[American Century Championship Release]
Tony Romo rolled in a clutch five-foot birdie putt on the second playoff hole to outgun Joe Pavelski and Mark Mulder and capture his third American Century Championship celebrity golf tournament title Sunday before record-setting crowds at Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course.
Winner of the tournament in 2018 and 2019, Romo is a well-known standout amateur golfer who has started multiple PGA Tour events as a sponsor exemption. All three players birdied the first playoff hole, the 501-yard, par five 18th.
Romo then took control when they played 18 again with a drive of 300-plus yards down the middle of the fairway. He then hit the green in two, landing a 150-yard wedge to within 25 feet. Pavelski and Mulder were both off the green with second shots from 240 yards and neither could get up and down. Romo then rolled his eagle putt past the hole before dropping the five-footer for birdie and pumping his fist in victory.
The $125,000 first place prize goes to tournament charities because Romo competes as an amateur in all of his tournament play. The former Dallas Cowboys quarterback turned CBS Sports NFL analyst travels home to play Monday in the 36-hole U.S. Amateur qualifying tournament at Tempest Golf Club in Gladewater, Texas. Romo, Mulder and Pavelski all finished regulation with 62 points in the modified Stableford scoring system that rewards scoring with points so that the highest score wins.
Romo shot a 69 over 18 holes, Pavelski had the round of the day at 68 while Mulder, the second round leader, shot 75. “I had to keep patient,” stated Romo, who missed six putts of 20 feet or less throughout the round and trailed Mulder by as many as six points early in the back nine. “Coming from behind is a great feeling. All the wins here are special but this one was different because my boys are 10 and eight years old and they were into it.” “For some reason, I just got conservative,” said Mulder, the former MLB all-star pitcher. Mulder had control on the back nine and missed a nine-foot putt in regulation that would’ve won him his fourth American Century Championship.
Pavelski, the star right-winger from the Dallas Stars, had an 18-foot eagle putt to win the tournament on the first playoff hole but that slid by, pushing all three into the second extra hole.
It would have made him only the second active player to win the tournament following Mario Lemieux’s title in 1998. World Golf Hall of Famer Annika Sorenstam birdied the 18th hole Sunday to finish in a tie for fourth place with Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen at 58 points.
Mardy Fish, the 2020 champion and U.S. Davis Cup Captain, finished sixth with 56 points. Defending champion Vinny Del Negro tied for 18th with 39 points. Charles Barkley tied for 74th with minus 26 points and failed in his pursuit for a top 70 placement that was his objective because of sports wagering propositions available in the legal sportbooks.
Aaron Rodgers finished ninth with 50 points and Steph Curry tied for 16th with 41 points, one point ahead of his father, Dell Curry.
