General / Editor / 11 March 2007 / Leave a Comment

Nick Dougherty's disastrous closing holes, to throw away his victory chances at the Singapore Masters, could drain his confidence ahead of next week's TLC Classic.

China's Wen-Chong Liang beat Iain Steel in Sunday's play-off to win the title after Dougherty, and a host of other players, failed to convert their championship chances.

Player after player hit the front only to suffer a bout of nerves, with 2005 champion Dougherty the most guilty, as he made back-to-back double bogeys after leading on the 15th tee.

Dougherty threw away two shots at 16 before finding the water at 17 and suffering another double bogey, which ultimately took him back to a tie for fourth place on the leaderboard.

The self doubt which ruined the Englishman's 2006 season reappeared as he made three double-bogeys in all in a final round 71.

His participation in next week's TLC Classic event at Hainan Island in China could be in doubt as he must be tempted to get straight back to the driving range.

Local favourite Wen-Chong Liang will be full of confidence for the event so keep an eye on both players in Betfair's tournament odds market.