MOUNT VERNON - Tom Portner is a champion - again.
With birdies on No.'s 17 and 18 Sunday at Green Hills Golf Club, Portner finished with a 3-under-par 68 for the round and an 8-under-par 134 for the tournament as he captured his third SIGA Championship title and first since 2006.
"I was glad I was able to do it one more time," said Portner, who became just the second player in the last 20 years to win the Pursie Pipes Trophy three times. "I really, really fought the first six, seven, eight holes."
Portner entered the final round with a three-stroke lead over Southern Illinois University sophomore Jake Erickson and Matt Pool, who were tied for second with a 69.
And after a two-hour rain delay, it was Erickson who came out of the gate the strongest in erasing Portner's lead in the first two holes. The SIGA Hall of Famer bogeyed No. 1, while the 19-year-old Erickson birdied No.'s 1 and 2 to pull him into a tie for the lead.
"I didn't expect to come out and play as bad as I did early, but I knew somebody was going to make a run at me," Portner said. "That didn't bother me. It's an 18-hole golf tournament and I never worry about the first few."
Portner briefly regained the lead when Erickson bogeyed No. 4, but a long drive off the tee on No. 6 set up a birdie for the Springfield native that brought the two even once again.
And then came No. 9 and the turning point of the round.
"I hit a horrible shot (on No. 9) and short-sided myself," Erickson said. "And (Portner) birdies and then I'm back down two (strokes)."
Erickson bogeyed 9, while Portner sank a 22-foot putt to give him an even score of 35 entering the turn. He increased the advantage back to three strokes with a birdie on 10 before carding six straight pars heading to 17.
"I really needed to make that putt (on No. 9)," Portner said. "If nothing else, than for me to get some momentum going."
With the 46-year-old former champion not showing any signs of wavering, Erickson's chances of chasing him back down gradually faded. He finished in second place with a 138, but also came away with lessons learned after his battle with Portner.
"I knew he wasn't going to give me anything," Erickson said. "He out-hit my wedges all day. I would be 30 yards out and he would put (the ball) 10 yards closer every time."
In the meantime, Pool birdied 14 to put him at 1-over for the round and five strokes back of the lead - but bogeys on 16 and 18 gave him a 74 finish and a tie for third place with a 143.
"I kind of scraped it around and got the most out of it," Pool said on his round. "It could have been better if I had made a couple more putts, but it is what it is."
The toughest battle of the day came in the Men's Net division, where Chris Ashby finally fought off Ryne Wade in a four-hole playoff that was eventually decided on No. 7. Ashby and Wade each finished the tournament with a 135.
In the Women's Gross, 2008 champion Chelsea Harris regained the SIGA title with a 14-stroke victory over Roberta Sentel. The Austin Peay junior and Metropolis native carded a 68 Sunday to finish the tournament with a 135.
"My chipping was pretty good," Harris said. "I was getting up and down quite a bit. I was pulling the ball quite a bit (Sunday) and I don't normally hit a pull."
