Justin Leonard stayed patient with his putting on a windy Sunday and watched it pay big dividends with a birdie-par-eagle finish for a 4-under 68 and a one-shot victory over Ernie Els in the Dominion Energy Charity Classic.
Leonard won for the second time this year on the PGA Tour Champions and moved into the top 10 after the first playoff event for the Charles Schwab Cup. The victory continues his impressive resurgence on the senior circuit after a distinguished PGA Tour career.
Els was in control on the back nine of the James River course at the Country Club of Virginia and appeared to steady himself with birdies on the reachable par-4 15th and the par-5 16th. But the momentum shifted dramatically at the finish.
Leonard made his move just as Els faltered. After a birdie on the 16th, Leonard hit a hybrid 4-iron to about 20 feet on the 18th and holed the downhill eagle putt to post at 12-under 204. It was the kind of clutch finish that defined his PGA Tour career.
Els bogeyed the 17th and then failed to make a 10-foot birdie putt on the closing hole that would have forced a playoff. He closed with a 72 and shared second place with Thomas Bjorn (68).
Bernhard Langer, the 68-year-old German who has won every year on the PGA Tour Champions since turning 50, was within two shots of the lead until a long three-putt bogey ended his hopes. He shot 72 and finished three back in his bid for a first Champions win this year. Langer’s remarkable streak of consecutive seasons with a victory is now in jeopardy with only a few tournaments remaining.
The top 54 players advance to the second postseason event next week in Arkansas. Scott Parel shot 71 and tied for 21st, moving up three spots to No. 53 to secure the final qualifying position for the Simmons Bank Championship. David Bransdon fell out of contention and won’t advance.
The stakes continue to rise as the playoffs progress. Only the top 36 after next week’s tournament will reach the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship, where the tour’s season-long champion will be crowned.
