Golf Vic Vol 60 No 1

ur men and the LPGA area. They enjoyed the es, being able to go and otels and room service. His flop shot did not carry far enough, kicked to the right and did not reach the putting surface. Another poor chip and two putts later, he had taken a double bogey five when he could least afford it. It was his one bad hole on a day when he shot two-under par 70. But it was enough to cost him because up ahead, Law was going down the 18th knowing that he needed eagle to have a chance. To that point, the Scotsman had been playing for a nice top-five finish, in his own words, and he’d called a penalty on himself at the par- four ninth when he accidentally moved his golf ball while preparing to hit from the semi-rough. Now on the 72nd hole, he went for the jugular. From 195 metres with his second shot, Law reasoned that four-iron would get him to the front of the green. But he wanted eagle. Out came the 21-degree hybrid club and he made sweet contact, hitting over the edge of the swampy wasteland to the left, landing it softly near the front right trap and watching it track up behind the flag, just less than three metres from the cup. "If we needed four to win or five to win, I probably would've hit four iron," he said. "But needing three to win, four (iron) was never getting there. Hybrid got it the whole way back. It was the right shot at the right time." Law made the putt in the left edge of the hole that drew what might have been the biggest roar in Vic Open history. "Under that pressure and under that situation, needing to pull it off, it's something I'm so proud of," he said. But it was not over yet. Ormsby was coming down the 18th, needing eagle for a playoff, and his fairway wood went like an arrow at the green, stopping in the back fringe, leaving him an eight-metre putt. Once that putt slid under the cup, the 27-year-old Law knew that he had won for the first time on the European Tour, giving him playing rights for this year and the next, not to mention a healthy pay cheque. Ormsby made birdie at the last but finished second with Kennedy, a shot behind the Scot. The home country win he had craved had eluded him. “Disappointed, for sure,’’ he said. “What can I say? Disappointed. Would have been nice to win on home soil.’’ David Law allowed it all to wash over him as he accepted the trophy alongside Celine Boutier. He had spent five tough years on the Challenge Tour in Europe before finally breaking through and earning his main tour card at the end of 2018. So solid was his play, with rounds of 67- 66-71 66, that it is hard to believe he was ranked 375th in the world before the start. Shooting 31 on the final nine enabled him to climb 167 places and secure his place on Tour for two years "It'll take a long, long time for this to settle in,’’ he said. “I'm going to enjoy every minute." Wade Ormsby was valiant, leading most of the weekend before just falling short. Golf Victoria 11