Love dominates at Players

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- The guys playing alongside and behind him called it one of the greatest rounds they had ever seen.

And this time, they weren't talking about Tiger Woods.

Davis Love III hit all the shots and made all the crucial putts Sunday in The Players Championship, closing with an 8-under 64 in cold, blustery conditions for a victory he ranks among his best.

"An incredible round of golf," Love said after winning by six shots in a tournament regarded as golf's fifth major.

It was every bit of that.

Two strokes behind to start the final round, Love blitzed the field with five straight birdies. From the pine straw on the par-5 16th, he wrapped a 6-iron around the pines and over the lake to 10 feet for eagle, just like Woods had done before him.

When it was over, Love matched the best closing round in the 30-year history of The Players Championship and won the richest prize on the PGA Tour. He earned $1.17 million

"It's the best round of golf I've ever seen played," said Fred Couples, his best friend on tour and playing partner Sunday. "He was just phenomenal."

Jay Haas, a co-leader to start the final round, was 2 under for the day and was pressing just to keep up.

"We just got run over by Davis," he said.

Love provided the charge everyone expected from Woods and delivered a performance every bit as dominant.

He finished at 17-under 271 for a six-stroke win over Haas and Padraig Harrington, his second victory this season and a huge boost to his confidence with the Masters only two weeks away.

"I wasn't picked as a guy to win Augusta the last couple of years," Love said. "It's nice to be back in that position."

Haas, trying to become the oldest winner of The Players Championship, settled for a consolation prize. He closed with an even-par 72, and his tie for second earned him enough money to move into the top 10 on the money list and qualify for the Masters.

Harrington, of Ireland, made back-to-back bogeys early in his round and was never a factor. He also had a 72.

Woods started the final round five strokes behind and was poised to make a charge when he rolled in a 20-footer for eagle on the second hole. The rest of his round was hardly characteristic of someone who had won three of his first four tournaments.

Despite two eagles, Woods hit three balls into the water and wound up with a 72 and a tie for 11th, the first time since the British Open that he failed to finish in the top 10.

"I could have stayed home and it would have been the same score -- even par," Woods said. "Instead, I came out there and created a few more gray hairs."

Kraft Nabisco

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. -- Patricia Meunier-Lebouc shook off an out-of-bounds tee shot with some steady play in the final holes to win the Kraft Nabisco by a shot, denying Annika Sorenstam's bid to become the first LPGA player to win the same major title three years in a row.

Meunier-Lebouc had a final-rouind 1-over 73 and a one-shot win over Sorenstam, who had a final-round 1-under 71. Lorena Ochoa, who shot a final-round 68, was another stroke back. Meunier-Lebouc earned $240,000.

Eighth-grader Michelle Wie was never a factor, missing several short putts to finish eight shots back after a final-round 76. The 13-year-old began the day four strokes behind Meunier-Lebouc for the lead.

-- From wire reports