Noren sparkles to storm to European PGA win

AFP: Sweden’s Alex Noren came from seven shots off the pace in the final round to win the European PGA Championship by two shots here at Wentworth on Sunday.

The 34-year-old produced some stunning golf to go round in 62 –- 10-under-par –- for a winning total of 277, 11-under.

It is the second time he has shot a 62 on tour -– he managed it at the Portuguese Open –- and it was his fifth win in the last 11 months following victories at the Scottish Open, European Masters, British Masters and the Nedbank Golf Challenge in 2016. Italy’s Francesco Molinari birdied the last two holes to take second place outright on nine-under par, after a 68, one shot ahead of Sweden’s Henrik Stenson, Nicolas Colsaerts of Belgium and Japan’s Hideto Tanihara.

Colsaerts handed in a 65, including two eagles on the back nine, but was left to rue a double bogey six on the 15th which marred his round.

Graeme Storm was best of the English challenge finishing in a tie for sixth spot alongside Ireland’s Shane Lowry and overnight leader Andrew Dodt of Australia. Noren had four birdies in his outward nine and another four coming home before he holed a 10-foot putt on the par-5 18th for an eagle.

He finished his round two hours before the overnight leaders but no-one in the field managed to come close to threatening him. He equalled the record for the number of strokes back a winner of this tournament has come from and now sits alongside Rory McIlory, in 2014, and Simon Khan, in 2010 who also won from seven behind. 

But Noren claimed he was not thinking about how much ground he had to make up especially after a bad finish to his third round on Saturday when he had a double bogey 7 at the 18th -– he was four shots better at the hole on the final day.