Print

Mail

wiki links

Anders Hansen claims BMW Championship

Anders Hansen celebrates after winning the BMW PGA Championship at the Wentworth Golf Club in Surrey, England, on Sunday. PHOTO: AFP

Anders Hansen rolled in a 25-foot birdie putt on the first extra hole to beat Justin Rose and win the BMW PGA Championship for the second time on Sunday.

The Dane also won the title in 2002 for his only previous European Tour victory.

Rose had a chance to extend the playoff but missed his birdie attempt from 20 feet.

"I guess it's disappointing but it was over so quickly," Rose said. "Anders rolled in his putt and I missed mine."

Hansen shot 69 and Rose 71 at Wentworth to finish on 8-under 280, a stroke clear of Vijay Singh and Richard Sterne. Singh shot a day's best 66 and Sterne had 74.

Hansen said this win meant more than the first in 2002.

"That year I came in playing really good. A lot of things have happened since," Hansen said.

"I have played 10 events this year in America. I have kept shooting myself in the foot. I think this means a lot more to me than the first time. It's a fantastic feeling after all the hard work I've put in," he said.

This was Rose's first event in six weeks since an enforced rest with a back injury after finishing 5th in the Masters last month. That too came after a four-week break.

Anders Hansen, left, holds the BMW PGA Championship trophy after his win at the Wentworth Golf Club on Sunday, after a 1 hole playoff against Justin Rose, right. PHOTO: AFP

"It's hard not to be disappointed after playing so well in a tournament I love and watched so much as a kid," Rose said.

"I think the reason I can play as well as that after a break is that I am very comfortable with my game. It doesn't take me long to fire my engines again," he said.

Overnight leaders Paul Broadhurst and Ross Fisher fared badly. Broadhurst had two sevens on his card in a round of 80 that left him tied 20th. Fisher began with five bogeys on the way to an 84 and tied 39th.
This story has been viewed 1220 times.