Bryant win provides Cinderella finish to season

By Steve Keating

ATLANTA (Reuters) – American Bart Bryant held his nerve to
fire a three-under-par 67 and secure a crushing six-shot
victory over Tiger Woods at the Tour Championship on Sunday,
providing a Cinderella finish to the U.S. season.

A 42-year-old journeyman who insisted all week he did not
belong in golf’s elite, Bryant completed a wire-to-wire win for
the third PGA Tour title of his career and his second this
season.

The unheralded Texan began the limited-field event in
masterful style with a course record 62 on Thursday and ended
it with an ice-cool final round and a record winning total of
17-under 263 at East Lake Golf Club.

Bryant’s surprise victory was worth $1.1 million and almost
doubled his earnings over a 19-year-career that has been
interrupted by eight visits to the PGA Tour qualifying school.

In an elite field limited to the season’s top 30 money
earners, he held off all challengers the entire week, including
last-day rallies from world number one Woods and defending
champion Retief Goosen.

Woods, who could have become golf’s first $11 million man
with victory, began the day four strokes behind Bryant. He
mounted a brief back nine charge but ended up having to settle
for a distant second place after carding a 69.

American Scott Verplank also closed with a 69 to finish
third at nine under with compatriot Davis Love III (69), world
number two Vijay Singh (67) and Goosen a further two strokes
back in a tie for fourth.

South African Goosen went into the last day three strokes
off Bryant’s lead but fell apart on his way to a 74, rekindling
unpleasant memories of his final-round U.S. Open meltdown at
Pinehurst in June.

Goosen began steadily with six successive pars but then
dropped six shots over the next eight holes to plummet down the
leaderboard.

Any thoughts that Bryant might succumb to last-day jitters
were soon dismissed when he birdied three of the first four
holes to stretch his overnight advantage to six shots over
Goosen.

Although he suffered a wobble with bogeys on five and six,
Bryant steadied himself with solid pars on seven and eight
before picking up his fourth shot of the day at the par-five
ninth.

Neither Goosen nor U.S. Masters and British Open champion
Woods were able to capitalize on Bryant’s stutter.

Bryant carried his momentum into East Lake’s closing
stretch with birdies on 11 and 12, effectively putting the
title well beyond the reach of Woods and Goosen.