A back-nine horror run of a double-bogey followed immediately by four consecutive bogeys sunk Dean Burmester’s chances of victory in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open on Sunday as he carded a final round five-over 75 to finish 22nd.
He started the day in third, two shots behind Aaron Rai of England and one back from Australia’s Maverick Antcliff, and plummeted 19 places as American John Catlin stormed through the field to take his second European Tour title with a brilliant closing six-under 64. Rai finished second, and Antcliff in a share of third after a pair of closing level-par 70s.
Burmester was solid enough through the turn, with a bogey on three and another at nine, but they were both redeemed by birdies on seven and 10. But his work off the tee let him down badly from the 11th onwards as that horror run commenced. To his credit, he stopped the rot with a birdie on the 16th, but the damage had been done, and was irreparable at that point.
Justin Harding had come past him already to claim the leading South African honours. Harding had double-bogey problems of his own, dropping two on the par-five 10th. He also had three other dropped shots, but four birdies limited the damage for him as he carded a one-over 71 to finish in a share of 11th.
Wilco Nienaber and George Coetzee finished in a share of 48th.