If the Ryder Cup team had been picked before the Spanish Open it would have had a very strange look about it. Now, at the conclusion of that event, it would look stranger still for, in addition to some of the unexpected names presently on the list, it would include the name of yesterday's winner, Jarmo Sakari Sandelin. Ireland's Paul McGinley also put himself in Ryder Cup contention following his joint second place finish. The Dubliner, who won £44,738 for his efforts, now lies in 11th position on the table.
Sandelin, a naturalised Swede who lives in Monaco, won over the El Prat course with a 21under-par total of 267, four ahead of McGinley, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Ignacio Garrido. McGinley, who was in contention all week, shot a final round 70 following his earlier rounds of 67 68 and 66. Sandelin's victory earned him Stg£100,000 and took him to sixth in the Ryder Cup points table, alongside the likes of Alex Cejka, Robert Karlsson and Sven Struver, none of whom would have been thought likely at the start of the season.
Sandelin would bring something quite distinctive to the team. He is something of a rarity, a man who enjoys shopping and, furthermore, enjoys shopping for clothes. He loves tight-fitting shirts, for instance, and can barely wait for this week's Italian Open when he will make a special journey to Milan to check out the fashion scene.
He has his own cobbler in Stockholm, who makes up his golf shoes from crocodile skin, and if in the course of time he wins a couple of majors one can expect a new clothing line with his name, featuring some very different items.
Even his golf is different. He uses a 52-inch driver, four or five inches longer than standard, and on occasion he carries no fewer than five wedges.
Yesterday, though, and throughout the tournament the most potent club in his bag was the putter. He averaged 24.5 putts per round, setting a record for a winner by almost two per round, the previous one belonging to the Australian Stephen Leaney who won the Dutch Open last year averaging 26.3 putts.
Sandelin's third tournament win was made easier for him by a remarkable incident at the long 12th, where Jamie Spence hit a drive which was last seen rolling under an illegally parked car. Spence had gone to the turn in 31 and was pressing hard, but when he got to the car the ball was neither under it nor anywhere else. The only explanation, that it must have been picked up by a passing spectator, was rejected by officials and a hole that was being routinely birdied cost Spence a seven and his chance of victory.
The 19-year-old Sergio Garcia completed his first tournament as a professional and could be said to be getting worse. He played in this event on the same course last year as an amateur and finished with an 11-under-par total of 277, to tie for 34th. This year he managed only nine under but finished tied 25th, earning his first pay cheque of Stg£5,670.
Figures can, of course, be deceptive and Garcia probably hit the ball better this week than he did last year. The problem lay in his putting, which was not helped by the fact that the greens were seeding and presented some uneven surfaces.
The week had been "a great experience", he said, adding: "I didn't have too much luck with the putter. But I know that putting is an extremely strange thing and I will wait for my time." Garcia goes back to school this week, which he acknowledges will be hard after the excitement of the past few days, but he is determined to complete his studies. Next week he will be in Texas for the Byron Nelson Classic, where he will meet up with an old friend, Tiger Woods.
Garcia did not match Woods in terms of scoring in their respective pro debuts, Woods being 11 under, but the Spaniard outplaced him as the American could only tie for 60th in his first event. "Now," said Garcia, "I want to see if I can win a tournament before the season is over."
