Scott Parel shot a final-round 65 and parred the first playoff hole to claim the inaugural ClubCorp Classic title on Sunday in Irving, Texas.
Parel’s 6-under-par round at Las Colinas Country Club pushed him to 11-under 202 for the event, which ultimately landed him in a tie with Gene Sauers and New Zealand’s Steven Alker. Sauers fired the round of the week, an 8-under-par 63 with no bogeys, and Alker led after 36 holes and shot a 68 Sunday.
The trio replayed the par-5 18th hole, and after Parel hit his approach over the green, Sauers’ third shot dribbled down a slope and into a rocky penalty area near the water hazard. Alker proceeded to mishit his shot and it landed in the water.
Parel went on to save his par, which neither Sauers nor Alker could match.
Parel had an eagle 3 on the third hole and six birdies, including at No. 18. He was glad to recover from a double bogey at the par-4 12th.
“I played really, really well,” he said. “I had one bad hole where I made kind of a bad decision, but then came back pretty well, made three birdies at the end.
“And then the playoff, I was very fortunate. I certainly didn’t think par would win, especially after where we all were with our tee shots. The wind got a little difficult, I think it might have changed a little bit on those guys.”
Parel, 56, earned his fourth career title on the PGA Tour Champions and his first since February 2020.
Sauers made five of his eight birdies on the back nine, including at the 15th, 17th and 18th holes, to push his score to 11 under. Alker failed to birdie No. 18 in regulation to win the tournament outright.
Retired tennis pro Mardy Fish won the celebrity division of the new event, beating retired Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo in a playoff. Romo found the hazard on the 18th and bogeyed while Fish birdied, tying them at 106 points in the Stableford scoring format.
Like his counterparts in the main event, Romo couldn’t avoid the hazard on the playoff, either, and Fish birdied to wrap up the victory.
“We had a blast out there, kind of rooting each other on,” Fish said of Romo. “Tony’s an awesome player, so it feels — obviously feels great to win and get to beat him, especially here.”
–Field Level Media
