Champions Tour
Jobe wins senior event for 1st title in 19 years
Champions Tour

Jobe wins senior event for 1st title in 19 years

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 5:54 p.m. ET

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Brandt Jobe could only laugh as he watched Scott McCarron, his old college roommate, rush up the leaderboard and threaten to steal the Principal Charity Classic out from under him.

But Jobe stayed steady and, armed with a new putter, closed out the win he had sought for nearly two decades.

Jobe won the PGA Tour Champions event by one shot Sunday, finishing at 14-under 202 for his first victory in 19 years.

He shot 69 in the final round at the Wakonda Club to end a winless drought that had stretched back to 1998, when he won a tournament in Japan.

ADVERTISEMENT

''It's hard. You're out here to win, and I haven't done as good of a job as I would have liked,'' Jobe said. ''This is nice. It's a little bit of a relief.''

McCarron, the 2016 champion, place second at 13 under after shooting a final round 66 - the day's best score.

Kevin Sutherland holed out for an eagle on No. 18 to join McCarron at 203.

Money leader Bernhard Langer finished at 12 under, while Scott Verplank, Tom Lehman and Steve Flesch were another shot back.

Jobe, who used a new putter this weekend after struggling during the Senior PGA Tour, responded to his first back-nine bogey of the tournament a hole later, making birdie on No. 15 to re-take the lead.

He saved par after a shaky tee shot on the par-3 17th hole, then drilled his tee shot on No. 18 straight down the fairway and watched as Sutherland's eagle made a three-man playoff a possibility.

But Jobe was steady with the putter, a fitting end to his tournament.

''For me, it lets me know that the things I'm doing are good and to keep doing them,'' Jobe said.

McCarron, who graduated with Jobe from UCLA in 1988, strung together six consecutive birdies to grab a share of the lead with five holes to go.

But McCarron ran out of luck, missing birdie putts on Nos. 17 and 18.

''I hung in there,'' McCarron said. ''When you have one of your best friends win a golf tournament, it means a lot to (Jobe), so really proud of him.''

Langer, who was attempting to become the first senior golfer in seven years to win three consecutive starts, closed with a 67.

''I was pleased with most of what I did,'' Langer said. ''I just didn't quite have it in me.''

share


Get more from Champions Tour Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more