Associated Press
Sunday, June 11

HARRISON, N.Y. -- Dennis Paulson figures he's just getting started as a PGA Tour winner.

The 37-year-old Californian survived his second straight playoff in the Buick Classic, beating David Duval with a 4-foot par putt on the fourth extra hole Sunday.

"There's 50 guys who won one golf tournament and don't even play golf anymore," said Paulson, who lost to Duffy Waldorf on the first extra hole last year. "I don't want to be one of them.

	David Duval came up just short of his first victory in his past 27 tournaments.

"If you don't think you can win, you won't and you'll lose your card. I basically have the same attitude that Tiger Woods has when I'm playing well: I think I can win every golf tournament."

Paulson, who earned $540,000, holed the winning putt after Duval lipped out a 5-foot par attempt on the par-4 17th.

"It was a straight putt. I hit it firm. Any harder and it would have gone so far past that I probably would have three-putted," said Paulson, who set up the putt with a chip from the deep rough.

Duval's putt caught the left edge of the cup.

"I don't know if I pulled it, just hit a bad putt or if it broke more than I thought," said Duval, who quickly left the course to travel to Pebble Beach for the U.S. Open.

After the players parred the first two playoff holes, Nos. 18 and 17, they matched birdies on the 18th -- with Duval holing a 40-foot uphill putt and Paulson making a 4-footer.

The tournament was decided in a playoff for the third straight year and the ninth time in the last 16 years. There have been 11 playoffs in the event's 34-year history.

Paulson closed with a 3-under-par 68 on the demanding Westchester Country Club course, holing a curling 25-foot birdie putt on the final hole for an 8-under 276 total. Duval, playing three holes behind Paulson, finished with a 69.

Sergio Garcia, the 20-year-old Spanish star who birdied his last hole Friday to make the cut, followed his third-round 65 with a 68 to finish a stroke back. Greg Norman shot a 67 to finish fourth at 278, his first top-10 finish since the British Open.

Paulson, the leader after the first two rounds, overcame a third-round 75. The former national long-driving champion had five birdies in a six-hole stretch beginning with No. 6, bogeyed No. 14, and tied Duval with the long birdie putt on No. 18.

"I love this golf course," he said. "I'll be back here until they won't have me."

Duval, winless since the BellSouth Classic early last season, took advantage of a fortunate bounce on No. 11 for his fourth birdie of the round. His tee shot strayed to the left, but struck a tree and bounced into the fairway. He then hit a 7-iron to about 8 feet. After a bogey on No. 12, he parred the next six holes.

Garcia had the lead at 10-under after 10 holes, but he dropped two strokes on the par-4 11th after failing to pull off a high-risk shot from deep in the woods.

Instead of chipping to the fairway, Garcia attempted to hit a 5-iron under the trees and into the greenside bunker. But he struck a branch on his backswing and left the ball in the deep rough well short of the green.

"I thought I could do it, but I hit a bad shot," said Garcia, who made an amazing recovery shot from between two tree roots last year in the final round of the PGA Championship.

Garcia backed off an eagle putt on No. 10 after he was distracted by a photographer. After missing the putt, he had a run-in with a spectator on his way to the 11th tee.

"He said, 'You're a loser,' " Garcia said. "That probably caused me to lose some concentration, but I still hit a bad shot."

Ernie Els, the 1996 and 1997 winner, finished three back along with Jesper Parnevik, Joey Sindelar, John Cook and Chris Perry. Parnevik shot a 68, and Els, Sindelar, Cook and Perry had 72s.

Defending champion and third-round leader Waldorf folded with a 76 Sunday, tying for 13th place.

Divots
Duval is winless in 27 events after winning 11 times in his previous 34 starts. ... Paulson hit a 388-yard drive on the 462-yard 15th hole, with his ball carrying a ridge and rolling nearly 60 yards past partner Garcia's ball. Paulson hit his second shot to 5 feet, but missed the putt. ... Garcia was 11 under on Nos. 1-10 in the final two rounds. ... Shigeki Maruyama, the player who shot a 58 on Monday during U.S. Open qualifying in Rockville, Md., had rounds of 70, 73, 67 and 76 to tie for 29th at 286.