Omega European Masters 2017: Matthew Fitzpatrick Beats Scott Hend in Play-Off

Matthew Fitzpatrick won the 2017 Omega European Masters on Sunday at the Crans-sur-Sierre golf club in Lens, Switzerland, as Scott Hend suffered his second consecutive play-off loss.

After last year's disappointment against Alex Noren, the Australian again fell short, losing his overnight lead on Sunday before missing a costly putt in the play-off.

For a look at the final leaderboard, visit the European Tour's official website.

Recap

Hend entered the final round with a three-shot lead after tricky weather conditions disrupted Saturday's action, but the Australian struggled with his shots from the tee on Sunday and his lead quickly evaporated.

Back-to-back bogeys on the front nine were offset by three birdies, and he did manage to make the most out of several tricky situations―including this extraordinary birdie:

Several players pushed themselves up the leaderboard, including Fitzpatrick and Mikko Ilonen, who both shot rounds of six under. Ilonen dropped just the single shot but hit a fantastic eagle on the 15th, and Fitzpatrick went on a sensational run in the middle of his round.

Here are two of his key shots, the birdie on the 16th putting him in an excellent position:

But the Englishman carded a bogey on the 17th to move back to 14 under, and Hend tied his score with two holes left for the Aussie. Par on the 17th meant the 18th hole would be decisive, and another par for Hend forced a play-off.

Both made par to start the play-off―with Fitzpatrick's putt barely dropping―and the Englishman nearly won it the second time around with a putt that only just missed. 

A poor approach shot from Hend the third time around left Fitzpatrick with two putting chances to win it, and par was enough for the 23-year-old to add his fourth win on the European Tour.