Ernie Els, down by five strokes going into the final round of the Qatar Masters, cranked out a brilliant 7-under 65 to storm to a one-shot victory. Els, who opened the tournament with a 73 and was in danger of missing the cut, finished at -12 (276) to capture his second tournament since winning the Dubai Desert Classic a week ago.
“I wanted to give myself a low score and as it turned out, I shot low which you don’t normally do. I got lucky and got a win,” said Els. “Things began to turn in my favour in the middle of the front nine when I made three birdies on the bounce. The wind was really playing it up at that time.”
Third-round leader Henrick Stenson started with two birdies in the opening three holes, but bogeyed two and then double-bogeyed the 14th. He later rallied with three birdies to finish second at -11, but needed an eagle at the last to match Els’ two-putt birdie to force a playoff. Richard Green and Pierre Fulke of Australia and Sweden tied for third at nine under.
Els’ victory in Doha ends his journeys outside the United States and the PGA Tour for awhile. Ernie is expected to compete next week at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Invitational, the Players Championship and, of course, The Masters. Ernie is the first player since Vijay Singh in 2001 to win back-to-back titles on the European Tour. Said Els of his swing, “I really feel good. My rhythm is really good at the moment and I’m in a good position at the top of the backswing. When that happens, I can freewheel it and go for the ball. My iron play was a lot better. I feel like my game is right there and I can’t wait to get to America.”
Thanks to BogeyLounge for the pointer.
Photo Credit: © William R. Sallaz/SI.
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