The heat was on Danny Willett Sunday as he surveyed a 15-foot downhill, left-to-right putt to win the Dubai Desert Classic.
Willett had battled Raffa Cabrera Bello and Andy Sullivan down the stretch and it came down to that one last look at birdie at the 72nd hole for the young Englishman.
Bello finished birdie-birdie and was 18-under par. So was Sullivan, with a birdie of his own at the par five 18th.
Then it was up to Willett. Make it or face a three-man playoff.
“I’m ecstatic,” Willett said after he came through in style, holing that putt for a birdie and a closing 69 for the winning 19-under par score. “You can’t buy that feeling — coming down the back nine, the last three holes, in contention in a great tournament. It’s something that you can’t pay for in life. You’ve got to earn it.”
Willett earned it with rounds of 65-69 over the weekend and claimed his fourth victory on the European Tour and with it, he may jump as high as 12th when the Official World Golf Rankings come out this week.
“It’s just nice to know that I can dig deep there and produce,” Willett said.
Bello and Sullivan finished tied for second. Alvaro Quiros and Ben An were three back at 16-under par. Rory McIlroy finally flashed his “A” game but it came too late. His closing 65 earned him a tie for sixth at 15-under.
American amateur Bryson DeChambeau finished in a tie for 18th. He closed with a 69 to shoot 12-under and looks even more prepared to turn professional.
