Notes: Kelly's finish pays off in Ryder Cup points

By Joel Schuchmann
PGA TOUR staff
 

A runner-up finish for Jerry Kelly gives him 180 points toward the U.S. Ryder Cup squad, with a total of 653.75 points, 12th on the current list. The top 10 through the PGA Championship earn spots on the U.S. Ryder Cup team, with Tom Lehman having two Captain's Picks as well. Kelly played for the United States in The Presidents Cup in 2003 in South Africa, where he compiled a 2-2-0 record.

Players were allowed 'preferred lies' in closely-mown areas in the final round, commonly known as lift, clean and place. It marked the ninth round in 2006 the PGA TOUR has used 'preferred lies.'

Jeff Sluman now has seven top-10s in 19 starts at the U.S. Bank Championship, including two victories, and has earned the most money all-time at the event. His total earnings of $1,556,364 are nearly nine percent of his career earnings on the PGA TOUR $17,716,945.

Sluman led the tournament field in Greens in Regulation (86.1%). Fred Funk was his usual self off the tee, as he led the field in Driving Accuracy (80.8%).

Due to severe early-morning weather, tee times were delayed two hours late, 10:03 a.m.-12:00 p.m. in threesomes off Nos. 1 and 10 tees.

Past champion Corey Pavin (1986) became the eighth player with multiple victories in Milwaukee. The others: Dave Stockton (1968 and 1973), Dave Eichelberger (1971 and 1977), Calvin Peete (1979 and 1982), Scott Hoch (1995 and 1997), Loren Roberts (1996 and 2000), Jeff Sluman (1998 and 2002) and Carlos Franco (1999 and 2004).

Corey Pavin made $720,000 for winning this week's U.S. Bank Championship -- he earned $270,000 with his last win at the 1996 Colonial National Invitational, and $72,000 in his 1986 win at the Greater Milwaukee Open.

Hale Irwin won the Heritage Classic 21 years apart (1993-1994) without winning the event in between. Corey Pavin won the Greater Milwaukee Open in 1986 and again in 2006, a span of 20 years between victories.

Corey Pavin becomes the third wire-to-wire winner in the history of the U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee, joining Ed Sneed did so in 1974 at Tuckaway Country Club and Ben Crane in 2005 at Brown Deer Park Golf Course. On the PGA TOUR this season, there have been two wire-to-wire winners -- Phil Mickelson (BellSouth Classic) and Stuart Appleby (Shell Houston Open).

Sunday marked 10 years, two months and 11 days since Corey Pavin's last win at the 1996 Colonial National Invitational, and it was the 242nd event since that win in Fort Worth, Texas.

The U.S. Bank Championship win by Pavin gives him PGA TOUR victories in three decades, dating back to his first win at the 1984 Houston Coca-Cola Open.

Jonathan Byrd withdrew prior to the final round. He stood at T15.

Dicky Pride (63) shot his career-low 18-hole total on the PGA TOUR, besting two previous rounds of 64, most recently at the 1994 Deposit Guaranty Golf Classic.

Price (T9), on the strength of a final-round 63, posted just the 12th top-10 of his career in 306 starts. Pride had not yielded a top-10 since a T5 at the 2004 Michelin Championship at Las Vegas. He was the final alternate to get in the field, replacing Paul Azinger. With the top-10 performance, Pride earns an exemption into next week's Buick Open.

18-year-old Jason Day, playing in just his third PGA TOUR event, narrowly missed out on a Top-10, as he finished T13 at 12-under-par.

Nathan Green (T9) now has five top-10s in 2006, tied with Trevor Immelman for most top-10s among rookies in 2006.

Corey Pavin posted four rounds in the 60s -- every winner since 1998 has done so. The last winner with a round in the 70s was Scott Hoch in 1997. A total of 19 players managed four rounds in the 60s.

Corey Pavin tied the 72-hole total for the U.S. Bank Championship of 260 (20-under-par), previously shared by Loren Roberts (2000) and Ben Crane (2005). The 260 also matched Phil Mickelson (BellSouth Classic) for low total on TOUR this year.