Golf Events from the Weekend 29th May



Luke Donald (England) with the BMW Championship Trophy he won

Well it was another great weekend on the Professional Golf Tours from throughout the world.

First I will start with the European Tour and the Race to Dubai. This week the tour had its 1st event on English soil for 2011 Season. It was the BMW PGA Championship and it was played at Wentworth Club, Surrey, England. It attracted a great field of world class players with Luke Donald (England) winning the Trophy.

Luke Donald (England) scored rounds of 64-7, 72+1, 72+1 and a final round of 70-1 for a 72 hole total of 278-6, but he was tied on that score by Lee Westwood (England) who scored rounds of 72+1, 69-2, 69-2 and a final round 68-3 to also score a 72 hole total of 278-6. So those two players headed back to the 18th hole for the 1st playoff hole.  Luke Donald (England) knew if he won the playoff he would be the New Number One Golfer in the Official World Rankings.

Luke Donald (England) who had the honour and teed off with his rescue wood and hit the ball down the middle of the fairway. Lee Westwood (England) then teed off with his 5wood and pushed it right in to the Crowd. Luke Donald (England) was too far back to go for the Par 5, 18th green in 2shots, laid up to within 100 metres of the green. Lee Westwood (England) laid up to the same place as Luke Donald (England) from the right rough. Luke Donald (England) then played his 3rd shot 1st with his wedge. He landed it on the back of the green and spun it back to 5feet from the cup. Lee Westwood (England) then played his 3rd Shot and hit a similar shot to Luke Donald (England) but it reacted differently and spun back off the side of the green and went into the water. Lee Westwood (England) then took a Penalty Drop and almost chipped in for a par 5.  Lee Westwood (England) then putted for his Bogey 6 and it just slide by. So the Stage was set for Luke Donald (England) and he calmly rolled in his putt for a birdie 4 and became the 2011 BMW PGA Champion. And also becomes the New World Number One Golfer on the World Rankings.

Luke Donald (England) won € 750,000 for winning the BMW PGA Championship and increases his position at the Top of the Race to Dubai with now having earned €2,581,495 from the 5events has he played to date this year. But the main thing that Luke Donald (England) achieved this week is gaining the World Number 1 Ranking for the 1st time ever in his Golf Career. He must have wondered if it was ever going to happen because over the last 6weeks he has had a lot of chances to achieve it but just hadn’t quite got over the line. So now I am so happy for him because in my opinion he is a brilliant Golfer and is having a career year. I hope he can carry on this Brilliant form he has shown so far this year and now go on and win his 1st Major Championship, perhaps the US Open Championship in a few weeks?

Lee Westwood (England) had another great finish, with finishing 2nd. But it will leave a sour taste in his mouth because he was the player to beat throughout the final round but stumbled at the last hurdle. But the € 500,000.00 he won for coming 2nd should keep the smile on his face as he moves to 4th on the Race to Dubai Money list with €1,212,238 earned from the 9events he has played this year. And I wouldn’t be surprised if sometime this year he regains the number 1 ranking. He is having a great year as well just like Luke Donald (England). I hope he also can win a major this year and finally get that monkey of his back. In 3rd place was another English Golfer Simon Dyson (England) who was at -4. In tied 4th position was Marcus Fraser (Australia), Shane Lowry (Ireland), and Raphael Jacquelin (France) who were all -2 after 72 holes. In tied for 7th position were Colin Montgomerie (Scotland), Jamie Donaldson (Wales), Peter Whiteford (Scotland), David Horsey (England), Johan Edfors (Sweden) and Matteo Manassero (Italy) who blew the final round with a 75+4 after being tied for the lead after 36 holes. All those players finished at -1. It was a very high scoring tournament with not many players finishing at par or better. It proves that Ernie Els (South Africa) redesign of the Course a few years ago has definitely made the course more difficult to get low scores on.

Of the 3 New Zealander Golfers competing none made the cut. Best of the New Zealand players was Michael Campbell (NZL) who scored rounds of 72+1 and 75+4 for a 36 holes total of 147+5 and missed the cut by 1shot. He is now placed 173rd on the Race to Dubai Money list with €36,284 earned from the 11events he has played this year to date. He will need a major improvement in his form if he is going to play in the Dubai World Championship in Dubai in early December as only the Top 60 on the Race to Dubai Money list prior to that event get a start.

Next best of the New Zealanders was Danny Lee (NZL) who scored consecutive rounds of 74+3 to score a 36 hole total of 148+6 and miss the cut by 2shots. It was surprising to me because he performed so well on the Nationwide Tour last week when he finished 3rd. I expected a better performance from him. But maybe his game isn’t suited to mainland Europe? He is still placed 69th on the Race to Dubai Money list with €163,864 earned from the 8events he has played this year to date. And last of the 3 New Zealand players was Mark Brown (NZL) who scored rounds of 74+3 and 77+6 for a 36 hole total of 151+9 to miss the cut by 5shots. He has now missed 4 of his last 5 cuts on the European Tour. And his best finish this year so far is 17th in the Maybank Malaysian Open back in Mid April. And he has slipped to 148th on the Race to Dubai Money list with €54,183 earned from the 14 events he has played this year to date. It must seem light years ago now since he won his one and only European Tour event back in 2008 which was the Johnnie Walker Classic in India. But as long as he finishes inside the top 115 on the Race to Dubai Money list after the UBS Hong Kong Open in early December he will keep his card for the 2012 European Tour Season. I wish him all the best for the rest of the season.

Next week the European Tour heads to Wales for the Saab Wales Open and it is being played this year at The Celtic Manor Resort, City of Newport, Wales. With a prize purse of £1,800,000 up for the taking it is sure to attract another fine field. The current US Open Champion Graeme McDowell (NIR) is all set to defend his title that he won convincingly in 2010. But will have some stiff competition. The tournament starts on Thursday 2nd June. I will report back he took home the trophy next week. 

Keegan Bradley (USA) in Action as he won the HP Bryon Nelson Championship

Now to the second event I am reporting on this week and it is on the USPGA Tour and is the HP Byron Nelson Championship and it was played at the TPC Four Seasons Resort, Irving, Texas. And there were two players tied for the lead after 72 holes. They were a tour rookie by the name of Keegan Bradley (USA) who scored rounds of 66-4, 71+1, 72+2 and a final round of 68-2 for a 72 hole total of 277-3. But he was joined on that score by the tour veteran by the name of Ryan Palmer (USA) who scored rounds of 65-5, 67-3, 73+3 and came to the 72nd hole on -2 for the tournament knowing that a birdie was his only chance of getting into a playoff with Keegan Bradley (USA). He hit a great drive straight down the middle of the fairway, then drew his mid iron approach shot to within 5feet of the pin. And he rolled the birdie putt in for a final round score of 72+2 for a 72 hole total of 277-3. So it was back to the 18th tee for those two players where the 1st playoff hole was to begin.

Earlier on in the final round it looked like the Japanese player by the name of Ryuji Imada (Japan) was in control of the tournament when he birdied the Par 3, 13th hole to moved to -5 and had a 2shot lead over the field. But he capitulated under the pressure of the finals holes making bogeys on holes 15th, 17th and 18th to eventually finish at 278-2 after 72 holes and tie for 3rd with Joe Ogilvie (USA).

So to the 1st playoff hole between Keegan Bradley (USA) and Ryan Palmer (USA). Keegan Bradley (USA) drew number 1 from the hat and teed off 1st. He hit his drive into the right trees where most of the players were hitting it all day because of the severe left to right wind blowing across the hole and the fear of losing the ball left because of the water hazard on the left hand side where the drives would land. Ryan Palmer (USA) hit 2nd and his drive too landed in the right trees. Keegan Bradley (USA) hit his 2nd shot 1st and hit a brilliant hook shot bending it right around the trees and landing it on the fringe just short of the green. Ryan Palmer (USA) who had what seemed the much easier shot, although he had to keep it low under the trees in front of him, played a terrible 2nd shot which hooked too quickly and took a couple of bounces in the fairway before splashing in the water hazard on the left just short of the green. He took his penalty dropped but got a bad break when his ball landed on the slope halfway up the hill and gave him a severe chip with the ball above his feet. He chipped it the best he could but it landed about 12feet short of the hole.



Keegan Bradley (USA) with the HP Bryon Nelson Trophy he won, with the
Late Bryon Nelson's widow on the left

That meant all that Keegan Bradley (USA) had to do was get down in 2shots from 35feet and he had won his 1st USPGA Tour event. He hit a brilliant 3rd shot using a putter just off the green and it rolled to within 3feet of the hole. Ryan Palmer (USA) then holed his bogey putt. So all Keegan Bradley (USA) had to do now was sink the 3foot par putt and the Tournament was his. And that is just what he did. He got 500 FedEx Cup points for the win that place him now 20th on the FedEx Cup points list with 842 points earned from the 16 events he has played on tour this year to date. He is 541 points behind the current FedEx Cup point’s leader Bubba Watson (USA) who has earned 1,383 points from the 12 events he has played to date this year. 

He also earned $US 1,170,000.00 for the win and places him 19th on the USPGA Tour Money list with $US 1,767,548 earned from the 16 events he has played this year to date. Luke Donald (USA) still leads with $US 3,344,867 earned from the 8 events he has played this year to date. Keegan Bradley (USA) is now exempt on the USPGA Tour till the end of 2013 season and he also fulfils a lifelong dream, which is getting an invite to the 2012 Masters Tournament. It is a dream start to his rookie year on the USPGA Tour having gained his card from the Nationwide Tour in 2010 where he finished 14th on money list earning $US 264,760 from the 28 events he played finishing well inside the top 25 players that earn their cards. Now he has won he should gain more confidence and belief in himself. And I look for him to have many more good finishes in 2011. He comes from a big golfing family with his Father being a Club Professional and his Aunty Pat Bradley (USA) who was a Hall of Famer on the LPGA Tour. 

Jason Day (Australia) who was defending his 1st USPGA Tour title had a good defence scoring 283-1 and finished in solo 4th position. It just continues on his fine form where he has had 6 Top 10 finishes from 12 events he has played so far this year. All he is lacking is a win. I feel that should come in the next few months. Tied for 5th were John Rollins (USA) and Matt Kuchar (USA) on even par. Rounding out the Top 10 in tied 8th position were James Driscoll (USA) who scored the best final round of 66-4, Jason Dufner (USA), Nick Watney (USA), Jeff Overton (USA), Rod Pampling (Australia), and Arjun Atwal (India) who all were +1. Sergio Garcia (Spain) blew a golden opportunity to win on the USPGA Tour again when he started the final round only 1shot off the lead. But he scored a terrible 77+7 in the final round and finished up tied 20th at 283+3 after 72 holes. But the 17 year old Amateur Jordan Spieth (USA) who made the cut in this event for the 2nd year running scored rounds of 69-1, 68-2, 72+2 and a poor final round of 77+7 to finish up 72 holes at 286+6. Because he made the cut it meant he missed his high school graduation on Saturday Afternoon. He is off to University now but in 3 or 4 years time when he graduates I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw him start a successful Professional Golf Career on the USPGA Tour. I wish him all the best with his future.

The last 3 days of the tournament scoring was made extremely difficult with the 30 – 35 mile an hour winds blowing. -3 was the highest winning total of the 2011 USPGA Tour Season so far. And it proves that strong winds make scores sky rocket. But it is good to see the Professionals having to deal with these conditions every so often. Next week on the USPGA Tour it is the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance and is played at the Jack Nicklaus designed course that is Muirfield Village GC, Dublin, Ohio. It is always one of my favourite tournaments to watch every year on the USPGA Tour. With a purse of $US 6,200,000 to play for it is going to attract another great field. Justin Rose (England) will be looking to defend his title he won last year. It starts on Thursday 2nd June. I will report back who won the trophy next week.

So to the Top 5 on the Official World Rankings this week. Coming in at number 1 is the New World Number 1 for the 1st time in his Career Luke Donald (England) with 9.14 Official World Rankings Points, In 2nd Position is Lee Westwood (England) with 8.74 Official World Ranking Points, In 3rd Position is Martin Kaymer (Germany) with 7.41 Official World Ranking Points, In 4th Position is Phil Mickelson (USA) with 6.18 Official World Ranking Points, and rounding out the top 5 on the rankings this week is Graeme McDowell (NIR) with 5.62 Official World Ranking Points. Tiger Woods (USA) has slipped a further place to 13th in the Official World Rankings Points list with 4.86 Official World Ranking Points. Best New Zealander on the list is Danny Lee (NZL) in 291st position with 0.57 Official World Ranking Points.



Tom Watson (USA) with the Senior PGA Championship Trophy he won


So to the final event I am reporting on this week and it is on the Champions Tour and was the 2nd Major of the year which was the 72nd Senior PGA Championship presented by Kitchen Aid and was played at Valhalla Golf Club, Louisville, Kentucky. And Tom Watson (USA) played awesome golf to score rounds of 70-2, 70-2, 68-4 and a final round 70-2 for a 72 hole total of 278-10. But he was joined on that score by David Eger (USA) who scored rounds of 74+2, 68-4, 69-3 and a final round of 67-5 for a 72 hole total of 278-10 as well. Both players had birdie putts on the 72nd green which would have won them the tournament, but they were unable to convert under the intense pressure that comes with winning a Major Championship. So they both headed back to the 18th hole for the 1st playoff hole. Tom Watson (USA) teed off 1st and hit his drive on the par 5, straight down the middle of the fairway. David Eger (USA) teed off 2nd and hit his drive in the left rough. David Eger (USA) hit a layup for his 2nd shot about 150 yards from the green. Tom Watson (USA) went for the green with his 2nd shot and it came up just short in the front fairway bunker. David Eger (USA) hit good short iron 3rd shot to about 15 feet from the hole. Tom Watson (USA) then hit his 3rd shot from the front green side bunker to 3feet from the cup. David Eger (USA) just missed his birdie attempt. That meant that Tom Watson (USA) had his 3 foot birdie to win the 72nd Senior Championship presented by Kitchen Aid and that is just what he did.

It was the 2nd time he has won this Championship and he is the 2nd oldest winner of this championship at age 61. The oldest winner was late Jock Hutchison who won this Championship at age 62, back in 1947. It was his 6th Major Championship win on the Champions Tour and the 14th of his all time career having won 8 Majors on the regular USPGA Tour. For the win he earns $US 360,000.00 that places him 7th on the Champions Tour Money list with $537,530 earned from the 7 events he has played this year to date. Tom Lehman (USA) is still leading the Champions Tour Money list with $US 1,168,595 earned from the 8events he has played this year to date, and that includes 3wins.

Tom Watson (USA) also moves to 2nd on the Charles Schwab Cup Points list with 850 points earned from the 5 events he has played this year to date. He is 582 points behind the leader Tom Lehman (USA) who has 1,432 Points from the 8 events he has played to date this year. Every time Tom Watson (USA) wins I feel it is great because he has been a real asset to the game of golf with his great attitude towards the Sport. He never complains or makes excuses. He just gets the job done with a smile on his face. I hope he can win some more tournaments before the years over.

David Eger (USA) although he must be disappointed, can’t be too unhappy with his 2nd place finish. In 3rd place was Kiyoshi Murota (Japan) on -9, 65 year old Hale Irwin (USA) had a brilliant tournament finishing 4th on his own at -8, Eduardo Romero (Argentina) and Peter Senior (Australia) were tied 5th on -7. Nick Price (Zimbabwe) was 7th on his own at -6, and rounding out the top 10 in tied 8th place were Steve Pate (USA), Corey Pavin (USA) and Loren Roberts (USA) at -5. 

Next week the Champions Tour heads to Iowa for the Principal Charity Classic and it is played at the Glen Oaks CC, West Des Moines, Iowa. Nick Price (Zimbabwe) is the defending champion and with a purse of $US 1,725,000 up for the taking it is going to attract another strong field. It starts on Friday 3rd June, I will report back who took home the trophy next week.

So until then remember making all your putts inside 10 feet will mean lower scores!!!

Source: pgatour.com, europeantour.com