South African Garth Mulroy won his first European Tour title with a two-shot victory over Scot George Murray at Leopard Creek.
Murray shoots a closing 67 to finish second
South African Garth Mulroy won his first European Tour title with a two-shot victory over Scot George Murray in the Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek.
The 33-year-old third-round leader saw his three-shot lead disappear when he bogeyed the 14th just as Murray converted a 20-foot eagle chance on the par five next.
But Mulroy birdied the same hole after finding the green in two, made a 60-foot putt for another birdie at the short 16th and safely parred the last two to finish on 19 under par.
Murray had to settle for second on his own after a closing 67, the same score as South Afrivan Jaco Van Zyl, who moved up the leaderboard to share third alongside his compatriot George Coetzee (69), Scott Peter Whiteford (71) and Chilean Felipe Aguilar (72).
Mulroy admitted that it was his outrageous, snaking putt for birdie on 16 which convinced him he was set to win.
"I knew halfway down that slope it had a chance," he said. "I just tried to play smart golf and hit it in the right spots."
Murray, meanwhile, achieved his best-ever Tour finish seven weeks after he came third in the Dunhill Links Championship at St Andrews, where he outscored world number one playing partner Luke Donald in the final round.
Murray was down in 183rd spot on the Tour money list entering October and facing the danger of a sixth trip to the qualifying school.
Now the 28-year-old from Anstruther, Scottish amateur champion in 2004, is safely inside the top 80 with winnings of more than £325,000 this season.
