Lucas Vacarisas claims his maiden Challenge tour victory after claiming a two-shot victory at the Hopps Open de Provence in Mallemort with an impressive score of -20.
The Spaniard’s final round of 67 was enough to beat the challenge of both Frenchman Félix Mory and Weslman Oliver Farr, who finished the tournament tied for second on -18.
Conor Purcell capped off a solid week of golf with a final round of 70 to finish the competition tied for 34th while Dermot McElroy ended the tournament tied for 49th after a level par round on Sunday.
Although Purcell started and finished his final round with bogeys, the 26-year-old will certainly be happy with his round of golf as he recorded his third round below par in the French sunshine.
After dropping a shot on the first, a swift birdie on the following hole was just what the Portmarnock golfer needed as he returned to level par for his round through two.
Purcell remained on level par all the way through the remainder of his front nine as well as the first third of his back nine courtesy of a run of 10 consecutive pars which made up the bulk of his round.
A birdie on the 13th sent Purcell below par for the first time in his round, while back-to-back birdies on the 16th and 17th put more of a shine on his final round.
A bogey on the final hole of the competition gave the Dormy Open runner-up a final score of -7 for the competition and a finish of 34th alongside five other competitors.
McElroy on the other hand was fighting in vain to make up ground on the players above him as he fluctuated between one-over and level-par all day.
Two bogeys either side of a birdie on the third meant the Northern Irishman sat at one-over-par through his first four holes. A birdie on his final hole of the front nine brought McElroy back to level par and would stay there for most of the back nine.
A bogey on the 15th was rectified by the 30-year-old third birdie of the day as he finished the tournament with a score of -3 and a share of 49th place.
At the business end of the leaderboard, the form Lucas Vacarisas showed throughout his front nine was the foundation on which his final round success was built.
A string of seven consecutive birdies that stretched into his back nine sent him soaring up the leaderboard and onto seven-under-par through 10 holes.
A bogey on the 11th extinguished the 25-year-old’s red-hot run and another dropped shot 13th would surely have given him some jitters with five holes to play.
A birdie-bogey run on the 14th and 15th kept things as they were through 15 holes and Vacarisas finished with a triplet of pars to claim his maiden win on the tour.
Speaking after his victory at the Golf International de Pont Royal course, the Spaniard was ecstatic about his time in days in Mallemort.
“I was playing well and I just tried to do my best and play every hole that way,” he said. “I’m so happy with my game and with all the work we’ve done this year.
“The crowds in France were incredible. It’s super when they follow you around, and it means a lot for us as players.”
China is the next stop for the Challenge Tour between October 13th and 16th with the Hainan Open at Danzhou Ancient Saltern Golf Club.
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