ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates – Spain’s Pablo Larrazabal shot a final round 67 to end a near three-year winless drought to capture the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship on Sunday.

Larrazabal, 30, won by a stroke with a 14-under par 274 on the National Course in the UAE capital.

Rory McIlroy (68), who had incurred a two-stroke penalty a day earlier, finished with a share of second place with Phil Micklelson (69) on 13-under.

“It means a lot to win my third victory on Tour and playing against who I played today,” said Larrazabal.

“Of course, I play against myself but I knew who I also had behind me in Mickelson. I have just beaten two of the three most talented guys in my era, and in the last era, as well in Phil Mickelson and Rory.

Mickelson was left counting the cost of incurring a shot penalty after a double hit while playing from brush on the 13th hole of the National course.

The British Open champion, who was leading at the time, finished the hole with a triple-bogey seven.

“I was sitting at the presentation ceremony I said to myself: ‘Pablo? What are you doing here?’ I’ve got Rory McIlroy on my left and I am shaking the hand of Phil Mickelson on my right. It’s very special for me,” added Larrazabal after collecting the trophy.

“But it’s been a long journey and a lot of work since my last win in Munich, and only my team and my family know how hard I have worked for this victory with no holidays, and not too many days off this winter, just working hard to arrive here properly and in form to Abu Dhabi. So, yes happy days.”

While Mickelson was returning home for his first PGA event of the New Year, at this coming week’s Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines, McIlroy is returning to nearby Dubai to continue working on his game.

It is the second occasion in three years he has let slip victory in Abu Dhabi because of a rules violation.

“It happens, it happens but it never crossed my mind I might double hit it,” Mickelson said.

“I was just trying to dribble it out of the bush because I couldn’t get the unplayable penalty lie to give me a shot without stroke and distance and I felt it was worth the risk. It not only cost a penalty shot, but it also stopped the ball from going to a spot where I could hit again.

“So after that I got refocused and got aggressive and made some birdies and gave myself a chance. If Pablo had not birdied the last hole to win, I would have gotten into a play-off, and so I give him a lot of credit for finishing the tournament off the right way,” he added.

McIlroy had been penalized for illegally brushing sand off his line on the final day of the 2012 event before losing by a stroke to England’s Robert Rock.

On Saturday, the double Major winner was slapped with a two-shot penalty after being reported by the caddy of another player in not taking ‘full relief’ from a spectator cross walk.

“I can’t describe how frustrating it is and feeling like I should be standing here at 15-under par for the tournament and winning by one,” McIlroy said.

“It is a very positive start to the season so I’m not to let one little negative ruin that. It was not to I finished one behind on the 18th that it started he o dawn on me if what happened yesterday had not happened, I would have won.

“But Pablo played well, and I can’t take anything away from him. When he needed to, he hit the shots, and the two shots he hit into 18 were straight out of the drawer, so fair play to him.

“It’s good to see. He’s a good guy, one of my closer friends out here and good to see him get the win.”

Larrazabal moved into seventh place in the Race to Dubai and to 12th on the European Ryder Cup Team points table.

As well, the current World No. 103 ranked player should move inside the top-64 on the rankings when they are adjusted Monday and that will guarantee the Spaniard a first-ever place in next month’s Accenture Match-Play Championship in Arizona.

KAUPULEHU-KONA, Hawaii – Bernhard Langer and Fred Couples broke away with birdies on the 17th to top the leaderboard going into Sunday’s final round of the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai.

Facing benign conditions for the 35th season opener for the Champions Tour, Langer shot an 8-under 64 to get to 14 under for the tournament. Couples caught him with his second straight 65.

Mark O’Meara was just one stroke back of the leaders. O’Meara was 7 under after seven holes and finished with a 65.

David Frost, who lost to John Cook in a playoff here last year, pulled into contention with a 64. Frost one-putted 10 times.

Cook is two back and shares fourth with Jeff Sluman (66) and Steve Elkington (67). First-round leader Rocco Mediate was 1 over on the back nine and fell into a tie for seventh with Tom Lehman (66) at 11 under.

Langer and O’Meara tied the tournament record with 6-under 30s on the front nine. Langer two-putted three of the par 5s for birdies and sank a 30-footer at No. 8. His other birdie putts were inside 12 feet until he drained a 15-footer at the 17th. Couples caught him with a 20-footer on the same hole.

Couples, 54, is one of nine World Golf Hall of Famers in the 41-player field featuring major champions from the last five years, other tournament winners in the last two seasons and sponsor invitees. Couples has won nine senior events since 2010, including the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship in November. He has two top-five finishes here the last four years.

But even he doesn’t have any idea of how low he will have to go to win at a pristine Hualalai Course with barely any wind.

“The scores here are crazy every year,” Couples said. “To be honest, the only time I pay attention is Sunday when I’m done.”

Couples had 10 top-10s in 15 starts last year. Langer hasn’t finished outside the top 10 since July, but the last of his 18 senior wins came in April.

“There is definitely frustration,” he said, “especially because I was leading almost every week at some point. I’m ready for more wins, hopefully.”

Langer, who won his fifth money title last year, injured his thumb Thursday and had to drop out of the Pro-Am. He is 33 under in his last six rounds at Hualalai, while Couples is 31 under.

LA QUINTA, Calif.  – Patrick Reed has been as good as the weather and course conditions at the Humana Challenge – and just as predictable.

Another sunny, calm day. Another 9-under 63.

Reed broke the PGA Tour record for relation to par for the first 54 holes, finishing at 27 under Saturday to take a seven-stroke lead into the final round.

Playing over a pond as still as the plastic swans PGA West uses to scare away geese, Reed birdied his final hole on the Nicklaus Private Course, hitting a wedge to 2 feet on the par-4 ninth. He also had an eagle, eight birdies and a bogey.

“Any time you set a record on the PGA Tour it means you’re doing something right,” Reed said. “Well, a lot of things right. But at the same time it doesn’t matter if you have the 54-hole lead. All that matters at the end is at the end of Sunday.”

The 23-year-old Reed broke the mark of 25 under set by Gay Brewer in the 1967 Pensacola Open and matched by Ernie Els in the 2003 Tournament of Champions, Steve Stricker in the 2010 John Deere Classic and Pat Perez in the 2009 La Quinta event. Reed was one off Stricker’s stroke record of 188 set on a par-71 course.

“Almost seems like I’m in a putting coma,” said Reed, the first player in tour history to open an event with three rounds of 63 or better. “The hole seems huge. It almost feels like I can’t miss. It’s interesting because when I do miss a putt, I get really frustrated because I almost feel like I should make it.”

The Wyndham Championship winner in August, Reed opened Thursday on the Arnold Palmer Private Course and played La Quinta Country Club on Friday. He has played the 11 par 5s in 11 under, the 28 par 4s in 12 under and the 13 par 3s in 4 under.

Charley Hoffman and Brendon Todd were tied for second. Hoffman, the 2007 winner, had a 66 on the Palmer course – the site of the final round. Todd shot 68 at La Quinta.

“I wish I was a little closer than seven,” Hoffman said. “The weather’s been perfect, greens are perfect. The scores and birdies are out there.”

Reed’s seven-stroke margin is the largest entering the final round in event history, a stroke more than Rik Massengale took into his 1977 victory. David Duval overcame a seven-stroke deficit to win in 1999, closing with a 59 on the Palmer course. Last year, Brian Gay began the last day six strokes behind and ended up winning in a playoff.

“He’s obviously playing really, really well, but if you go out there, I mean, I shot 9 under there yesterday,” Todd said. “If you go out there with the same mentality, trying to play as well as you can, you get hot early, put a little pressure on him, there’s plenty of opportunities for him to make bogey.”

Reed eagled the par-5 16th on his first nine, hitting a 5-iron from 212 yards to 3 feet. Using his 50-degree wedge – the club he hit close on the final hole – on the par-4 sixth, he nearly holed a 125-yard approach, with the ball spinning back by the cup.

“It was basically the same shot,” he said. “The only difference is I didn’t spin it as much on the last hole.”

He made a 15-foot birdie putt from the fringe on the par-3 seventh, and then missed a birdie chance on the par-5 eighth when his approach went left into greenside rough.

“Only had a three-quarter 6-iron in my hand,” Reed said. “There are shots out there I could have had. But, at the same time, it’s another 63.”

Reed’s wife, Justine, is pregnant with their first child, forcing her to turn over caddieing duties to her brother, Kessler Karain. She has walked every hole this year and plans to caddie again after the baby arrives around Memorial Day.

“They’re brother and sister and they act in their demeanor’s so much the same,” Reed said. “I’m happy she’s outside the ropes right now, because she’s carrying my little girl.”

After helping Augusta State win NCAA titles in 2010 and 2011, Reed drew attention in 2012 when he successfully Monday-qualified for six events and made 12 starts.

“I’m going to treat tomorrow as if it’s Monday qualifier,” Reed said. “Eighteen-hole shootout, everybody’s tied at even par.”

The former Baton Rouge, La., high school champion earned his PGA Tour card in December 2012, surviving six rounds of Q-school at PGA West.

“I was like 130-something place after two rounds and shot 18 under the last four rounds to get in,” Reed said. “That was probably the most nervous 3-footer I ever had in my life on the last hole for par.”

Reed played alongside Tommy Gainey the first three days. Gainey shot 74-74-74 to tie for 150th among the 155 finishers – 33 strokes behind his playing partner.

“If I’m Patrick Reed, I’m going to but some lottery tickets,” Gainey said. “He’s just hitting it too good and making everything he looks at. When you have that combination, nobody’s going to beat you.”

On the Canadian front, Ottawa’s Brad Fritsch was the lone Canadian to make the 36-hole cut. He went 5-under Saturday and is tied for 34th at 12-under.

Ormond Beach, Fla. – National Amateur Team member Brooke Henderson fired a final round 72 to pull ahead of the pack with a 4-stroke victory at the Women’s South Atlantic Amateur Championship – also known as The Sally – in Ormond Beach, Fla.

With the win the Smiths Falls, Ont. native racks up her third consecutive victory. She took home medalist honours at the Spirit International in November, won the Junior Orange Bowl Championship in December and has now won The Sally.

She carded 4 birdies on Saturday’s final round to seal her place atop the leaderboard at 3-under par (67-76-70-72). Coming in second with a 1-over 289 (70-75-71-73) was Annabel Dimmock of Virginia Water, England.

Wales’ Chloe Williams was neck-and-neck with Henderson heading into Saturday’s round, but struggled on during the final round to an 11-over 83. She ended in a tie for third with Brazil’s Clara Teixera at 9-over par.

Canadians Meredith Fairbairn (Orangeville, Ont.) and Kimberly Risulmi (Lloydminster, Alta.) finished T23 and T56, respectively.

For full results, click here.

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates – Phil Mickelson surged up the leaderboard with a 9-under 63 to put himself in second place after the third round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, while Rory McIlroy was hit with a two-shot penalty for a rules infraction that dropped him into a tie for fourth.

Mickelson barely made the cut but had the best round of the day with nine birdies and an eagle coupled with two bogeys to sit two shots behind leader Craig Lee of Scotland. Lee shot a 69 for a 12-under 204 total.

“I just love the fact I am in contention and have an opportunity in my first tournament of the year here in Abu Dhabi,” Mickelson said. “The biggest thing for me is that each day as the tournament has progressed I have felt a lot sharper and sharper.”

McIlroy thought he was alone in second place a stroke behind Lee after finishing his round, but tournament officials then ruled that he had taken a drop incorrectly on the second hole and adjusted his score to a double-bogey 7. That gave him a 70 for the round to sit one stroke behind Mickelson and Gaganjeet Bhullar of India (66).

McIlroy had to take relief on the second hole when his ball ended up on a gallery crosswalk and went on to par the hole, but was later told by the caddy of playing partner Ricardo Gonzalez that he had his left foot on the white line marking the drop area, meaning he had not taken “full relief” according to the rules.

Tournament officials reviewed the situation after McIlroy completed his round, with the golfer going back to the spot to show where he stood when he took the shot.

“I didn’t even know my foot was on the line,” McIlroy said. “We went back to see it again there and see where my divot was, and it was clear that I couldn’t have played the shot with my feet anywhere else. I guess I was so much into the shot I didn’t even realize. … There’s a lot of stupid rules and this is one of them.”

To make matters worse, McIlroy said his drop had actually given him a bad lie and that he would have benefited from dropping again.

“If anything, it was a disadvantage,” McIlroy said.

McIlroy had finished the round without a bogey, making his fourth birdie of the day on the 18th.

“To a spectator it may feel like I have been unduly punished, and that’s what it feels like to me, but it’s a rule of the game. I do feel like I have been hard done by but it’s nothing that a fast start tomorrow can’t fix.”

McIlroy took to Twitter to poke fun of himself following the rules breach.

Foot fault…..

— Rory Mcilroy (@McIlroyRory) January 18, 2014

Mickelson shot his lowest score since a 63 on the opening day of the Deutsche Bank Championship in September, falling one shot short of the Abu Dhabi course record.

The American birdied four of his opening six holes, eagled the eighth and then also birdied five of his inward holes, including sinking a 50-foot birdie putt at the par-5 last.

That came after he tried to reach the green in two shots but ended up beneath some trees to the left and needed a pitching wedge on his third shot.

“(I) gave myself a 45 to 50 footer that you don’t really expect to make too often but I had a good kind of feel on that one and it just rolled right I,” Mickelson said. “But then I was getting a little tired mentally those last few holes and I could tell it was early in the season so I just wasn’t as sharp mentally.”

KAUPULEHU-KONA, Hawaii – Rocco Mediate took the first-round lead Friday in the Champions Tour’s season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship.

Mediate shot a 9-under 63 at Hualalai Golf Course, playing the first seven holes in 6-under with four birdies and an eagle on the par-5 seventh. He added birdies on Nos. 10, 14 and 18 to finish a stroke ahead of 2012 winner Dan Forsman.

Mediate won twice last year in his first season on the 50-and-over tour after winning six times on the PGA Tour.

Forsman had an eagle, seven birdies and a bogey.

Fred Couples, Fred Funk, Tom Pernice Jr. and Steve Elkington shot 65. Couples played the four par-5 holes in 6-under, eagling Nos. 4 and 7 and birdieing Nos. 10 and 14.

The 41-player field features major champions from the last five years, other tournament winners in the last two seasons and sponsor invitees.

Defending champion John Cook had a 69.

Kenny Perry opened with a 72. He was the player of the year last season, winning three times and taking the Charles Schwab Cup points title.

LA QUINTA, Calif. – Patrick Reed found La Quinta Country Club to his liking, too, leaving everyone else behind again in the Humana Challenge.

A day after shooting a 9-under 63 at PGA West’s Arnold Palmer Private Course to take the lead, Reed had another 9-under 63 down the road Friday at tree-lined La Quinta to stretch his advantage to two strokes over Brendon Todd.

“It’s great to have that feeling that you can go out and shoot 63,” said Reed, the Wyndham Championship winner in August. “And to actually do it two times in a row shows that what we have done during the off-season and what we’re doing now is working.

“The good thing is even though we’re playing great, I feel like there’s still room for improvement out there while I was playing. Today, I felt like there was three shots out there, yesterday, I thought there was one or two out there.”

Todd had a 63 on the Palmer course. He’s the only player in the field without a bogey.

“Obviously, both days were really solid,” Todd said. “Bogey-free was huge. … Before I knew it, I was at 7- or 8-under with a few to play, feeling like I should birdie every hole. … The weather’s been so good, I’m not surprised to see what Patrick did.”

The temperature climbed into the 80s and it was so calm the ponds looked like glass, the water as still as the plastic swans PGA West uses to scare away geese.

The 23-year-old Reed eagled the par-5 fifth hole, hitting a high 5-iron approach that landed softly on the left side of the green and rolled to 4 feet. He also had eight birdies and his lone bogey in 36 holes.

“That tee shot on 5’s not easy,” Reed said. “You have to hit a perfect high cut around that tree and if it goes straight, you’re actually through the fairway. You have to hit a hook around those trees. And when I hit a perfect drive like that, had a perfect number for a 5- iron to the left flag. When I hit something three-quarters or 85 per cent, it’s normally a little draw, so I just aimed it in the middle of the green and hit it up to there to 4 feet. That was kind of just perfect for me.”

Ryan Palmer was third, three strokes back at 15-under, after a 65 at La Quinta. He also made a short eagle putt on the fifth hole.

“Overall, it was another great day,” said Palmer, coming off a tie for eighth in the Sony Open in Hawaii. “Another great finish, hanging in there, staying strong.”

Charley Hoffman, the 2007 winner, was 14-under after a 66 on PGA West’s Jack Nicklaus Private Course. He had five straight birdies on the front nine.

“If the weather stays the way it is, all these golf courses have a lot of birdie holes,” Hoffman said. “There’s water, there’s trouble if you short-side yourself, but if you’re hitting good shots, the greens are good and you can make a bunch of birdies.”

Bill Haas and James Driscoll were 13-under. Haas, the 2010 winner, had a 66 on the Nicklaus course, and Driscoll shot 63 at La Quinta.

Charlie Beljan was another stroke back, shooting 64 on the Nicklaus course.

Ottawa’s Brad Fritsch followed his opening round 67 with a 70 at La Quinta, leaving him at 7-under 137. David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., who shot an opening round 68, also had a 70 at La Quinta.

Mike Weir of Bright’s Grove, Ont., fired a 69 after an opening round 73, leaving him at 142. Calgary’s Stephen Ames carded his second straight 73.

Matt Every and playing partner Will MacKenzie were 11-under in a group that included Kapalua winner Zach Johnson, 2005 winner Justin Leonard and Harris English.

Every settled for a 68 on the Palmer course after playing an early five-hole stretch in 6-under with four birdies and an eagle. MacKenzie had a 66.

“I was just striping it,” Every said. “I was hitting it close and then the greens, we were first off, so the greens were perfect, and I was rolling them in.”

After a long wait at the turn, he made a double bogey on No. 10.

“We flew around the front,” Every said. “Then we got to the back and there was a logjam.”

Johnson had an eagle, six birdies, two bogeys and a double bogey in a 68 on the Nicklaus course, Leonard had a 67 on the Palmer course, and English shot 66 on the Nicklaus course.

Playing alongside Johnson, Keegan Bradley had a hole-in-one in a 66 that left him 9-under overall in his first start of the year. His 7-iron shot on the 177-yard third hole landed about 10 feet short of the pin and rolled in.

Ormond Beach, Fla. – Team Canada’s Brooke Henderson fired a 2-under 70 to hold onto a 1-stroke advantage over Wales’ Chloe Williams at the Women’s South Atlantic Amateur Championship.

Williams bogeyed the 18^th to match Henderson’s third round score of 70 heading into the fourth and final round Saturday.

Henderson, 16, has not given up her lead since Wednesday’s opening round of 67. The Smiths Falls, Ont., native will look to win her second straight tournament when play resumes tomorrow – she won the Junior Orange Bowl Championship back in December.

Fellow Canadian Meredith Fairbairn of Orangeville, Ont., sits tied for 24th after a 7-over 79. Kimberly Risulmi of Lloydminster, Alta. slipped to 58^th after carding an 86.

Each year staff at Golf Canada take great pride in reflecting in the engagement of our members through the Golf Canada Score Centre and score posting for handicap purposes.  Below is a brief summary of what our members did in 2013…

Total number of members who posted at least 1 score in 2013…         202,640
Total number of new Members who posted a minimum of 5 scores…  30,351
Total number of scores posted…    7,480,087

Scores Posted by Type:

• Home…         6,069,151
• Away…         1,410,936
• Tournament… 358,982

For more information and FAQ’s on Handicap and Course Rating, please click here.

To ask a Handicap question, you can email me at ccrawford@golfcanada.ca.

For more information on how to proceed in various Rules of Golf situations, guidance on the Golf Canada Handicap System and more, please consult our Rules of Golf publications – for purchase in Golf Canada’s eStore, or at your local book retailer.

With a renewed mindset on the significance of friends and family, a wedding and potential wins in his future, Dustin Johnson’s goals for 2014 look encouraging. Watch this video for an inside look into how the PGA TOUR spends his time outside the ropes.

Alberta Golf names new CEO

Alberta Golf has announced several changes to its organizational structure and the promotion of two staff members.

Highlighting the changes are the naming of Matt Rollins as the new executive director/CEO. Rollins succeeds Brent Ellenton, who served as executive director for 25 years.  Jack Lane will assist Rollins in a new role – assistant executive director.

“Both Matt and Jack are long-time Alberta Golf employees who will continue to dedicate their efforts towards fulfilling our organizations mission as we strive towards our vision of engaging every golfer in Alberta, said Alberta Golf President, Sandra Craig. “These changes ensure our ability to manage the organization in an efficient and effective manner for the future.”

Kirby Dreher auditions for Amazing Race Canada

Canadian golf standout Kirby Dreher and her brother Shelby Dreher have submitted their application to be considered for season 2 of the Amazing Race Canada.

Dreher, from Fort St. John, B.C., is a past Canadian Women’s Tour winner and LPGA Symetra Tour member.

Amazing Race applicants were required to make a video, fill out a lengthy application and send photos as part of their applications. Here’s the video Dreher and her brother put together.