Paul Dunne completed a whirlwind week with a tied-seventh finish at the Dunhill Links Championship in St Andrews as Tyrrell Hatton claimed his second title in as many years by three shots from Ross Fisher, despite the Englishman shooting a course record 61 on the final day.
Hatton, who began the day with a five-shot lead held off the late challenge of Fisher who threatened a historic 59 at one stage.
With two holes to play the Englishman needed two birdies to become the first man ever to break 60 on the European Tour but could only manage two pars after missing a short putt for a three at the 18th.
Hatton opened up a seven-shot lead with four birdies on the front nine and gained a further shot on the 14th — he dropped only two shots during the tournament — to win by three.
Dunne’s Sunday 70 means he picks up a cheque for €93,955 while also claiming more Ryder Cup and world ranking points after last week’s British Masters win moved him into the top 100 for the first time. The finish will also most likely move him into the top 10 of the Race to Dubai rankings with which, if he can stay there through the DP World Tour Championship in November, he will be eligible for the bonus prize pool dished out to the 10 players.
The 24-year-old now looks to maintain his hot run of form at next week’s Italian Open in Monza which is also part of the new Rolex Series.
The final round was somewhat of a slow day as birdies at the third and fifth, sandwiching a bogey at the fourth, gave way to a run of pars which went all the way to the final hole where he rolled in a 20-footer for a three and a round of 70.
The round of the day from the Irish contingent came via Graeme McDowell who carded a 67 to finish at 11 under and tied for 15th. Six birdies and a single bogey were the order of the day for the 2010 US Open champion as he also heads for Italy.
For Rory McIlroy it was a case of the season summed up in his final round of the year as he struggled to gain any momentum in shooting a level par 72 to finish at four under.
The four-time major winner will now take an extended break from competitive play, most likely not appearing again until the end of January or start of February. He told Sky Sports afterwards that he won’t hit a ball until November, instead focusing on his fitness for the next month.
Gavin Moynihan rounded off another successful week on the European Tour by adding a tie for 47th to his tied-14th finish at the Irish Open earlier in the year – the only two starts he’s got on the main tour as he continues to build his way up from the Challenge Tour.
A final round 68 for the 23-year-old Dubliner was enough to finish at eight under par.
For Shane Lowry it was a final round 69 to finish in a tie for 25th before he heads to Monza.
In the team event, Jamie Donaldson and Kieran McManus – son of JP – emerged victorious with a total of 40 under par.
Collated final scores & totals in the European Tour Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, Old Course St. Andrews, Carnoustie & Kingsbarns (Gbr & Irl unless stated, par 72):
264 Tyrrell Hatton 68 65 65 66
267 Ross Fisher 71 68 67 61
271 Victor Dubuisson (Fra) 74 66 68 63
274 Robert Rock 71 68 69 66, Marc Warren 70 71 67 66, Gregory Bourdy (Fra) 70 67 66 71
275 Alexander Levy (Fra) 70 69 68 68, Paul Dunne 67 68 70 70, Luke Donald 70 70 66 69, Eddie Pepperell 72 69 69 65, Oliver Fisher 68 71 71 65
276 Ben Evans 69 68 72 67, Stephen Gallacher 72 67 70 67, Joakim Lagergren (Swe) 69 67 71 69
277 Graeme McDowell 69 71 70 67, Haydn Porteous (Rsa) 74 71 65 67, Brandon Stone (Rsa) 71 67 71 68, Kiradech Aphibarnrat (Thi) 70 66 71 70, David Drysdale 69 67 72 69, Marcel Siem (Ger) 69 66 74 68, Romain Wattel (Fra) 70 68 70 69, Connor Syme 72 70 69 66, Nino Bertasio (Ita) 70 69 71 67, Matthew Fitzpatrick 73 68 68 68
278 Rhein Gibson (Aus) 70 72 68 68, Nicolas Colsaerts (Bel) 67 67 73 71, Gary Stal (Fra) 72 67 70 69, James Morrison 71 69 72 66, Aaron Rai 70 70 71 67, Peter Hanson (Swe) 71 72 68 67, Niclas Fasth (Swe) 73 65 71 69, Shane Lowry 68 75 66 69, Tommy Fleetwood 70 63 76 69, Bernd Ritthammer (Ger) 70 66 71 71, Bradley Dredge 70 70 69 69
279 Ricardo Gouveia (Por) 71 71 67 70, Joost Luiten (Ned) 70 69 71 69, David Horsey 75 70 66 68, Martin Kaymer (Ger) 71 71 67 70, Ashley Chesters 71 69 70 69, Graeme Storm 75 69 67 68, Laurie Canter 72 69 71 67, Jeunghun Wang (Kor) 69 71 72 67, Christiaan Bezuidenhout (Rsa) 73 70 69 67, Dylan Frittelli (Rsa) 70 71 70 68, Gregory Havret (Fra) 70 69 69 71
280 Richard Bland 73 65 73 69, Mikko Ilonen (Fin) 74 67 67 72, Jaco Ahlers (Rsa) 71 69 70 70, Branden Grace (Rsa) 70 69 72 69, George Coetzee (Rsa) 69 73 69 69, Raphael Jacquelin (Fra) 71 69 70 70, Jason Scrivener (Aus) 72 71 69 68, Liam Johnston 72 70 70 68, Gavin Moynihan 70 70 72 68
281 Mike Lorenzo-Vera (Fra) 74 67 70 70, Scott Gregory 71 71 70 69, Julien Quesne (Fra) 71 69 72 69
282 Ulrich Van Den Berg (Rsa) 73 68 71 70, J.B. Holmes (Us) 73 66 72 71, Matt Wallace 69 67 74 72, Richard Sterne (Rsa) 72 75 65 70
284 Rory McIlroy 73 71 68 72, Lasse Jensen (Den) 71 69 72 72, Benjamin Hebert (Fra) 69 72 71 72
285 Matthew Giles (Aus) 73 67 70 75
286 Darren Fichardt (Rsa) 74 68 69 75
287 Anthony Michael (Rsa) 73 65 74 75
