Tiger Woods has another trophy for his overflowing collection.
Woods shot a 3-under-par 69 and coasted to a three-shot victory at the Buick Open for the 69th PGA Tour title of his career.
Woods finished with a 20-under 268 at Warwick Hills, which hosted its first Buick Open in 1958 and may have staged its final one yesterday.
“I’ve played all around the world, and I’ve never seen a day like this,’’ said Woods, also the 2002 and 2006 winner. “This event has always been special, but today was something else.’’
He acknowledged thinking about his walk up 18 at Warwick Hills being his last, leading to him throwing his ball with a lot of velocity back down the fairway to fans. He also tossed a ball into the gallery at 17.
“I never do that, but today was different,’’ Woods said. “We aren’t coming back here, and I wanted to thank these people.’’
GolfWeek Magazine reported on its website that
GolfWeek also reported The Greenbrier in West Virginia is waiting for the PGA Tour to confirm it will replace the Buick Open in 2010.
From the pro-am when he played with rocker Bob Seger through the final 18, Woods was thanked by Warwick Hills fans who appreciated his appearance.
And, they haven’t seen a player quite like Woods. He improved to 36-1 when he has the lead after 54 holes. Woods has four wins this season in just 11 starts since returning from knee surgery.
Roland Thatcher (64), Greg Chalmers (68), and John Senden (70) tied for second.
US Senior Open - Fred Funk set a tournament record by finishing 20 under to win by six strokes at Crooked Stick in Caramel, Ind.
Funk, who lost a playoff last week in the Senior British Open, shot a 7-under 65 to beat by three strokes Hale Irwin’s previous record set in 2000. Joey Sindelar finished second at 14 under, his sixth top-10 finish of the season.
Funk shot 13 under the first three days to take the lead. After he birdied Nos. 2, 5, and 9 yesterday for a 33 on the front nine, the rout was on.
Women’s British Open - Catriona Matthew won by three strokes at Lytham St. Annes, England, capturing her first major title just 10 weeks after giving birth to her second child.
Matthew birdied three straight holes on the back nine to maintain her third-round lead. She finished at 1-over 71 for a 3-under 285 total.
Karrie Webb closed with a 68 and was second at 288.
Cristie Kerr and Michelle Wie had their best rounds of the week with 69s. Kerr shared eighth place and Wie tied for 11th. Wie sufficiently impressed US Solheim Cup captain Beth Daniel to make the team as a wild card. The competition against Europe will be held outside Chicago Aug. 21-23.
Daniel also picked Juli Inkster, who will make her eighth Solheim Cup appearance and at 49 will become the oldest player to compete in the matches.
Nationwide - Derek Lamely won the Childrens Hospital Invitational in Columbus, Ohio, for his first Nationwide title, beating Oklahoma State star Rickie Fowler with a par on the second hole of a playoff.
Lamely, making his 10th Nationwide start, started the day eight strokes behind Dave Schultz. But he closed with a 6-under 65 in windy conditions to match Fowler at 11-under 273.
