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CREAMER STARTS SINKING BIRDIES AT PERFECT TIME

 
Published Feb. 24, 2008|Updated Feb. 25, 2008

Down two strokes with three holes to play, Paula Creamer knew it was time to get going. And she did.

Creamer, 21, rallied to win the Fields Open for her fifth LPGA Tour title and second in her past four starts, birdieing four of the final five holes for a one-stroke victory over Jeong Jang on Saturday.

"It was a great, great finish," Creamer said. "I'll always remember this finish."

Playing her trademark pink ball in the final round, Creamer closed with a bogey-free 6-under 66 for a 16-under 200 total.

After holing a 5-foot putt on the par-4 18th for her third straight birdie, Creamer pumped her arms as the crowd cheered.

"I went out and won the tournament the last three holes," she said. "I knew I had to make some birdies down the stretch and those were three good holes to make birdie on."

The putt was set up by an aggressive second shot using a 6-iron from 165 yards, over the pond and onto the green, where it bounced twice and rolled to 5 feet. Jang just missed the green from 153 yards, leaving the door open.

Jang, seeking a wire-to-wire victory, closed with 69.

Annika Sorenstam (68) followed at 12 under, a week after winning the season-opening SBS Open for her 70th title.

Michelle Wie shot 6-over 78 to finish 20 strokes behind Creamer. Seminole's Brittany Lincicome shot a final-round 75 to finish at even-par 216, 16 back.

Woods on to final

MARANA, Ariz. - Tiger Woods faced another pivotal putt on the 17th hole, this one from only 12 feet, the stakes much higher than his signature 35-foot eagle putt he made three days earlier in the Match Play Championship.

Typical of his year, success was inevitable.

"It's fun to have the opportunity, whether you succeed or fail," Woods said. "Luckily over my career, I've succeeded more than I've failed."

Call this another success and another trip to the final.

Woods' birdie on the 17th carried him to a 2-up victory over defending champion Henrik Stenson, putting him in today's final against Stewart Cink, whose flawless front nine gave him a 4-and-2 win over Justin Leonard.

"Every match is its own little battle," Woods said, who won for the 22nd time in his past 25 matches at this fickle event and is vying for his fourth straight PGA Tour victory and sixth straight overall. "One of the things I learned from my dad is in match play, you have 18 battles. You've just got to win more than they do."

PGA: As the birdies piled up and his name crept up the scoreboard, Esteban Toledo saw them coming. They weren't just fans. They were his people. The only Mexican left in the Mayakoba Classic, Toledo gave his countrymen plenty to cheer. He chipped in from about 25 yards for eagle on No. 13, then closed with birdie on 18. His 7-under 63 lifted him into fifth in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. At 8-under 202, he was seven behind Brian Gay going into the final round.

FAST FACTS

WGC-Match Play Championship

Today's final: No. 1 seed Tiger Woods vs. No. 6 Stewart Cink, 36 holes, Gallery Golf Club at Dove Mountain (South Course), Marana, Ariz.

TV: 10 a.m. Golf Channel,2 p.m. Ch. 8