VIRGINIA WATER, England — Alex Noren turned a foul shot right into a playoff victory Sunday, chipping from wanting a stream to three ft for birdie on the par-5 18th gap at Wentworth to defeat Adrien Saddier of France and win the BMW PGA Championship for the second time.
In rain-softened circumstances, each gamers confronted issues on the par-5 18th within the playoff. Saddier discovered a troublesome lie nicely left of the inexperienced. Noren hit his fairway steel heavy and feared it could go into the stream. It was so unhealthy it got here up quick, leaving him a superb lie in thick grass.
Saddier’s chip left him 15 ft from the perimeter, and it by no means had an opportunity.
Noren now has received twice in his previous three begins on the European Tour — he received the British Masters three weeks in the past at The Belfry — and heads to New York for the Ryder Cup, however solely as a vice captain.
He received for the twelfth time on the European tour and will transfer into the highest 20 on the planet rankings, forward of three different full-time European tour members on the Ryder Cup group.
“The opposite guys have performed higher than me all year long,” Noren stated. “I’ve put in nice outcomes now. However I feel the fellows on the group are going to be implausible.”
Rory McIlroy closed with a 65 for his finest spherical of the week to tie for twentieth. Jon Rahm, winless this yr on LIV Golf and the majors, shot 66 to tie for thirteenth.
“A very nice strategy to log out the week, final aggressive spherical going into the Ryder Cup,” McIlroy stated. “So good to complete on a excessive.”
The 11 gamers on Workforce Europe who performed at Wentworth — Sepp Straka of Austria is dwelling in America with a new child — have been headed for Bethpage Black for 2 days of observe forward of the Sept. 26-28 matches.
Aaron Rai of England and American Patrick Reed every closed with a 66 and tied for third, two pictures behind.
Noren and Saddier every closed with a 4-under 68, and it was a duel within the rain over the ultimate hour as nobody else may significantly problem them. Each had birdie possibilities from medium vary in regulation and completed at 19-under 269.
Noren was plugged into the highest lip of a bunker on the par-3 14th when he blasted out to 10 ft and saved par with a putt that simply caught the appropriate nook of the cup. Saddier holed his 8-foot birdie putt to tie for the lead.
Saddier caught a break as a drive on the fifteenth appeared headed for bother when it wound up within the hood of a spectator’s sweatshirt, permitting for a drop. They matched pars on the following two holes.
The Frenchman had the sting on the par-5 seventeenth when he hit wedge to eight ft, however Noren holed for birdie from simply outdoors 20 ft they usually went to the 18th tied, each dealing with a gentle rain that made it tough to regulate pictures.
“You’ve got simply received to battle,” Noren stated. “Right this moment felt like a battle. I feel he outplayed me tee-to-green, however that is the way it goes.”
It stopped raining for the playoff, when Noren received his huge break. Each have been some 250 yards away from the opening, a shot that appeared longer with a humid breeze and the tender circumstances. Noren realized later going for the inexperienced might need been more durable than he thought.
“I assumed I hit that one within the water,” he stated with a smile. “However I had an ideal lie. I received lucky with a superb break, the chip sitting properly.”
It caps an incredible turnaround for the 43-year-old Swede, who needed to step away for six months towards the tip of final yr with a hamstring damage that compelled him out till early Could.
He was by no means in severe competition for the Ryder Cup with such a late begin, although European captain Luke Donald tabbed him as one in every of his assistants for Bethpage Black.
Saddier recorded his sixth prime 10 on the European tour this yr, which incorporates his victory within the Italian Open.
