Photo: Courtesy of Hainan Open

 
32-year-old Portuguese golfer Ricardo Gouveia won his seventh Challenge Tour tournament at the Hainan Open in South China's Hainan Province on Monday after four days of competition.

He recorded a 272 (-16) to clinch the victory in four rounds, standing out from 120 players from home and abroad. Gouveia carded four rounds under par with a 67 in his first and final rounds, a 68 in the second round, and a 70 in the third round. He recorded 20 birdies in the tournament, highlighted by six in the final round on Monday.

"What an amazing day today. It was one of the toughest rounds of the year, and I played really well on the back nine. I just stayed patient throughout the day. I knew the last few holes were playing into the wind and really tough, so I'm excited to get the win," he said during an interview.

Switzerland's Joel Girrbach finished in second place on 13 under par, while Chinese player Ding Wenyi, Italian Francesco Laporta, and Englishmen Steven Brown and Will Enefer finished a shot further back in third.

Zhang Xiaoning, Chairman of the China Golf Association, said that he is "looking forward to the return of the Hainan Open." The total prize money of this event has been upgraded to half a million dollars. It is the first highest-level international men's professional event held in China after the pandemic, which reflects the determination of the China Golf Association to further promote the development of golf.