Career-best runner-up finish for Clarke on PGA Tour Champions
Darren Clarke holes a long putt on the 18th in Tucson
Darren Clarke holed a 50-foot birdie putt on the final green to clinch a senior career-best tie for second behind Mark O'Meara in the Cologuard Classic in Tucson.
The Dungannon man (50) closed with five-under-par 68 at Omni Tucson National to finish tied with Willie Wood, Kirk Triplett and Scott McCarron on 13-under, four strokes behind two-time major champion O'Meara.
Clarke, who won the Open in 2011, earned $113,900 to move up ten places to 10th in the Charles Schwab Cup money list with $178,600 thanks to three top 16 finishes in his first three starts of his first full season on the over 50s circuit.
Clarke played six events following his move into the senior ranks last August with his best finish a share of 24th on his debut in the Boeing Classic in Seattle.
"Making that on the last, it's great," said Clarke, who also holed a lengthy putt on the 18th in round one. "I'm having a blast out here. I'm really enjoying myself. Working hard at it and at the same time enjoying myself, so it's all pretty good at the moment."
At 62 years, 1 month, 17 days, O'Meara became the fourth-oldest winner in the history of the 50-and-over tour, closing with a seven-under 66 to finish on 17-under for his first senior wins since the 2010 Senior Players Championship.
"I knew there was going to be a lot of pressure," O'Meara said. "To play the front nine the way I did, I'm really happy."
The Hall of Famer went 8 years, 4 months, 20 days between victories, the second-longest gap ever.
"It's nice to finally come back out on top, especially today," said O'Meara matched the tour record with eight straight birdies in an opening 66 and shot 70 in breezy conditions Saturday.
"Starting the day at ten under and having the lead, a lot of guys that are very good players right behind me, to get up and shoot 7-under par with one bogey is a very special day for me.
"I've had like 15 or 16 seconds, so that's been pretty disappointing. A lot of times when I finish second, it wasn't because I shot 71, 2, or 3. Guys just, they go low, and you just can't take your foot off the pedal out here because somebody's going to shoot a good score and come up from behind you."
O'Meara has three PGA Tour Champions victories, also winning the 2010 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf. He won 16 times on the PGA Tour, the last two in 1998 at the Masters and Open Championship.
