He might have had to wait 12 years for his first European Tour victory in last June’s Irish Open but for Jamie Donaldson the wait for his second was much shorter as he grabbed a dramatic victory in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship.
The 37 year old Welshman started the final day at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club two shots behind Englishman Justin Rose but overhauled the World Number Five with a final round 68 for a 14 under par total of 274, even affording the luxury of a dropped shot at the last to win by a shot.
Rose, and his playing partner the Dane Thorbjørn Olesen had a chance to force Donaldson into extra holes as both men had birdie putts on the 18th green. But both stayed above ground to see them have to settle for a share of second on 13 under par 275.
“It is pretty surreal really,” said Donaldson, whose cheque for €336,725 moved him to second place in The Race To Dubai. “I played really well all week although I got away with it a bit at the last. I thought either Justin or Thorbjørn would hole their birdie putts, if not both of them. But when both putts slipped by, it was my week.
“I am very happy to be standing here holding the trophy though although it is a bit like buses, isn’t it? I had to wait so long for my first win in Portrush last year and then the second has come along just like that.”
Against a field that had earlier in the week included the top two players in the Official World Golf Ranking – Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods who both missed the halfway cut – Donaldson could hardly believe what had happened.
«I played the Pro-Am on Wednesday and thought the course was pretty difficult. I thought if I could get a decent finish I would be chuffed. Therefore, to be holding the trophy is just mad.»
Rose and Olesen battled hard but the biggest sympathy vote amongst the challenging pack went to Englishman David Howell. For a while, the former World Number Nine was in the lead following five birdies in his first ten holes.
But Howell bogeyed the short 12th before, on the next, he splashed out of sand to four feet and, incredibly, four-putted from there for a triple bogey seven. It meant he had to be content with a tie for sixth place.
Final scores:
274 J Donaldson (Wal) 67 70 69 68,
275 T Olesen (Den) 68 69 69 69, J Rose (Eng) 67 69 68 71,
277 R Santos (Por) 71 72 66 68,
278 B Grace (RSA) 71 69 73 65,
279 J Luiten (Ned) 70 69 73 67, D Howell (Eng) 69 71 68 71, M Kaymer (Ger) 71 69 70 69,
280 P Hanson (Swe) 73 72 66 69, A Hansen (Den) 71 71 69 69, J Campillo (Esp) 74 68 69 69, T Jaidee (Tha) 70 71 66 73, G Coetzee (RSA) 69 71 71 69, J Kruger (RSA) 72 69 69 70, J Dufner (USA) 71 69 72 68, G Fdez-Castaño (Esp) 70 67 71 72,
281 M Campbell (Nzl) 69 71 69 72, S Chowrasia (Ind) 73 73 65 70, C Lee (Sco) 72 70 72 67, A Dodt (Aus) 74 70 65 72,
282 B Wiesberger (Aut) 74 71 66 71, M Fraser (Aus) 75 71 67 69,
283 R Cabrera-Bello (Esp) 74 72 69 68, D Willett (Eng) 70 71 71 71, R Ramsay (Sco) 73 68 67 75, R Green (Aus) 71 75 70 67, P Harrington (Irl) 72 72 70 69, H Stenson (Swe) 69 71 76 67, P Lawrie (Irl) 72 72 69 70, P Casey (Eng) 71 73 70 69, M Manassero (Ita) 72 68 3 70,
285 S Webster (Eng) 73 72 72 68, S Kjeldsen (Den) 70 71 75 69, P Price (Wal) 72 74 69 70, D Fichardt (RSA) 72 70 72 71, L Gagli (Ita) 74 68 70 73, A Noren (Swe) 76 70 68 71, K Horne (RSA) 72 69 73 71,
286 L Wen-Chong (Chn) 69 72 74 71, A Cañizares (Esp) 73 69 72 72, E Els (RSA) 71 73 72 70, R Jacquelin (Fra) 72 69 73 72, M Siem (Ger) 72 72 72 70, G Maybin (Nir) 71 71 71 73, M Foster (Eng) 72 72 74 68, A Hartø (Den) 74 72 68 72, P Larrazábal (Esp) 68 74 72 72,
287 R Bland (Eng) 72 73 72 70, P Meesawat (Tha) 76 69 69 73, P Whiteford (Sco) 73 70 73 71, G Mulroy (RSA) 71 68 75 73,
288 R Gonzalez (Arg) 72 72 70 74, P Lawrie (Sco) 74 71 71 72, T Björn (Den) 72 74 71 71, S Dyson (Eng) 75 70 72 71,
289 J Sjöholm (Swe) 71 70 74 74, I Garrido (Esp) 75 70 73 71, T Hamilton (USA) 75 69 71 74, F Zanotti (Par) 76 70 73 70, J Edfors (Swe) 71 73 68 77,
290 G Bourdy (Fra) 72 73 73 72, M Hoey (Nir) 72 73 74 71, T Lewis (Eng) 74 72 71 73,
291 G Storm (Eng) 72 73 73 73, R Wattel (Fra) 73 69 73 76,
292 R Coles (Eng) 73 70 77 72, O Fisher (Eng) 73 71 74 74,
293 A Sullivan (Eng) 71 73 76 73,
294 D Horsey (Eng) 74 72 73 75,
296 C Wood (Eng) 73 71 77 75,
