Joe Inman's closing
6-under-par 65 today included an eagle on the par-5 13th, enabling him to beat
Bruce Summerhays and Dave Stockton by two strokes and successfully defend his
title in the $1.2 million Pacific Bell Senior Classic.
Inman, winning for the second time as a senior, finished with a 14-under 199 total
and earned $180,000, the largest paycheck of his career.
Summerhays had a final-round 66, while Stockton, who entered the final round with
a two-shot lead, had a 70. Each earned $96,000.
Inman made a 12-foot putt on the 514-yard hole for the 3.
"The
eagle was big in my round," the 51-year-old said. "But the shot of the day for
me was that 5-iron through the trees on the sixth hole. From there on I really
played well."
Inman
put that 5-iron just two feet from the hole and tapped in for the birdie.
Stockton had trouble at
the No. 9 with a double-bogey 6.
"I
kind of let it get away," Stockton said. "On one hand I could have counted the
shots I did not like but what killed me was the ninth hole."
Summerhays birdied four of the last five holes on the front nine but only managed
one on the back side of his bogey-free round at the 6,575-yard Wilshire Country
Club course.
"Stockton's
double bogey put everyone back into the ballgame," Summerhays said. "I still had
my chances. Another 66 was a good round of golf. But just not good enough. "
Summerhays's five birdies
all came on putts of 10 feet or less.
"This
was really a nice championship," Summerhays said. "A lot of people had a shot
at this championship. Joe just took over on the back side."
John Bland shot a 64 for the day's best round. His 11-under 202 total put him
in a tie with John Mahaffey, who had a 69.
Lee Trevino finished with a 68 and was tied with Bruce Fleisher and Bob Murphy
at 203. Murphy finished with a 69 and Fleisher matched Trevino's 68.
