Zander Lombard’s superb final round of seven-under-par 64 wasn’t enough for the win on Sunday, but it brought him a fine second place in the DP World Tour’s acciona Open de Espana at Club de Campo Villa de Madrid in Spain.
In the end, France’s Matthieu Pavon had done enough in the first three rounds, and he, too, had a closing 64 to stay in front for his maiden DP World Tour title. Lombard’s bogey-free round was underlined with his closing birdie which lifted him out of a share of second with Nathan Kimsey of England to second on his own.
Lombard’s finish was confirmation that he has found the kind of form he showed all the way back in March when he finished in a share of second in the Jonsson Workwear Open back home in South Africa. There were eight missed cuts after that, but this performance has seen him jump 27 places on the Race to Dubai rankings to 31st. With just two more regular events to go ahead of the season closers in the Nedbank Golf Challenge and the DP World Tour Championship. So he will be in action for sure at Sun City, as he will be in Dubai.
Wilco Nienaber was the next-best of the South Africans in the field, his closing 66 lifting him to 12-under, nine shots behind Pavon, and a share of 17th. It was his second-best finish on the DP World Tour this year since his share of fourth in the ISPS HANDA World Invitational in August. It lifts him to 125th on the Race to Dubai list, and leaves him with a sniff of retaining his playing status if he improves to inside the top 112 in the remaining two tournaments this month ahead of the end of the season.
Thriston Lawrence and Louis de Jager closed with 70 and 68 respectively to share 41st on eight-under-par. Daniel van Tonder had a two-over 73 and was in a share of 57th on five-under, while, at four-under in a share of 62nd was Thomas Aiken after he closed with a four-over 75. Deon Germishuys didn’t have a good weekend, and his 78, added to his third-round 74, saw him slip down the leaderboard to four-over and a share of 74th.
