Martin Kaymer was cruising to victory at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship when he plowed into an iceberg named Gary Stal.
Martin Kaymer implodes in Abu Dhabi, loses to Gary Stal
Martin Kaymer seemed a shoo-in to capture his fourth Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship title until a spectacular collapse in Sunday’s finale left him staring up at 357th-ranked Gary Stal.
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The reigning U.S. Open champion entered Sunday’s final round with a six-shot lead through 54 holes and increased it to 10 strokes with 14 to play. A collapse of epic proportions that featured a double- and a triple-bogey and a 3-over 75 close, however, left three-time Abu Dhabi winner Kaymer at 17-under and in third place -- two shots behind the little-known, 22-year-old Frenchman.
Kaymer was 10 up with 14 to play and lost to player ranked No 357 in world, who had never won, on a course where Martin had 3 wins. #kaput
— Steve Elling (@EllingYelling) January 18, 2015 A 6-under charge by Rory McIlroy, who drilled his first competitive hole-in-one as a professional in the second round and told reporters he wanted to “punch” himself after terrible putting Saturday, came up a shot short, leaving the No. 1 in second place behind the 357th-ranked golfer in the world. A near hole-out almost forced a playoff with Stal.
Rory comes within inches of joining Stal at -19. #ADChamps http://t.co/CmJpVVJIrt
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) January 18, 2015 It was McIlroy’s fourth runner-up finish in the tournament.
Kaymer’s meltdown was especially shocking considering he posted three birdies in his first four holes to get to 23-under for the week. He then dropped six strokes in his next seven and Stal took advantage, making six birdies in an eight-hole span from Nos. 4-11 and adding another on the 16th.
Stal’s previously best finish on the European Tour was a T5 in last week’s South African Open Championship.
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