SportsOctober 14, 2002
LAS VEGAS -- Phil Tataurangi shot a 10-under 62 Sunday to come from five shots behind to win the Invensys Classic at Las Vegas. Tataurangi swept past fourth-round leader David Duval with five birdies on the front nine, then added the same number on the back to get to 29-under 330...

LAS VEGAS -- Phil Tataurangi shot a 10-under 62 Sunday to come from five shots behind to win the Invensys Classic at Las Vegas.

Tataurangi swept past fourth-round leader David Duval with five birdies on the front nine, then added the same number on the back to get to 29-under 330.

Then he waited nervously on the driving range as Stuart Appleby, Jeff Sluman and Jim Furyk all missed birdie tries on the 18th hole that would have forced a playoff.

"I didn't think for one moment I was going to win the golf tournament today," Tataurangi said.

The New Zealander who has struggled both with his game and his health earned $900,000, more than he had won his entire career before this year. He's the 15th first-time winner this year, breaking the record set in 1991.

Tataurangi did it by making five birdies on the first seven holes of the back nine, then adding routine pars on the last two holes.

"I worked hard to get in a situation like this and I wasn't going to throw it away," Tataurangi said.

Appleby (66) and Sluman (67) were 28 under, and Furyk (68) followed at 27 under.

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Duval, who had a one-shot lead going into the final round and was trying to win for the first time since last year's British Open, finished four shots back after a 71.

LPGA: Se Ri Pak birdied four of the last five holes to overtake Carin Koch and successfully defend her title in the LPGA Tournament of Champions in Mobile, Ala.

Pak closed with a 6-under 66 and had a tournament-record 20-under 268 total. She earned $122,000 for her fourth victory of the year and 17th in five full seasons on the LPGA Tour.

Pak finished with a four-stroke margin over Koch and Catriona Matthew.

Seniors: Tom Kite won his third title of the year on the Senior PGA Tour, shooting an even-par 72 for a one-stroke victory in the Napa Valley Championship in Napa, Calif.

Kite, a 19-time winner on the PGA Tour who has six victories in three seasons on the senior tour, had a 12-under 204 total. He earned $195,000.

Fred Gibson (66) and Bruce Fleisher (67) tied for second. Jim Thorpe, the 2000 winner, shot a 69 to finish at 10 under, and Hubert Green had a 64 -- the best round of the day -- to match Jay Overton (67), Tom Purtzer (69) and Bob Gilder (71) at 9 under.

-- From wire reports

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