When was the last time you saw a playoff where one of the combatants hit one from 275 yards out on a par five to 11 feet?
That’s precisely what Spain’s Rafa Cabrera-Bello did Sunday in Scotland and that magnificent effort won the Scottish Open.
Bello closed and finished early with an eight-under par effort that got him to 13-under par then he sat back and watched the man who could beat him — sensationally long-hitting rookie Callum Shinkwin.
Shinkwin came to the par five 18th at 14-under, needed just a par to win. Aggressively, he smashed driver off the tee then pulled his second into an awkward spot on a downhill lie, pin-high with a bunker blocking him from easy victory. He nervously left his third short of the green then continued to show his inexperience, leaving himself a seven-footer to win. He nervously left it short.
Playoff.
That was where Bello hit that unbelievable second. Again, Shinkwin found nearly the same spot, left of that nasty bunker. This time he got it on the green albeit 10 feet from the hole. Bello narrowly missed his eagle putt, tapped in then watched as once again, Shinkwin got a case of the nerves and let his birdie attempt short. Ugh!
Bello had an incredible eight-birdie day. “Drove it well, putted it well, did everything well,” he said as he was all smiles and headed to Royal Birkdale. He has a bus-full of momentum with his third European Tour win in the bag and he made it back-to-back wins for Spanish stars after Jon Rahm won last week in Ireland.
Ian Poulter couldn’t sustain his good play. His 74 dropped him into a tie for fourth.
Americans Matt Kuchar and Rickie Fowler played well enough to finish in the top 10 and put themselves in a good frame of mind for the Open Championship. Kuchar tied for fourth while Fowler tied for ninth. What hurt them both was the foul weather that showed up on Saturday. Kuchar shot 73 in the wind and rain, Fowler 74. Goes to show how much Americans depend on good weather at the Open Championship.
