Power struggles to closing 76 as Malnati wins Valspar Championship
Peter Malnati’s emotional victory interview with NBC
Seamus Power struggled to a five-over 76 to finish a disappointing nine shots behind Peter Malnati in the Valspar Championship in Florida.
The West Waterford man went into the final round in a three-way tie for second with Malnati and Canada’s Mackenzie Hughes, two strokes behind Keith Mitchell at Innisbrook Resort’s Copperhead Course.
But just as a rising tide lifts all ships, a struggling playing partner can affect the rhythm of the group and while Power did not play well, he got little momentum alongside Mitchell in the final group.
The American hit just two fairways on the front nine to turn four-over en route to a disastrous 77 and 17th on four-under, and it was little better from Power, who erased a bogey at the second with a birdie at the fifth before dropping back-to-back shots at the seventh and eighth.
They headed for home tied for tenth, four shots behind Hughes but it got worse for the Touraneena man, who missed his fifth fairway in a row at the 10th and slipped five behind after another bogey.
While he two-putted from 19 feet for birdie at the par-five 11th, he found water at the 174-yard 13th and eventually missed a four-footer, pencilling a triple-bogey six before parring home to finish tied for 26th on three-under after a closing 76.
His putting. which had been so solid for the first three days, deserted him somewhat on Sunday as he lost strokes on the greens and was 63rd in the field having ranked inside the top 30 for the first three days.
Malnati (36) was level through the turn but birdied the 10th, 11th and 12th to get to 11-under and share the lead with Cameron Young as he entered the three-hole closing stretch known as the Snake Pit.
He was fortunate to get relief from a sprinkler in heavy green rough on the 16th and after two-putting for par from the fringe, he birdied the 17th from six feet to get to 12-under.
Young, still winless, three-putted the last to slip back to 10-under after a 68 and settle for his seventh career runner-up finish.
Speaking after his second win — his first for eight years — a tearful Malnati cradled his son in his arms and said: “You wonder if you are ever going to do it again.
“You look at the talent out here, guys coming out when they’re 20 years old and they’re ready to play on this stage and they are so good. So to have this moment just feels so amazing.”
It was also a disappointing day for Shane Lowry, who ran out of steam and finished nine shots behind playing partner Jesper Svensson in the Porsche Singapore Classic.
Lowry will no doubt draw on his 39-under total for his last four starts as good news for the Masters rather than the back-nine of four-over 41 that cost him his title chance at Laguna National.
The Offaly man (36) raced to the turn in four-under-par and picked up another shot at the 11th to get within a shot of the lead.
But he wilted coming down the stretch as a combination of jet lag, 33-degree heat, 90pc humidity, and four weeks on the road took its toll and he dropped five shots in his last eight holes.
A final round 72 for a share of 29th on eight-under was not what he hoped for but he can glean confidence from the fact that he made three eagles and 79 birdies— including an eagle and 21 birdies in Singapore—in his last four events.
Three bogeys in a row from the 12th killed his Sunday charge and while he made a birdie at the 16th, he finished double-bogey, bogey to head back to Florida with little to show for his efforts.
Swedish rookie Svensson (27) put on a final-round exhibition alongside Lowry and China's Li Haotong, making two eagles and eight birdies in a course-record-equalling nine-under 63 to set the target at 17-under.
He was matched by Thailand's Kiradech Aphibarnat, who eagled the last to card an eight-under 64 before succumbing to a par on their third trip down the 18th in sudden-death after they'd gone birdie-par the first two times around.
As for Maguire, she went into the final round of the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship at Palos Verdes four shots off the lead but closed with a one-over 72 in cool and blustery conditions to finish tied for 13th on four-under.
That was five shots outside a playoff that saw Nelly Korda beat Ryann O’Toole with a birdie at the first extra hole to return to number one in the Rolex Women’s World Rankings.
The American was two clear of compatriot O’Toole with two holes to play but finished bogey-bogey for a two-under 69 before claiming her tenth win with a birdie on the 18th in sudden death.
On the Challenge Tour, Gary Hurley closed with a bogey-free, six-under 66 to finish tied 16th on six-under in the Kolkata Challenge at Royal Calcutta, where Conor Purcell’s 73 left him 48th on level par.
Denmark's Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen (24), who took a four-stroke lead into the final round, shot 71 to win by two shots on 16-under from India's Rahil Gangjee and England's David Horsey.
