Korhonen seals first win at Shot Clock Masters

Mikko Korhonen signed for a round of 69 for a sixteen under par total and a six-shot victory over Scotland's Connor Syme to seal his long awaited win.

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Mikko Korhonen wins Shot Clock Masters.

Jun 11, 2018: Mikko Korhonen produced a brilliantly consistent display to speed away from the field and secure his first European Tour title at the Shot Clock Masters.

The Finn entered the final day with a five-shot advantage but his lead was cut to three in the early stages and he had to contend with two weather delays at Diamond Country Club near Vienna in Austria.

Korhonen is no stranger to adversity after his 12 visits to Qualifying School and he calmly signed for a round of 69 for a sixteen under par total and a six-shot victory over Scotland’s Connor Syme.

It feels great, beautiful. It’s been a long wait so it feels so good. I didn’t dare to think about winning. When my last shot had landed on the 18th green, then I knew I had five or six putts of cushion”, said Korhonen.

The 37 year old, who won the Q-School Final Stage in 2014 and has maintained his place on Tour ever since, now has a victory at the 146th attempt thanks to a 62-hole bogey-free run that was only ended on the ninth hole today.

Syme holed a 5o foot putt on the last hole to take second place on his own at ten under par and claim his best European Tour finish after making just three of 12 cuts so far in his rookie season.

Belgium’s Nicolas Colsaerts, Frenchman Raphaël Jacquelin, Justin Walters of South Africa and England’s Steve Webster were one shot behind at nine under par.

The European Tour was breaking new ground this week with every player on the clock for every shot, and one-shot penalties imposed for bad times. While only four players ended the week with a one-shot penalty, average round times for rounds one to three shaved more than 30 minutes off the 2018 season average time for 18 holes in three balls, while the score average for the week was more than a shot better than the average for all previous editions of this event, formerly the Austrian Open, at Diamond Country Club since 2010.

 

European Tour Release

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