Peter Lawrie held his nerve to edge out Ignacio Garrido on the second play-off hole and claim the Spanish Open crown in Seville.
Dubliner edges out Garrido in play-off after dramatic day in Seville
Peter Lawrie held his nerve to edge out Ignacio Garrido on the second play-off hole and claim his maiden European Tour title at the Spanish Open in Seville.
A dramatic final day had seen countless twists and turns at the top of the leaderboard, but none more dramatic than on the 72nd green when Garrido holed a thirty-foot putt to force the play-off.
The Spaniard then looked odds on to win the event his father Antonio had some thirty years earlier as he put his approach on the first extra hole to within three feet with Lawrie some 25-feet away.
However, it was the Irishman's turn to produce a moment of magic with his putter as he found the cup to extend the competition.
On their second trip down 18 Lawrie found sand with his drive but located the green with his approach and then watched on as Garrido, from the centre of the fairway, placed his ball to within a couple of feet of his opponent's only to see it grip and spin back into the water guarding the green.
With Garrido unable to hole his fourth, Lawrie was able to cushion his putt up to the hole before tapping in for a memorable triumph.
The 34-year-old had started the day five shots adrift of overnight leader Garrido but forged into contention courtesy of a superb late charge on the back nine with birdies at 13, and then 15, 16 and 17 setting the clubhouse target at -15.
On a topsy-turvy day when Garrido, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Soren Hansen had all held the lead, a play-off always looked likely.
Having birdied the first, Jimenez was within a shot of Garrido when his playing partner bogeyed the second and looked favourite when he hit the turn at the head of the field on -15 having added three more birdies.
However, the Spaniard's charge hit the buffers at ten when he twice found water to record a triple-bogey seven from which he never quite recovered.
That calamity handed the lead to Hansen on -14 who had holed his second from around 100 yards for a spectacular eagle two on the eighth and then birdied the ninth.
But it was the Dane's turn to stutter at 12 as he made bogey to drop back and a succession of missed opportunities on the greens was to prove crucial.
After five bogeys on his outward nine, Garrido appeared to have blown his chances as he reached the halfway stage on -12 but he staged a brave fightback with birdies at ten and 12 putting him right back in contention.
His compatriot Alfredo Garcia-Heredia, who had started his round with double-bogeys at two and three, briefly threatened to crash the party with a sensational back nine of 31 strokes (including five birdies) to finish on -13 along with Englishman David Lynn, who carded an excellent final round of 66, and Jimenez.
But when Hansen missed a 12-foot putt on 18 for birdie to stay on -14, the only man left with a chance of pegging back Lawrie was Garrido and the Spaniard promptly put his drive at 18 in the sand.
He recovered to find the green and then produced his wonder-putt to force extra holes, but it was Lawrie who ultimately emerged triumphant to make it three Irish wins in succession on Tour following in the footsteps of Damien McGrane and Darren Clarke.
