No solace in second place for Kiwi Brown
Runners-up cheque little consolation, writes Matt Richens. An inconsolable Mark Brown needed a moment to himself after watching a second consecutive New Zealand Open golf tournament slip away.
While 22-year-old champion Dimitrios Papadatos enjoyed the spoils of victory, Brown reflected on a New Zealand Open in which, to him, second means nothing.
The $86,700 runners-up cheque certainly offered no consolation.
With a beer in hand and a deeply telling frown on his face, Brown fronted the media in the clubhouse at The Hills, but only after questioning whether anyone would even want to talk to him.
He didn’t play poorly by any stretch, and shot a bogey-free three-under 69, though in a familiar story he never got his putter going.
"It was just a tough day. I didn’t play particularly well . . . and sort of hung in there but Dimi played a great round.
"[But] it’s all about winning, particularly this tournament. So I take no solace in finishing second. At all. It wasn’t what I wanted so it’s just really disappointing."
The ‘‘loss’’ was made worse by the fact the 39-year-old had led by three going into the final round of the last New Zealand Open and couldn’t hold on.
Brown finished his sombre chat, grabbed his beer, shook a few media hands, then walked out, passing the beaming Papadatos – and the Brodie Breeze Trophy – on his way.
Papadatos was all class and played with the poise of a veteran. When he made mistakes early in his round he saved par, then, on the easier back nine, he got hot.
He started yesterday’s final day with a one-shot buffer, with 18-holes between him and the biggest pay-day of his young career.
Alongside him were Brown and Richard Lee, two equally desperate Kiwis hoping to be the man to break an 11-year drought since a New Zealander had won the New Zealand Open.
Also watching his every shot was a sizeable gallery rooting only for Brown and Lee.
None of that affected the New South Welshman, who has only been professional for 13 months.
He made seven birdies and recorded the equal low round of the day, a sixunder 66. His 18-under total gave him a four-shot win.
And how’s this for pressure? When it counted, on Sunday afternoon, Papadatos birdied five of the last eight holes to secure his first professional win.
The $153,000 winner’s cheque is easily the biggest of Papadatos’ career, though he did pocket NZ$114,000 for finishing in a tie for third at the Perth International last year. It was that tournament where Papadatos proved to himself he could foot it with the big boys.
That tournament was also when he took on one-time PGA Tour winner Andre Stolz as a mentor. His game has steadily improved since, but even Papadatos had no idea he was good enough to win this week. ‘‘I’m still a bit shocked,’’ he said. Papadatos, who replaces good friend Jake Higginbottom as the New Zealand Open champion, said he was going to spend ‘‘a wee bit’’ of his winner’s cheque on a celebratory party in Queenstown last night with a few of his friends, including Higginbottom.
‘‘He’ll be out with me for sure. If not I’m going to drag him out.’’
And he felt no guilt about wrecking the Kiwis’ party, especially Brown and Lee.
‘‘I’ll buy them a beer, they’ll be right.’’
Te Anau’s David Klein finished third at 13-under to also pick up his biggest pay-day, $57,375.
That number would have been significantly less had Lee made his par putt at 18, but he didn’t and finished fourth equal with Ashley Hall at 12-under.
Ryan Fox made run during his round and moved to as high as second equal, but two late bogeys dropped him back to 11-under and in a tie for sixth.