Dean goes from delivering groceries to earning $216K with 2nd place at Kenya Open

Only a week after he was delivering groceries to make ends meet, the 2,930thranked golfer Joe Dean finished tied for second at the Kenya Open on Sunday to earn himself more than $200,000 and a huge shot of confidence for the future.

“I don’t think it’s sunk in yet,” the Englishman said. “It’s what people dream of, it’s what I’ve been aiming to do for a long time.”

Dean shot a 4-under 67, including five birdies, to share a second-place finish with Spaniard Nacho Elvira (66) at two shots behind tournament winner Darius Van Driel, who claimed his first European Tour win at age 34.

The 29-year-old Dean had to go back to working for a British supermarket chain after he missed the cut in Doha earlier this month.

“I’ve never been one of the most over-confident people. Coming into this week was a bit daunting,” he said. “Luckily, I managed to get over that quickly and figure out how to get around the golf course.”

Dean and Eliva each won 199,749 euros ($216,200).

Van Driel (67) only had four bogeys throughout the tournament at Muthaiga Golf Club, including one on Sunday. He finished at 14 under overall.

“It means a lot,” Van Driel said about his first title. “I was calm, but once the last putt went in I felt the emotions. I never thought it would hit that hard, but it did.”

Nacho’s younger brother Manuel Elvira (70) was one of three players three shots back.

PGA Tour rookie wins Mexico Open

VALLARTA, MEXICO >> PGA

Tour rookie Jake Knapp lost a four-shot lead in seven holes and then held it together with a remarkable short game Sunday, closing with an even-par 71 to win the Mexico Open at Vidanta and earn a trip to the Masters.

Knapp said he still sends a text after each round to his grandfather, who died last year, and this message might require a lot of detail.

He didn’t hit a fairway until the eighth hole and found only two the entire round. He never lost the lead, but twice allowed Sami Valimaki of Finland to catch him.

They were tied with six holes to play until Knapp took over, getting up-anddown on four of the next five holes, one of them for birdie. It wasn’t easy until the end.

Another big par save on the par-3 17th gave him a two-shot lead going to the par-5 closing hole at Vallarta Vidanta. Valimaki, needing eagle to have a chance, hit his drive down the right side, off a cart path and it nestled next to a boundary fence. He had to take a penalty drop, effectively ending his chances.

Valimaki made par for a 69 to finish runner-up, still a big boost to his rookie season. Valimaki was among the leading 10 players from the European tour to earn PGA Tour cards this year.

Knapp, who finished at 19-under 265, won in his fifth start of his rookie season. Along with winning $1,458,000 and moving into the top 10 in the FedEx Cup, the 29-yearold Californian is headed to the Masters and PGA Championship. He also gets into the remaining five $20 million signature events, starting with Bay Hill in two weeks.