American John Catlin defeated Spaniard David Puig to claim first prize in the inaugural 4-day International Series Macau presented by Wynn, which held its final day of competition on Sunday.
The competition saw Catlin and Puig tied at the Macau Golf and Country Club, with Puig shooting a 10-under-par 60. The match, however, ended during a second play-off, when the American defeated his rival with a birdie.
As the tournament’s champion, the 33-year-old will be awarded US$2 million in prize money. The win is significant for the 33-year-old as it marks his first professional victory in nearly three years, with the last one being the Australian Golf Open in April 2021. It is also the golfer’s fifth Asian Tour win since the 2019 Thailand Open.
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Catlin acknowledged the importance of his achievement, telling AFP that it had “been a rough last two years,” and that he had doubts over whether he would ever return to first place.
The day before, Catlin had made history by becoming the first player to shoot a sub-60 round of 59, the lowest number ever recorded in Asian Tour history. In response to his monumental achievement, the Californian was cited by the Associated Press as saying, “It’s pretty crazy. It hasn’t totally sunk in yet.”
Catlin has won a total of 12 professional tournaments so far, including three European tours.
