J.B. HOLMES RETURNS TO THE WORLD TOP 50
Week 7

J.B. Holmes rallied from a four-shot deficit in the final round and won a marathon finish Sunday in the Genesis Open for his first victory in three years jumping back into the World Top 50 at World No. 42.

Ryan Fox has claimed the maiden European Tour title of his career with a commanding win over Spain’s Adrian Otaegui in the final at the joint sanctioned PGA Tour of Australasia’s ISPS HANDA Super 6 Perth tournament at Lake Karrinyup Country Club moving to a career best of World No.66.

Swede, Philip Eriksson, carded a final-round of four-under-par 68 to pull clear of the pack at the Sunshine Tour’s Dimension Data Pro-AM jumping 642 places to World No. 384, a career best.

18TH FEBRUARY 2019 | 06:32 AM

PGA Tour – Genesis Open

J.B. Holmes rallied from a four-shot deficit in the final round and won a marathon finish Sunday in the Genesis Open for his first victory in three years.

Holmes closed with a 1-under 70, and that was enough to overcome former FedExCup champion Justin Thomas, who took 19 putts on the back nine at Riviera -- three of them from 8 feet when he lost the lead for good -- and shot 75.

"I knew it was going to be very difficult to shoot a low score," Holmes said. "I needed some help from Justin."

They played 34 holes because of a seven-hour rain delay at the start of the tournament Thursday, and that wasn't even the worst of it. The final day featured a wild shift in weather, from sunshine in the morning to complete 16 holes of the third round, brief rain when they teed off in the final round and wicked wind that made it tough to hole putts.

There were three two-shot swings on the back nine, all because of putting.

The biggest moment was on the 13th hole, when Holmes was one shot behind and made a 12-footer for par. Thomas, who had lagged his birdie putt from 65 feet to 8 feet from the cup, three-putted from there for a double bogey to fall one shot behind.

He three-putted the next hole to fall back further, made an 8-foot birdie on the 16th to get with one but couldn't catch up.

Holmes had his problems, too. Right when he took the lead for the first time -- a birdie on the par-4 10th and a three-putt bogey from long range by Thomas -- Holmes turned birdie into a shocking bogey when he three-putted from 3 feet.

Thomas, who looked sharp as ever in the morning in his round of 65 to build a big lead, missed a 6-foot birdie putt that would have tied for the lead at the par-5 17th after Holmes three-putted for par from 30 feet. He had one last chance to force a playoff, but his 20-foot birdie putt broke off to the right.

"I struggled putting in the wind out there," Thomas said. "Unfortunately, it showed a flaw in my game. It was obviously very difficult. J.B. won. He played great. It's always a bummer to hand a tournament. I feel like I should have won that thing."


PGA Tour of Australasia, European and Asian Tour – ISPS Handa Super 6 Perth

Ryan Fox has claimed the maiden European Tour title of his career with a commanding win over Spain’s Adrian Otaegui in the final of the ISPS HANDA Super 6 Perth tournament at Lake Karrinyup Country Club.

The top 24 players advanced to the final day for the match play phase of the tournament with Fox winning three matches and Otaegui four before meeting in the six-hole final.

While he needed nine holes – including three trips up and back at the short knockout hole – to get past Thailand’s Jazz Janewattananond in his first match, Fox needed just four to secure the biggest win of his career, conceded his par putt on the fourth hole to win 3&2.

Sunshine Tour – Dimension Data Pro-Am

The Swede, Philip Eriksson, carded a final-round of four-under-par 68 to pull clear of the pack in a tournament record-equalling 21-under-par, finishing with a birdie on the last hole of the Montagu course to be comfortably clear of runner-up Justin Walters at the Dimension Data ProAm.

Dean Burmester was third a further shot back, and Jaco van Zyl was fourth. Defending champion Jaco Ahlers shared fifth with Merrick Bremner and Jbe’ Kruger.

“I’m speechless, really,” said Eriksson in immediate reaction to his victory. “It feels like a dream come true. I’ve heard so much about this tournament though the years, even in Sweden. And even though it’s not a European Tour event or anything, it’s such a big event that a lot of people come here just to play this tournament. So playing here for the first time and winning feels unbelievable.”


It was a week during which he hardly put a foot wrong, making just three bogeys the whole week with rounds of 66 to open with on Montagu, 67 on Outeniqua and 67 on The Links ahead of his final round on Montagu.


Web.com Tour – LECOM Suncoast Classic

Mark Hubbard held off a late surge from Maverick McNealy to earn his first Web.com Tour victory at the LECOM Suncoast Classic. Hubbard carded a final-round 5-under 67 to finish with a 26-under 262 total at Lakewood National Golf Club.

“I’m speechless right now,” said Hubbard. “I was able to pull it off by not thinking about the outcome and just playing my game, at least until my putt on 17 (made bogey)…my last five shots I was in my head a bit. But it was great to do this with my mom and my little brother here. I’m over the moon right now.”

Hubbard looked ready to coast to victory after five birdies yielded a front-nine 31. Six straight pars to start the back nine – along with an eagle and two birdies by McNealy on the back nine – shrunk his lead to one. Hubbard birdied the par-5 16th for a two-stroke lead that would hold through the end.

“The first scoreboard I looked at was on 15 green,” said Hubbard, whose last win came on the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada in 2013. “I had told my caddie not to tell me anything. The way this course was playing I knew I needed to score. If we were at Riviera maybe I could come out and shoot even and get away with it, but out here I had to score. And Mav showed that, he was nipping at my heels all day.”

The San Jose State alum was near the top in several statistical categories. He ranked T3 in driving accuracy, T2 in greens in regulation and second in birdies made with 29. All week he talked about keeping his mind and emotions in check. He was able to do that on Sunday with the help of some pre-round music.

“I was really nervous last night before I went to sleep, but this morning I felt good,” said Hubbard. “I worked out, listened to music and had a normal routine. I listen to a bunch of different stuff before rounds, sometimes country or even the band my brother used to be in. But today I listened to some slower-paced music to calm me down.”

Professional Golf Tour of India – PGTI Players Championship

Udayan Mane delivers a top-class 67 to emerge champion, at the Professional Golf Tour of India Players Championship.

Shubhankar Sharma and Mukesh Kumar share second place. Pune-based Udayan Mane delivered a top-class final round of five-under-67 to emerge champion at the Rs. 30 lakh PGTI Players Championship at the Classic Golf & Country Club in Nuh, Haryana, on Friday. The prolific Mane, playing in only his fifth season as a professional, earning seven Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points.

The 27-year-old Udayan (71-64-71-67), who achieved his target total score of 15-under-273, climbed from fifth to second position in the 2019 PGTI Order of Merit and is likely to take a big jump in the world rankings from his current 962 when the updated list comes out on Monday.

India’s top golfer Shubhankar Sharma (70-68-69-67) finished joint runner-up at 14-under-274 while veteran Mukesh Kumar (71-69-69-65) of Mhow came up with a spirited 65, the best round of the day, to also bag tied second place on a topsy-turvy day that saw at least four players in the lead or the joint lead at different stages.

Mena Golf Tour – Journey to Jordan 1 - Ayla

Matthew Baldwin cruised to a wire-to-wire victory in the Journey To Jordan-1, the opening event of the 2019 season of MENA Tour by Arena, winning by a record margin of eight shots at the Ayla Golf Club.

The 32-year-old from Southport left the field in his wake with his second successive round of six-under par 66 to tally 19-under par 197 for three days.

Sweden’s Erik Jonasson matched Baldwin’s 66 in the final round but that could only take him to 11-under par 205. The consolation prize for him was a spot in the Challenge de Espana, an event on the European Challenge Tour in first week of May.

Scotland’s Conor O’Neil (70) and Belgium’s Christopher Mivis (70) were tied for third place at 10-under par 206.

England’s Curtis Knipes (71) capped off a fantastic two weeks in Jordan by finishing as the Leading Amateur, a week after he secured a full card through the Qualifying School. Jack Floydd struggled on the final day and slipped down with a four-over 76 to finish second, three shots behind Knipes.

Dubai-based 14-year-old Josh Hill finished third among amateur with an even-par round for a two-under par total, while his good friend Arjun Gupta, another 14-year-old from Dubai, shot a bogey-free six-under par 66, matching the best round of the day.

The previous record for the largest margin of victory in a 54-hole tournament on the MENA Tour was by Frenchman Lionel Weber, who won the 2017 Mountain Creek Open by Golf Citizen by seven shots. Baldwin’s dominance broke that record by one shot.


All Thailand Golf Tour and Asian Development Tour – Thongchai Jaidee Foundation

Thailand’s Sadom Kaewkanjana had a magical ace to thank for helping him win his maiden victory by five shots following a two-under-par 68 in the final round of the Thongchai Jaidee Foundation 2019 on Sunday.

The 20-year-old Thai holed out from 175 yards on hole two after sweetly striking his seven-iron for his first hole-in-one of his professional career at the 13th Military Circle Golf Course, the venue where tournament host Thongchai Jaidee grew up playing on.

Thai-Japanese Kosuke Hamamoto signed for a 65 to take second place while Korea’s Soomin Lee posted a 69 to sit in third place at the joint sanctioned All Thailand Golf Tour and Asian Development Tour (ADT) event.


Nordic Golf League – Mediter Real Estate Masters

Gudmundur Kristjansson won his first ECCO Tour victory on Thursday when he won Mediter Real Estate Masters. Nicolai Højgaard finished fourth in the strong field.

Icelandic Kristjansson led from start to finish, and although the position was unfamiliar, he showed no signs of nerves. Never was he - in spite of the rising breeze - in danger of being caught, and on the last holes was the lead big enough to cruise the victory home.

With a round of 66 strokes and a total of 12 under par, he won with three strokes to the nearest pursuer, Jarand Ekeland Arnøy from Norway. The French Challenge Tour player, Mathieu Fenasse, who previously won at PGA Catalunya Resort, finished third in eight under par.


Pro Golf Tour – Open Plameraie Country Club

Scotsman Kevin Duncan secured himself his first victory on the Pro Golf Tour with precise putts and two fantastic rounds of 63 strokes on day 2 and 3 of the Open Palmeraie Country Club 2019.

With a 69 and two 63s on his cards and a total of 19 under par the man from Scotland truly earned his maiden win on the Pro Golf Tour. After 54 holes he finished the event four shots ahead of both Englishman Darren Walkley and Ahmed Marjan from Morocco who shared the second rank with -15. Duncan receives 5000 Euros prize money for the biggest win in his professional career and climbs up to rank 5 of the Pro Golf Tour Order of Merit.


“After the last season I was thinking about quitting professional golf. This makes my first win even more special than it already is. It was definitely worth it to continue “, Duncan said after his success.

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