Hal Sutton stood
in the 11th fairway with a six-shot lead when a booming, ghost-like voice out
of nowhere caused him to look toward a house some 500 yards away, partially hidden
by the trees on a hill.
"Goooooo
Haaaalll," came the echo.
It was a fitting tribute in today's final round of the Bell Canadian Open. That
was about as close as anyone came to Sutton all day.
In his last tune-up before his first Ryder Cup in 12 years, Sutton put on a dominant
display of driving and clutch putting to run away from the field for a three-stroke
victory over Dennis Paulson.
"I
felt in control of my game," Sutton said after closing with a 3-under 69, one
of only seven rounds in the 60s today under the crusty, rock-hard conditions at
Glen Abbey Golf Club.
Sutton finished at 275 for the widest margin of victory in the Canadian Open since
Curtis Strange won by three strokes in 1987. The third oldest golf championship
in the world is notorious for dramatic finishes, but Sutton never let it get that
far.
A string of
three birdies on the front nine took him from one stroke behind Lee Janzen to
a four-stroke lead, and Sutton poured it on from there.
"I
hit a couple of real good iron shots, and he hit a couple of bad shots, and that's
where the whole thing turned around," Sutton said.
Paulson was the only one Sutton could see in the rear view mirror. He had a 6-foot
eagle putt on 13 that would have brought him within two strokes of Sutton, but
he had to settle for a birdie.
Sutton, in the group behind, also birdied the hole with a 10-foot putt, then nearly
made an ace on No. 15 for his sixth birdie of the day which effectively locked
up the tournament.
"Hal
is very impressive," said Paulson, who also had a 69 for his second runner-up
finish this year. "He just plays solid golf."
That can only help the Americans' bid to win the Ryder Cup for the first time
since 1993. Sutton became only the fifth U.S. team member to win a tournament
this year, joining Tiger Woods, David Duval, Payne Stewart, and Match Play Championship
winner Jeff Maggert.
Not that he was concerned about that. Sutton is having his most consistently good
year since he was dubbed the next Jack Nicklaus in 1983 after winning the PGA
Championship.
"I
would have been confident even if I hadn't played well this week," Sutton said.
"You guys keep writing about the Americans not winning tournaments this year,
so I had to win one for us."
Janzen had a one-stroke lead over Sutton when the final round began in opposite
winds than the first three days, but he was one of several potential contenders
who crumbled at the Abbey.
Janzen, who had made 21 birdies through 54 holes, was wild off the tee, errant
with his irons and spent most of the afternoon with hands on his hips, staring
aimlessly into the sky as he tried to figure out what went wrong.
He finished with a 76 and was at 281 along with David Sutherland, Dudley Hart
and Justin Leonard, another Ryder Cup player who will be going to The Country
Club in good form.
Paul Azinger's bid to win for the first time since he was diagnosed with lymphoma
in 1993 also never materialized. Starting the day just two strokes behind, he
took a sloppy bogey on the par-5 fifth, three-putted from 60 feet on the next
hole and wound up with a 77.
Steve Stricker, who honed his game on the Canadian Tour, also limped around in
77.
Not that it
would have mattered.
After a bogey on No. 3, Sutton was determined to finally cash in on what has been
one of the most consistent years of a riches-to-rags-to-riches career that spans
18 seasons.
The
victory was worth $450,000 and pushed him to more than $1.9 million for the year.
It also was his 12th top-10 finish of the year -- only Woods (13) has more.
"Winning always makes it
a lot better," he said.
Sutton, who went into a seven-year slump by resting on his laurels, now has won
11 times on the PGA Tour, all different tournaments. Three of those victories
have come since turning 40 in April a year ago.
"It's
gratifying to come back in my career at this stage," Sutton said. "But it was
not without a lot of help, and a lot of hard work."
The 36-year-old Paulson, in only his third full year on tour, moved up to No.
22 on the money list with $1,147,551, which could be enough to get him into the
Tour Championship and World Golf Championship event in Spain, both with $5 million
purses.
His best
tournaments have come on Jack Nicklaus-designed courses, and the Abbey was no
exception. Paulson also tied for fourth in New Orleans, was sixth in the Memorial
and tied for seventh in the Reno-Tahoe Open, another Nicklaus design.
"I wish Jack Nicklaus designed
every course out here. I would be a very rich man," Paulson said.
DIVOTS:
Sutton became the 28th Canadian Open champion to have also won a major championship.
In all, 44 of the 90 winners in the world's third oldest golf championship have
won majors. ... The Abbey resuscitated two players who have struggled in recent
years. Nick Faldo closed with a 71 for 5-under 283 and finished eighth, his first
top 10 since 1997. Chip Beck also had a 71 and tied for 14th at 2-under 286, his
first top 25 since 1996. ... The top Canadian was Richard Zokol at 1-over 289.
The last Canadian to win his national open was Pat Fletcher in 1954
