Poulter looks on bright side

Ian Poulter had the consolation of climbing to second in the Ryder Cup standings and third in the Order of Merit after missing out on a place in the World Cup.

Poulter needed to win the Linde German Masters to qualify for England’s two-man team at Kiawah Island in November, but was unable to overhaul Korea’s KJ Choi in Cologne.

The 27-year-old from Hertfordshire had to settle for a share of third place after a final round 68 gave him a 23-under-par total of 265, three behind Choi.

Choi, making his debut in a regular European Tour event, fired a closing 67 to collect the first prize of €500,000, finishing two ahead of Spain’s Miguel Angel Jimenez.

Jimenez birdied the last to claim outright second and valuable Ryder Cup points, with Poulter sharing third with Sweden’s Niclas Fasth.

“It’s disappointing really because I missed only one fairway all day on the 17th and I missed a few putts as well,” said Poulter, who has already won twice this season after a slow start to the year.

“But my game is miles more consistent since I started working with David Leadbetter and I am hitting some really good golf shots and making some good putts as well.

“In May I had won only around £30,000 so it is great to be able to have put nigh on a million pounds on the board in a few months.

“The money is pretty nice but I just want to keep playing good golf and I want to be in the Ryder Cup so it is a nice start.”

Poulter climbed to second in the Ryder Cup points standings behind Jimenez, whose birdie on the last was worth an extra 109,620 points and 333,330 in total.

Choi, whose caddie Andy Prodger had to pull his clubs on a trolley due to a bad back, took a one-shot lead into the final round but was quickly caught as Poulter birdied the first two holes.

He jumped back in front in spectacular fashion however, his second shot from 187 yards diving into the hole without bouncing for an eagle two on the fifth, damaging the edge of the hole in the process.

“My intention was to hit it softly because I used a six iron instead of a seven as normal because I was feeling tired, but I hit it solidly and it ended up in the hole so it worked out for the best,” admitted Choi.

There was never more than one shot in it until the closing stages, Poulter, Fasth, Jimenez and Choi all sharing the lead at one stage or another.

Even another eagle on the 13th from Choi only edged him ahead by a stroke, and it was not until the closing stretch that the outcome was decided.

Fasth bogeyed the 16th after a wayward tee shot and almost simultaneously Choi two-putted the 15th for birdie in the group behind to stretch his lead to two shots.

Jimenez then birdied the 18th to claim second place outright but Choi had hit his approach even closer and holed out for a winning birdie.

“I am so happy,” added Choi, who won twice on the US Tour last year. “I would have been happy with a top 10 before I came here but a win is very rewarding.

“Now I have a five-year exemption on the European Tour I plan to play more over here.”