Juan Postigo Arce won his maiden title after securing a two-stroke victory in the G4D Tour @ Hero Cup at Abu Dhabi Golf Club.
The Spaniard posted a closing level par round of 72 to finish on one over par after 36 holes, two clear of Canadian Kurtis Barkley in second while Irishman Brendan Lawlor was a shot further back in third on four over par.
Postigo Arce started brightly with birdies at the first and third, before immediately dropping a shot on the fourth and a further blemish at the ninth to make the turn in level par.
The 27-year-old, who was born without much of his right leg and no knee, birdied the par three 12th before five consecutive pars meant he arrived at the 18th tee with a three-stroke lead. He found the water off the tee but managed to limit the damage by dropping only one shot and securing a memorable win in Abu Dhabi.
“It feels great,” he said. “After last year, I played pretty good golf around the globe but the win didn’t come. It’s the best way to start 2023 and hopefully there’s many more to come.
“I was playing pretty steady golf throughout the round, I was playing pretty decent. I know Brendan has big potential and I was playing with Kurtis so I was seeing him all the time, but it was a great battle and in the end this week was for me.
“We made two big mistakes with yardages on 18. They moved the tee forward and we shouldn’t have hit driver, we hit driver and went into the water. Then, with the rangefinder, instead of getting the pin we took the clubhouse in the back, so we made a few mistakes but we brought the trophy home.”
Englishman Mike Browne finished fourth on seven under par, with South African David Watts a shot further back in fifth.
Postigo Arce’s victory means he moves to the top of the inaugural G4D Order of Merit, the season-long competition to crown The G4D Tour’s best player. Barkley’s runner-up finish means he remains in second place on 144 points, with World Number One and winner of the season’s opening event, the Australian All Abilities Championship @ the ISPS HANDA Australian Open, and Lawlor in joint third place.
The G4D Tour will return next month when the G4D Tour @ Singapore Classic taking place from February 6-7, 2023.
The G4D Tour Order of Merit
1 Juan POSTIGO ARCE 156.00
2 Kurtis BARKLEY 144.00
3 Kipp POPERT 100.00
4 Brendan LAWLOR 100.00
5 Mike BROWNE 92.00
6 David WATTS 40.00
7 Bradley SMITH 32.00
8 Johan KAMMERSTAD 32.00
9 Tommaso PERRINO 32.00
10 Geoffrey NICHOLAS 28.00
11 Cameron POLLARD 16.00
12 Conor STONE 16.00
13 Jeremy BITTNER 8.00
14 Stephen PRIOR 4.00
