Fred Funk wins the Greater Hickory Classic at Rock Barn
Fred Funk tipped in the ball for a birdie on the 18th hole, on Sunday, to take home his second Champions Tour title of the season, at the Greater Hickory Classic at Rock Barn.
Funk started off his final round campaign one stroke better than Larry Mize at a 12-under par two-round score. The American parred each of the first 11 holes to remain at where he started the last round.
Duffy Waldorf, in the meantime, recorded five birdies over the same number of holes and surged to the top of the leaderboard.
Looking at Funk’s birdie-free performance on the first 11 holes, it seemed as if he will not be able to bounce back because of the pressure exerted by Waldorf.
However, he proved his critics wrong by birdying the 12th and the 14th hole to regain the share of the first position.
Entering the 18th hole, he still was tied at the top spot and desperately needed a birdie to avoid the sudden-death playoffs.
His approach shot from the fairway landed just two feet away from the hole. He then tapped in the ball for a birdie to record the eighth Champions Tour victory of his career.
"I assumed Duffy was going to birdie No. 18," Funk said. "When I saw that I needed a birdie to win, I played real aggressive with my tee shot. I just smoked a 3-wood, and hit a great chip. Still, I was pretty nervous about that putt”.
Talking to the Champions Tour’s official website, he stated that he desperately wanted to win the event.
"I really wanted to win here really bad," Funk said. "I've been knocking at the door on this tournament a lot ... but I was feeling the heat. When you get in contention, you always want to finish it”.
Funk had a great week at the Rock Barn G&S, as he did not concede a single bogey throughout the three rounds. Moreover, he is bogey-free since the 13th hole last week in the final round of the SAS Championship.
After pocketing $240,000 prize money, Funk has now moved to the sixth place in the Charles Schwab Cup Points list.
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