Miguel Ángel Jiménez struck a blow for the old guard when he beat Lee Westwood at the third hole of a sudden-death play-off at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic yesterday.
The Spaniard, a Ryder Cup team-mate of Westwood, rode his luck over the first two extra holes at the Emirates Golf Club before wrapping up his sixteenth win on the PGA European Tour and his ninth since turning 40 six years ago.
Europe’s No 1, meanwhile, was left to rue the one that got away. Twice Westwood putted for victory and twice he came up short.
The day began with a four-way tie for the lead and at various points three of the players — Westwood, Jiménez and the big-hitting Álvaro Quirós — claimed its sole possession in difficult, windy conditions. That none of them finished below par shows how tricky things became. If Thongchai Jaidee had not missed a five-foot putt for a birdie at the last, the Thai would also have made the play-offAs it was, by the time Westwood was weighing up his approach shot to the 18th green in regulation play, he was the only player who could catch Jiménez, the clubhouse leader, on 11 under par.
One of the few players to go for the green in two shots at the par-five 18th, a hole that requires a long carry over water, Westwood almost won with a spectacular putt of 94 feet for an eagle that finished only six inches past the hole. He did not know whether to laugh or to cry. But when he came out of the scorer’s hut, he found Jiménez waiting for him, smoking a cigar and ready to do battle. “Come on Lee,” he said. “Let’s go and do it.”
Twice they played the 18th before moving on to the 9th hole. At the first play-off hole, Jiménez almost found water with his third shot, but he got lucky when the ball plugged in a grass bank instead of rolling backwards. It allowed him to chip close to save par, although Westwood had a six-foot putt for victory that hovered on the edge of the hole.
The second time around, Westwood once more had a putt to win, but left it about three inches short. Jiménez had found the bunker at the back of the green with his third shot, ran his fourth about 18 feet past the hole and then, cool as you like, rolled in the putt that kept his hopes alive.
At the third extra hole, both had putts of about five feet for par. But when Westwood missed his, Jiménez did not need a second chance, rolling the ball into the middle of the cup for his first win in two years and prize money of about £259,000.
The victory should move him inside the top 40 when the world rankings are released today.
This was Westwood’s fourth defeat in six play-offs and his fourth in succession. He had not dominated the day but he kept himself in contention. In the play-off, however, he started to think it was not to be his day.
“When somebody plugs it on the front trap their first time in — and 99 times out of a 100 that ball goes back into the water — and then holes an 18-footer the second time round, the writing is on the wall,” he said. “It’s just one of those things. Play-offs can be like that.”
With the meaty part of the season about to get under way, Westwood, the world No 4, is relatively pleased with his progress since returning to the game in Abu Dhabi three weeks ago after a six-week break. “The game feels a little bit rusty and mentally, I’m not quite sharp enough,” he said. “But I’m hitting a lot of good shots.”
Jiménez, meanwhile, was looking forward to a good rioja and his customary cigar. He truly loves what he does and enjoys every moment, win or lose. “Like good wines, with age the wins get better and better,” he said.
Rory McIlroy finished joint sixth, three shots behind and is to have a scan on his back in Belfast today.
Harrington cut adrift
• Padraig Harrington’s missed cut in the PGA Tour’s Northern Trust Open — his first event of the year — has led to him dropping out of an automatic spot in Europe’s Ryder Cup positions.
Latest leading positions in the European Ryder Cup table after the Omega Dubai Desert Classic (top four on world list qualify, then next five on European points list. Captain Colin Montgomerie adds three wild cards).
World points: 1, Lee Westwood 196.9pts; 2, Rory McIlroy142.7; 3, Ian Poulter 111.5; 4, Martin Kaymer 104.9; 5, Padraig Harrington 102.7; 6, Edoardo Molinari 95.7; 7, Ross McGowan 86.3; 8, Simon Dyson 82.5; 9, Robert Karlsson 76.7; 10, Miguel Ángel Jiménez 76.5.
European points: 1, Westwood 1,920,576; 2, McIlroy 1,335,904; 3, McGowan 1,104,767; 4, Poulter 927,415; 5, Dyson 893,738; 6,Alexander Noren 771,353; 7, Kaymer 728,852; 8, Ross Fisher672,419; 9, Francesco Molinari 658,554; 10, Oliver Wilson 625,400. (Players in bold are those in qualifying positions).
Source:The times
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