The Order of Merit number one started the final round one shot behind Gustavo Acosta, but he birdied the 3rd and 4th for the third consecutive day to take the lead and never looked back. He churned out the pars as most of the other contenders faltered, and one more birdie on 16 was enough for a bogey-free 67 and a 15 under par total.
The 51-year-old started with a 66 and had a joint best-of-the-week 62 in the second round. He only had one bogey all week – coming on the 17th in the opening round – as he became the first multiple winner of the season to extend his advantage at the top of the Order of Merit.
“To win here is very special,” he said. “It feels amazing after all they’ve done for us this week – it’s such a nice venue and people.
“I had a nice start and I’ve played holes three and four well all week, so that gave me a little kick mentally and to just keep it going. I didn’t look at the leaderboard, but I asked my caddie if we were winning on the last hole. I just wanted to stay focused on doing what I was doing.”
The Brazilian spoke earlier in the week about enjoying the fight for top spot on the Order of Merit and he’s delighted to have increased his lead at number one: “It’s a big deal for me. I need to keep working really hard. There are so many great players playing on the Legends Tour, so I’ll keep practicing hard and playing each tournament as it comes.”
Da Silva was the Barry Lane Rookie of the Year last season and he’s enjoyed a brilliant start to the 2023 Legends Tour campaign with a win at the season-opening Riegler and Partner Legends, tied-20th in the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, tied-22nd in the Jersey Legends, tied-4th in the Irish Legends and tied-51st in the US Senior Open.
Overnight leader Acosta had a poor start with four bogeys and just one birdie in his first five holes to drop four shots off the pace. He fought back with a two under par back nine but his closing 71 was only enough for 3rd place.
Ultimately, Da Silva’s nearest challenger was defending champion James Kingston, who came alive on the inward half with five red numbers, including three birdies in a row to finish as he signed for a crowd-pleasing 65. Last season’s Order of Merit number one can be proud of his 2nd place finish.
Home favourite Andre Bossert gave the Swiss supporter plenty to cheer as he surged through the field with a round of 63. He went out in 31 and played the last five holes in two under par to finish 4th on -11.
Order of Merit number two Peter Baker finished 5th on -10. Thomas Gögele, Joakim Haeggman, Michael Long, Robert Coles and Mauricio Molina ended the week in a five-way tie for 6th.
