Ernie Els came from way back and tied the course record with a 62, but it was not enough to hold off the world’s highest ranked player. Of course, it didn’t hurt that Singh himself fired a 65.
Following a tournament in which Singh had the lead after three days of play and didn’t win, Vijay wins the 2005 Sony Open never having held the lead until the final thirty minutes. He finished at -11 while second- and third-round leader Shigeki Maruyama fell backwards, finishing at -9.
Els charged hard, finishing birdie-birdie-eagle to get to -10, tying the course record 62 in a round that included two bogeys. Els, winner of the last two Sony Opens, said of his round that he “always felt like it was going to be just a little shy. He [Singh] did what he had to do.”
Maruyama, bogeyed 12 and had to make a 10-footer on 14 to save bogey. Close pursuer Brett Quigley played fairly well but couldn’t make a putt all day, including a four-foot par putt on 17. Paul Azinger played poorly (74), but Charles Howell came on with a 67 to finish T3.
Earning $864,000, Singh returns to the top of the money list. The 2005 Sony Open is Vijay’s 25th career win and his 20th career PGA Tour trophy.
Pos Name Sun Final R1 R2 R3 R4 Total --- ---- --- ----- -- -- -- -- ----- 1 Vijay Singh -5 -11 69 68 67 65 269 2 Ernie Els -8 -10 71 67 70 62 270 T3 Charles Howell III -3 -9 70 70 64 67 271 T3 Shigeki Maruyama +1 -9 67 65 68 71 271 T5 Stewart Cink -5 -8 66 69 72 65 272 T5 Brett Quigley +1 -8 66 67 68 71 272 T7 Tommy Armour III -4 -7 69 71 67 66 273 T7 Andrew Magee -3 -7 67 68 71 67 273 T9 Craig Stadler -3 -6 71 69 67 67 274 T9 Tom Lehman -1 -6 67 68 70 69 274 T9 Bart Bryant -1 -6 70 69 66 69 274 T9 Robert Gamez +1 -6 69 66 68 71 274
The PGA Tour next heads to the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego, CA. Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are expected to appear.
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