Lindell achieved the best possible result on Sunday and finished seventh! – “I had absolutely no idea where the ball was going”
Oliver Lindell achieved a truly crucial success during Sunday’s final round in Madrid. His birdie on the final hole was critical in terms of points, as it allowed the Finn to improve his position and move up to T7. This earned him around 30 extra points for the R2D rankings. His score of -3 on the final day was pretty much the best performance possible on Sunday. A total score of -10 is a commendable achievement, given that Lindell only played to a satisfactory standard on Saturday.
The final round also saw its share of difficulties and some extremely tight play. The round featured four birdies and just one bogey.
“I really grinded it; I was even worse off the tee than I was on that dreadful Friday. Today I had absolutely no idea which way the ball was going. I was lucky on several occasions that, even though I hit it really crooked, I still managed to salvage a shot from tricky places. There were a few good drives – on the front nine’s par-5s and on the final hole I managed some good shots. Otherwise it was really shaky, and thankfully it’s over now,” sighed Lindell.
This year’s performance was very much reminiscent of last year’s Open de España for the player from Porvoo. On that occasion too, he produced one outstanding round, which came on the final day. However, the fact that his final position was a full 20 places higher than the previous year is a sign of his improved form. His success on the final day means he has moved up one place in the rankings to 11th, a position that still keeps Lindell in contention for a PGA Tour card.
After three rounds, Lindell was the best in the tournament at short game play around the greens, and he also demonstrated his short game skills on the final round.
“I certainly racked up a strong score with my short game. I got some good chances towards the end, but the putts just didn’t go in. The wedge shot from the middle of the woods on the 13th hole was the highlight of the day. The shot just cleared the trees and landed a metre away. The putt on the final hole was also brilliant, as it earned me a whole load of extra points. Now, off to India.”
Eugenio Chacarra, this season’s sensation who played in the same group as Lindell and a favourite with the home crowd, came close to securing his third win of the season on home soil. In the end, however, he lost by a single stroke to Scotland’s Grant Forrest (-14). With a brilliant round, Chacarra ensured that the atmosphere around their group was electric on Sunday.
“There was quite a bit of excitement there. He (Chacarra) sank a couple of big putts on holes 4 and 7, which drew loud cheers from the crowd.”
Like Lindell, Sami Välimäki carded a 68 on Sunday, finishing two strokes behind Lindell in joint 13th place.