Salama's Wire-To-Wire Triumph In Egypt Aided By Local Caddie's Expertise

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Spain's Juan Salama paid tribute to his local caddie after posting a spectacular wire-to-wire victory at the Egypt Golf Series Madinaty.

A blistering opening round of course-record 60 laid the foundation for a five-under 65 to finish at 17 under par that earned him his first MENA Golf Tour title.

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"Shooting 60 was my personal best round, so to open the tournament like that really set everything up," said Salama. "I had a local caddie this week who read the greens really well, and it's been a great start to the year.”

From day one, Salama never relinquished his grip on the tournament and finished three shots clear of last week's winner, Jack Davidson and overnight co-leader Owen Edwards, who share second at 14 under.

In the final round, Salama picked up four birdies on the front nine to extend his overnight advantage before his only dropped shot of the day at the 15th briefly let his pursuers dream. But the Spaniard held his nerve, navigating the water at 16 before a birdie at 17 restored his cushion heading to the last.

"I felt solid, but I was definitely nervous. I was just trying to stay in the present on every shot, stick to my routine and take care of each moment,” he said.“I felt really nervous on the 15th tee, and then again on my second shot at 16 because all I could see was the water, so that was a tough moment.”

"Coming down the last hole with a three-shot lead, I decided to lay up because the driver could have been too much, and I've been hitting my five-wood really solid this week. I hit it really good, and even though the second shot wasn't my best, it was enough today.”

For Salama, the victory represents redemption after losing to Davidson in a play-off at Address Marassi just seven days earlier.

"This win means a lot to me. It's my first international win, and it's very important for me to keep chasing my dream and keep fighting. I'm also really grateful to the MENA Golf Tour for giving us the opportunity to play on such nice golf courses in great places. They're doing a really good job. Now it's on to Morocco."

Davidson, who shot 66 to secure a share of second, reflected on a week where he was always chasing.

"It was a bit of a slow day for me," said the Welshman. Obviously starting two behind, you've got to go out there and chase, but to be fair, Juan played great and didn't really do much wrong.

“I just didn't quite make the putts I needed to today to close the gap. But it's been another nice week on the MENA Golf Tour and plenty of positives to take forward."

England's Ben Jones produced the joint round of the final day with a six-under 64 to climb into fourth place at 13 under, while compatriot Curtis Knipes – who also shot 64 – finished fifth at ten under.

A trio of players shared sixth at nine under: the Netherlands' Lars Keunen, England's Jordan Wrisdale and Italy's Ludovico Addabbo. Addabbo's finish sees him pick up valuable MENA Golf Tour Rankings points with leader Chris Wood absent this week at the Qatar Masters.

The conclusion of the Egypt Golf Series Madinaty marks the end of the MENA Golf Tour's successful four-event Egypt swing, with $400,000 in prize money distributed across four world-class venues. The Tour now heads to Morocco later this month before continuing to Jordan and the GCC.

Salama collected $18,000 from the $100,000 prize fund along with Official World Golf Ranking points.

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