Georg Schultes, a PGA of Austria professional, secured his maiden PGAs of Europe tournament win after coming out on top of a twoman playoff at the 2016 MercedesBenz International Pro-Am, which was held at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club.
It was an exciting finish to the tournament, which is supported by the Abu Dhabi Sports Council and Eastern Motors. Schultes, the overnight leader by four shots, improved upon his excellent track record in the tournament, in which he has finished fourth and second in previous years.
PGA of Austria’s Christoph Pfau fired five birdies and an eagle in a bogey-free round on the final day for a seven-under par 64, which saw him shoot up the leaderboard and grab the early clubhouse lead. But Pfau’s round was just the appetizer, as last year’s runner-up, Alex Wrigley (PGA of Great Britain & Ireland), submitted a blemishfree course-record round of 10-under par 61, which put immense pressure on Schultes.
At the turn, Schultes was nine-under par for the tournament, and he withstood the pressure of the closing stretch to remain on that score and match Wrigley in a tie for first place to force a play-off.
The contest was eventually decided on the second extra hole when Schultes birdied the par-5 18th, while Wrigley missed his putt from almost similar distance.
“I’ve been here since the beginning; it’s my third year here in Al Ain,” said Schultes. “I’ve finished with results of second or fourth in the first two years, so I feel like I was due – I didn’t want to jinx it but third time lucky, so it feels pretty good.”
AESGC’s Gavin Chappell congratulated the champion and the winning team. He also thanked Mohammad Al Momani and his staff at Eastern Motors and Aref Hamad Al Awani and the Abu Dhabi Sports Council for their support to the annual event.
In the Team tournament, Rockliffe Hall’s team led by Jonny Dye completed a wire-to-wire victory after a closing 87 points (-15) built on their four-point overnight lead. Amateur members in the winning team were Richard Roper, Tanny Sinfield and Tim Walker.