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TRAVELERS REST, S.C. -- Shane Bertsch stepped into the Nationwide Tour’s winner’s circle for the second time in his career Sunday at the $625,000 BMW Charity Pro-Am at The Cliffs. Bertsch began the day six strokes behind second-round leader Mathew Goggin (76) but posted the round of the day with a stellar 7-under-par 65 at Cliffs Valley. He capped off his round, which consisted of seven birdies and one bogey, with an 18-footer for birdie on the final hole. At 12-under-par 202, Bertsch finished the 54-hole event one stroke in front of Bubba Watson (71 at Cliffs Valley) and Charley Hoffman (68 at Walnut Cove). Robert Garrigus finished two strokes behind. “This feels so good,” said Bertsch. “It is a weird game. If you would have seen me on Tuesday you would have said there is no way this guy can win here.” Winning in the Greenville area isn’t anything new to Bertsch, however. His last victory on the Nationwide Tour came at this same tournament in 2000 when it was called the Upstate Classic and held across town. “I’ve been close since then,” said Bertsch, who finished No. 25 on the money list a year ago. “I can’t believe I haven’t won since 2000. I had four or five chances to win last year, but I just couldn’t get it done. I’m a Colorado boy. I guess I like the mountains around here.” Perhaps it’s the familiarity of having well-known celebrities walking the fairways with the professionals that sits so well with the former tennis player who lost a junior tennis match to Andre Agassi. “I’ve played at the Bob Hope and the AT&T on the PGA TOUR and this tournament is just like that for our Tour,” said Bertsch. “This tournament just works out well for me.” With the victory, Bertsch earns a career-best $112,500 and moves from No. 16 to No. 2 on the official money list with $158,819. The victory also moves the 35-year-old a step closer to returning to the PGA TOUR, where he last walked the fairways in 1997.
The tournament this week was contested at three courses -- The Cliffs Valley (CV), The Cliffs at Walnut Cove (WC) and The Cliffs at Keowee Vineyards (KV). With inclement weather canceling Saturday’s third round, combined with driving times of 45 minutes between courses, an interesting scenario took place on Sunday with a shootout for the title taking place between a host of players located on different courses. Bertsch eventually ended the drama when his 18-footer for birdie fell on the last hole at Cliffs Valley. “It was such a weird situation with the wind blowing like it was and with us on three different courses,” said Bertsch. “The key for me was doing a good job of staying in the moment and focusing on the task at hand.” Bertsch and the Nationwide Tour head to Raleigh, North Carolina next week for the Rex Hospital Open, the seventh of 31 official events on the Nationwide Tour. Final Round News and Notes: This week’s 54-hole tournament is the first on the Nationwide Tour since Patrick Moore won the 2002 Nationwide Tour Championship in 54 holes … Team Tim O’Neal/Jon McClure claimed the championship of the pro-amateur and pro-celebrity division with a score of 35-under par. Rounding out the top-five teams: 2. Team Guy Boros/Bill Emery (-33), 3. Team Ryan Hietala/Janet Jones-Gretzky (-31), T4. Team Roger Tambellini/Kevin Costner (-28) and Team Chris Kamin/John Hacket (-28) … Bertsch’s victory snapped a streak of four consecutive years with the BMW winner having ties to a local university in South Carolina or Georgia. The streak began with former Clemson standouts Jonathan Byrd and Charles Warren winning in 2001 and 2002, respectively, followed by victories in 2003 by Tripp Isenhour (Georgia Tech) and last year by Ryuji Imada (Georgia) … Local favorite Kyle Thompson posted his third straight top-10 finish at the BMW Charity Pro-Am at The Cliffs. The former Gamecock finished T5 this year, T8 last year and runner-up in 2003. |
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