Mark Brown wins in Switzerland at first start on Legends Tour
Mark Brown wins in Switzerland at first start on Legends Tour
Mark Brown shot a bogey-free six under par in the final round to win the Swiss Seniors’ Open in Switzerland last month.
The Tauranga-based former Wellingtonian had rounds of 66, 65 and 64 to finish at 15 under par. He won by two shots after being one stroke off the lead after two rounds.
Caption: Mark Brown poses with his trophy after winning the Swiss Seniors’ Open at first start on the Legends Tour. Photo credit: Getty Images.
The Swiss Seniors’ Open is held at Golf Club Bad Ragaz and is the oldest tournament on the Legends Tour with last month’s tournament the 27th edition.
Chasing 36-hole leader Robert Coles, Brown maintained composure down the stretch and with crucial birdies on the par four 15th and par five 16th holes he managed to take hold of the tournament as Coles couldn’t recover from a one-over front nine.
A par on the 17th for Brown allowed him to head down 18 with a two-shot lead, making a stress free par to become a debutant Legends Tour winner, the first since Scott Hend of Australia in 2013.
“It’s amazing,” said Brown, “I really didn’t know what to expect this week, so we’ve all just had a blast. We’ve had a fantastic week, and what a way to finish today.
“I stayed pretty patient. I felt like the scoring was going to be pretty low today. There’s hardly any wind, so I just needed to be patient, especially on the front nine. I managed to make a few birdies on that back nine coming home, which was really the key. Winning is never easy, so I had the heart rate going coming up 18.
“I’ve got a six-year-old son and he’s obsessed by the trophies. Unfortunately, we don’t win too many in a golf tournament, so he’ll be especially pleased to see the trophy.”
The win was Brown’s 12th internationally and second in Europe, adding to his co-sanctioned European Tour and PGA of Tour of Australasia win at the 2008 Johnnie Walker Classic in India and followed his win on New Zealand’s Charles Tour in the Muriwai Open in April.
Footnote: Brown’s win was worth about $NZ93,000.