A dramatic six hole play-off finally to came to an end when Spain’s Miguel Angel Martin rolled in a two foot putt on the 18th hole at Golf Royal D'Agadir to win the Moroccan Open and deny Welshman David Park victory on his European Tour debut.
Martin, dogged by a wrist injury over the past 18 months, shot a final round of 68, equalling the best of the day, to set the target at 12 under par and when Park, who had led from the start, bogeyed the last two holes the contest was thrown into a play-off.
Six times they returned to the 457-yards dog-leg hole until Martin secured the title and the 81,660 euro first prize.
“I lost count how many holes we played,” said Martin. “When I teed off on the 17th I was three behind and thought I needed to make three on one of the last two holes. I made four on both and didn’t think I was going to win. But David made mistakes.
“It is tough to win anywhere either on the Challenge Tour or the Main Tour.”
Martin last won in 1997 when he triumphed in the Heineken Classic but after qualifying for the Ryder Cup team that year was forced to retire from the team with a wrist injury. Since then he has undergone two operations but after almost 18 months out of the game is back to his best.
“After two operations it is tough to come back,” said the 37-year-old. “But it is coming back.”
Martin started the final round four shots off the lead but after nine holes there was only a shot between them as Martin picked up two birdies on the outward stretch to Park’s eight pars and a bogey. But the Welshman, who leads the Challenge Tour Rankings, rallied to pull clear with birdies at the 12th and 13th while the Spaniard dropped a shot to lead by three. Both players birdied the 16th but as Martin picked up his fifth birdie of the day Park found trouble with a hooked drive on the 17th. After finding the greenside bunker with his fourth, Park finally holed a six footer for a bogey and the gap was down to one.
Martin made a solid par on the last but Park, short in two, chipped to eight feet and watched his putt to win slip agonizingly past the hole.
The two players returned to the 18th. A sliced tee shot left Park needing to bend a wood round the trees which came up short. Martin was similarly short and chipped to eight feet but Park’s chip was strong, running over the back into the fringe. He chipped to three feet leaving Martin with an uphill putt for the title, a putt he was to leave it half a roll short. Park made five and so they returned.
On their next visit to the 18th there were no such errors, Park two putting from 15 feet while Martin chipped and putted from the back. On the third visit Martin found the bunker with his drive and could do no better than a five. Park meanwhile hit the edge of the green in two only to three putt from 60 feet.
Both players found the trees on the right with their tee shots and could do no better than a bogey, Martin’s putt for par from about 40 feet lipping out. Fifth visit and Park missed a six foot birdie putt, giving Martin another chance. Finally, on the sixth visit to the 18th – the longest play-off since Seve Ballesteros beat Jesper Parnevik in the Open de Baleares in 1992 - Park was unable to get up and down from the greenside bunker and Martin made no mistake by two putted for victory.
“I had my chances,” said Park, who had led from the start in his effort to win on his debut. “I just didn’t have any luck with the putter today. But it’s been fun. I’ve learnt I got a lot of work to do.”
