Luke Donald takes down a shaky Lee Westwood
Before the week started at Wentworth, Luke Donald talked very un-Donaldy about his game and where he was headed. The normally reserved Englishman said he thought he was the best in the world and felt he could add to his already brilliant 2011 season with a win the week after a finals loss to Ian Poulter at the match play just seven days ago.
Some might have thought it was cocky, but for Donald, it was just fact. After four days of brilliant play, and a playoff birdie to knock off former number one Lee Westwood, Donald is now the top golfer in the world, with two huge wins already this season and a multitude of other great finishes.
But the question is, does the end of the final round of the BMW Championship say more about Donald's current game or Westwood's inability to finish tournaments? As SI's Alan Shipnuck tweeted, this is the fourth time in the last five playoffs that Westwood has hit a ball in the water, and this was after nearly hitting his tee ball out of play and missing a very makable birdie putt on the 72nd hole to putt a ton of pressure on Donald. For all the love we should be showing for Donald, who played a magnificent wedge shot into the green on the first playoff hole to force Westwood to go for it, the fact is, Lee sure can't close these big events like a lot of the top golfers have been able to.
Donald deserves a ton of credit for the way he played all week, especially after a bogey-bogey start on Sunday, and the 33-year-old is now the top golfer in the world. People complain a lot about the world golf rankings, and how they don't seem to totally represent who is playing the best right now, but it would be tough to find someone that would argue that Donald is the best golfer alive at this moment, and even harder to argue he won't be the favorite at Congresssional.
Westwood couldn't close, and Donald took advantage. That has seemed to be the difference in these two for the last year and it continues to pay huge dividends for Luke and his stock on tour, and continues to bring up questions about how Lee is ever going to win a big event.
