Golf Results - 2013 June 22

The international golf scene was dominated by two veterans, the American Ken Duke (44) and South Africa’s Ernie Els (43) who won the Travellers Championship and the BMW International Open respectively.

In the United States, Ken Duke won his first PGA Tour title at the Travelers Championship.

44-year old Duke surprised the crowd and his competitors when he carded a five-under-par 66 in the final round to take a share of the lead.

Matching compatriot Chris Stroud’s score of 12-under for the tournament, Duke forced a playoff after 18 holes on Sunday, with the crowd eagerly awaiting a show-down between the two players – both Duke and Stroud were aiming for a first-time win on the PGA Tour.

The playoff began at the 18th hole, which posed a challenge to both players. After managing to make par despite a few errant shots, the pair moved on to the second playoff hole, where Duke laid up a birdie putt and executed it perfectly to clinch the title.
Sunday’s victory makes Duke the second-oldest first-time winner on the PGA Tour, after Ed Dougherty who won his first title at the age of 47 in the 1995 season.

In Europe, a resurgent Ernie Els became the oldest player to win the BMW International Open on Sunday after leading the tournament from the first round.

Els, the current British Open champion, enjoyed a hassle-free tournament despite challenging weather conditions over the weekend. His outright lead was only challenged at the end of the third round, with some commentators fearing that Thomas Bjorn of Denmark would mount a charge for the title on day four.

With his usual easy-going manner and attention to detail, Els kept his nerve in the final round and saw off Bjorn’s challenge by a single shot to lift the trophy.

Describing himself as “a very young 43-year-old”, the South African is likely to feel a significant boost when he defends his British Open title two weeks from now.

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