A combination of a steady hand and nerves of steel could be among the reason's Jbe Kruger enjoyed a sensational recovery at this weekend's (February 19th's) Avantha Masters, representing his first win on the European Tour.
The talented youngster overcame a late blip at the New Delhi event that saw him almost sacrifice a three-shot advantage when he sunk his first bogey in 46 holes, as a drive struck a camera and his second dropped left into some trees.
His wobble came after victory seemed just a heartbeat away as the South African shook off a challenge from Spain's Jose Manuel Lara and stood on the 17th hole with the trophy in his sights.
Despite missing a further birdie putt, Kruger finished the tournament with a par shot that saw him end with a round of 69 and 14-under at the DLF
Golf & country Club to take the crown.
"I felt that victory was inevitable when I got to the 14th hole. I knew that I had a good chance as I had a comfortable three-shot cushion then," commented the 25-year-old. "I like to know what's going on and I'm aware of the movements on the leaderboard."
Kruger ended the tournament two shots ahead of Spain's Jorge Campillo, whose 67 was the joint-best finish of the day, while Germany's Marcel Siem was left behind in third position with a 70.
Meanwhile, US professional golfer Bill Haas saw off competition from some of the biggest names in golf - including
Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley - to take the crown at the Northern Trust Open on the PGA Tour this weekend.
Haas - who turned professional in 2004 - was almost robbed of the trophy by Spain's
Sergio Garcia, who started the final round nine shots behind both Mickelson and Bradley before setting the field alight with a seven-under-par score of 64.
His stunning performance including eagles at both the 11th and 15th holes, as well as further advantages on the first and third, but he lost out on the title by playing the last six holes in one-over-par to finish on five-under.
In the meantime, Haas carded a two-under-par score of 69 in regulation to catch up with the two front runners, but a birdie three on the second hole in a play-off round earned him the hotly-contested trophy.
Garcia was unfortunately pushed down to a shared fourth-place finish with Australia's Jarrod Lyle and US competitors Jimmy Walker and Dustin Johnson.
