Poulter edges Liang for Singapore title
Source: Agencies |
November 2, 2009, Monday
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BRITON Ian Poulter overcame a mid-round crisis to fire a one-over 72 and win the Singapore Open by one shot yesterday, finishing the US$5 million event on 10-under 274 for a wire-to-wire victory.
China's Liang Wenchong finished second on nine-under, with Australian pair Scott Hend and Adam Scott tied for third, a further shot adrift of Poulter, who won for the first time on the European Tour since the 2006 Madrid Open.
"I was playing fairly solid but mis-hit some shots," Poulter said in a greenside television interview.
"I made it a little bit interesting on a string of holes yesterday and coming out today I made some mistakes on the front nine and back nine to make it too close for comfort."
The co-sanctioned event was troubled by weather delays on the three previous days but Poulter returned to the course under blue skies yesterday and battled through 30 holes before limping over the finishing line having let slip a five-shot halfway lead.
Returning to action after a six-week layoff, the 33-year-old twice looked poised to run away with the tournament before shocking spells in both of his last two rounds gave the rest of the field a chance to catch up.
The victory earned Poulter US$833,330 and moved him up 19 places to 10th in the rankings of the European Tour's Race to Dubai.
Liang was solid if unspectacular and tied for the lead at one stage, but his challenge faltered with a bogey on the ninth and another dropped shot on 13. "I tried my best but lady luck eluded me. I just couldn't find a birdie on the 18th hole after a poor third shot," the Chinese No. 1 said.
In Incheon, South Korea, Choi Na-yeon shot a five-under 67 yesterday in front of her home fans to claim her second career victory on the final hole of the 2009 Hana Bank KOLON Championships.
Choi tapped in on the 18th hole to finish at 10-under and claim a one-stroke victory over Sweden's Maria Hjorth and Yani Tseng of Chinese Taipei.
Choi won the Samsung World Championships in September with an eagle after sharing the lead into the final par-five hole. The 22-year-old faced a similar situation yesterday, but this time she wasn't nervous.
"This time I was able to play the last hole comfortably," Choi said. "I went in thinking 'birdie.'"
China's Liang Wenchong finished second on nine-under, with Australian pair Scott Hend and Adam Scott tied for third, a further shot adrift of Poulter, who won for the first time on the European Tour since the 2006 Madrid Open.
"I was playing fairly solid but mis-hit some shots," Poulter said in a greenside television interview.
"I made it a little bit interesting on a string of holes yesterday and coming out today I made some mistakes on the front nine and back nine to make it too close for comfort."
The co-sanctioned event was troubled by weather delays on the three previous days but Poulter returned to the course under blue skies yesterday and battled through 30 holes before limping over the finishing line having let slip a five-shot halfway lead.
Returning to action after a six-week layoff, the 33-year-old twice looked poised to run away with the tournament before shocking spells in both of his last two rounds gave the rest of the field a chance to catch up.
The victory earned Poulter US$833,330 and moved him up 19 places to 10th in the rankings of the European Tour's Race to Dubai.
Liang was solid if unspectacular and tied for the lead at one stage, but his challenge faltered with a bogey on the ninth and another dropped shot on 13. "I tried my best but lady luck eluded me. I just couldn't find a birdie on the 18th hole after a poor third shot," the Chinese No. 1 said.
In Incheon, South Korea, Choi Na-yeon shot a five-under 67 yesterday in front of her home fans to claim her second career victory on the final hole of the 2009 Hana Bank KOLON Championships.
Choi tapped in on the 18th hole to finish at 10-under and claim a one-stroke victory over Sweden's Maria Hjorth and Yani Tseng of Chinese Taipei.
Choi won the Samsung World Championships in September with an eagle after sharing the lead into the final par-five hole. The 22-year-old faced a similar situation yesterday, but this time she wasn't nervous.
"This time I was able to play the last hole comfortably," Choi said. "I went in thinking 'birdie.'"
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