Poulter delivers win at Houston Open to get into Masters
COLLEGE BASKETBALL: Arike Ogunbowale hit a 3-pointer from the corner with 0.1 of a second left to lift Notre Dame to its second women’s basketball title, a 61-58 victory over Mississippi State in the NCAA championship game on Sunday night in Columbus, Ohio. It was the second straight game in which the junior guard hit a shot in the final second to carry the Irish. Her jumper with one second left knocked off previously unbeaten UConn in the semifinals. With the game tied, Ogunbowale took the inbounds pass and dribbled to the corner, hitting the game-winner. The title came 17 years to the day after the Irish’s only other championship in 2001. Notre Dame pulled off the biggest comeback in title game history, rallying from a 15-point deficit in the third quarter and a five-point deficit in the final 1:58.
CYCLING: Niki Terpstra continued his fine form by winning the Tour of Flanders classic with a well-timed late attack on Sunday in Oudenaarde, Belgium, becoming the first Dutch rider in more than 30 years to win the race. Danish rider Mads Pedersen finished second and Belgian rider Philippe Gilbert — last year’s winner — was third.
GOLF: Ian Poulter made a 20-foot birdie putt on the final hole to force a playoff and won the Houston Open on the first extra hole with a par to earn the last spot in the Masters. One week after Poulter was mistakenly told he had locked up a spot at Augusta National through the world ranking, he left no doubt by winning in clutch fashion over PGA Tour rookie Beau Hossler. The 42-year-old Poulter closed with 5-under 67 for his third PGA Tour win and second in the United States. Hossler, who also shot 67, ran off four straight birdies on the back nine to take a one-shot lead going to the final hole. In the playoff, his shot from a greenside bunker flew over the green and into the water, and he made triple bogey.
SOCCER: Tottenham’s 28-year wait for a victory at Chelsea is over. By coming from behind to win 3-1 at Stamford Bridge, Tottenham shook off a hoodoo that’s been a burden for the north London club throughout the entire Premier League era. The triumph — secured by Christian Eriksen’s powerful, long-range equalizer and Dele Alli’s double — has more immediate consequences for both London rivals. Tottenham, in the fourth and final Champions League place, widened the gap over fifth-place Chelsea to eight points. Arsenal, which beat Stoke 3-0 in Sunday’s other game, is five points further back . ... An Albacete club official said midfielder Pelayo Novo faces a “very slow” recovery after falling from the third floor of the team’s hotel in Madrid. Albacete vice president Victor Varela said Novo is in stable condition a day after undergoing surgery for multiple fractures sustained in Saturday’s fall.
TENNIS: John Isner punctuated his unexpected run to the Miami Open title with a surprising display of agility, dancing across the court while basking in a breakthrough. He had just won the biggest title of his 14-year career, holding every service game and rallying past Alexander Zverev 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-4 on Sunday. Isner, who turns 33 this month, previously had been 0-3 in ATP Masters 1000 finals.
HUMBLE, Texas — Ian Poulter delivered another big moment Sunday, this one for himself.
Down to his last putt, Poulter made a 20-foot birdie on the 18th hole to force a playoff with Beau Hossler, and then he won the Houston Open with a par on the first extra hole to earn the last spot in the Masters.
One week after Poulter was mistakenly told he had locked up a spot at Augusta National through the world ranking, he left no doubt by winning with a clutch moment reminiscent of his Ryder Cup heroics from Medinah in 2012.
“I had to dig deep today,” said Poulter, who closed with a 5-under 67.
Hossler, who also shot 67, overcame a three-shot deficit with four straight birdies on the back nine. He had a chance to win on the 18th in regulation with a 30-foot birdie putt that trickled over the right edge of the cup.
That set the stage for Poulter, and the 42-year-old from England lived up to his nickname as “The Postman” by delivering his biggest putt in years. Poulter pounded his chest five times when the putt dropped, and all Hossler could do was smile.
In the sudden-death playoff on the 18th, one of the more daunting finishing holes off the tee with water down the left side and a bunker to the right, Hossler found the bunker for the second time. He hit into a greenside bunker, and his third shot caught way too much ball and went over the green and into the water.
Poulter was safely on the green as Hossler took his penalty drop, chipped onto the green and took two putts for a triple bogey.
They finished at 19-under 269.
Poulter won for the third time on the PGA Tour, and his first in America since the Match Play in 2010 at Arizona. This was his first strokeplay victory in America, and the timing could not have been better.
When he reached the quarterfinals of the Dell Technologies Match Play last weekend in Austin, he was told that it was enough to get him into the top 50 in the world ranking by the end of the weekend, the cutoff for qualifying for the Masters.
It turned out he needed to win his quarterfinal match, and Poulter was informed of the mistake before he teed off. Kevin Kisner beat him, 8 and 6.
Poulter was so disappointed that he contemplated not even going to Houston, and when he opened with a 73 in a first round of low scoring, he packed his bags and prepared to go home to Florida the next day. Instead, he bounced back with a 64, and shot 65-67 on the weekend.
“Last week was painful,” he said. “To come here this week, I was tired. I was frustrated on Thursday. I was patient. I waited my time. And this is amazing.”
Jordan Spieth closed with a 66 and tied for third with Emiliano Grillo (68), giving Spieth momentum for the Masters. It was Spieth's best finish against a full field since he tied for second in the Dell Technologies Championship outside Boston in September. “Goal accomplished for the week,” Spieth said. “I've made some big strides from my last couple tournaments. I'm very excited for what next week holds.”