Sunday, June 05, 2011

STEVE STRICKER ENDURES TWO-HOUR HOLD-UP BEFORE VICTORY

DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) — The toughest test Steve Stricker faced Sunday at the Memorial was when he wasn't even playing golf.
With a three-shot lead and just more than five holes remaining, Stricker had to spend two hours in the clubhouse waiting out a storm delay, leaving him plenty of time to imagine what could go wrong.
Never mind that he played the front nine in 20-under par, including a 30 in the final round. Or that on his last hole before the delay, he saved par with a bunker shot behind the 12th hole that Jack Nicklaus said was the best shot he hit all week.
"It's hard not to think about those last closing holes and just the unknown," Stricker said. "You don't know what's going to happen with the other players, you don't know how you're going to perform under the stretch, under the gun. At that point, you just want to get it done."
The way it ended was no surprise at all.
Stricker faced two clutch par putts down the stretch - from 15 feet on No. 16 and from 7 feet on No. 17 - and poured them both in the center of the cup. He closed with a 4-under 68 for a one-shot victory over Matt Kuchar and Brandt Jobe to finally find the winning formula at Muirfield Village.
"I feel good when I've got the putter in my hand," Stricker said.
He felt even better when it was over, and he walked off the green to meet Nicklaus with a handshake and a hug.
"You've seen so many guys do that over the years, the winners coming off the green and getting greeted by Mr. Nicklaus," Stricker said. "And you always think one day that could be you. And it turned out it was me this year. It's a great thrill. It's a dream come true."
Stricker moved to No. 4 in the world to become the highest-ranked American for the first time in his career. He won for the 10th time in his career - seven of those since turning his game around five years ago - and went over $30 million in career earnings.
Kuchar and Jobe, the only players who could sustain the chase, each closed with a 65 to tie for second.
Dustin Johnson shot a 65 to finish fourth, followed by Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland, who had a 68. The biggest consolation prize went to Gary Woodland, who had a 68 to finish alone in sixth. Woodland likely will move to No. 40 in the world ranking, making him virtually a lock to get into the U.S. Open. He had faced a 36-hole qualifier Monday morning.
Stricker, who led by four shots at the turn, made it more interesting than it needed to be, especially after a 2 1/2-hour storm delay that slowed his momentum following a spectacular bunker save behind the 12th green.
He had a three-shot lead with five holes to play when he missed a short birdie on the 14th, then pulled his tee shot into the woods on the par-5 15th to make a bogey. His lead was down to two, and he faced a tough finish.
Stricker found the back bunker on the par-3 16th and blasted out to 15 feet, lightly pumping his fist when it dropped in the center of the cup for par to keep the two-shot cushion. From the middle of the 17th fairway, he badly pushed his 6-iron off a mound and into a deep bunker right of the green. He splashed it out to 7 feet, and the par putt again was never in doubt.
Needing only a bogey to win, Stricker hit into a fairway bunker on the 18th, missed the green to the left and was happy to chip onto the top tier to 20 feet that locked up his first win of the year.
"I felt like I was just trying to hang on and get it in the house," Stricker said. "It's a tough way to play. I hit a bad drive at 15 that really made me feel pretty uncomfortable about this whole situation. But I made a couple great putts coming in and was fortunate enough to get the win."
Stricker finished at 16-under 272 and earned $1,116,000.
Luke Donald, in his first tournament at No. 1 in the world, never had a chance to win but never quit trying. Donald closed with a 68 and tied for seventh, his 10th consecutive finish in the top 10 in worldwide golf.
It was a tale of two nines for Stricker, as it had been all week. He played the front nine in 20 under, including his six birdies Sunday when he made the turn in 30 to build the big lead. He played the back nine in 4 over, and didn't have another shot to spare.
"I needed them all the way I played the back nine," he said.
Kuchar and Jobe did all the could to catch him.
"My 5 under on the front didn't gain any ground on him," Kuchar said. "It was tough to see. Got two more on the back, played great golf. But looks like it's just not quite good enough."
Jobe has been battling injuries over the past several years, and the $545,600 pushes him over $1.16 million for the season and assures him keeping his card for next year. Jobe put the most pressure on Stricker by running off five straight birdies around the turn.
"I thought if we would have gone out and shot 65, that might have been good enough," Jobe said. "But it looks like we're going to be a little short. It was his tournament to kind of win or lose, and he's going out there and winning it."
Stricker now heads to Congressional in two weeks as one of the players who could be a big factor in the U.S. Open. He was a runner-up at Congressional in 2007 during the AT and T National, and that putting stroke goes a long way on any course.
"I don't know why he hasn't won a major yet," Nicklaus said. "But as long as he wants to play, the way he's playing, watch out at Congressional, or watch out some place. He'll get there."
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
Players from US unless stated
272 Steve Stricker 68 67 69 68.
273 Matt Kuchar 69 71 68 65, Brandt Jobe 71 68 69 65.
276 Dustin Johnson 68 73 70 65.
277 Rory McIlroy (N Ireland) 66 72 71 .
278 Gary Woodland 72 69 69 68.
280 Kevin Streelman 74 68 72 66, Luke Donald (England) 70 68 73 69, John Senden (Australia) 71 70 71 68, Webb Simpson 72 70 70 68, Mark Wilson 70 73 66 71, Jonathan Byrd 71 67 69 73.
Selected totals
281 Phil Mickelson 72 70 72 67 (T13).
282 Brian Davis (England) 73 71 70 68 (T18).
290 Ernie Els (S Africa) 71 73 75 71 (61st).
292 Ed Molinari (Italy) 72 69 76 75 (T63)TO VIEW ALL THE SCORES ON THE US PGA TOUR WEBSITE

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NORMAN ROSE BLOOMS IN MURRAY CUP QUALIFIER

Northern's Norman Rose led the qualifiers at the Kings Links today in the Aberdeen Links championships' Murray Cup competition for 10 - 24 handicaps. His net total of 128 (10 under the CSS) was enough for a six-shot cushion over clubmate Tony Butler.
Bon Accord's Willie Guyan was third on 138 with Derek Daniel of the Caley next on 139. Reigning champion Frank Kennedy (Bon Accord) squeezed in on 146 as the qualifying mark rose to 148.


MURRAY CUP TEE TIMES
Tuesday, June 7


5.00 N Rose (N) (20) v L Ross (C) (10)
5.06 J Muir (N) (13) v D Stewart (C) (14)
5.12 K G Robertson (C) (13) v F Kennedy (BA) (11)
5.18 G Fiddes (N) (11) v J Urquhart (BA) (18)
5.24 D Daniel (C) (18) v  C Somers (BA) (10)
5.30 S Barclay (N) (11) v C Carson (C) (19)
5.36 J Gall (C) (15) v G McDonald (N) (21)
5.42 C Murphy (BA) (16) v M McLeod (N) (24)
5.48 T Butler (N) (11) v A Greig (BA) (13)
5.54 N Christie (BA) (18) v D Henderson (BA) (10)
6.00 I Petrie (N) (13) v G Martin(BA) (14)
6.06 G Duncan (N) (19) v E Anderson (N) (12)
6.12 W Guyan (BA) (10) v D Coull (N) (10)
6.18 B Lumsden jnr (N) (20) v R Buchan (N) (18)
6.24 M Rimmer (C) (11) v N Carnegie (C) (10)
6.30 I Stewart (BA) (18) v G F Webster (N)  (18)

STATEMENT BY DAVIE GRIEVE
Secretary of Aberdeen Links championshipsI can report that in 30+ years of playing in the Links Championships and my third year as secretary i have never heard so many complaints from the players of all clubs regarding the general condition of the course and especially the putting surfaces.
Since taking over from the City Council last year, Sport Aberdeen has let the course get into a sorry state. Lack of water on the greens and lack of marked GUR areas seems to be the biggest bones of contention but the general state of all parts of the course is a big concern for all who play it.
In spite of various e-mails from members of all the courses under the tenure of Sport Aberdeen and several meetings with their representatives, the courses seem to be regressing in condition. We all realise that budgets are extremely tight in all organisations at present but a lot of the problems could be dealt with at very little cost.
Hopefully, someone at Sport Aberdeen can grab this situation by the scruff of the neck and put into place a program for improving course conditions at the Kings Links, Balnagask and Hazlehead's once great courses.


Davie Grieve
Links Secretary

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FLAWLESS FOWLER SCORES FIRST WIN ON EURO SENIORS TOUR

Peter Fowler with the championship trophy. Image by courtesy of Getty Images.
By STEVE TODD
European Seniors Tour Press Officer
Peter Fowler ended a two-year wait for a maiden European Senior Tour title and gave himself an early birthday present with a three stroke victory in the ISPS Handa Senior Masters presented by The Stapleford Forum.
The Australian marks his 52nd birthday on Thursday and will have double cause for celebration after carding a final round 70 to finish on 10-under- par 209 for the tournament, holding off a determined challenge from Edinburgh’s Andrew Oldcorn.
Fowler initially struggled with a back injury upon joining the Senior Tour in June 2009 but was runner-up to Sandy Lyle in the ISPS Handa Senior World Championship presented by Mission Hills China in March, and he continued that form at Stapleford Park in Melton Mowbray, England, posting a second consecutive bogey free round to secure the title.
“I’ve been trying to win again for the last 18 years so this is a great feeling,” said Fowler, who won the 1993 BMW International Open on The European Tour.
“I’ve been trying to beat these guys for years now and I’ve finally got one up on them. I played with Andrew Oldcorn and Michael Harwood for the final two rounds and they are two class players. Both have won the PGA Championship and many other tournaments so it was hard work to stay in front.
“I’ve played solidly for the last six months now with lots of rehab to help my back and it’s been a gradual progress. I had a couple of small wins in Tasmania and South Australia in two round tournaments so I had a bit of practice winning and that really helped this week.
“When I had back surgery two years ago I didn’t know if I would even play Tour golf again so this victory means a lot.”
While last year Bill Longmuir ran away with the inaugural title, producing a birdie blitz to win by seven strokes on 20 under par, windier conditions made the Stapleford Park much tougher this time round and Fowler’s victory was more due to avoiding mistakes than putting red on his card.
Indeed the 6ft 3in Sydney born player only made two bogeys in 54 holes, both of which came during the front nine of his opening round on Friday.
Fowler had started the day with a one stroke lead over Oldcorn and Harwood, his fellow Australian, but pulled clear with birdies on the seventh and 13th holes before critically picking up another shot on the 17th after Oldcorn had clawed his lead back to one shot.
Oldcorn had initially applied some pressure on Fowler with a birdie on the second but back-to-back bogeys on the third and fourth saw the 2001 PGA Champion falter and although he fought back strongly with birdies on the 15th and 16th, a bogey on the last for a 72 meant he had to settle for his second runner-up finish on the Senior Tour.
“The 13th hole was the first time I thought I would do it,” said Fowler. “That gave me a cushion but Andrew hit back with birdies on the next two and I had a Seve-shot from the rough to get it close and holed the putt on 17 to clinch the win. I was only one in front then and in potential bogey-country but it was a great shot.”
Harwood, who shared a house with Fowler close to the Stapleford Park course during the tournament, endured a frustrating final round, signing for a six over par round of 79 to finish in ninth place, ten shots behind his compatriot.
Mark Mouland, the highest placed European in last week’s US Senior PGA Championship on his debut, continued his impressive start to life on the Senior Tour, carding a joint best of the day 69 to finish third on five under par.
Another Welshman, Ian Woosnam, also climbed up the leaderboard with a closing round of 71 to finish tied sixth on one under par, his second consecutive top ten finish after claiming a share of eighth place in China in March as the former World Number One and Masters Champion continues to rediscover his form. Fellow former Ryder Cup Captain Sam Torrance carded a 75 to finish on seven over par for the tournament, in a share of 32nd position.

FINAL TOTALS
Par 219 (3x73)
209 P Fowler (Aus) 68 71 70,
212 A Oldcorn (Sco) 69 71 72
214 M Mouland (Wal) 71 74 69
215 G Brand Jnr (Sco) 73 72 70
217 B Ruangkit (Tha) 72 73 72
218 I Woosnam (Wal) 73 74 71, R Drummond (Sco) 77 70 71, D Smyth (Irl) 71 70 77
219 M Harwood (Aus) 68 72 79
220 T Johnstone (Zim) 78 72 70, P Mitchell (Eng) 73 76 71, B Lincoln (RSA) 72 74 74
221 B Cameron (Eng) 72 73 76, A Sherborne (Eng) 78 73 70, J Harrison (Eng) 82 70 69
222 G Ralph (Eng) 73 79 70, B Longmuir (Sco) 72 75 75
223 G Ryall (Eng) 75 74 74, J Stuart (USA) 74 77 72, L Carbonetti (Arg) 73 72 78
224 C Williams (RSA) 74 74 76, R Davis (Aus) 71 76 77, D Merriman (Aus) 74 76 74, G Banister (Aus) 78 76 70, J Chillas (Sco) 73 74 77, J Rhodes (Eng) 72 76 76, J Quiros (Esp) 72 76 76
225 P Dahlberg (Swe) 76 72 77, D Durnian (Eng) 76 76 73, W Grady (Aus) 74 74 77, C Rocca (Ita) 79 74 72
226 D Cambridge (Jam) 71 77 78, B Smit (RSA) 73 76 77, A Fernandez (Chi) 74 76 76, S Torrance (Sco) 74 77 75, L Stephen (Aus) 75 80 71
227 K Tomori (Jpn) 73 78 76, G Wolstenholme (Eng) 73 74 80, D Johnson (USA) 82 75 70, C Mason (Eng) 74 78 75, J Bruner (USA) 78 73 76, J Rivero (Esp) 75 77 75, D O'Sullivan (Irl) 71 78 78
228 M Cunning (USA) 74 75 79, D Russell (Eng) 70 81 77, A Franco (Par) 76 78 74, J Stansberry (USA) 75 82 71
229 G Manson (Aut) 79 79 71
230 A Murray (Eng) 77 80 73, J Gould (Eng) 80 70 80, S Van Vuuren (RSA) 73 77 80, K Spurgeon (Eng) 79 76 75, A Sowa (Arg) 75 77 78
231 F Mann (Sco) 75 81 75
232 H Carbonetti (Arg) 74 82 76, M Moreno (Esp) 76 80 76, N Ratcliffe (Aus) 82 74 76, S Bennett (Eng) 75 81 76, G Cali (Ita) 81 77 74
233 B Larratt (Eng) 82 76 75, N Job (Eng) 80 75 78, M Bembridge (Eng) 73 81 79, G Brand (Eng) 76 82 75
235 A Garrido (Esp) 86 71 78, M Belsham (Eng) 73 77 85
239 D Good (Aus) 74 84 81
241 M Piñero (Esp) 80 79 82, J Heggarty (Nir) 80 81 80
244 B Stevens (Eng) 84 80 80
** E Polland (Nir) 82 80 retired.
** I Mosey (Eng) 81 disqualified, P Errity (Irl) 78 retired.
















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LOTHIANS BOYS ARE CHAMPIONS AGAIN - BUT IT WAS CLOSE




The Lads from the Lothians keep their hands on the Scottish Cup. Left to right: Lee Morgan, Grant Forrest, Nadira Sudira (representative of sponsors Dunfermline Building Society), Calum Hill and Anthony Blaney.
Image by courtesy of the Scottish Golf Union.

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE SCOTTISH GOLF UNION
Lothians clinched their second successive Dunfermline Building Society Scottish boys' area team championship and with it a record-breaking tenth title after an exciting finish at Hayston Golf Club, Glasgow today.
Anthony Blaney, playing the anchor role in the Lothians quartet, produced a superb one-under par 69 to give his side an aggregate of 360, finishing just two shots ahead of Ayrshire, with Fife clinching the bronze medals on 364.
Taking a narrow one shot lead into the singles and with scoring difficult on a cold and breezy afternoon, a close finish looked likely and Ayrshire applied the pressure on the leaders with a level par 70 from Charlie McNeal and a 72 from Euan Walker, backed up by a 73 from Scottish Boys Champion David Wilson. 
Fife, whose Men’s team won last month’s Moneygate Scottish Area Team Championship, also burst into contention with the best singles aggregate of 212.
Grant Forrest, a member of last year’s winning Lothians team, posted a three-over par 73 as did team-mate Lee Morgan, while Callum Hill – a semi-finalist in the Scottish Boys Championship, went one better with a 72. That left Blaney needing to score level par or better to take the title, and the Liberton youngster handled the pressure superbly, going round in seventeen pars and a birdie at the second hole, to lead his side home. 
“It’s brilliant to win the championship again,” said an elated Blaney. “We knew we had to go out this afternoon and put some low scores together as it was pretty tight in the morning compared to last year. I sensed I probably had to par the last to give us the win and thankfully I played the hole well. It’s nice to know we could perform when the pressure was on.”
“Dean Robertson, who helped coach the team, gave us some good advice before the team which was a big help and obviously Grant and I had the experience of winning last year. I’ll still be eligible to play next year so hopefully I’ll have a chance of going for the hatrick!” he added.
 Blaney was pipped to the Niagara Cup for the best individual singles score, which was won by Glasgow’s Jamie Savage (Cawder) who fired an excellent two-under par 68.
South finished in fourth spot on 370, with Lanarkshire just behind in fifth on 371, while Glasgow were a further shot back in sixth.

FINAL TOTALS
 
360 LOTHIANS. Foursomes 146 (Anthony Blaney and Grant Forrest 74, Calum Hill and Lee Morgan 73). Singles 214 (Blaney 69, Hill 72, Forrest 73, Morgan 73).
362 AYRSHIRE. Foursomes 147 (Charles MacNeal and David Wilson 73, Jack McDonald and Euan Walker 74). Singles: 215 (MacNeal 70, Walker 72, Wilson 73, McDonald 76).
364 FIFE. Foursomes 152 (Ben Kinsley and Josh Jamieson 76, Andrew Whyte and Cameron Mitchell 76). Singles 212 (Jamieson 70, Whyte 71, Mitchell 71, Kinsley 75).
370 SOUTH. Foursomes 148 (Liam Johnston and Connor Syme 74, Greig Marchbank and Danny McConnachie 74). Singles 222 (Marchbank 72, Johnson 74, Syme 76, McConnachie 78).
371 LANARKSHIRE. Foursomes 149 (Craig Ross and Eamon Bradley 73, James Steven and Ross Gillan 76). Singles 222 (Ross 71, Bradley 74, Steven 77, Gillan 77).
372 GLASGOW. Foursomes 155 (Scott Wearing and Jamie Savage 80, Craig Anderson and Calum McLean 75). Singles 217 (Savage 68, Anderson 73, Wearing 76, McLean 78).
375 BORDERS. Foursomes 152 (Craig Howie and Aiden Fortune 74, Daniel Flannery and Callum McNeil 78). Singles 223 (Howie 74, Flannery 74, Fortune 75, McNeil 76).
378 RENFREWSHIRE. Foursomes 154 (Alasdair McDougall and Paul Reilly 73, John Scott and Greg Paterson 81). Singles 224 (Scott 70, McDougall 71, Reilly 83, Paterson 83).
381 NORTH. Foursomes 154 (Freddie Brown and Sean Burgess 75, Jordan Milne and Andrew Burgess 79). Singles 227 (S Burgess 75, Milne 75, A Burgess 77, Brown 80).
382 ARGYLL and BUTE. Foursomes 151 (Bob MacIntyre and Alistair MacVicar 76, Craig Pirie and Mark Turnbull 75). Singles 231 (MacIntyre 77, Pirie 77, Turnbull 77, MacVicar 78).
383 CLACKMANNANSHIRE. Foursomes 155 (Lawrence Allan and Reyner Kennedy 74, Kevin Ross and Rikky Alexander 81). Singles 228 (Kennedy 74, Allan 75, Ross 79,  Alexander 85).
385 PERTH and KINROSS. Foursomes 160 (Bradley Neil and Sam Craigon 83, Allan Easton and Greig Stewart 77). Singles 225 (Neil 72, Craigon 73, Easton 80, Stewart 84).
390 ANGUS. Foursomes 155 (Calum McKay and Connor Cook 74, Grant Bowman and Ian Douglas 81). Singles 235 (Cook 77, Bowman 79, Douglas 79, McKay 83).
392 NORTH-EAST. Foursomes 165 (Robbie Gauld and Jamie Reid 87, Lewis Mutch and Daniel Thompsett 78). Singles 227 (Thompsett 70, Reid 78, Mutch 79, Gauld 80).
393 STIRLINGSHIRE. Foursomes 157 (Darius Kunecki and Ben Craggs 77, Euan Douglas and Charlie Linton 80). Singles 236 (Douglas 78, Craggs 79, Linton 79, Kunecki 81).
393 DUNBARTONSHIRE. Foursomes 158 (Angus Carrick and Ewen Ferguson 74, Cameron Farrell and Liam Halliday 84). Singles 235 (Halliday 77, Carrick 78, Ferguson 80, Farrell 80).


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TERRY MATHIESON FIRST ENTRY FOR CRAIBSTONE ALLIANCE OPEN

Terry Mathieson, who recently moved from his assistant professional's post at Dunbar to take a tour attachment at Murcar Links, is the first man to put his name down on Golf Operations Manager Billy Sim's list of entries for the inaugural Craibstone Alliance open on Wednesday. 
Mathieson, pictured by Cal Carson Golf Agency, a leading North-east amateur before he turned pro, played well in last year's Scottish Alliance championship over his old stamping ground at Murcar.
The Craibstone Alliance needs numbers to get it off the ground.
The 18-hole competitions, every Wednesday at Craibstone Golf Club, with the tee open from 8am to 2pm, are open to male (handicap maximum 20) and female (maximum handicap 30) amateurs and professionals and assistant professionals.
Entries are not restricted to North-east golfers only. These are "opens" in the true meaning of the word.
Entry fee each Wednesday is £15 or £10 for Craibstone GC members.
Phone Billy Sim at 075533 47143 to book your time - and bring a friend or two or three!
Catering is available at the Craibstone club's "Brimmond Bistro"  to non-members from 9.30am to 6.30pm daily.
The club number is 01224 716777

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CHINA OPEN WINNER KIM CAN AFFORD TO BY FINE BY KOREA TOUR

Kim Bi-o's gamble to play in the more lucrative China Open rather than a low-key event on home turf, for which he was fined by the Korean Golf Tour, paid off today as he won the OneAsia Tour event.
The KGT fined the 20-year-old South Korean and compatriot Kim Dae-hyun $4,600 each for skipping a $460,000 home event to play in the $1 million China Masters instead.
Kim Bi-o had reasons to feel vindicated as he prevailed in a sudden-death play-off against New Zealand's Michael Long to win the title at the Nanshan International Golf Club in Shandong province that made him richer by $180,000.
Levelled at 10-under with three others, he holed an eight-foot birdie putt on the third extra hole to seal the title.
Kim Dae-hyun's defiance paid off too as he pocketed $11,975 for finishing tied 16th at five-under.

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FRENCHMAN MAKES UP FIVE SHOTS TO WIN ON CHALLENGE TOUR

By SARAH GWYNN
European Challenge Tour Press Officer
Frenchman Edouard Dubois produced a stunning performance to win the European Challenge Tour's Kärnten Golf Open presented by Mazda, carding a nine under par 63 in the final round to overturn a five-shot deficit behind overnight leader Andrea Pavan.
The Italian had led from the start after opening rounds of 63 and 64 gave him a seven-shot halfway lead. That advantage was cut to five after he posted a 70 on day three in response to Dubois’ sparkling 65, and it was reduced to nothing by midway through the final round as he struggled to a level par 72.
Pavan had to settle for second, four shots behind Dubois at 19 under, while Englishman Andrew Johnston’s 66 gave him a share of third place at 16 under alongside compatriot Chris Paisley and Swede Bjorn Åkesson, who both carded 70.
It was on the front nine that Dubois again laid the foundations for a sublime score at Golf Club Klagenfurt-Seltenheim. Yesterday he was six under at the turn; today he was five under, and he picked up more shots at the tenth, 14th, 16th and 17th.
The 16th was the turning point as Pavan’s bogey put his rival two shots ahead, and the 18th was the final nail in the coffin as the Italian hit his second shot in the lake en route to a double bogey.
“It’s amazing,” said Dubois, who earns a cheque for €25,600 and rises from 68th to seventh in the Challenge Tour Rankings. “I played like I was in a dream. I was six shots behind Andrea after two holes today but then I got on a roll and the birdies kept coming. It felt like I couldn’t do anything wrong.
“I holed a very long putt on the seventh – maybe 20 metres – and it was around the turn that I could feel something happening, I thought maybe I could win. I had another good birdie on the tenth to go into the lead and I was never behind after that.
“I was a little bit nervous on the 18th but not so much before that. That surprised me a little bit – I just felt so good. It’s my first Challenge Tour win and it feels so brilliant. It’s great for my place in the Rankings, for my confidence, everything.”
Pavan rued his bad luck in the final round, but admitted he could take plenty of positives from the week despite not winning.
“I started off okay but made a three-putt on the fourth which was annoying,” said the 22 year old from Rome. “I couldn’t get my wedges really close and the putts weren’t dropping. I made two good up-and-downs on the ninth and tenth and they were crucial.
“Meanwhile Edouard was playing unbelievable golf so I knew I had to make something happen. I knew I had to put some pressure on him. On the par five 14th I hit it really close and made the putt for birdie, but then he made a long putt for birdie too.
“On the 16th I got a bad break – the ball was stuck on the lip of the bunker on a down slope. I was thinking par at worst but didn’t hit it great and then had a tough shot from the rough. On the 17th I made a good putt for birdie from about five metres and I’m thinking it’s down to one shot going down the 18th, but then he holes another long putt to make four too. What can you do?
“On the 18th I knew he wasn’t going to make bogey so I tried to go right at the pin but it ended up going in the lake. The first two days were great; perhaps the weekend I should have done better. I didn’t feel like my game was at its best and I still shot 19 under so I can’t be too disappointed.”
Dubois’ 23 under par 265 is comfortably the lowest total score of the season, beating the previous best set by Nicolas Meitinger and Maximilian Keiffer at the Allianz Challenge de France by eight shots.
Leading Scot was Alastair Forsyth who kept his best until last, shooting a closing six-under 66 for a 12-under-par total of 276. He finished joint 10th.
FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
265 E Dubois (Fra) 70 67 65 63
269 A Pavan (Ita) 63 64 70 72
272 A Johnston (Eng) 70 70 66 66, B Åkesson (Swe) 65 70 67 70, C Paisley (Eng) 69 65 68 70
273 K Eriksson (Swe) 69 67 69 68
274 M Ford (Eng) 67 69 68 70
275 M Erlandsson (Swe) 69 68 70 68, P Del Grosso (Arg) 70 72 68 65,
276 S Harrington (USA) 69 70 69 68, D Denison (Eng) 68 68 70 70, R Santos (Por) 68 70 67 71, R Steiner (Aut) 66 68 73 69, A Forsyth (Sco) 70 72 68 66
277 F Svanberg (Sui) 71 71 65 70, M Southgate (Eng) 65 73 68 71, C Lloyd (Eng) 71 69 71 66, M Cryer (Eng) 72 70 69 66, A Butterfield (Eng) 71 68 69 69
278 A Högberg (Swe) 70 72 68 68, J Garcia (Esp) 69 69 70 70, B Grace (RSA) 67 72 72 67
279 L Jensen (Den) 70 67 71 71, B Ritthammer (Ger) 72 69 67 71, J Grillon (Fra) 71 71 68 69, M Baldwin (Eng) 72 68 66 73, A Haindl (RSA) 72 68 66 73, A McArthur (Sco) 74 66 68 71, J Billot (Fra) 70 67 70 72, D Perrier (Fra) 69 71 67 72, M Larsson (Swe) 71 69 71 68
280 P Edberg (Swe) 70 66 72 72, S Little (Eng) 71 66 72 71, A Tampion (Aus) 71 70 71 68, R Hjelm (Den) 69 71 69 71, W Besseling (Ned) 69 69 72 70
281 A Bruschi (Ita) 70 72 68 71, C Günther (Ger) 65 70 73 73, D Lokke (Den) 69 73 69 70, N Bertasio (Ita) 68 71 71 71, J Hansen (Den) 69 70 69 73, J Campillo (Esp) 71 69 65 76, D Whitnell (Eng) 71 67 74 69, G Molteni (Ita) 67 73 73 68, C Doak (Sco) 72 68 67 74
282 J Heath (Eng) 69 73 73 67, G Dear (Sco) 72 70 69 71, A Maestroni (Ita) 71 69 69 73, H Bacher (Aut) 70 71 72 69, T Remkes (Ned) 68 70 74 70, C Carranza (Arg) 69 69 70 74
283 R Kind (Ned) 71 71 71 70, C Macaulay (Sco) 71 67 70 75
284 J Legarrea (Esp) 70 72 70 72, S Jeppesen (Swe) 71 71 69 73, M Trappel (am) (Aut) 69 72 71 72
285 J Estevez (Arg) 69 70 75 71, B Barham (Eng) 69 69 72 75, G Watremez (Bel) 70 69 72 74, F Praegant (Aut) 71 70 71 73, E Canonica (Ita) 75 67 72 71
286 F Ruprecht (Aut) 71 69 73 73, A Ahokas (Fin) 71 70 73 72, D Brooks (Eng) 68 73 76 69, B Hafthorsson (Isl) 70 71 69 76
287 J Abbate (Arg) 70 70 71 76
289 C Pfau (Aut) 67 75 70 77
292 L Westerberg (Swe) 71 70 72 79
298 N Lombardi (Ita) 74 68 74 82

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SWEDE SUCCESS BY ALEX NOREN IN SAAB WALES OPEN

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Swede Alex Noren won his second European Tour title at The Celtic Manor Resort today - and this time all it needed was solid golf rather than a moment of magic.
The 28 year old's previous win came in Switzerland two years ago after he holed a bunker shot for an eagle four holes from the end.

Noren has now added the Saab Wales Open at The Ryder Cup venue by two strokes from Dane Anders Hansen and Frenchman Grégory Bourdy after a closing 70 containing just two birdies and one mistake.

That came on the driveable 15th when, with confidence high and a three stroke cushion, he went for the green with a three wood and saw it go left and kick down a bank into a hazard.

A bogey five brought the gap down to two, but he parred the last three holes for a nine under par total of 275.

It completed a dream week that began with him qualifying for the US Open Championship - his first ever Major in America.

But Noren's work goes on. Winning the title and €344,358 does not spare him from 36 holes of Open Championship qualifying at Sunningdale on Monday.

"It will be weird, but I will look forward to it," he said.

"My driving has been the best it's ever been. I never really believed I could do well on tough courses, but now we play them all the time.

"I've proved to myself I can hit a lot of greens and not just rely on my short game."

His name follows that of Graeme McDowell onto the trophy - and last year, of course, the Ulsterman went on to capture the US Open Championship as well.

McDowell had hopes of a successful defence when he was in second place behind Noren at halfway, but then came a nightmare Saturday 81 and even an improvement of ten strokes lifted him only to 30th place.

Noren had resumed one ahead of Hansen and Peter Hanson, but by the seventh green that had swelled to four.

Hansen was the first to fall back, taking a double bogey seven on the long second after his ball plugged in sand.

Hanson went joint top with a ten foot putt on the fourth, but missed a three foot opportunity at the next, double bogeyed the sixth after failing to make it over the water with his approach and then three-putted the next.

Bourdy set the target of seven under with a birdie at the par five last and Hansen's birdie at the short 17th - a hole that had earlier seen Scot Elliot Saltman hole-in-one for the second time in the week - meant he still had a chance.

But although Noren went over the green in two on the last and then played a poor chip, Hansen was bunkered, came out 18 feet past the flag and both took five.

“He played very solid,” said Hansen. “That must be nice for Alex, he's such a good guy, and he really deserves to win. He's been playing great golf this year.”

Johan Edfors, another Swede, eagled the hole to share fourth with Argentina's Ricardo Gonzalez, who came back from an opening triple bogey seven to shoot a 67.
Peter Whiteford finished with a 67 to tie for eighth place on 280 and earn 44,319 Euros.
Elliot Saltman, with a second hole in one in the tournament, made it a pair of 69s over the last 36 holes and he finished on 281, joint 12th place, and was rewarded with 33,472 Euros.
Greig Hutcheon, the Banchory GC tour pro, signed off with a 74 for 286 which earned him 19,318 Euros for a share of 28th place.
David Drysdale had a fourth-round 70 (his best of the week) for 287 and a tie for 30th place. He earned 17,459.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS AND PRIZEMONEY
Par 284 (4x71). Prizemoney in Euros
275 Alexander Noren (Sweden) 67 67 71 70 (344,355).
277 Gregory Bourdy (France) 67 73 70 67, Anders Hansen (Denmark) 70 70 66 71 (179,456 each).
278 Johan Edfors (Sweden) 71 70 69 81, Ricardo Gonzales (Argentina) 71 67 73 678, Peter Hanson (Sweden) 65 72 69 72, Pablo Larrazabal (Spain) 70 70 71 67 (81,303 each).
280 Magnus Carlsson (Sweden) 71 70 69 70, Jamie Donaldson (Wales) 68 68 71 73, Joel Sjoholm (Sweden) 72 69 71 68, Peter Whiteford (Scotland) 70 70 73 67 (T8) (44,319 each).
OTHER SCOTS' TOTALS
281 Elliot Saltman 73 70 69 69 (T12) (33,472).
286 Greig Hutcheon 72 72 68 74 (T28) (19,318).
287 David Drysdale 71 71 75 70 (T30) (17,459).
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TOM LEWIS WINS ST ANDREWS LINKS TROPHY BY FOUR SHOTS

Championship winner Tom Lewis and his caddie-girl friend Lara Cornell on the Swilken Bridge at the Old Course 18th. Image by courtesy of St Andrews Links Trust.

British boys champion of 2009, Tom Lewis scored the biggest win of his career so far and surely clinched a place in the Great Britain and Ireland Walker Cup team for Royal Aberdeen in September, with an impressive four-stroke victory in the St Andrews Links Trophy tournament today.
In arrears at halfway and still trailing after 54 holes, the 20-year-old Lewis, from the same golf club, Welwyn Garden City, as Nick Faldo represented when he was a leading amateur, powered past third-round leader, Sebastian “Jock” MacLean, a 21-year-old from Bolivia with a Scottish sea captain as a forefather, with an scorching outward half over four-under-par 32 in the final round over the Old Course. 
He birdied the fifth, sixth, seventh and ninth.
Lewis, winner of the British and English Under-18 boys’ titles in 2009 and ranked England’s No 1 player last year, also birdied the 10th to get one hand on the prestigious trophy. After yet another birdie at the 14th, but a bogey at the 17th, Tom finished with a 67 after earlier rounds of 68 over the New Course and 74 and 70 over the Old for an eight-under-par total of 279.
He is the second Englishman in successive weekends to win a major title in Scotland – Andy Sullivan (Nuneaton) (who finished joint sixth at St Andrews)  having staged a grandstand finish to win the Scottish men’s open amateur stroke-play crown at Blairgowrie the weekend before.
But there was no need for last-gasp heroics by Lewis. He had matters well in hand as the R and A headquarters came into sight for him.
In a three-way on 283 were Sebastian MacLean, Welshman Rhys Enoch (Truro) and Dutchman Daan Huising who drove out of bounds at the 18th - one of the widest fairways on any course. That cost him second place on his own.
Scott Gibson, 18-year-old Southerness member of the SGU Elite squad, was the standard-bearer of the Scottish contingent almost from the first day of the tournament but a final round of 76 over the Old Course dragged him down to a total of three-over-par 290.
Three Scots - all Fifers - slipped past him to share the home honour on 288: James White (Lundin), Greg Paterson (St Andrews New) and Brian Soutar (Leven Golfing Society).
FINAL TOTALS
Par 287 (1x71, 3x72)

279 Tom Lewis (Welwyn Garden City) 68 74 70 67.
283 Sebastian MacLean (Bolivia) 71 71 67 74, Daan Huizing (Netherlands) 71 68 74 70 Rhys Enoch (Truro) 66 74 71 72.
284 Domenico Geminiani (Italy) 73 72 70 69.
285 Andy Sullivan (Nuneaton) 74 69 72 70, Ben Campbell (NZ) 69 71 73 72, Franco Romero (Argentina) 67 72 75 71.
286 Robin Kind (Netherlands) 73 71 75 67.
287 Craig Hinton (The Oxfordshire) 72 73 70 72, Edouard Espana (France) 70 73 71 73, Jack Senior (Heysham) 72 69 74 73
288 Cyril Bouniol (France) 71 74 70 73.
289 James White (Lundin) 72 73 70 74, Stiggy Hodgson (Sunningdale) 73 73 74 69, Victor Flatau (Sweden) 71 75 72 71, Brian Soutar (Leven) 73 73 71 72, Daniel Nisbet (Australia) 73 71 72 73, Greg Paterson (St Andrews New) 73 71 73 72.
290 Gary Stal (France) 71 73 71 75, Matthew Steiger (Australia) 71 73 72 74, Scott Gibson (Southerness) 71 71 72 76.
291 Paul Shields (Kirkhlll) 71 74 74 72, Dylan Boshart (Belgium) 73 73 73 72, Michael Carnes (US) 71 75 73 72, Alexander Levy (France) 74 70 74 73.
292 Paul Cutler (Portstewart) 73 72 76 71, Todd Adcock (Nevill) 71 75 73 73, Horacio Leon (Chile) 73 73 71 75, Tyrrell Hatton (Harleyford) 73 71 75 73, Ben Westgate (Trevose) 73 70 74 75..
293 Brett Drewitt (Australia) 73 73 74 73, Ricardo Gouveia (Portugal) 70 74 77 72.
295 Le Riche Ehiers (S Africa) 74 70 73 78, Leonard Motta (Italy) 73 71 76 75, Jorge F Valdes (Argentina) 73 70 76 76.
297 Jonathan Hurst (Pleasington) 72 71 79 75.
298 Daniel Wasteney (Bondhay) 75 72 74 79.
299 Jordan Findlay (Fraserburgh) 72 73 78 76.
300 Sam Stuart (St Annes Old Links) 71 75 76 78.


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VIJAY SINGH PULLS OUT OF OPEN QUALIFYING AT SUNNINGDALE

FROM THE GOLF.COM WEBSITE
Three-time major winner and former world number one Vijay Singh has pulled out of the Open Championship qualifying event at Sunningdale on Monday.The Fijian, 48, who has dropped out of the world's top-50, will instead play the FedEx St Jude Classic in Memphis and could still earn an Open exemption.
Swede Michael Jonzon now joins a field of 96 on Monday, vying for 10 places at the Open, which begins on July 14 at Royal St George's.
Colin Montgomerie and Thomas Bjorn have also entered qualifying in Berkshire.
Spaniard Sergio Garcia will attempt to qualify for Royal St George's in America.
The US qualifying event takes place in Texas next Monday, with 78 players competing for eight spots.
Also in that field are 2012 US Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III and England's Brian Davis, but Chris DiMarco, runner-up to Tiger Woods in the 2006 Open at Hoylake, is currently only third reserve.
Singh, who was number one in 2004 and 2005, won the Masters in 2000 and twice captured the USPGA title, in 1998 and 2004.
He tied for second with Denmark's Bjorn when the Open was last played at Sandwich in 2003.
On that occasion Bjorn squandered a three-shot lead with four holes to play effectively handing the Claret Jug to the American rookie Ben Curtis, who won by one stroke.

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LOTHIANS LEAD BY ONE STROKE AFTER BOYS' AREA FOURSOMES

FROM THE SCOTTISH GOLF UNION WEBSITE
Defending champions Lothians hold a one-stroke lead from Ayrshire after the morning foursomes of the Dunfermline Building Society Scottish Boys Area Team Championship at Hayston Golf Club today.
The Lothians duo of Callum Hill and Lee Morgan combined well to post the best score of the first round with a two-over par 72, while team-mates Grant Forrest and Anthony Blaney shot 74 to leave them on 146.
Scottish boys' champion David Wilson and partner Charlie MacNeal fired a three-over-par 73 for Ayrshire’s lead pair, with Jack McDonald and Euan Walker on 74, giving them a first-round tally of 147.
On a tightly-packed leaderboard, only six shots separated the top seven teams, with South in third on 148 and last year’s runners-up Lanarkshire a further stroke behind on 149. Argyll and Bute are five shots behind in fifth place on 151, with Borders and Fife sharing sixth at the halfway stage on 152.
North, t
he 2009 champions, finished the morning on 154, alongside Renfrewshire. Players will compete in singles format this afternoon, with the best three out of four scores counting combined with the first round foursomes totals.

LUNCHTIME SCOREBOARD


Pos.AreaFoursomesSinglesCurrent
Total
1LOTHIANS1460146
2AYRSHIRE1470147
3SOUTH1480148
4LANARKSHIRE1490149
5ARGYLL & BUTE1510151
6FIFE1520152
BORDERS1520         152
8NORTH1540154
RENFREWSHIRE1540       154
10CLACKMANNANSHIRE1550155
ANGUS1550        155
GLASGOW1550        155
13STIRLINGSHIRE1570157
14DUMBARTONSHIRE1580158
15PERTH & KINROSS1600160
16NORTH EAST1650165


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WHEATCROFT LEADS BY EIGHT STROKES ON NATIONWIDE TOUR

COLLEGE PARK, Maryland -- It's his to lose. Only a catastrophe by the leader or a miracle from a distant challenger will keep Steve Wheatcroft from the winner's circle at the Melwood Prince George's County Open on Sunday afternoon.
Wheatcroft fired a 6-under-par 65 Saturday and extended his lead to a record-setting eight strokes after 54 holes at the University of Maryland Golf Course. The 33-year old Indiana University grad is a whopping 22-under par and eight shots in front of Nicholas Thompson (64) with only 18 holes to go.
England's Greg Owen (68) is alone in third, 10 shots behind. Erik Compton (66), J.J. Killeen (66) and Jon Mills (68) share fourth place at 11-under par.
The end is in sight for Wheatcroft, who has never won on the either the Nationwide Tour or the PGA TOUR, and prior to Friday had never held the lead after any single round in 128 combined starts.
"Today's the day I was nervous about," said Wheatcroft, who fired a 10-under 60 in Friday's second round and began the day with a seven-stroke bulge, the largest 36-hole lead in Nationwide Tour history. "A seven-shot lead is one thing with nine holes to go but when you have 36 holes to go on a tough golf course that has a lot of rough and trouble, seven shots can go quickly."
Wheatcroft never let anybody get close. Birdies at Nos. 1, 4, 7, 8 and 9 pushed him to 20-under par and kept the field at a distance.
"Once I get through two and five, those are the holes that have been giving me fits all week, once we get through those it's green light, it's time to run," he said. "I feel like every hole is a birdie hole after that."
Wheatcroft gave himself plenty of chances before closing with birdies at Nos. 16 and 18 to up the lead to eight, which also goes into the books as the largest 54-hole lead in Tour history.
"I tried to not do one thing different today than what I've been doing," said Wheatcroft. "One shot, eight shots or 20 shots, let's go play golf. This is the way I play, I'm fairly aggressive to begin with. I won't do anything stupid -- I won't chase pins with crazy shots but if I feel good on a shot we're going right at it."
His ready, aim, fire approach has been nearly perfect, along with his putting, which continues to be his strength. Wheatcroft has only 71 putts in 54 holes to lead the field.
"I'm still hitting some loose shots here and there with the irons but the putter has been great," he said. "It's definitely one of the best weeks I've ever played and it's one of the putting best weeks. I like these weeks where I'm seeing the lines and I'm hitting my lines beautifully."
Thompson will get the up close look in Sunday finale but knows it's going to be tough to catch the man they call "Wheatie."
"It's a tough one to swallow but what can I do now? I can't shoot any lower, I just finished," Thompson joked with reporters after turning in a scorecard that had nine birdies. "I birdied half the course so I can't complain too much. Anything below a 66 and you should move up, which I did but I didn't gain much on the leader."
Englishman Gary Christian fired a career-low, 9-under 62 in Saturday's third round to move into contention at 10-under 203. Christian needed birdies on two of his final three holes Friday just to make the 36-hole cut on the number. His 20-footer on the last hole gave him new life on the weekend.
His 62 bettered a pair of 63s, one of which came during the third round of the 2009 Northeast Pennsylvania Classic, his only Tour win.
"It felt like a free round of golf today because I didn't think I was going to make the cut," said Christian. "It was just easy, everything flowed. You pick out a spot and work out a shot to hit it there and it would go there."
Christian hit 12 of 14 fairways and 15 of 18 greens in moving up from a T52 at the start of the day to a T7 at the end.
Wheatcroft's total of 191 is one stroke off the Nationwide Tour record for the lowest opening-54 hole score:
THIRD-ROUND LEADERBOARD

Par 213 (3x71)
Players from US unless stated
191 Steve Wheatcroft 66 60 65.
199 Nicholas Thompson 66 69 64.
201 Greg Owen (England) 65 68 68.
Selected score
203 Gary Christian (England) 70 71 62.

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MARK BROOKS LEADS US SENIORS TOUR EVENT BY ONE SHOT

FROM THE GOLF.COM WEBSITE
WEST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Mark Brooks knows what it's like to be in the hunt for a championship on the final day. It's just been a while since that's happened.
Brooks has put himself atop the leaderboard heading into the final round of the US Seniors Tour's Principal Charity Classic, shooting a 4-under 67 on Saturday for a one-stroke edge over Mark Calcavecchia.
"I think the hard part of not being right in the hunt is you're not as familiar with your tendencies at the time," Brooks said. "That's what you get from playing all the time. You know, I need to fight off this hook or fight off that cut. You know that a lot better when you're playing 30 tournaments a year."
This is just the sixth Champions Tour event for Brooks, who turned 50 in March, and he's within reach of his first victory since the 1996 PGA Championship. He survived a shaky finish, salvaging a bogey on 18 after twice hitting into bunkers, and finished 36 holes at 10-under 132.
Calcavecchia, playing in the same group as Brooks, closed with three straight pars after an eagle on 15 to wind up with a 66, putting him 9 under. Peter Senior (67) and 2002 winner Bob Gilder (66) were 8 under.
"It's fun," Brooks said, savouring his spot atop the leaderboard. "There are good galleries here, it's a great tournament. It feels like a real tournament."
The weather calmed after Friday's breezy conditions and Glen Oaks yielded far lower scores as a result, including a 64 by Jay Don Blake that was one off the tournament record. It was the day's best score and left Blake 6 under heading into Sunday.
There were 58 sub-par scores Saturday after just 23 in the first round.
Brooks, who lost to Retief Goosen in a play-off at the 2001 U.S. Open, was in danger of losing the lead when he hit out of one fairway bunker and landed in another on 18. His next shot, to the back of the green, left him with a 45-foot putt for par and he got close enough for little more than a tap-in for bogey.
Calcavecchia had a chance to tie for the lead, but rammed his birdie putt on 18 past the hole before nailing his "comebacker."
Brooks thought he, Calcavecchia and Senior, who also played in the final group, left a lot of makeable putts on the greens.
"Our whole group could have shot lower today," Brooks said. "There weren't a whole lot of putts being made. Our whole group could have shot better scores with good putting."
Brooks just missed a hole-in-one on No. 5, the ball skidding inches right of the cup. His 5-footer for birdie spun out and he had to settle for par. He came back with a birdie on 8 and an eagle on No. 9 after a nice 7-iron from 195 yards, but Calcavecchia kept plugging away and staying with him.
Even on the day through six holes, Calcavecchia birdied four of the next seven, then offset a bogey on 14 by sticking a 5-iron to 15 feet on No. 15 and sinking the putt for an eagle. He was kicking himself after missing a 3-footer for birdie on 17, but settled down to finish with his par on 18 after overshooting his birdie putt.
"I was glad I made that one after yanking that three-footer on the hole before," Calcavecchia said.
Gilder, playing in the 178th straight tournament for which he was eligible, had five birdies in a bogey-free round. His streak will end with this tournament because he leaves Monday for a two-week trip to Europe and will miss the Greater Hickory Classic at Rock Barn starting June 10.
Dana Quigley's record streak of 278 is out of reach, Gilder said.
"There aren't enough tournaments," he said. "I'd have to play until I was 80."
Still, he'll head off on vacation feeling better about his game than he has for a while.
"It's been a tough year," said Gilder, whose best finish has been a tie for 56th. "But some of things I've been working on are starting to pay off now. I'm very happy with (the round), very happy."
Senior stayed close to the lead with six birdies in the first 11 holes. After a bogey on 12, he finished with six pars.
Blake knocked in a sand wedge from 40 yards for an eagle on 11 and was on track to at least match the tournament record after a birdie on 15 dropped him to 8 under for the day. But he ran into trouble on 17 when his tee shot sailed into the long grass right of the fairway, though he almost salvaged par when his chip stopped on the lip of the cup.
"I was lucky to make bogey on that hole," Blake said.
He almost got it back on 18, but his birdie putt from 18 feet curled around the left side of the hole.
Fleisher, playing in the same group as Blake, seemed headed for a sensational round when he birdied seven of the first 10 holes. But he cooled off, bogeyed 17 and finished 6 under for the day.
"He was making birdies on every hole," Blake said. "I made an eagle and I still wasn't even with him. So I was just trying to keep up with Bruce. We both played pretty well out there and kind of fed off each other."
Calcavecchia joined the senior circuit last year and is still looking for his first victory after winning 13 times on the PGA Tour. He said Brooks has to be the favourite to finish the deal on Sunday.
"It's a perfect course for him," Calcavecchia said. "He'll be tough to beat."

SECOND-ROUND LEADERBOARD
Par 142 (2x71)
Players from US unless  stated
132 Mark Brooks 65 67.
133 Mark Calcavecchia 67 66.
134 Bob Gilder 68 66, Peter Senior (Australia) 67 67.
136 Jay Don Blake 72 64, Brad Bryant 71 65.
Selected score
140 Roger Chapman (England) 73 67 (T29).

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