Nuh, March 22 – MJ Daffue produced a bogey-free final round to secure a second title in two months at the thrilling final day of the DP World PGTI Open, a $300,000 event co-sanctioned by the DP World PGTI.
The South African, who started Sunday with a four-stroke lead, carded a 69 to reach 21 under par 267 and finish one shot ahead of American Jhared Hack and India's Saptak Talwar.
Daffue's victory catapults him to the top of the season-long Road to Mallorca rankings.
"I'm really pleased," he said. "Winning the first one takes some pressure off, but this time, I believed I could do it.
"I knew I was comfortable, and I brought some momentum from the last few weeks.
"I've been patient. I've been working with a sports psychologist, and my motto has been 'persistence, determination, and patience,' and that helped me out there today."
Daffue had six holes remaining in his third round when he returned to Classic Golf & Country Club on Sunday morning, carding a 67 to reach 18 under par after three rounds.
A slow start to his final round saw him level through eight holes before a solitary birdie at the ninth was followed by an eagle on the par-five 14th.
Saptak Talwar, who finished third and two shots behind the leader after the third round, had a slow start in the fourth round, making seven pars and a bogey on the first eight holes.
Saptak, who won on the DP World PGTI last week, then roared back with five birdies between the ninth and the 18th, including a crucial conversion from 10 feet on the 13th.
The 27-year-old Talwar earned $27,000 (₹24,30,000) for his effort, which helped him maintain his lead in the DP World PGTI Order of Merit, with his season's earnings reaching ₹70,30,200.
"I started off a little tentatively on the first eight holes today," Saptak said. "But I was proud of the fight I showed on the last 10 holes.
"Coming off last week's win was tiring. After a win, you have to put your expectations back in check. You have to reset and start from zero. That's what I did well by putting myself in a good position after the first two rounds this week.
"The birdie on the 13th was the turning point for me today. It set me up for a good finishing stretch. Importantly, I kept the bogeys to a minimum for the second successive week. I had just two bogeys this week. My iron game has been sharp, and my putter has also started firing.
"The performances at the last two events give me a lot of self-belief heading into the Indian Open next week."
Jhared Hack, winner of the DP World PGTI's season-opener, scored a bogey-free 65 on the final day to finish as joint runner-up with Saptak at a total of 20 under 268.
Jhared is currently second on the DP World PGTI's merit list, behind Talwar, with season's earnings of ₹64,96,800.
The other two Indians who finished in the top-10 were Yuvraj Sandhu (71), who was tied sixth at 16 under 272, and Ravi Kumar (69), who was tied ninth at 15 under 273.
Rashid Khan (74) and Pritish Singh Karayat (71) finished tied 17th at 13 under 275.
