Before the Senior Players Championship began, Vijay Singh set what looked to be a lofty target score.
“I told my caddie before the week started, 5-under is par,’’ Singh said. “If you can shoot 5-under every day, 20-under is going to be close’’ to the winning number.
Sure enough, when Singh and Jeff Maggert went to a playoff after 72 holes at Exmoor Country Club in Highland Park on Sunday, they were tied at 20-under.
Singh settled the issue on the second playoff hole, sticking a wedge inside two feet for the winning birdie. It’s the first Champions Tour major for Singh, 55, who has won three PGA Tour majors — a Masters and two PGA Championships.
“It’s a little different,’’ Singh said. “It’s a senior major. [But] any time you win a tournament, you feel accomplishment. It’s a win.’’
Singh and Maggert, who were paired -together, went toe-to-toe all day, separating themselves from what had been a crowded field.
“The difference is, Vijay knocked it in there a foot and a half on the playoff hole,’’ Maggert said. “Those are easy to make. Both of us struggled making 15-to-18-footers all day long. All it takes is one to get close. And he pulled it off.’’
Singh shot a 5-under 67 on the final round. Maggert shot 68.
Maggert lost his one-shot lead when he bogeyed the 16th hole.
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“I just hit the tree in front of the green,’’ Maggert said. “The tree is in play there with that front right pin. And of all the bounces you could have got, that was probably about the worst. It went straight backwards 30, 40 yards.’’
Maggert had better position than Singh on 17, 18 and the first playoff hole but couldn’t coax in a birdie putt. Meanwhile, Singh got up and down from the fringe on 17, the sand on 18 and escaped a yanked wedge that left a long putt on the first playoff hole. On the second playoff hole, Singh didn’t flinch.
“The second time around, my caddie said, ‘You’re the best second-shot player I’ve ever known because every time you miss-hit a shot, you drop a ball, you hit it really good [the next time].’ I just took that into account, and I aimed right at it and hit it. And it just came out perfect.’’
Singh was the only player who had no bogeys on the back nine all week. He had only one bogey anywhere. Maggert had more birdies but had four bogeys on his 72-hole card.
“I just played well,’’ Singh said. “It’s not a difficult golf course from tee to green. The green concepts are very hard. There’s a lot of slopes on them. [But] you can give yourself a lot of birdie opportunities. If you can convert them, you’re going to shoot under par.’’
University of Illinois golf coach Mike Small excited his big gallery when he birdied the first hole to move within one shot of the lead. But Small, despite striking the ball well early, had trouble getting his putter going and shot 71. Small wound up 15-under for the tournament, tied for 10th.
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