In the early morning of May 2nd, Beijing time, the 2022 Catalan Championship ended. Spain’s Adrianos beat South Africa’s Oliver Baker in a playoff to win the title. Chinese players Li Haotong and Wu Ashun both achieved a total score of -2 after this round, and both ranked T26.
Li Haotong felt choppy on the last match day. He got off to a great start with a birdie out the door, and then turned around with 2 birdies and 1 bogey.
After the transition, Haotong suddenly encountered difficulties. On the par-3 11th, he took a six to pass. After that, he quickly adjusted his form, making 1 bird and 1 eagle on the 12th and 15th holes, eliminating the impact of the drop on the 11th hole. At the last minute, he made a bogey on the 18th hole. This changed his fourth-round score to 1 eagle, 3 birds, 2 bogeys and 1 triple bogey, tied the par, with a total score of -2 strokes, and finally ranked T26.
Another Chinese player, Wu Ashun, played relatively smoothly this round. Like Haotong, Wu Ashun also made a birdie on the 1st hole and ended the first nine holes with 2 birds and 1 bogey.
After the transition, he continued to play steadily. It wasn’t until the 15th hole that Ah Shun opened the scoring account in the second half, where he made the next birdie. He then made 1 bird and 1 bogey, which allowed him to finish the day with 4 bird 2 bogey and -2 strokes. On the leaderboard, Wu Ashun’s total score came to -2, and his ranking also rose to T26.
Leaderboard
The title race at the Catalan Championship is full of suspense.
(Fourth round leaderboard)
Spanish player Anos, who was 7 shots behind the leader before the match, started early in the fourth round. Having never won a DP World Tour before, he had an excellent hand on this day. He was tepid on the front nine, with only two birdies.
(Arnos on the field)
However, after the transition, Anos’s state skyrocketed. He won 1 eagle and 3 birds, bringing his score to -7 on the day and his total score to -11, only one shot away from Baker, who was leading the leaderboard at the time.
The championship focus group finally set off. After the third round, South African player Oliver Baker and England player Laurie Kante competed in the same group. Neither player had previously won a DP World Tour title, and when the opportunity presented itself, they were both more or less affected.
(Kante on the field)
Kante felt hot when he set off. He won 1 eagle and 2 birds in the first three holes, and once led alone. Baker had only one birdie on the first three holes, temporarily trailing Kanter by one shot.
From the 4th hole, Kanter’s state fluctuated, and he suffered two bogeys on the 4th to 9th holes. Baker made 2 birdies and 2 bogeys at this stage. Baker regained his lead over Kanter with a one-shot advantage after the front nine.
After the transition, Kanter made a double bogey on the 10th hole, three shots behind Baker, and his title hopes were slim for a while. However, he made two birdies on the 14th and 15th holes, eliminating the impact of the double bogey, and the total score was restored to -11.
(Baker on the field)
Baker, on the other hand, remained solid after the transition, always passing every hole with an even-par score. But on the 16th hole, he made a mistake and suffered a bogey, dropping his total from -12 to -11. At this time, Baker, Kanter and Anos, who had played 18 holes, all had a total score of -11, and the suspense of the championship rose sharply.
The next game was even more tense. The first mistake under the pressure was Kanter, who suffered a double bogey on the 17th hole and was out of the championship. Baker passed with an even-par score on the last two holes, and his overall score was fixed at -11. He and Arnos will decide the championship through a playoff.
(Baker and Arnos in playoffs)
The playoff was played on the par-4 18th hole. Both Arnos and Baker took the lead in the playoffs, first standing on par, and then waiting for their opponents to make mistakes. Neither side made a mistake, however, and they were tied for five rounds on the 18th hole. The organizing committee decided to move the playoff to another par-4 17th hole to continue.
(Arnos successfully won the championship)
This time the suspense is finally over. On the 17th hole, Baker suffered a bogey unexpectedly, while Anos withstood the pressure and made a par. So Arnos came from behind to win the Catalan Championship. It was also his first DP World Tour title, and he moved up to sixth in the Dubai competition standings.
(Arnos holding the trophy)
Arnos couldn’t hide his joy after the game, “I have realized a dream. In order to win the DP World Tour, I spent a lot of time. Winning the championship here has a special meaning for me.”
On the leaderboard, Oliver Baker, who lost in the playoffs, was runner-up. England’s Laurie Kanter, Richard McEvoy and Poland’s Adrian Melonck finished T3 with a combined score of -9. Return to Sohu, see more