2010 Dubai World Golf Championship: Robert Karlsson smiles as Ian Poulter walks home without a trophy
Ian Poulter stood in the crowd with sadness covering his face as Robert Karlsson climbed the winner’s podium to grab the trophy of 2010 Dubai World Championship.
Poulter was eyeing his second victory on the European tour after the USB Hong Kong Open, but the Englishman stepped in the danger zone and got himself penalised. Sunday led to a terrific competition between Robert
Karlsson and Ian Poulter. The duo smashed a score of 14-under each and entered the playoff.
Par-5, 18th hole was pre-decided by the officials of the event, as the length and the hazards were best suited for the challenge. Ian Poulter teed first and rolled the swing into the rough at the left.
There is a ravine in the centre and mostly players try to keep the ball away from it. However, when Karlsson took his turn, he opted for the same strategy and shot the ball in the direction of the rough.
Poulter stood at the left side of the ravine and the only approach to get the ball across was a shot towards the water. The 34-year-old opted for the alternative and smashed an 8-iron forcing the ball onto the
right. Meanwhile, Karlsson took his second shot and rolled the ball onto the fairway, which was slightly an uphill approach. Poulter crossed the bridge and grounded another iron to reach the green, but the ball stopped a few inches shot before the cut off
line. The player managed a birdie putt, but the ball crossed the pin and Poulter had to settle with a par.
On the other hand, Karlsson matched the third shot that was made by his competitor and finished four feet away from the green. The first round leader wedged the second last shot and wrapped the hole with a par.
Both the contenders had to walk back to the tee.
The second round at the 18th hole was far more exciting and a turning point for the game. Both the veterans took their second shots with 5-iron and reached half way to the green. Poulter messed up the
third short, but despite that he landed safe in the right direction whereas Karlsson matched his previous try and stopped right where his third shot fell in the first attempt.
The actual playoff saga started with the last shot. Poulter’s third shot fell in the right direction, but touched the marker which demarcated the sand bunker. To eliminate the confusion, Poulter called for the
referee, but he instead awarded a penalty shot to the runner-up. The uncrowned winner was decided at this moment. Pouter carded a bogey and left the hole for Karlsson to take over.
Karlsson parred the last hole for the second time and walked towards his fans with a massive smile of victory. The new winner flashed a victory sign with his both hands and said, "It was a strange day to say the
least. To start birdie-birdie-eagle is not what you expect to happen when you are three behind. Then there was the one-shot penalty. It is not the way you want to win, but these things happen in golf. The rules are there for a reason, but some of them look
very hard at stages. In one way that's the purity of the game."
The Race to Dubai marked the European tour officially closed for the year. Ian Poulter failed to rank himself as the new number one by losing the playoff to Robert Karlsson. The Englishman was devastated to the
extent that he forgot to shake hands with his competitor to show some sportsman spirit. This was his last tournament on the European side as from next year onwards, Poulter will be playing under the US PGA tour.
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