Clarke wins in Shanghai
A superb birdie putt at the final hole secured Darren Clarke an emotional first victory on the European Tour in five years as the Ryder Cup star won the BMW Asian Open by a single stroke.
The Northern Irishman’s last success on the circuit was at the WGC-NEC Invitational in 2003 but it took a superb 20-foot birdie putt on the par-four 18th to card a one-over-par 73 and edge Robert-Jan Derksen for the victory.
Clarke finished eight-under overall, while Derksen took second place at seven under.
Following the loss of his wife in 2006, Clarke has been working hard to get back to the sort of form that saw him capture the English Open on three occasions.
“This win is very special,” said the 39-year-old.
“It has been a very difficult time obviously. I’ve put in hours and hours of work and it feels good to win again.”
Having started the day tied for the lead alongside Derksen, Clarke dropped a shot on the par-four third but recovered with birdies on the fifth and 10th to move one-stroke clear.
It looked like his victory would merely be a formality when on the 14th Derksen chipped into the water from the left of the green before putting for a double bogey.
Clarke bogeyed the same hole but due to Derksen’s error it meant he moved two clear at the top of the leaderboard with four holes left to play.
However, he then carded bogeys on the 16th and 17th whilst Derksen made par to ensure a nervous finish going onto the last.
But Clarke kept his cool to card the decisive birdie after Derksen had sunk a par putt.
England’s Robert Dinwiddie shot a two-over-par 74 to secure a share of third place alongside Francesco Molinari and Lin Wen-tang.
The 25-year-old European Tour rookie had carded four bogeys and just one birdie on the front nine but improved coming home to birdie on the par-five 15th while making par on the rest.
World number 13 Henrik Stenson, the highest ranked player at the tournament, produced a great final round to return to the clubhouse with a four-under-par 68 and finish sixth.
