LEISHMAN WINS BMW CHAMPIONSHIP
Week 37

Mark Leishman made back-to-back birdies late in the final round Sunday to put away the final challenge, then closed with a birdie for a four-under 67 to set the tournament record at the BMW CHAMPIONSHIP and win by five over Justin Rose and Rickie Fowler.

Yuta Ikeda won his 18th Japan Golf Tour title with a playoff victory at the ANA Open, the 31 year old defeated fellow countrymen Shugo Imahira and Ryuko Tokimatsu.


Julien Guerrier clinched a second European Challenge Tour win of the season with a dominant six-shot victory at the Irish Challenge hosted by Mount Wolseley Hotel, Spa & Golf Resort

18TH SEPTEMBER 2017 | 02:36 AM

PGA TOUR – BMW CHAMPIONSHIP

Mark Leishman made back-to-back birdies late in the final round Sunday to put away the final challenge, then closed with a birdie for a four-under 67 to set the tournament record and win by five over Justin Rose and Rickie Fowler.

It was Leishman's second victory this year, and it sends him to East Lake as the No. 4 seed in the FedEx Cup, giving him a clear shot at the $10 million prize.

Leishman finished at 23-under 261, breaking the 72-hole tournament record that Tiger Woods set at Cog Hill in 2007.

The timing could not have been better for the 33-year-old Australian. In his last event two weeks ago, he lost a two-shot lead on the back nine at the TPC Boston and said that loss stung more than most.

"I had a few scars from a few weeks ago," Leishman said. "I was just really, really determined to not let that happen again. Got it done."

And it was never really close.

Rose is the only player who got within two shots of the lead, only for Leishman to answer with a 30-foot birdie putt on the 15th hole and a 10-footer for birdie on the 16th. Rose closed with a 65.

Fowler made a late run when he was too far back, and he needed one more birdie on the 18th to grab the No. 5 seed for the FedExCup finale next week at the TOUR Championship. He ripped driver off the fairway and over the stream to the back rough. It was a bold play that preceded a pair of meager efforts -- a chip that came up 25 feet short, and a birdie putt that didn't to the hole. He closed with a 67.


Japan Golf Tour – ANA Open

Yuta Ikeda won his 18th Japan Golf Tour title with a playoff victory at the ANA Open, the 31 year old defeated fellow countrymen Shugo Imahira and Ryuko Tokimatsu.

This is Ikeda’s second win in his last four Japan Golf Tour starts and moves to World No. 49


Challenge Tour – Irish Challenge hosted by Mount Wolseley Hotel, Spa & Golf Resort

Julien Guerrier clinched a second European Challenge Tour win of the season with a dominant six-shot victory at the Irish Challenge hosted by Mount Wolseley Hotel, Spa & Golf Resort just hours after compatriot Romain Wattel had sealed a maiden European Tour win at the KLM Open.

Wattel has significant Challenge Tour history of his own, having won on the tour in 2010 when still an amateur, and he is sure to be joined on the European Tour next year by Guerrier, who remains second on the Road to Oman but has cut Aaron Rai’s lead to around 19,000 points.

Guerrier had previously won on home soil at June’s Hauts de France Golf Open but rarely has he been more impressive than in Carlow, where his bogey-free five under par final round of 67 extended his run to 48 holes without dropping a shot.


Web.com Tour – Albertsons Boise Open presented by Kraft Nabisco

Chesson Hadley made a late back-nine charge Sunday with birdies on three of his last four holes to secure his second victory of the season at the Albertsons Boise Open presented by Kraft Nabisco, the second of four Web.com Tour Finals events. Hadley entered the day five shots back of the lead but posted the round of the day with a 6-under 65 to edge Ted Potter, Jr. and Jonathan Randolph by one shot with a 16-under 268 total for his fourth career Web.com Tour victory.

“I know I came out of nowhere. No cameras showed up on me until I was on 16,” Hadley said. “Obviously every win is such a great feeling. The course was not playing easy, and I just kind of hung in there. I didn’t think 16-under would have a chance, but I’m certainly not going to give the trophy back.”

The shot of the day that ultimately won him the trophy came at the par-3 17th, where the Raleigh, North Carolina native striped his approach to a couple feet for his third consecutive birdie.

“I’ve never had a hole-in-one ever. I stand up on every par-3 and I’m going at it. I’m sending it in there, and I’m trying to make an ace,” Hadley said. “That thing was drawing in there so pretty. She was beautiful, and it looked like it came close. It was probably a few inches on the other side of the hole. I was really nervous. I didn’t feel like I hit the ball as well as I have, but I just kind of golfed my ball well enough this week. That’s the reason I won, that birdie on 17.”


European Tour – KLM Open

Romain Wattel landed his first European Tour title after a dramatic finish at the KLM Open in Spijk.

The Frenchman, who had recorded 25 top-ten finishes in his previous 186 events without tasting victory, was in control for much of the final round but survived a late scare when he missed the green with his approach to the last.

He successfully got up and down for par and a closing 69, which gave him a 15 under total.

That was one ahead of fast-finishing Canadian Austin Connelly, with Kiradech Aphibarnrat – Wattel’s main challenger for much of the day - finding water with his second to the 18th and dropping to 12 under with the subsequent double bogey.

Wattel’s victory was all the more remarkable as he had not finished higher than 24th previously this season and came into the week down at 130th in the Race to Dubai Rankings presented by Rolex.


Asian and KPGA Korean Tour – Shinhan Donghae Open

Canada’s Richard T. Lee completed his remarkable comeback from injuries by overcoming a two-shot deficit to win the Shinahan Donghae Open by one shot on Sunday.

Gavin GreenLee’s final round of five-under-par 66 was enough to see him lift his second Asian Tour title at the expense of Malaysia’s Gavin Green, who was left to settle for second place after he had started the day with the lead.

Lee’s career had appeared in a freefall with his Asian Tour card seemingly lost after he suffered from a dislocated shoulder and muscle spasm and was left without a win for three years.

But his resolve to win again saw him return to Korea early to practice where he played on the Bear’s Best Cheongna Golf Club for at least six times before the tournament got underway.

Lee’s efforts were finally rewarded when he posted rounds of 68, 71, 68 and 66 to lift the Shinhan Donghae Open trophy with his winning total of 11-under-par 273.


PGA Tour Canada – Freedom 55 Financial Championship

Rico Hoey, who captured his first Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada victory on Sunday at the season-ending Freedom 55 Financial Championship to earn a spot in The Five and secure Web.com Tour status for 2018.

The 21-year old University of Southern California grad shot a final-round 3-under 67 at Highland Country Club to finish at 19-under total and win by one over Mequon, Wisconsin’s Jordan Niebrugge, with the win vaulting Hoey from 11th to fifth on the Order of Merit.

Kimberley, B.C.’s Jared du Toit finished T17, high enough to clinch Freedom 55 Financial Canadian Player of the Year honors, which comes with a $25,000 prize.

For Hoey, it was an emotional win, with an outpouring of relief, elation and gratitude for his family’s support showing after his win.

“I knew I had to shoot a good score to get myself into the top five. I’m just glad I gave myself a shot and I pulled it off,” said Hoey through tears afterwards. “It’s nice doing it for my family. They believe in me so much, so it’s kind of nice knowing I have support, so I’m just doing it for them.”


PGA EuroPro Tour – Clipper Logistics Championship

James Adams carded rounds of 70, 65, and 66 to win the HotelPlanner.com PGA EuroPro Tour’s Clipper Logistics Championship by four shots, claiming his second tour win of the year.

Adams (Druids Heath Golf Club), who had already tasted victory at the Motocaddy Masters at Wychwood Park Golf Club, collected just a single bogey across 54 holes at Moor Allerton Golf Club.

“I feel great, it is hard to put the win into words but it makes everything worth it.”: said Adams, who wins £10,000 as well as a brand new Motocaddy S3 PRO electric trolley with lithium battery, Bushnell Pro X2 Range Finder and Bolle sunglasses.

He added: “It’s probably the best I’ve ever played in a tournament. The weather was really tough, especially on the first day with the wind and heavy rain. The last two days have been great, to go bogey free across two rounds isn’t the norm for me.”

In total, Adams collected 13 birdies over 54 holes to win comfortably. His second win moves him to 5th in the Race To Amendoeira, from which the top five at the end of the season earn promotion to the Challenge Tour.


MENA Tour – Dubai Creek Open

MG Keyser survived a shaky start and a late wobble to complete a tense wire-to-wire victory in the Dubai Creek Open on Wednesday.

The 30-year-old South African, two in front overnight, closed with a level-par 71 to finish on 13-under for the tournament, beating his nearest rivals Rayhan Thomas of India and England's Todd Clements by two shots for his maiden win on the MENA Tour.

Keyser, who is now based in Dubai, made a bogey-double bogey start, but showed steely resilience, picking up three shots in his next four holes to regain the lead. Just when he appeared to be cruising home, Keyser double-bogeyed the 17th after smashing his drive into the Dubai Creek, but he kept his calm under pressure.

Standing on the final hole with a one-shot lead, he managed a solid par four as Thomas was unable to recreate the brilliance of his second-round 61, studded with world record-equalling nine birdies in a row, and three-putted from 15 yards to settle for tied second.

“It feels great to get the job done. I am really enjoying my golf for the last six months or so. Just keep working hard on my game and just keep smiling is what I strive to do,” said Keyser after receiving the winner’s trophy from MENA Tour patron Darren Clarke, who himself featured in the field.

“It was some battle out there after that nightmarish start, but I played well in the middle and kept it going, though Rayhan, who is a good friend, did put some pressure.

“After that double-bogey (on the 17th), I hit a good drive on the final hole and managed to make par which, in the end, proved enough to see off Rayhan,” said Keyser, who won his first professional title in an Asian Development Tour event in Malaysia last year.


Sunshine Tour – Sun Boardwalk Challenge

Tyrone Ryan fired a flawless final round of six-under-par 66 in testing windy conditions to edge out Christiaan Bezuidenhout by a single shot. That was after overnight leader Colin Nel battled his way to a two over 74 and had to settle for a share of third with Bryandrew Roelofsz and Anthony Michael.

“I spoke with my dad on the phone last night, and he told me not to try and chase the win,” said Ryan, who was five off the lead after 36 holes, “but I got to the range this morning, and I thought, ‘Screw that, I’m pushing for the win.’”

The result was an opening nine of two under-par 33, and then he picked up another birdie at the 11th. “I looked at the leaderboard on the 15th green, and I saw I was one back,” said Ryan.

He had already made his fourth birdie on the 15th, and he knew if he pushed a little over 16 and 17 – where he made an eagle and a birdie they day before – he’d set a challenging target. He rolled in a 20-footer for birdie on the 16th and then made birdie on 17 after narrowly missing a lengthy eagle chance.

LATEST NEWS
VIEW ALL LATEST NEWS