SOUTHAMPTON, Bermuda (AP) - U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover brought a new set of irons to the PGA Grand Slam of Golf to start getting ready for next year, and it worked out beautifully in Bermuda at the PGA Grand Slam of Golf.
Glover briefly gave up the lead to British Open champion Stewart Cink until running off three straight birdies around the turn at Port Royal Golf Course and closing with a 5-under 66 for a five-shot victory.
Masters champion Angel Cabrera also had a 66 and finished second after Cink bogeyed the last hole for a 70. PGA champion Y.E. Yang, still struggling with jet lag after a flight full of delays from South Korea, shot 70 to finish last among the four major champions.
"I brought out new irons this week with the new grooves just to try and see how they work, because I wanted a couple of rounds under my belt with this new model," Glover said. "So Nike made a good set, and I think I like them."
A new rule changing the dimensions of grooves in irons starts next year, although it is expected to affect wedges the most, and Glover kept his old wedges in the bag this week because he didn't want to give up too much of an advantage.
Ultimately, he won with his putter, especially the birdie putts on the ninth, 10th and 11th holes to pull away. Cink made bogey on the 12th and 13th, eliminating any drama in Bermuda.
Glover finished at 11-under 131 and earned $600,000, pushing his total for the year over $4 million.
Cabrera, who won the Grand Slam two years ago when it first moved to Bermuda, finished at 136 and made $300,000. Cink earned $250,000 and Yang took home $200,000.
For at least a couple of hours, it looked as though the 36-hole event might be headed for a playoff for the third straight year.
Cink opened with two birdies, and another birdie at No. 5 gave the British Open champion the lead. Glover's birdie on the ninth put him in a tie for the lead as they headed to the back nine, and it was over four holes later. Glover birdied the next two holes, Cink followed with two bogeys and no one else had a serious chance of catching the U.S. Open champion.
"I had it going really well, and then I just ... I don't know, the wheels kind of fell off out there," Cink said. "And then the bogey I made on 12, really, I just felt like the momentum just sort of dissipated completely."
Cabrera also was in the hunt until he missed a birdie putt at No. 12 that had the makings of a two-shot swing.
"I made what I made and I missed what I missed, and I think that the 12th hole was a key there," Cabrera said. "I went on to lose it, on the 12th hole, when Lucas had made a very important long putt for par, and I missed a short one for birdie there."
