Alvaro Quirós wins Omega Dubai Desert Classic as top players fade
Alvaro Quirós relished a victory in the 22nd edition of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, while top golfers like Rory McIlroy, Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer, and Tiger Woods failed to make a mark.
The desert-style course proved too difficult for the top players of the world while the world-number-36 savoured a win to prove that golf comes with a variety of fairways and the course is not relevant to victory.
Sunday turned out to be a surprise for the spectators when the 28-year-old surpassed all the leaders with the help of an eagle and a hole-in-one.
Quirós was one of seven players who managed a score in the 60s.
Meanwhile, the rookie who has been leading the tournament since the first round could not continue striking with the same pace. Rory McIlroy finished tenth on the leader board after composing a 74 on Sunday.
The world-number-7 bogeyed the opening hole and proceeded further to miss another putt at the fourth hole. He wrapped the first half with a score of one-over. He managed to birdie the tenth hole, but that did not reduce the amount of damage already done to the scorecard.
He bogeyed three consecutive holes and capped the four-day session with a score of 74.
Lee Westwood, the world-number-one, followed in McIlroy’s footsteps and after smashing 69 in the first round, settled at par. Westwood picked five birdies against three bogeys and one double-bogey.
The desert swing has been uptight for the veteran who has been bidding for a major title in the current season. The Englishman finished 64th in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship, 77th in Commercialbank Qatar Masters and 15th in the Dubai Desert Classic.
Three strokes below stood the American who was once considered a killing machine in the Middle East. Tiger Woods made a strong comeback compared to his first two rounds in which he kept the score in the realms of par. The former world-number-one hammered 66 in the second round and parred the third round when most of the field drooled in the danger zone.
He netted 16 birdies and 2 eagles in the 72-hole session.
However, he failed to handle the pressure though he was dressed in his famous red polo shirt. Woods wears a red-colour shirt in the last round in remembrance of Stanford University from where he graduated. Despite wearing the colour, which represents aggression and confidence, Woods seemed nervous. That ultimately reflected on his scorecard, which had four bogeys and one double-bogey.
The biggest disappointment was the four-time winner of 2010, Martin Kaymer. The German who was the betting favourite finished tied at 31. The 26-year-old birdied four holes against two bogeys and settled at 2-under-par.
Kaymer failed to touch the top ten spots in all four rounds.
On the other hand, Ricardo Gonzalez smashed a bogey-free round of eight birdies and managed to compose the lowest score of the day. The worst score was that of Simon Khan. The Englishman smashed four double-bogeys and three bogeys against a lone birdie.
The Omega Dubai Desert Classic wrapped up on Sunday at the Emirates Golf Club. The players who were least expected, took the top spots of the leader board whereas the ones who were expected to shine dropped back and disappointed their fans.
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