Bill Haas wins the Viking Classic
Bill Haas won the Viking Classic yesterday at the Annandale golf course in Madison, Mississippi. Haas carded a par 72 and even with five bogeys during the game, he was the winner of the tournament.
Finishing with a 15 under par 273, this was the second US PGA victory of the year for him. The American took home 3.6 million dollars as he won the Viking Classic with three strokes. The son of the long-time PGA Veteran Jay Haas also won the 648,000 dollar
top prize.
Having 10 birdies, one eagle and zero bogies, Bill came in pretty strong in the final round of the Classic. During the game, Bill bogeyed the first hole and shot four bogeys on the back nine but saved the day with five birdies. Carding a bogey on the 11th
and 13th, Bill birdied the 13th hole and then gave back the stroke on the next hole. A birdie at the 16th and 17th hole locked victory, and even though he had a bogey on par 5 18th
hole, Haas still emerged as the winner of the Classic.
Entering while leading the final round, Haas was victorious in his first attempt. He is the 17th player, who has won after having led the third round, in 41 events on Tour this season. Haas is the seventh multiple winner of the season.
Bill is familiar with the Annandale Golf course since he was won on this course before. In his two starts here, he ended T3 in 2007 scoring rounds of 68-67-70-72 and T4 in 2008 with rounds of 69-69-66-68. Currently, he is a combined 42-under 12 in rounds
at Annandale where all are either par or better.
Currently, Jim Furyk, who also won the FedEx Cup, is leading the Tour with three wins. Speaking of the Tour, Bill triumphed in his second Tour event in his 163rd start. Jay, his father, won his second in his 142nd start on Tour, but
Haas senior never played in the Viking Classic.
Michael Allen, who hasn’t been victorious in the 357 Tour events he has played since turning pro in 1984, came in second place. He ended with a 276 and was one stroke ahead of D.J Trahan and the Zimbabwean player Brendon de Jonge.
At one point and time, he even became a threat to the winner of the tournament. At No. 13, Allen had a good drive but unfortunately the ball took an unexpected bounce and went thirty yards out of bounds.
"I told him, when we got done ... 'You didn't miss a shot on the back nine", Haas said. "I didn't know what else to say. He played beautifully. Fortunately for me and unfortunately for him, you know, it just worked out in my favour. He really did play well".
They were tied at 14 under at the twelfth hole when Allen drove out of bounds on the next hole and landed a double bogey. This caused him to finish at 12 under after this final round 71. His second place finish has pushed him from number 166th to
number 117th on the money list.
The winner of the classic, Bill, retrieved his first USA PGA title last January at the Bob Hope Classic where he won 2.47 million dollars that season and hence was hoisted from number 40 to number 26 on the money list. This achievement surely will get the
star various tournament invitations.
His spot in the Masters and the U.S Open is definitely confirmed. This is because the top 30 players on the money list earn automatic exemptions into 2011 Masters and the 2011 U.S Open. This victory also means that Haas’s exemption has been extended through
2013.
With most of the big shots in golf away in Wales for the Ryder Cup, the Viking Classic was still very exhilarating. Most of the players in the game were struggling to keep their profile able enough to play next year as well. Overall, it was yet another exciting
golf tournament with the victory going to the well deserved Bill Haas.
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