South Africa’s Michael Hollick secured his breakthrough win at the BMW International Open. The 39-year-old had spent years battling through setbacks and arrived in Germany with little indication of what was to come.

By Sunday afternoon, he found himself locked in a tense battle with compatriot Hennie du Plessis, with the title hanging in the balance until the very last hole.

"I was actually very calm the whole day and stuck to the stuff I've done the whole week," said Hollick.

"You start making a few birdies, and it's easy to start thinking too far ahead. I pulled myself back and said to Dave, who caddied for me, 'If I have a chance to win the tournament playing the back nine, that's what I want,'" he added.

Hollick overturned the three-stroke deficit and edged du Plessis by a stroke after a pivotal swing on the 17th, where he made birdie while his compatriot bogeyed. Du Plessis then closed with a par to set the clubhouse target at 17-under par.

"Funnily enough, when I went to bed yesterday, I thought that if I had a chance to make eagle on the last to win it, that would be something," Hollick said, as reported by SkySports.

Hollick’s wish came true. The 39-year-old hit a risky tee shot that paid off, as he narrowly avoided the water.

He then followed it up with an incredible approach shot that landed 20 feet from the pin.

With ice in his veins, Hollick holed the 20-foot putt and scored an eagle on the final hole, as shown in the DP World Tour's X post. He moved to 18-under par for a one-stroke victory.

It was the result of years of perseverance for Hollick.

Hollick’s win came out of nowhere

Hollick bagged the biggest prize of his career, $510,000, at Golfclub München Eichenried. After years of struggle on the Sunshine Tour, it was finally his moment to shine.

“No. Four years ago, I put the clubs in the cupboard, did some coaching, did a full year of coaching and played tournaments on the Sunshine Tour,” Hollick explained, as per Sky Sports.

The win at the 2024 Zimbabwe Open was a turning point for Hollick, who gained newfound confidence and hope from it.

However, before this week, Hollick had struggled to find his rhythm this year, registering just one top-30 finish at the KLM Open.

Now, Hollick is a DP World Tour winner and will look forward to featuring in next week’s Genesis Scottish Open and The Open at Royal Birkdale.

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Written by

Avishek Sarkar

Edited by

Pulkit Prabhav