Levy holds nerve for fifth European Tour victory

RABAT ( Morocco): Frenchman Alex Levy carded four birdies on his way to a final-round 70 and a fifth career title on the European Tour at the Trophee Hassan II in Morocco to provide a boost to his 2018 Ryder Cup hopes.

Levy finished the tournament at the Royal Golf Dar es Salam on eight-under, one shot ahead of third-round leader Alvaro Quiros from Spain, who ended with a pair of birdies but could manage only an even-par 72 in his final round.

“It feels so good, I’m a bit tired now because it was so tough today,” Levy told reporters on Sunday.

“I played an amazing game, I am so happy to win this trophy.”

Levy started the final round a shot behind Quiros but birdies on the third and fifth saw him take the lead. He suffered a setback on the par-four seventh when he carded a five, but hit back immediately with a birdie on the next hole.

Conservative play on the back nine kept him in front of a chasing pack that failed to supply sufficient pressure on a course where scoring had been difficult all week.

The Ryder Cup will be played at Le Golf National in Paris in September and Levy has kept himself in the frame to be part of the European side, but he knows he probably needs one or two more wins to push for a place on the team.

“I need to improve my game,” he admitted.

“I work a lot and have done that the last two days to win this trophy. That has helped me but it is step by step.

“I need to go back to work. We have a lot of good players in Europe, so I need to work hard to make it.”

Levy will take winning form to Beijing next week when he defends his China Open title.