Tag Archives: European Tour

Aguilar’s Remarkable Final Day Earns Him the Championship at Laguna National Title

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Felipe Aguilar is back in winning form…

The 39-year-old Chilean professional golfer surged into the lead at The Championship at Laguna National with an impressive back-nine 28 — capped by a birdie on the par-3 17th and an eagle on the par-4 18th — and then had to sit it out to see if anyone else could catch him.

Felipe Aguilar

Co-overnight leader Anders Hansen was the last golfer to have a chance, but he failed to birdie his final two holes to force a playoff, giving Aguilar his first European Tour title in six years.

Aguilar shot a final round 10-under 62 to finish at 22-under 266, one stroke ahead of Hansen and American David Lipsky in joint-second.

“Yesterday I thought I had no chance,” Aguilar said. “Today I said to my caddie on the 17th after I made a birdie, ‘If we can make a birdie on 18 we can put some pressure on the leader,’ and he said ‘What about making a two?’ I said to him the way I had been hitting the ball I could well do two and I did. It’s very, very special.”

Hansen, who recently returned to the tour after a six-month layoff due to wrist surgery, had led by three shots after a birdie on the 12th hole but could not match Aguilar’s impressive finish. He bogeyed the 16th and then shot even par on the final two.

“What can you say? I heard (Aguilar) finished two, two. It’s just one of those days,” Hansen said. “It’s just really, really disappointing.”

Aguilar started the day four shots back in equal-seventh, but started to climb into contention with four straight birdies after the turn on holes 10-13. After birdieing the par-5 15th, he then sank a 10-footer for another birdie on the 17th and holed his approach shot for eagle on the 18th.

“I got a bit lucky,” he said. “I hit one of my best shots on 17 and then again on 18.”

Aguilar, who’s been dealing with a sore wrist he injured while mountain biking, won for just the second time on the European Tour, his previous title coming in Indonesia in 2008.

“It’s been a bit of a drought for six years. I’ve lost a couple of times in play-offs and had a couple of top-threes and top-fives, but never was able to get the round going on the last day, so it is nice to finally do it,” he said.

Jimenez Makes History at the Masters Golf Tournament

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Miguel Angel Jimenez has entered the annals of Masters history…

The 50-year-old Spanish professional golfer made Masters Golf Tournament history on Saturday by tying the record for the lowest score shot by a player age 50 or older.

Miguel Angel Jimenez

Jimenez, who has 20 wins on the European Tour, shot 6-under-par 66 to surge up the leaderboard and move two shots behind co-leaders Jordan Spieth and Bubba Watson in a tie for fifth place

Jimenez matched the 66 shot by Ben Hogan at the Augusta National Golf Club in 1967 and again by Fred Couples in 2010.

“I love the place,” he said. “It’s a beautiful place, a beautiful golf course, always manicured, and I feel great here. Doesn’t matter how you play, you feel good, because everything is prepared for us the way it is.

“If you are 50 doesn’t mean that you cannot play well. I’m still moving. I’m still flexible … the main thing is I’m doing what I like to do in my life and I’m enjoying it completely.”

Jimenez, who won the UBS Hong Kong Open late last year, started his round at 3 over, but birdied the third, fifth, 10th and 11th holes before a bogey at No. 12. He then added birdies at Nos. 13, 14 and 16.

Playing in his 15th Masters, Jimenez matched his lowest score at Augusta National, shot in 2010. His best finish is a tie for eighth in 2008.

Although Jimenez is scheduled to make his Champions Tour debut next week in Atlanta, he doesn’t plan to make a habit of the 50-and-older circuit — at least not this year. He has a goal of making the European Ryder Cup team.

“I know I have a chance to play the Ryder Cup,” said Jimenez, who is ranked 40th in the world and 13th on the European Tour points list — a world list is also used to determine the nine automatic qualifiers.

Jimenez has played on four European teams and was a vice captain for Jose Maria Olazabal‘s winning team in 2012 at Medinah.

Larrazabal Claims Third Career European Tour Title at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship

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Pablo Larrazabal is the last man putting at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship.

The 30-year-old Spanish professional golfer edged out two of the world’s top-10 golfers by 1 shot on Sunday to win the championship with a birdie at the home hole.

Pablo Larrazabal

Larrazabal, ranked No. 103, claimed his third career European Tour win with a final-round 67 to finish at 14-under par.

He held off fifth-ranked Phil Mickelson and seventh-ranked Rory McIlroy despite birdies from both on the 18th hole at Abu Dhabi Golf Club. An eagle by either would have forced a playoff.

“It means a lot to win my third victory on Tour and playing against who I played today,” said Larrazabal. “Of course, I play against myself but I knew who I also had behind me in Mickelson. I have just beaten two of the three most-talented guys in my era, and in the last era, as well in Phil Mickelson and Rory.”

Pablo Larrazabal

Larrazabal said standing next to Mickelson and McIlroy to accept his trophy was a surreal experience.

“I was sitting at the presentation ceremony I said to myself: ‘Pablo? What are you doing here?’ I’ve got Rory McIlroy on my left and I am shaking the hand of Phil Mickelson on my right. It’s very special for me,” added Larrazabal after collecting the trophy.

“But it’s been a long journey and a lot of work since my last win in Munich, and only my team and my family know how hard I have worked for this victory with no holidays, and not too many days off this winter, just working hard to arrive here properly and in form to Abu Dhabi. So, yes happy days.”

Larrazabal moved into seventh place in the Race to Dubai and to 12th on the European Ryder Cup Team points table.

He should move inside the top-64 in the rankings when they are adjusted Monday and that will guarantee the Spaniard a first-ever place in next month’s Accenture Match-Play Championship in Arizona.

Ciganda Earns Her Second Title on the Ladies European Tour

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Carlota Ciganda is having a remarkable year…

Carlota Ciganda

In her first visit to China, the 22-year-old Spanish golfer notched her second title on the Ladies European Tour this Sunday with an impressive victory at the Suzhou Taihu Open.

The tour rookie, who claimed her maiden win in Holland this summer, displayed her extraordinary talent by firing a bogey-free course record eight-under-par 64 in warm and hazy conditions at the Suzhou Taihu International Golf Club.

Carlota Ciganda
Following her top-of-the-standing performance in the second round on Saturday, Ciganda – who made conference history becoming the first back-to-back Pac-10 Champion while attending Arizona State University – romped to a seven-stroke victory with a tournament record 17 under par in the 54-hole event, going one stroke better than world No. 1 Yani Tseng the previous year.