Glover powers home to win PGA Tour event
BY Bruce Young | US PGA Tour | 2005 Funai Classic | Wrap | 24 Oct 2005
Lucas Glover has today won the $4.2 million Funai Classic after holing out from a greenside bunker on the 18th hole. His seven under round of 65 eventually giving him a one stroke margin of victory.
Glover impressed many early in his second season on the PGA Tour. By early May he had racked up six top tens and was already assured of his tour card in 2006 after being forced to return to Tour School last year to regain his playing rights at the completion of a solid but unsuccessful rookie year.
Back on the PGA Tour in 2005 he had already earned US$1 million by the time the Memorial Tournament was over and he no longer had concerns of his immediate future on the PGA Tour.
From that point on, a promising start gave way to a run of weeks where he missed six of seven cuts and he appeared to have lost his way. That was of course until this week when not only did the 28-year-old win but he won in the most dramatic fashion by holing a lengthy bunker shot at the 72nd hole.
Just when it appeared there might be several in with a chance as the tournament reached its climax, there was Glover playing in the fourth last group of the day putting together a round to die for.
Having made the turn at just two under, the road ahead was still congested with players ahead of him on the leaderboard. Three quick birdies to start the back nine soon had him very much in the thick of things when reached the 17th. A birdie from just off the green was impressive but even more impressive was to come. At the 18th he pulled his tee shot left and when he had also pulled his second into a greenside bunker it appeared his chance to grab an unlikely win was all but gone. Five minutes later though he holed his bunker shot from just over 30 yards and at 23 under he had set the mark.
Behind him on the golf course Tom Pernice looked to have a great chance at a win when he reached 22 under with still eight holes to go but he was unable to get the one extra birdie he needed. At the 17th he made a great par save and had a chance at the 18th for birdie from 15 feet but that missed and he would take second place.
There were several surprises in the list of players who missed the cut this week including Vijay Singh, last week’s The Championship at Las Vegas winner Wes Short Jr. and world number one, Tiger Woods. Woods also missed the cut earlier this year at the EDS Byron Nelson, ending a record of 142 consecutive cuts.
Singh’s weekend off means that Woods is assured of the 2005 PGA Tour money title for the 6th time. Singh has won the title for the previous two years.
Australian Geoff Ogilvy also had his chance to join Glover in the lead after a fine birdie at the 17th but at the last when he needed birdie to join Glover he was long and left with his approach and took bogey. That bogey would cost Ogilvy close to US$200,000 as instead of sharing second with Pernice he became part of a four way tie for third.
Included in that third place tie was the defending champion Ryan Palmer, who did well in attempting to defend his breakthrough victory last year. His last round of 64 included an outward nine of 30.
For Glover however this was a day to remember. Winning for the first time of the PGA Tour is special but to do so following the loss of his playing status in 2004, after having graduated from the Nationwide Tour, again highlights just how important experience is in moving to the next level.
The next best of the Australians after Ogilvy were Stuart Appleby and Stephen Leaney who finished 32nd, Brendan Jones whose poor weekend could prove very costly in the race for status in 2006 when 41st, John Senden was 65th, Gavin Coles 68th and Peter Lonard 70th.
The USPGA Tour now heads across state to Tampa for the Chrysler Championship, subject to Hurricane Wilma.
