PALM COAST, Fla. (AP) - Bernhard Langer won the Ginn
Championship for his second Champions Tour victory in three starts,
shooting a 1-under 71 in windy conditions Sunday for an
eight-stroke victory over Lonnie Nielsen and Tim Simpson.
Langer had one of three under-par rounds, with the wind off the
Atlantic Ocean a sustained 25 mph and the temperature in 50s. The
German star finished at 12-under 204 and earned $375,000 for his
third victory in 11 career starts on the 50-and-over tour.
"It felt more like a 65 ... it was that difficult," Langer
said. "I stayed aggressive, and I was able to pull most of it off.
I played very solid this week, and today."
Langer took the lead on the money list and Charles Schwab Cup
points race. He supplanted Scott Hoch on both lists and joined Hoch
as the only multiple winner.
Nielsen (77) and Simpson (75) struggled in the difficult
conditions. Simpson holed a chip from off the back of the 18th
green to his share of second.
Fred Funk (77) and Joe Ozaki (74) tied for fourth at 3 under,
and Tom Watson (74), Nick Price (75) and David Eger (73) followed
at 2 under.
Langer began the day with a two-shot lead over Nielsen, and
birdied the second and sixth holes. Nielsen and Funk - who started
three behind Langer - couldn't answer, and Langer enjoyed no less
than a six-shot lead for the rest of the day.
Langer set up a birdie at the par-5 second hole with an awkward
chip from near the edge of a bunker, chipped in for birdie at the
par-5 sixth hole, nearly holed a blast from a greenside bunker for
birdie at the par-4 13th and made a 22-footer for par on 18.
"When I saw what the weather was going to be, I would have bet,
with his short game, that was going to win," Nielsen said. "He's
a magician."
Funk agreed.
"It was phenomenal," Funk said. "But nothing surprised me
about what he did. He's won too many tournaments around the world
in conditions like that."
The only other players to break par were Fuzzy Zoeller, who had
the low round of the day with a 69, and 64-year-old Bruce
Summerhays (71). The final-round scoring average of 76.571 was the
highest on the Champions Tour this season, and the highest since
the second round of the 2007 Senior British Open.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
