Victory for the Tour newcomer: English golfer Jordan Smith won the Porsche European Open, which boasts a total prize purse of two million Euros, in Hamburg on Sunday. It took a play-off at Green Eagle Golf Courses to decide the destination of title. In the end, it was the 24-year-old Englishman who emerged triumphant against the defending champion, Frenchman Alexander Lévy, on the second hole of the play-off. The win in Hamburg was Tour rookie Smith’s first success on the European Tour. Both players had previously finished on -13 after the 72 regular holes to force a play-off. Smith was overjoyed at his win: “I just love this prestigious event, and I really enjoyed the whole week here.”
Swede Johan Edfors and Bangladesh’s Siddikur Rahman (-11) finished tied in third place, two shots behind Lévy and Smith. Over the course of the four days of the tournament, 39,000 spectators visited the course to witness world-class golf at first hand.
“Golf fans have really embraced the Porsche European Open on its first appearance in Hamburg, in spite of the unsettled weather,” said Dr. Kjell Gruner, Vice President of Marketing at Porsche AG. “We have witnessed some great sporting action at Green Eagle Golf Courses and, as title sponsor, we are pleased to have been able to contribute to offering players and spectators alike a top-class experience – both on and off the course – with an extensive brand presence. The past few days have shown emphatically that Porsche, golf and the metropolitan region of Hamburg are an excellent fit.”
Saturday had already produced a further two sporting highlights, courtesy of US Ryder Cup star Patrick Reed, who shot an albatross on the 18th, and Marcel Siem: the 37-year-old German, making his 400th appearance on the European Tour, hit a hole-in-one on the 17th hole (par 3). Siem was rewarded for his masterstroke with a Panamera Turbo Sport Turismo.
The venue for the prestigious European Tour event is Green Eagle Golf Courses on the outskirts of the Hanseatic city. For the first time, the demanding Nord Course will provide the stage for the pinnacle of European professional golf. The tournament week kicks off on Tuesday evening with the “Porsche European Open Team Challenge”: a golf demonstration event on Hamburg’s Reeperbahn, in which a number of the top stars of the tournament will go head to head in a team competition.
“Everything is in place for an excellent sporting event,” says Detlev von Platen, Member of the Executive Board responsible for Sales and Marketing at Porsche AG. “The course at Green Eagle is in very good condition, and golf fans can also look forward to a very extensive programme away from the course. I am confident we will enjoy an outstanding tournament this week.” The top-class field includes Major winners Jimmy Walker (USA) and Charl Schwartzel (South Africa), Ryder Cup star Patrick Reed, PGA Tour winner Pat Perez (both USA), defending champion Alexander Lévy (France), European Ryder Cup captain Thomas Björn (Denmark), and many more of the European Tour’s top players. As well as world-class golf, spectators can also look forward to a comprehensive Porsche brand experience over the course of the tournament week.
