South Carolina’s Tommy Gainey sank a long eagle putt from off the green at the par-5 13th hole to take the lead and shot a 6-under 66, earning a two-shot victory in the Constellation FURYK & FRIENDS presented by Circle K for his first PGA Tour Champions title.
“I grinded for a long time, and finally I can say that grinding and hard work has paid off,” Gainey said. “Man, a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.”
Gainey started the final round four shots behind the round two leader, Matt Gogel, and then pulled away in the middle of the back nine to hold off Cameron Percy of Australia.
Percy was only one shot behind through 16 holes but missed back-to-back birdie chances from 15 feet. Gainey’s six-foot birdie putt on 18 led to a 14-under-par 202 finish in the 54-hole.
Gogel shot 75 and tied for third in a group that included Vijay Singh and Thomas Bjorn, a vice captain for Europe in its Ryder Cup victory last week.
Gainey played in four Monday qualifiers this season, including here, but is now exempt and has moved up to 37th in the Charles Schwab Cup standings. His first-place check is $315,000 from a $2.1 million purse.
This is his first win on the PGA Tour Champions in just his fifth start, and when he defends his title next year at age 51, he will be playing on a completely different golf course.
After five years playing on Jacksonville’s Timaquana Country Club layout, a popular Donald Ross design, the tournament is moving 68 miles south on I-95 to the Hammock Beach Resort and Spa, home of the Ocean Course designed by Jack Nicklaus.
“I was blown away by the facility, but also by how excited they were as well. That’s just an opportunity, and when you go into a place that’s got open arms and excited about having you, that’s a cool feeling,” said tournament host Jim Furyk. “This facility is amazing, the golf course is amazing, the way we’re treated here is amazing. Tabitha has always said we’re not stepping back, we’re not going backwards, so we need to find a place that can kind of set the tone and that’s kind of what we see at Hammock Beach.
Jacksonville native David Duval (T8), whose father Bob served as the head professional at Timuquana Country Club, recorded his first top 10 finish in his fourth career appearance in this event.
Retief Goosen (T12) had the low round on payday with a 7-under 65, his lowest score in 12 career rounds here.
Making his season debut just days after serving as vice captain for Team USA at Bethpage Black, Furyk finished tied for 70th following rounds of 74-77-74.
