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Rollins edges May for B.C. Open crown

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VERONA, N.Y. (AP) – John Rollins shot an 8-under-par 64 Sunday, edging Bob May by one shot to win the final B.C. Open for his second career victory on the PGA Tour. Rollins, who lost last year’s B.C. Open by one shot to Jason Bohn, rolled in a 7-foot birdie putt on the final hole to beat May and pocket the winner’s share of $540,000. That moved him past $1.2 million for the season and into 10th place in the Ryder Cup standings.

The 31-year-old Rollins, in his sixth year on the PGA Tour, made four birdies on the front side and three straight on the back to surge past third-round leader Gabriel Hjertstedt and finish at 19-under 269.

The 37-year-old May (64), who has battled back problems for nearly three years and is best known for his playoff loss to Tiger Woods at the 2000 PGA Championship, finished second for the third time in his career.

Shigeki Maruyama rallied with a 65 to finish third at 17-under 271, his best finish of the season. Omar Uresti (64) tied David Branshaw (69) of nearby Oswego, N.Y., for fourth at 272.

Hjertstedt (71), who became the first Swede to win on the PGA Tour when he took the 1997 B.C. Open, never found his touch and finished at 15 under. First-round leader Mark Brooks (72), playing in the final group, made two bogeys on the front nine, never mounted a charge, and finished six shots behind the winner.

Rollins, who won the 2002 Canadian Open, hit 10 of his first 11 fairways and made 12 of his first 14 greens in regulation on a sun-splashed day that was in stark contrast to the soggy third round. That helped him post a string of seven one-putt greens in eight holes as he charged to the top of the leaderboard.

Hjertstedt, who had never held a 54-hole lead in his career, began the day with a one-shot lead over Brooks, Branshaw, and Scott Gump, who birdied four of his last seven holes in the third round to move back into contention.

Birdies by Gump at Nos. 1 and 4 gave him a one-shot lead over six players, including Hjertstedt, who parred his first four holes, and five other players were just another shot behind.

Hjertstedt nearly eagled the par-5 fifth hole before settling for a tap-in birdie and notched his second birdie at No. 7 to regain his one-shot lead, this time over Rollins after Gump made bogey at No. 8.

May, who had three birdies on the front side, made an 18-foot eagle putt from the fringe at the par-5 12th hole to tie Hjertstedt at 16 under, then took a one-shot lead over Hjertstedt and Rollins with a birdie on the next hole.

Rollins birdied Nos. 12 and 13 to tie May at 17 under, and Hjertstedt flubbed his third shot from the rough behind the green at the par-4 10th hole to drop him into a four-way tie for second, two shots behind.

Moments after Rollins made birdie at 14 to get to 18 under, Hjertstedt failed to take advantage of the par-5 12th hole, which was playing second-easiest on the day, having already yielded 28 birdies and three eagles. His second shot bounded way left of the green, and he two-putted for par.

Rollins’ roll ended at the par-4 No. 17. Nursing a one-shot lead over May, he drove a fairway bunker and his second shot was short of the green. But he chipped to 10 feet and managed to save par with a clutch putt.

At the par-5 final hole, May, who played the last three rounds at 19 under after an opening 73, hit a 3-wood from 265 yards to within 30 feet of the pin, leaving him a chance at eagle. But his putt rolled about 15 inches past the cup and he settled for birdie and a tie for the lead.

Moments later, Rollins won it with his clutch putt, which broke slightly left to right.

Named after the cartoon strip B.C., the tournament was a regular PGA Tour stop since 1972. But it struggled financially in one of the smallest markets on tour and never had a corporate sponsor. It is being eliminated from the PGA Tour, a victim of the major modifications to the tour schedule beginning next year.

DIVOTS: Bohn, who opted to defend his B.C. Open title instead of playing the British Open, shot a 66 to finish at 14 under.

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