Fall from Grace as Noren wins PGA

South African Branden Grace faltered on the back nine to finish five shots behind winner Swede Alex Noren at the BMW PGA Championship at the Wentworth Club in England yesterday.

Noren carded a phenomenal final round nine-under 62 with an eagle on the 72nd hole, over two hours before the final pairing were due to finish. His 11-under total, would prove good enough for a two-stroke triumph over Italian Francesco Molinari.

The 29-year-old Grace settled for a final round 73 to eventually drop into a share of ninth with fellow South African Dean Burmester on six-under.

Grace went out in a steady two-under without a dropped shot on his card as he reached nine-under at the turn. At that point, Grace was just two-behind the 11-under lead set by Noren in the clubhouse.

At the par-four 11th, Grace made a misjudgment with a wedge approach into the green where he spun his ball right back off the green. With his third from behind the fringe, Grace sent his putt six feet past the hole. But he responded by gliding in the second putt for an important par-save.

The turning point for Grace, however, would come at the par-five 12th. There he drove it in a water hazard with his tee shot, instead of taking a drop with his ball half-submerged he attempted to play it and left the ball in the drink with his second. He was then forced to take the drop, now playing his fourth, and sent a fairway wood toward the putting surface but caught a greenside bunker. Coming out of the sand, Grace hit it to inside nine feet but missed the putt as he made a double-bogey seven on the easiest hole on the course.

If Grace’s chances weren’t over after the 12th hole they were when another drop at the par-four 15th followed, and that left him five behind with three holes left to play.

Burmester, meanwhile, had one of the rounds of the day as he closed with a seven-under 65 to finish on six-under for the tournament.

Jaco van Zyl was the next best South African in a tie for 14th on four-under for the week. Ernie Els rounded out the South Africans on the leaderboard in 51st place, on three-over for the four rounds. – ANA