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374 imagesLee Westwood carded a seemingly effortless 65 to move within striking distance of the lead at the KLM Open. The Englishman looked close to his best as he produced a vintage display of the imperious ball-striking which once made him the world’s best player to move to seven under par and three strokes behind clubhouse leader Joel Stalter, who added a 67 to his opening 64 at The Dutch. Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat lies second in nine under after matching Westwood’s second round 65, with Germany’s Sebastien Heisele a shot further back. The quality of Westwood’s performance was confirmed by his playing partner Ross Fisher, who called Westwood’s second round “one of the easiest 65s I have seen in a long, long time.” Westwood concurred with that view and is certainly looking forward to trying to close out a 24th European Tour career victory in this, his 501st appearance on the circuit. The second round of the weather-affected KLM Open will be completed on Saturday morning, with half the field to complete their second round scores. Player quotes Lee Westwood: “The first round was just kind of steady. I didn’t really hit it close enough so I didn’t have that many real chances for birdie and then the second round was a lot better. I did hit it close, made a few good putts and I also burned the hole a lot. That 65 for the second round could easily have been 61. “I am hitting the ball well. I have got my distance control back and the strike is getting better and better. I’m driving the ball in the fairway too which you obviously need to do and I feel like I am rolling the ball well on the greens so hopefully we can see a few more putts drop over the weekend. “If I can play like I did in the second round today then I’ll have a chance over the weekend so the plan will be to try and replicate what I did out there today. Ross (Fisher) just said to me in the scorers hut that my round was one of the easiest 65s he has seen in a long time which is a nice compliment and one that I’ll try and take into the weekend.” Joel Stalter: “I had a really tough start today because the conditions were still pretty bad but after a couple of early bogeys I played really well. I could have probably had a couple of more birdies at the end of the round but I am very proud of the way I have played because the last two days have been really long. “It’s great to be at the top of the leaderboard heading into the weekend but I have been in this position before – all that matters is being at the top of the leaderboard on Sunday night. I was in the same position in Munich going into the weekend so I know what to expect – there will be a lot of people and big crowds but you want to be playing in those circumstances. “You really need to control the ball with your iron play around this golf course. I managed to do that over the first two rounds and make a few putts so I just need to try and keep doing that over the weekend.”
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268 imagesKiradech Aphibarnrat holed a 25 foot birdie putt on the 18th to snatch a one shot lead going into the final round of the KLM Open, with Lee Westwood lurking among the chasing pack looking to catch the talented Thai in Sunday’s final round. The 28 year old Aphibarnrat led for much of the third round, but spurned several good birdie chances on the back nine at The Dutch and seemed to have paid the price for his profligacy when he was caught by France’s Romain Wattel. However, that fine birdie at the last gave Aphibarnrat a round of 66 and a 14 under par total – one ahead of Wattel; two clear of Frenchman Joel Stalter and three clear of Westwood, German Sebastien Heisele and Sweden’s Joakim Lagergren. Wattel has a chance to end his wait for a first European Tour title after a flawless 64, having twice been a European Tour runner-up and with 25 top-ten finishes to his name. Westwood, meanwhile, is looking to add a 24th European Tour title to an incredible career that has seen the 44 year old win in more countries around the world than any other golfer. The Englishman is seeking a second KLM Open title, having won the event for the first time in 1999. Player quotes Kiradech Aphibarnrat: “I didn’t drop any shots today which is so important when you are trying to get to the top of the leaderboard. My putting was brilliant on the front nine today and that save me a few shots. Overall I am feeling good and tomorrow I just need to try and stick to my game plan. If I can play the same tomorrow then I will have a great chance to win. “It’s always nice to be the last group in the final round and especially here with so many fans out here supporting us. This is my first trip to The Netherlands and I am loving it. The amount of people out here, even though the weather has been terrible, shows how much. It’s a pleasure to play in front of crowds like that and I just want to thank all the fans for their support.” Romain Wattel: “I’m delighted, I played very good today. I just tried to play my own game and I made some good putts which is what I did. That was my lowest round of the season and it has come at a good time because I need to start getting some good results. “The game, it’s just up and down. I’ve been doing my best this year but it hasn’t been enough. I’ve been working with my coach and changed many things, but when you work a lot you don’t always get what you expect.” Joel Stalter: “It was a tougher day today – I think there is always more pressure on a Saturday and the pins were tougher today and I didn’t hit my irons as well as yesterday. But it wasn’t a disaster and I still played pretty solid so I am happy overall and still have a great chance to win. “The last time I was in that position (leading going into the weekend) in Munich at the start of the summer I didn’t play well so today was a big improvement and as I said before I still have a great chance to win tomorrow and I’ll give it my best shot to try and do that.”
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209 imagesRomain Wattel landed his first European Tour title after a dramatic finish at the KLM Open. The Frenchman, who had recorded 25 top-ten finishes in his previous 186 events without tasting victory, was in control for much of the final round but survived a late scare when he missed the green with his approach to the last. He successfully got up and down for par and a closing 69, which gave him a 15 under total. That was one ahead of fast-finishing Canadian Austin Connelly, with Kiradech Aphibarnrat – Wattel’s main challenger for much of the day - finding water with his second to the 18th and dropping to 12 under with the subsequent double bogey. Wattel’s victory was all the more remarkable as he had not finished higher than 24th previously this season and came into the week down at 130th in the Race to Dubai Rankings presented by Rolex. Thailand’s Aphibarnrat held a one shot lead overnight but Wattel swiftly passed him with three birdies from close range in his first six holes. French rookie Joël Stalter leapfrogged Wattel when he birdied the eighth and his compatriot’s par putt from eight feet lipped out. Stalter’s challenge faded with three bogeys on the back nine but Wattel birdied the tenth and, although he bogeyed the next, a run of pars kept him in contention as others stumbled. Aphibarnrat briefly led whe he birdied the 14th, but he found water at the next and double bogeyed before suffering the same fate at the last as he attempted to put pressure on Wattel by reaching the green at the par five in two. The 20 year old Connelly had six birdies in a closing 66 to finish second on 14 under, with Stalter, German Sebastian Heisele, English pair Eddie Pepperell and Lee Westwood and South Africans George Coetzee and Justin Walters all tied for third a shot further back. Player quotes Romain Wattel: “I feel very good right now. I wasn’t feeling great at the beginning of the week to be honest because I have being playing badly this year. I’m not going to say that everything was perfect this week but my putting was great all week and I just tried to play as smart as I could and I am obviously delighted with the result. “I made a great start to the final round and that really help to calm me down. I was just trying to focus on releasing my shots because sometimes I can get to tight. But today I was just focusing on the target and I did that well. “The back nine was more difficult and there was a lot of pressure but I just tried to make the best score I could. And the finish was really tough today so I was honestly just trying to get the ball on the green because I knew I was putting well enough to make pars. “I have been in contention before and while I had not won before I knew what I had to do; I knew what I had to expect and thankfully this time it was my week. It feels amazing to win for the first time – I am so happy right now.”