Funk roars to Open title

Funk: Closing 65

US Senior Open
Final leaderboard
US unless stated
-20 F Funk
-14 J Sindelar
-12 R Cochran
-11 G Norman (Aus)
-11 L Roberts

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Fred Funk claimed his first major championship with victory at the US Senior Open.

Starting the day with a one-shot lead over Joey Sindelar and Greg Norman, Funk carded a closing 65 at Crooked Stick in Indiana to win by six shots.

The 53-year-old from Maryland won eight times on the PGA Tour and has chalked up four Champions Tour victories but despite winning the 2005 Players Championship, he had never won a major.

He came close last week - losing at the British Senior Open in a play-off to Loren Roberts - but he was determined to make amends this week.

And Funk rates his victory on a par with the success at the Players Championship.

"This probably ties for first," he said. "I'm going to put the Players right there with it, although this might be a notch higher because it is a national championship.

Cool

"The only reason I put the Players that close is because of the strength of the field and it's my new hometown and living there is pretty cool and the history of that. But this is big."

Playing alongside two-time Open champion Norman, Funk shot a seven-under-par 65 to record the lowest under-par total in a US Senior Open.

Funk is just the fourth player to record all four rounds in the 60s in this championship and the ninth successive senior major champion not to have won a major on the regular tour.

Sindelar shot a closing 70 to finish in second place, while Russ Cochran was third after a 68. Norman struggled - just as he had in the final round at Sunningdale last week - a 73 seeing the Great White Shark finish in a share for fourth.

Roberts continued his fine form, a best-of-the-week 64 moving him level with Norman.