Rookie Donald triumphs in States

Luke Donald, one of the rising stars of the European game, who chose to spend his rookie season in the rarefied atmosphere of the US PGA Tour, justified his bold step by winning the final event of the year. Donald won the Southern Farm Bureau Classic yesterday when for the second day running it was impossible to complete the final round due to torrential rain at the Annandale club in Madison, Mississippi.

"It's definitely not the way I would have liked to have won my first," the 24-year-old from Beaconsfield said. "A win is a win and I'll take it. I would have loved to have done it over 72 holes. But there was nothing I could do."

As a newcomer to the US Tour, and professional golf full stop, Donald could be pleased with his debut season, entering his last tournament having assured his playing card for next year. He started the week 106th on the US money list but jumped to 58th with a cheque for $468,000 (£312,000) which took his earnings for the season to $1,088,205 (£725,470). He also claimed a two-year exemption which will allow him to plan his season more easily next year, and possibly add the odd event in Europe.

With the tournament held opposite the US Tour Championship, none of the top-30 money-winners were playing but there was still a strong field, with the former Ryder Cup player Brad Faxon high on the leaderboard. Donald became the 18th first-time winner of the season thanks to his third round of 67 which took him to 15 under par and a stroke ahead of South Africa's Deane Pappas. In Saturday's round Donald almost holed in one at the 12th and carded birdies at three of the last four holes.

The 1999 NCAA champion, Donald was one of the stars of the US college circuit at the same time as Charles Howell, the young American who finished runner-up to Vijay Singh at the Tour Championship.

With so much with which to familiarise himself about the US Tour ­ where to play, where to stay, where to eat, which tournaments to skip, how many events to play in a row before having a break ­ Donald compared his rookie season to his first year at Northwestern University, when he played well without claiming the wins that followed in the next season.

"Coming up to this week I had played steady but I never really contended," he said. "This is a big step for me. It's going to give me a lot of confidence."

Until his victory, Donald's best result was 13th place in the Hawaiian Open, his first event of the season. But he rarely missed the cut and produced a fine display to finish 18th at the US Open at Bethpage.

A member of two winning Walker Cup teams, Donald was rated by the former captain Peter McEvoy as one of the next Europeans likely to win a major championship. It may be still too early to expect major triumphs in the near future but Donald, whose elder brother, Christian, is his caddie, has started his professional career in a manner that few of the great European players can rival.