The Daily Wrap-up, Round 4: Wyndham Championship
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) -- Ryan Moore spent plenty of time this week sitting around and waiting at Sedgefield Country Club. A few extra moments weren't going to bother him.
Not with his first PGA TOUR victory on the line.
Moore claimed his first win on TOUR with a birdie on the third hole of a sudden death playoff to beat Kevin Stadler on Sunday at the Wyndham Championship.
"I was able to stay patient, really," Moore said. "That's what won this one."
After vaulting up the leaderboard with five consecutive birdies on the back nine, he had two chances to seal the victory after his approach on No. 18 landed in the middle of the green and rolled to 6 feet. He sank that putt for his first victory in his 112th event.
Stadler's second shot on the third playoff hole skipped off the back of the green. He chipped within 20 feet, but his putt drifted to the low side of the cup.
That cleared the way for Moore to pick up 500 FedExCup points for winning the final tournament before the playoffs start later this week. He advanced from 76th in the standings to 22nd with his victory.
"This felt like an uphill battle," said Moore, who turned pro in 2005. "The whole time I've been on the PGA TOUR, I just haven't been healthy, haven't felt like myself, and really kind of got some good momentum (finishing tied for 10th) at the U.S. Open, really feeling like myself again over the golf ball, and just kind of getting some confidence back in the putter and every aspect of the game. That's really carried through to this week."
Stadler, Moore and Jason Bohn forced the playoff after they were tied at 16-under 264 through 72 holes. Bohn was eliminated on the first playoff hole after he had trouble escaping the greenside bunker on No. 18 and his first try rolled back into the sand.
Sergio Garcia blew a three-stroke lead midway through the final round, shot a 70 and finished at 265. Michael Allen (68), Kevin Sutherland (66), Fred Couples (67), Brandt Snedeker (68) and Justin Rose (68) were at 266.
Moore and Stadler both bogeyed No. 18 in regulation.
Moore sailed his drive near the cart path. His second shot bounced into the sand and -- after a remarkable bunker chip to 8 feet -- his short par putt bent left around the hole. Stadler's third shot landed on a hill behind the green but rolled back to 8 feet from the flagstick, but he left his par putt about 6 inches short.
"I can't play that hole," Stadler said. "I'll just leave it that."
Moore shot a 65 in the final round and had five consecutive birdies on Nos. 12-16 in moving to 17 under, then waited while Stadler finished his final-round 66 that included back-to-back birdies on Nos. 14 and 15.
Bohn -- who started the round seven strokes off the lead -- had a 62 that was the best round of the day. He followed birdies on seven of his first 14 holes with an eagle that pushed him to 16 under, grabbed the lead with a par on No. 16 and didn't miss a green until No. 17.
He had roughly an hour's wait -- a common theme at this rain-deluged tournament -- while Moore and Stadler finished their rounds.
"I wasn't even thinking I would get in a playoff," Bohn said.
Stadler was attempting to join his father -- 13-time PGA TOUR winner Craig Stadler -- in winning in Greensboro. The elder Stadler cruised to a six-stroke victory in the Greater Greensboro Open in 1980.
The participants in the playoff had combined for one previous victory on TOUR: Bohn's win in the 2005 B.C. Open.
Garcia could have joined them in sudden death, had he holed a 35-yard bunker shot on No. 18. His chip rolled within an inch of the cup.
"I wish I could blame it on that but, unfortunately, it happened before that," Garcia said.
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Fittingly, a tournament that had trouble getting itself started seemingly didn't want to end, either.
Play stopped and started three times during the first three days due to lightning and heavy rains. The combined 9 hours in weather delays meant none of the first three rounds finished before sundown, forcing players to return to the Donald Ross-designed course at Sedgefield each morning to finish their rounds.
For a while, Garcia's eighth PGA TOUR victory seemed a near-certainty. He started the final round sharing the lead with Chris Riley at 15 under before building his three-stroke lead midway through the round, moving to 18 under through seven holes after three consecutive birdies.
"When I was 3 under for the day, I still wasn't comfortable," Garcia said. "I felt like I was fighting myself."
Garcia has held at least a share of the 54-hole lead seven times in his career but has just two wins to show for it. He had three bogeys in a five-hole stretch between Nos. 8-12 to fall back.
"I knew I was three (strokes) back and needed to do something," Stadler said. "I thought I was just stuck in neutral and the next (leaderboard) I saw, I was only one back."
Stadler, Allen and Riley each picked up enough points to propel themselves off the bubble and into the Playoffs, which begin later this week at The Barclays.
Allen arrived at No. 121 on the points list and improved to 101st, Riley entered at No. 129 and jumped to 119th while Stadler began four spots behind him but moved to 76th.
| Other notables at the Wyndham Championship | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sunday's Best |
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The par-5 15th hole was the easiest with a Sunday scoring average of 4.414.
The par-4 18th hole was the toughest with a Sunday scoring average of 4.286.
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Ryan Moore's excellent approach shot on the final playoff hole helped him win the title over Kevin Stadler. 
Jason Bohn's 8-under 62 was just one off the course record at Sedgefield CC. INSIDE THE ROPES WITH THE PGA TOUR NETWORK
PGA TOUR Network correspondent Brett Wright offers these observations from Sunday's action. Listen to PGA TOUR Live coverage on XM 146/SIRIUS 209 or right here at PGATOUR.COM.
It has been a long time coming for Ryan Moore, who has won at every level of his golf career yet had never won on the PGA TOUR. At the end of regulation in Greensboro, Moore was tied with Jason Bohn for the clubhouse lead but didn't think that 16 underwould be enough to force a playoff. As it turned out, 16 under was enough to go to extra holes with Bohn and Kevin Stadler.
For years, we've been asking Moore, "What has kept you from winning on the PGA TOUR?" After he won on the 75th hole, we were waiting to go on air when I said to him, "No one will ever ask you that question again." Moore took a deep breath, sighed and said "You're right" with a great look of relief.
Jason Bohn posted an 8-under 62 in the final round to take the clubhouse lead before the others finished. While he was waiting to see if there was a playoff, Bohn told me that I could find him at the jumping zone -- an inflatable fun house where he was watching his kids jump around and have a good time. As a dad, that really made me smile and appreciate that family man Bohn was keeping things in perspective.
Rookie David Mathis shot 67 in the final round to play his way into the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup. He told me he is excited to make the Playoffs for those large purses and chance to move on to the next event.
Robert Garrigus, who secured his position in the Playoffs at the Wyndham Championship, said he heard Liberty National has some great views and is more of a target links golf course. He said, "I had to watch (the Playoffs) from home last year and not play for four weeks and that was no fun," so needless to say, he's excited to head to The Barclays.
Ryder Cup Captain Corey Pavin was unable to play his way into the PGA TOUR Playoffs with a 1-under 69. I asked him about the concept of Playoffs in golf, and would he have ever guessed something like this would exist one day. He smiled and said, "No, never, but I love it. I think its great to have a season-ending series that generates all this interest from the players and fans."
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