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Final hole disaster sees 1.01 Els throw it away

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Bickerton - backed at 300 - the happy beneficiary

A final hole disaster from Ernie Els in the Alfred Dunhill Championship in South Africa caused betting mayhem on Betfair.

Over £34,000 was matched on Els at the minimum price of [1.01] on Betfair, as the South African stood on the tee of the 18th hole two shots clear of clubhouse leader John Bickerton.

But Els pressed the self-destruct button, shooting a triple-bogey eight, twice finding the water, to hand Bickerton a shock win.

Bickerton was backed at a high of [300.0] on the exchange, with £37 matched at that price and all odds down from [280.0] were also taken.

The very surprised winner said: "Disbelief - that's all I can say," said Bickerton.

"I was just hoping to finish second, and I wasn't even watching Ernie play the last.

"I actually feel sorry for him, but of course this is fantastic news for me in terms of my career

Betfair spokesman Tony Calvin commented: "Els' supporters would not have been happy, but his [1.01] layers effectively backed a 100-1 winner and those who secured three-figure prices about Bickerton will also be raising a glass to Ernie's capitulation."

Els will not have long to get over his final hole disaster. The South African tees up again on Thursday when he competes in his home Open.

The Big Easy currently trades as the [5.9] favourite to win in a field including fellow countrymen Trevor Immelman [9.8], Retief Goosen [13.0] and Tim Clark [15.5].

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