Agony: MacKenzie's predicament on 18 Saturday.
MacKenzie called for a rules official, who delivered the bad news: A two-shot penalty for moving a loose impediment in a hazard.
"Great," said MacKenzie. "I was already hacking my way home. I made a bogey and turned it into a triple."
Instead of being tied for the lead going into the final round, MacKenzie was two back—and steamed.
He couldn't clean the slate by Sunday, either. "I was still a little frustrated and angry," he said. "I felt a little funky early."
But he got hot just in time to catch Turnesa and Gay, whose second-place check moved him to 28th on the money list. Big names who came up short included David Toms (T-8), Woody Austin (T-8), Rory Sabbatini (T-14), Rich Beem (T-14), David Duval (T-22) and John Daly (T-40).
Ecstasy: MacKenzie with two-month-old son Maverick after win.
MacKenzie was 178th on the money list, hoping to scrape together enough game in the Fall Finish to get into the top 125 and keep his card. Now, despite missing two months with a knee injury he said he suffered while dancing at his brother's wedding, he is headed back to Maui for the 2009 Mercedes-Benz Championship, the place where two years ago MacKenzie introduced himself to the golf world by giving out his hotel room number during a Golf Channel interview, soliciting calls from around the country.
Look out Hawaii, the surfer dude/golfer is back. "We will go early," MacKenzie said. "That's a great way to start the year off."
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