1998 Florida Open - Palm Aire CC

Jimmy Stobs

Stobs Outlasts Gay, Wins Florida Open

^{Sun-Sentinel
November 1, 1998}

Golf is no longer as important to Jimmy Stobs as it once was, and this more relaxed attitude may have helped Saturday as he won the 57th annual Florida Open golf tournament at Palm Aire Country Club.

"I love the pressure, but golf is about third on my list of priorities now, behind God and family," Stobs said after outlasting Brian Gay, 69 to 70, for 72-hole totals of 271 and 272. They had started the final round tied for the lead.

Why the change in Stobs' attitude?

In the fall of 1996, it was discovered that Stobs' fiancé, Lorri Logan, had a brain tumor. Though he would reach the finals of PGA Tour qualifying for the first time before the end of the year and subsequently earn conditional playing status on the Nike Tour, Stobs spent last year at Logan's side. And it took him several months following her death in January before he could starting playing golf again.

But after several starts this summer on the South Florida and Golden Bear tours, Stobs is ready to try for the PGA Tour a fourth time. And, he notes, winning the Florida Open should "give me some momentum and a boost of confidence." "It feels great to win against a field with a lot of good players," Stobs added. "Many of them are like me, trying to tune up for tour qualifying."

Stobs, who passed the first stage at Heron Bay in Coral Springs, was to leave this morning for the second stage starting Tuesday at Hombre Golf Club in Panama City Beach. The finals are scheduled Nov. 18-23 in LaQuinta, Calif.

Stobs birdied three of the first five holes Saturday and twice led Gay by two strokes, after the 5th and 13th. Gay pulled even on Stobs' second bogey of the day at No. 12, but promptly hit his tee shot into the edge of a canal right of the 13th green and made double bogey. Both birdied the par-5 14th, Gay the par-4 15th to get back to within a stroke but could get no closer as both parred the last three holes.

"I was pretty slopped all day," Gay said. "The double at 13 woke me up a little, and really I played pretty well most of the week, but when you get close and don't win, you can feel like you played badly." It could have gotten exciting at No. 18 when both players hit their second shots to within birdie range. But after Gay missed his from about 15 feet, Stobs lagged his, two-putting from 4 feet. "It was a little weird," Stobs said. "After trying to make putts all week, I was in a situation where I didn't have to make one. I didn't know how to act."

The victory was worth $15,000 from the $75,955 purse. It was Stobs' largest check and most prestigious victory in six years as a professional golfer.