Thorpe wins after Bean collapses

Jim Thorpe finally won the Farmers Charity Classic title that had been so elusive.

Thorpe claimed a one-stroke victory for his first win of the season on Sunday.

Second-round co-leader Andy Bean passed out in the caddie tent and could not tee off. The 51-year-old Bean was taken by ambulance from the course to a Grand Rapids hospital with an allergic reaction after eating sausage and a muffin for breakfast. Bean was treated and released and returned to the course two hours later.

"We wanted Andy to play," said Thorpe, who was in the next-to-last group. "I tried to explain to Andy before we teed off that there are a lot more golf tournaments. We don't want you to go out there and have something very serious happen to you."

Thorpe closed with a 6-under-par 66 after starting the third round three strokes off the lead. He survived a double-bogey 6 on No. 18 to finish at 13-under 203, earning $240,000 from the $1.6 million tournament.

"The golf course suits my type of play," said Thorpe, who had finished second, third and fourth in the tournament. "I like to play nice and aggressive ... and you have to play very, very smart.

"Golf is a funny game. We take turns out here every week beating one another. One thing that shocked me the last four or five years is how good the level of play still is out here with these guys."

Fred Gibson (66) finished second at 204. Gil Morgan, who had the day's best round of 65, Dave Stockton and second round co-leader Bob Gilder were two shots back. Hale Irwin and Mark McNulty were at 10 under, three strokes off the lead.

"It was nip and tuck for quite a while," Gibson said. "It was real difficult for me. I haven't been in contention for two years. I was very nervous (Saturday), but today I was calmer."

Thorpe, 55, earned his eighth Champions Tour win one week after missing the cut in the Senior PGA Championship. He's had at least one win in his five years on the Champions Tour.

Bean, the co-leader with Gilder at 10 under after 36 holes, was scheduled to start his round at 11:35 a.m. He was on the practice tee when he became ill and then passed out. He was treated by paramedics and Dr. Frank Belsito, who was at the tournament as a spectator, before going to Spectrum Health 6 miles away.

"I certainly didn't want to withdraw, but I didn't have much choice," Bean said. "I could play now. I might be crawling in, but I could play."

Bean, 6-foot-4 and 260 pounds, was seeking his first win since 1986.

"He wasn't complaining about anything," Belsito said. "Actually, he was quite insistent that he was going to make his tee time."

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