Henrik Stenson became only the third European golfer to win the US PGA flagship event, The Players Championship in Sawgrass, last night with an excellent 12 under par. The other European winners were Sandy Lyle (1987) and Sergio Garcia (2008).
The 33 year-old Swede was joint second with Ian Poulter and Tiger Woods going into the final round, five shots behind German Alex Cejka. But Cejka had a disastrous start to his fourth round and never recovered his game, leaving the door wide open for the chasing pack.
Stenson hit six birdies in a very impressive final round to finish on 66 (-12) and it was only this amazing score that stopped Ian Poulter from winning the title. Poulter finished second with a solid round of 70, leaving him 8 under.
I’m sure plenty of bets were placed on Tiger Woods to win another tournament after round 3. But like Cejka he had a disappointing final round of 79 to finish in eighth place overall on 5 under.
Tiger Woods has failed to find consistency over four rounds since returning in February after eight months out with a knee injury. But both Henrik Stenson and Ian Poulter continue to move up the world rankings and are both looking to cement their positions with a majors victory in 2009.
Henrik Stenson is a good, solid, consistent golfer. But I love Ian Poulter’s cockiness and flambuoyant personality. Like snooker’s Ronnie O’Sullivan, Poulter brings excitement and cool to the game.
Poulter stood up to the extra publicity he received as Nick Faldo’s controversial Captain’s Pick for last year’s Ryder Cup team and appears to be cementing his place as one of the best golfers in the world.
The next step is for Ian Poulter to win a major; and the way he’s playing right now, this could be his year.
0 comments so far
There are no comments for this post yet. Why not be the first by filling out the form below.