Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, April 24, 1995 TAG: 9504250053
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: GREENSBORO, N.C. LENGTH: Medium
His 6-under-par 66 in rainy, blustery conditions allowed him to pull off the biggest final-round comeback on the PGA Tour in four years and win the $1.5 million event.
``I felt I needed some weather out there to kind of catch up,'' he said. ``I got off to a good start early. ... Then I had a lot of confidence coming down the line.''
Gallagher, who won for the fourth time in his PGA career, made up seven shots on second-round leader Jeff Sluman, mostly with a 5-under 31 on the back side to win the $270,000 first-place prize with a 14-under 274 total.
``When I bogeyed Nos.6 and 7, I felt I did myself in,'' said Gallagher, who had been at his Mississippi home for much of the past two weeks after failing to qualify for The Masters.
But an up-and-down par save on No.8 helped set up Gallagher's torrid back nine as he birdied four of his last six holes.
Mark Brooks came back from seven shots to win the 1991 GGO, while Fulton Allem also rallied that year for victory in Houston.
It turned out that a par-saving six-foot putt out of a green-side bunker on No.18 was just as important for Gallagher as his eight birdies. He posted his score, then watched as Sluman and playing partner Peter Jacobsen stumbled down the stretch.
Sluman was another hard-luck loser, shooting a 2-over 74 to finish in a second-place tie at 13-under 275 with Jacobsen, who shot par. Sluman, who bogeyed the par-3 17th to fall out of a tie with Jacobsen and Gallagher, hasn't won since his 1988 PGA Championship title at Oak Tree.
``Today, I think my nerves got a little bit jumpy'' on my putts, Sluman said. ``I really think that's where I lost the tournament.''
Meanwhile, Jacobsen missed a 12-footer by inches on No.16, and lipped out a 25-footer on the next hole that Sluman ended up bogeying.
``I probably hit more pure putts today than I have in any round of golf I've played all year,'' Jacobsen said. ``I had the ball on line, but I just wasn't getting it to the hole.
``Seventeen was a real killer,'' he added. ``... I hit this putt that did everything but go in. I can't wait to see that on the replay.''
Jacobsen hit a good drive on the 435-yard 18th, but landed his approach shot in the same bunker as Gallagher. Jacobsen's stance in the trap was horrible, the ball sitting well below his feet. He skidded his sand shot over the green and his pitch to save par and force a playoff sailed past the hole.
Gallagher's earnings leave him about $22,000 short of the $4 million mark for his 12-year career.
``I can't say I was out there thinking of what I did in other tournaments. I was just kind of out there playing and all of a sudden I got back into the tournament,'' Gallagher said. ``I just concentrated on hitting the ball at the pin.''
Weather again was a factor at the GGO, a tournament plagued by poor conditions in the past, including a stoppage for snow in 1987. The wind chill hovered around 35 degrees most of the day - a drop in temperature of about 50 degrees from Saturday's third round.
Unlike the calmer and warmer first three rounds, players had trouble Sunday keeping the ball out of the four-inch rough at Forest Oaks Country Club.
Keywords:
GOLF
by CNB