LAKE TAHOE, Nev. -- Mark Rypien's worst nightmare almost blindsided him on the final hole of the $400,000 Celebrity Golf Championship Sunday at Edgewood Golf Course.
The Washington Redskins quarterback watched as ex-Miami Dolphins safety Dick Anderson hit a miraculous second shot onto the 18th green.
But Anderson missed a 15-foot eagle putt that gave Rypien a one-stroke victory in the first-ever event for celebrities with 10 handicaps or less.
Rypien finished the day at even-par-72. He shot 5-over-par during the 3-day event, recording a 221 total. Anderson scored a 74 on the final day and finished at 222.
'I thought, 'Here comes the old safety blitz,' when Dick hit that shot on the 18th,' said Rypien, who won his first tournament ever and $75,000 in the process. 'And the last thing a quarterback likes to see is a safety blitz.'
Anderson was almost stymied on his second shot on No. 18, a 501-yard par 5. However, he hit a 4-iron shot out of thick rough and through an opening in a pair of tall pines. It sailed 215 yards.
'I hit it as hard as I could,' said Anderson, who won $37,500. 'I couldn't see where the shot finished. I had no idea where the ball was.'
Anderson missed his eagle putt by inches.
'I hit a good putt,' he said. 'I really felt I had made the putt. It just hung up on the side.'
Soap opera star Jack Wagner finished two strokes back at 223. He shot a final-round 76.
Ex-Atlanta Falcons quarterback Steve Bartkowski, who held a one-stroke lead over Wagner entering the final round, faded early on. He tied ex-NFL quarterback and University of Florida head football coach Steve Spurrier at 225. Bartkowski shot 79 and Spurrier 75.
Rypien's round featured three birdies, including one on No. 18, and three bogeys. At no time during the tournament did he score higher than a bogey on any hole.
'I thought 6-over-par would win it after I shot my practice round,' Rypien said.
'I saw some players on the driving range before the tournament started and I wondered if I could muster up with these guys,' Rypien said. 'This was the greatest golf I ever played.'
