Plauderecke » World No. 1 Rory McIlroy nearly rallied

Dubai, United Arab Emirates (SportsNetwork.com) - Henrik Stenson birdied the final two holes on Sunday en route to repeating as champion at the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai. Stenson closed with a 2-under 70 in the final round to end at 16-under-par 272. Stensons 70 broke his string of 12 consecutive rounds in the 60s on the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates. The win was Stensons ninth on the European Tour. Im delighted with the day of course and the week, said Stenson. Its sweet to go on a break with this win. It was a winless season, but still a good one. This was the icing on the cake. World No. 1 Rory McIlroy nearly rallied to victory. He posted a 4-under 68 to end in a tie for second at minus-14. McIlroy was joined there by Justin Rose (69) and Victor Dubuisson (68). The day started a little slowly, but I sort of got it going on the back nine, but Henrik deserved it the way he played the last few holes, McIlroy said. I didnt have my best stuff this week, but Im proud of myself that I still gave myself a chance to win the tournament. Shane Lowry matched the low round of the day with his 6-under 66. That helped him grab fifth place at 13-under-par 275. Former Open champion Louis Oosthuizen matched Lowrys 66 to move into a tie for sixth at minus-12. Oosthuizen was joined there by Robert Karlsson (69) and Tyrell Hatton (70). Stenson got his round going with a birdie on the second. He dropped his approach shot inside five feet at the fifth and converted that birdie effort to move to 16-under. The Swede got up and down for birdie on the par-5 seventh. Stenson was one clear of his partner, Rafael Cabrera-Bello, at that point. However, Stenson 3-putted for bogey on the eighth to slip into a share of the lead. Cabrera-Bello had three birdies and a bogey on the front nine to make the turn at minus-16. Stenson hit his tee shot out of bounds on the par-4 11th and that led to a double-bogey. Cabrera-Bello was suddenly in control of the tournament, but trouble loomed. It was a horrible shot and a horrible club selection really. One of the worst shots Ive hit for a long, long time and I hit it out of bounds, Stenson stated. After that, I had to dig deep and I came back with a good par save on 12 to stay in it. Cabrera-Bello found a greenside bunker at the 12th and he failed to get up and down for par. Cabrera-Bello remained one shot ahead as he parred three in a row from the 13th. The Spaniards second at the 16th trickled inside a hazard line, but he had a shot. The 2012 Dubai Desert Classic winner blasted that shot over the green and into the water. That led to a double-bogey, which dropped Cabrera-Bello from the lead. He fell further down the leaderboard with another double-bogey at 17, where he again found water. Stenson, who parred five in a row from the 12th, was now tied for the lead with Rose and McIlroy. Rose birdied three in a row from the 14th to get to minus-14, but he parred the final two holes to end there. McIlroy, the 2012 winner, birdied the 14th and 15th to join Rose at 14-under. At the par-5 closing hole, McIlroys tee shot caromed off a rock and into the middle of the fairway. He hit the grandstands with his approach shot and would walk off with his third par in a row. That left it to Stenson. He stuffed his tee shot at the par-3 17th within two feet and he kicked that in for birdie and a 1-shot lead. Stenson closed the tournament in style as he drained a 6-foot birdie putt for the 2-shot win. It was good numbers for me. It was about 205, 210 yards into the wind and I played a nice 5-iron, and the outcome was perfect, Stenson explained of his tee shot at 17. That set me up for 18 where I needed a 5 to win it, but I managed to trickle in a 4 in. Dubuisson needed an eagle at the last to possibly force a playoff. His bunker shot got within a foot of the hole, but it spun back away from the cup. NOTES: Stenson earned 1,666,600 euros for the win ... This marked the first time in Stensons career that he has won three straight years on the European Tour ... Stenson joined Charl Schwartzel, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Oosthuizen, Stephen Gallacher and Graeme McDowell as the six players that successfully defended a title on the European Tour this season. Discount NFL Jerseys . The 27-year-old hit .209 in 86 at-bats last year after missing the 2010 season following surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder. Clearance NFL Jerseys Sale . -- Scottie Wilbekin sat on the bench for the final minute, holding a bag of ice against his left knee. http://www.outletnfljerseys.com/. Maximilian Arnold put Wolfsburg ahead in the eighth minute, when the stationary Fallou Diagne allowed him to guide Patrick Ochs cross beyond the helpless Freiburg goalkeeper, and Ivica Olic doubled the lead three minutes later after Luiz Gustavo did well to set him up. Stitched NFL Jerseys . As each game passes (each has played close with the exception of last night) it becomes clearer just how evenly matched these two teams are and how one mistake, or one bad inning, is likely to sway the result. Authentic Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap .J. - Percy Harvin is ready to go, and theres no question in his mind hell be playing Sunday.(SportsNetwork.com) - Colorado may be ahead of the Vancouver Canucks in the Western Conference standings, but they are a club that the Avalanche may want to avoid in the playoffs. The Canucks, though, are no lock to reach the postseason and they will continue their push for a wild card spot on Thursday night versus the Avs. Vancouver is four points back of Phoenix for the second wild card spot in the Western Conference and has played one more game than the Coyotes, who visit the New Jersey Devils tonight. The Dallas Stars also are one point ahead of the Canucks in the standings and have played two fewer games than Vancouver. That gives the Canucks an uphill battle in reaching the postseason and the squad has responded with its longest winning streak since late December. That includes last nights 5-2 triumph over the Minnesota Wild. David Booth scored twice in the win and Eddie Lack made 29 saves as the Canucks have claimed three straight victories for the first time since Dec. 20-29. Another win tonight would give Vancouver its longest string of victories since a season-best seven-game run from Dec. 1-14. "Were breathing. Thats the most important thing and we found a way tonight," said Canucks head coach John Tortorella. Daniel Sedin, Ryan Kesler and Zack Kassian all added goals for a Vancouver squad that was without captain Henrik Sedin due to a left knee injury suffered in Sundays win against the Buffalo Sabres. He is day-to-day and did not travel with the club for its quick two-game road trip that ends tonight. It is unknown if Lack will get another start tonight or if backup Jacob Markstrom will get the call. Neither has eever faced the Avalanche and Markstrom has made just one appearance in relief since coming over in the trade that sent Roberto Luongo to the Florida Panthers.dddddddddddd Whoever gets the call will try to extend the Canucks recent string of success over the Avalanche. Vancouver picked up a 3-1 victory over Colorado at home on Dec. 8 and has won 11 of 12 as well as 19 of the previous 22 encounters. The Canucks also have won 10 of their last 13 trips to Colorado, though they did have a four-game series road win streak snapped in the most recent meeting there on April 13 of last season. The Avs are rolling towards a playoff spot as they own a nine-point edge over the fourth-place Wild in the Central Division and are also a mere three points back of the Chicago Blackhawks for second. Colorado did bring a three-game winless stretch (0-2-1) into Tuesday nights meeting with the Nashville Predators and escaped with a 5-4 shootout victory on the road despite never leading in regulation. Gabriel Landeskog scored twice in regulation and had the deciding shootout tally, while Cody McLeod and Nick Holden both scored to erase third-period deficits. "What I like about our group is we were resilient even if we were not playing our best game," said Colorado head coach Patrick Roy. Semyon Varlamov made 29 saves as Colorado reached 45 wins in a season for the first time since 2001-02. The Avs won a franchise-best 52 victories the previous season en route to a Stanley Cup title. Varlamov will start tonight and is seeking his first career win versus the Canucks, having gone 0-7-1 with a 2.80 goals against average in previous meetings. ' ' '