Andy Sullivan became the first man to win three European Tour events this season as he claimed a stunning wire-to-wire victory at the Portugal Masters.
| The 28-year-old Midlander came into the final round with a five shot lead, and a round of 66 extended that to nine shots as he finished well clear of playing partner Chris Wood on 23 under.
Overnight rain and a threat of storms had led to the shotgun start being delayed by two hours at Oceånico Victoria Golf Club in Vilamoura, but Sullivan was unfazed as he added to the South African Open and the Joburg Open titles he won earlier in the year. Sullivan smashed the record winning margin for the event, which had been established by France’s Alexander Levy, the winner by three shots last year. The win moves Sullivan inside the top 45 in the world rankings, and means he has three wins in 23 events, after not claiming a victory in his first 84 appearances on the European Tour. Wood finished in second place on 14 under par after a round of 68, while third place was shared between Eduardo de la Riva, Trevor Fisher Jnr and Anthony Wall. Sullivan said: “To lead from day one right through the final day, is absolutely incredible. It’s nothing I’ve ever experienced before, so I wasn’t sure how I’d cope, but I think I did alright. It was a lot harder than I made it look. I knew I needed to keep going, keep pushing, and keep staying ahead. I felt like I never really got to relax until that second shot to the 18th, even though I knew I had a big lead. Golf’s a funny game, you just never know what can happen.” Scores |