Webster clinches first title

Ten years on from beating Tiger Woods and becoming top amateur at the Open, England’s Steve Webster finally lifted his first European Tour title today.

At his 247th attempt and after five second place and 27 top-10 finishes, Webster kept his nerve to win the Telecom Italian Open in Milan by three strokes.

Level with 10 holes to play, the 30-year-old from Warwickshire, far from faltering, turned on the style.

He grabbed birdies at five of them to push Yorkshire’s Richard Finch, Welshman Bradley Dredge and Dane Anders Hansen into a tie for second place.

Among the first to congratulate Webster was “mind magician” Jamil Qureshi, the man described on a celebrity website as “fresh, cheeky, exotic and imposing, equally at home performing at intimate private shows and performing on stage”.

Qureshi now works with a number of European Tour players and also helped Nick Dougherty to his first victory in January.

“I’ve seen him every day this week,” said Webster. “He can click his fingers and get a rabbit out of your trousers, but we work on feelings when I’ve played well and it’s all about positives vibes and pre-shot routine.

“It’s just a matter of getting the mind right and Jamil can almost put me under.

“To win is amazing really. I started the week pretty confident, but you never know until the weekend.

“My mind was all over the place today, I did feel I was going to win, but it’s so hard to keep concentrating.

“Of course I’ve under-achieved on tour. Ten years is a long time and when I look at players who have done well – no names mentioned – I know I am better than them.”

As well as collecting €215,820, he earned his weight (11st 10lbs) in cheese, just as Ulsterman Graeme McDowell did last year.

Webster, round in 68 for an 18-under-par total of 270, is the former boyfriend of actress Susie Amy, who played Chardonnay in the ‘Footballers Wives’ series.

He resumed one ahead and although he set off with a birdie, a three-putt bogey at the third and a duffed chip on the eighth brought about a three-way tie with Dredge and Jamie Spence.

A two-putt birdie at the next restored his advantage and a 15-foot birdie putt on the 10th took him to 15-under again.

While Spence fell away to a share of sixth, Dredge and Hansen kept the pressure on, but Webster responded with further birdies at the 13th, 15th and 17th.

The last of them came just as Dredge, one behind on the last tee, pulled an iron into the lake and all Webster had to do then was avoid doing the same.

In stark contrast to Webster, 2002 English amateur champion Finch was playing just his ninth tour event.

And as well as setting a new course record with his second-round 63, the 27-year-old from Hull earned just over £65,000 and should not need to worry about a fifth trip to the qualifying school now.

Dredge said: “I have been struggling a bit with my long game and it caught up with me eventually with a few hooks.

“I haven’t played really well the last two days, but still managed to be competitive, so that’s pleasing.”

Spence, who double-bogeyed the 16th and bogeyed the 17th, was desperately disappointed not to have secured his place back on the circuit.

He lost his card last year and in five previous starts this season had a best finish of 81st and had earned a mere £800.

In March the tour’s tournament committee chairman said: “I’d like to pack up and do something that I enjoy. Got any ideas?

“Being chairman is a pretty thankless task. Everyone’s moaning at you. There’s too much moaning, to be honest.”

The effect it was having on his career made him ask “some serious questions of myself”.

“I don’t want to be a good chairman and crap golfer, but I’ve decided not to quit,” he said.

“I’ve had a rotten year and a half, but when I’m playing I’ve just got to concentrate on playing and when players come to me about something I’ll tell them to put it in a letter.

“It’s no coincidence I haven’t played as well since taking over (in December 2003). The last three events last year, when I should have been thinking about nothing other than keeping my card, my mind was elsewhere.”

He must try to forget the finish and remember what came before when he showed he can still excel on the course.