Jamie Donaldson came to Thailand with one last chance to save his season.
The Welshman was winless this season, something you don’t expect from a player of his caliber.
Five front nine birdies paved the way to victory and a birdie at the 17th saved it as Donaldson finished with a 65 and a winning 21-under par total.
He took a three-shot lead to the 16th hole but it was there he suffered the dreaded “two-shot swing” when he made bogey and playing partners Lee Westwood and Clement Sordet both birdied to cut Donaldson’s lead to a single shot with two to go.
He bounced back with a birdie at the 17th then parred 18 for a two-shot win. Westwood and Sordet tied for second at 18-under. Good news for all three is that they earned berths in the 2016 Open Championship. It was a great accomplishment for Sordet, who got into the event on a sponsor’s exemption.
“This is certainly one of my best victories,” said Donaldson, who avoided a winless campaign. “There are a lot of good players in the tournament.”
It was Donaldson’s start that got him going. He birdied the first three holes then added two more at the seventh and eighth before an errant drive at nine found the deep rough and cost him a bogey. But he was steady the rest of the way until the hiccup at 16.
Bubba Watson, who was stuck in neutral the first three rounds, finally got something going over the final 18. He finished with a 67 to get to eight-under par and tied for 15th.
