Golf Roundup : Eagle on 17 Lifts Cook Past Green

John Cook scored a decisive eagle-3 on the 17th hole and vaulted past defending champion Ken Green Sunday to win the $1-million International tournament at Castle Rock, Colo.

Cook, who hadn’t won a tournament since the Canadian Open in 1983, finished with 11 points under the modified Stableford scoring system used for this unique event.

He had a medal score of 69, 3 under par on the Castle Pines Golf Club in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

The event was scored on a point basis--5 for an eagle, 2 for birdie, 0 for par, -1 for bogey and -3 for double bogey or worse.

And it was the dramatic eagle on the 492-yard, par-5 17th hole that turned it around for Cook.

Green, playing in front of Cook, held the lead over most of the back nine. And, when he two-putted for birdie on the 17th and went to nine points, it appeared he had defended his title.

“Walking up 18, I was thinking about back-to-back (titles),” Green said. “But it wasn’t to be.

“He had to make eagle to beat me. And he went out there and did it.”

Cook went to seven points with a birdie on the 15th hole, missed from short range on the 16th and then threw a long-iron second shot over the deep bunker on the 17th green.

It stopped about 15 feet from the flag. When Cook sank the putt--for only his second eagle of the year--he went from two points behind to three in front.

He three-putted No. 18 for a bogey, but it made no difference.

Cook won $180,000 for first place. Green earned $108,000 for second.

Scott Simpson, Chip Beck, Mike Hulbert and Ben Crenshaw each finished with six points and won $48,000.

D.A. Weibring and Fuzzy Zoeller each had five points. Tom Watson had four points.

Val Skinner, who fell behind by four strokes after nine holes, rallied to win the $225,000 MasterCard International LPGA tournament at White Plains, N.Y., despite a 3-over-par 75.

Skinner, who led Shelley Hamiln by two shots after the second round, finished the 54-hole tournament at 4-under-under 212 at the Westchester Hills Country Club.

Skinner won $33,750 for her third victory since joining the LPGA tour in 1983.

Orville Moody held off a charge by Butch Baird when he birdied two of his final four holes to win the $200,000 Senior Gold Rush at Rancho Murietta, Calif.

Moody shot a 3-under-par 69 for an 11-under total of 205. The victory was worth $45,000 to Moody, who increased his career earnings to $1,005,676.