Rafa Cabrero-Bello again suffered the curse of the last day and, with 72 strokes, missed the opportunity to reap his third victory on the European Tour (the last one dates back to 2012 in Dubai). Englishman Chris Wood won with 15 under par the Lyoness Open, in Austria, his second Tour title, with a two-stroke lead over the Spaniard, who finished second. Englishmen Robert Rock, Robert Dinwiddie and Matthew Fitzpatrick shared the third place, with 10 under par.
Wood came out on Sunday five strokes off the lead and signed for a bogey-free 67(-5) to claim his second trophy since the 2013 Qatar Masters.
Brilliant off the tee and effective on the greens, he carded five birdies for a total of 15 under par, two strokes ahead of Cabrera-Bello.
For Wood, the victory is even sweeter after an injured winter:
“Winning is fantastic…who would have told me this winter when I was stuck at home with my wrist in a cast…it was a long time coming.”
“I got injured playing tennis in October and had to immobilize it for five months. I came back in March and came third in Morocco. I thought that would give me confidence, but it was the other way around. Finally, last month I came out of the slump and found myself competing again.”
“I’m thrilled with my game this week, especially today. Going out I told myself if I got under 68 I might have a chance. Clearly things went my way and 67 was good enough.”
“The final result is deceiving, because it looks like I won easily, but it was far from easy. I needed to play well and also for things to go in my favor. Luckily for me, that’s what happened.”
Bad streak for the Spaniard
Despite a solid start and two birdies on the last two par 5s, Cabrera-Bello lost his chances due to a streak of three bogeys. He said: “Three bogeys in a row, 9, 10 and 11 put me behind Chris, and he played very well the last few holes. I managed to make birdie on the par 5s but it wasn’t enough”.
“Today it was a bit like in Ireland, I couldn’t find the right feeling on the green, but I played very well all week and, although I’m disappointed, I’m aware that a second place is a great result.”
“I’m playing well. The last three weeks there has been a brutal change in my season. I’m back to fighting for titles, which is where I should be, so I’ll keep working and see if the coin lands on my side next time.”
The next Spaniard in the standings, Pedro Oriol, shot a final round of 68 with one eagle, five birdies and three bogeys. He finishes 11th with -7.
Carlos del Moral equals the best round of Sunday, a 66 with eight birdies and two bogeys, which makes him gain 34 places. He finishes 16th with -6.
José Manuel Lara (72 on Sunday) and Adrián Otaegui (73) tied for 38th place at -2.
Jordi García Pinto (75) finished in 45th with -1, and Carlos Pigem (78), in 52nd with par.
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