Final leaderboard:-22 C Hoffman (US) -17 J Day (Aus), L Donald (Eng), G Ogilvy (Aus)
Selected others: -10 T Woods (US), M Sim (Aus) -8 B Davis (Eng), P Casey (Eng), -7 P Mickelson (US), M Laird (Sco) -6 E Els (SA) -4 R McIlroy (NIre) -2 I Poulter (Eng)
 Hoffmann's closing round featured an astonishing 11 birdies |
A stunning final round of 62 gave 33-year-old American Charley Hoffman victory in the Deutsche Bank Championship in Norton, Massachussets. It was the best round by any golfer all week, featuring 11 birdies and two bogeys, as he went from four shots off Jason Day's lead to win by five. England's Luke Donald had a two-shot lead at one point but three straight bogeys saw his challenge fade. He finished tied for second on 17 under, with Hoffman on 22 under. Hoffman's first win in three years moved him to number two in the FedEx Cup standings, although it will surely have come too late for the man ranked 132 in the world to clinch one of US captain Corey Pavin's Ryder Cup picks. Pavin will announce his selections on Tuesday at about 1530 BST. Tiger Woods shot 68 and tied for 11th, enough to keep hold of the world number one ranking. Phil Mickelson again blew a good chance to replace his fellow American at the top of the standings, carding two double bogeys on the back nine to wind up with a 76. Day's closing bogey saw him lose sole position of second place, joining Donald and Ogilvy as one of three runners-up.  | I actually didn't know how many birdies I had. The ball just kept going in the hole, it was a really fun day |
Donald, one of Colin Montgomerie's three wild card picks for the Ryder Cup, went to the turn in 33, but had a hat-trick of bogeys from the 14th. Despite subsequently getting two of those shots back, the damage was too severe. Hoffman started to make his presence felt with four successive birdies from the second. He also turned in 33 but, after another birdie at the 10th, he hit the flagstick on the par three 11th and then sank a bunker shot at the 13th. That took him one in front and, far from buckling under the pressure, he picked up more shots at the 15th and 16th and sealed his win with a two-putt four on the 528-yard 18th. He now sits behind compatriot Matt Kuchar, winner of last week's Barclays event in New Jersey, in the FedEx Cup standings, with Donald in fifth and Scotland's Martin Laird sixth. "I actually didn't know how many birdies I had," said Hoffman. "The ball just kept going in the hole, it was a really fun day." As for Ireland's Padraig Harrington, his missed cut on Saturday ended his interest in the play-offs. Only the top 70 on the FedEx Cup points table qualify for the BMW Championship, which starts in Chicago on Thursday, and Harrington, another of Montgomerie's selections, has dropped from 57th to 73rd. The leading 35 in Illinois will compete for the $£6.5m (£4.2m) prize at the season-ending Tour Championship which begins in Atlanta on 23 September.
| 
E-mail this to a friend 
Printable version 
Bookmark with:
What are these?