Piercy takes aim at bigger game after capturing Canadian Open

ANCASTER, Ontario - The "boring golf" Scott Piercy had to play in the Canadian Open left him so excited when he won that he couldn't describe his feelings.

Instead of banking on his driver and firing at flags, Piercy felt he had to play for position on the classic design at Hamilton Golf & Country Club. It's not his favorite brand of golf, though the Las Vegan could not have been more thrilled when he closed with a 3-under 67 for a one-shot victory Sunday.

Perhaps it was only fitting that the former Bonanza High School standout ultimately gained his second PGA Tour victory with a two-putt par from 50 feet below the hole.

With four straight birdies early in the final round to get into the mix, it was a simple par on the 18th that allowed Piercy to tie the oldest 72-hole scoring record on the tour and outlast William McGirt and Robert Garrigus.

Piercy posted a 17-under 263 total to tie the tournament record set by Johnny Palmer in 1952 at St. Charles in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

"I've been playing good for a while now, and you just need a couple of good breaks here or there," Piercy said. "I felt like I got a couple of good breaks and continued to play solid, and I'm kind of speechless."

McGirt was atop the leaderboard from the third hole, where he rolled in a 10-foot birdie putt. He looked poised playing in the final group the final two days - his first time in serious contention on tour - until two late bogeys cost him a chance to win, and likely a shot at playing in his first major in two weeks at the PGA Championship.

With a one-shot lead on the 15th, McGirt hammered a 45-foot birdie putt 15 feet by the cup, and made bogey with his first three-putt of the week. Tied for the lead on the 18th, he hit his approach into a deep bunker right of the green, blasted out to 18 feet and missed the par putt that would have forced a playoff.

"I was just trying to make pars and get into the house," said McGirt, who closed with a 69 for his seventh straight round in the 60s.

Garrigus felt even worse.

He had a one-shot lead going into the final round, but missed a 4-foot birdie putt on the third hole, and it never got much better. Garrigus missed six putts inside 8 feet, the last one for par on the 16th that cost him a share of the lead. He missed a 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th for a 70.

"I should have won this tournament by seven shots. Everybody knows that," Garrigus said. "If I could have just made a putt today."

The self-deprecating Garrigus referred to the final hole as a "good effort on 18 with my two shots and then lagged it up there for a nice, second-place finish."

Piercy won while sitting in the clubhouse. He was preparing for a playoff as Garrigus lined up his putt. He heard the news on the radio before the TV signal showed Garrigus missing.

Piercy raised eyebrows among so many proud Canadians when he referred to Hamilton - considered among the best in the Canadian Open rotation - as "boring golf" because it kept him from taking advantage of his power.

Reminded of that comment, with the silver trophy from golf's third-oldest championship at his side, he smiled.

"That was taken a little out of context," he said. "I like to hit driver a lot, and this golf course I felt took the driver out of my hands. I did say, however, that at the end of the week if the score is good, it is exciting. So I'm pretty excited."

The win was timely in many ways.

Piercy, who still lives in Las Vegas, was headed to the Reno-Tahoe Open this week to defend his first tour title. Now, he is headed to Firestone to play in the $8 million Bridgestone Invitational, his debut in a World Golf Championship. He'll start his season in Kapalua again, and then make plans in April for his first trip down Magnolia Lane for the Masters.

"I've always told myself I'm not going unless I'm in the tournament," he said.

■ CHAMPIONS - At Turnberry, Scotland, Fred Couples won the Senior British Open by two strokes over Gary Hallberg after holing a 25-foot putt to finish with consecutive birdies.

The 1992 Masters champion shot 3-under 67 in the final round to finish at 9-under 271 on the Ailsa course and win his first tournament in Britain. Hallberg shot 66, equaling the best round of the day with American Mark Calcavecchia and Carl Mason.

English pair Barry Lane (69) and Mason, and American Dick Mast (67) had a share of third at 276. Overnight leader Bernhard Langer dropped five shots in five holes on the way home to shoot a 75 and slip into a tie for sixth.

"I've never won an Open Championship, so this is the next best thing. And I believe I now get into the (British) Open at Muirfield next year, which is great," Couples said.