GALLACHER, RAMSAY IN TOP 10 AS CASEY WINS IN BAHRAIN

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Paul Casey today came through what he called "one of the toughest battles I've ever had" to end 20 months without a victory.
The United States-based Englishman sank a closing 6ft par putt to take the inaugural Volvo Golf Champions on the Colin Montgomerie-designed Royal Golf Club course in Bahrain.
After an amazing 23 changes at the top of the leaderboard on the final day, Casey, pictured, came to the 429yd last level with Swede Peter Hanson.
Montgomerie had tipped Hanson - "probably Europe's most improved player" - to lift the trophy, but he went from rough to sand, then missed from 10ft and with a bogey 5 dropped into a tie for second with Miguel Angel Jiménez.
Casey, at ninth in the Official World Golf Ranking the highest player in the field, said: "It feels fantastic - the most important thing to me is winning and that was huge. The goal is obviously the Majors, but how are you going to win Major Championships if you can't win regular events?"
He grabbed the €283,329 first prize with a four under par 68 and 20 under total of 268.
Third on the Official World Golf Ranking before he tore a rib muscle practising for the 2009 Open Championship, Casey moves back into the top six and will be fifth if Phil Mickelson finishes worse than second in San Diego later in the day.
That would also mean an incredible four Europeans in the top five - Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer and Graeme McDowell remaining first, second and fourth."I'm going in the right direction," added Casey who did not get a Ryder Cup wild-card selection from Colin Montgomerie last year.
Course-record rounds of 63 from Dane Søren Kjeldsen and England's Richard Finch flattered to deceive in the desert because by the time the leaders came to the back nine a strong wind had picked up.
"We thought it was going to be benign, but we faced a course that was treacherous," said Casey.
Northern Ireland's Darren Clarke, Hanson's compatriot Johan Edfors and South African James Kingston all slipped up after holding at least a share of the lead, Clarke having bogey 6s on both the ninth and 13th and finishing with a double bogey.
Casey got his nose in front with an 18ft birdie putt on the 15th, but had his only bogey of the last two rounds on the next.
Jiménez's chances were alive again when he birdied the last and Hanson bogeyed it, but Casey kept his nerve and got up and down from the rough by the green to squeeze home.
"I was lucky to have a putt to win. Peter was phenomenal and didn't make any mistakes really until the last."
Not quite true. Hanson was also left to rue a missed three-footer on the long 14th.
Scotland's Stephen Gallacher took fourth place and Swede Robert Karlsson, the defending champion in Qatar this coming week, came fifth.

SCOTSWATCH (by Colin Farquharson)
Stephen Gallacher's closing 67 for 18-under-par 270 earned him 85,000 Euros. The Bathgate man came up only two strokes short of figuring in a play-off after halves of 32 and 35.
Aberdonian Richie Ramsay also finished with a 67 (34-33) and gave Scotland two finishers in the top 10, which can't be bad. Richie gained a joint eighth place on 274, which earned him a pay slip for 34,986 Euros.
Paul Lawrie saved his best to last - a seven-under-par 65 with an eagle at the ninth and eight birdies - the first, third, fifth, seventh, 10th, 13th, 14th and 15th.
He had three bogeys, at the eighth, 16th and 18th in halves of 31 and 34.
Paul and Gary Orr (32-36 for a 68) finished  joint 30th on 10-under-par 278 and each earned 14,013 Euros.
PAUL LAWRIE WRITES ON HIS WEBSITE BLOG FROM BAHRAINI had it at nine under after 15 holes today but bogeyed the 16th and 18th which was a pity but still a very good day with loads of positives to take to Qatar. I fly tonight, getting in quite late. I had my laptop on for the football (Aberdeen v Celtic at Hampden Park) yesterday (nearly threw it through the window after 35 mins). Pity, but onwards and upwards.

Colin Montgomerie closed with a 71 (34-37) for 284 and earned 5,100 Euros.

LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
268 Paul Casey (England) 67 67 66 68 (283,330 Euros).
269 Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain) 68 65 69 67, Peter Hanson (Sweden) 66 67 67 69 (147,590 Euros each) (T2)
270 Stephen Gallacher (Scotland) 70 64 69 67 (32-35) (85,000 Euros) (4th).
271 Robert Karlsson (Sweden) 69 67 69 66 (72,080 Euros) (5th)
272 Seung-yul Noh (S Korea) 68 68 58 69, Johan Edfors (Sweden) 64 71 68 69 (55,250 Euros each) (T6).
274 Alvaro Quiros (Spain) 67 69 71 67, Richie Ramsay (Scotland) 72 68 67 67 (34-33), Edoardo Molinari (Italy) 68 65 71 70, Alex Noren (Sweden) 67 70 67 70 (34,986 Euros each) (T8).

OTHER SCOTS' FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
278 Paul Lawrie 68 73 72 65 (31-34), Gary Orr 71 70 69 68 (32-36) (T30) (14,013 Euros each).
284 Colin Montgomerie 72 69 72 71 (34-37) (T59) (5,100 Euros).


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