June 10, 2012 - 10:42 PM
VICTORIA - Canadian Tour rookie Andrew Roque birdied his final seven holes Sunday to card a stunning 61 and win the Times Colonist Island Savings Open by three strokes.
The 23-year-old American, who tied a course record, was making his first start on the tour and finished at 14 under for the week, three shots up on Brazil's Lucas Lee and Victoria's Cory Renfrew.
"I knew where I stood but I didn't realize that I made seven birdies in a row," Roque said. "It took a lot out of me today and I'm glad I was able to stay present and pull out the win."
Roque's score tied a course record set by Canadian Tour member Roger Sloan in 2010. The Monterey Park, Calif., native started his closing run with a chip-in birdie on 12 and followed with six more birdies.
"If I wasn't in contention I would have been pulling for Cory. He's a great guy, but what can I say," said Roque, who earned $24,000 with the victory. "I was really focused today and stuck to my plan of staying aggressive."
Renfrew (68) briefly tied Roque with a birdie of his own on the 15th, delighting the hometown fans.
But Roque added birdies at 16, 17 and 18 to run away from the field.
Also making his tour debut, Renfrew led by three shots heading into the final round, and was the only player in the field to break 70 in all four rounds.
Lee (65) made a charge of his own on Sunday and now has four second-place showings to his credit since joining the Canadian Tour in 2009.
Derek Gillespie (66) finished alone in fourth, four shots back of Roque. The Oshawa, Ont., native is playing in 2012 on a medical exemption after suffering severe injuries in a car accident last year.
Gillespie last won on the Canadian Tour in 2003 and sits fourth on the all-time money list.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2012