Hale Irwin runaway winner of Toshiba Senior Classic

<br>NEWPORT BEACH, California (AP) _ Hale Irwin shot a final-round 65 Sunday and set a tournament record with a 54-hole score of 196 in winning the Toshiba Senior Classic by five shots over Allen Doyle.

Monday, March 11th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

NEWPORT BEACH, California (AP) _ Hale Irwin shot a final-round 65 Sunday and set a tournament record with a 54-hole score of 196 in winning the Toshiba Senior Classic by five shots over Allen Doyle.

Irwin's total at the 6,584-yard, par-71 Newport Beach Country Club course was 17-under-par and three strokes better than the previous record set by George Archer in 1995 _ the inaugural year of the tournament over the par-70 Mesa Verde CC course.

Irwin, who had rounds of 67 and 64 in the first two rounds, earned dlrs 225,000.

Doyle, who won this tournament two years ago and finished second in 1999, birdied the final hole to complete a round of 67 for a 201 total. He earned dlrs 132,000.

Dave Stockton, who shot a 66 Sunday, and Michael Zinni, who carded a 67, finished in a tie for third with scores of 202 and earned dlrs 99,000 each. Dana Quigley, who shot 66 in the final round, was next at 203 and earned dlrs 72,000.

Irwin who recently joined Tiger Woods as the only players to surpass the dlrs 20 million mark in career earnings, leads the 2002 Senior money list at dlrs 735,000.

``Generally, I am not a good starter, but I got off to a good start Friday and the momentum of that start carried me through Sunday,'' he said. ``I've played well this year. If I can keep this up, I think I can have a banner year.''

Irwin has now won a record 34 senior events.

``I think the par I saved on the first hole after Larry Nelson had birdied was the turning point in my round, it set the tone for me,'' Irwin said. ``When someone made a move on me, I seemed to make birdies.''

Stockton had four birdies, an eagle and a bogey in his final round.

``This is really a satisfying tournament for me,'' he said. ``I am really playing well this year, I'm excited how I am playing.''

Stockton played well despite receiving bad news early in the day concerning a teammate from his college days at Southern California.

``A good friend of mine, Larry Carr, died this morning of cancer,'' Stockton said. ``It really made it serene and peaceful on the course today as I put things in perspective.''

Zinni, a Monday qualifier, had the highest finish by an open qualifier since Jim Ahern won the 1999 AT-and-T Canada Senior Open. A club professional from Mankato, Minnesota, Zinni was making his 11th appearance on the senior circuit. His best previous finish was a tie for 33rd at the 2000 Mexico Senior Classic.

Irwin moves to the top of the Charles Schwab Cup competition, passing Tom Kite with a total of 718 points _ 112 ahead of Kite, who was forced to withdraw Friday morning with back spasms.