Golf Saudi

1 year ago

Catlin makes it back-to-back Asian Tour wins as he cruises to 2024 Saudi Open presented by PIF title

• John Catlin is the 2024 Saudi Open presented by PIF champion after finishing 24-under-par at Riyadh Golf Club • The American led from the start and wins his second consecutive Asian Tour title • Catlin was full of praise for the tournament and the hospitality he received in Saudi Arabia this week

20 April 2024, Riyadh: John Catlin’s march to the 2024 Saudi Open presented by PIF title was complete on Saturday as he completed his wire-to-wire victory at Riyadh Golf Club, finishing seven shots ahead of his nearest challenger on 24-under-par.

From the moment he teed off on Wednesday morning, Catlin was in the groove and his final round was a procession. After shooting a men’s course-record 62 on Friday, the American followed it up with a 66 on Saturday, his fourth consecutive round in the 60s in the Saudi capital.

It is Catlin’s sixth Asian Tour title and his second in a row, having beaten Spaniard David Puig in a play-off at the International Series Macau in March, and his form was simply too hot for the rest of the field to handle

Catlin said: “I am tired, but very, very happy. I've never gone back-to-back like that. It is pretty special to finish back-to-back events holding the trophy. It was just a special week and I feel very lucky to be the champion.

“I hope my victory shows the fans that with hard work and dedication, anything is possible. I have dreamt about being a professional golfer since I was about eight-years-old and I just kept putting in the hard work. I never let anything stand in the way of what I wanted to do and I’d say that to anybody: if you want to follow in my footsteps, you have to put in the hard work and be willing to sacrifice, then great things can happen.”

In addition, Catlin was full of praise for the organisation of the 2024 Saudi Open presented by PIF and is already looking forward to defending his title in 2025.

He added: “It was very well organised. The tournament was awesome. From start to finish we were looked after amazingly and the people were friendly. The hospitality has been great, the food has been awesome - everything about this event is top class and I look forward to coming back in the future.”

Wade Ormsby’s final day 64 saw him finish second, two ahead of Peter Uihlein and Kiradech Aphinbarnrat in third. The Australian admitted that it just proved impossible to haul in the runaway leader.

Ormsby said: “John had a big lead, it was difficult, you just want to go out and play as well as you can. There were a couple of potential tiny openings there, but he closed the door straight away. I am really happy with the way I played.”

Reigning champion Denwit Boriboonsub finished in style on Saturday after a disappointing Friday saw his chances of retaining his trophy slip away. The Thai golfer shot 63, the joint-second lowest round of the week, enjoyed his time back at Riyadh Golf Club.

The 20-year-old said: “I’ve enjoyed and relished being the defending champion. It helped me a lot with a two-year exemption on the Asian Tour, which relieves a lot of pressure, and winning means a lot. Yesterday wasn’t so good, but I bounced back and I’m very happy with the score.”

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