AVONDALE, La. — Brian Stuard made steady golf pay off on a waterlogged course in the haunting cypress swamps outside New Orleans.
He birdied the final hole of a largely unspectacular final round to sneak into a three-way playoff on Monday at the Zurich Classic, then beat Jamie Lovemark on the second extra hole for his first PGA Tour triumph.
During the tournament, Stuard, 33, never bogeyed a hole on the 7,425-yard, par-72 TPC Louisiana course, which was soaked with more than four and a half inches of rain. Weather delays on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday not only forced a Monday finish, but also led officials to shorten the tournament to 54 holes.