Top-20 European players to watch out for in 2012: Part-5
"I can't thank my parents enough for what they've done for me and winning the US Open is only a tiny little bit of my appreciation for what they've done, so hopefully there's more trophies for them in the future and more things for us to share and celebrate.
It felt like this win was not just for myself, it was for everyone who supported me and all I can say is thank you to everyone who believed in me after what happened at Augusta." McIlroy said after his victory at US Open.
McIlroy played brilliantly for the rest of the season, winning another title, the UBS Hong Kong Open, a co-sanctioned event on the European Tour to surge to an all-time high of number two on the OWGR. Of the 19 appearances this year, the US Open champion
made the cut in all of them, earning a massive € 4,002,168 on the Race to Dubai money list.
Martin Kaymer
Official World Golf Rankings: 4
Race to Dubai Rankings: 3
European Tour wins in 2011: 2
The lanky German Martin Kaymer shot to stardom with his performance in the year 2010, where he bagged no fewer than four titles on the PGA/European Tour and ravaged the fields in several others to post strong finishes. He is often regarded as the undisputed
king of Abu Dhabi for having won the coveted Abu Dhabi Golf Championship for a staggering three times.
Born in Düsseldorf, West Germany, Kaymer joined the European Tour in 2007 after turning professional in 2005. His stunning performance in Habsberg Classic, playing as an amateur, where he shot a round of 59, persuaded him to switch ranks to professional
circuit, a decision which turned out to be well-timed. He started off with the Challenge Tour, a subsidiary of European Tour, finishing number four in Order of Merit, thereby, automatically qualifying for a European Tour card.
Kaymer carded his first tour victory at Abu Dhabi Golf Championship in 2008, where he thrashed the field with rounds of 66-65-68-74, landing the title by a lead of four strokes over Henrik Stenson and Lee Westwood. He bagged the BMW International Open the
same year and went over to card two more victories in 2009, Open de France ALSTOM and Barclays Scottish Open. He made the turn for a blistering year in 2010, landing the first major title of his career, the PGA Championship, besides carding three more titles.
He claimed his Abu Dhabi Golf Championship title back and won the KLM Open and Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. He also performed well in the Open Championship and the US Open the same year, finishing in top-ten on both events. He surged to world number
three by the end of the year and shared the European Tour Golfer of the Year title alongside Graeme McDowell.
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