Scrappy Perez Finishes Strong to Earn Tie for 3rd

Pat Perez might be known best on the PGA Tour for his temper: He once made an obscene gesture toward his ball during a tournament. More recently, PP, or Double P, as he calls himself, has gained notoriety for the blog on his Web site, http://www.patperezgolf. com. He told his fans in a recent post about a trip he is planning to San Diego during the first week of August to catch the Cult in concert: "Look for me out there on the 4th. I'll be the guy front row in a sleeping bag with two days stubble going and a bag of Filiberto's [Mexican food] next to him."

After yesterday's round at Congressional Country Club, Perez finally might be known for his golf. The man who uses boxing gloves as head covers moved from a tie for 26th entering the final round into a tie for third at the AT&T National by shooting one of the better rounds of the day, a 3-under-par 67.

His 71-70-69-67 -- 277 earned him $312,000, his biggest paycheck of the year. Now he won't have to rely as much on sales of those boxing glove head covers for "Knock-Out Approach Shots," which can be purchased for $16 on his Web site.

"I was relaxed," Perez said. "I wasn't really trying too hard. Last time I played on Sunday in Connecticut [at the Travelers Championship], I was in fifth place going into the last day and didn't pan out. This was a nice turn of events."

Perez shot a 76 in the final round of the Travelers to wind up in a tie for 36th place. His finish was emblematic of his uneven season. Of the 17 tournaments he had played, Perez finished in the top 10 three times. He also missed the cut seven times and withdrew once. His previous best finish was fourth at the Colonial in May.

By finishing third at the AT&T National, Perez had his best finish on the PGA Tour since 2002, when he finished second at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am and the Buick Classic. He was one of the steadiest players at Congressional this week, particularly yesterday.

"You can't really go after it on this course," Perez said. "You've got to just take what it throws at you. Take advantage of it, and you're going to have a good day."

Perez birdied two of the course's toughest holes -- Nos. 6 and 11 -- as well as Nos. 4 and 18, which ranked among the top 10 most difficult holes this week. Most of his six birdies came by knocking it close to the pin. His longest birdie putt was a 19-footer on No. 11.

"Everything was just kind of good," Perez said. "The putter came around. I hit some fairways."

Perez's top-10 finish also earned him a spot in the British Open at Carnoustie later this month.

Allenby's a CCC Fan

Count Robert Allenby as one of those who would like to see the tournament stay at Congressional. Allenby, who started his final round tied for 21st place then moved up to fourth after three consecutive birdies beginning on No. 10, finished at 2-under 68 for 278 to tie for sixth.

"This is a great golf course," Allenby said. "It's easy to run a good golf tournament here. You've got a great venue. It's pretty awesome."