Joel Moscatel secured his second Challenge Tour title of the season in a dramatic play-off victory over Benjamin Hébert at the Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge, while Conor Purcell finished in a tie for 17th.
The Portmarnock man, who was the sole Irish participant at the weekend, started the final round five back after a level-par Saturday round saw him stuck in neutral, but three birdies in his first seven holes of round four had him eyeing that elusive first Challenge Tour victory.
A ‘six’ at the par-5 eighth stalled the momentum, and further bogeys at 10 and 12 ended all hopes of victory, and though he’d pick up two more strokes on 13 and 15, he’d close out the tournament with back-to-back bogeys on 16 and 17 to slip out of the top 10 and ship valuable Road to Mallorca rankings points as he continues to lie just outside the all-important top-20.
Spaniard Moscatel, who started the day in a share of the overnight lead, fired four birdies – including a crucial gain on the last – alongside two bogeys in a two under par final round of 70 to finish on 14 under par alongside Frenchman Hébert, who posted a five under 67.
Moscatel’s par on the first play-off hole was enough to secure victory, and the 25-year-old was delighted to top the leaderboard after a battling final round in Normandy.
“I’m really pleased,” he said. “The start was not easy because I was not hitting good wedge shots, but [my caddie and I] played the 18th really well, and then the tenth hole in the play-off was the same.
“The entire day I had holes where I had a chance to make a birdie and then I was fighting for the par. We had a lot of par saves. They were really important – that’s what saved me today.”
The Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge is Moscatel’s second victory of the season after he secured a maiden title at last month’s Challenge de España in Sevilla, and the 25-year-old now has his sights firmly set on a top 20 finish in the Road to Mallorca rankings and promotion to the DP World Tour.
“Every tournament is different,” he said. “Here I was much more nervous than in Sevilla, because I knew that winning here maybe guarantees my [DP World Tour] card.
“In Sevilla I had no expectations but definitely that win gave me confidence to know that I could do it again.”
Dutchman Wil Besseling shared third place with Spaniard Quim Vidal and England’s George Mason on 13 under par, while Dane Christoffer Bring and Englishman Jamie Rutherford finished a shot further back in sixth.
Moscatel’s victory takes him above Frenchman Alex Levy into third place on the Road to Mallorca Rankings, behind England’s John Parry in second. Dane Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen remains in pole position.
The Road to Mallorca takes a two-week break before returning for the Euram Bank Open at GC Adamstal in Austria from July 18-21.
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