'My best golf for a long time' - Scottish golfer upbeat after Bahrain boost

Richie Ramsay is feeling quietly confident that a fifth DP World Tour win is around the corner after producing his “best golf in a long time” to get in the mix down the closing stretch in the Bapco Energies Bahrain Championship.

While the title eventually fell to Englishman Laurie Canter in a play-off at Royal Golf Club, Ramsay was feeling upbeat after signing off with a bogey-free four-under-par 68 to finish joint-fourth.

It was the Edinburgh-based Aberdonian’s best effort since tying for third in the D+D Real Czech Masters last August and took his tally of top-ten finishes on the circuit to 35.

“Yeah, just played great,” said Ramsay of his closing salvo, which, helped by birdies at the ninth, tenth, 13th and 14th, earned him a pay-day close to $100,000. “Missed maybe one fairway but my iron play was great today and, on the front nine, I just just had chance after chance.

Richie Ramsay weighs up a shot with his caddie during the final round of the Bapco Energies Bahrain Championship at Royal Golf Club | Warren Little/Getty Images

“My mindset was really good the whole week. I made some decisions in my head about what I want to do moving forward and I think this week I played quite carefree.

“I think the most pleasing thing for me is that it was one of those days where I played to win. From tee to green, the game I had out there was really, really good - some of the best I’ve seen in a long time. I played that way as well on Thursday.”

Ramsay’s most recent win on the circuit came in the 2022 Cazoo Classic and the 41-year-old is determined to add to his title tally so that he can have flexibility with his schedule.

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“This week I just didn’t make the putts, but one week they will fall,” he added with a smile. “The goal is to get that win and the exemption that gets me another few years out here.

“That would allow me to get the schedule I want and also to spend time at home with the family (wife Angela and daughter Olivia) - that’s the two most important things for me.”

Canter, who helped Great Britain and Ireland win the Team Cup in Abu Dhabi last month, landed his second tour victory after making a birdie at the first extra hole to win a play-off against compatriot Daniel Brown and Spaniard Pablo Larrazabal.

The trio finished locked together on 14 under - one shot better than Ramsay - after Larrazabal, who was chasing a tenth success, bogeyed the final hole.

Laurie Canter won the title in Bahrain. | Getty Images

The win is set to lift Canter, who had a spell playing for LIV Golf before returning to the DP World Tour last year, to around 50th in the Official World Golf Ranking and he is shaping up to be a genuine contender to be one of the rookies on Luke Donald’s European team for the Ryder Cup in September.

Elsewhere, David Law made it back-to-back top-ten finishes to start his Hotel Planner Tour campaign as the Aberdonian tied for ninth in the MyGolfLife Open hosted by Pecanwood Estate in South Africa.

As home player Daniel Van Tonder won for the second week in a row on the second-tier circuit, Law signed off with a 68 to secure a share of ninth spot.

On the back of his top-five finish in the season-opening SDC Open, the effort sees Law sitting sixth in the Road to Mallorca Rankings, which will determine 20 DP World Tour card winners at the end of the season.