Later, ball. Paul Casey tees off at Torrey. (SD Dirk/Flickr)
PAUL CASEY SAW A SIX-SHOT LEAD evaporate to just one stroke at the Abu Dhabi Championship but hung on to edge Louis Oosthuizen and defending champion Martin Kaymer.
It was Casey’s first win in two years, hard to believe for a guy with so much talent. Casey said he has been concentrating a lot on majors and that it may have hurt him in regular events. I saw him at the Ryder Cup and expect him to be a top player for years to come. He’s only 31 and was recently married.
Here’s a snippet from the post-tournament media conference:
Q. How much is this win a weight off your shoulders and also how much of a boost is it to win so early in the new year?
PAUL CASEY: Well, it felt great two years ago to win so early and then I really didn’t follow it up with anything. But it feels very different this time. As you said, a bit of a weight off my shoulders. It feels great. It feels like a payoff for all of the worrying I’ve put in, certainly recently, the past couple of months. It shows that marriage is clearly good for me.
−The Armchair Golfer
It’s hard to believe that Casey hasn’t won more on the world stage, showing only, I suppose, how really difficult it is to win out there. It makes you appreciate what Tiger has done all the more. I expect to see Casey really competing in the Majors this year but only time will tell.
In some of clips I saw of Abu Dhabi, Casey looked really focused. There was a look in his eyes that struck me as clearly different, clearly in control. He’s attributing it to marriage, which really makes sense if it brought stability and perhaps consistent routine to his life. Those things make the difference when you have to prepare at such an elite level. Here’s just hoping that this isn’t just the “honeymoon” period and that he’s able to make it stick and make a great showing at some Majors! 🙂
Casey does have nine wins on the Euro Tour, and he’s played well in majors, with a few top tens. England’s got some nice players, with Casey, Rose, Poulter and Donald. These guys are definitely capable of making some noise.
In recent years, I think winning at Abu Dhabi, Qatar (this week’s event), and Dubai (next week) are more difficult than half of the events on the PGA tour (basically, the half that Tiger doesn’t play and are therefore skipped by many other top players as well). This year that will be magnified with so many PGA Tour players becoming ‘Affiliate Members’ of the Euro Tour to try to cash in on the Race to Dubai.
I watched a lot of this event on the Golf Channel and Casey hit the ball great. If he were an above average putter (by tour standards), this guy may never shoot above 58 😉