Sun Devil Matt Jones, a 2001 first-team All-America selection, won the Honda Classic by five shots Sunday with a 12-under 68 and earned a spot in the Masters.
The margin matched the largest in tournament history, matching Jack Nicklaus (1977) and Camilo Villegas (2010).
The 40-year-old Australian, who played at ASU for three seasons from 1998-2001, earned $1.26 million and started with a course-record-tying round of 9-under 61. He was three shots behind Aaron Wise after 36 holes after a second-round 70, but a third-round 69 set him up for what would end up a rather easy win.
THE MATT JONES SUN DEVIL FILE
--first team All-American in 2000-2001 and honorable mention in 1999-2000
--13 top-10 finishes in 32 collegiate tournaments and had a 72.12 stroke average
--shot a record-matching 62 in the first round of the 41st annual Porter Cup on July 21, 1999
--part of two ASU Pac-10 title team two years competed in three NCAA Championships
--in 2000-2001 he finished the season with a 71.46 stroke average, posted seven top-10 and six top-five finishes in 12 appearances
--shared medalist honors at the 2001 NCAA West Regional in Corvallis (May 17-19) after shooting an 8-under 208 (70-65-73)
--had top-10 finishes in four events in 1999-2000 and had six rounds in the 60s
--tied for first at the 1999 Oregon Duck Invitational with a 1-under-par 215 on March 22-23
--graduated in 1997 from Jannali High School in Sydney, Australia
The margin matched the largest in tournament history, matching Jack Nicklaus (1977) and Camilo Villegas (2010).
The 40-year-old Australian, who played at ASU for three seasons from 1998-2001, earned $1.26 million and started with a course-record-tying round of 9-under 61. He was three shots behind Aaron Wise after 36 holes after a second-round 70, but a third-round 69 set him up for what would end up a rather easy win.
THE MATT JONES SUN DEVIL FILE
--first team All-American in 2000-2001 and honorable mention in 1999-2000
--13 top-10 finishes in 32 collegiate tournaments and had a 72.12 stroke average
--shot a record-matching 62 in the first round of the 41st annual Porter Cup on July 21, 1999
--part of two ASU Pac-10 title team two years competed in three NCAA Championships
--in 2000-2001 he finished the season with a 71.46 stroke average, posted seven top-10 and six top-five finishes in 12 appearances
--shared medalist honors at the 2001 NCAA West Regional in Corvallis (May 17-19) after shooting an 8-under 208 (70-65-73)
--had top-10 finishes in four events in 1999-2000 and had six rounds in the 60s
--tied for first at the 1999 Oregon Duck Invitational with a 1-under-par 215 on March 22-23
--graduated in 1997 from Jannali High School in Sydney, Australia
MATT JONES' CAREER STATISTICS
Year: App-T10-Rds-Avg-Low
2000-01: 12-7-35-71.46-65
1999-00: 12-4-36-71.86-66
1998-99: 8-2-26-73.38-68
Career: 32-13-97-72.12-65