Long wait finally over for Italian Canonica
Canonica, a runner-up in 230 previous events stretching back to 1989 and thinking of giving up at the end of last year, came from two behind to win the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles.
And then the 34-year-old from Turin - at five feet four inches the smallest player on the circuit by half an inch from Ian Woosnam - revealed that former Chelsea manager Gianluca Vialli was among those who had persuaded him to keep going.
Asked what he might have done instead, Canonica said: “Maybe some pro-ams in Italy and some teaching, but my wife and a lot of friends told me to try a couple more years.”
He shot a closing 71 for a seven-under-par total of 281 and a two-stroke victory over English pair Barry Lane and David Lynn, Welshman Bradley Dredge and Belgian Nicolas Colsaerts, the overnight leader.
Only 106th on the order of merit and 353rd in the world, Canonica earned £233,330, the biggest pay-day of his career.
“It’s been a long wait, but today I reached my dream,” he added.
Tiger Woods’s former coach Butch Harmon also played a part as Canonica spent a month with him in Las Vegas during the winter.
Lynn, Lane and Dredge all failed to birdie the par-five last, allowing Canonica the luxury of being able to hit an iron off the tee at the dangerous 533-yard hole.
The key moment for him came on the 543-yard 16th. Having bogeyed the 13th and 14th, his second shot carried the water hazard by only a yard, but from there he pitched to five feet and made the birdie putt.
Since turning professional in 1991, Canonica had to make six trips to the European Tour qualifying school, but he showed his talent at the 1996 Dunhill Cup when he gained a notable victory over Phil Mickelson.
Five years ago in Germany he came from behind overnight leader Tiger Woods to beat him - only a few have done that in the career of the world number one - but Lee Westwood played one of the rounds of his life to win the title.
And it took Sergio Garcia to deny him at the 2002 Spanish Open as his search for a maiden victory went on.
Colsaerts opened the door with two bogeys in his first five holes, and although he twice got back on terms on the back nine, the 22-year-old’s hopes of a first win himself nose-dived with a hat-trick of bogeys from the 13th.
He matched his playing partner’s birdie at the 16th, but although two closing pars left him in a four-way tie for second, the £93,137 cheque should see him regain his tour card at the end of the season.
Lynn shot 69, Lane 70 and Dredge 72, but they were never able to get on terms.
Paul Casey fell back to level par with a closing double-bogey seven, but he did at least make his first halfway cut in six tournaments and will take heart from that as he heads to the USPGA championship.
Not even a triple bogey on his card could dent the march to victory of Sam Torrance as he won his third European Seniors Tour title.
Playing the Nicklaus course at Carden Park, Cheshire, the former Ryder Cup captain outplayed a strong field with a final two-under par 70 for an aggregate of 271.
He was four ahead of David Russell, and picked up the De Vere PGA Seniors Championship trophy.
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