STILES WINS, SCHULTZ TIES FOR 5TH IN NEW ZEALAND

CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand -- Darron Stiles' putter went south on him in the middle of the round, but he managed to make a 7-footer on the last hole to claim the victory in the rain-plagued HSBC New Zealand PGA.

He birdied five of the first six holes at Clearwater Country Club to build a four-stroke lead in Sunday's final round, then started missing short putts, beginning with a little one for par at the ninth and then another little one for par at the 10th. However, he didn't make any bogeys -- or birdies, either -- on the back nine, and the not exactly ho-hum, two-putt par at the last hole gave him a 4-under 68 and a 36-hole total of 134.

That was just good enough to win the tournament, which was co-sponsored by the Nationwide and Australasian tours. Unfortunately, no one from either of the tours could provide anything resembling decent weather on Friday or Saturday, and as a result the event had to be reduced to 36 holes.

David Smail, who was attempting to become the first New Zealander to win this tournament since it became a part of the Nationwide Tour in 2002, finished one stroke behind at 135 after closing with a the best round of the day, a 66. The 2007 New Zealand PGA player of the year had six birdies and no bogeys in the first 15 holes. He then bogeyed No. 16, but got that one back with a birdie at No. 18.

Rick Price shot 69 to slip in at 136, which gave him third place alone. Adam Crawford'posted a 68 for an overall 137, and he finished fourth.

David Schultz, the former Birchmont and Pine to Palm champion from Fargo, was in position to tie Price for third until he made a double bogey 6 at the 17th hole. That bumped his Sunday score to 71, giving him an aggregate of 138 and a tie for fifth place.

It was a disappointing finish for Schultz, who turned professional in 2006 and won the North Dakota Open shortly thereafter. Nevertheless, he earned his first check in three Nationwide tournaments this year, and the approximately $22,200 that he made (24,509.30 in Australian dollars) should put him in the top 25 on the money list. The top 25 on the Nationwide list at year's end will graduate to the PGA Tour.

The 34-year-old Stiles (born June 1, 1973, which was a Friday), a veteran of both the PGA and Nationwide tours, shot a 66 in Thursday's first round, and that was the only round that counted during the first three days. Rain flooded Clearwater on Friday, and on Saturday, although play was begun, more rain forced everyone off the course after a couple of hours.

The rain also wiped out the scores for the holes that were played Saturday, which was a good thing for Stiles. He was 2 over through five holes. On Sunday, he was six better after five holes than he had been the day before on the way to his fifth Nationwide victory. The victory is not official, because the tournament was only 36 holes. The $117,000 he won, on the other hand, is official.

Bronson La'Cassie, who completed a distinguished college career at the University of Minnesota last spring, was also in the field. The four-time all-American from Brisbane, Australia -- who won the Australasian qualifying school by 10 strokes in December -- shot 70-71--141 and tied for 28th. That was worth approximately $4,100 (4,516.23 in Australian dollars).

NATIONWIDE/AUSTRALASIAN TOURS

HSBC New Zealand PGA Championship

At Clearwater Resort

Par 72, 7,137 yards

Final results

(Tournament shortened to 36 holes because of rain)

1. Darron Stiles $117,000 66-68--134

2. David Smail 65,900 69-66--135

3. Rick Price 43,760 67-69--136

4. Adam Crawford 31,100 69-68--137

T5. David Schultz 22,215 67-71--138

T5. Kris Blanks 22,215 68-70--138

T5. Sebastian Fernandez 22,215 69-69--138

T5. D.A. Points 22,215 66-72--138

T28. Bronson La'Cassie 4,100 70-71--141

T98. Michael Campbell 0 70-77--147