Conor Purcell held his nerve to claim a maiden Challenge Tour title in the Black Desert NI Open presented by Tom McKibbin at Galgorm, County Antrim, on Sunday.
The Irish golfer signed for a one over par final round of 71 to finish 13 under par for the tournament, one stroke clear of overnight leader Joakim Lagergren on a dramatic final day.
The 27-year-old climbs to fourth in the season-long Road to Mallorca Rankings with a win and was delighted to come out on top after going shot-for-shot with Lagergren across the entirety of the weekend.
“I’m over the moon and kind of lost for words,” he said. “I’ve waited a long time for this and for it to happen, with all my family out here today, is just amazing.
“The support out there calmed me down. Knowing that they were all there to support me made a difference.
“Joakim is a fierce competitor and a proven winner, and he’s won here before, so I knew not to take him lightly. I’m just pleased because I putted terribly today but I managed to get the job done.”
Purcell started the day one stoke behind Lagergren, but after mixing two birdies with five bogeys on the front nine, made the turn searching for a spark to kick-start his round.
An eagle on the par five tenth did just that, with Purcell joining Lagergren at the top of the leaderboard, before a dropped shot at hole 13 saw him one adrift with five holes to play.
Purcell then birdied the 15th, and when Lagergren bogeyed the same hole, a two-shot swing saw Purcell move into the solo lead for the first time on the final day, before he parred his way home for a memorable victory.
“On 18, it was the calmest I felt all day”
“I knew it was going to be tough but that there were chances on the back nine,” he added. “It was a big momentum swing when I held the putt on the tenth for eagle.
“I missed a chance on 14 to get back level, but made a nice birdie to go one ahead on 15 and then played really good golf coming in.
“On 18, it was the calmest I felt all day. After a few loose shots at the start of the day, I got into the flow of things and felt very in control and knew the job I had to do.
“Every time you can have a win, you can shoot up the Rankings, but there’s still a lot of golf to play over the rest of the year.”
Englishman Jack Senior posted a three under par round of 67 to finish in third, with Frenchman Robin Sciot-Siegrist two shots further back in fourth. Dane Hamish Brown and South African Robin Williams finished in a share of fifth on eight under par.
Purcell now fourth in Road to Mallorca rankings
Purcell climbs 20 places to fourth in the Road to Mallorca Rankings on 683 points, while Dane Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen remains in pole position on 1,061 points. Englishman John Parry sits second on 1,007, and Spaniard Joel Moscatel remains in third place on 870 points.
The Road to Mallorca continues next week with the Irish Challenge taking place at The K Club in Co Kildare from August 1-4.
Select scores after round four with Irish players in bold:
267 C PURCELL 66 65 65 71,
268 J LAGERGREN (SWE) 63 71 61 73,
269 J SENIOR (ENG) 67 69 66 67,
271 R SCIOT-SIEGRIST (FRA) 65 71 65 70,
272 R WILLIAMS (RSA) 69 69 67 67, H BROWN (DEN) 69 68 66 69,
273 L BJERREGAARD (DEN) 68 68 70 67, A QUIROS (ESP) 68 69 67 69, P PINEAU (FRA) 69 66 67 71,
274 R MCGOWAN (ENG) 68 72 67 67, A HALVORSEN (NOR) 72 69 66 67,
275 J FREIBURGHAUS (SUI) 72 69 68 66, O GUILLAMOUNDEGUY (FRA) 67 69 72 67, A CHESTERS (ENG) 68 72 66 69, W BESSELING (NED) 70 64 71 70, T HUNT (WAL) 67 69 68 71,
276 M LINDBERG (SWE) 68 72 71 65, M GIBOUDOT (FRA) 73 68 67 68, L VAN MEIJEL (NED) 71 70 66 69,
281 G HURLEY (IRL) 67 70 69 75,
282 J CALDWELL 70 71 71 70,
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