Jeev146;s fortune changes with a stroke

Becomes the second Indian after Atwal to win the European Tour title, ending a seven-year-long drought

Jeev Milkha Singh held his nerve to finally claim his first European Tour title with a one-shot victory at the co-sanctioned China Open on Sunday. The son of famed Olympic athlete Milkha 8216;8216;the Flying Sikh8221; Singh, the 34-year-old shot a final round 70 to finish at 10 under par for the tournament as his main challengers fell by the wayside.

While the high winds that wreaked havoc on Saturday8217;s third round at the Honghua Golf Club eased significantly for the final round, good scoring was still at a premium.

Spain8217;s Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano dropped a shot at the 18th to fall to 70 for the day and finished second on nine under for the tournament.

8220;It was a shame about the drive on the 18th which cost a bogey because8230;I would have liked to have parred it to put pressure on Singh. But from all these things you learn and I think I am getting to be a better player because of it, step-by-step,8221; added the 25-year-old.

Briton David Lynn, the leader after the second and third rounds, finished a shot further back after a disappointing 73 with four bogeys and three birdies.

8220;I feel I have let this one slip to be honest,8221; he said. 8220;I was trying to be patient but on the back nine, crunch time, I got a dose of the three putts at the wrong time.8221;

Defending champion Paul Casey shot a 72 for a share of fourth place on seven under, along with fellow Briton Simon Wakefield and Australians Peter Fowler and Jarrod Lyle.

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Jeev was the first Indian to qualify for the European Tour in 1997 but, plagued by wrist injuries, he played without success until 2002 before returning to the Asian Tour.

He will take home a cheque for 300,000, dwarfing his earnings in the last three years.

The 34-year-old started the day in a tie for second but dropped a shot at the opening hole, before hitting back with birdies at the third, fifth and seventh.

Reuters

8216;Monkey8217;s off my back8217;

On winning the title

I just can8217;t explain this feeling. It8217;s like a dream come true. I just went in there with reverse psychology thinking that if it doesn8217;t happen, never mind. And it worked out perfectly for me. I8217;m really excited and happy the way it worked out. The seven-year-itch is over and the monkey is off my back.

The key aspect

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I focussed really well today. My composure was good too. I think two putts coming into the last two holes made a lot of difference. Coming into the 18th, I saw Govzalo Fernandez-Castano was 10-under and had bogeyed the 18th. I was on the left side of the fairway in the rough and decided that I would not try to be a hero and go for the flag and instead play safe. If I make a par, good, but if I made bogey, I8217;d still win the tournament.

Safety-first approach

I have let so many tournaments go in the last four or five years that I learned that it attack hadn8217;t worked for me. So I might as well step back. When I saw that guy bogey, I thought I did not need to get the water into play on the left and just decided to hit to the right of the green.

On recent losses

They did play on my mind. I think I used to put more pressure on myself playing in the last round to try and get the job done. I8217;ve let so many tournaments go and I just said if it8217;s another one, let it be. If I play well, it8217;ll be a bonus. If I don8217;t it8217;s one of those weeks and I8217;m going to keep trying.

What next?

I8217;m going to play in a few European events for sure. The main tour that I8217;ve been playing has been in Japan in the last four or five years and I8217;ll see how things go. I8217;m going to divide my time. Obviously, I8217;ll play in Asia, a few in Europe and Japan. PTI