Love holds off Lehman for Pebble Beach win

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. -- Davis Love III was right: Staying ahead is even tougher than coming from behind at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.

Fortunately for Love, he's capable of doing both.

Love surrendered a three-stroke lead over Tom Lehman with six holes to play on Sunday, but made a short birdie putt on the 18th hole for a one-stroke victory -- his first win since his first Pebble Beach triumph in 2001.

On the fourth straight day of perfect weather on the Monterey Peninsula, two veterans whose careers have lagged recently battled down the stretch of an entertaining final round in the popular pro-am.

Love, who made up a seven-stroke deficit to win at Pebble Beach in 2001, took advantage of the conditions with an extraordinary string of birdies, but Lehman caught him down the stretch, setting up a dramatic finish.

After beginning the day with a two-stroke lead, Love made six birdies in the eight holes around the turn. Lehman charged back with three straight birdies on the back nine and another on the 17th, but Love made a 4-foot birdie putt on the 18th -- moments after Lehman missed a similar putt.

"A win for me after two years of coming close and not being 100 percent physically, that's great for me," said Love, who got his 15th PGA Tour victory with a final-round 68 to finish at 14-under 274 for the tournament. "It feels like a great start."

Love thrust his hands into the air shortly after the last shot. His share of the $5 million purse was $900,000 -- the biggest paycheck in 18 years on tour for the third-leading money winner in PGA history.

Before his victory at Pebble Beach in 2001, Love had gone 62 events and 34 months between victories. This time, he had been without a win in 44 official events over 24 months while playing a slightly reduced schedule because of neck and back problems.

Lehman finished with a 5-under 67 to go 13 under for the tournament. It was his best finish since the 2001 Sony Open in Hawaii -- and a thrilling result for Lehman, whose wife, Melissa, is nearly ready to deliver their fourth child. He doesn't plan to go back East with the tour following the West Coast swing.

Tim Herron -- who shot a final-round 66 -- and Mike Weir finished third at 276, two strokes behind Love. Weir, off to the best start of his career, won last week's Bob Hope Classic and held the lead over playing partner Love on the front nine.

Royal Caribbean Classic

KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. -- Dave Barr birdied the final four holes, capped by a 35-foot putt on the 18th, to win the Royal Caribbean Classic, his first win as a senior.

Barr ended a 16-year victory drought, winning for the first time since the 1987 Georgia-Pacific Atlanta Golf Classic on the PGA Tour. He earned $217,500 for the win in the first full-field event on the Champions Tour, formerly known as the Senior PGA Tour.

Barr shot a 5-under 67 and finished at 9-under 207, one shot better than Gil Morgan and Bobby Wadkins.

-- From wire reports