The team of Jeff Sluman and Brad Faxon teamed up to win the Liberty Mutual Insurance Legends of Golf at Savannah Harbor, finishing with a 23-under 193 total to win by one stroke.
Sluman and Faxon led after an opening 62 and were one back going to the final round, carding a 66 the day. The duo closed with a 65, matching the best score by any of the teams that teed off on No. 1.
Tying for 2nd at 22-under were two teams that began their final round on the back nine. Fred Funk and Mike Goodes closed with a 63, while Kenny Perry and Savannah’s Gene Sauers shot a final round 62.
There wasn’t much excitement down the stretch, as the difficult finishing stretch at Savannah Harbor yielded few birdies to the contenders. Sluman and Faxon parred the last four holes, but none of their pursuers could make a late surge. Funk and Goodes were 8-under for the day after 11 holes, but had only one birdie over the last seven holes on the front nine, their final nine on the day.
Perry and Sauers eagled the 14th, their fifth hole of the day, but parred two of the other par 5s.
Eight teams tied for 4th at 21-under and almost all had a chance to catch the leaders.
Larry Mize and Hal Sutton birdied only one of their last seven holes. Fred Couples and Jay Haas were even the last five holes with a bogey at 18. Mark Calcavecchia and Peter Senior had two stretches of four straight birdies, but were 1-over their last five holes. Craig Stadler and Kirk Triplett were 6-under after 12 holes and 22-under for the tournament, but had five pars and a bogey at the tough 18th to finish.
Also tying for 4th were defending champions Michael Allen and David Frost, along with the teams of Brad Bryant-Tom Purtzer, Mark O’Meara-Esteban Toledo and former champions Tom Watson and Andy North, who also stalled down the stretch.
The “rookie” team of Rocco Mediate-Steve Elkington tied for 12th at 20-under, with former champions Bernhard Langer and Tom Lehman T14 at 19-other, shooting just 3-under the final round after beginning the day one shot off the lead.
Ian Baker-Finch and Bart Bryant won the Raphael Division in a playoff over Keith Fergus and Blaine McCallister after both teams tied at 14-under 130 in the 36-hole competition.
Jim Colbert and Bob Murphy won the 70-and-over Demaret Division in a playoff over Frank Beard and Frank Beard after tying at 15-under 129. The team of Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player tied for 7th at 135.
Wilcox wins
Valdosta event
Former Clayton State All-American Will Wilcox won the Web.com Tour South Georgia Classic at Kinderlou Forest in Valdosta, scoring a 4-stroke victory following a record- setting 63 in the third round.
Wilcox shot his way into contention with a second round 66 to trail by one after 36 holes. He broke the course record in the third round, starting with four birdies on the first six holes. He got to 10-under, playing holes 11 to 16 in 6-under highlighted by a hole-out eagle on the tough par-4 12th before a bogy at the 18th. That gave Wilcox a 7-stroke lead after 54 holes.
After two bogeys on the first six holes in the final round, Wilcox had another hole-out eagle on the par-4 seventh, and went on to win easily despite a double-bogey on the par-5 11th.
The victory was worth $117,000 and vaulted Wilcox to 3rd on the Web.com Tour money list.
Wilcox began his college career at UAB in his home town of Birmingham, but left the team and the school after encountering problems adjusting to college life. He wound up at Division II Clayton State in south metro Atlanta, and won four tournaments each his junior and senior seasons, twice earning first team All-America honors.
After turning pro in 2009, Wilcox won twice on the Hooters Tour and once on the Canadian Tour. In just his third start on the Web.com Tour, he tied for 3rd in the 2011 Stadion Classic at UGA, and a 3rd place finish later in the season in Mexico propelled him to 36th on the final money list.
After coming close to earning his PGA Tour card in qualifying, Wilcox slipped to 73rd in earnings on the Web.com Tour last year, but is in strong position for a top 25 finish and a spot on the PGA Tour in 2014.
Three former UGA golfers notched top-25 finishes in Valdosta, led by 2012 Stadion Classic champion Hudson Swafford, who tied for 11th after holding the 36-hole lead at 136. Swafford shot 72-74 on the weekend. Adam Mitchell, Swafford’s UGA teammate, tied for 15th at 5-under, shooting 67 in the final round to earn a spot in the Stadion Classic. Mitchell received a sponsor exemption into the South Georgia Classic.
Web.com veteran Paul Claxton shot a final round 68 and tied for 23rd at 3-under.
O’Neal takes 2nd
after losing playoff
Savannah’s Tim O’Neal finished second in a recent tournament in Uruguay on the PGA Tour-sponsored Latino America Tour, losing in a playoff.
O’Neal, a former Nationwide Tour player and Georgia Amateur champion, shot a course record-tying 63 in the second round and led by three after 54 holes with a 17-under 199 total. But he settled for a par 72 in the final round and finished in a 3-way tie for first at 271.
Jose de Jesus Rodriguez drove the green on the par-4 eight hole, the second of the playoff, and made birdie, while O’Neal settled for par on the hole.
The second place finish was worth $13,200 for O”Neal and moved him up to 6th on the tour’s money list after four events.