Felix Mory refused to back down as he secured his maiden European Challenge Tour victory in a play-off against Björn Hellgren at the Dormy Open.
The 26-year-old took a two-shot lead into the final round at Österåkers Golfklubb and he quickly extended his advantage with a birdie at the first. However, back-to-back bogeys followed as the Frenchman carded a two over par round of 74, meaning he finished on 15 under par, level with Sweden’s Björn Hellgren and one shot clear of three-time Challenge Tour winner Ricardo Gouveia.
Mory was able to stand firm and seal victory with a birdie at the second play-off hole, in his fourth Challenge Tour start of the season, and the Frenchman admitted that the victory came as a surprise even to himself.
“I have surprised myself how quickly I have managed to win on the Challenge Tour,” he said. “It’s my first full season as I turned pro in 2019. It is surprising as I didn’t play so well in South Africa, so I am really happy with the result today.
“It feels awesome. Getting it done is not easy, winning is always hard. It is only my second win as a pro. It really takes a lot of work and patience to get it done and I am happy that I came out on top today.”
The Dormy Open winner had to be patient and remained resilient throughout the fourth and final day, which included a suspension of play due to the threat of thunderstorms. He also knew that he would need a bit of luck in the play-off.
“I felt great the whole round in my head,” he said. “I stayed calm and patient, but my game was not really there today. I bogeyed hole two because the tee shot was not good there, I missed in the worst spot. I made my pars and stood patient and that’s all I could do today with what I had.
“In a play-off you have to hit some good shots but it’s a bit of a gamble and you need a bit of luck. I’m happy I managed to win, and it feels great. I had to be focused and not think about the outcome. I just tried to hit good shots with smooth swings and not focus on the result.”
The winning putt in the play-off 🇫🇷#DormyOpen pic.twitter.com/fMdvfNeFaD
— Challenge Tour (@Challenge_Tour) May 22, 2021
Four-time European Tour winner Marcel Siem, from Germany, finished fourth on 12 under par, while Denmark’s Oliver Hundebøll, Norwegian Kristian Krogh Johannessen and England’s Steven Tiley shared fifth place on 11 under par.
The win has catapulted Mory up to fifth on the Road to Mallorca Rankings with 32,948 points and Hellgren has jumped to eighth on the Rankings, while South African Wilco Nienaber remains in first place.
The Road to Mallorca now moves to Ireland, with the Irish Challenge taking place at Portmarnock Links, Dublin, from Thursday May 27 – Sunday May 30.
