Leonard wins Stanford St Jude

Justin Leonard won the Stanford St. Jude Championship in a playoff, holing a 19-foot birdie putt on the second extra hole to beat Masters champion Trevor Immelman and Robert Allenby.

“I don’t think that ball would’ve rolled another half-inch,” Leonard said. “It just barely got there the greens are so dry and fast.”

It was Leonard’s 12th PGA Tour title, and his first since the 2007 Valero Texas Open – also in a playoff. He closed with a 4-under 68 to match Allenby (65) and Immelman (69) at 4-under 276, the highest 72-hole total since this event moved to the TPC Southwind course in 1989.

Leonard earned $1.08 million and now is fifth in the Ryder Cup standings with five top 10s this year. He hasn’t played in the Ryder Cup since 1999, when his 45-foot putt on the 17th hole at Brookline clinched the largest comeback in history.

“I don’t know how much of a lock I am, but I feel pretty good about making it. I’m looking forward to being on that team, and I’m looking forward to us winning again soon,” Leonard said.

It was almost a perfect day for the Texan who spent last week practicing in the Dallas heat, albeit wearing shorts and riding a cart. He started Sunday tied for seventh and was one of 10 who had a share of the lead at some point in the final round with the temperature feeling hotter than 100 degrees.

Leonard was the closest to a birdie on the first hole of the playoff on the par-4 18th only to come up a foot short. All three parred, sending the playoff to the island green at No. 11, where each had good shots.