Ángel Ayora was not at all happy with his round of 73 strokes on Saturday. He knows his game is capable of more and felt he needed to change something. He had a long chat with his coach and caddie Juan Ochoa. They talked frankly. They analysed the rounds and practically every stroke. The good and the bad. It was a kind of mental catharsis to detect what was happening when the great shots came out and also what was happening when the mistakes appeared. Analyse, understand and learn.
The therapy was tremendously constructive. It was more useful than 150 balls hit on the practice field. It helped him to understand himself better in competition and drew conclusions for the fourth and final day this Sunday. The result says it all. He has made 65 strokes, six under par on the tough The Australian Golf Club in windy conditions. The best round of the day on a course where there were five top 50 in the world and nine top 100.
The conclusion he came to can be summed up in the word commitment, a very recurring concept among top-level golfers. Surely, the word most used by Jon Rahm when defining how to approach each stroke. Of course, the mistake can come at any time. It comes and will come. But the goal is not to think about it before it happens. The error is part of golf, but it should never enter the pre-stroke routine. Ayora’s goal today has been to play aggressively, committed and attacking, without fear of failure. He has been an all-out Ángel and the result has been sensational.
The young Andalusian golfer, 19 years old, has marked territory and has shown again, in case he had any doubt, that his place in golf is there, alongside the best. If he continues to do things well, without rushing and taking the right steps, he will end up reaching his destination. He is going to fall by his own weight because he meets all the necessary conditions.
Obviously, golf and competition is not an exact science. There will still be bad days because many factors come into play, but at least Ayora is climbing steps two by two in terms of what he can control, such as how to think before hitting a stroke.
And yet the day has not started easy. He saved a great par on the 10th and on the 11th he signed three putts that ended in bogey. He also made three putts on the 16th, but he drew and took out three splendid birdies in these first nine (12, 14 and 18). Perhaps one of the key strokes was precisely on the 18th. It was a majestic 5 iron with slice 198 meters from the flag to leave it five meters for eagle.
From there, Ayora has levitated. He has eaten with potatoes the so-called nine hardest holes in Australia. He made birdies on the 2, 4, 5, 8 and 9. It is worth stopping at the 4, a par 3 of 187 meters that today has been played against the wind. He hit another spectacular 5 iron. One meter from the flag for birdie. Leaving a mark. He made 30 strokes from 1 to 9. No one has been able to even match it this week.
Ayora finished in 21st place in his first tournament as a professional on the DP World Tour. Magnificent debut. His next stop will be Bangkok, where he plays in a few days the first phase of the Asian Tour School.
On the other hand, Joel Moscatel (-4) said goodbye with a round of 73 strokes, the only one over par on his two-tournament tour of Australia, and finished in 33rd place. The key today was in two double bogeys that weighed him down a lot. In any case, great balance for a player who is called to great things this year on the Challenge Tour. In addition, Alfredo García Heredia (-2) finished with a round of 70 strokes. The Asturian signs another solid week, with three days out of four under par. Finally, Rafa Cabrera Bello (+8) made 75 strokes and was again heavily punished by hole 9, the last of the day, with a triple bogey.
