Karlsson wins Dubai after bizarre Poulter gaffe

Photo by Associated Press

Ian Poulter after losing a playoff to Robert Karlsson in the Dubai World Championship.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – It’s hard to think of a worse finish to the best European season ever.

Ian Poulter is the latest in a long line of players to run afoul of the stringent Rules of Golf. After pushing himself to the limit for four days and two extra holes, Poulter’s hard work counted for nothing because of a mere slip of the hand.

Involved in a dramatic playoff with Sweden’s Robert Karlsson for the $7.5 million Dubai World Championship, Poulter accidentally dropped his ball on the 18th green and violated a rule many outside, and inside, the game will find simply outrageous.

With a putt to tie Karlsson on the second hole of sudden death after the pair finished at 14 under par, Poulter dropped his ball on his ball marker from a height of no more than a few inches. The marker flipped over and tossed Poulter out of the tournament.

The marker barely had moved from its original position, but the damage had been done.

Aware that he might have infringed a rule, he called to European Tour referee Andy McFee. McFee confirmed Poulter’s worst nightmare. Even though the Englishman was not seeking any advantage, the movement of the marker meant the Englishman incurred a one-stroke penalty under Rule 20-1/15.

One bizarre slip of the hand suddenly turned what had been a 30-foot birdie putt turned into a par putt. And it was the end of the tournament with Karlsson only 3 feet away.

The Swede calmly rolled in his birdie putt to claim the first-place prize of 910,348 euros. Poulter had to settle for second place and 606,896 euros.

“Literally the ball slipped from two or three inches above the coin,” Poulter said. “It’s pitched right on the front of the coin and the coin flipped over. One-shot penalty.

“It cost me a couple of World Ranking points, a couple of dollars. No, probably wasn’t the best of timing.”

Poulter called the referee over as soon as the incident happened, even though no one else had seen it. That’s little consolation to a man who thrives on winning golf tournaments, and who was chasing his second win in a row.

Karlsson is one of the classiest players on the European circuit, and that much was obvious from his reaction to the tournament’s bizarre end.

“It’s not the way you want to win a tournament,” Karlsson conceded. “The rules are there for a reason, but obviously some of them look very, very harsh at some stages.

“That’s the purity of the game, that we have very harsh rules and we actually follow them, compared to some other sports. That’s the beauty of the game in one way. But obviously it’s not great when these sort of things happen, especially not under these circumstances.”

Karlsson earned his second win of the season following a victory in Qatar earlier this season. However, his season was spoiled by a bout of glandular fever midway through the year, an ailment that probably cost him a Ryder Cup spot.

“I’m very happy with this week, and the year in whole actually, winning two times, and a second in Memphis in America; I lost to Lee (Westwood) in a playoff,” Karlsson said. “So it has not been bad, even though people maybe were expecting more. But if I win twice in a year, it’s a pretty good year.”

Of course, the Karlsson-Poulter battle was one of two subplots in the desert. The other concerned the crowning of the European No. 1.

Germany’s Martin Kaymer won that particular battle. The reigning PGA champion outlasted Northern Ireland’s Graeme McDowell over the four days to become the new king of Europe.

McDowell had to finish third or better to have a chance. He placed 13th, leaving the German with a fairly easy ride to the European title.

Kaymer becomes the first German since Bernhard Langer in 1984 to win the European money title. After a year in which he has realized all his goals – making the Ryder Cup team, winning a major and becoming European No. 1 – the only way is up for King Kaymer.

“I would like to prove that I’m Europe’s No. 1, take that challenge on again, to win The Race to Dubai,” Kaymer said. “It would be nice to win a major again, preferably the British Open, our only major that we have in Europe.”

So Europe crowns a new No. 1 in its best season ever, but once again the game is sullied by the silliness of the Rules of Golf.

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Poulter leads Dubai, eyes back-to-back wins

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Ian Poulter broke free from a crowded leaderboard Saturday to take a two-shot lead into the final round of the Dubai World Championship.

The Englishman was at 12-under after a third-round 69, two shots ahead of Ross Fisher of England, Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee and Francesco Molinari of Italy, who all were at 10-under.

Poulter, who won last week’s Hong Kong Open, started Saturday in a tie for the lead with Fisher, and the two were even for much of the day. Poulter made his move on the back nine with two birdies while Fisher three-putted the 15th hole and went in the water on the 18th, which forced him to settle for a bogey.

“You know, I think it was important today to go out there and play solid, bank a few birdies,” Poulter said. “I felt I dropped two silly, silly bogeys on holes that I really feel I should have taken advantage of. That was the only frustration of the day.”

Fisher, who tied the course record with a 64 in the second round, was left to rue what could have been a solid round and a chance to at least tie for the lead several times on the back nine. His best chance came on the 15th, when he hit his drive to the green on the 371-yard, par 4 hole. His first putt for eagle rolled past the hole, and he missed what should been an easy putt for birdie.

“I made it harder, I didn’t play as well as yesterday,” Fisher said. “I missed a couple of putts at key times ... Hit a great drive on 15 onto the green and unfortunately didn’t capitalize there.”

Jaidee and Molinari charged up the leaderboard, with the Thai shooting a 3-under 69 while the Italian had a 4-under 68 to put themselves in contention. No. 1-ranked Lee Westwood also was in the mix, shooting a 1-under 71 to remain three shots off the pace.

Westwood won the tournament last year, shooting a course record 64 on the final Sunday on his way to an easy victory.

“Kept giving myself a lot of chances at birdies, and nothing would go in,” Westwood said. “I had to hit some good shots coming in just to make a couple of birdies in the last five holes, which has kept me in the tournament probably.”

Graeme McDowell’s hopes of winning the European money title took another hit after he finished four shots behind money-leader Martin Kaymer and far down the leaderboard in a tie for 30th.

Kaymer, the U.S. PGA champion, will claim the money title and a $1.5 million bonus by finishing higher than McDowell, who can only overtake the German in the Order of Merit by winning the tournament or ending up alone in second as long as Kaymer finishes no higher than a tie for third. If McDowell is tied for second, Kaymer could afford to finish as low as sixth.

“Barring the impossible, I think Europe’s No. 1 is probably not a reality for me any more,” McDowell said. “Unless I shoot 55 tomorrow, which unless one of you boys comes and putts for me tomorrow, I don’t think will happen.

“You know he (Kaymer) is going to win the Race to Dubai tomorrow and he’s the best. He’s been one of the best players in the world this year and certainly deserves everything he has achieved.”

After failing to break par in the first two days, McDowell made three birdies on the back nine to reach 2 under for the tournament.

Kaymer effectively ended the two-man battle for the Order of Merit on Thursday, surging to a five-shot lead over McDowell after shooting a 67. The lead ballooned to eight shots Friday, when Kaymer hit a 70 for a share of fourth place.

Kaymer occasionally struggled Saturday, shooting a 1-over 73. It was an up-and-down day that ended badly with a double-bogey on the 18th, when the No. 3-ranked Kaymer’s chip onto the green rolled back into the water.

“It was a very frustrating finish, very disappointing,” said Kaymer, whose chances of overtaking Westwood at the top of the rankings also appear unlikely. “I thought if I could finish with a birdie I might have a chance tomorrow ... Tomorrow I will play as aggressive as possible.”

McDowell, though, never could take full advantage of Kaymer’s errors because of his poor putting.

“The big issue this week is really that I can’t hole putts and, without the putter working, it’s very difficult to get on top of the golf course,” he said. “Like I said yesterday, I feel like every time I miss a green I feel like I’m making bogeys because I’m not holing the 6- and 8-footers.”

McDowell’s fellow Northern Irelander, Rory McIlroy, shot a 6-under 66 – the lowest round of the day – to climb back into contention at 7 under. He made seven birdies, including three in a row after the turn.

“My iron play improved, I gave myself a lot of chances,” McIlroy said. “I was hitting a lot of greens but just not getting it close enough, and today, I birdied a few of the par 3s and played really well. “

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