{"id":142354,"date":"2017-01-17T09:20:00","date_gmt":"2017-01-17T07:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/142354\/a-battle-to-the-very-end\/"},"modified":"2017-01-17T09:25:31","modified_gmt":"2017-01-17T07:25:31","slug":"a-battle-to-the-very-end","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/sports-news\/2017\/01\/17\/a-battle-to-the-very-end\/","title":{"rendered":"A battle to the very end"},"content":{"rendered":"

By: Stephan Lehman<\/p>\n

English golfer Graeme Storm snatched victory away from international golfing heavyweight Rory McIlroy at the BMW SA Open Golf Championship.<\/p>

<\/div>\n

The event was held at the Glendower Golf Club.<\/p>\n

On the start of the fourth and final round on January 15, Storm started the day with a three-stroke advantage over McIlroy.<\/p>

<\/div>\n

Despite the slight difference, McIlroy made a comeback and overtook Storm on the scoreboard.<\/p>\n

McIlroy lost his lead after an unfortunate tee off at the 17th hole, giving Storm the opportunity to catch up.<\/p>\n

At the 18th hole the pair were deadlocked on par 270 after 72 holes of regulation play over the course of the tournament.<\/p>\n

McIlroy\u2019s slip-up resulted in the playoffs.<\/p>\n

In the third and final round of the playoff, Storm won the title.<\/p>\n

Storm said he knew he would have a tough day ahead of him if McIlroy caught up with him on the course.<\/p>\n

After his win, Storm said his victory felt surreal.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had a great battle out there with Rory. I just tried to hang in as best I could, but to win this trophy and get my name on it is just a dream come true,\u201d said Storm.<\/p>\n

Thama (Jeffrey) Nkonyane, who was the caddy for Storm, said the pair knew it would be a tough day for Storm as he had never played against McIlroy.<\/p>\n

He said the crowd\u2019s support assisted Storm.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt almost every hole, for every shot, the crowd cheered just as hard for Graeme as they did for Rory and that really gave us a lot of confidence. Graeme didn\u2019t have time to feel the nerves,\u201d said Nkonyane.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously it\u2019s disappointing to finish like that but Graeme has played well all week and what a story it is for him,\u201d said McIlroy.<\/p>\n

McIlroy said he was delighted for Storm.<\/p>\n