May 15, 2017: Matt Wallace held his nerve to complete a sensational wire to wire victory at the Open de Portugal at Morgado Golf Resort.
He held a five shot lead at the halfway stage and went into the final round three clear, but Wallace saw his advantage reduced to a single stroke by first German Sebastian Heisele and then American Julian Suri.
But the 27 year old Englishman found birdies at key times and produced a third blemish-free round of the week to sign for a closing 69 and 21 under par total.
After a sedate start featuring six straight pars, Wallace made gains at the seventh and ninth to keep his nose in front.
However, with Suri looming, it was a five iron third to tap-in distance following a poor drive at the par-five 13th that set up a birdie to send him two clear again, and another gain at the 16th sealed victory in style
Suri rattled in nine birdies in his first 15 holes only to ease the pressure on Wallace slightly when he dropped his only shot of the day at the 17th, eventually finishing three shots back at 178 under par.
France’s Matthieu Pavon was third on 16 under, with Heisele and England’s Sam Walker a shot further back in fourth.
Wallace won six times on the Alps Tour last season – five of those victories coming in a row – to secure a place on the Challenge Tour.
However, he now finds himself in possession of a European Tour card for the remainder of the 2017 season after maintaining the winning habit in only his fourth event at this level.
After a sedate start featuring six straight pars, Wallace made gains at the seventh and ninth to keep his nose in front.
However, with Suri looming, it was a five iron third to tap-in distance following a poor drive at the par-five 13th that set up a birdie to send him two clear again, and another gain at the 16th sealed victory in style.
European Tour Release
