Brooks wins Pebble Beach Invitational
November 23, 2009
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. (AP)—Mark Brooks won the Callaway Golf Pebble BeachInvitational for a record third time, birdieing three of the last four holesSunday for a 5-under 67 and a two-stroke victory over Rickie Fowler and D.A.Points.
The 48-year-old Brooks, the 1996 PGA champion, had a 12-under 276 total andbecame the first three-time winner in the tournament’s 38-year history. Theseven-time PGA Tour winner also won the unofficial event in 1992 and 2002.
“I believe I had only four bogeys the entire week and two of those were onshort putts,” said Brooks, who had two bogeys and seven birdies Sunday,including a 16-footer on 18. “I kept the ball in the fairway and that’s alwaysbeen what I do best.”
The 20-year-old Fowler closed with a 69, and Points birdied the final twoholes en route a 65—the best round of the day at Pebble Beach.
Brooks earned $60,000 from the $300,000 purse.
“I’ve been coming here for almost 30 years,” said Brooks, whose best PGATour finish this season was a tie for 10th at the AT&T Pebble Beach NationalPro-Am. “I hit a lot of good iron shots and I could have played bogey-free.”
Fowler, who had two top-10 finishes in the final month of the PGA Tourseason, trailed Brooks by two shots after four holes. The two players exchangedleads until Brooks took the lead for good with a birdie on the 16th.
“He made some putts down the stretch. There wasn’t much I could do,”Fowler said.
Points made it close at the end.
“I knew I had to be aggressive,” said Points. “I was trying for eagle onthe final hole. I thought it would get me into a playoff.”
Mina Harigae shot a 68 to finish at 6 under. She was the only one of thefour women in the field to make the cut.
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