A large gallery greeted Tom Pernice Jr., Tommy Armour III and Steve Stricker as they strode to the first tee box to begin their final round Sunday morning. By the time they finished more than four hours later, only a few stragglers trailed behind as they made their way down the final fairway because Anthony Kim already had clinched victory at the AT&T National.
It was a forlorn final day at Congressional for Pernice, Armour and Stricker, who all fell hard on the rain-softened links at Old Blue. Pernice plummeted from first to tied for ninth, while Stricker sunk from second to tied for 18th. Armour fared the best of the three, moving into a tie for third but missing several opportunities to better his position.
“It was very disappointing,” said Stricker, who finished at 6 under after shooting a 3-over 73 on Sunday.
Said Pernice, who was 2 over in the final round: “It would rank up there near the top [of frustrating final days].”
Each man went through his own period of turmoil. Stricker started well but faded late, while Pernice struggled in the middle of the round only to surge toward the end. Armour continuously made bad shots from the tees and fairways before recovering near the greens.
For the second straight year, Stricker fell victim to Congressional’s poa annua greens on the last day of the tournament. Last summer, the soft-spoken Wisconsin native shot a 70 on the final day and lost his lead, finishing second to K.J. Choi. On Sunday, Stricker failed to capitalize on the par-4 11th after putting himself in good position with two strong shots to begin the hole.
“It’s just tough to putt here,” Stricker said. “It’s just the nature of poa annua greens. When you are the last group out, it’s tough because there are a lot of marks.”
Pernice tanked on two holes, dropping it in the water on Nos. 6 and 10 and recording double bogeys on both. The former UCLA All-American hit the ball weakly and to the right on No. 6, then hit a 5-iron too softly on the par-3 10th and watched helplessly as it glanced off the bank and into the water.
“That kind of cooked my goose,” Pernice said. “I kind of knocked myself out of the tournament.”
Pernice rallied late, making three straight birdies and settling for par on No. 18. The end was small consolation for a man who began the day in position to capture his first tour victory since 2001.
“I just have to go and work harder,” an exasperated Pernice said. “I am going home.”
Although Armour missed a shot to record his second second-place finish of the year, he fared far better than his two playing mates.
Armour bailed himself out of trouble on numerous holes, none as dramatic as his trip down 18. Armour hooked his 257-yard drive into a grove of trees, scattering the small group of spectators who had stuck around. The tall Texan recovered with two strong strokes that landed him on the green and allowed him to putt for par.
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