The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Garcia ‘hangs on tough’ to claim KLM Open by a shot
Sergio Garcia was forced to call on all of his vast experience to win the KLM Open by one shot in Amsterdam yesterday.
The Spaniard led by two shots at the fifth and seemed in control, only to find himself trailing playing partner Callum Shinkwin by one shot by the seventh following successive bogeys at The International.
However, a double bogey at the 10th by the Englishman gave Garcia an opening as he recorded three birdies and a bogey to card a total of 18 under par and hold off rising Danish star Nicolai Hojgaard for his 16th European Tour title.
Matt Wallace was third at 15 under par, while fellow Englishman James Morrison was one shot further back as Garcia became the first Spanish winner of the KLM Open since Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano in 2005.
“It was honestly amazing to have my brother, Angie my wife and little Azalea [Garcia’s daughter] here, it’s very special,” Garcia told europeantour.com.
“It wasn’t easy, there were a couple of tough moments today but I hung on tough, that’s the most important thing.”
The 2017 Masters champion look to have sealed victory with a stunning approach from the rough at the 16th, despite having his feet in the bunker for the awkward second shot to dial in to five feet.
The birdie ensured a threeshot lead over Hojgaard but a poor tee-shot at the 17th marked Garcia’s only bogey on the back nine all week to drop to 18 under par just as the Dane got on the par-five last in two shots.
The 18-year-old Hojgaard slid his eagle putt by the hole to finish at 17 under before Garcia carded the par he needed to write his name alongside fellow Spaniards Seve Ballesteros and Jose Maria Olazabal as a KLM Open champion.
Scott Jamieson, who led on Friday night after a second round 65, had scores of 76 and 71 over the weekend as he finished 10 off the lead on eight under par.
Leading Scot was Liam Johnston whose final round 69 saw him finish on nine under, while Richie Ramsay was two under, David Law one under and Marc Warren one over.