Tuesday 17 February 2015 15:10, UK
Gary Stal has been named European Tour Golfer of the Month for January following his stunning victory in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship.
Trailing Martin Kaymer by eight shots going into the final day at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club, the Frenchman made the most of his German rival's capitulation - carding four consecutive birdies from the eighth - to beat World No 1 Rory McIlroy by one shot.
His maiden European Tour triumph earned him a place among the top five in the Race to Dubai, and a first career start in the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational later in the year.
“It’s a real pleasure for me – I’m very happy to win this award,” Stal said. “I think my game is the best it has ever been at the moment and my putting is amazing so that helped me get this win.
“The win was very big for me and now I will get to play some huge events like the WGC-Cadillac in Miami and the WGC-Bridgestone in Akron, so it was important in a lot of ways.
“I think the victory, and the way it happened, will mostly help my confidence in my own game and now I hope I can carry on with the form for the rest of this season.”
Stal, a former Challenge Tour graduate, won twice on the second tier in 2012 en route to 17th place on the rankings, and a debut season on the European Tour.
Some initial difficulties saw him unable to retain his card the following year, but after a successful turn at the qualifying school final stage, he went on to finish 85th in the Race to Dubai in 2014.
Stal follows on from Danny Willett, who was named the December Golfer of the Month after his impressive victory at the Nedbank Golf Challenge.
That was the Englishman’s second European Tour title, and came as the result of an emphatic four-stroke victory over compatriot Ross Fisher and 54-hole leader Luke Donald, thanks to a closing round 66 at Gary Player Country Club.
