On a final day where we saw a tight and congested leaderboard, it was Adrian Meronk who sprung out from the pack, as a birdie-birdie-eagle run over the final few holes gave him an historic victory at Mount Juliet.
Becoming the first Polish winner on the DP World Tour, the 29-year-old dazzled during the final round, as the overnight leader held on to win the Irish Open by three shots.
A moment of history 🇵🇱🏆@AdrianMeronk | #HorizonIrishOpen pic.twitter.com/zAT27seb0YJuly 3, 2022
Beginning one shot ahead of a leaderboard that included a number of players looking for first victories and Open Championship spots, it was Meronk who began well with two birdies. However, after a bogey at the sixth, it was still anyone's guess, with eight players within a shot of the lead.
A few holes later, with the back nine looming, Norwegian, Espen Kofstad, took the outright lead as five birdies gave him a one shot advantage. Searching for his first win on the DP World Tour, the 34-year-old couldn't hold on, with a quadruple bogey at the 13th putting to rest any chance of a victory.
Back to the leaders, with arguably two of the most in form and consistent players on the DP World Tour right now, both Ryan Fox and Meronk continued their superb runs throughout 2022.
Fox secured his third runner-up finish of the season at Mount Juliet
Playing the last, Fox was on for an incredible round, as seven birdies and an eagle put him nine-under-par and 18-under for the tournament. However, the New Zealander flew the green at the 18th and, when he failed to get up-and-down, a dejected Fox thought he was well out of the running.
As it turned out, the bogey was almost irrelevant, with Meronk making back-to-back birdies at the 15th and 16th to take the lead by one. Coming to the par 5 17th, which played as the easiest hole of the day, the Pole dealt the killer blow, with a lengthy eagle putt giving him a three-shot cushion going down the 18th.
Four shots later, the historic moment and title was his, as he tapped-in for a well deserved win and provisional move into the top 65 of the World Rankings. Along with Meronk, there was also success for John Catlin, Fabrizio Zanotti and David Law, who qualified for The 150th Open Championship at St Andrews.
