EUROPEAN TOUR: ROBERT KARLSSON survived a nervous finish to warm up in style for next week's Ryder Cup with his first victory for two years in the Mercedes-Benz Championship in Cologne..
And Europe captain Nick Faldo had further reasons to celebrate with fellow team members Miguel Angel Jimenez, Soren Hansen and Graeme McDowell third, eighth and 16th respectively.
Jimenez finished with rounds of 68 and 66 on the weekend while Hansen looks in good shape for the fourballs at Valhalla with 20 birdies and three eagles over the four rounds.
Fellow rookie McDowell was less spectacular but it was Karlsson's victory after a three-week lay-off which will have given Faldo the most cause for optimism.
Karlsson began the final day with a three-stroke lead despite suffering a one-shot penalty after his third round on Saturday, and carded a closing 71 at Gut Larchenhof for a total of 13-under-par and a two-shot victory over Italy's Francesco Molinari.
The 6ft 5in Swede had been six clear at one stage but Molinari birdied four holes in a row from the 12th and Karlsson bogeyed the 16th to see his lead cut to just two.
Molinari then left a birdie putt on the 17th agonisingly short of the hole and missed another birdie chance on the last as Karlsson held his nerve to claim the €258,000 first prize.
"Hopefully Nick will be delighted," said Karlsson after an eighth European Tour title lifted him to second on the Order of Merit. "It was a pretty good result for all of us."
Karlsson had not won since the Deutsche Bank Championship, also in Germany, in 2006, but qualified for his second Ryder Cup on the back of nine top-10 finishes this season - including eighth in the US Masters, fourth in the US Open and seventh in the Open.
"It's very nice to win, a great relief and it would have felt a bit strange not to win this season because I've been playing so well," he added. "It got closer than necessary maybe but I felt there was not much more I could do. All credit to Francesco, he played fantastic the last eight or nine holes."
McDowell, expected to partner double Open champion Pádraig Harrington at some stage this week, added: "It's been hard the last few weeks to think about anything else. It's been in the forefront of my mind but I feel as though I am taking my game out there pretty much intact so there is nothing really to worry about.
"All I am looking forward to right now is seeing my golf bag with my name on it. I've always dreamed of representing Europe in the Ryder Cup and here we go."
