Golf Network News
Sunday 9 March 2003European TourYear in Review
Derksen wins Dubai Desert Classic
Emirates Golf Club, Dubai, United Arab Emirates · Thursday 6 to Sunday 9 March 2003 · Robert-Jan Derksen’s win no. 1 on the European Tour · purse US$2,000,000 USD
The headline is set by GNN from the record. Reports from the papers of the day are below as they are found.
The weather
11 h 40 m
of daylight on the final day, the sun 60° up at noon, and that night a waxing crescent moon (computed from the date and the place).
- R131°/14°C · wind 18 km/h NNE, gusts 32 · 0 mm rainERA5 reanalysis at the course Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis
- R233°/16°C · wind 18 km/h NE, gusts 27 · 0 mm rainERA5 reanalysis at the course Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis
- R332°/18°C · wind 19 km/h W, gusts 34 · 0 mm rainERA5 reanalysis at the course Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis
- R430°/17°C · wind 18 km/h W, gusts 32 · 0 mm rainERA5 reanalysis at the course Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis
The name over time
Not yet traced: its earlier names, sponsors and courses come with research.
The ones it got away from
- Ernie Els RSA · 272Led with nine to play but double-bogeyed the 12th, missed an eight-footer for birdie at the 17th and fluffed a chip at the 18th to par and lose by one (BBC). Derksen denies Els - BBC Sport, 9 March 2003 (Wayback Machine)
150 started, 80 made it
Same week
DP World Tour event
Dubai Desert Classic
Emirates Golf Club, Emirates Golf Club, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
4 of 5 researched
Winner
Robert-Jan Derksen
Runner-up not yet researched.
From the papers
ASAP Sports (interview transcript)
9 March 2003
It's nice to win the money but on the other hand it's just the relief. I was struggling after Tour School and the re-ranking which is coming up in five or six weeks
ASAP Sports (interview transcript)
9 March 2003
Before this year, I had never thought I could win.
ASAP Sports (interview transcript)
9 March 2003
One guy comes out of the pack and beats you. He played well so it is one of those things.
Top 10
| Pos | Player | Rounds | Total | To par |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Robert-Jan Derksen | 67 · 72 · 67 · 65 | 271 | −17 |
| 2 | Ernie Els | 66 · 68 · 69 · 69 | 272 | −16 |
| T3 | Ian Woosnam | 69 · 66 · 70 · 69 | 274 | −14 |
| T3 | Alastair Forsyth | 65 · 69 · 69 · 71 | 274 | −14 |
| T3 | David Lynn | 68 · 66 · 69 · 71 | 274 | −14 |
| T6 | Thomas Bjorn | 69 · 66 · 71 · 69 | 275 | −13 |
| T6 | Mikko Ilonen | 67 · 67 · 73 · 68 | 275 | −13 |
| T6 | Kevin Na | 68 · 69 · 68 · 70 | 275 | −13 |
| T9 | Phillip Price | 71 · 67 · 68 · 70 | 276 | |
| T9 | Thongchai Jaidee | 70 · 68 · 67 · 71 | 276 |
The golfer
born 1974-01-03, Nijmegen, Netherlands; NED; turned pro 1996; age 29 that week; tour wins to date: 1; world No. 591 that week (OWGR rankBefore (rankFrom on OWGR event 2856; profile id 5948); Derksen told ASAP 'about 600 or 800'; age 29 stated by BBC and The Independent; tour win No. 1 from BBC ('maiden European Tour win') and Wikipedia season page; majorwins blank -> null).
What’s in the bag
No bag on file yet