Appleby finally hits jackpot in Vegas
Stuart Appleby has endured six runner-up finishes in the last 14 months, so that "here we go again" feeling had to be creeping into his mind after he made a bogey on the second-to-last hole Sunday to lose sole possession of the lead.
After all, Appleby had finished tied for second in his last two events, and he did the same at last year's Las Vegas Invitational, missing a birdie putt on the 18th that would have forced a playoff with winner Phil Tataurangi.
But he wasn't going to walk away from Vegas a loser this time around.
After Appleby and Scott McCarron both parred the 18th to force a playoff (the ninth of the season on the PGA Tour), Appleby drained a 15-foot birdie putt on the first extra hole to earn his first victory since 1999.
"It's been a bit of a drought," the Australian said after his fourth career win.
The win lifts Appleby into the top 10 on the money list, the highest the eight-year veteran has been this late in the season.
More facts and figures from Appleby's week:
Gustafson, who is dating LPGA Tour commissioner Ty Votaw, fired a 6-under 64 to win the Samsung World Championship by two strokes, and she also overcame a dispute over a shot she never made.
| Around the tours ... |
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 Las Vegas Invitational Site: Las Vegas Courses: TPC at Summerlin (7,243 yards, par 72) Southern Highlands Golf Club (7,247 yards, par 72) TPC at The Canyons (7,063 yards, par 71) Top finishers: x-1 Stuart Appleby (-31) 2 Scott McCarron 3 Steve Lowery 4 Scott Verplank 5 David Frost x-won in playoff
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Actually, she endured two post-round rules challenges. For the first, she was sent to the NBC truck to review an incident on the 14th green, where after standing over a birdie putt, she backed off as the ball rolled on its own down a slope for several feet. If the ball were addressed in that situation, a penalty would be assessed. However, after reviewing the incident both during and after the round, officials determined she did not ground her club, and therefore did nothing illegal.
"The ball had stopped on the top of the slope, and I marked it and then I put it back," Gustafson said. "I knew that it could move and so I never grounded my club. Then it started to kind of not actually move, but to wobble, so I backed off. Probably three to five seconds later, it started to roll down the slope."
"We were not going to dispute her credibility," LPGA official Jim Haley said.
Officials also questioned playing partner Juli Inkster, who said she didn't see the incident and suggested Gustafson be given the benefit of the doubt.
The second rules dispute centered on Gustafson's replacement of a divot on the 15th green. Officials returned her there after the round, asking her to re-enact what she did. They came to the conclusion that she didn't break any rules there, either.
For those scoring at home, that's two possible violations, two vindications -- and one victory. It's unfair to argue that Gustafson's situation was handled any differently because of her relationship with the commish, but it demonstrates the second-guessing that can come into play when dealing with personal relationships between the boss and one of his charges.
Sorenstam was to officially meet all the qualifications for the Hall of Fame after the first round of the limited-field tournament, marking her 15th event in her 10th season on the LPGA Tour (the last criterion she had yet to cross off the Hall checklist).
A post-round ceremony was planned, but Mother Nature had other ideas. The round was rained out before Sorenstam even had a chance to tee off (on her 33rd birthday, no less), so she completed the historic 18 without much fanfare Friday. Instead of a ceremony on the final green after finishing the landmark round, Sorenstam had to grab a quick lunch and head back out for her second 18 holes of the day.
Despite the weather's bad timing, Sorenstam -- who finished fourth in the tournament, three strokes back of Gustafson after double-bogeying the 17th hole Sunday -- will get her ceremony. She'll be inducted into the Hall along with Nick Price on Oct. 20.
Irwin, the reigning money champ who has missed a lot of time with a back injury this year, moved to fourth on the money list with his second victory of the year.
Jan Stephenson didn't have much fun this week. After taking heat for comments she made about Asians on the LPGA Tour, the first woman to play in an official Champions Tour event tied for last place, 34 strokes behind Irwin (not that she was expected to contend).
Daly, who has made just one cut in his last seven events on the PGA Tour and sits 166th on the money list, was paired with Laura Davies for the first two rounds of the event.
Davies, a four-time winner on the LPGA Tour, missed the cut against the guys after finishing two rounds at 11-over 155. Her total was just two strokes worse than Justin Rose's.
A month before finishing as the low amateur at Augusta (21st place), the 22-year-old University of Arizona star made the top 20 at the Chrysler Classic of Tucson. A few months later, he made the cut at the U.S. Open, as well.
So when he announced he was turning pro after the British Open, it seemed he'd make an immediate impact on tour. Thus far, though, he hardly has made a peep.
Barnes is 0-for-5 as a professional, missing his fifth straight cut at this week's Las Vegas Invitational. He was just five strokes off the lead after the second round, but a third-round 76 dropped him a stroke below the cut line. He'll tee it up again next week at Greensboro on his sixth (of a possible seven) sponsor's exemption of the year.
Had he been a professional, Barnes would have made around $130,000 in his first three events of the year. He has made $0 in his last five, and he faces an offseason trip to Q-school if he hopes to play full-time on the PGA Tour next year.
David Lefort is ESPN.com's golf editor, and he can be reached at david.m.lefort@espn3.com. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
