David Ravetto sailed to a dominant four-stroke victory to claim his maiden DP World Tour title at the D+D REAL Czech Masters.
The Frenchman entered the final day one stroke behind Sweden’s Jesper Svensson but left him in his wake as he posted an impressive eight-under closing round of 64 to set a winning total of 24 under par at PGA National OAKS Prague, with the Swede in second on 19 under.
“It’s indescribable, I’m just super happy. I’m over the moon, I’m not going to find my words, I’m sorry,“ Ravetto said. “That was really nice of them, thanks, it’s a special moment. I want to thank Jesper and Adrien (Saddier) as well, it was a really nice game today and to share that with my friends, it was fun.
“It’s a big step, it’s a change of category, it’s going to bring a lot of good things to me, winning a tournament. But I’m not going to think about that right now, I’m just going to enjoy the moment.”
Ravetto made his intentions clear from the off, birdieing the opening hole before adding further gains at the third and fourth. The 27-year-old added another trio before the turn, picking up shots at the sixth, eighth and ninth to post a six-under front nine and move three strokes clear.
The Qualifying School graduate dropped his only shot of the day at the par-four 12th hole but cancelled it out with a birdie at the next, as Porsche Singapore Classic winner Svensson applied the pressure with birdies of his own at the tenth, 13th and 15th to move within one with three to play.
The par five 16th proved pivotal, however, as Svensson hit a wayward tee shot and ended up making a double bogey, with playing partner Ravetto taking full advantage by carding yet another birdie, which resulted in a three-shot swing and four-stroke lead.
The 2024 Dimension Data Pro-Am winner safely navigated the final two holes to secure an emotional maiden DP World Tour title as wild celebrations ensued with his compatriots on the 18th green.
Victory means Ravetto moves to third on the Closing Swing Rankings with one event left, next week’s Danish Golf Championship, and also leaps 73 places to 30th on the Race to Dubai Rankings in Partnership with Rolex.
Svensson’s second place saw him make good strides of his own on the Race to Dubai, climbing six places to third as he looks to cement dual membership with the PGA TOUR at the end of the season.
Two more Frenchmen, Frederic Lacroix and Adrien Saddier, shared third place in the Czech Republic with Scotland’s Richie Ramsay on the 18 under par, two strokes clear of Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger and English trio Alex Fitzpatrick, Brandon Robinson-Thompson and Paul Waring in a tie for sixth.