Race to Dubai began in Abu Dhabi for Kaymer

The 25-year-old became only the second German to achieve this after Bernhard Langer and the youngest No.1 since Ronan Rafferty in 1989.

 

Only the fourth continental European to win the Harry Vardon Trophy after Seve Ballesteros, Robert Karlsson and Langer, Kaymer had just one hole of the final event, the Dubai World Championship presented by DP World, to play when the year-long Race to Dubai was officially decided.

 

Northern Ireland’s Graeme McDowell, the only remaining challenger with a week to go, needed a top three finish to have any chance, but closing rounds of 69 and 68 were just too little too late.

 

Topping The Race to Dubai earned Kaymer an impressive bonus of €1,092,418 from a $7.5 million Bonus Pool that rewards the leading 15 money winners, taking his season’s earnings to €4,461,010 and surpassing Lee Westwood’s record of 12 months ago by over €200,000.

 

“It’s been a fantastic year I think. All of the goals that I set for myself, for my career, everything happened this year. To win the Race to Dubai, Number One in Europe, and to play the Ryder Cup, and to win a Major,” said the USPGA Championship winner who felt on top of the world although a trifle disappointed he could not go all the way in the season finale.

 

“Obviously when you win a Major you know that you can win any tournament in the world. I am very proud. I am very satisfied with my year, and that round today, my goal was obviously to play as well as possible, to putt 100 per cent in there. And that is what I certainly did. It was not my best round of the week but I really enjoyed that week and I really enjoyed the last round that I played,” said Kaymer after finishing with a modest round of 72.

 

“As we walked up the 18th, the announcer was saying all the scores, the PGA Champion, currently Number One in the Race to Dubai, and it sounds pretty good to me. It’s a very proud moment,” said the staid German who has been described as ‘Ice Man’ by his rival Graeme McDowell.

 

The Ulsterman was unable to add the finishing touch he wanted to an incredible season in which he won the US Open Championship and helped regain the Ryder Cup for Europe.

 

“It’s been a dream season and it just so happened that Martin had an unbelievable season as well,” said McDowell.

 

Kaymer might well have finished Number One last year but for an August go-kart accident in which he broke three toes and was put out of the game for two months.

 

He eventually finished third behind Lee Westwood and Rory McIlroy, but started his season with victory at the Abu Dhabi Championship and then had a spell he will never forget.

 

Two months after McDowell had gone to Pebble Beach and become Europe’s first US Open Champion since 1970 Kaymer won the US PGA Championship after a play-off with Bubba Watson, then added the KLM Open and Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on his next two starts.

 

The last of those came just six days after he had made his Ryder Cup debut - a winning debut, of course - so he could actually claim four triumphs in a row.

 

He did not commit himself to playing in the Desert Swing (Dubai, Doha and Bahrain) although he is likely to return for the defence of his title in Abu Dhabi. “You have to let me finish the season first to think next year. Of course, my goal is every week to win. But first of all, I need to realise what happened this year. Next year is 2011 and I told you, my goals, what kind of goals I have. We’ll see what happens in the Desert Swing,” said Kaymer wishing to savour his monumental triumph.

 

Asked whether he could reach the world’s summit, Kaymer replied in the affirmative. “I would feel that I have the potential to become of the best players in the world, yes. But I think no one would have thought that I could make it this quick. I knew I can do all of those things. Maybe one day I believe that I can become the no.1 in the world, too,” he said.