Marcel Siem wins the BMW Masters

Post by Golf Writer, Derek Clements

Marcel Siem won the BMW Masters in thrilling fashion at Lake Malaren Golf Club in Shanghai, chipping in for a birdie at the first hole of a play-off, having missed a five-foot putt for the title in regulation play.

But the big surprise was that Alexander Levy, of France, who began the day with a three-shot lead, was unable to win his third title of the season. The Frenchman struggled with the windy conditions all day long and ended the tournament with a 78.
Siem, the pony-tailed  German bogeyed the last two holes to sign for a one over par 73 and a 16 under total, level with Levy and Englishman Ross Fisher, who had a 67 – the lowest round on a windy day.

The trio returned to the 18th tee for a sudden-death play-off, and when Siem’s approach came up just short into thick rough, it seemed the advantage was with Fisher and Levy, who both had birdie putts from about 20 feet.

However, the 34-year-old holed his pitch, and when the other two missed, he was confirmed the champion of the $7m tournament, the first event of the Final Series.

It is Siem’s fourth European Tour title and as well as the 1,666,600 points he earns towards The Race to Dubai, he earns a spot in next week’s WGC-HSBC Champions, also in Shanghai.

Welshman Jamie Donaldson (75) and England’s Justin Rose (72) shared fourth spot, one shot shy of the play-off.
Siem said: “Alex unfortunately didn't have his best day, and I played very solid the front nine. Then the back nine was really, really tough. The golf course was the total opposite to the first three days. It was a real monster, so I'm super pleased. The putt I had to win the tournament was left to right and I read it as straight. It was actually an okay putt and I felt pretty cool when I was standing over it. A chip?in is always cool, but to have a in a play-off is even cooler. It's the third tournament I’ve won in a play-off so far. The only problem I have now is that my wife flew to Thailand because I wanted to have a little holiday with her there, so now I have to get her to China. Hopefully I can get a visa. I don’t mind having this problem though!”

Levy was not too disappointed, and paid tribute to Suiem. “I made a I made a few mistakes, but I didn't miss a lot of shots. I just hit some wrong shots in the wrong places and I putted badly in the wind. I need to work on that. Marcel deserved to win today because he played fantastic in the wind. It's nice for him, and I'm not too disappointed because I played three days of amazing golf and I think I need to keep that in my mind.”

And Fisher focused on the positives from his performance. “I can only walk away from here very delighted and pleased with the way I played. To have a chance to win was great but this week just unfortunately wasn't my week. But there are definitely positive strides and I’m looking forward to Turkey and Dubai.”

Derek Clements is a sports journalist with a particular passion for golf with over 12 years of experience covering golf and other sports including Chief Sub-Editor on the sports desk of The Sunday Times. To contact Derek email direct via [email protected]