Wiebe wins Senior British Open in playoff

American golfer Mark Wiebe has beaten German great Bernhard Langer in a play-off to win the Senior British Open at Royal Birkdale.

Wiebe wins Senior British Open in playoff

Mark Wiebe (pic) beat Bernhard Langer in a play-off to win the Senior British Open.

Foul-mouthed American golfer Mark Wiebe won the Senior British Open on Monday after beating German great Bernhard Langer in an epic play-off at Royal Birkdale.

Wiebe, infamous for his expletive tirade at a tournament in the US last year, made headlines for more positive reasons when he prevailed on the fifth extra hole.

He and Langer had been unable to finish the tournament on schedule on Sunday when bad light forced the play-off to be postponed after two halved holes.

But Wiebe won the title for the first time after three more holes on Monday morning when Langer bogeyed the 18th.

Wiebe had never won a major title - his best result a tie for 12th place in the 1989 US PGA Championship 1989 - and he was surprised to win the event in the manner he did.

"I have never been in a playoff in a major championship either so I was a first-timer," he said.

"I just tried to play the golf course as good as I could. I'm a little tired, I'll tell you that."

Until now, Wiebe had made his name cursing himself after three-putting at last year's AT & T Championship.

American TV commentators were forced to apologise after Wiebe cursed himself live on TV.

On Monday, it was Langer left frustrated.

The two-times Masters champion had squandered a golden opportunity to win the title without a play-off when he produced a double-bogey on the final hole on Sunday.

The final round had been pushed well into the evening on Sunday by stormy weather in Southport, north-west England, and when Langer, who led by three shots after the opening nine holes, cracked on the last hole, tournament organisers asked the players to start the play-off.

However, darkness quickly descended to bring an end to the duel in the dusk and it was Langer who stumbled once more when play resumed on Monday.

It was the first time in its 27-year history that the tournament concluded on a Monday and Langer blinked first as he narrowly missed a putt for par from six feet.


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Source: AAP


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