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October 28th 2012, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: American Nick Watney fired a scintillating 10-under-par 61 to win the US$6.1 million CIMB Classic by one shot from title holder Bo Van Pelt and Robert Garrigus on Sunday.

In a thrilling final round shootout, 14-time Major champion Tiger Woods was on the prowl at the Mines Resort and Golf Club, shooting a brilliant 63 which proved a little too late as he settled for tied fourth place, three back, in the co-sanctioned Asian Tour and PGA Tour tournament.

South African Jbe Kruger emerged as the leading Asian Tour performer in eighth position after a 68 while India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar took a share of 10th place after signing for a 67. Thai star Thaworn Wiratchant, currently leading the Asian Tour Order of Merit, fired a 66 for tied 16th spot.

Watney’s triumph, courtesy of a 22-under-par 262 aggregate, was his second of the season and the world number 22 did it in style to pick up the winner’s cheque of US$1.3 million.

“The round sort of built momentum and things just kept getting better and better. I'm thrilled to have come away with a win,” said Watney, who has five previous triumphs on the PGA Tour.

Starting the final day four back, the 31-year-old charged out with an outward 30 and then ran off six more birdies on his homeward stretch to give himself a chance of shooting golf’s magical 59 playing the last hole.

However, the tall American bogeyed the 18th which gave last year’s champion Van Pelt a chance to force a play-off. However, Van Pelt could only make par in front of 13,500 spectators.

Watney said the thought of shooting the first ever 59 in Asia crossed his mind when he sank his 11th birdie of the day on the 17th hole. However, his approach shot from a divot ended any hopes as he dropped a bogey.

“Well, you know, I was more concerned with just winning the tournament. I hit a decent drive, and it plugged in the left rough, and I took a drop. And the ball went into a divot in the rough. So 59 kind of went out the window right there. Winning the tournament was more important than 59 for me,” he said.

The year keeps getting better and better for rising star Gaganjeet Bhullar as he fought his way to an impressive top-10 finish at the US$6.1 million CIMB Classic on Sunday.

The young Indian, who has won twice on the Asian Tour this season, posted a final round of four-under-par 67 to finish seven shots behind champion Nick Watney of the United States. Bhullar earned a cheque of US$102,500.

The 24-year-old outgunned some of the leading PGA Tour stars including 2010 CIMB Classic winner Ben Crane, Jeff Overton, runner-up here last year, and world number nine Jason Dufner.

Bhullar started the final round five shots off the lead and struggled to make a birdie charge, picking up only one shot on the seventh hole. Things brightened up for Bhullar on the back nine where he shot three birdies including two in his last four holes.

“The way I was striking the ball, I thought I could go really low, but that's golf. You've got to accept what comes your way. Definitely this is a great week for me. All four days I played with PGA Tour pros. It's a very good opportunity for me to learn this week, and I think this experience will definitely help in my coming years,” said Bhullar.

Bhullar’s resilient attitude and sharp shooting game earned him praise from first round partner and CIMB Classic runner-up Robert Garrigus, who called the young Indian “a phenomenal player.”

“Definitely it inspires you. Robert, he's a star on the PGA Tour. I've seen him so many times playing well on television, and it was good to pair up with him,” said Bhullar, who is currently fifth on the Order of Merit.

“You know, it really gives you a sense of achievement that you have played well, and it's basically a reward for your hard work. Yeah, he gave me a lot of positive feedback. He said your game is ready for the PGA Tour, it's just a matter of time. I'm going to heed that advice, and looking forward to moving to the next level.”

Asian Tour Order of Merit leader Thaworn Wiratchant birdied the opening hole for the first time this week and extended his fine form by sinking five birdies against a lone bogey. The Thai legend was delighted with his overall performance even though he missed a short birdie putt on the last to end his campaign with a 66 for tied 16th position.

“My game has been good. I could have lowered my score but missed a short birdie putt on the last. Disappointing but overall a good finish,” said Thaworn, who holds the record of winning 15 Asian Tour titles.

After playing with tournament runner-up Bo Van Pelt on the first day, Thaworn reckons his game can be measured against the PGA Tour players. “I’m very happy with how I played. I played with Bo on the first day. He played very well. He is a very big guy. He doesn’t hit it long but hits it straight and controls his ball very good. His driver and iron were very good but my game is also very good,” he smiled.

“I really enjoyed beating Tiger. Any time that you can play in this era, I think everybody would agree these last 15 years, he is been by far the biggest attraction in our sport, so I think it's great for every tournament that he comes to.”

Van Pelt, who arrived for his CIMB Classic defence in top form after winning the Perth International last week, saluted Watney’s final round heroics. “You've got to tip your cap; a guy goes out and shoots 10 under, he just wins the golf tournament. Big congratulations to Nick. He's a great player, and he just went out and won the tournament,” said Van Pelt.

“I'll probably look back at the two doubles I made during the week without a penalty shot that probably ended up costing me in the end. But all in all, it was a great week.”

Woods had the large galleries following his match in raptures with five birdies in his opening seven holes before managing only one birdie in mid-round. Two birdies on 16 and 17 eventually left him a few shots shy of his target of getting to 20-under.

“My goal was to get to 20-plus,” said the world number two. “That's the only chance I had. It ended up not being much of a chance. Yesterday's last nine holes (where he shot 39), that put me in a spot where I really couldn't win the championship.”

Kruger was delighted with his finish which saw him pick up a cheque worth US$175,000. Starting the day two back, he started strongly with a birdie and eagle on the second and third holes before his putter went cold.

“I think I actually played the best I played all week, just couldn't get a putt in. They always say the guy that makes the most putts is going to win. I think I had probably 34, 35 putts,” said Kruger, who won the Avantha Masters in India earlier this year.

“It's never the winnings, it's always about the experience. You can't buy experience.”