Photo by Eric Keith / St. Joseph News-Press / Purchase this photo

Brad Nurski peers through a cloud of sand he kicked up pitching out of the No. 6 bunker Sunday during the final round of the City Golf Championship. Nurski shot a 4-under 67 for the day, and won the three-round tournament with a total of 14-under.

Brian Haskell’s chip on the first green rolled gracefully into cup for a birdie.

A signal of intent from the five-time champion? Perhaps.

But Brad Nurski held the lead and responded to each of Haskell’s challenges on the front side Sunday afternoon at St. Joseph Country Club. With a five-shot lead entering the third and final round of the City Golf Championship, Haskell twice trimmed the lead to three on the front nine, but Nurski held all the answers.

Nurski shot a 4-under 67 (14-under total) and pulled away for a nine-shot victory.

“Obviously, Brian played well. I just eventually got it done,” said Nurski, who earned his fourth city title, second in a row and fourth straight he has entered.

“I have all the respect in the world for Brian, and he’ll be there many more times.

“You don’t want to say you get used to winning, but you always like to win. The fourth one, they’re all special because you know you beat the best players in the city.”

It didn’t appear the fourth would be that easy.

Nurski made just seven pars in the final round to go with four bogeys, six birdies and an eagle. It was an uncharacteristic for the usually steady Nurski.

Haskell’s birdie on No. 1 trimmed Nurski’s lead to four, but the defending champion immediately answered with 13-foot birdie of his own. Nurski’s next stumble came on the par-5 third, where he three-putted for bogey.

Coupled with Haskell’s birdie, Nurski suddenly led by just three.

But Nurski’s 22-foot birdie on the next hole granted him another reprieve. Back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 6 and 7 paired with Haskell’s birdie on the par-3 seventh brought the gap back to three.

Nurski then finished his front nine with a pair of 15-plus foot birdie putts on Nos. 8 and 9, while Haskell bogeyed the up-hill par-3 ninth.

Suddenly at the turn, Nurski’s lead was one bigger than when he started.

“I wasn’t swingin’ very good at the beginning,” said Nurski, who also birdied 10 and 12 to take a seven-shot lead. “Brian was putting a little pressure on me, but it seemed like every time he made a good shot or made a birdie, I kind of answered right back.”

All doubt was erased when Haskell felt a twinge in his already-injured right elbow on his tee shot at the peninsular par-3 13th. His shot sailed well right and into a creek.

After the penalty stroke, he finished with a double bogey and lost any slim chance he had to catch Nurski.

“I made a couple birdies early,” Haskell said. “But on 5 and 6, I missed two very makable putts that instead of being down four I’d be down two. I just misread both of them.

“(Nurski’s) playing awful solid, and I knew there was no way he was gonna shoot 74, 75 and get me a chance. Even if I’d shot my 65 I wanted to, it still wouldn’t have been enough.”

The elbow bothered Haskell for all three rounds, but did not keep him from shooting 69 at Moila and Fairview and even-par 71 on Sunday.

“All weekend I couldn’t swing as hard as I wanted to,” Haskell said. “I just tried to keep it in play and play with what I had.”

Nurski added the exclamation to the tournament with his eagle at the par-5 17th. More than 30 feet right of the hole, Nurski’s putt took off with a lot of pace, bounced off the back of the hole and dropped in.

Mark Korell — tied for the lead after the first round at Moila — finished in third at even-par for the tournament, 1-over Sunday. Harry Roberts jumped into a tie for fourth with Derek Baade after a 2-over 73.

Assistant sports editor Ross Martin can be reached at rossmartin@npgco.com