NAPLES, Fla., Feb. 14 (UPI) -- Fred Couples registered an 8-under 64 Sunday to finish at 17-under 199 and capture the ACE Group Classic in only his second PGA Champions Tour event.
Playing at The Quarry in Naples, Fla., Couples carried a two-shot lead into the final round but ended winning by only a single stroke over Tommy Armour III, who blazed through the course with an 11-under 61 -- a course record.
Armour, playing in his first Champions Tour event, at 200 came within a stroke of becoming only the 16th player in tour history to win his first event.
Scott Hoch shot a 3-under 69 in the final round to finish in third place at 9-under 207.
The win for Couples was his first since the 2003 Houston Open, and could signal a prodigious Champions Tour career. Last month during his Champions debut, he took second to Tom Watson at the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai, Hawaii.
