SPANIARD WINS OMEGA EUROPEAN MASTERS

Jimenez survives another Molinari charge

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE
Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez from Malaga survived a late scare to win the Omega European Masters at Crans-sur-Sierre in Switzerland today.
Ryder Cup team-mate Edoardo Molinari, last week's winner, came from six behind after 11 holes to trail by only one with three to play, but the Italian bogeyed the next.

Jimenez, salvaging a par on the short 16th after hitting a tree with his tee shot, birdied the next and with a closing par signed for a 67 and a 21-under-par total of 263. It was his third win of the year.
Molinari was runner-up and, by finishing third, his 17-year-old fellow Italian Matteo Manassero secured a European Tour card for himself in only six starts as a professional. Shades of Rory McIlroy two or three years ago!

Three ahead overnight, Jimenez doubled that by going to the turn in 32 with birdies at the first, sixth, seventh and ninth. He did not have a bogey on the front nine all week.

But Molinari birdied the 12th and with another at the long 14th was back to only three behind as Jimenez, bunkered off the tee, went over the green for three and took 6.

With the pendulum swinging his way Molinari then hit a marvellous six iron to two feet on the 516-yard next and made eagle to Jimenez's par.

Just a week earlier, of course, at Gleneagles, Molinari stood two behind with three to play and birdied them all, but this time he failed to get up and down from sand at the 16th and parred the last two.

England's Steve Webster, joint third with Manassero after 54 holes, fell back to joint ninth with a 73.

FINAL TOTALS
Par 284 (4x71)
263 Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain) 67 61 68 67
266 Edoardo Molinari (Italy) 66 65 68 67
268 Matteo Manassero (Italy) 64 67 69 68
271 Seung-yul Noh (S Korea) 71 66 67 67
272 Robert Jan Derksen (Netherlands) 67 68 70 67, Charl Schwartzel (S Africa) 68 66 70 68, Oliver Wilson 68 68 67 69, Robert Coles 66 71 67 68
273 Steve Webster 66 70 64 73, Marc Warren 69 69 68 67, Mikko Ilonen (Fin) 65 67 75 66, Peter Lawrie 72 69 63 69
274 Anthony Wall 67 68 69 70, Brett Rumford (Aus) 70 70 70 64
275 Thomas Aiken (S Africa) 70 68 66 71, Chris Wood 69 69 68 69, Jeppe Huldahl (Den) 69 68 71 67, Darren Clarke 67 70 68 70, Thomas Bjorn (Den) 69 70 69 67, David Dixon 67 69 69 70, Rafael Cabrera Bello (Spa) 72 66 68 69, Marcus Fraser (Aus) 69 69 68 69
276 Nicolas Colsaerts (Bel) 70 68 70 68, Keith Horne (S Africa) 68 69 71 68, Jamie Donaldson 68 68 73 67, Rafael Echenique (Arg) 69 69 65 73, Pablo Martin (Spa) 70 67 67 72
277 Maarten Lafeber (Ned) 69 68 73 67, Mark Foster 74 65 69 69
278 John Parry 70 68 67 73, Gareth Maybin 69 71 68 70
279 Martin Wiegele (Austria) 69 71 72 67, David Drysdale 66 70 70 73, Phillip Price 68 68 70 73, Tano Goya (Arg) 72 68 72 67, Wen-chong Liang (China) 76 64 70 69, Graeme Storm 65 68 75 71
280 Anders Hansen (Den) 68 67 74 71, Ignacio Garrido (Spa) 68 68 72 72, Nino Bertasio (Ita) 70 68 66 76, Peter O'Malley (Aus) 71 69 70 70
281 Gary Lockerbie 68 69 74 70, Danny Willett 70 69 78 64
282 Felipe Aguilar (Chi) 73 68 70 71, Rick Kulacz (Aus) 66 72 68 76, Chapchai Nirat (Tha) 66 73 70 73, Peter Hedblom (Swe) 69 67 75 71, Adam Blyth (Aus) 71 70 66 75, Chinnarat Phadungsil (Tha) 72 67 70 73, Ross McGowan 68 73 69 72
283 Markus Brier (Aut) 71 68 70 74, David Lynn 72 69 71 71, Thongchai Jaidee (Tha) 71 70 66 76
284 Paul Waring 67 71 72 74, Julien Clement (Swi) 68 72 69 75, Alejandro Canizares (Spa) 67 71 74 72, Sung Lee (Pkr) 74 67 73 70, Andrew Dodt (Aus) 71 69 75 69, Michael Hoey 71 69 77 67
285 Richard Bland 72 69 71 73, Angelo Que (Phi) 70 69 71 75, Simon Dyson 69 67 74 75
286 Nick Dougherty 69 72 74 71, Fredrik Svanberg (Swi) 70 68 73 75
287 Ben Leong (Mal) 69 71 73 74, Daniel Vancsik (Arg) 68 72 73 74, Francois Delamontagne (Fra) 70 70 71 76, Alastair Forsyth 68 73 77 69, James Kamte (S Africa) 68 73 70 76
288 Julien Quesne (Fra) 74 67 75 72
289 Scott Strange (Aus) 68 70 75 76
WD: Soren Hansen (Den) 67 71 72