Gerry Broome | AP
Sergio Garcia follows through on a drive during the rain-delayed final round of the Wyndham Championship golf tournament in Greensboro, N.C., on Sunday.
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — Rainy weather left Sergio Garcia stuck in central North Carolina for an extra day. Turns out, it was worth the hassle — because he’s leaving with his first PGA Tour victory in four years.
Garcia claimed a two-stroke win Monday in the water-logged Wyndham Championship for his first victory on tour since the 2008 Players Championship.
He finished with a 66 to wind up at 18-under 262, claim $936,000 in prize money and maybe seal a spot on the European Ryder Cup team.
“I think there were a lot of things going on. It shows a lot to me,” Garcia said. “Hopefully, this will secure my spot on the Ryder Cup team, and winning is always nice.”
Tim Clark was at 16 under following his 67 in the final tour event before the playoffs, and Bud Cauley finished 15 under after his 68.
Garcia led both after the third round and when the fourth round was held up overnight due to a persistent downpour.
He had three straight late-round birdies after a bogey briefly dropped him into a tie for the lead, and cruised to his eighth career PGA victory.
Garcia began the decisive surge on the par-4 No. 13, plopping his chip roughly a foot from the flagstick and tapping it in for birdie.
He added another birdie on No. 15 — a pretty chip from a greenside bunker left him with a 5-foot putt — and followed that with another birdie on the par-3 16th after his tee shot stopped closer than 2 feet from the stick. He added a birdie on No. 17 to move to 19 under, leaving his bogey on the final hole inconsequential.
It was a bit of redemption for the 32-year-old Spaniard, who in his last appearance in Greensboro in 2009 held a share of the lead after three rounds and was up by three strokes midway through the round, but let it slip away. He finished in fourth place.
LPGA
NORTH PLAINS, Ore. — Japan’s Mika Miyazato won the Safeway Classic for her first victory on the LPGA Tour, finishing with a 2-under 70 to beat Brittany Lincicome and Inbee Park by two strokes.
The 22-year-old Miyazato finished at 13-under 203 in her wire-to-victory on Pumpkin Ridge’s Ghost Creek Course. She shared the first-round lead and had a two-shot advantage after the second.
Lincicome shot 67, and Park had a 70.
The 22-year-old Miyazato, in her fourth season on the LPGA Tour, is the sixth first-time winner this year. She broke through after a pair second-place ties in June.
South Korea’s Haeji Kang had a 66 — the best round of the day, to tie for fourth at 10 under with Cristie Kerr (70) and So Yeon Ryu (71). Sydnee Michaels, the first-round co-leader, was four strokes back after a 70.
Michelle Wie had her first top-10 finish of the season, shooting a 69 to finish eighth at 8 under.
DICK’S SPORTING GOODS OPEN
ENDICOTT, N.Y. — Willie Wood won the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open for his first Champions Tour title, beating Michael Allen with a par on the first hole of a playoff.
Wood made a long birdie putt on the final hole of regulation to match Allen, a two-time winner this year, at 13-under 203 on the En-Joie Golf Course. Wood closed with a 66, and Allen shot 66.
In the playoff on the par-4 18th hole, Allen drove left in the water, essentially ending his chances.
Woods earned $270,000 for the victory, his first since he won the 1996 Deposit Guaranty Golf Classic for his lone PGA Tour title.
U.S. AMATEUR
CHERRY HILLS VILLAGE, Colo. — Steve Fox made an 18-foot birdie putt on the 37th hole, completing a remarkable underdog run to win the U.S. Amateur at Cherry Hills.
The 21-year-old Fox, from Hendersonville, Tenn., was 2-down with two holes to play against Michael Weaver of Fresno, Calif., before rallying to force the extra hole.
Fox, a senior at Tennessee-Chattanooga, made an 11-foot birdie putt to win the 35th hole. Still with a 1-up advantage, Weaver, a 21-year-old redshirt junior at the University of California, needed to make a 5-foot par putt on the 36th hole at the 18th green to secure the win, but it lipped out, extending the match.
Both players earned spots in the U.S. Open next year, and will likely receive invitations to the Masters — both if still amateurs.
MIDWEST CLASSIC
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Shawn Stefani won the Midwest Classic for his first Web.com Tour title, closing with a 7-under 64 for a two-stroke victory.
The 30-year-old former Lamar player finished at 17-under 267 on the Nicklaus Golf Club at LionsGate. He earned $99,000 to jump from 54th to 12th on the money list with $166,715.
Luke List and Russell Henley tied for second. List shot a 67, and Henley had a 68. List earned $48,400 to take money lead with $309,196. The final top 25 on the money list will earn 2013 PGA Tour cards.
