Sweden’s Richard S Johnson claimed his maiden European Tour title when held off the challenges of Austrialian trio Scott Laycock, Craig Parry and Andre Stolz to capture the ANZ Championship at The Lakes Golf Club in Sydney.
Johnson earned 11 points under the modified stableford format from his final round of 68 to accumulate a 72 hole total of 46 points, two more than Laycock and Parry with overnight leader Stolz claiming fourth place with 43 points.
It had been an absorbing contest for the lead all day with all four of the main protagonists topping the leaderboard at some stage. Laycock looked to have the title within his grasp for much of the final nine holes but crucial missed putts late in his round cost him his chance of victory.
Johnson started the final round four points off the lead and with three holes to go he was still two points adrift of Laycock. But the Swede then holed a 20 foot birdie putt from off the green on the 16th and when Laycock bogeyed the 17th, Johnson was two points clear.
That lead was briefly reduced to one point when Parry birdied the 17th to move to 45 points but a wayward tee shot on the par three 18th cost him a bogey and any hopes victory.
Johnson joins some of the greats of the game to have won tournaments at The Lakes, including Greg Norman. He has a great affinity for Australia having spent many summers Down Under, and this is by far his greatest achievement.
“To win in Australia is really special, as it really feels like home here,” said Johnson. “I tried to be as calm as I could and laughed at everything to keep my cool.
“Even though I hit it in the water on the tenth, with an iron, it didn’t really bother me. It must be a good thing to finish on top of all these good players.
“It means so much to me. When I hit the last putt, it changed my life. It was my week.”
Laycock opened a two point lead at one stage after picking up six birdies, offset by a bogey, in his first 15 holes. But he came to rue missed birdie putts on the 13th, 14th and 16th holes.
“I missed some real good opportunities on the back nine, “ Laycock said, “You just can’t afford to let those chances go at this level.“
Parry was consistent all day, but under the modified stableford format consistency is not necessarily rewarded. His four birdies allowed him to pick up eight points before he missed his par putt on the last to slip back to joint second with Laycock on 44 points.
Stolz, who finished fourth 43 points, was unable to conjure up the form which had seen him lead the tournament since the second day, only picking up four points in his final round with three birdies and a bogey.
Finishing behind those four players was Scot Stephen Gallacher. He had an inconsistent round with six bogeys and five birdies to pick up four points and finish on 39 points.
