Appleby Surges At Houston

April 29, 1999 / 10:53 PM EDT / CBS/AP

Stuart Appleby's third career victory was his first PGA Tour title since the death of his wife.

The native of Australia shot a 1-under-par 71 Sunday for a one-stroke victory over Hal Sutton and John Cook in the Shell Houston Open.

Appleby finished with a 9-under 279 total one day after his 28th birthday and the win was worth $450,000.

It was his first title since Renay Appleby's death last summer in a traffic accident outside a train station in London.

Sutton, who held a two-shot lead going into the final round, bogeyed two of the final three holes for a 3-over 75. Cook also finished at 280 following a closing 70.

Mark Wiebe, who had a final-round 73, was fourth at 282, while Loren Roberts and Vijay Singh were among five golfers another shot back.

Appleby, three shots behind Sutton at the beginning of play Sunday at the Tournament Players Course at The Woodlands, opened with a birdie but could do little else on the front nine, making bogeys at Nos. 5 and 8. He birdied the par-4 12th to get within one shot of Sutton, but his birdie attempt at No. 13 rolled by the cup.

Another birdie attempt at the par-5 15th slid by the hole but he finally tied Sutton at 9-under with a birdie at No. 17 while Sutton was missing a 3-foot par putt at 16. When Sutton also bogeyed No. 17, Appleby was in the lead.

At the par-4 18th, Appleby's second shot rolled off the back of the green into the rough and a long birdie attempt was short by about 3 feet.

Sutton got to 18 with a chance to tie and force a playoff, but with 15 mph winds swirling and gusting, his 25-foot putt for birdie missed to the right of the cup.

Sutton had a rocky start, with bogeys on Nos. 2 and 3 before recovering with a birdie at 4. After three straight pars, he bogeyed the par-3 8th, then strung three more pars together before rolling in a 2-foot putt for birdie at 12.

By the time Cook caught fire in search of his 11th career win, he ran out of holes. He started with a birdie, then reeled off 10 straight pars before finally making another birdie at the par-4 12th to pull within one shot of Sutton.

The 41-year-old Californian then found the water on No. 13 and a bunker at 14 for bogeys. After a par at 15, he holed his shot out of the bunker at 16 for a birdie, and followed with another birdie at No. 17 to get to 8-under. A birdie attempt at 18 to get to 9-under was short an he finished with the 70, one of the few players to break par Sunday.

Divots:

Defending champion David Duval, the world's No. 1-ranked player , extended to 15 the consecutive number of cuts he's made but easily had his least successful event of the year. Duval, at one point in the second round one shot out of the lead, had a 4-over 76 Sunday to finish at 5-over 293, 14 shots behind Appleby.
Joey Sindelar, two shots behind at the start of play Sunday, ballooned to a 77.