Triston Lawrence emulates 'idol' Ernie Els by winning BMW International Open

Talk about a colourful card. It contained eight birdies, five bogeys and five pars. But, at the end of an up-and-down day, it did the job for South African Triston Lawrence in the $2 million BMW International Open in Munich.

Thriston Lawrence shows off the trophy after winning the BMW International Open at Golfclub Munchen Eichenried in Germany. Picture: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images.

An intriguing last-round tussle with Dutchman Joost Luiten in a sweltering heat at Golfclub München Eichenried was effectively decided by the par-3 17th, which the winner described as “one of the hardest short holes in the world” due to its pin locations. After Lawrence birdied it from four feet following a majestic tee shot in the heat of battle, Luiten missed a short par putt.

After holding a three-shot lead at the start of the day and having battled hard to keep his name at the top of the leaderboard until that point, Luiten found himself behind for the first time and couldn’t save the situation by making a birdie at the par-5 18th.

They say players learn more from losing than winning and that will definitely be the case in this instance. Luiten, who’d played brilliantly in shooting bogey-free 65 on Saturday, was visibly shaken as a seventh DP World Tour title slipped from his grasp.

Joost Luiten reacts on the 18th hole after seeing a seventh DP World Tour triumph slip from his grasp in Munich. Picture:Stuart Franklin/Getty Images.

For Lawrence, it was his fourth win on the circuit, adding to the Joburg Open in 2021 and a brace of successes last year in the Investec South African Open and Omega European Masters.

This one saw him become just the second South African after Ernie Els, who won in 2013, to be crowned as the BMW International Open champion. It also added to a successful weekend for Springbok golfers after Christo Lamprecht won the R&A Amateur Championship at Hillside 24 hours earlier.

"That means a lot,” said Lawrence, a 26-year-old from Nelspruit, of his latest success. “I'm very emotional, to be honest. This game is not easy. It was a real push today and I really gave it my all. I feel sorry for Joost. I know how tough this game is. I'm usually quite good at this, but, yeah, I don't know why I'm so emotional about it. It just shows it means the world.”

To the delight of the home crowd, birthday boy Max Kieffer had catapulted himself into the mix after rolling in 27-footer for an eagle at the 11th then adding a birdie from close range at the 13th. But his hopes of marking the day he turned 33 with something really special were dashed after getting wet from the tee at the driveable par-4 16th.

Thriston Lawrence watches his tee shot on the 11th hole at Golfclub Munchen Eichenried. Picture: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images.

He had to settle for a share of third spot with Pole Adrian Meronk, Kiwi Daniel Hiller and Japan’s Rikuya Hoshino but, Kieffer apart, it never really looked as though the winner wouldn’t be either Lawrence or Luiten in the event’s 34th edition.

Four shots behind at the start of the day, Lawrence rolled in a couple of long ones for birdies at the second and third. He had setbacks thereafter, but, like most South Africans, he’s clearly made of stern stuff as he bounced back time and time again.

"I played really well today and, at some stage, I didn't think I was going to make a par,” he said of that colourful card, which added up to a closing 69 for a 13-under-par total. “It was birdie-bogey-birdie-bogey. Just taking, giving, taking, giving.”

As for joining Els in experiencing German glory in this particular event, Lawrence added: “That’s amazing. I never knew he was the only South African to win this event. Growing up, Ernie was the hero at that time. He was at the peak of his career. He’s always been an idol and, if I can have his career, I’ll retire right now.

“I was in his junior foundation and, though he probably didn’t know it, he supported me through his foundation and to be alongside him on this trophy is incredible.”

His emotional reaction to winning had partly been down to a tough run in the US that had seen him make just one cut in six weeks. “The year started great with a victory in the South African Open, a tournament that every South African wants to win. Then an injury in Abu Dhabi set me back and I should have taken three months off but didn’t. Played through the injury and it was probably one of the worst mistakes I’ve ever made,” he admitted.

“But I’m a competitor. That’s what I do for a living and I went to America, where I had unbelievable opportunities that were out of my comfort zone in the sense that it wasn’t playing week in, week out. I had a week off then played the US PGA. I then had a week off then played the Memorial. Then a week off and played US Open.

“I’m used to playing four or five weeks in a row. But I’ve got to learn and it gave me a lot of experience and I had to activate my mentality of having to prepare for one week only but obviously I failed in that sense. Then again, you never fail; you learn. I’m normally a calm guy and try not to show emotions, but today I got a bit emotional about it.”

It was another strong performance from the ultra-consistent Meronk, who signed off with a 68 that contained six birdies. But it wasn’t quite enough to lift him above Yannik Paul, who’d been forced to withdraw from his Open due to a back injury before the opening round on Thursday, into one of the six automatic spots for the Ryder Cup in September.

The BMW International Open’s Eagles for Education campaign came to a close with an additional 12 eagles being carded on day four, bringing the tournament total to 62 and meaning €62,000 will be donated to JOBLINGE and Kick ins Leben by the BMW Group.