AVONDALE, La. - Tim Petrovic looked back a dozen years after completing an improbable journey from pizza deliveryman to PGA Tour winner.

Back in 1993, the odds of Petrovic winning a tour title were slim.

"I think I played 11 or 12 events and ran out of money on the Nike Tour," Petrovic said. "I had a sponsor pull out on me, I had no money, I ended up just going to work. I worked for the YMCA and then I went to work making pizzas for about five years. That's washing floors and washing dishes, that's not just making pizzas."

On Sunday, the 38-year-old Petrovic won the Zurich Classic, beating rookie James Driscoll with a 4-foot par putt on the first hole of a playoff.

"This is my first win since never, my first win ever," Petrovic said. "I think I won - I think, was it '01? It was '01 or 2000. Let's see, '01 I won four times on the Golden Bear Tour."

It took Petrovic 23 holes Sunday to grab the $990,000 winner's check. He finished the last four holes of the third round in the morning, shooting a 6-under 66, played the final round in 68 to match Driscoll at 13-under 275, then won the playoff.

The former University of Hartford player set up the breakthrough victory with a 19-foot birdie putt on the final hole of regulation, then finished off Driscoll with a routine par on the par-5 closing hole on the year-old TPC of Louisiana.

"I was proud of myself because I was able to clear my head and step up and just hit it," Petrovic said. "I didn't think about anything. I said, `Just hit it. You've made a million of these on the practice green. This one is a little harder, but it's still a putt, just go out and hit it.'"

Driscoll, playing in the final group with Masters runner-up Chris DiMarco, had a 70. He missed a 4-foot birdie try for the victory on No. 18.

"It's too bad," said Driscoll, the 2000 U.S. Amateur runner-up. "I missed putts on the 18th hole back to back in the playoff and in regulation."

DiMarco, the third-round leader, bogeyed No. 18 to finish a stroke back along with Lucas Glover. DiMarco, playing his first event since losing to Tiger Woods in a playoff at Augusta National, shot a 72. Glover had a 69.

DiMarco holed a 24-foot putt on the first hole for par and birdied Nos. 2, 5 and 8 to make the turn at 15 under, two strokes ahead of Petrovic.

But DiMarco's troubles began on No. 10. He hit his second shot in a bunker 79 feet from the hole. Then his 15-foot putt rolled past the cup for a bogey that dropped him into a tie with Petrovic, playing a hole ahead of him.

DiMarco shot a 39 on the back nine, hitting five bunkers. His putt for par on 18 rolled around the lip of the cup for his third bogey on the back nine.

While DiMarco struggled, Petrovic rebounded from bogeys on Nos. 15 and 17 with his long birdie putt on No. 18.

"When I missed my putt on 17 I heard somebody in the gallery say, 'Well, there's one more down. Two to go,'" Petrovic said. "That kind of got me a little fired up and I said, 'Well, we've still got one hole left.'"

Divots:

DiMarco has six runner-up finishes since winning the 2002 Phoenix Open for his third PGA Tour victory. DiMarco lost playoffs in the last two majors to the top player in the world - the 2004 PGA Championship to Vijay Singh and the Masters to Woods. ... Petrovic said he'd have lots of time to savor his victory. He just bought an RV to travel in and had a 12-hour drive to Charlotte for the Wachovia Championship. ... Singh, the 2004 winner at English Turn, closed with a 72 to tie for 21st at 5 under. ... Darron Stiles had a hole-in-one on No. 17 on Sunday morning in the third round. He tied for 28th at 4 under.