American ensures first visit to Mauritius is a memorable one
AMERICAN golfing giant Tom Lehman yesterday added the Mauritian Commercial Bank Senior Tour Championship to a long list of his impressive achievements.
But for the Ryder Cup veteran and former British Open champion, it was not a performance of supreme shot-making that got him across the winning line a stroke ahead of South African David Frost.
The swirling, gusty wind did not allow for that.
This occasion demanded hard graft and resilience allied to precision on and around the greens. It made a compelling spectacle.
The same, of course, applied to challenger Frost who, 12 months ago had salvaged a lost cause to win the MCB Senior Open, producing an outrageous eagle at the final hole with a 30-foot putt that forced a play-off and eventual victory over England’s Roger Chapman.
Ironically, fate brought him back to the same scene where he again needed to outscore his opponent.
But history was not going to repeat itself. Trailing by a shot after reviving his hopes with a splendid birdie at the 17th hole, Frost hit his drive into trouble and his recovery shot left him a long way from the green after two.
A majestic three-wood saw the ball come to rest in the heart of the green, giving the South African an outside chance of redemption.
But Lehman’s conservative second shot left no more than a wedge to the green and when Frost failed with his birdie attempt, a two-putt par from Lehman was all that was needed to bring the contest to an end.
“This is a special win for me,” he said after collecting the trophy on what was his European Senior Tour debut. “When you come to somewhere like Mauritius, you feel a sense of urgency to play well.
“I had a great desire to play the best I could to say thank you to everyone.
“But on top of that, to play in the Senior Tour Championship against so many great players and so many friends, and to win really does mean a lot to me.”
Lehman had started the day with a two-stroke cushion but the heavy breeze that seemed to fluctuate in direction for every shot made judgement difficult.
Frost and Lehman had bogies at the short third and when the South African had halved the lead with a birdie at the fourth, he promptly dropped a stroke at the next after blocking his route to the green with a wayward into trees so it was as you were.
A second birdie, at the eighth, again reduced the margin and after the two rivals birdied the par-five 13th, Frost then at last drew level with a curling 20-foot effort at the 14th that found the centre of the cup.
Whether it was a misjudgement or a surge of adrenalin brought on by the back-to-back birdies but Frost’s approach at the 15th hit the green but flew past the pin and rolled off the back.
The chip was a little too strong and Frost dragged his putt wide. Lenham was back in the ascendancy.Crucially, the tall American birdied the 16th to restore his two-stroke advantage and although Frost responded with a wonderful putt for birdie at the 17th, his drive at the last lifted the pressure on Lehman who did precisely what was needed.
England’s Nick Job produced an efficient, well-controlled performance to overhaul Gary Wolstenhome and claim third place, while best-of-the-day scores of 66 by Sam Torrance and Gordon J Brand forced Wolstenholme further back in the field.
Australian Peter Fowler duly collected the John Jacobs Trophy for finishing top of the Senior Tour order-of-merit in a sub-plot to the main event that never developed after his rival, Barry Lane’s first round problems with the heat..
Neil Webber
Leading finishers: 204 T Lehman (USA) 65 68 71; 205 D Frost (RSA) 68 67; 211 N Job 70 70 71; 212 S Torrance (Sco) 73 73 66, G J Brand 74 72 66; 213 G Wolstenholme (Eng) 70 69 74; 214 JP Fowler (Aus) 73 68 73; 215 Juan Quiros (Sp), 75 70 70; 216 M Mouland 70 74 72, R Cameron 70 74 72, M Cunning 77 67 b72, D J Russell 74 70 72, B lane 75 68 73, B Longmuir 73 70 73, A Oldcorn 76 67 73.
