John Daly takes
the Buick in Playoff
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John Daly playing his third shot on the playoff hole (Par 5
18th) from the greenside bunker. Photo - Getty images |
John Daly secured his fifth career
PGA win with a birdie on the first sudden death playoff hole against San Diego native,
Chris Riley and England’s Luke Donald, the trio having finished the Buick
Invitational with 10 under par totals of 278. |
| After playing a
characteristically long drive down the 18th fairway, Daly took a wood and ran
through the green into a sand trap at the back. Both of his playoff opponents laid up and
played quality third shots, each to within a few feet of the flag. Lying in the sand, with
a downhill slope to the hole and very little green between the cup and the water beyond,
the pressure was certainly on Daly. Having carefully studied the contours of the green, he
proceeded to play a precision shot from the bunker (photo above) to leave a tap-in for
birdie. |
| Luke Donald’s birdie putt
rolled just past on the high side (photo right) and Chris Riley could only look on in
disbelief as his putt went 180 degrees round the lip and came back towards him. Daly
emotionally clasped his hands to his face as the crowd voiced their approval of the
outcome. |
Luke Donald showing obvious disappointment after missing birdie putt. Photo
- Getty Images
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Photo - Getty Images |
| Daly started the final day on 13
under, two shots clear but came back to the field after a triple bogey on a short par 3.
He retained his composure and soon was ahead again. Phil Mickelson, who carded a 67, the
best score of the day, was in the clubhouse with a 9 under par total of 279, for what must
have seemed to him like an eternity. At one stage it looked possible that a nine-way
playoff could be on the cards but Daly stayed one shot clear of Mickelson and the others
on 9 under to join Riley and Donald who both birdied the 18th to go into the
clubhouse a shot clear of the pack. |
| After a poor start to the week,
Tiger Woods finished with a final round of 69 to share 10th position with five
others that had a 4-day total of 280, including Stewart Cink (photo right) who started the
day on –12, just one shot behind Daly. |
Stewart Cink. Photo - Getty Images
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| Cink was one of several who
almost eagled the 18th on Sunday when his approach shot spun back and ran round
the lip of the hole. |
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| Vijay Singh’s run of 12
consecutive Top –10 finishes came to an end on Friday afternoon when he failed by one
shot to make the cut. He vowed that after a short break he would return to start another
run. |
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