The Celtic Manor Wales Open 2008 - Final Round Report
FINAL ROUND REPORT
Scott Strange completed an emphatic wire-to-wire victory at The Celtic Manor Wales Open with a sensational final round of 64.
Strange’s winning total of 262 was 22 under par and four shots better than the next best golfer, Robert Karlsson, the 2006 champion.
The Australian becomes the third player to make The Celtic Manor Wales Open his maiden victory on The European Tour following in the footsteps of Steen Tinning (2000) and Simon Khan (2004).
Karlsson did close to within one shot at one time with a spectacular run of six successive birdies around the turn but Strange was ignoring the leaderboards dotted around the Twenty Ten course and seemed oblivious to the cheers ringing out from the group in front as he promptly pulled away with two more birdies of his own.
The 31-year-old from Perth moved four strokes clear when his Swedish rival’s charge was halted by a bogey at the 14th and Strange maintained that advantage to the finish, allowing him to relax on the dramatic 18th hole.
“All you can do when you’re leading a tournament is just go and play,” said the winner who had led by three strokes going into Sunday’s final round.
“If you start thinking about people chasing you, it’s going to affect your performance. I didn’t feel quite 100 per cent in the morning but as the day progressed, I felt better and better and I played great.
“I knew I had to play decent golf to stand a chance. I knew a few guys would come after me but I could only control what I was doing.”
The £300,000 first prize moves Strange straight into the top 10 of the Order of Merit – he lies ninth – while Karlsson’s consolation for finishing second on his own at 18 under was leaping up to second on the list and third on the Ryder Cup European points list.
France’s Raphael Jacquelin was third another four shots behind Karlsson and a group of five players on 13 under par included British pair Nick Dougherty and Darren Clarke.
Another large crowd turned out for the final day, creating a great atmosphere by gathering on the huge slopes around the final green and fairway.
The Twenty Ten course was hosting its first professional tournament and drew many rave reviews from players and observers throughout the week as it gears up for hosting 50,000 spectators a day at The Ryder Cup in 2010, the biggest sporting event ever to be staged in Wales.