TBO.com - Tampa Bay Online
Brooks Adds Pro-Am Title To Collection
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Published: April 21, 2008
LUTZ - Derrick Brooks has had plenty of athletic accomplishments during his days. Sunday, the Bucs linebacker squeezed one more on the impressive list that includes Super Bowl champion and NFL defensive player of the year: Outback Steakhouse Pro-Am champion.
Brooks, playing with pro Fulton Allem, made birdie on his final hole Sunday at TPC Tampa Bay to win the amateur portion of the tournament at 27-under par, one stroke better than the tandem of former Bucs quarterback Vinny Testaverde and pro Curtis Strange.
"We ham and egged our way to the title," Brooks said. "I hit some shots when he struggled, and when I struggled, man, he bailed me out big time. We played a good team game."
Brooks converted a nice two-putt from 70 feet at No. 18 to seal the win, a series of strokes that impressed his pro partner.
"That was no easy two-putt. I mean, I bogeyed the hole and I was 12 feet from the hole," Allem said. "He hit an unbelievable first putt, he really did. To have that kind of touch. All week when we got it to about 50 feet away, he had unbelievable touch."
ONE SHOT WONDER: There was little doubt for Jay Haas where his final round Sunday turned for the better. Haas chipped in for eagle at the par-5 seventh, a shot he said jump started his round.
"All of the sudden I was 3 under for the day after a birdie at No. 8 instead of even, and it was just a whole different mind-set," Haas said. "It just snowballed."
Haas made a run on the back nine beginning at the par-5 12th, which was the start of four consecutive birdies. He completed the day's lowest round at 7-under 64, which vaulted him up the leader board into a tie for second.
"One shot just kind of changed my day," Haas said.
DEMONS COME OUT: Things looked very good for Tampa's Gary Koch nine holes into his round Sunday. Then, things took a turn for the worse.
Koch was at 8 under for the tournament when he made the turn thanks in part to an eagle at the par-4 first, where he holed his approach from 135 yards with a 9-iron. But he found water on No. 10, leading to a double-bogey, and things continued on a downward spiral from there as he played his back nine 5 over.
Koch's 1-over 72 Sunday was his worst round of the week, but he still managed to tie for 12th at 3 under overall. That equaled Koch's 2005 finish as the best he's posted at this event.
"It's a little frustrating, obviously, to play that well and get that close. It's a little similar to what I did down in Naples a month or so ago when I had a chance to play there," said Koch, who splits his time on the Champions Tour with his duties as an analyst for NBC. "It just goes to show you how tough this game is and when you don't play all the time, you're going to make mistakes like that."
As for the Tampa men in the field, Doug LaCrosse shot 1-over 72 Sunday to finish 2 over for the tournament and tied for 34th, while Jim Dent finished 12 over and tied for 67th after a final-round 76.
Adam Adkins
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