Laird birdies final hole to edge Bolli and Anderson in Georgia  PGA TOUR Staff BOGART, Ga. -- Martin Laird shot a 3-under-par 69 Sunday to become the Nationwide Tour's first wire-to-wire winner this season at the Athens Regional Foundation Classic, the seventh of 32 events on the 2007 Nationwide Tour schedule.  Martin Laird needed to birdie the final hole to avoid a playoff, and did. (Kevin C. Cox/WireImage)
Laird needed a birdie on the final hole to finish the tournament at 16 under par as Jeremy Anderson and Justin Bolli watched from the practice range at 15 under hoping for a par and a chance at a playoff. But Laird got the birdie and the victory. "To win wire-to-wire and to win with a birdie on the last hole when I needed it is extra satisfying," Laird said. "Walking to the 16th green, I asked my caddie if I should look at the leaderboard. He said, 'No, we're fine.' My first look at the leaderboard was just before I had my pitch on 18. I knew I had to birdie to win." The win moves him to No. 7 on the money list and means Laird's caddie will be one of the 25 caddies wearing a gold bib next week to signify that Laird is within the top 25 on the money list and on his way to earning a PGA TOUR card for the 2008 season. "My coach (Steve Dahlby) and I have always talked about securing my PGA TOUR card by finishing in the top 25," Laird said. "But I give my coach a lot of credit for always telling me I can win three of these events in a year, and I just need to believe it." Laird went to the 15th hole with a three-stroke lead and appeared to be on cruise control for his first Nationwide Tour victory and the $90,000 winner's check. But bogeys at the 15th and 16th hole, combined with stellar play on the back nine by University of Georgia graduate Justin Bolli and Sunday playing partner Jeremy Anderson, meant Laird went to the 18th tee in a three-way tie for the lead. Bolli shot a 32 on the back nine and Anderson chipped in with a hybrid from off the 18th green for a back-nine 30. Bolli, who has played Jennings Mill Country Club more than an estimated 150 times during his stint in Athens, had a 12-foot putt on the final hole. But the putt broke left, leaving him tied for second with a $44,000 paycheck. With birdies on 11, 13, 14, 15, 17 and 18, Anderson recorded the best finish (T2) of his career on the Nationwide Tour. During their post-round press conference, Anderson and Bolli talked about watching Laird finish from the practice range. "Jeremy jinxed us," Bolli said. "I did," Anderson said. "I was the negative guy. I kept telling Justin that he was going to make the putt." Robert Damron shot the low round of the tournament with an 8-under-par 64 to move from T26 to fifth. Damron, a member of the PGA TOUR for the previous 10 seasons, was the only player in the field to shoot three of four rounds in the 60s with rounds of 68-75-68-64. Damron had the opportunity late Wednesday to travel to New Orleans as an alternate for the PGA TOUR's Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Instead, he chose to stay in Athens instead of risking not playing. Final-Round News & Notes: The last player to go wire-to-wire was Kevin Na at the 2006 Mark Christopher Charity Classic. ... The scoring average was 70.100 for the fourth round. For the week, the tournament scoring average was 72.117 compared to last year 70.914. Michael Letzig (66) and Fran Quinn (66) shot bogey-free final rounds. ... Monday qualifier Brian Quackenbush finished T14 and therefore qualifies for next week's Henrico County Open in Richmond, Va., near where he graduated from college at the University of Virginia. ... Todd Demsey, with a T39 finish this week, is the only player on Tour to have made the cut in all seven events this year. Copyright 2007 PGATOUR.com. All rights reserved. |
PGATOUR.com is part of Turner - SI Digital, part of the Turner Sports & Entertainment Digital Network 