With fans chanting ‘Bruins!’ and ‘Long Beach!’ in his support, UCLA graduate John Merrick captured the 2013 Northern Trust Open on Sunday at the Riviera Country Club in a two-hole playoff. Merrick earned his first career PGA Tour win when Charlie Beljan missed a five-foot par putt on No. 10, much to the delight of a large contingent of friends, family and local supporters of the 30-year-old Merrick, who grew up in Long Beach. ‘To win a tournament in front of family and friends in your hometown and have people shouting and [to do it] against all the past champions on this golf course, I can’t even describe it,’ Merrick said. ‘It’s a dream come true.’ Merrick recalled playing many rounds at the Riviera during his days at UCLA, often practicing on Tuesday and Thursday mornings with his team, and grew up dreaming of playing in tournaments at his favorite course. He first played in the Northern Trust in 2008 and his best previous finish was 54th in 2010. On Sunday, Merrick was both steady and spectacular, finishing the day with a 2-under par 69 to give him a four-day total of 11-under 273. Beljan, a 28-year-old Mesa, Arizona native and University of New Mexico graduate, shot a 4-under 67, and produced his biggest shot of the day when he sank an 18-foot birdie putt on No. 18 to force the playoff. With an opportunity to make the playoff a trio, Sweden’s Fredrick Jacobson missed a 4-foot par putt on No. 18, dropping him into a third-place tie with last year’s champion Bill Haas and South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel at 274. Haas entered Sunday’s final round with a three-stroke lead, but saw his chances dissipate during a brutal seven-hole stretch in which he accumulated five bogeys. He finished with a flourish with birdies on Nos. 17 and 18, but it was too little too late. All the while, Merrick and Beljan were building momentum, and Merrick saved himself with several key recoveries. On No. 17, he pulled his second shot out of the bunker and behind two eucalyptus trees, but still had just enough room to shoot for the green between the trees. That allowed him to make par, which he did on each of the last five holes. After the players parred the first playoff hole (No. 18), they tackled the devilish 315-yard 10th hole. Merrick drove with a 3-iron, then hit a perfect wedge shot to land about 18 feet from the pin and set himself up for a two-putt par. Beljan, seeking his second PGA title after capturing the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Classic in November, took the approach of a wind-up blast, which landed him in thick rough. He hacked it out onto the collar of the green, but three-putted. ‘It’s so hard not to get ahead of yourself,’ Merrick said. ‘You’re thinking about winning, but you’ve got to keep moving forward. My heart was racing. I was just trying to grind it out and be tough.’ Americans Josh Teater and Webb Simpson finished tied for sixth at 9-under 275, followed by South Korea’s Sang-Moon Bae and Californian Hunter Mahan at 276. Bae and Jacobson were tied for the lead after two rounds with at 133, but Bae struggled mightily in round three with a 5-over 76. Other notable finishers included Adam Scott (278), Ernie Els and Sergio Garcia (279), Phil Mickelson (281) and Fred Couples (286).
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