A perfect week, a flawless finish, and a victory with a sense of relief. The Spaniard Juan Salama completed a wire-to-wire victory at the Egypt Golf Series Madinaty, where he held the lead every single day and finished the job with a 65 (-5) to end at -17, lifting his first international title.
It all started with a statement: 60 strokes (-10) and a course record on the first day. Such a start not only puts you on top; it changes the script of the tournament. Salama set the pace from the first minute and forced the rest to chase after him, never really getting close.
The final round had its tension, as almost always happens when it comes to closing. Salama came out aggressively with four birdies on the first nine holes, extending the lead and giving the impression of securing the victory. The only slip of the day came on the 15th, a bogey that opened a window for the chasers. It didn’t last long: he managed the delicate moment on the 16th, with water very much in play, and on the 17th he found the birdie that restored the margin and left the 18th for a champion’s decision.
With a three-stroke lead on the final hole, he chose the conservative plan: no driver, playing it safe. “I decided to lay up; the driver could have been too much. I’ve been hitting the 5-wood very solidly all week,” he explained.
“Shooting 60 was my best round ever, so opening the tournament like that set everything up,” said Salama, who also highlighted the role of his local caddie, crucial especially in reading greens. And he candidly acknowledged the mental toll of Sunday: “Today I felt solid, but I was very nervous. I tried to stay present on every shot, follow my routine… On the 15th I felt it a lot and on the second shot of the 16th too, because I could only see the water.”
A week after the blow… comes redemption
The victory is even more valuable given the immediate context: last week Salama came up just short, defeated in a playoff by the Welshman Jack Davidson at Address Marassi. In Madinaty, the ending was different: “This victory means a lot. It’s my first international win and it’s very important to keep chasing my dream… Now, on to Morocco.”
Behind, Davidson signed for a 66 to share second place with the Englishman Owen Edwards, co-leader at the start of the day, both at -14, three strokes behind the Spaniard. “Starting two behind forces you to go for it. But Juan played very well and hardly did anything wrong. I didn’t make the putts I needed,” summarised Davidson.
Edwards, for his part, experienced a rollercoaster until closing with a 68, including a dramatic episode on the 16th: “It was a day of ups and downs… I hit it out of bounds on the 16th and you think ‘what are we doing here?’, but I made birdie with the second ball and also birdied the last two.”
A very productive Egypt for the tour
The tournament capped off a mini tour of four events in Egypt, with 400,000 dollars distributed among high-level venues. In Madinaty, the total prize fund was 100,000 dollars and Salama took home 18,000, in addition to earning points for the ranking and for the OWGR.
The MENA Golf Tour now travels to Morocco and will then continue its schedule in Jordan. Salama, meanwhile, already has what he was pursuing: a title that confirms the path… and that comes just after a defeat that hurt. Sometimes golf also writes its second chances well.
