MARANA, Ariz. – Germany’s Martin Kaymer will take on England’s Luke Donald in the Accenture Match Play Championships finals on Sunday. Each player will be seeking his first World Golf Championships title.

The match is scheduled to begin at 2:20 p.m. ET (12:20 p.m. local time). The consolation final between Bubba Watson and Matt Kuchar will start 15 minutes earlier.

Kaymer assured himself of moving to No. 1 in the world by reaching the finals. But should Donald win on Sunday, he would move from No. 9 to No. 3 in the world, trailing only Kaymer and Westwood.

Weather could be a factor on Sunday. A winter storm warning will in effect from until 2 p.m. ET, and snow accumulations of 1-3 inches are anticipated.

Give us your opinion below: Which player do you think will win Sunday’s championship final?

MARANA, Ariz. -- Martin Kaymer will be the new No. 1 player in the world when the next Official World Golf Rankings come out.

Will he be able to celebrate with his first World Golf Championships win?

Kaymer, the 26-year-old German, assured himself of overtaking Lee Westwood atop the world rankings by beating Bubba Watson 1 up in Saturday afternoon's semifinals of the Accenture Match Play Championships.

Kaymer will now face Englishman Luke Donald for the title Sunday afternoon.

Kaymer

Kaymer will become the first German to be ranked No. 1 since Bernhard Langer spent three weeks at No. 1 when the rankings were first launched in 1986. Westwood had been ranked No. 1 for the past 17 weeks since replacing Tiger Woods at the top.

“I definitely will take a picture of that moment,” Kaymer said. “It’s a very proud moment, for me and for my family.”

But getting there wasn't easy for the reigning PGA champion. He didn't put away the determined Watson until  he rolled in an eight-foot par putt to halve the 18th hole.

“It’s sad because I lost,” Watson said. “But I played good. I didn’t really mess up too much. He just beat me.”

Watson, 2 down going into 17, hit a terrific approach shot to six feet to birdie the hole and extend the match.

But his drive at 18 landed in a fairway bunker, and his second shot hit the front of the raised green and tumbled back off the putting surface. Kaymer had to chip from behind the green but saved the par with his clutch putt.

Watson

The match was nip and tuck the entire way, with neither player gaining more than a one-hole advantage through the first 15 holes. “It was a very hard match,” Kaymer said. “Up and down the entire round.”

Kaymer claimed the first hole with a birdie and a Watson double bogey. At that point, you wondered if the fatigue of rallying from 5 down on the back nine to beat J.B. Holmes 30 minutes earlier had worn him out.

But when Kaymer conceded the second hole after a poor tee shot, the match was quickly back to all square and the two settled into their duel after that.

On the par-5 eight hole, Watson took his first lead, winning with a birdie. But he gave back the lead two holes later with a bogey.

Kaymer won the 13th with a two-putt birdie to go 1 up, but gave that away with a bogey at the 14th.

Just as quickly, though, he regained the advantage, working out of a greenside bunker at the drivable par-4 15th for birdie while Watson was forced to take a penalty shot after a poor tee shot into the desert. Kaymer’s 13-foot putt for birdie gave him the lead for good.

At the par-3 16th, Watson's tee shot landed past the pin in the primary rough, and he failed to get up and down for par.

MARANA, Ariz. — Here is the latest on Saturday afternoon’s remaining semifinal match:

MARTIN KAYMER VS. BUBBA WATSON: Kaymer’s second shot found the deep rough to the back right of the green while Watson’s went tracking for the hole, settling 6 feet from the pin. Kaymer’s chip stopped 7 feet away so he attempted his par putt first – and made it. Watson’s putt found the center of the hole, though, so they head to the 18th hole.

MARANA, Ariz. — Here is the latest on Saturday afternoon’s remaining semifinal match:

MARTIN KAYMER VS. BUBBA WATSON: Watson missed the green at the drivable 15th hole and found his ball lodged in a cholla. He had to take an unplayable and chose to drop between two of the spiny bushes. Watson’s chip, which was his third shot on the par 4, stopped 34 feet from the pin.

Kaymer, on the other hand, had found the greenside bunker off the tee and he blasted out to 13 feet. Watson missed the lengthy par putt and Kaymer made the birdie to go 1 up.

Both players found the collection area at the back right of the par-3 16th. Watson chipped to 13 feet and missed the par putt, with Kaymer conceding the bogey. Kaymer then made his 6-footer to save par and take a 2-up lead – which makes the match dormie.

MARANA, Ariz. — Here is the latest on Saturday afternoon’s remaining semifinal match:

MARTIN KAYMER VS. BUBBA WATSON: Watson has just won the 14th hole to square the tight match for the fourth time. He reached the green in regulation while Kaymer’s second short found the greenside bunker. The world No. 2 blasted out to 25 feet and couldn’t save par while Watson two-putted from 54 feet, making a clutch 6-footer for the win.

MARANA, Ariz. — Here is the latest on Saturday afternoon’s remaining semifinal match:

MARTIN KAYMER VS. BUBBA WATSON: Kaymer has just won consecutive holes to regain a 1-up advantage. The 26-year-old German squared the match with a 21-inch, tap-in birdie at the ninth hole after a laser-like iron. Kaymer then won the 10th after Watson’s second shot strayed into the waste area and he had to take a drop.

MARANA, Ariz. — Luke Donald had polished off two victories in the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship before the clock even struck 3 p.m. MT on Saturday.

Donald’s golf was nearly flawless on a windy day at Dove Mountain. He didn’t go past the 14th hole in either the morning quarterfinals of the all-important afternoon semis where he made short work of Matt Kuchar, winning by a 6 and 5 score.

Donald

“It’s nice to get done early,” Donald said. “This was a long day. … It will give me more energy for tomorrow.

Donald’s impressive run means there will be Brit playing for the championship on Sunday for the third straight year. And if he wins, Donald will become the No. 3 player in the world – the highest ranking of his career.

The Englishman, who is currently ranked 10th, has never been higher than sixth.

"I won't be focusing on the World Rankings, those kind of things take care of themselves," Donald said. "That would be an added bonus.  I'll be concentrating on trying to beat whoever I'm playing against and trying to pick up a trophy."

With rain and snow in the forecast, though, Donald knows Dove Mountain will be a different golf course on Sunday.

“I’s going to be quite a bit colder, and the ball is not going to be traveling so far,” said Donald, who has one of the best short games on the PGA TOUR.

The tone for the semifinal was set early. With five birdies in his first nine holes, Donald made the turn 6 up on Kuchar. He did lose two holes on the back nine but earned the victory with a 6-foot birdie putt on the 13th hole.

Kuchar

Kuchar knew he ran into a buzz-saw on Saturday afternoon so he couldn’t be too disappointed.

“As an overall week, yeah, it’s been a good week,’ he said. “Four wins and Luke just played great. … It seemed like every hole he had a 5‑footer for birdie and made it. Tough conditions.

“I enjoy match play. You just never know. Had I got somebody else on today’s round, I may have still been able to come out with a win. But you face Luke Donald on a day he’s really hot, you pack your bags early.”

Kuchar isn't alone in that assessment this week. In five matches, Donald has never trailed, and he's yet to play the 18th hole. He's made 27 birdies and just four bogeys, three of which came in the same match.

All in all, Donald has needed just 73 holes in five matches to reach the championship, which is the fewest number of holes played by any finalist in tournament history. The previous record was 77 holes by Tiger Woods in 2003.

"I've been playing good this week," Donald acknowledged. "I've been stringing together a lot of good rounds, making birdies, and not too many mistakes. The greens, I haven't really missed anything. I've been tough to beat this week and hopefully that can continue tomorrow."  

MARANA, Ariz. -- Here is the latest on Saturday afternoon’s semifinal matches:

LUKE DONALD VS. MATT KUCHAR:  Donald just two-putted from 62 feet to beat Kuchar 6 and 5. Donald hasn’t trailed this week and still has yet to play the 18th hole in five matches. He made five birdies on the front nine against the American and six overall, bringing his total to 27 in the 73 holes he’s played. Donald’s presence in the finals means an Englishman has a chance to win the title for the third straight year.

MARTIN KAYMER VS. BUBBA WATSON:  Watson just made a 6-footer at the eighth hole to take his first lead in this match with the world No. 2.

MARANA, Ariz. –- Here is the latest on Saturday afternoon’s semifinal matches:

LUKE DONALD VS. MATT KUCHAR: Donald was 7 up through 10 holes, but Kuchar won the next two holes. Donald conceded the par-5 11th when he airmailed his tee shot into the desert, hit a provisional that also landed in the desert, took a drop with his original ball, then found the native area again with his second shot. Kuchar then won the par-3 12th when his tee shot landed inside three feet. Donald is now 5 up.

MARTIN KAYMER VS. BUBBA WATSON: They remain all square through 7 after halving the last five holes.