Staff WriterKota Kaneko won the Austrian Alpine Open with the sort of finish that does nothing for the resting heart rate but plenty for a young golfer’s reputation, securing his first DP World Tour title by two shots at Golfclub Kitzbühel-Schwarzsee-Reith.
The 23-year-old from Japan closed with a three under par 67 to finish on 18 under, two clear of Ricardo Gouveia and Davis Bryant, who shared second on 16 under.
It was Kaneko’s first DP World Tour victory, his second outstanding week in succession after finishing runner-up at the Soudal Open, and the ninth win by a Japanese player on the DP World Tour. Not bad for a man who only earned his place on the circuit this season after topping last season’s Japan Golf Tour Order of Merit.
Kaneko Turns Last Week’s Near Miss Into A Breakthrough
There are near misses that linger like a missed short putt in a club championship, and there are near misses that sharpen the blade. Kaneko’s runner-up finish in Belgium appears to have done the latter.
He arrived in Austria looking less like a newcomer asking politely for a seat at the table and more like someone who had already worked out where the cutlery was kept.
Still, maiden wins are rarely handed over with a ribbon and a biscuit. Kaneko had to fight for this one across a final round that briefly resembled rush hour on a ski lift: crowded, tense, and liable to stop without warning.
Gouveia, Steinlechner And Wiesberger Pile On The Pressure
Ricardo Gouveia applied the first proper squeeze, birdieing the second to join Kaneko at 15 under before taking the lead when Kaneko dropped a shot at the third.
Kaneko answered at the fifth, but he was hardly operating in splendid isolation. Home favourite Max Steinlechner made a roaring move with a hat-trick of birdies from the second and another three-birdie burst from the ninth to drag himself into the conversation.
Bernd Wiesberger, never exactly a man you want appearing over your shoulder on a Sunday in Austria, also surged. The nine-time DP World Tour winner birdied the third, then picked up three more from the sixth to reach 15 under.
Joost Luiten joined the leadership pack with his third birdie of the front nine, before Gouveia rolled in a 15-foot birdie putt to move out in front. For a while, the top of the Austrian Alpine Open leaderboard looked like a very competitive queue for the last chair in the clubhouse.
The 12th And 13th Changed The Mood
Gouveia reached 17 under with a birdie at the tenth, with Kaneko following him in to stay one behind. But the Portuguese player found trouble at the 11th and slipped back to 16 under, level with Kaneko.
Then came the decisive stretch.
Kaneko birdied the 12th, produced a superb tee shot at the par-three 13th, and held his nerve from three feet to post his third birdie in four holes. Suddenly he was the first man to reach 18 under.
Wiesberger had holed from long range to join Gouveia at 16 under, but Kaneko’s burst gave him daylight. Not much, mind you. More like the width of a scorecard. But in tournament golf, that will do.
Bryant’s Charge And A Weather Delay Add The Drama
Davis Bryant was busy making life awkward, as all good chasers should. An eagle and four birdies by the 16th cut Kaneko’s advantage to one, and when Kaneko missed a long par attempt at the 15th after a lengthy weather delay, the lead was gone.
At 17 under, Kaneko and Bryant were level.
Then came the shot that will sit nicely in the memory. Kaneko found the rough at the par-three 16th, which is usually not the preferred route to a first DP World Tour title. He then chipped in, because golf has a wicked sense of theatre and occasionally remembers to be generous.
Bryant bogeyed the last, handing Kaneko a two-shot cushion. The Japanese player did not waste it.
A Scary Finish, But No Collapse
Kaneko still had to survive the 18th, where he hit the stands behind the green and watched his ball finish in thick rough near the water hazard. A calmer player might have called it character-building. Most of us would have called for a chair and a damp towel.
But Kaneko escaped with the title intact, parring his way home to complete the finest week of his young DP World Tour career.
Afterwards, his reaction carried the plain disbelief of a man still trying to catch up with his own achievement.
I just can’t believe it, I didn’t think I would win and I’m still very surprised.
On the 16th I was just trying to make par. I knew I hit it hard, but it went in, so I was lucky but sometimes you need things to go your way out there.
I tried not to think too much about the weather delay after the restart. I managed to calm down and get into a good rhythm, so the stoppage worked out well for me.
On the 18th I knew I hit the board, but I knew it didn’t go in the water, so I was just happy it didn’t find the water.
I’d like to thank all the fans this week; they’ve been a big support to help me win this tournament. I want to push on now and get a second win this season. I hope I can continue to play well.
Final Leaderboard Picture
Kaneko finished on 18 under, two clear of Bryant and Gouveia, who shared second on 16 under.
Wiesberger, Gregorio De Leo and Rafa Cabrera Bello finished one shot further back at 15 under, while Steinlechner and Luiten ended at 14 under alongside Daniel Hillier and Manuel Elvira.
For Kaneko, this was more than a good Sunday in the Alps. It was proof that last week’s second place was not a ceiling, but a warning flare. He came to Kitzbühel with form, found trouble, found luck, found nerve, and left with a trophy.
That is a fairly tidy week’s work for a 23-year-old still discovering just how dangerous he might become.
