On a day of surprise, there was no-one more surprised than Tyrrell Hatton to be left standing holding the gleaming Turkish Airlines Open victory trophy.
Hatton entered round four in glorious sunshine three shots off the lead but ended it as the last man standing in a six-man play-off under floodlights and a near full moon to shine the brightest on the Montgomerie Maxx Royal course in Belek.
A birdie on the 72nd hole handed him a closing 67 and a place in the record equalling play-off alongside French duo Benjamin Hebert and Victor Perez, American Kurt Kitayama, Austrian Matthias Schwab and South African Erik van Rooyen.
It was a first occasion since 1990 six players were involved in a play-off on the European Tour.
England’s Tyrrell Hatton shines the brightest in capturing the 2019 Turkish Airlines Open (Photo – European Tour/Getty)
He had to chip-in to keep his hopes alive on the first trip back up the last as Hebert, Perez and van Rooyen were eliminated on the first extra hole. Kitayama stayed in the hunt before he was eliminated on the third extra hole, leaving Hatton and Schwab to fight it out under the floodlights for the US$2million first prize.
Hatton found trouble with his drive and was forced to lay-up before finding the green but then for him to look on in total amazement when his par putt miss the cut.
It left Schwab needing to hole his four-footer for birdie to send the duo back down the 18th but only for the Austrian to horribly miss his par putt to hand Hatton the task of tapping-in for a winning par.
Player Quotes
Tyrrell Hatton: “It’s so surreal. I mean, I actually can’t believe that I’ve won. It’s been quite a difficult year in terms of things happening off course, and you know, the last month, I feel like I really found my game again.
“I said to a few people on my team that if I was lucky enough to win again, then I would definitely savour the moment, because I think it’s quite easy to take it for granted, and you know, sport’s great when it’s going well, but when it’s not going well, it kind of hits home, so I’m absolutely thrilled. Obviously amazing to have Mick on the bag and he’s done a great job this week. I’m just so happy.
“You don’t think about the money, at all. It’s all pride. And yeah, obviously it’s a bonus at the end of it after a great week, and I’m just so happy, I don’t know what else to say.”
Matthias Schwab: “It was a close call. I had some good looks and good chances coming down the stretch in regular play and didn’t take advantage of them. In a playoff, it is what it is.
“It’s still a second-place finish, which is obviously not too bad, but yeah, at the moment, it’s not too great.”
Kurt Kitayama: “It was pretty fun. A little disappointed, but gave myself a couple chances. It’s too bad. To put myself right back in it today and to get myself a win would have been amazing. I’m pleased how today went. The ending was tough but overall, great learning experience.”
