Palmer holds his nerve

Ryan Palmer held his nerve to win the Sony Open in Honolulu on the final hole from Robert Allenby.

Palmer and Allenby had gone head-to-head over the final round having shared the overnight lead.

However after a see-saw battle for the lead, Allenby finally broke at the last as he missed a 10-foot putt to allow Palmer, whose approach had hit the pin, to tap-in for a one-stroke victory.

"I came out here with a lot of hopes for the year and wanted to get off to a good start," said Palmer, who finished on 15-under for the tournament.

"My body felt great all week and I was strong mentally, stuck to my guns and took every day one at a time."

Allenby had to settle for second spot on 14-under, however he refused to be too disappointed at missing out on the title at the Waialae Country Club.
Challenge

"I gave myself a chance, that's all I can do but Ryan played awesome," Allenby said.

"But that's golf, sometimes you win, sometimes you don't."

World No.3 Steve Stricker looked like he could be set to challenge Allenby and Palmer for the title early on as six birdies and a bogey saw him reached 13-under with five holes left to play.

However despite briefly sharing the lead a bogey at the 15th and a missed birdie at the 18th meant that he had to settle for third.

South African Retief Goosen matched his career-lowest score with an eight-under round of 62 to finish fourth on 12-under.

Charles Howell III, Carl Pettersson and Davis Love III were a shot further back in a tie for fifth, while a storming finish from Justin Rose earned him a share of 12th.

Rose's fellow Brit Brian Davis carded a disappointing final-round 73.