Blue Canyon Country Club, Phuket, Thailand
Anton Haig from South Africa birdied the 18th hole in regulation play, then repeated the feat in a sudden death play-off to win his first European tour title, the Johnnie Walker Classic at the Blue Canyon Country Club in Phuket. The 20 year old from Johannesburg had to hole a ten foot putt at the first extra hole, the 18th, to win the play-off against his fellow countryman Richard Sterne and England’s Oliver Wilson.
After this event, Anton Haig will move up from being an affiliate member of the European Tour to being a full member with exemption until the end of 2009, and join the other 22 golfers from South Africa on the European Tour. Five of those golfers came in the top 7 of this event. Richard Sterne was runner-up, Retief Goosen finished fourth, And Ernie Els finished tied for sixth place with David Frost.
Haig set the clubhouse target of 13 under par after pulling his tee shot on the 72nd hole. He was left with 98 yards to the pin over trees from a downhill lie. He hit a lob-wedge to three feet and holed out.
Returning to the 18th tee, all three players hit the green in regulation. Wilson missed his birdie attempt from 20 feet, then Sterne missed from 12 feet, then Haig holed out from ten feet for victory.
The win was worth €310,801 and moves Haig to eighth position on the European Tour order of merit with his total earning now standing at €380,998.
Having his name on the Johnnie Walker Classic trophy along with Els, Goosen, Nick Faldo, and Tiger Woods will mean he will be able to tee it up in many other big world events, such as the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and the HSBC Championships in China.
