Monty rides luck in wet
COLIN Montgomerie ended a 19-month wait for his 31st European Tour title, winning the European Open by a stroke from Sweden’s Niclas Fasth overnight.
Australia’s Peter O’Malley carded a final-round 69 to finish three behind the winner.
Montgomerie rode his luck on his way to a closing five-under 65 for an 11-under 269 total, holing several big putts and surviving shots close to hazards at the last two holes to edge out Fasth.
The Swede had to wait 80 minutes before he could attempt to make the birdie at the final hole that would have thrown the event into a play-off, following the second suspension for lightning during the afternoon.
A par on the last, reduced from a par-five to a par-three because of week-long bad weather, left Fasth on a closing 67 to miss out on his second win in three weeks.
The $US800,000 ($932,000) first prize was Montgomerie’s first since the Hong Kong Open in December 2005, and came a week after he stumbled over the closing holes to finish third in the French Open.
His 35ft birdie putt from the fringe on the 11th projected Montgomerie to the top of the leaderboard with Fasth.
A 25- foot putt on the 14th and 15-footer off the green at the 15th kept him alongside his main rival, playing four groups behind.
Bogeys by the Swede on the 12th and 13th put 44-year-old Montgomerie, who had twice left tee-shots at the two closing short holes dangerously close to water, in sight of his victory breakthrough.
Fasth held him up by birdieing the 15th to move just a stroke behind, but missed birdie putts of nine feet on 17 and then 15feet, after the second weather break, to come up short.
“After nearly two years of a dry spell it’s great to be back, you wonder if it’s ever going to happen again,” Montgomerie told reporters.
“The last two holes I got fortunate. I was in the hazard at the last and couldn’t ground my club and then I holed a five-footer for par, so I had to work for it.”
Montgomerie was happy to set the record for European Tour title successes. “I’m now one win above Nick Faldo, someone I have admired for many, many years,” said the Scot.
Fasth, suffering from a cold all week, said: “It was rather disappointing - nearly but not quite. Considering how I was feeling it was not a bad effort. I just tried to pull through.”
Second-round leader, Sweden’s Pelle Edberg, finished in a tie for third place with compatriot Peter Hanson, France’s Gregory Havret and Britain’s Anthony Wall.
Third-round leader, Soren Hansen from Denmark, closed with a 72 to finish tied seventh.
Reuters