The Englishman Andrew Johnston was proclaimed winner of the Real Club Valderrama Open de España-Fundación Sergio García with a round of 70 strokes (-1) for a total of +1. He has not lacked rivals in an exciting and open last day, among them, Sergio Garcia, who has signed the best card of the day, 67 strokes, and has been at the gates of forcing a playoff. He was third, two strokes behind the champion.
Sergio Garcia has said goodbye to the Real Club Valderrama with his best version. He was six strokes off the lead, he needed a great round to have a chance and he went for it. He made birdies on the 3rd, 4th, 8th and 12th, where the Real Madrid player, Gareth Bale, began to follow him. On the 15th he made a bogey but put the pressure back on with birdies on the 16th and 17th, where he had an eagle in his hands. On the 18th, a bad second shot cost him a bogey, with which he could only wait for his rivals to fail.
The trophy has had several contenders throughout the day. Martin Kaymer led early on but was unable to hold on in a day that, although it was more benevolent than the previous ones, only registered ten rounds under par. Since the US Open in 2013, a tournament on the European Tour had not finished over par. Dutchman Joost Luiten has finally been Johnston’s biggest threat. They started tied and he was one stroke behind the champion with a card under par.
Andrew Johnson is a likeable and folksy Englishman nicknamed “beef” who has today achieved his first victory on the European Tour. His best result to date was a third place finish at the 2015 Alfred Dunhill Championship, after returning to the Tour after finishing number one on the Challenge Tour in 2014. He could hardly believe what he achieved today at Real Club Valderrama and joked about what his friends were going to think watching “beef” alongside the big names who have won this tournament.
ANDREW JOHNSTON, 67 + 74 + 74 + 74 +70 Total 285 (+1): “I’m a nervous wreck. I looked at the boards and all I could think about was to keep holding on. Winning on the European Tour is a dream come true. I knew I could do it on a course as difficult as this one, even in windy conditions, but it had to be done and I made it.
“I’ve been driving well all week but I had trouble with the irons the first three days. I kept trying and finally found the solution today on the 4. I played a 4-iron to putt and it came out perfect. On that shot I found the feel and said to myself “I’ve got it”. From then on I kept hitting solid irons until the end.
“I can’t wait to go home to celebrate with my parents and my friends who are waiting for me. It’s all surreal at the moment… I think it will take me a week to really realize it. At the beginning of the week I didn’t play the practice round well, but on Thursday I played sensational, especially the short game. When the wind picked up I knew I just had to hang in there because there weren’t going to be any low laps, stay in with a chance and that’s what I did.
“I have no words to thank Sergio Garcia for his kindness. Since we arrived he came to greet me every day without knowing me. And I want to thank him for hosting this great tournament on a course as fantastic as this one.”
SERGIO GARCIA, 74 + 71 + 75 + 75 + 67, 287 strokes (+2): “I was two strokes behind, but I gave it my all. This morning I woke up with a lot of pain in my wrist, probably from the injury in Houston, it was a little hard to get up.
“It was a pity on the last hole, I missed the second shot and went 25 meters too far. I wanted to put myself with more one (winning score) and I gave myself several chances. The course was more accessible today, but not easy, you had to hit the ball well. It rained, the greens were not so hard, and there was no wind.
“We have to be proud of how the Open de España has turned out. I am very happy because, with the help of everyone who has contributed, we have raised 65,000 euros for the Spanish Association Against Cancer.”
Leave a Reply