Jay Don Blake captured his third Champions Tour title Sunday evening, defeating Mark O’Meara with a birdie on the second playoff hole to capture the Boeing Classic at TPC Snoqualmie Ridge. Blake dropped in a short birdie putt for the win after O’Meara’s 15-foot birdie putt missed on the low side of the hole. Blake won $300,000 from the purse of $2 million.
Blake and O’Meara finished the third round of the seniors tournament tied at 206, 10-under par. Both shot final rounds of 68 and moved into position to win after second-round leader, 64-year-old Tom Jenkins, who had a 5-under par 67 Saturday, soared to a final-round 78.
Jenkins had a chance to become the oldest winner in Champions Tour history, but he made four bogeys on the front nine.
Blake and O’Meara, who had an opening-round 74, missed short birdie putts on the par-5 first playoff hole. Blake missed first, leaving O’Meara with an eight-footer to win the championship. He couldn’t get it down.
On the second, O’Meara hit his second shot on the 498-yard, uphill hole into the rough left of the green and his pitch fell short. Blake went into the rough behind the green with his second shot, but his pitch nearly went in.
Blake had just one bad hole Sunday, a bogey on the par-3 13th. O’Meara moved into playoff contention by making birdies on three of his final five holes.
The playoff marked the fourth time in eight years the Boeing Classic has gone to extra holes.
Willie Wood, coming off his first tour victory last week in New York in the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open, had a 70 to finish a stroke back. Michael Allen and defending champion Mark Calcavecchia followed at 8 under.
