Garcia grabs Players Championship title with playoff triumph

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PONTE VEDRA, Florida (AFP) - Spain's Sergio Garcia parred the dangerous island 17th-hole in a playoff to defeat Paul Goydos here Sunday and win the biggest title of his career at the US PGA Players Championship.

The victory was the first in three years for the 28-year-old Spaniard, who fired a final-round 71, one-under par, to match US veteran Goydos after 72 holes at five-under par 283.

Garcia became only the second European player to win the nine million-dollar tournament, the first since Sandy Lyle won a playoff 21 years ago on the third extra hole. That had been the last playoff at the Players until Sunday.

Goydos, a 43-year-old US journeyman who on Thursday became the first player to hit a ball in the water at the 17th this week, put his tee shot short of the island green and into the water to begin the playoff and doom his title dream.

Garcia followed by dropping his tee shot two feet from the cup, all but sealing victory. Goydos stumbled home with a double bogey while Garcia missed the two-footer for birdie but tapped-in for par and the 1.7 million-dollar top prize.