Matteo Manassero has potent combination of assets

Last week’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth threw up several surprises, but the young Matteo Manassero winning it wasn’t one of them.

Of course, the Italian was not the overwhelming favourite, but he has a great track record in the tournament — he was leading in 2011 after the third round — and there is no denying what a phenomenal talent he is.

Manassero is just 20 years old and this is already his fourth European Tour title. His last two wins came after tough play-offs — he won the Singapore Open last year after a fascinating battle against Louis Oosthuizen — which shows he also has a tough mental make-up to go along with his skills. That is a potent combination.

The surprise was that two-time and defending champion Luke Donald, world No 2 Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell and Ian Poulter did not make the cut. But the weather was brutally tough the first two days and, although that should not be an excuse, it is difficult to adjust to such conditions, especially when you are coming from sunny climes the past few weeks.

I played with Simon Khan the first two days and I am not surprised he did so well. He obviously knows the golf course well and he handled the adverse conditions brilliantly. A spectacular final round of 66 helped him get into the play-off against Manassero and Marc Warren, and the 2010 BMW PGA champion looked set for a second title but for Manassero’s brilliance.

Personally, the tournament got over on the first day before I hit any shot on the golf course. I hurt my injured finger while hitting a three-iron shot on the driving range. It started to swell and hurt and I somehow managed to play the first round, but had to pull out midway through the second round.

The right index finger has been bothering me for quite some time now and I have been somehow managing it. But it is now time that I took some aggressive step and I am now going for what is called an ultrasound-guided dextrose injection. This has been advised by one of the leading hand and wrist specialist in England, and the procedure is said to have had magical results with some football and rugby players.

I have been told that the pain for the first four days after the injection is going to make me regret the decision, but this is the best option I have against chronic tendon and cartilage injuries. I am hoping this rids me of the problem and I can hopefully get back to full practice after 10 days of rest.

I have pulled out of the next two tournaments — Sweden and Austria — and will be back for the BMW International at Munich.

— Jeev Milkha Singh is a four-time champion on the European Tour