NORTON, Massachusetts, 7 September 2005 — Olin Browne captured his first PGA Tour title for six years when he fired a closing four-under 67 to record a one-shot victory at the $5.5 million Deutsche Bank Championship on Monday.
Browne, without a win since the 1999 Colonial and playing on a sponsor’s exemption, hit five birdies and one bogey to finish with a 14-under aggregate of 270.
Jason Bohn (68), one of five joint leaders after the third round, was second on 271. Vaughn Taylor came third on 274, one stroke ahead of Charles Howell III, Jeff Brehaut, Joey Sindelar and Swede Carl Pettersson.
World No. 1 Tiger Woods carded a 71 to finish on three-under 281.
Browne, a lowly 119th on the money list and without a top-10 finish this year, was another of the overnight co-leaders alongside Bohn, Pettersson, John Rollins and Billy Andrade, but took control with four birdies in the first 10 holes.
The 46-year-old American dropped his only stroke of the day at the 15th but recovered with a birdie at the 17th.
“I had good opportunities most of the (front) nine and managed to get under par early, caught a groove for the day, caught a rhythm and managed to hang on to it,” Browne told reporters.
Browne, the third-round leader at this year’s US Open before slumping to a 10-over 80, said his final-day collapse at Pinehurst never entered his mind on Monday.
“This game teaches you a lot about being resilient,” he said. “But you have to step up and do it.
“Sometimes you can and sometimes you can’t. It’s just the nature of the game.” Bohn, the 2005 BC Open champion, briefly held a share of the lead before an errant tee shot at the ninth led to a bogey five.
Woods started the day seven shots off the pace and lost more ground when he ran up a double-bogey six at the opening hole.
Followed by huge galleries at every hole, he dropped further shots on the sixth and ninth, offsetting birdies he collected on four, seven, 12 and 18.
The US Masters and British Open champion held the lead after an opening 65 but then struggled for consistency.
“It was a frustrating last three days,” Woods told reporters. “I didn’t have it, I didn’t play particularly well and consequently I was nowhere in contention.”
Meantime, Australian left-hander Nick O’Hern is well suited by the tight Sentosa Golf Club layout and will be one of the favorites to win this week’s Singapore Open, compatriot Craig Parry said yesterday.
O’Hern tops the rankings for driving accuracy on the US PGA Tour and Parry said his fairways-and-greens game is perfect for the two million US dollar tournament.
“This course suits Nick. He keeps hitting fairways just like Nick Faldo,” said Parry, who beat his compatriot in a play-off to win the Heineken Classic at Royal Melborne last February.
