Goosen cruises to six-shot win in command performance
Retief Goosen cruised to a six-shot victory at the Volkswagen Masters-China for his first title on the Asian continent yesterday.
The South African world number five, who led from the opening round, produced a breath-taking front-nine performance at Jinghua Golf Club, shooting a spectacular 29 en route to an eight-under-par 64 and a 22-under 266 total.
US Open champion Michael Campbell, playing alongside Goosen, failed to ignite his game as the Kiwi star settled for second place in the US$300,000 Asian Tour event. He closed with a 69.
Asia's best performer was Chinese stalwart Zhang Lianwei, who signed off with a 70 which included an eagle on the par-five 12th where he found the bottom of the cup from the greenside bunker. He finished third on 277, 11 strokes behind the runaway winner.
It was Goosen's second title in a month and it took his international tally to 23. 'Obviously, that run of birdies, seven birdies in eight holes, got me going ahead. Michael didn't fire on the front nine and I got on to a big lead. It's great to win all around the world. I've won in a lot of countries, except in China. So it's good to win here. Hopefully I'll come back and defend next year,' said Goosen.
Leading by one stroke going into the last round, Goosen made a huge par save from 15 feet on the first hole. He then stamped his authority with a 20-foot birdie putt on the second and then reeled off four successive birdies with some crisp iron play and hot putting.
Birdies on eight and nine opened up his lead to seven strokes as Goosen left the chasing pack trailing in his wake. He lipped out for birdie on 10 and hit the cup's edge on 12 for an eagle.
Nothing, it seemed, could faze the cool South African, a two-time US Open champion. A wayward drive on 15 ended among trees and he sent his second shot into the watery grave. However, in an amazing recovery, Goosen's fourth from thick rough rolled straight into the hole for par, much to the delight of the large gallery. He also holed a 10-footer for par on 17 but bogeyed 18 after missing his drive.
'You know, it's never over till it's over. On 15, it was a big turning point there as I chipped in for par. I knew then that the tournament was over. I holed a very good putt for par on the first hole and then had another long one for birdie on the second, which kind of settled me down a bit.
'I saw the greens very well today. On the front nine, I saw what the ball was supposed to do. There was no doubt in my mind,' said Goosen, winner of the International in the United States last month.
Campbell, the world number 19, could have earned the consolation of winning a Volkswagen Beetle for a hole-in-one on 17 but his five-iron tee shot stopped six inches from the cup. However, he was in awe of Goosen's outstanding play. 'He played great on the first nine holes. That's good golf and you can't control that. He's a world class player and he showed it.'
