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Charley Hoffman rallies to win PGA’s OHL Classic by one stroke

American Charley Hoffman celebrates after closing out his victory in the OHL Classic on Sunday.
(Rob Carr / Getty Images)
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Charley Hoffman rallied from a three-shot deficit Sunday by closing with a five-under-par 66 for a one-shot victory over Shawn Stefani in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba.

Hoffman ended another long drought with his third career victory on the PGA Tour. He had gone 105 starts between his first and second victory, and this time went 108 starts until winning the final PGA Tour event of the calendar year.

“It’s been awhile between wins,” Hoffman said. “I kept calm and kept hitting good shots.”

He referred to it as a low-stress round, with a few exceptions, including the final hole on the El Camaleon course at the Mexican resort in Playa del Carmen.

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Stefani, who closed with a 69, made an 18-foot birdie putt on the 17th to get within one shot. Stefani then hit into a fairway bunker with a lip so steep that he had no option but to hit sand wedge some 50 yards short of the green. Hoffman hit driver that rolled up against the base of a tree, which forced him to play a left-handed shot back to the fairway.

Hoffman pulled his approach some 30 feet left of the hole. Stefani’s pitch came up woefully short, and he chipped to within five feet. That allowed Hoffman two putts for the win, and he rolled his par putt to within 18 inches for a tap-in bogey.

Hoffman finished at 17-under 267.

Danny Lee ran off seven straight birdies on the front nine to take the lead, but the former U.S. Amateur champion couldn’t hold on. Lee didn’t make another birdie the rest of the way, dropping three shots on the back nine for a 67. He finished two shots behind in a tie for third with Andres Gonzalez, who had a 67 for his best career finish.

Jason Bohn, the 54-hole leader, shot 40 on the front to fall out of contention. He closed with a 74 and tied for seventh.

Carlos Ortiz (68) and Oscar Fraustro (69) both played well in their native country and tied for ninth. Ortiz was the Web.com Tour player of the year in 2014 with three victories. Fraustro will get into the Sony Open at the start of next year by finishing in the top 10.

Hoffman goes to Hawaii one week early by qualifying for the Hyundai Tournament of Champions at Kapalua. Hoffman also gets to return to the Masters for the first time since 2011.

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Christina Kim won the Lorena Ochoa Invitational in Mexico City for her first LPGA Tour title in nine years, beating China’s Shanshan Feng in a playoff after blowing a five-stroke lead in the final round.

Kim won with a par on the par-four 18th on the second extra hole. The 30-year-old American won for the first time since the Tournament of Champions in November 2005. She also won the 2004 Longs Drug Challenge.

Kim bogeyed the final hole of regulation for a one-under 71, leaving her tied with Feng at 15-under 273 at Club de Golf Mexico. Feng shot 66.

After bogeying Nos. 14 and 15 to fall into a tie for the lead, Kim rebounded with birdies on Nos. 16 and 17 to take a one-stroke advantage into the 72nd hole.

Feng played the four par-five holes in five under, making an eagle on No. 2 and birdies on Nos. 6, 11 and 17. She won the LPGA Malaysia last month.

Top-ranked Inbee Park was third at 11 under after a 68. Brittany Lincicome and So Yeon Ryu followed at 9 under. Lincicome had a 69, and Ryu shot 71.

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Brooks Koepka claimed his maiden European Tour title after overcoming a two-shot deficit in the final round to win the Turkish Airlines Open by a stroke in Belek.

The American player shot a final-round 7-under 65 for an overall 17 under 271 that edged England’s Ian Poulter. Poulter had a chance to force a play-off but missed a five-foot birdie putt on the last.

Victory means that Koepka will finish the year ranked inside the top 50, which carries an automatic invitation to the Masters.

Other results ensured that top-ranked Rory McIlroy captured the 2014 Race to Dubai crown, his second in three years, after his nearest rivals failed to win here.

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