Staff WriterThe Open de España served up a finish as tense as a tax audit, and Marco Penge walked away with the trophy, a Masters invite, and enough adrenaline to power Madrid’s metro system for a week.
The Englishman outlasted compatriot Dan Brown in a gritty play-off at Club de Campo Villa de Madrid to clinch his third DP World Tour title of the season – and his most important yet.
Penge, who began the final round with a four-shot cushion, saw that lead evaporate faster than cheap Rioja in the Madrid sun. A nervy closing 72 dragged him back into a tie on 15-under with Brown, who fired a defiant 67 despite frequent physio breaks for a dodgy shoulder that looked like it belonged to a man who’s slept funny on a Ryanair flight.
But when they returned to the 18th tee for extra holes, Penge produced a birdie under pressure to take the Open de España title and secure his place in both the 2026 Masters and The 154th Open at Royal Birkdale.
“It was a strange day for me, I kind of had in my head that the golfing gods were against me,” Penge said after sealing victory. “Dan and Joel played great today, they were holing putts and I just couldn’t really get it in the hole, it felt like I was really up against it. But I felt like I managed myself really well… obviously holing that one there was worth the wait.”
A Battle, a Comeback, and One Tough Shoulder
The final round began with all the predictability of British weather. Penge, the overnight leader, snap-hooked his opening tee shot into the trees and walked off with a bogey. Brown responded by calmly draining 87 feet of putts across the 3rd and 4th holes – a birdie-eagle combo that slashed Penge’s lead in minutes.
Meanwhile, Joel Girrbach quietly gatecrashed the party, briefly joining the lead group without anyone noticing – much like a man who finds himself at the front of a marathon simply because he took a wrong turn.
By the turn, Penge looked rattled. Another bogey on 7 pushed him two-over for the day, Brown was heating up, and Girrbach lurked with intent. But Penge stiffened his spine and clawed back momentum with a birdie on 12, while Brown – in visible discomfort – needed repeated treatment on his right shoulder yet still birdied 13, 15 and 18 to tie the lead at 15-under.
Both men missed the 18th green in regulation during the play-off, but Penge’s touch around the greens saved him. A smart chip and a steely birdie putt ended it – textbook tournament golf when it mattered.
A Season Now on the Brink of Greatness
This win sends Penge to second in the Race to Dubai standings, now just 392.8 points behind Rory McIlroy. For a man who didn’t even make the Ryder Cup team this year, it’s been one hell of a response.
“After missing out on the Ryder Cup, my next goal was to get into the top 50 in the world and earn a place in the Masters,” Penge said. “To do it by winning this tournament is just amazing. To play the rest of the season knowing I’m in the Masters, having won the Spanish Open, three wins this year, and playing The Open Championship, I’m just so grateful… I want to keep going for more. That’s just the person I am.”
He’s already eyeing Royal Birkdale – practically a home game for the 26-year-old.
“Royal Birkdale is about an hour from where I live, so The Open next year will feel like a big local event for me,” he added. “I’m pretty sure I’ll be in all four majors next year… Hopefully, I can win again before the end of the year and maybe even catch Rory. He’s probably the best player of his generation, so it’s a tough one, but you never know.”
| Position | Player | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marco Penge | -15 | Won play-off |
| 2 | Dan Brown | -15 | — |
| 3 | Joel Girrbach | -14 | — |
| 4 | Tom McKibbin | -12 | — |
| T5 | Ugo Coussaud | -11 | — |
| T5 | Joakim Lagergren | -11 | — |
| T5 | Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen | -11 | — |
| T5 | Jayden Schaper | -11 | — |
Girrbach’s quiet heroics vault him 49 spots up the Race to Dubai rankings to 60th, while Brown leaves Madrid bruised but certainly not broken. But this week belongs to Marco Penge – a player who looks less like a rising star now and more like a runaway comet.
At the Open de España, he didn’t just win – he made a statement. And the rest of the golfing world had better be listening.
