JAIDEE’S JOY AS HE HOLDS RORY AT BAY
FURTHER lustre was added to one of the greatest golf stories of all time yesterday when the remarkable Thongchai Jaidee outstripped a corps of Europe’s finest to claim the 100th France Open. The Thai, who didn’t pick up a club until he was 17 and was in his thirties before he turned pro, has now become, at 46, the oldest winner of this prestigious event since the European Tour was formed in 1972. Gathered behind Jaidee at the start of play was Rory McIlroy and plenty more with designs on using the double Ryder Cup points on offer to cement their claims for a place in Darren Clarke’s team. But no one was able to get any closer than the two-stroke lead with which Jaidee began, as the veteran conducted a masterclass. On one of the most difficult courses on the rota, the only bogey Jaidee had over the entire weekendnd came at the 18th, when he had already sealed victory. And so the man who learned the game after tying a bamboo stick into the hoselel of a discarded five e iron, and was a paratrooper in the Thai air force for a decade before turning pro, had claimed his eighth tour title by an impressive four strokes. Jaidee dissolved into tears as he embraced his wife behind the 18th green, and took in the fact he had won the centenary edition of the oldest event in continental Europe. ‘It’s by far the biggest victory of my career,’ he said. Runner-up was Italian Francesco Molinari, who missed out on the last Ryder Cup but has now leapt into consideration for this one, followed by McIlroy. Given he’s working on a few things, perhaps it wasn’t surprising the Northern Irishman didn’t have his best stuff under the pressure of a final round. But he must have been doing something right to still finish in the frame. McIlroy will head over to Royal Troon on Thursday for his first look at the course where The Open will be staged the following week. ‘It was a good week’s work to see where I’m at with my game,’ said the world No 4. ‘There were signs it is heading in the right direction but there were a few swings today that were not so good. Now I’ve got 10 days where I’ll be spending time on the range with my coach Michael (Bannon) to see if we can be firing on all cylinders at Troon.’ Spare a thought for Englishman Andy Sullivan. He began tthe final round clinging to the ninth a and automaticlast spot Ryderin the Cup standings. With one hole to play he was joint seconds in the tournament and poised to climb at least two spots to a position of relative safety. One ball almost in the water off the tee became a third shot that did find the drink. In the third round, the engaging Midlander had holed his second shot at this hole. Now he walked off with a triple-bogey seven that not only cost him more than 300,000 precious Ryder Cup points but the not-so-trifling matter of £150,000, as he fell into a three-way tie for fifth. ‘It obviously hurts right now to finish that way but I saw lots of positives in my game,’ said Sullivan. ‘That’s three decent finishes in a row and I can feel a big week is just around the corner.’ There’s no better time in golf than the month of July to be feeling like that.