DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) – Danny Willett withstood the pressure and made a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole to win the Dubai Desert Classic title by one shot on Sunday.
The 28-year-old Willett closed with 3-under par 69 at Emirates Golf Club to finish on a 19 under 269, one shot better than fellow Englishman Andy Sullivan (68) and Spain’s Rafael Cabrera-Bello (69).
Both Sullivan and Cabrera-Bello had set the marker with birdies on the final hole to take the clubhouse lead. Willett was one-over par for his last four holes after a bogey on the 14th.
But he made the birdie when it mattered most. He had to lay up from the rough on the 18th hole, and his third shot left him with a difficult downhill putt, which he read to perfection.
It was the fourth European Tour victory for Willett, who finished second in the Race to Dubai to Rory McIlroy last year.