Palmer claims victory with closing 62

Rookie Ryan Palmer fired a brilliant 10-under-par 62 to capture his first PGA Tour victory at the $4.2 million Funai Classic on Sunday.

The 28-year-old American, no relation to seven-times major winner Arnold Palmer, was five strokes behind the leaders after 54 holes but hit 10 birdies and no bogeys in the final round to finish on 22-under 266.

World number one and defending champion Vijay Singh and Briny Baird, who shared the third-round lead with Tom Lehman, tied for second place three strokes behind. Joey Sindelar and Cameron Beckman were joint fourth on 270.

Lehman could manage only a level-par 72 in his final round to drop into a tie for sixth on 271 with South Africa's Tim Clark, Australia's Mark Hensby and Mark Calcaveccchia.

Singh, who had begun the day three shots off the lead, played the front nine in two under and caught fire early on the back nine, running off four birdies in five holes to pull within two shots of Palmer.

After a par at the 15th, the tall Fijian bogeyed the par-four 16th after a wayward drive and could get no closer as he carded a 67.

Baird, three under for his round through 15 holes, also found the rough with his drive on the 16th and made bogey from the back of the green. He finished with a 70.

Palmer, playing about 70 minutes ahead of Lehman and Baird, quickly got to five under for the day when he birdied five of the first six holes at the Magnolia Golf Course.

The rookie from Texas began a similar run at the 12th and reached 10 under with his final birdie of the day at the 17th.

Among the highlights for Palmer were a chip-in birdie from about 40 feet at the par-three 15th and a 45-foot birdie putt at the 17th.

Palmer said he hit his putt at the 17th so hard it might have gone well past the hole had it not gone in.

"I've been struggling all week on my long putts...and having those 10-footers coming back," he told reporters.

"When I saw it go in, I thought, 'that's justice' because I had had so much trouble with them, and we had practised on them after each round. To make that was just unbelievable.

"I really wasn't paying attention to how fast it was going or how hard it hit the hole. I was sure it was going to be at least five, six feet by because I know how the grain works when the ball gets going."

Palmer became the fifth tour rookie to win this year. He earned $756,000 for the victory.

"I knew I could win because I won the year before on the Nationwide Tour, which is one of the best tours in the world next to the PGA Tour," he said.

"I didn't think I couldn't win. If I didn't think I could win, I wouldn't play, that's for sure."

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