SA's Walters loses UK Championship to Danish teen Hojgaard

SA's Walters loses UK Championship to Danish teen Hojgaard

Danish teenager Rasmus Hojgaard beat South Africa's Justin Walters in a play-off to win the UK Championship on Sunday, securing his second European Tour title.

Man Playing Golf / Pexels
Man Playing Golf / Pexels

Hojgaard won with a par on the second extra hole at The Belfry after he and overnight leader Walters had finished tied on 14 under par.


The 19-year-old fell two shots off the pace when he bogeyed the 12th, but birdied the 14th and 16th and holed from 10 feet for eagle on the 17th to complete a superb closing 65.


Walters, who began the day with a two-shot lead, ran up a triple-bogey seven on the eighth after hitting his tee shot out of bounds, but recovered superbly and birdied three of the last five holes to force a play-off.


The 39-year-old bravely holed from 10 feet for par on the first extra hole but was unable to repeat the feat from a similar distance at the second time of asking after carving his approach wide of the green from a fairway bunker.


Former world number one Martin Kaymer, whose last win was the second of his two major titles at the 2014 US Open, had held the outright lead after his third birdie of the day on the 13th.


However, after lipping out for an eagle and tapping in for birdie on the 15th, Kaymer dropped his only shot of the day on the par-five 17th and was unable to hole from 15 feet on the last to join the play-off.

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