U.S. Open Champion Angel Cabrera, who once admitted that he would be a soccer player had he not taken up golf, scored his version of a timely goal Oct. 17, to win the 25th PGA Grand Slam of Golf at Mid Ocean Club in Bermuda.

Cabrera rallied from a near-disastrous triple bogey on the first hole of the second round, then capped his wild rollercoaster day with a birdie-eagle finish to force a playoff then defeat Ireland's Padraig Harrington, the reigning British Open Champion, on the third extra hole.
Angel Cabrera, 2007 PGA Grand Slam of Golf Champion

Both players finished the 36 holes of regulation play at 4-under-par 136 at challenging Mid Ocean Club in Tucker's Town, Bermuda. It was the first PGA Grand Slam of Golf - the annual showcase for the year's major champions – conducted outside the United States.

Cabrera posted a closing 68 and Harrington a 69 as they made up the third sudden-death playoff in event history, and first since 2000, when Tiger Woods defeated Vijay Singh.

After matching pars on the first two extra holes, Cabrera returned to the 18th tee and again reached the 521-yard, par-5 hole in two shots. His 4-iron approach shot came to rest 18 feet below the hole, while Harrington needed three shots to reach the green after driving into a fairway bunker and recovering from there to deep rough.

Harrington missed a 50-foot birdie putt, while Cabrera two-putted and tapped in for a victory and a first-place check of $600,000.

Cabrera also overcame a bogey on the 16th hole, leaving him two strokes behind Harrington. He rallied with a birdie on the par-3 17th from 14 feet and then hit a 3-iron from 240 yards at the 18th that caught the slope and rolled to within four feet of the flagstick.

"It was more difficult to be two behind on the 17th tee than five behind on the second tee," said Cabrera through an interpreter. "There's a lot of golf left on the second tee -- not on the 17th."

Cabrera's round also featured an eagle at the 487-yard 11th after a 336-yard drive and a pitching wedge to 18 feet.

A gallery estimated at 7,000 witnessed the final round and saw a late thriller despite Harrington owning a four-stroke lead with 11 holes to play. He had continually held off challenges by Masters Champion Zach Johnson, and 2003 U.S. Open winner Jim Furyk.

"Obviously, this course is a lot easier when you're chasing and they all managed to make a lot of birdies when they were coming from behind," said Harrington. "It's the nature of the course. It's an exciting course. But when you're out in front, there is a lot of trouble out there and you get a bit cautious."

Furyk, making his third Grand Slam appearance, was the first alternate to replace PGA Champion Tiger Woods, who declined the invitation for the first time he was eligible. Furyk finished third at 138 after a 67, while Johnson closed with a 68 and 139.

Furyk saw his chances slide when he made a triple-bogey 8 on the 11th hole, after failing to hold the green from a difficult lie up against the side of a greenside bunker. He sent the shot over the green and into the bushes.

Johnson, who trailed by seven strokes with 10 holes to play, made up five shots in five holes. But, he couldn't get any closer. He missed an 18-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole and three-putted the 18th.

Harrington two-putted from 42 feet on the 18th to land in the playoff.

"It was hard to go into a playoff," said Harrington, recalling Cabrera's birdie-eagle finish. "I didn't see any advantage I had."

Both missed the 18th green and made pars, and Harrington got up-and-down at the 17th to keep the playoff going. But Cabrera owned the 18th hole when it mattered most, in much the same way that he held on at the end at Oakmont (Pa.) Country Club last June and withstood rallies by both Woods and Furyk to win the Open.

Furyk left himself a better memory of Bermuda by making birdies on four of the last five holes to earn $250,000.

"I made one bad swing on one of my full shots today, the second shot on 11," said Furyk, who dropped his club at the spot and kicked it. "I fought back pretty good, but 11 definitely took my chances away."

Johnson, the shortest driver among the foursome, needed an eagle on the 18th for any chance of a playoff. He approach rolled back off the green, and he uncharacteristically imploded with his short game that had been his salvation this season.

He chipped past the hole to the back of the green and three-putted for a bogey. He earned $200,000.

"This is a golf course where if you're a little cryptic you pay the price," said Johnson. "If you're obviously a little off your short game, it's hard to make par. So I felt if I played solid, you never know. I just didn't want to finish fifth, which I think I might have."

Harrington's first signs of a slide began with a double-bogey on the ninth hole, when he lost his tee shot into the bushes.

That put some drama into the back nine, setting up an unlikely victory for Cabrera.

"The only thing I can say is it was complicated after the first hole, and I was able to come back. And that was a great thing." said Cabrera, who's final round included two eagles, four birdies, three bogeys and a triple bogey.

Cabrera triple-bogeyed the first hole from the deep woods, including having his second shot caroming off a tree narrowly missing him, sparing him a two-shot penalty. He reached the green in five and two-putted for a 7.

"I've always had a lot of trouble in golf," smiled Cabrera. "It's nothing new."

He followed that drama with a three-putt bogey on the second hole, and grinded for a par on the third, and after saved par on the fifth after chunking a wedge some 20 yards short into a bunker.

"I always like to win every time I play," said Cabrera. "And, I wouldn't have liked to be second here."

Angel Cabrera 68-68—136* $600,000
Padraig Harrington 67-69—136 $300,000
Jim Furyk 71-67—138 $250,000
Zach Johnson 71-68—139 $200,000
* won playoff on third extra hole