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Martin Kaymer back on form with victory at Players Championship Martin Kaymer back on form with victory at Players Championship
(4 months later)
Martin Kaymer has waited so long to re-enforce his standing as one of Martin Kaymer has waited so long to re-enforce his standing as one of the finest talents in golf that he probably shouldn’t have been expected to do it the easy way. And he duly didn’t.
the finest talents in golf that he probably shouldn’t have been expected to do Kaymer stepped back on to the Players Championship course after a 90-minute weather delay at Sawgrass on Sunday evening holding a three-stroke lead. A double bogey on the 15th immediately followed; Kaymer had to hole a treacherous 3ft 7in putt, in semi-darkness, on the last to clinch victory at 13 under par.
it the easy way. And he duly didn’t. Kaymer did precisely that, with the same display of nerve that he displayed to seal Europe’s Ryder Cup victory in 2012. One hole earlier, Kaymer had holed a crucial 28ft putt for par at the very juncture where he appeared to be rocking. Make no mistake, this was highly dramatic stuff when it eventually reached a denouement.
Kaymer stepped back on to the Players Championship course after a 90-minute With this win, the 29-year-old German has made himself part of the Ryder Cup narrative once again. Kaymer, a major champion and former world No1, is back at golf’s top table after a period in which his struggles were routinely hard to fathom.
weather delay at Sawgrass on Sunday evening holding a three-stroke lead. A Jim Furyk, so often golf’s nearly man, finished second at 12 under. Sergio Garcia claimed third on his own at 11 under. “I gave it my best effort and unfortunately that fell a little short,” said Garcia.
double bogey on the 15th immediately followed; Kaymer had to hole a treacherous Jordan Spieth had been level with Kaymer at the start of play but, once again, the 20-year-old endured Sunday struggles. For all Spieth’s undoubted talent, he has already displayed a weakness on closing stretches. Time, at least, is well on his side with a view to curing that ailment.
3ft 7in putt, in semi-darkness, on the last to clinch victory at 13 under Spieth failed to properly recover from the bogey on the eighth which knocked him back to level par for the day. Immediately after the weather break, he three-putted the 14th green for another dropped shot. Spieth ultimately tied for fourth with Justin Rose.
par. For Rose, Sunday had started in curious fashion and ended on a high note. The Englishman had his two stroke penalty from round three rescinded, after the PGA Tour acknowledged they were wrong to use high-definition footage to determine that Rose’s ball had moved upon address at the 18th.
Kaymer did precisely that, with the same display of nerve that he When playing 18 for a final time, Rose holed out from 45ft for birdie and a total of 10 under par.
displayed to seal Europe’s Ryder Cup victory in 2012. One hole earlier, Kaymer “I'm certainly surprised it was overturned,” Rose said of his sanction. “Very rarely is that ever the case. Maybe never the case, I’m not sure.
had holed a crucial 28ft putt for par at the very juncture where he appeared to “But the only thing that now makes sense is that when I was at home last night and I read that snippet of the rule, I kind of thought, ‘God, that's exactly what happened today’. It has just been very interesting to be on the wrong side of a ruling and then the right side of a ruling within sort of 12, 15 hours.”
be rocking. Make no mistake, this was highly dramatic stuff when it eventually Rory McIlroy and Lee Westwood finished one shot worse off than Rose. McIlroy played the back nine in an astonishing 17 under par over the four tournament days, leaving him to rue troubles on the front half of the course.
reached a denouement. McIlroy headed straight for London on Sunday night, where he will spend time with his fiancee Caroline Wozniacki before appearing at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth on Thursday week.
With this win, the 29-year-old German has made himself part of the Ryder “Overall, it's been another solid week,” said McIlroy. “Another top‑10, another back door top‑10 as I like to call them, but it's getting close. If only I could get myself in better positions after two days.
Cup narrative once again. Kaymer, a major champion and former world No1, is “I'm playing really well. I equalled my lowest round ever here at Sawgrass today with a 66 so things are heading in the right direction.”
back at golf’s top table after a period in which his struggles were routinely
hard to fathom.
Jim Furyk, so often golf’s nearly man, finished second at 12 under.
Sergio Garcia claimed third on his own at 11 under. “I gave it my best
effort and unfortunately that fell a little short,” said Garcia.
Jordan Spieth had been level with Kaymer at the start of play but, once
again, the 20-year-old endured Sunday struggles. For all Spieth’s undoubted
talent, he has already displayed a weakness on closing stretches. Time, at
least, is well on his side with a view to curing that ailment.
Spieth failed to properly recover from the bogey on the eighth which
knocked him back to level par for the day. Immediately after the weather break,
he three-putted the 14th green for another dropped shot. Spieth ultimately tied
for fourth with Justin Rose.
For Rose, Sunday had started in curious fashion and ended on a high
note. The Englishman had his two stroke penalty from round three rescinded,
after the PGA Tour acknowledged they were wrong to use high-definition footage
to determine that Rose’s ball had moved upon address at the 18th.
When playing 18 for a final time, Rose holed out from 45ft for birdie
and a total of 10 under par.
“I'm certainly surprised it was overturned,” Rose said of his sanction.
“Very rarely is that ever the case. Maybe never the case, I’m not sure.
“But the only thing that now makes sense is that when I was at home last
night and I read that snippet of the rule, I kind of thought, ‘God, that's
exactly what happened today’. It has just been very interesting to be on the
wrong side of a ruling and then the right side of a ruling within sort of 12,
15 hours.”
Rory McIlroy and Lee Westwood finished one shot worse off than Rose. McIlroy
played the back nine in an astonishing 17 under par over the four tournament
days, leaving him to rue troubles on the front half of the course.
McIlroy headed straight for London on Sunday night, where he will spend
time with his fiancee Caroline Wozniacki before appearing at the BMW PGA
Championship at Wentworth on Thursday week.
“Overall, it's been another solid week,” said McIlroy. “Another top‑10,
another back door top‑10 as I like to call them, but it's getting close. If
only I could get myself in better positions after two days.
“I'm playing really well. I equalled my lowest round ever here at
Sawgrass today with a 66 so things are heading in the right direction.”
Adam Scott, who had been chasing the world No1 spot along with Matt Kuchar, Bubba Watson and Henrik Stenson, finished in 38th place. That meant Tiger Woods retains his place at the top of the rankings.Adam Scott, who had been chasing the world No1 spot along with Matt Kuchar, Bubba Watson and Henrik Stenson, finished in 38th place. That meant Tiger Woods retains his place at the top of the rankings.