Jbe Kruger earns his first European Tour victory at the Avantha Masters - Golf News
South African young golfing sensation, Jbe Kruger, fired a three-under 69 in the final round of the Avantha Masters, at the DLF Golf and Country Club, to earn his first ever European Tour victory on Sunday, February 19, 2012.
The 25-year-old of Bloemfontein started off the round with a single-stroke lead over Peter Whiteford.
However, he eventually found that Whiteford was no more in contention as he was disqualified from the event for ball moving after it was addressed.
He carded a total of four birdies against a lone bogey on the par-four 17th to end two strokes ahead of Jorge Campillo and Marcel Siem.
"I am relieved to have finally won, but I think I needed those second positions to appreciate this victory," Kruger said.
"I kept my feet to the ground and by the time I was on the 14th I knew victory was inevitable. I had kept an eye on the leaderboard because I like to know what's going on,” he continued.
"There was no pressure even when I made my only bogey of the day on the 17th. The wind probably switched directions as I hit a pretty good shot and it flew about 19 yards off the fairway," added Kruger, who had finished tied 16th here last year.
He also said that he is hoping to improve his performance in the upcoming events and wants to finish among the top 60 European Tour players at least at the end of the season.
Moreover, he is aiming to excel in the Official World Golf Rankings in order to get more opportunities of playing bigger tournaments.
Campillo and Siem shared the second position with a 12-under par 276 tournament scores each.
Marcus Fraser and José Manuel Lara were a shot behind to finish tied for the fourth on the leaderboard.
The Indian players, who were said to be favourites for the tournament, did not register their names even among the top 20.
Shamim Khan was the highest listed Indian player with a five-under par 283 to take the 22nd spot on the leaderboard.
The defending champion SSP Chowrasia finished at level par tournament score to tie for the 48th with two other players, that also included his compatriot Jeev Milkha Singh.
Tags: