Michael Hollick defeated fellow South African Hennie Du Plessis by one stroke to win the 2026 BMW International Open.
Hollick’s chances of winning looked bleak standing on the 17th tee, three strokes behind leader Du Plessis. But with a birdie by Hollick and bogey by Du Plessis on the 17th hole, the lead shrank to one stroke.
Hollick produced the best shot of his career approaching the green on the par-5 18th, leaving him 20 feet from the hole for an eagle and the win. His putt broke gently from right to left into the middle of the hole for an unlikely victory.
In a post-tournament press conference, Hollick talked about his mindset on Saturday night going into the final day: “I just said, ‘If I have a chance to win the tournament on the back nine, that’s what I want’ and funnily enough yesterday when I went to bed, I thought if I have the chance to make eagle at the last to win it, that would be something.”
Just four years ago, Hollick stepped away from the game for a little while to become a golf coach in his home country. The 39-year-old is currently in his rookie year on the DP World Tour, after finishing seventh in the Order of Merit in 2025 on the Sunshine Tour.
Additionally, thanks to this tournament, Du Plessis, Bernd Wiesberger, Jayden Schaper, Dan Bradbury and Andy Sullivan all earned spots into the 2026 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale.
Next week on the DP World Tour, there are two events co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour. The Genesis Scottish Open is one of five Rolex Series Events. In the 2025 Genesis Scottish Open, Chris Gotterup became only the sixth American to win the tournament. The ISCO Championship is an alternate on both tours that gives The Open Championship entry to the leading player who is not already exempt. William Mouw earned his first career PGA Tour victory at the 2025 ISCO Championship, his first career victory.
