Stenson the master in Doha
Henrik Stenson held his nerve in challenging conditions to win the Commercialbank Qatar Masters by three strokes – but he was pushed all the way by a resolute Paul Broadhurst.
It was nip and tuck all afternoon as the Swede and his English rival went head to head, but a birdie at the 17th ensured Stenson went to the last with two shots in hand, an advantage he then pressed home with a fifth birdie of the day to end with a four under par 68.
Broadhurst, who showed great tenacity to keep the pressure on while 30mph gusts raced across the desert course, finished one shot clear of South Africa’s Darren Fichardt, the 2003 Qatar Masters champion, after a round of 70.
Stenson, 29, had been desperate to shake off his ‘nearly man’ tag after placing in the top three four times in his last six events.
A year ago, he was unable to close out the tournament despite starting his final round with a two-shot lead as Ernie Els came from five shots back to pip him.
This time, he delivered on the promise he has shown of late, which has led some to describe him as the best player in Europe.
One behind at the start of his round, Broadhurst flew out of the traps, making two birdies to Stenson’s one, but took a costly five at the fourth.
Stenson birdied the eighth to go two clear again, and then showed great character to bounce back from halving his own lead with a bogey at the 14th by making birdie at the next.
Broadhurst then exerted further pressure on the 16th when he birdied, while Stenson parred, to close the gap to just one shot with two holes left.
But Stenson showed his mettle again with a birdie at the 17th and Broadhurst had a 12ft putt to maintain the gap to one going to the last.
He missed, only by millimetres, but it gave Stenson the luxury of a two-shot cushion at the 18th, where his big, straight hitting gave him the chance for another birdie, which he duly took.
Fichardt’s round of 68 was not bettered by anyone on a difficult day and only one dropped shot – at the 10th – was testament to a solid round.
A four-strong group finished at nine under, including England’s Nick Dougherty and Richard Finch.
Dougherty’s ruinous front nine on Saturday, where he shot a bogey at the third and a triple bogey at the fifth, had left him seemingly out of contention.
And while two early birdies pushed Ryder Cup contender back onto the cusp of a concerted challenge, three bogeys in five holes ended that hope.
Finch had started his final round at nine under and there he remained, a double bogey at the third hurting his chances of troubling the leaders.
Swede Niclas Fasth and Argentina’s Ricardo Gonzalez also finished at nine under and both found the going difficult.
Ernie Els, who had won from five shots back going into the final round a year ago, could not muster another comeback win, the South African making a level par 72 to finish at five under.
That put him three shots clear of the other main draw of the weekend, world number two Vijay Singh, who, after three rounds of struggle with his putting, saved his best round for last with a 68.
Ireland's Paul McGinley finished tied for ninth place on -6, while Darren Clarke was three shots back on -3. Damien McGrane finished on par, with Peter Lawrie finishing on three over.
