Reno: Scott Piercy survived a tense final round to capture the Reno-Tahoe Open by a single stroke and earn his first career victory.
The 32-year-old needed to make a seven-foot par putt on the last for a round of two-under to remain a shot better than Pat Perez, who fired a 4-under 68 to put the heat on Piercy.
Americans Steve Flesch and Blake Adams finished two shots behind at 13-under 275.
Piercy`s finish was anything but routine after his tee shot on the 18th sailed far right and wound up against a cart path on the 616-yard, par 5.
The Nevada native was able to reach the green in three shots but blew his birdie try well by the hole to set up a testing putt for par and seal the win."Having to two-putt is not easy," Piercy told reporters, after his victory earned him a spot in this week`s PGA Championship in Atlanta, Georgia.
"We had vacation plans next week but now I have to cancel. I`m so excited."
Piercy had a two-stroke lead over fellow American Josh Teater going into Sunday`s final round and while he birdied his first hole he could not pull away from the chasing pack.
In the group ahead, Perez made consecutive birdies at the 12th and 13th and found himself tied atop the leaderboard at 15-under when Piercy bogeyed the 14th.But Perez too would falter, hitting a poor second shot to bogey 17 to slip out of the lead before missing a short birdie putt on 18.
Bureau Report
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.