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Wednesday, November 25
Estes wraps up Fall Finish title
Associated Press

HOUSTON -- Bob Estes didn't have to wait until the final round of the Tour Championship to get a big check. He was presented with $500,000 Saturday for winning the Fall Finish, a points race involving the final 10 events on the PGA Tour.


	Estes

Estes has played so well in the fall, he clinched the award before he even arrived in Houston. He had no worse than a tie for eighth in his last five tournaments, including a victory in the Las Vegas Invitational.

Davis Love III won the "King of the Swing" award earlier this year for having the best performance in the first eight tournaments of the year.

"I get a big check no matter what I shoot tomorrow," Estes said, who had a 65 Saturday and is among six players only two strokes out of the lead. "I'm way ahead of the other guys."

With 100 points awarded to the winner of each PGA Tour event, and a gradual decline of points down to 10th, Estes had 270.625 points.

Love is second at 155, while Joel Edwards is third with 122.5. Scott Verplank, the 54-hole leader in the Tour Championship, could move past Love on Sunday.

Second-place is worth $300,000, with $200,000 going to third.

Tiger Woods won the Fall Finish last year, sponsored by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

No wins, or breaks, for Els
Not only has Ernie Els failed to win on the PGA Tour this year, it could be his first year without a victory anywhere in the world since 1992.

He came close two weeks ago in the Dunhill Links Championship, until one of the best putts of the year.

Tied with Paul Lawrie, Els watched the former British Open champion hole a 60-foot putt for birdie from the Valley of Sin off the 18th green at St. Andrews.

Els, watching from the scoring tent, let out a big smile.

"At first I thought it was a good putt," Els said. "And then I realized that I lost the tournament. That's just the way it's been going."

Duval knows about going low
David Duval learned from his father, club professional and Senior Tour player Bob Duval, how to post low rounds.

"You pick up four, five, six shots quickly, and it can be easy to protect your score, because that's a good score if you can post it for a round of golf," he said. "When I start doing that, I'm thinking more and more and more. Shots I might be aiming right or left, I start pulling them more toward the flags."

Duval, the only player to shoot 59 in the final round of a PGA Tour event, recalled one breakthrough moment as a teenager. It was the first time he broke 30 over nine holes.

"I remember playing the hole and when we were done, asking my dad and a friend of ours if they knew where I was," he said. "And they said, 'Oh, yeah, we just didn't want to say anything.' For some reason, it took me a long time to break 30."

And how did that 9-hole round end?

"I made a par," Duval said. "I might have protected that one time."

Notes
The scoring was so low Saturday that the average score was a 3-under 68 at Champions, and every hole on the back nine played to an average of par or better. ... Billy Mayfair is the only player in the field who has failed to break par this week. With a 72 Saturday, he will be playing alone again for the final round. ... Seven players have shot in the 60s all three rounds. ... Ernie Els plans to play in the World Cup in Japan, then the Australian Open and the Million Dollar Challenge in South Africa. He is coming off a five-week break, and figures he's already had his offseason. "I'll have about three weeks off in December and drink some beer," he said.

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