(Reuters) – Richard Mansell sank a birdie at the final hole to win the Singapore Classic on Sunday and claim his first DP World Tour title on his 104th attempt, beating Keita Nakajima by one stroke.
Englishman Mansell carded a six-under 66 in the third and final round to finish 16 under overall in a tight contest, with Frenchman Adrien Saddier and England’s Tom McKibbin finishing two strokes behind to jointly place third.
“God, I wish it had come earlier,” an emotional Mansell said when asked about his long wait for a title.
“What a feeling… it makes those near misses and when I’ve got ahead of myself in the past just kind of worth it and it just means that much more.”
American Dan Erickson had a one-shot lead going into the final day after the tournament was reduced to 54 holes following a washout on Thursday.
Erickson hit two birdies and a bogey in the third round as he dropped to joint sixth, while Japan’s Nakajima put in an unblemished performance with seven birdies to finish 15 under par.
Mansell, 29, hit five birdies in a row before a bogey on the 10th but offset that with another birdie on the 13th. He was level with Nakajima going into the 18th hole, where he finished with a spectacular two-putt birdie from more than 100 feet.
“So many people have supported me and believed in me when I stopped doing it myself,” said Mansell, whose wife Ellie was in tears when he won.
“One thing I’d say to people trying to do it as a career, that moment is the most fulfilling thing in the world and it’s worth it.
“So stick in and hopefully you’ll get rewarded one day like I have today.”
Mansell will walk away with nearly 400,000 euros ($432,560) in prize money.
($1 = 0.9247 euros)
(Reporting by Chiranjit Ojha in Bengaluru; editing by Clare Fallon)
