Verplank Gets the Win, Thorpe Gets the Money

Jim Thorpe got the money Sunday but Scott Verplank gained the satisfaction of becoming the first amateur to win a PGA tournament since Gene Littler won the 1956 San Diego Open.

“I just hoped to play well, and I thought if I could play well I could compete,” Verplank, 21, said after he calmly sank a four-foot putt for par on the second playoff hole to win the Western Open.

“There’s no money in it for me, so if I finish second it’s a good tournament for me, and if I win I get an exemption on the PGA tour for 2 1/2 years,” added the Dallas native who plays collegiate golf at Oklahoma State. “I think I had it going for me.”

Verplank’s sudden-death putt dropped Thorpe to second, but Thorpe took home the $90,000 first-prize money because of Verplank’s amateur status.

“I’d prefer winning the title,” Thorpe said. “Scott told me as we were walking down the 16th fairway on the first playoff hole, ‘Well, you’ve got the money.’ I told him ‘I need to win.’ ”

Thorpe credited Verplank for handling the pressure he was under.

“I had four or five birdies today and it didn’t shake him at all,” Thorpe said. “He’s very cool on the golf course. There were 149 other pros here and I beat them all, and he beat me.”

Playing through the rain on the Butler National course, Verplank sank his par putt on No. 17 after Thorpe had bogeyed the final hole.

Verplank had a two-stroke lead over Thorpe at the start of the final round but shot a two-over-par 74. Thorpe had an even-par 72 in regulation play for a 72-hole total of nine-under-par 279.

They were tied going into the 18th hole, but Thorpe hit his drive far left into deep rough and had no shot to the green on the 442-yard par-4. He had to punch out onto the fairway with his second shot while Verplank put his second shot onto the green 18 feet away from the pin.

Thorpe, 36, of Buffalo, who was going for his first tour victory in seven full years on the tour, went for the pin on his third shot and put his ball 12 feet away on the same line as Verplank’s putt.

Verplank missed his birdie putt by about an inch and tapped in for par. Thorpe then canned his par putt to send the tournament into a playoff.

“I was watching it (Verplank’s birdie putt) because we didn’t know the outcome,” Thorpe said.

On the first playoff hole, Verplank missed a birdie putt from 10 feet away. Thorpe had to hit a 3-foot putt to save par and force the second playoff hole.

Thorpe pushed his 40-foot birdie putt on the second playoff hole 10 feet past the hole and missed the return putt, settling for a bogey. Verplank then sank his for the title.

Because of the big lead the two leaders had over the rest of the field, Sunday’s round took on the appearance of match play golf between playing partners Verplank and Thorpe. Bruce Lietzke also played with the leaders.

Verplank had a one-stroke lead at the turn, but lost it on the 10th hole when he double-bogeyed and Thorpe bogeyed. Verplank lost his lead for the first time in the entire tournament at the 12th hole when he slid a short par putt just above the hole.

Thorpe lost his lead when he hit his tee shot into water on the left side of the 14th fairway. He double-bogeyed and Verplank parred the hole to regain a one-stroke lead.

Thorpe tied Verplank again at No. 15 when his 25-foot birdie putt rimmed the cup and dropped in.

They both parred 16 and 17 to go into the final hole even.