Fiori, who outdueled Tiger in 1996, dies at 72

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Ed Fiori, who for 13 years was the one participant to rally from a 54-hole deficit to beat Tiger Woods on the PGA Tour, died Sunday, the tour mentioned on its web site. He was 72. The tour mentioned Fiori had been battling most cancers. It offered no different particulars.

A four-time winner on the PGA Tour, no victory was extra memorable than the 1996 Quad Metropolis Traditional, now the John Deere Traditional. Three tournaments into his professional profession, a 20-year-old Woods had a one-shot lead over Fiori going into the ultimate spherical at Oakwood Nation Membership.

Woods had a quadruple bogey on the fourth gap and a four-putt double bogey on the seventh gap. He shot 72 to tie for fifth, 4 pictures behind Fiori. Woods gained two begins later in Las Vegas. He by no means misplaced a 54-hole lead in one other PGA Tour-sanctioned occasion till Y.E. Yang beat him within the 2009 PGA Championship at Hazeltine.

Lee Westwood overcame a deficit to beat Woods in 2000 in a European tour occasion in Germany.

Fiori additionally beat two different Corridor of Fame members in playoffs, Tom Weiskopf within the 1979 Southern Open and Tom Kite within the 1982 Bob Hope Traditional.

“In three of his 4 wins on the PGA Tour, he dueled down the stretch with future World Golf Corridor of Fame members, most notably Tiger Woods in 1996,” mentioned Miller Brady, president of the PGA Tour Champions. “That grit and backbone within the face of immeasurable odds is extremely admirable in each facet of life, and I do know he battled most cancers with that very same willpower till the top. He shall be missed by all of us on the tour.”

Fiori performed solely 58 occasions on the senior circuit after turning 50, profitable in 2004 in Mexico.

“I held on for a number of extra years, and performed for some time on the senior tour, however my again was at all times an issue,” Fiori mentioned in a 2019 interview with Golf.com. “I had spinal fusion surgical procedure in 2005, and from then on, I struggled to interrupt 80.

“Do not feel sorry for me, although. I’ve had an important life in a sport I really like. It was by no means straightforward. A lot of occasions, I used to be on that flight heading dwelling on Friday nights,” he mentioned. “However I’d not commerce it for something. Even at present, individuals name me the Tiger killer. They do not at all times get their information straight, however I do not thoughts. I will always remember that weekend on the John Deere.”