Europe's No. 1

A 13th-place finish in the season-ending Dubai World Championship was enough for Martin Kaymer to be crowned Europe's top golfer on Sunday, following a season full of triumphs for the young Duesseldorfer.

"It's been a fantastic year, I think. All of the goals that I set for myself, for my career, everything happened this year: To [become No. 1 in Europe], to play The Ryder Cup, and to win a Major.

Kaymer coasted in on Sunday with an unspectacular even-par 72; at the end of his round, he said he began to realize what he had accomplished in 2010.

"As we walked up the 18th, the announcer was saying all the scores, the PGA Champion, currently No. 1 in Europe, and it sounds pretty good to me. It's a very proud moment."

Kaymer collected a bonus payment of 1.5 million euros ($2 million) for winning the European Tour money title, on top of earnings in 2010 that totaled close to 4.5 million euros.

2010: the year for European golf

Kaymer's successes in the golf world this year were part of a flourishing European campaign that saw a victory over the US in the Ryder Cup team competitions, as well as individual Europeans winning three of the four major championships, an unprecedented feat for European golf.

At present, there are more Europeans (six) in the top-10 of the official World Golf Rankings, which is likewise something that has never happened before.

England's Lee Westwood is currently atop that list, followed by Tiger Woods, who had previously been ranked No.1 for 266 straight weeks.

Kaymer is ranked third in the world and is joined by another three Englishmen (Ian Poulter, Paul Casey, and Luke Donald) and a Northern Irishman, Rory McIlroy, rounding off the top-10.

Author: Gabriel Borrud
Editor : Chuck Penfold