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Golf

Pebble turns into a Lovefest

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. -- It's all mental, Davis Love III told himself. Thriving at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am is a triumph of the mind.

So Love took the course on Sunday with a lead, which he promptly lost. He got it back and lost it again, going to the 18th hole needing something special for his second win at Pebble Beach in three years.

And on the most nerve-wracking day of his career, Love didn't succumb to the pressure.

Love hit an outstanding approach shot and made a short birdie putt on the 18th hole for a one-stroke victory over Tom Lehman on Sunday. It was Love's first win since his 2001 triumph at Pebble Beach.

"That's probably as nervous as I've ever been playing a round," he said. "It seems like whenever I would make a mistake this week, it would force me to get back to a positive."

Love, who got his 15th PGA Tour victory with a final-round 68 to finish at 14-under 274, won $900,000 of the $5-million purse, the biggest paycheck for the third-leading money winner in history.

Love held a three-stroke lead over Lehman with six holes remaining after a string of six birdies in eight holes, but Lehman made his own birdie binge and caught Love with two holes left.

After starting the final round with a two-stroke lead, Love made six birdies in the eight holes around the turn. Lehman rallied with three straight on the back nine and another on 17 that tied Love at 13 under. But after saving par on 17 with an 8-foot putt that hung on the lip for an instant, Love finished.

He hit a long drive and a spectacular 4-iron from the famous seaside fairway to within 12 feet. Love two-putted moments after Lehman missed a short birdie putt.

Lehman finished at 5-under 67 to go 13 under.

Tim Herron, who shot a final-round 66, and Mike Weir finished third at 276.

ROYAL CARIBBEAN: Dave Barr birdied the final four holes in Key Biscayne, capped by a 35-foot putt on the 18th, his first win as a senior. Barr ended a 16-year victory drought, winning for the first time since the 1987 Georgia-Pacific Atlanta Golf Classic on the PGA Tour. He earned $217,500 for the win in the first full-field event on the Champions Tour, formerly known as the Senior PGA Tour.

TEEN TALK: Thirteen-year-old Michelle Wie shot 5-over 77 in the final round of the Hawaii Pearl Open in Aiea, finishing at 8-over 224. Playing from the championship tees, Wie was the only female in the tournament field of 192, and the youngest overall. In last year's event, Wie failed to make the final cut by two strokes after rounds of 74 and 80. Greg Meyer, a Japanese tour player who is the assistant pro at Pearl, shot 2-over 74 to win at 7-under 209.

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