Jarmo Sandelin of Sweden overcame a potentially costly error and held on to win the US$1.5 million BMW Asian Open yesterday at the Westin Resort Ta Shee.
Sandelin, who was a stroke off the lead at the start of the day, fired a 4-under-par 68 to edge Spain's Jose Maria Olazabal and Thailand's Thongchai Jaidee by a shot.
Sandelin finished on a 10-under-par 278 for the event that is sanctioned by both the European and Asian PGA tours.
PHOTO: AP
"This morning I felt very focused, and when I get that feeling I know I have a chance," said Sandelin, a former Ryder Cup player who earned US$242,200 for the win, his third victory on the European Tour.
He won the Peugeot Open de Espana and the German Open, both in 1999.
Playing under sunny skies before an announced gallery of 8,000, the Swede built a 2-stroke lead thanks to a front nine score of four-under-par 32.
PHOTO: AP
But on the 14th hole, he made a decision that he later admitted could have cost him the win.
With Jaidee charging hard in the group directly in front of him, Sandelin chose to play through when the Thai player's group was looking for a wayward shot hit by Charlie Wi.
The decision meant that Sandelin would play the final holes in front of his nearest challenger, instead of behind him.
"The mistake was to get ahead of the other guys that were chasing me, as I couldn't control the situation ... It would have been much better to stay at the back of the field rather than go ahead," he said.
The decision forced the Swede to play conservatively on the tough par-four 16th hole, which has a large pond guarding the green.
"During the pro-am I took an eight on that hole," Sandelin said. "Today I was thinking `just make sure that you go over that water.'
"So I was very long over the water. I was so long that I was in the bushes behind the green. I think I saw a couple of monkeys back there."
Sandelin was satisfied that he was able to scramble for a bogey but saw his lead shrink to one over Jaidee.
Olazabal, playing further ahead, also moved one behind with a 10 yard birdie putt on the 18th hole.
Jaidee had chances on the 17th and 18th holes to catch Sandelin, but left birdie putts a yard short on both holes.
"Both putts were downhill so I didn't think I would leave them short. It was a little disappointing but it feels great to finish second," said Jaidee, who finished with a final round of 67.
Olazabal, who also carded a fourth round score of 67, was pleased with his round.
"It was a very good performance. I really played very solid today. I am very happy with the result. I made a couple of good putts on the golf course," he said.
Third round co-leader Carl Pettersson from Sweden shared fourth place with Barry Lane of England, at 7-under.
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