Westwood wins Nordea Masters

Lee Westwood claimed a commanding five-shot victory at the Nordea Masters in Stockholm on Saturday.

The Englishman, who led by three overnight, carded a final-round three-under-par 69 to finish on 19 under par for the tournament.



The world number three came under pressure from Sergio Garcia as the Spaniard put together a fine last round, but an eagle on the par-five 12th and a birdie at the 15th saw him home.
Another Englishman, Ross Fisher, was second on 14 under after a 71, while Garcia, who closed with a 67, finished on 13 under in a tie for third with Finland's Mikko Ilonen and Sweden's Peter Hanson.
It was Westwood's third Nordea Masters title and the perfect preparation for next week's US Masters and his bid to claim a first major title.
Westwood did miss five putts from inside six feet over the first 10 holes of his final round, however.
But only one of them resulted in a bogey, which was a clear indication of how impressive he has been from tee to green this week.
Westwood recorded his first European Tour victory at the event in 1996 and he won it again in 2000 en route to becoming European number one for the first time.
"It feels really special winning here another time - I've won it in three decades now which just shows how old we're getting," Westwood said.
"I played really well this week - you don't win tournaments by five shots without playing well."
Westwood's victory, his 40th as a professional, could have been even more comprehensive had he not missed close-range birdie putts on the fourth, eighth, ninth and 10th.
He also missed a four-foot par putt on the sixth. At that stage Fisher and Hanson had moved to within two strokes.
But Westwood found his groove on the back nine, scoring an eagle on the 12th and birdie on the 15th to finish at 19-under-par overall.
"I missed a few short putts on the front nine, had a lot of chances the first 10 holes and could have really put some breathing space between me and the field," Westwood told Europeantour.com.
"Having said that, when I needed to on the back nine - when they got a bit closer and put me under a bit of pressure - I managed to make a great eagle at 12, good birdie at 15 and pull away."
Fisher's challenge effectively ended when he double bogeyed the 13th after finding the water, although he recovered well with three birdies to finish second.
Hanson also had an eventual run home, registering a double bogey seven at the 15th to finish tied with Garcia, who at one stage carded six consecutive birdies, and Ilonen.