Rickie Fowler Claims One-Shot Victory at Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship

After four action packed rounds of golf, Rickie Fowler has been crowned the winner of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship with a one-shot victory over Belgian Thomas Pieters.

The 27-year-old was leader of the pack heading into the final day at 11-under, which he extended to a 16-under-par victory after carding a final round of 69 after two moments of magic.

 
Fowler played a great round of golf, which he started off with two consecutive birdies, however, found difficulty on the seventh when his tee shot landed on the edge of a rocky hazard.

This par three resulted in a double bogey for the American, allowing Pieters the close the gap, but he remarkably turned the game around on the eighth were he holed a superb bunker shot for an eagle.

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The game was tight throughout, with the Belgian being only one shot behind for the entirety of the back nine, where he holed some crucial birdies to keep him and Rickie toe-to-toe until the very end.

After a sensational drive from the 18th tee, Pieters was putting for an eagle to take the game into a playoff.

Despite a great effort, the putt ran less than an inch short of the hole, where Fowler then made par to secure his second European Tour victory.

Talking to Sky Sports, he said: “It was a lot of fun today. It was a bit stressful at times.  Thomas is playing well.  It’s fun to kind of go head-to-head with him being in the same group.  We had a good time.  It’s nice to come out on top this week.”

Fowler went on to say, “this was a big one.  Last year having a multiple-win season, to come back and work on getting back in the winner’s circle after a successful season and keep moving forward. This is a great start.”

Closely behind Fowler and Pieters were Henrick Stenson, Jordan Spieth and former world number one Rory McIlroy, who had late charges over the back nine holes.

After a frustrating front nine for Rory, he turned it around to make four pars in seven holes, and even finished with a grandstand eagle finish.

 
Stenson, Fowler, McIlroy and Spieth were four out of the top six world ranked players competing in Abu Dhabi, and all managed to finish the tournament inside the top five.

Cover Photo via YouTube