Monty breaks Top 10 drought

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November 9, 2009

Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie has had his first top 10 finish since June last year – a fifth place at the Egyptian Open.

But Montgomerie, who had been priced up as the 3/1 favourite by Sky Bet pre-tournament, will hardly be that thrilled after finishing a distant seven shots behind winner Steven Tiley, who won the event by four from Dane Thorbjorn Olesen.

Monty had started the final round of the 54-hole $200,000 event in Cairo just three off the lead and got to within one shot of Tiley but fell away and closed with a 72.

“I played well all week but just not consistently enough,” said Monty. “Today was a poor day – driving well and putting OK but never at the same time. But overall I’m not too concerned. I’ll get it going again.”

As for Tiley, it was a controlled performance from the 27-year-old who played on both the Asian Tour and European Challenge Tour this season and a final round 68 saw him take the title on 13-under par and record the biggest win of his career.

A member of the ISM Management stable that includes the likes of Lee Westwood, Ernie Els and Darren Clarke, Tiley revealed that a phone call from ISM chief Andrew Chandler had helped him focus on the job in hand.

“Chubby told me to just keep doing what I was doing – hitting fairways and greens,” he smiled. “It’s simple but it kept me focused on my game. I just did what I had to do and let the others make mistakes.

“It’s been a great week for me,” he added. “I’ll take a break next week then go to the second stage of Q School in Spain. This has certainly given me a boost in confidence so I’m looking forward to it.”

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