Wentworth specialist Angel Cabrera knocked Britain's Paul Casey out of the World Match Play Championship yesterday, defeating the defending champion 4 & 3 after a feast of birdies.
The match between two of the longest hitters in the game entertained the galleries on a dark, dank day onthe leafy West Course in Surrey. Cabrera, who won the PGA Championship at Wentworth in 2005 and has also twice finished runner-up at the European Tour's flagship event, surged three up after birdying the third and fifth and eagling the long fourth where he struck a majestic five-iron to 12 inches.
A couple of mistakes by the Argentine allowed the 30-year-old Englishman to get back to all square at the eighth, before Cabrera regained the advantage with a birdie at the 11th after hitting a nine-iron approach to within a foot of the cup.
Casey was not rattled and went one up himself after a birdie at the 12th by rolling in a snaking 30-footer for another birdie at the 15th.
A topsy-turvy morning session took another twist when Cabrera rattled in three birdies in a row to the 18th for a five-under 67.
Casey may have harboured hopes of a rally in the afternoon round but they took an early nosedive when his opponent sank a 20-foot birdie putt at the first.
Two successive bogeys for the Englishman at the eighth and ninth put Cabrera four up before a 26-foot birdie putt at the 11th effectively ended the match as a contest.
