Henrik Stenson deservedly won the Race to Dubai.
Danny Willett had a fantastic start to the season – winning Dubai Desert Classic and the Masters – and Alex Noren produced a storming finish – winning four tournaments since July’s Scottish Open – but the world No4 from Sweden produced sustained brilliance throughout the year.
And I have no doubt he also had the performance of the year – that amazing duel with Phil Mickelson at Royal Troon, where he won the Open Championship in record fashion.
Despite starting the season with a dodgy knee, Stenson was second in Nedbank, third at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and sixth in Dubai Desert Classic. He then experienced his biggest dip in form when he was tied 28th at two-over in the WGC-Cadillac Championship, followed by a tied 24th place at six-over par at The Masters.
He also had to pull out of the US Open after opening with a 69 because of a calf injury. Once he got over that, there was no stopping him. In all, he played 15 events on the European Tour, did not miss any cuts (the US Open was technically a WD), posted two wins, three runners-up and 11 top-10s in total.
The silver at the Rio Olympics just added to the overall glow. Stenson’s season was the fact that he averaged as many as 5.1 birdies per round, with the second-best player Rory McIlroy averaging 4.4.
He was also first in scoring average (69.14), second in fairways hit (76.4 per cent) and second in greens in regulation (77.8 per cent). One of the major reasons of Stenson’s success, and he will be the first to admit it, is the team that he has managed to put together.
Having said that, what is more incredible is the trust he develops in his team members, and how he tends to stick by them through thick and thin. So, his swing coach Pete Cowen, and mental coach Torsten Hansson, have been by his side for more than a decade now.
Caddie Gareth Lord has been on the bag for the last four years, only because his predecessor the legendary Fanny Sunesson, decided to change her career. Physio Cornel Driessen has been with him ever since the first knee surgery in 2011.
Rory McIlroy on #HenrikStenson: “He’s been one of the most consistent players in the world for the past ten years” pic.twitter.com/PrfP9OBevG
— Sport360° (@Sport360) November 20, 2016
Even though Cowen said last week that if Stenson listened to him all the time, he would have been world No1 for more than five years, the truth is that the Swede has implicit faith his coach who has helped him come out of two deep slumps.
The only thing Stenson does not have on his side is age. He is 40, and while that may not be a deterrent in golf right now, he realistically has a time span of 5-6 years to achieve his remaining dreams: becoming world No1 and winning the Masters being probably the main two.
He is working hard and has often said that this is the fittest he has felt ever in his career. Hopefully, we are yet to see the best of him.
PROBLEM WITH THE WORLD CUP
The World Cup of Golf returns this week in a much different version than the one we witnessed in 2013. Back then, the tournament was lampooned because it could hardly be called a team event.
It was played on an individual strokeplay format and there was an individual winner, as well as a team winner (combined lowest score of two players). This year, I think is the perfect format – fourballs and foursomes on alternate days and no individual element involved.
And yet, the tournament has again been shrouded in controversy. This time, it is the rule applying to team selection. The 28 nations have been chosen on the basis of world rankings of leading players.
The leading player was then asked to pick his partner, who has got to be inside the world top-500. So, Danny Willett chose Lee Westwood, even though there were many other Englishmen in between them. And when the Masters champion decided not to play, Westwood also lost his chance.
That’s because the next highest-ranked Englishman Chris Wood, decided to partner Andy Sullivan. For Scotland, world No19 Russell Knox skipped over several players and opted for Duncan Stewart, a close friend of his, but someone who is ranked 316th in the world.
I kind of like this rule. It puts the onus on the leading player, who has to make a captain’s pick. And obviously, he’d like to choose someone with whom he feels comfortable.
Since they are representing their country, we just have to trust that they have made the correct choice.
