Finch wins New Zealand Open
Finch now hopes to add to his success having captured his first title
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Sunday, 02, Dec 2007 10:55
Englishman Richard Finch has won his first tour title, claiming the New Zealand Open by three shots ahead of Steven Bowditch and Paul Sheehan.
Despite only carding a level-par final round the 30-year-old did enough to hold off his challengers to finish on 14-under on what was a tougher day for scoring than the two previous days had been.
The course record has been broken twice in Queenstown this week but players found the final round pin placements harder to contend with.
Finch started his round well, making two birdies in the opening three holes, however from then on he experienced an inconsistent round.
The Englishman dropped a shot at the fourth but birdied the eighth to reach the turn on two under for the day. On the back nine he made three bogeys and one birdie to narrowly edge out Bowditch and Sheehan.
Bowditch recovered well on the back nine to share second place having made five bogeys and one birdie over the first 11 holes. The Australian made two birdies and an eagle in the closing six holes.
Sheehan was the biggest mover on the final day, his round of three-under was enough to threaten Finch's lead at one stage and the Australian was the clubhouse leader for a long time but the Englishman managed to maintain his advantage.
Finch revealed his delight about claiming his maiden tour title but admitted he had been nervous throughout the final round.
He said: "I'm thrilled to bits. It's difficult because you spend so long telling yourself not to think about winning or trying to win, but when it happens it takes a while to sink in."