Golfing News

The PGA TOUR’s opening round of the FedEx Cup Playoffs needed a playoff.

On the second extra hole, Vijay Singh took The Barclays title over Sergio Garcia and Kevin Sutherland and assumed first place in the points standings.

After then three tied at 8-under par 276, Garcia rolled in a 25-foot putt for birdie on 18, the first playoff hole, then Singh promptly matched him. But they went back to the par-5 17th, where Singh played two masterful shots to the green, while Garcia was mired in the trees. Singh’s birdie claimed the win.

Much like late on Saturday, the top spots were tightly packed together and nobody romped out to the lead on Sunday. When the leaders reached the ninth green, 11 players were within two shots of the lead. 54-hole leader Kevin Streelman stayed at the top at 8-under, where he was joined at various points by Singh, Garcia, Canada’s Mike Weir and former Open Championship winner Ben Curtis.

Weir and Curtis would fall back, and with nobody in the field putting together any birdies to make a charge on the back nine, Garcia held that tenuous one-shot lead, especially when Curtis posted 7-under with a 68 and Aussie Matthew Goggin matched it with a 67. Garcia then yielded the lead when Sutherland birdied the par-5 13th and then the treacherous 16th to go 8-under and Garcia failed to get up and down from a bunker on 16 to fall a shot back. But Garcia birdied the par-5 17th to re-tie Sutherland.

After Sutherland posted 8-under in the house with a final-round 68, Garcia faced a 16-footer on 18 to win the event, but it failed to drop. Then Singh birdied 17 to join the 8-under party, and had a 15-footer for birdie on 18 to claim the title, but he too failed to convert.

The playoff race will commence on Thursday at the Deutsche Bank Championship near Boston.

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