Daily Times

ST ANDREWS: Danny Willett gave himself the perfect birthday present with victory at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in Scotland on Sunday. The 2016 Masters champion went into the final round at St Andrews with a three-shot lead and carded a 68 to get to 18 under and win by two from fellow Englishman Tyrrell Hatton and Joakim Lagergren of Sweden. Willett extended his lead to four in the early stages and — while he was briefly reeled in by Richard Bland — birdies at the ninth and 10th handed him a three-shot advantage once more and eight pars on the difficult closing stretch saw him close out a first victory in two years. Following his triumph at Augusta National, Willett slipped to 462nd in the world before winning two of the European Tour’s elite Rolex Series events in 2018 and 2019. But he has once again bounced back to win his eighth European Tour event and is set to move back into the world’s top 100. An emotional Willett, who turned 34 on Sunday, described his win on British soil as “magical”. The Alfred Dunhill Links is played over three courses, at St Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns.