Hatalsky gains first senior win

A 12-year drought is over for Morris Hatalsky.

After several near-misses this year, the 50-year-old San Diego native broke through Sunday for his first victory on the Senior PGA Tour, winning the $1.5 million Uniting Fore Care Classic by a comfortable 12 points over Jay Sigel.

Hatalsky has experienced a successful yet frustrating first year on the Senior Tour with 10 top-10 finishes in 15 starts, including three runner-ups. He climbed from 10th to sixth in the Charles Schwab Cup standings.

"The barrier was to see if I could finish on top," said Hatalsky, affectionately known as "Morris the Cat."

"I had to see if I could do that today. I won the tournament on the first nine holes and then got conservative."

Hatalsky started the final round tied with John Jacobs but made seven birdies and pulled away to finish with 42 points under the Modified Stableford scoring system. He registered 12 points in the final round, the fourth-highest total of the day.

A regular on the PGA Tour from 1977-94, Hatalsky earned his first victory since the 1990 Bank of Boston Classic and took home the $225,000 first prize.

Hatalsky began the season as a Monday qualifier and needed a sponsor's exemption to get into this tournament. But he won't need any more exemptions.

"Last year was all about getting ready for the Senior Tour," he said. "I had been off the tour for five years. It's not like riding a bicycle, especially the mental side of the game."

Sigel registered six birdies and 11 points at the Park Meadows Country Club to finish alone in second place, one point ahead of Hale Irwin, Jerry McGee, John Bland and Mike McCullough. Irwin recorded 13 points to climb from a tie for 17th and increase his lead in the Schwab standings.

Jacobs struggled with minus-2 points and dropped to seventh place with a 54-hole total of 28. On Saturday, he set a Modified Stableford Senior Tour single-round record with 24 points.

Jacobs' round on Sunday included five bogeys, a double-bogey and three birdies.

The format rewards aggressive play, with eight points awarded for a double-eagle, five for an eagle and third for a birdie. No points are given for a par, while one is deducted for a bogey and three for a double-bogey or worse.

The Modified Stableford system previously was used on the Senior Tour at the Caribbean Classic in 2000 and 2001.

Tom Watson was in the final group with Hatalsky and Jacobs and recorded three birdies on the front before falling out of contention. He made a birdie on No. 18 to tie for 10th with 26 points.

Hatalsky made his move early, birdying five of the first eight holes, including a 40-footer at No. 7. He bogeyed Nos. 9 and 13 to drop to 38 points but chipped in from 40 feet for birdie at the par-3 14th and put away the victory with another birdie on No. 15.

"Today I hit good shots and good putts," Hatalsky said. "I was not playing Tom and John, I was just concerned about getting into a rhythm early."

Hatalsky went over the $1 million mark in earnings for the first time. The most he made in a single year on the PGA Tour was $253,339 in 1990.

"Considering the way the year started, this was beyond my expectations," he said. "I started playing really well early and built some momentum."

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