BETHESDA, Md. (AP) — Angel Cabrera sensed his opportunity when Padraig Harrington — playing a few groups ahead — faltered on the 15th hole with a double bogey.
“I was like, ‘This is my turn,’” Cabrera said through a translator.
While Harrington was erratic down the stretch, Cabrera was steady, shooting a 3-under 69 on Sunday for a one-stroke victory in the Senior PGA Championship at Congressional. It was his second senior major in a week.
Cabrera, the 2007 U.S. Open and 2009 Masters champion, won the rain-delayed Regions Tradition on Monday in Alabama, which was the Argentine’s first senior major. Six days later at Congressional, he trailed Harrington by two strokes after Harrington rolled in a long birdie putt on No. 14.
But Harrington double bogeyed No. 15, and Cabrera birdied that same hole a short while later to take the lead. After a bogey by Harrington on the par-4 18th, Cabrera needed only a bogey on that hole and got it.
“I feel very emotional,” Cabrera said. “Maybe you cannot see, but I’m very very emotional inside. Especially after all of the things that I went through.”
Cabrera spent 20 months in an Argentine prison after he was accused of making threats toward former partners. He was released on parole in August 2023 and won a PGA Tour Champions event last month before missing the cut at the Masters.
“I thought that I was going to fail, especially after being sitting without touching a club for a while,” Cabrera said. “I’ve been working very, very hard and I feel that all the hard work pays off and this is what I’m having right now.”
Cabrera finished at 8-under 280. Harrington (68) and Thomas Bjorn (68) tied for second, with Retief Goosen (71), Jason Caron (71) and Stewart Cink (70) another stroke back.
Defending champion Richard Bland tied for 14th at 2 under.
Cabrera was part of a four-way tie for first at the beginning of the day, but Harrington — who was two strokes back — was in great shape after birdieing seven of the first 14 holes in the final round.
His high point came on No. 14 after a strange situation in which there appeared to be some bird excrement on the green next to his ball — which he was able to deal with after a rules consultation.
“I wasn’t sure how much I could scrape it,” Harrington said. “I know you can brush it off, but I had to actually scrape it off the green.”
Harrington then made a putt from about 30 feet for a birdie that moved him to 10 under, two shots ahead of Cabrera. But the lead quickly vanished after his 5-wood off the tee on No. 15 — a 424-yard par 4 — went left. Harrington ended up needing four strokes just to reach the green.
“I’ve had a lifelong problem with getting confident and cocky and I did on the 15 tee box. It was such a simple tee shot,” Harrington said. “I just totally didn’t get into it enough and then panicked at the last moment and hit a big hook.”
Cabrera missed the green on the par-3 13th but saved par, and his birdie two holes later gave him a one-stroke lead. Then Harrington three-putted on No. 18, missing from about 3 feet and settling for a bogey that pushed Cabrera's lead to two.
Cabrera's drive on 18 missed to the right, but Harrington was watching on TV while talking to reporters when Cabrera made it safely to the final green in two. At that point, Harrington was hoping Cabrera would make par to spare the Irish star the further agony of a one-stroke loss.
"I’d just really like him to two-putt," Harrington said.
But Cabrera could three-putt and still win, and that's what happened.
“Just think the tee shot on 15 was just too easy,” Harrington said. “I was careless. That’s it.”
___
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Noah Trister, The Associated Press
