Wilson Gets His First PGA Title

Dean Wilson earned his first PGA Tour title with a birdie on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff, topping Tom Lehman at the International at Castle Pines in Castle Rock, Colo., on Sunday.

After Lehman barely missed wide on a 30-foot putt for birdie, Wilson made a six-footer to win the $990,000 first-place prize. Wilson’s best previous finish was a tie for third at the 2004 Valero Texas Open.

Lehman would have vaulted into seventh place in the Ryder Cup standings with a win. He is captain of the U.S. team that will travel to Ireland next month to try to bring home the cup for the first time since 1999.

Lehman, who said he would have been reluctant to play for himself because of his putting game, nearly became the first Ryder Cup captain to win a PGA Tour event during his term since Jack Nicklaus won the Masters in 1986. But his eagle putt on the par-five, 492-yard 17th hole in regulation was short.

Lehman, who hasn’t won since the 2000 Phoenix Open, hit a five-iron to within 15 feet on 17 and figured he had the five-point eagle in his pocket.

“It looked so fast,” Lehman said of the green. “I was quite shocked I left it short. I hit a beautiful shot right on line. I didn’t think there was any way I’d leave it short.”

The ball stopped four inches shy of the hole, and his tap-in for birdie tied him with Wilson in the clubhouse at 34 points under the Stableford scoring system.

Both Lehman and Wilson sank two-foot putts on the 72nd hole. Steve Flesch nearly joined them in the playoff, but he missed a 12-footer for birdie on 18.

Flesch and Daisuke Maruyama tied for third with 32 points, followed by Stewart Cink with 31.

“Finally got my Tour card here just four years ago at age 32,” said Wilson, who would have been four behind Lehman in stroke play. “So it was quite a battle. It is just really satisfying to be here holding the trophy.”

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Cristie Kerr overcame an eight-shot deficit to hand Angela Stanford a crushing loss for the second time in three months, shooting a bogey-free seven-under 65 for a one-shot victory in the Canadian Women’s Open at London, Canada.

Kerr, who came from four strokes back to beat Stanford in May in the Franklin American Mortgage Championship in Tennessee, finished with a 12-under 276 total on the London Hunt and Country Club course.

Stanford, four strokes ahead of second-place Meena Lee after the third round, three-putted the par-18th for a 74. Pat Hurst shot a 68 to finish third at 10 under, Lee (74) followed at seven under and Jee Young Lee (74) was another stroke back.

Kerr, coming off a second-place tie last week in the Women’s British Open, opened with rounds of 67, 70 and 74 to begin the day at five under. She moved up with six birdies in a nine-hole span, including four in a row, beginning on No. 7.

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Annika Sorenstam birdied the last hole for an eight-under 65 to tie the lowest score on her home course and win the Scandinavian TPC at Stockholm by one shot over Lorena Ochoa.

The Swede finished with a 21-under 271 total at the Bro-Balsta course, where she began playing golf when she was 12. Ochoa, ranked second in the world behind Sorenstam, had a final-round 66. It was the third victory of the season for Sorenstam, who won her first tournament of the year in Mexico, then needed nine more tournaments before winning the Women’s U.S. Open and her 10th major last month. She now has 82 wins worldwide.

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Heather Clarke, the wife of golfer Darren Clarke, died Sunday after a long battle with cancer. She was 39.