MADRID – Marco Penge defeated fellow Briton Daniel Brown in a playoff to win the Spanish Open on Sunday and qualify for next year’s Masters and British Open Championship.
Penge relinquished a four-shot lead, but birdied the first hole of the playoff to take the lead and win his third European Tour title of the year.
“Dan and Joel (Gerbach) played great today. They were holed putts and I just couldn’t really hole them. I felt like we were really up against it,” Penge said. “But I felt like I had very good control of myself and I actually felt like I played very solid from tee to green. It doesn’t matter the putt. I think I used it all yesterday, but it was definitely worth the wait to keep that putt in the hole.”
It was the first time that the winner of a national tournament was given an automatic berth to the Masters and British Open.
“It’s crazy,” Penge said of playing at the Masters. “This is a golf course that I’ve always wanted to play because I feel like it’s really good for my game.”
Penge, who shot a 1-over 72 on Sunday, finished the tournament with Brown at 15 under.
Brown, who celebrated his 31st birthday on Saturday, started five shots behind but came away with a 4-under 67 in the final round. That was despite dealing with an ailment in his right shoulder that required treatment during the back nine. He made a birdie on the final hole and advanced to the playoff.
Penge, 27, also won the Danish Golf Championship and the Hainan Classic.
Gilbach (69) started the day with a four-shot lead. The Swiss player finished third in the tournament with a total of 14 under par.
Local favorite Jon Rahm, aiming for a record fourth Spanish Open title, was out of contention at the start of the final round, but finished tied for ninth with a 6-under 65.
Shane Lowry, like Rahm, returned to action after helping Europe win the Ryder Cup in New York last month, but was unable to feature at Club de Campo Villa de Madrid in the Spanish capital.
