NATADOLA, Fiji – Brandt Snedeker ran away with the wind-swept Fiji International on Sunday, closing with a 4-under 68 for a nine-stroke victory.

Coming off the United States’ Ryder Cup victory in Minnesota, Snedeker had five birdies and bogey to finish at 16-under 272 at Vijay Singh-designed Natadola Bay. He opened with rounds of 69, 64 and 70 to take a three-stroke lead into the final round.

“It kind of worked out perfectly today because it was playing so tough, nobody could really make a run,” Snedeker said. “There were no low scores out there, so that made my job a lot easier. It’s been a pretty good two weeks, I was joking earlier I might add another tournament next week. It’s been an unbelievable run. To play the way I have has been really fun.”

Ranked 23rd in the world, the 35-year-old Snedeker won his first international title in the event sanctioned by European and Australasian tours. He had the largest margin of victory this season on the European Tour, stopping Charl Schwartzel’s eight-shot win in the Tshwane Open.

“To go out there and the play the way I did at the weekend, extend my lead, I’m very happy with how comfortable I felt in that situation,” Snedeker said. “I never really gave any back or did anything that would cause myself to lose the golf tournament. I’m just building all that positive stuff right now, so it’s a lot of fun.

He also won in February at Torrey Pines in California for his eighth PGA Tour title.

New Zealand’s Michael Hendry was second at a 7 under after a 72. New Zealand’s Brad Shilton (69) was another stroke back along with Australians Andrew Evans (71), Matthew Giles (64) and Anthony Houston (75).

Singh tied for 21st at 2 under after a 69. The 53-year-old Fijian is a three-time major champion.

Boo Weekley tied for 33rd at 1 over after a 73, and fellow American Heath Slocum closed with a 74 to tie for 53rd at 4 over.

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – Jay Haas shot an 8-under 63 on Saturday to take a five-stroke lead in the Toshiba Classic, putting him position to become the second-oldest winner in PGA Tour Champions history.

At 62 years, 10 months, 7 days Sunday, Haas would fall short of only Mike Fetchick, the 1985 Hilton Head Seniors Invitational winner at 63 years to the day. Gary Player is No. 2 on the list at 62 years, 9 months, 22 days in the 1998 Northville Long Island Classic.

“I don’t know what’s gotten into me other than – and I’ve always said the ball doesn’t know how old you are or what your name is or anything like that – if you hit a good shot, it goes right down the middle and on the green and in the hole,” Haas said. “So, I’m not trying to think about being old or anything like that. I feel good, I feel positive with my swing. I’m not doing it with smoke and mirrors.”

He missed a chance to shoot his age when his eagle try to 18 stopped short.

“I knew that, yeah,” Haas said. “It was great to even have an opportunity to do that. Obviously, when I was over the putt, I did not think that.”

The 2007 winner at Newport Beach Country Club, Haas has played 36 holes without a bogey. He shot a 64 on Friday for a share of the first-round lead with Billy Mayfair.

“I was feeling solid on the greens and so I was somewhat aggressive and had some nice chances to even get lower, but obviously I made some nice putts, too,” Haas said. “Maybe probably 18 feet at No. 4 and then probably 25 feet at No. 5. Those two were not stealing, but you don’t expect to make those a lot of times.”

Haas won the last of his 17 senior titles in 2014. He won nine times on the PGA Tour and captained the United States’ winning Presidents Cup team last year in South Korea. He birdied three of the final four holes, starting the run on the par-5 15th and adding two more on the par-3 17th and par-5 18th to reach 15-under 127.

Fred Funk, at age 60, was second after a 65. He eagled the 15th and birdied 18.

“I fully expect any of these guys from behind to shoot 62 or 3 and I’m going to have to keep playing hard as I can,” Haas said. “Hopefully, I’ll have a chance coming down the last few holes.”

John Daly shot a 66 to top the group at 9 under. After birdieing the final five holes Friday in a 67, Daly opened birdie-birdie-eagle. He bogeyed the par-3 eighth and birdied the two late par 5s, playing through a left shoulder injury.

“Basically, one-handed the last six holes,” Daly said. “Hopefully, get some ice on it and get the swelling down.”

Daly is making his 14th senior start since turning 50 in April. The two-time major champion has three top-20 finishes on the tour, the best a tie for 11th in July in the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open.

Grant Waite (65), Ian Woosnam (66), Doug Garwood (66), Billy Andrade (6) and Bart Bryant (6) also were 9 under.

“I’m going to have to shoot 64 to have a chance,” Woosnam said.

Rod Spittle fired a seven-under 64 to jump into the top 10 at 8 under. The Canadian had eight birdies, including a string of five consecutive, against just one bogey on the day to vault into a tie for ninth.

Defending champion Duffy Waldorf was tied for 14th at 7 under after a 68. Mayfair, making his sixth start on the tour after turning 50 in August, had a 76 to drop into a tie for 45th at 2 under.

TAIPEI, Taiwan – Ha Na Jang shot a 10-under 62 in calmer conditions Saturday at rainy Miramar to take a six-stroke lead in the Fubon LPGA Taiwan Championship.

Chasing her third victory of the year, the 24-year-old South Korean player hit a 30-yard flop shot to a foot in steady rain on the par-5 18th for her 10th birdie of the day.

“Really surprised my play because weather so bad on the back nine,” Jang said. “But just be patient every hole. Just simple my thinking. Just thinking hitting the flag and hitting the fairway.”

Brooke Henderson, a 19-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., shot 69 and goes into the final round tied for fourth at 8 under.

After shooting a 69 in high wind and early rain Friday for a share of the lead with fellow South Korean player Hee Young Park, Jang had her lowest score in her two-year LPGA Tour career and matched the best round in the three years the event has been played at Miramar.

“I want keep this, my scorecard,” Jang said. “Always I want inside my pocket.”

South Korea’s Inbee Park set the Miramar mark in 2014 and England’s Jodi Ewart Shadoff tied it earlier Saturday.

Jang birdied three of the last four holes to reach 16-under 200. She hit a wedge to four feet on 15, made a 30-foot putt on 16 and closed the bogey-free round with the tap-in on 18 after the flop that landed on a ridge and trickled down.

China’s Shanshan Feng was second after a 67, and Hee Young Park was another shot back after a 69.

“I don’t really look at leaderboards,” Feng said. “But somebody else told me Ha Na shot like 62 today. … Somebody shot 62 today. Maybe I’ll shoot 62 tomorrow. Who knows?”

Shadoff was tied for eighth at 6 under. After opening with rounds of 78 and 70, she birdied 10 of the first 15 holes and closed with three pars.

“It was getting the ball in the fairway,” Shadoff said. “The rough out here is so thick that it’s really hard to get spin from the rough. It’s tough even chipping from around the greens. So, I was just in the fairway.”

American Alison Lee also rebounded to get to 6 under, shooting 65.

Defending champion Lydia Ko was tied for 16th at 4 under after a 69. The top-ranked New Zealander won by nine strokes last year at 20 under.

Jang started fast with a wedge to three feet on No. 1 and hit another to five feet on the fifth, then holed putts of 10 feet on the sixth, eight feet from the fringe on the seventh, and 15 feet on the ninth. She chipped in for birdie from 15 feet on 11, and made a 12-footer on 12.

Jang won her first tour title in February in Florida and added her second victory three events later in Singapore.

She also drew strong criticism in South Korea for her flamboyant victory celebrations _ a “Samurai Lasso” routine in Ocala and a “Beyonce Single Ladies” dance in Singapore _ and a freak accident that sidelined rival In Gee Chun with a back injury. Before the Singapore tournament, Jang’s father dropped a hard-case suitcase that tumbled down an airport escalator and struck Chun.

She was asked about a possible victory celebration.

“I don’t want to tell nobody. Just top secret,” Jang said. “I think not much like dance or something, just little quiet celebration.”

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – John Daly birdied the final five holes Friday in the Toshiba Classic, leaving him three strokes behind fellow senior newcomer Billy Mayfair and 62-year-old Jay Haas.

Making his 14th PGA Tour Champions start since turning 50 in April, the long-hitting Daly finished with a 4-under 67 at Newport Beach Country Club after playing the front nine in even par and dropping a stroke on 13.

“This course, you short-side yourself you can make some big numbers, but it’s a golf course that if I keep hitting the driver straight, you can score,” Daly said. “A lot of wedges into a lot of the holes.”

The two-time major champion has three top-20 finishes on the senior tour, the best a tie for 11th in July in New York at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open.

“I’ve been hitting it pretty good and just the two weeks off did me some good,” Daly said. “My shoulder’s still not good, but I’m able to hit full shots. I’m struggling with three-quarter shots, which might not make sense, but every time I try to pinch one, it hurts like heck. But the full shots are OK and luckily that’s what I had coming down the stretch today.”

Haas made an 18-foot birdie putt on 18 to match Mayfair at 64.

“I’ve always played this course well,” said Haas, the 2007 winner. “I lost the next year in a playoff to Bernhard (Langer), and then the next two years, probably playing as good as I could play in my Champions Tour career. … I’ve had some good success here and I just like the golf course. It seems to set up nicely for me and looks good to my eye.”

Mayfair eagled the par-5 third and had six birdies – four on the last five holes – and one bogey. He’s making his sixth start on the tour after turning 50 in August.

“You’ve got to get out on Friday and get off to a good start,” said Mayfair, a five-time winner on the PGA Tour. “You’re going to have to shoot this every day to have a chance to win.”

In his Champions debut, he tied for second behind Gene Sauers in the U.S. Senior Open.

“I really want to come out here and have fun and enjoy myself but be very competitive,” Mayfair said.

Larry Mize, Paul Goydos and Michael Allen shot 65. Mize played the back-nine in 5-under 31.

“I’ve been trying too hard,” Mize said. “I tried to just relax and have fun. As crazy as it sounds, care a little less and just go out there and don’t let anything bother you and just have a good time.”

Goydos birdied four of the first five holes.

“The golf course is there to be had, but if you hit in the wrong place here, you’re going to make bogeys,” Goydos said. “Today, I probably should have made three bogeys and I made none.”

Ross Cochran shot 66, and defending champion Duffy Waldorf was at 67 along with Daly, Mark Calcavecchia, Ian Woosnam, Joey Sindelar, Mark Brooks, Jay Don Blake, John Cook, Fred Funk, Billy Andrade, Jerry Smith, Doug Garwood and brothers Bart and Brad Bryant.

Colin Montgomerie had a 68. He’s coming off a victory two weeks ago in British Columbia.

Langer, the tour leader with four victories, is taking the week off. He also tops the money list and Charles Schwab Cup points standings.

TAIPEI, Taiwan – Hee Young Park and Ha Na Jang fought through gusty wind and early rain Friday to share the second-round lead in the LPGA Taiwan Championship, while Canada’s Brooke Henderson was a stroke back.

The South Korean players each shot their second straight 3-under 69 at Miramar.

They also each had only one bogey, Jang on the par-4 15th when she got a chip only halfway to the hole and missed a 20-footer, and Park on the par-4 16th when she drove into a bunker and came up well short of the green in two.

“This week is more like just be patient is very important, because weather is so bad and the golf condition so bad, too,” the 24-year-old Jang said. “That’s why I’m just hitting fairway, the green. Very important this week. Yep, this weather, this score.”

Smiths Falls, Ont., native Henderson (71) was a stroke back along with China’s Shanshan Feng (69), South Korea’s So Yeon Ryu (68) and South Africa’s Lee-Anne Pace (70). Defending champion Lydia Ko was tied for 18th at 1 under after a 73. The top-ranked New Zealander won by nine strokes last year, and has four LPGA Tour victories this year.

Park prepared for the conditions heading into the Asian Swing.

“I expect a lot of rain, so I had practice,” the 29-year-old Park said, “It’s about just one week, but I had a lot of practice with the trajectory. Different kind of shot from the range, which is a lot of help this week also. So, that’s why I hit it a lot close today even with the wind and the rain.”

Ryu also came prepared.

“I’ve been working on having a low ball shape” Ryu said. “I’ve been practicing like low ball and high ball, so I had no problem to control the low one. Luckily, all shots worked pretty well, so I didn’t have any like major miss shots. … Only one bogey with this weather is pretty positive.”

Park and Jang each have two LPGA Tour victories. Jang won early this season Florida and Singapore, and Park won events in 2011 and 2013.

Park played the first seven holes in 4 under in the worst conditions of the round. She set up birdies with irons to 4 feet on No. 1, a foot on No. 4, and 4 feet on No. 6, ran in an 18-footer on No. 7, and saved par on No. 8 with a 20-foot putt.

“Always difficult with wind,” Park said. “I have to play every single shot really careful and more think about. Makes more tired. So hard to focusing end of the hole. That’s why I tried to.”

Jang also played well in the bad early conditions, hitting to 3 feet on the par-3 third and making another birdie on the par-5 sixth. She made an 18-footer on 10, and chipped to a foot on the par-5 12th.

“Just say, ‘Trust yourself. You great player. Just be patient. Middle of the green is fine. Two-putt is pretty good. Par score is pretty good,”’ Jang said.

The 19-year-old Henderson has two victories this year, winning the major KPMG Women’s PGA in June. She plans to play all six week on the Asian Swing, a journey that started in China with a fourth-place tie, and will take her to South Korea, back to China, and then to Malaysia and Japan.

Japan’s Sakura Yokomine , the first-round leader after a 67, had a 75 to drop into a tie for 10th at 2 under. American Paula Creamer, a stroke back entering the day, also was 2 under after a 75.

Home favourite Yani Tseng was tied for 65th at 8 over, following an opening 79 with a 73. She won the inaugural event in 2011 at Sunrise, and took the last of her 15 LPGA Tour titles in March 2012.

People who play golf live longer, a major study has found, as it shows the game helps prevent 40 major chronic diseases such as diabetes, breast and colon cancer.

Researchers reviewed 5,000 studies into golf and wellbeing and found the sport has physical and mental health benefits for people of all ages and can even increase life expectancy by five years.

The findings were published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

For more, read this article in the Daily Telegraph.

TAIPEI, Taiwan – Sakura Yokomine bogeyed the final hole for a 5-under 67 and a one-stroke lead over Brooke Henderson, Paula Creamer and Amy Yang on Thursday in the LPGA Taiwan Championship.

Yokomine eagled the par-5 12th – hitting a 5-wood to 15 feet – and had three back-nine birdies at windy Miramar before dropping the stroke on the par-5 18th. The 30-year-old Japanese player is winless in two seasons on the LPGA Tour after winning 23 times on the Japan LPGA Tour.

“My shots were good,” Yokomine said. “It was strong, a strong wind today. Each shot I had to concentrate.”

Henderson, of Smiths Falls, Ont., birdied three of the final four holes, playing in the last group of the day. The 19-year-old Canadian has two victories this year, winning the major KPMG Women’s PGA in June.

“It’s very windy out here so you really got to pay attention,” said Henderson, who chipped on the par-4 15th , with the ball racing downhill and hitting the flagstick.

“I kind of had a tough lie in the rough there on the left side of 15, and so I just kind of tried to hit it out to the right,” Henderson said. “I was thinking in my head, ‘Try and get up-and-down and save par and then try and make some birdies on the last three holes.’ I was able to chip that one in, birdie 16, had a good chance on 17, birdied 18. It was really the ideal ending.”

The fourth-ranked Henderson has two victories this year, winning the major KPMG Women’s PGA in June and successfully defending her Cambia Portland Classic title in July.

Alena Sharp of Hamilton shot a 6-over 78 and was tied for 68th.

Yokomine and Henderson are making their 26th starts of the year, tied with Kim Kaufman for the tour lead. Henderson plans to play all six weeks on the Asian Swing, a journey that started last week in China with a fourth-place tie, and will take her to South Korea, back to China, and then to Malaysia and Japan.

Creamer had a bogey-free round, working with caddie Colin Cann in the windy conditions.

“I’ve always played really well when it’s windy and just kind of tough,” Creamer said. “You have to think a lot out there. Colin and I worked really well as a team today. It’s pretty windy in certain spots out on this golf course, and he did a good job of figuring that out for us.”

She won the last of her 10 LPGA Tour titles in February 2014 in Singapore.

Yang was 6 under through 13 holes, then bogeyed the next two.

Ai Miyazato, Ha Na Jang, Lee-Anne Pace, Beatriz Recari and Hee Young Park shot 69.

“I’m playing this tournament since five years ago and I know how to play in the wind, especially on this golf course, so that experience helped for sure,” Miyazato said. “I grew up in Okinawa and Okinawa is really windy place, too. So, I kind of grew up playing in the wind.”

Defending champion Lydia Ko had a double bogey on the par-4 fifth in a 70. The top-ranked New Zealander won by nine strokes last year at Miramar. She has four LPGA Tour victories this season.

Home favourite Yani Tseng closed with a quadruple-bogey 9 on 18 for a 79. Playing on a sponsor exemption, she also had a double bogey on the 12th. Tseng won the inaugural event in 2011 at Sunrise, and took the last of her 15 LPGA Tour titles in March 2012.

LONGWOOD, FLA – The Symetra Tour announced Thursday morning that the IOA Golf Classic has been cancelled due to the projected path of Hurricane Matthew and the increasing risk the Orlando area faces.

“We consulted with our weather experts on Wednesday night and early Thursday morning and it became clear that the best decision for the IOA Golf Classic and the safety of our players, staff members and volunteers is to cancel the tournament,” said Chief Business Officer Mike Nichols. “It’s unfortunate because IOA has been such a great partner and this is crunch time in the season, but safety is our number one priority over all else.”

The IOA Golf Classic will not be rescheduled this year.

There is now just one event remaining on the Symetra Tour schedule. The Symetra Tour Championship is scheduled to begin Thursday, October 13 and conclude Sunday, October 16 at LPGA International in Daytona Beach. The top 10 on the Volvik Race for the Card money list following the final-round will earn LPGA Tour membership for the 2017 season.

August James of Bath, Ont., is in prime position to move into the top 10. The former Team Canada Young Pro and National Team alum is currently 13th, just $4,600 out of the top 10. Jessica Wallace of Langley, B.C., is the next closest Canadian in 19th place.

lan Fox and Kaeden Trainor didn’t play golf a year ago. Last month, the two 11-year-old hockey fanatics from Ontario carded back-to-back aces on the 128-yard fifth hole at Amherstview Golf Club in Loyalist, Ont., while playing in the same group.

How unlikely is that? The odds of two average golfers acing the same hole in the same foursome is 20 million to 1.

GolfDigest has more in this article.

ATLANTIC BEACH, Fla. – PGA TOUR officials announced today that the Web.com Tour Championship, scheduled for October 6-9, has been cancelled due to the pending threat of Hurricane Matthew. An evacuation of Atlantic Beach was issued late Wednesday morning by the city of Jacksonville.

“It is unfortunate that we’ve had to cancel our season-ending event; however, our first priority is the safety of our players, fans, volunteers and staff,” said Web.com Tour President Bill Calfee. “With Hurricane Matthew on the horizon, it is critical that we make sure everyone involved with the Web.com Tour Championship has ample time to evacuate the Northeast Florida area and return home.”

Florida Gov. Rick Scott declared a statewide emergency on Monday and announced the activation of 200 Florida National Guardsmen on Tuesday. On Wednesday, an additional 300 more Guardsmen were activated, with another 6,000 members placed on standby as a precaution in advance of the evacuation.

Preparations for the hurricane were underway at host Atlantic Beach Country Club on Wednesday, with Golf Channel removing towers and staff from the property, and all hospitality tents on the course broken down in advance of the anticipated strong wind gusts.

The Web.com Tour annually awards 50 PGA TOUR cards, with 25 coming at the conclusion of the WinCo Foods Portland Open presented by Kraft Heinz in August, and an additional 25 set for the completion of the Web.com Tour Finals.

The Web.com Tour Championship was slated as the fourth and final event in the Finals, whereby the second set of 25 TOUR cards for the 2016-17 season was to be awarded following the conclusion of play.

With the tournament cancelled, all earnings through three events of the Web.com Tour Finals are deemed final. Per Web.com Tour policy, a minimum of 36 holes is required for an event to award official money.

The event cancellation marks the first for the Web.com Tour since the 2005 Miccosukee Championship, which was cancelled due to Hurricane Wilma.

Information regarding the 25 PGA TOUR cards, as well as priority ranking for the 2016-17 season, will be released shortly.