Australian Marcus Fraser won a sudden-death play-off with Austria's Martin Wiegele to claim the Russian Open title, his third victory in nine weeks. Both players finished three strokes ahead of the field on 19-under-par with closing rounds of four-under-par 68.
They both birdied the first extra hole with short putts but then struggled when they played the 18th at Moscow Country Club for the third time in the day. After first needing to chip out of trees, Fraser then hit to 12 feet and holed the putt for his par, but Wiegele was unable to drop his slightly shorter putt after missing the green with his approach.
For 25-year-old Fraser it was the continuation of a rich vein of form that had earned him Danish Open and Finnish Challenge titles in the last two months on the Challenge Tour. His third success, worth $70,000, had the bonus of a one-year exemption to the main tour in the event co-sanctioned by the European Tour and the Challenge Tour.
"The exemption is what I was looking for this week and it's a dream come true," said Fraser, who will now be able to play in the rest of this year's European Tour events as well as being exempt for 2004. "It was won the hard way and it was the most pressure I've played under, so I'm proud of myself for coming through it."
It was the second Australian success in a co-sanctioned event this year after Brett Rumford's win in the Aa St Omer Open in June. Wiegele's chance of winning on his debut in a European Tour event looked good when he pulled two shots clear of playing-partner Fraser, with whom he shared a one-shot overnight lead. But he was caught when he bogeyed the short 16th.
Sweden's Peter Hanson took third place on 272. Andrew Coltart, the highest ranked player from the European money-list in Russia, bogeyed the last to deny himself fourth spot on his own. He shared it on 274 with fellow Britons Graeme Storm, whose 65 equalled the course record, and Tim Milford and Spain's Jose Manuel Carriles. Ireland's Damien McGrane finished in a tie for 14th
Filed by Shane Murray
