonably good success here in the past, and it’s one that I wish I had have been able to win it and look up and see Byron sitting there at the 18th green. It would have meant a lot. But Peggy being here today was special, and obviously his name and his legend lives on with this tournament and with the Salesmanship Club and just in north Texas here.”

“You know – what a wonderful name to be associated with now. Obviously an absolutely amazing man, one of the greatest names in the history of the sport, and just really, there’s no words to express how much honour there is to be associated with him.”

When asked the benefit of being able to stay at home this week Sabbatini answered.

“Oh definitely – obviously last night I had the ability to go home and battle with my children and other stuff, so my focus wasn’t ever thinking about golf. From the time I left the golf course yesterday until the time I arrived here this morning, there was no thought about golf.”

“You know, obviously I knew I didn’t hit the ball well yesterday, but I just said, you know what, it’s time to just go relax, enjoy myself, recover, and I came out here this morning feeling very fresh and very relaxed and just went out there with the intent of just going out and having some fun and just remembering, it’s just golf.”

Davis is still looking for his first PGA Tour win but with two fifth place finishes at the Players and last week in San Antonio and now this runner up performance that milestone must come shortly. The Medallist at the 2005 PGA Tour School has been runner up on two other occasions but appears on the verge of the breakthrough.

“I’m obviously ecstatic with the way I played, said Davis. “I’m disappointed I didn’t win, but all you can do is put yourself in position and commit to your shots and try and shoot as low as you can. Pretty much that’s what I did. Unfortunately it was not enough.”

“I was more pleased with today than the last two to three weeks because I put myself in position then but I just hadn’t holed the putts,” he added referring to the two recent fifth place finishes. “You know, today I holed the putts under pressure coming down the stretch, and to me that was a good sign, and I’m looking forward to the next few weeks.”

Points put together a brilliant final nine of 30 to grab outright third ahead of Dustin Johnson and Scott McCarron with Mallinger one shot further back.

Amongst the Australasians, John Senden produced a final round of 64 to finish 7th in his adopted hometown while Marc Leishman continued his love affair with Texas adding his 8th place finish to his 5th last week in San Antonio adding US$396,000 to his bank account in the past two weeks.

James Nitties finished 12th and now has a very impressive US$732,000 in his rookie season bank account.

New Zealand’s Danny Lee again served notice to the outstanding talent he is by finishing 14th despite a double bogey at the last which cost him a top ten finish and important money as he seeks to gain his USPGA Tour card via the invites he can gain this season. He does of course enjoy the luxury of European Tour status as a result of his win at the Johnnie Walker.

“I’m really just so angry about the last hole,” said Lee. “I had a perfect last putt that just went straight. I played really good today, and I got some lucky bounces, a couple of lucky bounces, and just the last hole really let me down. But that’s golf. So I have to learn, and hopefully I don’t do that next week.”

Lee was playing at what is now his home course having bought and moved into a home in the estate at Las Colinas where this week’s event was played. The 18-year-old has a big few weeks ahead as he plays Open Championship qualifying today followed by a start the Colonial event this coming week and then the Memorial and US Open qualifying. With Lee you get the feeling he wouldn’t want it any other way.

Greg Chalmers finished 16th, Rod Pampling and Tim Wilkinson 23rd, Nathan Green 45th and Robert Allenby a disappointing 65th.

The PGA Tour now moves west to Fort Worth for this week’s Crowne Plaza Colonial, although many will stay in the Dallas area for the Open Championship qualifying this Monday.