Eleven years of waiting ended for Peter Hedblom when he claimed a thrilling one-stroke victory at the Maybank Malaysian Open on Sunday. The Swede prevailed in the heat of battle at Saujana Golf and Country Club, shooting a final round of four under par 68 to win by one stroke from Frenchman Jean-François Lucquin, who signed off with the day’s best card, a 67.
England’s Simon Dyson and Spain’s Ignacio Garrido shared third place, a further stroke behind in the tournament co-sanctioned by The European Tour and Asian Tour.
Hedblom, whose only previous victory on The European Tour was at the 1996 Moroccan Open, overcame a three shot overnight deficit with a clinical display which yielded six birdies. He could even afford the luxury of making a three-putt bogey at the last and still claim a long-awaited second victory.
“Unbelievable,” was Hedblom’s reaction on winning the €165,895 first prize with an eight under par total of 280.
“I was five over for the tournament after 21 holes and at that stage I was not trying to win the tournament. Instead I was trying to make the cut. I managed to make an eagle on seven and 13 in the second round and then birdied 17 to make the cut at level par. Then I thought at seven shots back I still had a chance. Honestly, though, I was thinking about making top ten, so to win this tournament is so good. By winning twice on The European Tour you know you are a true champion.”
The battle for the giant Maybank Malaysian Open trophy was a touch-and-go affair with five players tied for the lead at one stage and another seven within two shots off the pace. But Hedblom pulled clear of the pack with birdies on the 13th, 16th and 17th holes.
He didn’t make it easy on himself at the par five 18th hole, catching a tricky lie with his second shot which ended on the edge of a bunker. But Hedblom played an exquisite chip onto the green – “probably my best shot of the week” was his own assessment - and took three putts to hole out, making Lucquin pay for his costly three putt bogey on the same hole.
“When I walked off 17, people were congratulating me for winning the tournament, but I hadn’t looked at the leaderboards. The first time I did was when I hit my third shot into the 18th. I was focussed on making four or five (at the last) but had the worst lie for my third. It wasn’t in the trap and it wasn’t out of the trap.
“If I hit it fat, I would still be in the bunker, but if I hit it thin it would be over the green. But I hit a great shot to get it to where it was. After that, I was shaking. I couldn’t even put my club down on that putt,” said the 37 year old Swede.
Lucquin pushed hard for a maiden victory and grabbed the sole lead on eight under par for the tournament after birdieng the 17th. However, the Frenchman succumbed on the 18th green when his second putt horse-shoed out, giving Hedblom the luxury of a two shot cushion down the last.
“The first putt (on 18) was very quick, the second putt was a good putt but that’s golf. To finish with a bogey on a par five is hard to take,” said Lucquin.
Dyson, who closed with a 70, was among those tied for the lead at one stage of the final round but dumping his approach into the water at the par five 13th on the second straight day dented his hopes. “I played great and no disrespect to Pete, but I feel I should have won this.
“The 13th summed it up. I hit a long drive and had only a five iron in my hand. I had a downhill lie and the worst lie that I’ve ever seen. If I knock in on and two putt, I’m in the lead. It was just one of those weeks,” lamented Dyson, who will defend next week’s Enjoy Jakarta Astro Indonesia Open title.
Garrido caught a difficult lie on the 18th and could not chase the birdie he so desperately wanted. “I always had seven under in my mind so I was disappointed with my finish, but in the end that wasn’t enough anyway. I fought well. You cannot always win.”
Overnight co-leaders Marcus Higley of England closed with a 74 to finish tied fifth with compatriot Gary Lockerbie (70) on 283, while Argentine Ricardo Gonzalez slipped into 11th after a disappointing 76.
Further down the field there was joy for Kyron Sullivan of Wales, who aced the 186 yard second hole with a five iron.
It was the ninth hole-in-one since 1999 when the event was first co-sanctioned by The European and Asian Tours. Including Sullivan’s effort, six have occurred at Saujana Golf & Country Club with the most memorable undoubtedly being when Thongchai Jaidee aced the 16th on the final day to capture the title in 2004.
But that was then, and everyone at Saujana rose to applaud a popular new champion in Hedblom, who ultimately coped best with a toughened-up Palm Course layout.
“I play better on tough golf courses. When I won in Morocco it was at Dar-es-Salam , which is a tough golf course and my winning score was seven under. My winning score here was eight under. In the last two US Opens I have done well and the rough here was like a US Open. It seemed to work for me,” added the winner.
