Els hangs on, earns first PGA Tour win since '04
This time, Ernie Els could enjoy someone else's final-round misfortune.
Ending nearly a four-year drought between PGA Tour victories, Els shot a 3-under 67 Sunday to win The Honda Classic at Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
Els finished at 6 under, 1 shot better than Luke Donald (71) and 2 ahead of Nathan Green (67).
"It has to feel even sweeter, you know, losing so many tournaments and one now going my way," said Els, who snapped an 0-for-47 streak in PGA Tour events, dating to the 2004 American Express Championship in Ireland.
Els and Mark Calcavecchia were tied for the lead as the sun began setting on PGA National. But Calcavecchia hit into a greenside bunker at the par-3 15th, and his shot from the sand looked fine when it hit the green.
Somehow, it never stopped rolling.
The ball came to rest on a rock ledge across the green. Calcavecchia walked over, tossed the ball into the water and made a double bogey to give Els the outright lead. Els parred the par-5 18th, then waited to see if anyone would match his score.
No one did, although Donald had a chance on the last. His birdie chip from just off the green stopped a couple of feet shy of the cup, sealing Els' win.
And with that, Els got the huge shot of confidence that he's sought for so long. Plus, he'll jump a spot to third in the world, passing Steve Stricker.
Els earned $990,000 for his 16th career PGA Tour victory.
Calcavecchia (73), Robert Allenby (70) and Matt Jones (73) tied for fourth, 3 shots back.
HSBC Women's Champions: Lorena Ochoa completed a runaway victory in her first tournament of the year, closing with a 4-under 68 to leave Annika Sorenstam 11 strokes behind in the rain-slowed HSBC Women's Champions at Singapore.
Competing for the first time since winning the ADT Championship in November for her eighth 2007 victory, Ochoa finished at 20-under 268 on Tanah Merah's Garden Course. The top-ranked Mexican star earned $300,000 for her 18th career LPGA Tour victory.
Sorenstam won the B-flight, shooting a 71 in the rainy afternoon conditions for her third straight top-four finish. Slowed by neck and back injuries last year, she won the season-opening SBS Open in Hawaii for her 70th LPGA Tour title and first since September 2006, then finished fourth last week in the Fields Open.
Paula Creamer shot a 73 to finish third at 7 under. Laura Diaz (71) was another stroke behind in the first-year tournament, and Karrie Webb (74) and Stacy Prammanasudh (71) followed at 5 under.
Johnnie Walker Classic: Mark Brown closed with a 5-under 67 for a 3-stroke victory in the Johnnie Walker Classic at Gurgaon, India. Brown finished at 18-under 270. Scott Strange (67), Greg Chalmers (68) and Taichiro Kiyota (71) tied for second. The tournament was sanctioned by the European, Asian and Australasian tours.