Williamson shoots 63 to win Fort Smith Classic

Updated: May 6, 2007, 8:23 PM ET

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Associated Press

FORT SMITH, Ark. -- A bogey-free, 7-under-par final round of 63 gave Jay Williamson his first Nationwide Tour victory on Sunday in the $525,000 Fort Smith Classic.

Williamson, 40, a native of St. Louis, posted his fourth straight round in the 60s (69-66-66-63) on the Hardscrabble Country Club course to edge Justin Bolli (70) and Garrett Willis (66) by a single stroke.

"This means a ton," said Williamson, whose win came after 60 starts on the Nationwide Tour and 339 in PGA-sponsored events since he started his professional career in 1995. "Seeing your name on top of the leaderboard is always a nice thing. I just turned 40 and this really isn't a tour for 40-year-olds. Obviously winning is a tremendous boost to my career."

Williamson was solid throughout the week, playing the final 53 holes of the tournament without a bogey. The last hole he played over par was the first hole of his third round on Friday.

"I played well all week," said Williamson, who hit 12 of 13 fairways and 15 of 18 greens in regulation. "I finally played well on Sunday, too. I've had three or four opportunities this year on Sunday to, not necessarily win, but make a good check, and I haven't been able to capitalize. It feels good to finally get it done."

The win was worth $94,500 for Williamson.

Bolli had entered the final round with a three-stroke lead, but couldn't get anything going early, making five straight pars out of the gate and an even-par 35 on the front nine. A birdie on the par-3 17th hole temporarily moved him into a tie with Williamson, but an errant approach shot into a greenside bunker led to a disappointing bogey on the final hole.

The runner-up finish was the second in three weeks for the Oregon native who played his college golf at Georgia. He also finished second at the Athens Regional Foundation Classic.

"I was trying to get aggressive from the fairway," Bolli said. "I wanted to stick it on the last hole and win the tournament. Today was win or bust, especially after starting with a three-shot lead. I have no regrets, it was just bad execution."

Williamson said he was looking forward to delivering a gift to his daughter, Whitney, when he gets home.

"My little girl is seven and all she has wanted is a trophy," he said. "I'm glad I did that for her this week."