Rory Sabbatini shoots 62, plays last 4 holes 5 under to capture first Champions title

Rory Sabbatini wasn’t sure he wanted to play the PGA Tour Champions. The last of his six PGA Tour titles came at the 2011 Honda Classic and before turning 50 in April he had taken more than two years off from competition.But he decided to give it a go and has had moderate success in his 14 events prior to this week’s Stifel Charity Classic in St. Louis. There was a second-place tie last month at Pebble Beach and a pair of third-place finishes earlier this summer.Everything clicked this week.Sabbatini opened with 68-69 and was just inside the top-10 heading into Sunday’s final round. He played the first two holes in three under par but made bogey on the third hole. A three-under 33 at the turn had him in contention, but proven winners Steven Alker, Darren Clarke and Henrik Stenson were all in the mix.With five holes remaining he was only four under on the day, but then went eagle-birdie-birdie-birdie to play the final four holes in five under par. That got him in the house at nine-under 62 at 13-under total, which was good enough for a one-shot victory over Clark.“Obviously when you get in those stretches, it's not very common, it's a rare occurrence,” Sabbatini said about his hit closing stretch. “I think the toughest part of that is staying out of your own way and letting things happen. Just like you try and explain to an amateur golfer, you start thinking about a round and that's when things go south. You just try and focus one shot at a time and try to stay present in that moment. It's really tough to do, but when you do do it, things can happen in a crazy sense.”The dagger came on the home hole at Norwood Hills Country Club when he drained a 45-footer for birdie. He only needed 23 putts for the day.“The two and a half years, the break from golf was much needed. More than the physical, just the mental,” said Sabbatini, who was born in South Africa but won a silver medal representing Slovakia in golf during the Summer Olympics played in 2021. “The mental aspect takes a toll on you and it kind of got me down. It was a good break. So coming back out here, I wasn't sure if I was going to and then I was like, ‘OK, I'll give it a shot, see how it is.’ It's been enjoyable. It's been great to see a lot of the guys that I used to play on tour with.“I don't care what anyone says, all these guys out here, they can still play some pretty damn good golf. To win out here is not easy. Coming out here and getting my first win is obviously very exciting for me.”