Spain's Otaegui wins Volvo China Open
Spain's golfer Adrian Otaegui emerged as the champion of the 2024 Volvo China Open in a contest that went down to the wire at the Hidden Grace Golf Club in Shenzhen on Sunday.
Otaegui won the tournament with a cumulative score of 18 under par. Guido Migliozzi finished in second place, scoring 17 under par. Sweden's Sebastian Soderberg, England's Paul Waring, and Switzerland's Joel Girrbach tied for third place, each with scores of 16 under par.
Saturday's third round was cancelled due to rainstorms, prompting the organizers to designate Sunday's play as the final round.
To wrap up the shortened 54-hole tournament, a two-tee start was implemented in the morning. The rain from yesterday cleared up, making way for blue skies on Sunday morning.
Otaegui, who had begun the day trailing by five shots, scored a flawless seven-under for the day. Successive birdies on the 16th and 17th holes proved to be pivotal momentum swings, as he ended his round tied with leader Soderberg at 18-under-par.
Otaegui then anxiously awaited Soderberg's finish with the final group to see if a playoff would ensue. However, Soderberg's drive off the tee at the 18th hole went out of bounds into the woods, necessitating a drop. He finished the last hole with a double bogey, which brought his final score to 16 under par, earning him a third-place finish.
After finding out he won in such dramatic fashion, Oataegui reflected, "I'm extremely happy. Obviously, I had to wait a little bit since I finished to see what was happening with the last group, but luckily for me, things turned out well."
After having played previous tournaments at Hidden Grace Golf Club and making only one bogey in the first two rounds, Otaegui felt confident. "I started five shots back. I knew I just had to ignore the leaderboard, not focus on the result, and just play my game. My confidence has been growing throughout the week, so I knew that if I got good chances, I could potentially hold on."
This marks Otaegui's fifth victory on the DP World Tour. With this win, he also secured a spot in the 2024 PGA Championship on May 16 by finishing in the top three of the DP World Tour Asian Swing rankings.
"Being on the PGA and playing some majors this year was a big goal for me. So, it's very good news that I'll be in the PGA Championship in two weeks. It will be just enough time to rest a little bit at home next week and then head to America," said Otaegui.
Soderberg entered the final round with a three-shot lead over Paul Waring. This win is his third top-three finish in the past three weeks, securing his first place in the Asian Swing rankings. It also qualifies him for the PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Course.
Regarding his recent performance, Soderberg commented, "It's been very consistent recently. I'm playing really well right now. Not coming out on top here stings a bit, but overall, I've been in good form for the last four weeks."
China's Wu Ashun, Jin Zihao and Li Haotong were tied for 35th. Two other Chinese players, Xue Han and Ye Wocheng, ranked 50th and 63rd respectively.