Not much was happening for Paul Dunne as he negotiated his first eleven holes in even par having traded one birdie and one bogey over his outward half at the Made in Denmark on Sunday.
However, patience proved key for the Greystones swinger as he burst into life on the homeward stretch, picking up birdies at 12, 14, 15 and 16 to sign for a timely 67 and a share of fourth position at nine-under par at Himmerland.
From ambling to a relatively mediocre result, Dunne’s barnstorming finish fell just one place shy of his best result this term so far after he took third at the ISPS Handa World Super 6 Perth back in February.
“I guess the last year, to a few months, hasn’t been great for me,” reflected Dunne. “I struggled a bit with my ball-striking and I’m working hard at it, so I guess the biggest positive this week was that I was positive strokes gained in every department – driving, approach play, around the greens, putting. I can’t remember the last time I was positive in all four of those stats so it’s nice to see everything trending well.”
Dunne’s game has been bubbling beneath the surface for some time and that stretch of holes from 12-18 might just prove the catalyst for him to rediscover his best stuff ahead of a crucial period of the season.
What’s more, the €109,440 pocketed and the Race to Dubai points that go with it will provide a much-needed shove in the right direction for the Wicklow man, who holds aspirations of adding an Open Championship date at Royal Portrush to an already packed summer schedule.
“It was really nice to play the back-nine well,” added Dunne, who raced home in 31 at crunch time. “Seeing that the scoring was better than the previous days, it was nice to make the turn and know I was a little bit behind everyone and have a good finish coming in to pick up a few quid on the last few holes.
“The meat of the season is just starting now. It’s nice to be based back in Europe as well and get ready for a nice run of events starting in Germany, through the Scottish Open and hopefully I qualify for the Open in that run, but we’ll wait and see.
“Before that I have the GolfSixes but that’s about it. I’m not going to US Open Qualifying. For now though, I’m just going to be happy for a couple of days with the finish and the more positive direction of the game and then I’ll get back to work at it.”
Leave a comment