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SINGAPORE: Ian Poulter heads to Shanghai this week for the WGC-HSBC Champions and warned his weekend victory in Singapore was just the start.
The flamboyant Englishman took six weeks off before the Singapore Open to recharge his batteries ahead of a seven tournament run to the end of his season.
He said the break worked wonders and he planned to build on the success.
Next stop is China where he will come up against all of Europe's best players as well as the world's top two, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, before playing the Hong Kong Open a week later.
"I feel like I have better things to come in the next few weeks for sure," he said.
"I have had six weeks off, I definitely got rid of the cobwebs this week. When I am hitting the ball well out there I am hitting it as good as I ever have.
"It is very exciting to move to Shanghai, then Hong Kong, then Dubai. There are huge world ranking points available each week now and I can make a big push on the Ryder Cup as well."
Poulter is focused on making as much money as possible in the lead up to the Race to Dubai which concludes this month at the 7.5 million dollars Dubai World Championships, but he also wants to accumulate valuable Ryder Cup points.
"It's not just the win, it's the right time of year to win in the sense that Ryder Cup points have started. So I wanted as much money on the board as possible," he said.
"I have got off to a great start and have three more tournaments for the Race to Dubai and I like to think over the next few weeks I can push Rory (McIlroy) and Lee (Westwood) and the guys at the top all the way."
His victory in Singapore was his first on the European Tour since the Madrid Masters in 2006 and his first anywhere since the Dunlop Phoenix in Japan in 2007. He said it was good to be back on the winners' dais.
"I haven't been in the winning circle for a few years and it is nice to get back and win again and enjoy what winning brings you," he said, adding that he always believed in himself.
"I'm always very confident and think I can do great things," he said.
"I just believe that if you apply yourself you can achieve anything."
Poulter, known for his gaudy attire which he has built on to launch his own fashion label, rode his luck to win in Singapore by a shot from China's Liang Wenchong.
Colour-coordinated in pink shoes, trousers and shirt, he played a gruelling 30 holes in the weather-affected tournament on Sunday.
He had seen a five stroke halfway lead wiped out in just six holes of his third round on Saturday after paying the price for an aggressive approach before a thunderstorm halted play.
But he returned on Sunday morning to complete the round and carded five birdies against two bogeys to remain on course for victory, one head of Ryder Cup teammate Graeme McDowell.
Poulter stretched that lead to two shots by the sixth hole but four bogeys in the next six saw him one behind the Irishman.
The pressure, though, got to McDowell and three consecutive bogeys allowed Poulter to regain the lead and he hung on, claiming his first European win since the Madrid Masters in 2006 with a 10-under-par 274.
- AFP/yb
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