Pavan prevails in dramatic play-off to win second European Tour title
BMW International Open report: What happened at Golfclub Munchen Eichenried?
Andrea Pavan’s birdie at the second play-off hole separated him from Matthew Fitzpatrick and gave him his second European Tour title.
The pair had both finished on 15-under-par after a dramatic BMW International Open final round in Munich.
PLAY-OFF 🥊
Fitzpatrick vs Pavan for the #BMWInternationalOpen title. pic.twitter.com/IPGcnI98Uo
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) June 23, 2019
The Italian held the clubhouse lead for some time after posting a final round of 66, rounded off with a brilliant birdie at the last.
Fitzpatrick equalled Pavan’s total on the 18th – after leaving an eagle putt, which would have given him the victory, just inches short of the hole.
Matthias Schwab had led for a lot of the final round and could have made it a three-way play-off but struggled on the closing holes.
There was no shortage of drama throughout the shootout which took place on the 18th. The pair both parred the first time, with Fitzpatrick being extremely lucky not to see his second shot find the water.
😲😲😲@MattFitz94 gets a lucky break in the Play-Off! #BMWInternationalOpen pic.twitter.com/9eHtlRj02w
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) June 23, 2019
It was the second play-off hole which decided the victor.
Fitzpatrick's caddie Billy Foster can't even look…
Both players make par. Back to the tee.#BMWInternationalOpen pic.twitter.com/MpbUY6tKzi
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) June 23, 2019
Pavan found the right rough off the tee and proceeded to then find the left with his second. But, from there, he hit a sensational pitch to just a few feet and rolled in the birdie putt for the victory.
The win sees him move into the top 100 in the world rankings.
BMW International Open report: Talking points
Jordan Smith made one spectator’s day on Friday – although he did break his glass beforehand.
The Englishman hit his approach shot into the 18th grandstand and, after rebounding off the roof, his ball smashed a glass from which a member of the crowd was enjoying his drink.
Jordan Smith owes this fan a drink 🍺#BMWInternationalOpen pic.twitter.com/ZB76ZVUWQ0
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) June 21, 2019
Smith vowed to return and buy the man a beverage and he stuck to his word.
Had a drink together to say sorry haha pic.twitter.com/tGqEkYMdY4
— Jordan Smith (@Jsmithgolf) June 21, 2019
**
In a tournament hosted in Germany, it was good to see a strong contingent of home players teeing it up, including Max Kieffer and Martin Kaymer.
The latter has endured a tough few years, but has recently been showing some signs of returning to the sort of form that saw him clinch the US Open title in 2014.
The best of Martin Kaymer's bogey-free round of 67 📽️ #BMWInternationalOpen pic.twitter.com/mKuYw4ZcHH
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) June 20, 2019
At last month’s Memorial, the World No. 93 was in with a serious chance of victory on Sunday but couldn’t quite get over the line.
That performance, however, will have given Kaymer a decent amount of confidence and was proof his game is trending in the right direction.
This week, he held the 36-hole lead and was only let down by a poor weekend – a 75 on Saturday being the main blow.
All things considered, after with a tied 16th finish here, there are plenty of positives to take for the German and it would be no surprise to see him back in the winners’ circle soon.
Joe Hughes
Tour editor covering men's golf, women's golf and anything else that involves the word golf, really. The talk is far better than the game, but the work has begun to change that.
