Dunn puts end to long dry spell
With a clap of thunder, Moira Dunn won her first LPGA tournament on her 245th try.
Dunn, putting out moments after lightning flashed in the background, birdied the 16th and 17th holes to win the Giant Eagle LPGA Classic on Sunday at Vienna, Ohio.
“It’s been a long time,” she said, fighting back tears. “I always believed it would come. That’s what got me here.”
It was Dunn’s first victory in a decade on tour. The Utica, N.Y., native twice finished tied for second in 2001.
As she walked onto the final green, someone in the gallery yelled, “I love New York!”
Dunn collected $150,000 for the victory, shooting a final-round 65 to finish at 12-under 204 — two strokes ahead of Young-A Yang — at muddy Squaw Creek Country Club.
The final round was suspended for 2 hours, 40 minutes because of lightning and rain. The second round of the 54-hole tournament was also held up for more than two hours because of heavy rains and lightning.
Yang, a second-year pro also seeking her first win, shot a closing 68 to finish at 206. Another shot back was Leta Lindley — playing with a picture of her infant son next to her scorecard — who closed with a bogey-free 66. Laura Diaz was at 208 after a 69, followed by Michelle Estill who was another shot back after a 71.
PGA
At Endicott, N.Y., Jonathan Byrd rolled in a 10-foot birdie putt at the 15th hole to break an eight-way tie for the lead and added another birdie on the next hole to win the rain-delayed B.C. Open by one stroke over Ted Purdy.
Purdy missed a chance to force a playoff when his 3-foot putt for birdie slid past the hole at 18.
Byrd finished at 20-under 268 for his second PGA victory and took home the winner’s share of $540,000. Todd Fischer, Robin Freeman, Hidemichi Tanaka, and Notah Begay tied for third at 18 under.
Colombian rookie Camilo Villegas had a closing 69 and finished tied with Vaughn Taylor and Neal Lancaster at 17 under.
Robert Gamez, who set a record for best back-to-back rounds in tournament history by shooting 61 and 65 on the second and third rounds, made bogey at 15 and finished tied with John Senden at 16 under.
Celebrities
At Stateline, Nev., former NHL player Dan Quinn birdied the final hole to hold off Rick Rhoden and win the American Century celebrity golf championship for the third time in the last four years.
Rhoden, a six-time winner of this event, had a chance to do it again when he hit his second shot to within 25 feet of the pin on the 501-yard 18th hole. But the former major league pitcher missed the eagle putt at Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course.
Quinn also missed an eagle attempt from about 15 feet, but tapped in for a birdie to beat Rhoden by a point with 74 in the modified Stableford scoring system.
Mark Rypien birdied the last hole to finish third with 67 points, followed by fellow ex-NFL quarterback Billy Joe Tolliver’s 64 points.