NICK Dougherty's withdrawal from the Verizon Heritage tournament at Hilton Head came after his mother Ennis suffered a heart attack.
The 25-year-old Shaw Hill professional, who was leading until running up a quadruple-bogey eight late in his second round, had been in joint 10th place after 54 holes.
But Dougherty, when he was informed of the news, pulled out of the final round and went immediately to be at his mother's bedside in Orlando.
Dougherty stays in the top 50 of golf's world rankings, but the event could also have his Ryder Cup hopes a major boost with the world ranking points on offer.
Defending champion Boo Weekley retained his title with a rather erratic even par final round that included five birdies and five bogies and gave him a three-shot victory over Aaron Baddeley on 15 under-par.
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