Date: February 08, 2009
Author: Sportal

Stolz wins at Sanctuary Lakes

Andre Stolz has made a triumphant return to the winner&aposs circle, claiming the Victorian PGA Championship by two shots at Sanctuary Lakes on Sunday and moving to the top of the Australasian Tour Order of Merit. Returning to competitive golf just nine months ago after a three year hiatus due to a wrist injury, the 38-year-old father of four held onto his two shot overnight lead to claim his first title since winning the 2004 Michelin Championship on the US PGA Tour. Stolz, from the Central Coast of New South Wales, fired a final round five-under 67 to finish on 17 under par for the tournament, two shots ahead of Queensland s Stuart Bouvier and South Australian Adam Bland and 2006 Victorian PGA Champion Cameron Percy a further shot back and tied for third place. Stolz s four sub-70 rounds of 68, 67, 69 and 67 was particularly impressive considering the heatwave conditions on Saturday that turned into a cold, rainy final day. It’s been an amazing week, the weather threw everything at us, but it feels good to have won a four round event again, said Stolz who returned to the Australasian Tour at last year s NSW PGA Championship in November. He finished tied for 17th at the 2008 Australian Masters and came back to be one shot off the lead heading into the final round of the Australian Open in December, eventually finishing in equal sixth. Coming into this week s event, he had a top ten finish at last week s Subaru Open. Stolz couldn’t really explain the dramatic resurgence in his form, but put it down to history. I don t know, normally when I play well, I play really well and when I play bad I m horrendous, so things haven t really changed. I either win or miss the cut a lot of the time. I can t explain it. It used to annoy me but now I just go with it, he said. Runner up, Queenslander Stuart Bouvier, who was tied for second place overnight, quickly recovered from a bogey at the second to record a five-under final round and claim outright second place. Also tied second overnight, Victorian Cameron Percy shot a final round four under and finished tied third alongside Adam Bland whose six-under 66 saw him move up six places on the final day. The rounds of the day went to Victorian s Alistair Presnell and Scott Laycock. Presnell recovered from a disastrous third round 77 to shoot seven under 65 and move from equal 16th place to finish in a tie for fifth alongside Subaru Victorian Open runner up Laycock who was also in 16th spot overnight. The top ten was rounded out by Queenslander Andrew Bonhomme who finished seventh on 12 under, with New Zealander Gareth Paddison and Brad Kennedy tied in eighth on 11 under and Victorian amateur Bryden MacPherson capping off a spectacular finish in just his second professional event to finish tenth on ten under par.