Toms coasts to six shot victory

Defending champion David Toms cruised to a six-stroke victory in the St Jude Classic in blustery conditions on Sunday.

Toms could manage only a two-over-par 73 in wind that gusted as high as 30 mph to finish on 16-under 268, four shots higher than his winning total last season.

Toms was not alone in having difficulties, as only six of the 12 players tied for ninth or better broke par.

Bob Estes carded a 69 and took solo second place on 274, while Steve Lowery had the round of the day, a four-under 67, to jump from a tie for 19th into a share of third with Tim Herron, who shot a 70.

Stewart Cink and Sweden's Fredrik Jacobson each shot a 69 and tied Vaughn Taylor and Brian Gay for fifth. Taylor, in second place and seven strokes behind Toms when the round began, struggled to a 74. Gay shot a 73.

Last season in the Wachovia Championship, Toms had begun the final round with a five-shot lead, built it to six but then made a quadruple-bogey eight at the final hole to scrape home by two.

He began his final round on Sunday with a bogey at the par-four first but then made back-to-back birdies at the fifth and sixth after putting his approach shots within six feet on each hole.

After 10 holes, Toms had a nine-shot margin over the field and had all but wrapped up the title. However, he then bogeyed the 11th, 12th and 14th.

The ex-U.S. PGA champion bounced back with a birdie at the 16th, only to lose another shot at the 17th but by then he was home and dry.

The victory was Toms's 10th on the PGA Tour and earned him $846,000.

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