La Quinta, CA (Sports Network) - Brian Gay birdied the second playoff hole
on Sunday to defeat Charles Howell III and win the Humana Challenge.
Gay earned his fourth career PGA Tour victory and first since capturing the
St. Jude Classic in 2009.
Scott Stallings entered Sunday with a five-stroke lead, but he made a
series of costly missteps during the final round. After playing bogey-free
over the first three days of the tournament, the 27-year-old dropped a shot on
three separate holes Sunday.
He missed a 2-foot par putt on No. 7, then bogeyed again on the 16th to fall
into a tie with Gay, Howell and rookie David Lingmerth at minus-25.
Still, Stallings appeared to be in control after finding the fairway off the
tee on the par-5 18th. Needing a birdie to win, he sent his approach into
the water left of the green and eventually stumbled to a bogey, which sent
Gay, Howell and Lingmerth to a playoff at 25-under 263.
Lingmerth was eliminated after he bogeyed the first extra hole, while Gay and
Howell parred to advance.
Playing the par-4 10th, Howell found the rough off the tee and sent his second
shot into a greenside bunker. Gay, meanwhile, placed his first squarely in the
fairway and dropped his approach within 10 feet. When Howell failed to get up-
and-down, Gay had two shots to win it, although he only needed one; sinking
the short birdie putt to finish in first.
More to follow.
The Sports Network