Golf Roundup : Verplank Gets First Tour Win as a Professional

Scott Verplank scored his first victory as a professional Sunday with a final round 6-under 66 for a two-stroke victory over Doug Tewell in the $700,000 Buick Open at Grand Blanc, Mich.

Verplank, 24, the youngest player on the PGA Tour, finished at 20-under-par 268 to earn $126,000 plus the use of a car for one year.

Verplank entered the final round in a three-way tie for the lead with Howard Twitty and Steve Elkington. Twitty shot a 76 Sunday, Elkington a 77.

Verplank, a former NCAA champion at Oklahoma State, said: “You have dreams about playing that good in the final round in the clutch. I went out to be more relaxed, more loose than I was Saturday.”

The win also gained Verplank a spot in the PGA Championship, which is being played on his home course, Oak Tree, in Edmond, Okla., in two weeks.

Tewell, who also plays out of Oak Tree, posted the low round of the tournament--an 8-under 64, to win $75,600. Fred Couples finished with a 7-under 65 for a 271 to earn $47,600 for third place.

Verplank had never won a tournament as a pro, but he was the first amateur to win a PGA event in 31 years when he finished first in the 1985 Western Open.

Sunday’s victory boosted the third-year pro’s season earnings to $202,502 and his career winnings to $256,395. The Buick Open win was Verplank’s first finish above 15th since winning the Western Open.

Chi Chi Rodriguez survived a double bogey on the next-to-last hole to win the $300,000 Digital Senior PGA tournament at Concord, Mass., and set a senior tour record by taking the event for the third straight year.

Rodriguez, who had led by three or four strokes through most of the final round at Nashawtuc Country Club, finished with rounds of 68-65-69 for a 202 total, one-stroke ahead of Bob Charles.

Seve Ballesteros seized an early lead when his rivals failed to get going and made it a runaway, record-breaking five-stroke victory in the $450,000 Scandinavian Enterprise Open at Stockholm. Ballesteros became the first three-time winner of the tournament. It was his 53rd career victory.

“I played very relaxed today and my concentration was very good,” said Ballesteros, the gallery favorite among the record crowd of 29,650. “It was a good tuneup for the PGA Championship.”

It was the fourth victory of the year for the 31-year-old Spaniard who earlier won the British Open, the Majorca Open in Spain and the Westchester tournament.

Ayako Okamoto shot a 4-under-par 67 to register a one-stroke victory over Connie Chillemi and Beth Daniel in the $225,000 Greater Washington Open at Bethesda, Md.

Okamoto’s victory wasn’t assured until Daniel bogeyed No. 18 after hitting her tee shot into the woods and Chillemi missed her bid for a birdie by leaving her putt on the 18th green 6-inches short.

Okamoto, the LPGA Player of the Year in each of the past two years, finished with a 7-under-par 206 in the 54-hole tournament at the Bethesda Country Club. She started the day three strokes behind Chillemi, the second-round leader, but had four birdies and parred the final seven holes to earn the $33,750 top prize.