The long-awaited payoff

It went into the record books as a victory that needed eight playoff holes, but Brad Adamonis knows better. It required years of perseverance.

Now in his fifth year on the Nationwide Tour, the Rhode Island native is 34, married, and the father of two, so how his life has changed since he graduated from Miami of Ohio and began his quest as a professional golfer. There always have been flashes of good play to keep him motivated, but what transpired last Sunday validates the time he has put into his game.

"I've been chasing the dream," said Adamonis. "So it feels good to finally win."

He insists that he surprised himself by being so calm in an eight-hole playoff to win the WNB Golf Classic in Midland, Texas, that he was actually more nervous in the closing holes of a final-round 70 that left him at 10-under-par 278. There had been birdies at the 14th, 15th, and 17th holes, but a bogey at the 72d hole, thanks to a poor drive, had cost him.

Or so he thought.

"Guys closing behind me were in good position, so I figured I'd just have a good finish," said Adamonis. "I felt fortunate to get into a playoff."

Vance Veazey and Ron Whittaker were eliminated on the first two holes, so onward went Adamonis and Tjaart van der Walt. They matched pars on the next five holes, but on the eighth extra hole, van der Walt made bogey, so Adamonis's par earned him $85,500 - though it could be a far greater payoff if things continue on an upward turn the next three weeks.

"I know I need at least one more good tournament the rest of the way," said Adamonis.

He was referring to the fact that he has vaulted to 30th on the money list and the top 25 will earn PGA Tour cards for 2008. With $161,735, Adamonis knows he's just $11,379 behind No. 25. He's in Tennessee for this week's stop, with tournaments in Miami and the Nationwide Tour Championship in Lakeside, Calif., to follow.

There's much to look forward to, yes, but so, too, has he tried to savor a victory that has been a long time coming.

"I've been playing fairly well, but it's always felt like I'm one or two shots away from being really good," said Adamonis, who inherited his passion for the game from his father, Dave, the founder of the US Challenge Cup Tour for junior golfers.

Woe is Wie

What has to rate as the season's saddest story took another disheartening turn when Greg Nared became the second manager within a year to walk away from Michelle Wie. "After careful consideration for my future, I have resigned, effective immediately," said Nared, who worked for the William Morris Agency. Wie just turned 18 and has been a pro for barely two years and already she's gone through two managers, both of whom - Nared and Ross Berlin - had her best interests at heart. Game plans envisioned by first Berlin and then Nared never emphasized high-profile tournaments against the men, nor was it ever considered best for the teenager to get her wrapped up in aggressive endorsement deals. Both managers had paid close attention to the almost flawless way in which Tiger Woods had been brought along slowly, and they felt a similar blueprint was in order for Wie. Somewhere, somehow, it has all gone terribly wrong, and since her parents are so in control of their daughter's life - from picking agents to hiring and firing caddies, which they've done at such a pace that father B.J. Wie was back lugging the bag at last week's Samsung Championship - they are the ones who must share the blame. In 2006, Wie was very much in contention to win three majors. In 2007, she played in eight LPGA Tour events and had a stroke average of 76.7. Yet, the numbers don't explain the half of it. The year has been a public relations nightmare, from the disrespectful way in which she treated LPGA Tour members and organizers at the Ginn Tribute, to the shame of accepting a sponsor's exemption into the Samsung when the dignified thing to do would have been to say, "Thanks, but I'm not worthy of this right now." Wie is enrolled at Stanford, which is a nice place for any 18-year-old to be. It's the perfect opportunity for her to take care of herself and tend to decisions for herself. But with her parents having left Hawaii to rent a house near Stanford, you wonder if that's possible.

Taste of victory

The good news is, Ernie Els finally returned to the winner's circle. The bad news is, it was at the 16-player World Match Play Championship, literally in his backyard - the Wentworth Club outside of London - and in a tournament that he had won six previous times, so it's hard to gauge where his game stands. Els turned 38 yesterday and the reality is he hasn't had a significant stroke-play win against a world-class field since the American Express Championship three years ago. There were snippets of his old form at the British Open and PGA Championship, but the guess is the 2008 majors will be a huge test of where Els stands with his game and his passion for competition . . . You want the flip side to Wie? Meet Lorena Ochoa. Whereas Wie and her family have rubbed people the wrong way and seemingly handled everything wrong, the dynamic 25-year-old from Mexico has been embraced as much for her dignity and character as her exquisite game. Ochoa closed with a 66 to win the Samsung by four shots, her seventh triumph of the LPGA Tour season, and one that had the folks at Bighorn Golf Club in Palm Desert, Calif., smiling for days. Earlier this year, Ochoa was honored with a key to that community . . . If it's October, Phil Mickelson must be on hiatus, right? Wrong. The lefthander will tee it up today in the Fry's Electronics Open in Scottsdale, Ariz. Having missed some time with a wrist injury, Mickelson is eager to keep working on swing changes he and Butch Harmon have put into place.

Drinking it in

Fairway news: Woods announces his first licensing deal to market a signature drink, "Gatorade Tiger."

Clubhouse view: It will come in three flavors - cherry, citrus blend, and grape. Cherry will be the choice for his final rounds. Sunday red, of course.

Better than the rest

Paul Parajeckas of Pleasant Valley Country Club prevailed in a four-way playoff to win the New England PGA's Massachusetts Chapter Championship at Spring Valley CC in Sharon. Parajeckas, Chris Carter of Hillview, Brian Spitz of Black Rock, and Richard Hasenfus of Needham GC shot 1-over 73 to force overtime . . . In the NEPGA Cape Week Pro-Am series, Tom Tobey of Bay Pointe CC shot 69 to win at Olde Barnstable, Scott Hickey of Norton CC triumphed with a 68 at Willowbend CC, and Frank Dully of Kernwood CC had a 70 to take first place at the Wianno Club . . . The NEPGA's Assistants Pro-Pro Match Play Championship has been whittled to four teams - Rick Durocher and Brett Gracey of Concord CC; Jeff Barnes and Dana Smith of Oakley CC; Bob Flanders and Ryan Kesten of Weston GC; and Jeff Martin of Point Judith and Brian Owens of North Kingstown . . . At Point Judith CC in Narragansett, R.I., the Massachusetts entry stormed to its fourth straight win in the annual Tri-State Matches with Connecticut and Rhode Island. Team Massachusetts was composed of Frank Vana, Brian Higgins, Jack Kearney, Phil Smith, John McNeill, Brendon Ray, John Hadges, Doug Clapp, Alistair Catto, and Joe Keller.

School's in session

It's back-to-school time for thousands of golfers with PGA Tour dreams. There are 12 first-stage sites spread out over the next two weeks. Of local interest are two sites that commence 72-hole play Tuesday. Florence, S.C., is where Marshfield's Geoff Sisk will start his pursuit, as will Michael Welch of North Quincy, Kevin Silva of New Bedford, and Justin Goodhue of Connecticut. At Lakeland, Fla., the field will include Rob Oppenheim of Andover, Jim Renner of Plainville, Rhode Islanders Rod Butcher and Michael Capone, and Connecticut native John Elliott. A field in Lantana, Texas, will include Joey Iaciofano of Lincoln, R.I., while onetime University of Rhode Island standout Michael Sims will tee it up in Spring, Texas . . . Anna Grzebien, the former NCAA champion from Narragansett, R.I., shot 71-69-71-72 to finish tied for second and easily make it through her second attempt at the first stage of the LPGA Tour's Q School. She advances to the final stage, scheduled to begin Nov. 28 in Daytona Beach, Fla. Briana Vega of Andover and Kim Augusta of Rumford, R.I., failed to make it through . . . At the Big Five Classic in Philadelphia, Boston College finished second behind Cornell. Craig Kublin of Needham, a BC freshman, shot 71-72 to finish second . . . Chelsea Curtis of Mashpee, a junior, shot 74-73-75 -222 to get into a share of fourth and help Georgetown finish sixth in the Xavier Invitational in Daytona Beach, Fla.

Jim McCabe can be reached at jmccabe@globe.com.