Irwin Wins Season-Opening MasterCard

KAUPULEHU-KONA, Hawaii (AP) _ Hale Irwin accomplished more in three rounds in his beloved Hawaii than he did in the previous 15 months. <br/><br/>Coming off his first winless season in 12 years, the 61-year-old

Monday, January 22nd 2007, 6:46 am

By: News On 6

KAUPULEHU-KONA, Hawaii (AP) _ Hale Irwin accomplished more in three rounds in his beloved Hawaii than he did in the previous 15 months.

Coming off his first winless season in 12 years, the 61-year-old Irwin won the Champions Tour's season-opening MasterCard Championship on Sunday, beating Jim Thorpe and Tom Kite by five strokes for his tour-record 45th victory.

``There's still life in my golf game. It was witnessed this week,'' he said, wearing the winner's maile lei. ``There's still fire in my belly.''

Irwin closed with a 7-under 65 for a 23-under 193 total and earned $290,000 for his ninth Champions Tour victory in Hawaii. The former University of Colorado football standout also became the sixth-oldest winner on the 50-and-over circuit.

``It's very sweet,'' Irwin said. ``Just to get back in the winner's column again and be a noticeable factor at this stage in my career. It's very satisfying and I'm very proud of what I accomplished this week.''

Last year, he was shutout for the first time since joining the Champions Tour in 1995 and saw his streak of seasons with $1 million in winnings end at 10. His last win was the SAS Championship in October 2005.

``Hale was determined,'' Thorpe said. ``We just weren't going to beat him.''

He has dominated in Hawaii like no other golfer, winning nine times on the senior tour, including the 1997 MasterCard, and also taking the PGA Tour's 1981 Hawaiian Open. He has $4.1 million in winnings, including unofficial money, in the state.

``Coming back here and playing as I have feels almost natural,'' he said. ``In some respects, it's like coming home.''

Irwin, three strokes ahead of Kite and Brad Bryant at 16 under at the start of the round, pulled away at the end of the day behind his masterful short game. He attacked the pins early, birdieing three of his first four holes.

``It was tough to get him when he starts off with that kind of lead and plays that well,'' Kite said. ``He made a ton of putts.''

Irwin said his fast start set up his whole round.

``What I hoped to accomplish, I accomplished in a big way this week,'' he said. ``The major concern last year was the short game.''

Irwin has been almost unbeatable when leading or sharing the lead heading into Sunday, winning 30 of 41 times.

Thorpe closed with a 66 to match Kite (67) at 18 under. Defending champion Loren Roberts shot his second straight 67 to finish fourth at 17 under.

Champions Tour player of the year Jay Haas (66) was another stroke back along with Bryant (70) at 15 under.

With only a soft ocean breeze, the players had their third straight day of low-scoring conditions They tore through Hualalai, a resort course with wide fairways, reachable par 5s, perfect greens and spectacular views of Mount Hualalai and the Pacific Ocean.

Irwin sealed the win with his birdies on Nos. 14 and 15 that put him at 23 under and turned it to a race for second place. He had seven one-putts on the front nine, making the turn at 32.

``He was magical on the greens,'' Kite said.

Irwin avoided disaster on the par-4 13th when his tee shot sailed left and stopped about a foot away from the charcoal-black lava fields. He parred the hole to maintain a three-stroke cushion.

Irwin said he never glanced at the leaderboard and didn't know where he stood until asking his wife while walking the 18th fairway.

``Do I have the lead?'' Irwin asked.

``Yeah,'' she said.

``By how much?''

``About three or four,'' she said.

He had a six-stroke lead then.

His only mistake was on the 54th hole when he lipped out a 2-footer for par. He smiled and tapped in.

On Saturday, Irwin had 10 birdies and almost shot his age, but missed a 12-foot birdie putt on No. 18 and settled for a 62.

Thorpe, who has 12 wins on the senior tour including a victory at the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship last year, parred the first hole and then went birdie-eagle-birdie to move to 16 under. He birdied Nos. 10 and 13, but couldn't get any closer, parring out the rest of the way.

Kite had four birdies and eagled No. 10, but had two costly bogeys on the front nine.

``I shot an 18 under. It's hard to complain about that,'' Kite said. ``I'm excited about the rest of the year.''

Last year, Roberts won with a 25-under 191 total to break the tour record for relation to par in a 54-hole event and tie the stroke mark. He also broke the record for birdies in a three-round tournament with 26.

Lanny Wadkins shot a 76 and was the only player to finish above par at 3-over 219. His brother, Bobby Wadkins, had an even-par 216, which was the second worst score.

The Champions Tour now moves to Turtle Bay where Irwin has won five times. A win would move him closer to his long-term goal of 50 victories.

``I've got five to go and that's a big five because I had only six to go starting last year,'' he said. ``So it's a big step that will help define what I need to do.''