Vegas rallies in Canada
OAKVILLE, Ontario— Jhonattan Vegas birdied his way off Glen Abbey and waited to see if anyone could catch him. No one could.
Vegas rallied to win the Canadian Open on Sunday for his second PGA Tour title, birdieing the final three holes for an 8-under 64 and onestroke victory.
The 29-year-old Venezuelan Olympic player began the day five strokes behind leader Brandt Snedeker and four behind U.S. Open champion Dustin Johnson and Canadian amateur Jared du Toit.
Vegas had five straight birdies on Nos. 2-6, bogeyed the par-4 eighth and also birdied the par-5 13th. He birdied the par-5 16th, par-4 17th and par-5 18th to post at 12-under 276.
Johnson, Jon Rahm and Martin Laird tied for second.
Vegas earned $1,062,000 and a spot in the PGA Championship next week at Baltusrol in New Jersey. He also received a two-year tour exemption and a spot in the Masters next year.
He also won the 2011 Bob Hope Classic. Last week in Alabama in the event opposite the British Open, Vegas tied for fourth after shooting a course-record 61 in the second round.
Johnson eagled the 16th and birdied the 18th for a 69. Laird finished with two pars in a 67. Rahm, du Toit’s former Arizona State teammate, birdied 16 and 18 in a 67. The Spaniard missed a 10-foot eagle putt on 18. Snedeker shot a 71 to tie for fifth at 10 under.
Du Toit tied for ninth at 9 under after a 71. The Arizona State senior from Kimberley, British Columbia, was trying to become the first Canadian winner since Pat Fletcher, born in England, in 1954.
UL INTERNATIONAL CROWN
GURNEE, Ill.—Cristie Kerr held on for a 3-and-2 victory over England’s Melissa Reid to give the United States the UL International Crown title.
Kerr and company were shut out in the first session of the LPGA Tour event, but they got progressively better each day. Stacy Lewis and Gerina Piller each closed out wins before Reid missed a birdie putt on 16, handing the decisive victory to Kerr.
Lewis and Piller ran to the green for a group hug with Kerr when it was over. Kerr’s caddie, Brady Stockton, grabbed the flag at 16 to save it for his player.
Lexi Thompson lost 2 and 1 to South Korea’s So Yeon Ryu, and then joined the celebration at a muggy Merit Club about 40 miles northwest of Chicago. The Americans won a silver trophy, and each of the players took home a crown and $100,000 apiece.
Kerr and Thompson teamed for wins on Friday and Saturday, and the momentum carried over into singles. Piller beat Taiwan’s Yani Tseng 4 and 3, and Lewis topped Japan’s Mika Miyazato 3 and 2.
South Korea, which was the top seed coming into the event, finished second with 12 points, one back of the United States. Taiwan and England tied for third with 11, and Japan finished fifth with eight points.
SENIOR BRITISH OPEN
CARNOUSTIE, Scotland— Paul Broadhurst won the Senior British Open at Carnoustie for his first senior major title, closing with a 4-under 68 for a two-stroke victory over Scott McCarron.
The 50-year-old Broadhurst overcame an opening 75 to become the third English player to win a PGA Tour Champions major, joining Mark James and Roger Chapman. Broadhurst also is the first player to win the event in his debut since Fred Couples in 2012 at Turnberry.
Broadhurst shot a 66 on Friday and a 68 on Saturday to enter the final round four strokes behind leader Miguel Angel Jimenez. The winner birdied the sixth, 10th, 13th and 15th in his bogey-free round in mostly cloudy conditions with 8-16 mph wind and occasional drizzle. He finished at 11-under 277.
McCarron bogeyed the par-3 16th and par-4 18th in his 69. Jimenez had a 75 to drop into a tie for third with Magnus Atlevi (67) at 8 under.