The Daily Wrap-up, Round 4: The Honda Classic
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. (AP) -- Y.E. Yang was first to finish at last year's Honda Classic.
This time, he finished first.
Alone in front the whole way Sunday, Yang shot a 2-under 68 to end up one shot ahead of John Rollins and pick up his first PGA TOUR victory.
The Korean took command with three straight birdies on the front side and wouldn't fold, picking up a two-year exemption and a check for $1,008,000. With the win -- his eighth worldwide -- he qualified for next week's World Golf Championships-CA Championship at Doral, plus earned an invitation to next month's Masters.
"This win is the biggest of my career," Yang said.
Yang played last year's final round at PGA National by himself, going off first and needing only 1 hour, 53 minutes to finish.
He was there until the very end this time, pumping his fist in the air when his 50-footer for birdie stopped a foot away from the cup, sealing the victory. He finished at 9-under 271.
For a guy whose claim to fame was beating Tiger Woods at the 2006 HSBC Champions in Shanghai, it was a moment to savor.
"Pure emotion," said Yang, who canceled plans to fly to Puerto Rico for a tournament there next week. "I just felt all the fans were supporting me. I just wanted to thank them."
Rollins made birdie at the par-5 18th to get within two shots of Yang, who was one hole behind and in a greenside bunker at the par-3 17th. And when Yang's 10-footer for par tailed right and stopped short, the lead -- four shots earlier in the day -- was down to one.
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| Top 5 notables at The Honda Classic | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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YANG REDEFINES HIS CAREER
By Craig Dolch, PGATOUR.COM Contributor
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. -- There are worse ways to be known as than "the guy who once beat Tiger Woods in a tournament."
But Y.E. Yang further defined himself Sunday when he won The Honda Classic at PGA National by a shot over John Rollins, thus becoming just the second South Korean golfer to lift a trophy on the PGA TOUR.
You wonder how much it meant to Yang? No translation needed: He couldn't get off the green before he was overcome by emotions as he hugged caddie A.J. Montecinos and his agent, Michael Yim.
Then Yang did a Hale Irwin -- running to the gallery to start high-fiving the fans around the 18th green.
"This is the biggest thing I've done in my career," a more subdued Yang said about an hour later. "This surpasses beating Tiger. The reason I started clapping hands was I was so relieved to finally win and I wanted to thank them for supporting me."
Yang joins K.J. Choi as the only South Koreans to win on the PGA TOUR (Choi has seven wins). Sunday's win earns Yang a two-year exemption -- a nice perk for a 37-year-old who's been forced to go to q-school the last two years to keep his playing privileges -- and a spot in a little tournament next month in Augusta, Ga., for the second time in his career.
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| Sunday's Best |
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The par-5 18th was easiest with a Sunday scoring average of 4.542.
The par-3 17th was toughest with a Sunday scoring average of 3.403.
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Y.E. Yang hit it tight on the par-3 fifth hole to set up a key early birdie in his round. 
Four birdies on the front nine gave Y.E. Yang a cushion he would need to capture his first PGA TOUR title. | QUOTE OF THE DAY | ||
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INSIDE THE ROPES WITH THE PGA TOUR NETWORK
PGA TOUR Network correspondent Michael Collins offers these observations from Sunday's action. Listen to PGA TOUR Live coverage on XM 146/SIRIUS 209 or right here at PGATOUR.COM.
The Yin and Yang -- as in Y.E. Yang -- are going to the Masters. With his victory at The Honda Classic, Yang also punched a ticket for Miami next week and locked up a two-year exemption on the PGA TOUR. And How about Jeff Klauk? After finishing fifth, he's got almost $550,000 in earnings and is well on his way to earning his TOUR card for 2010.
I caught up with Scott Piercy on the sixth hole and when he saw me he started doing a little dance as he got to the green. I started dancing, too. He was playing with Erik Compton, who looked at us both like we were nuts, especially since Piercy still had a 16-foot birdie putt upcoming. He calmly rolled the putt in and looked over at me and started dancing again as I made the call and did a little dance myself. Shooting 65 on Sunday and finishing T5, Piercy may just be dancing all the way to a win later this year. I'll be dancing right next to him.
After that, I went to catch John Rollins and saw his wife Heather on the ninth. She says to me, "I'm leaving. I hate the back nine. It's horrible, makes me sick to my stomach. Even if John was in last place I wouldn't walk that back nine with him. I'm going to pick up our little girl from daycare and play with her the rest of the afternoon." I told our listeners about her disdain for the back nine, even as her husband was making a charge with a couple of birdies on said nine. I said to my producer, "Betcha 20 bucks she'll be back." He didn't take the bet. Guess who showed up and let me drive her around to the 18th green as her husband had a birdie putt fall into the hole? With a solo second finish, Rollins is now in the World Golf Championships-CA Championship next week at Doral. Anybody want to bet me on who will be walking all 18 holes next week?
| What the top finishers said... | ||||||||||||
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FINAL-ROUND NOTEBOOK: THE HONDA CLASSIC
By John Bush, PGA TOUR Staff
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. -- Y.E. Yang posted a 2-under 68 on Sunday to finish 9-under 271, capturing the 2009 Honda Classic by one stroke over John Rollins (67). The victory is the first of Yang's career on the PGA TOUR and comes in his 47th start. His previous best finish was a tie for ninth at the 2008 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.
• The victory for Yang is worth 500 points and moves him to No. 9 in the FedExCup standings with 579 points. By moving inside the top 10 on the FedExCup points list, he earns a spot in next week's World Golf Championships-CA Championship. Rollins also gained entry into next week's event as a result of his runner-up finish on Sunday, propelling him from No. 22 to No. 8 in the standings. Geoff Ogilvy leads the list with 1,176 points.
• Yang is just the second South Korean-born player to capture a PGA TOUR event, joining seven-time winner K.J. Choi. Yang, Choi and Charlie Wi are also the only South Korean players to win on the European Tour.
• What a difference a year makes. Yang teed off first in the final round of the 2008 Honda Classic as a single, going on to a final-round 1-over 71 and a tie for 72nd finish. He played that round in one hour and 53 minutes, teeing off at 8:03 a.m. and holing his last putt at 9:56 a.m. On Sunday, he was in the final group as he went on to win his first TOUR event.
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