Brooks’ Recipe Works to Perfection at Hope

So what was on the menu Sunday for Mark Brooks, part-time gourmet chef?

Well, may we suggest a closing-round 67 at Indian Ridge, where Brooks served up a steady victory in the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic.

The fifth victory of his 12-year career was worth $234,000 to Brooks, which is certain to satisfy the most discriminating taste, although it probably can’t duplicate his specialty of grilled marinated veal chops.

Using a putter borrowed from a friend a week ago, Brooks finished at 23-under-par 337 and beat John Huston by one shot. Scott Hoch finished with a 65 and wound up third, but the big rush everyone expected on the last day flopped like a bad souffle in Brooks’ oven back home in Fort Worth, Texas.

Payne Stewart shot 70 and finished tied for fourth, three shots behind Fred Couples shot 70 and tied for seventh, the same place Jeff Maggert wound up after shooting 71.

All in all, Brooks probably has faced more pressure to produce smooth, creamy gravy.

“To be the winner, I was lucky that a bunch of guys didn’t come out and shoot real low scores,” Brooks said. “I was pretty fortunate.”

Hoch made the biggest run with his 65, but he started the day tied for 13th. Kenny Perry also had a 65, but he began even farther back in a tie for 19th.

Huston’s closing 68 might have been better, but he missed a short putt from the fringe on the 17th that he thought was going in. A birdie at the 18th made the margin closer, but it didn’t matter much, except in his wallet.

That six-footer Huston made was worth $140,400 for second place.

Huston didn’t birdie either of the par-five holes on the back, but he said it wasn’t really the fault of his putter.

“If I could have hit the ball a little closer to the hole, I think I would have had a chance,” he said.

Couples’ chance ended at No. 15 when he hit his second shot in the water and wound up with a bogey that dropped him three shots behind.

When Brooks birdied No. 15 by rolling in an eight-footer, he led Hoch and Huston by two shots and things were going so swell, he might as well have been swinging a cookbook.

It probably didn’t even matter much that Brooks’ drive on the 18th hit a spectator in the foot and took a nice bounce back toward the fairway.

“Good break, bad break, it is what it is,” Brooks said.

Then let’s consider it a good break. Instead of being in awful position, the ball set up nicely for Brooks and he smoked a seven-iron from 185 yards to 10 feet from the hole.

From there, he lagged it to about a foot, then tapped it in. There was no reason to play it any other way, he said.

“I’m not interested in setting records of how many you win by,” he said.

Huston’s interest level was mildly raised when he saw the drive by Brooks on 18, but under his hat he knew it was all but over.

“I didn’t expect Mark to make bogey there,” Huston said. “He played great.”

Brooks played well enough to win, which is no mean accomplishment since it’s something that has happened to him twice in the last five years.

“I didn’t drive it great, but good enough to get the job done,” he said.

It was a job he completed with a borrowed putter and a new set of irons. If that’s a recipe for success, you may see a lot of players stuff some new clubs in their bags in a hurry.

He needed to make only one birdie in the last seven holes because no one was coming at him. Brooks birdied three in succession, from No. 9 to No. 11, when he really had it cooking.

It all worked out so well, he’s not sure if he’s giving back the putter.

“I can afford to pay something for it now,” he said.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

BOB HOPE CLASSIC: THE TOP 10 LEADERS

Final leaders for $1.3-million Bob Hope Classic.

Mark Brooks: 66-68-69-67-67--337

John Huston: 69-71-65-65-68--338

Scott Hoch: 70-69-67-68-65--339

Brad Bryant: 71-65-65-71-68--340

Nolan Henke: 69-69-64-69-69--340

Payne Stewart: 71-65-71-63-70--340

Kenny Perry: 75-69-67-65-65--341

Paul Goydos: 69-64-70-69-69--341

Jeff Maggert: 69-68-69-64-71--341

Fred Couples: 72-67-67-65-70--341

* Complete results: C13