Who needs the world’s best? Pre-tournament chatter here at the Abu Dhabi Championship surrounded the appearance of just one player from inside the Top 20 of golf’s ranking system. A prize fund of $9m was not a sufficient draw for golfers who can now compete for double that purse as routine.
What the tournament lacked in star quality it more than made up for with late drama. In the space of 15 mad minutes the Frenchman Victor Perez looked to have sealed victory before flirting with a horrible capitulation. In the end, he saw off the challenge of Sebastian Söderberg after the Swede wasted a great opportunity to win with just a short iron in his hand at the 72nd hole.
