Golf Events from the Weekend 11th December 2011

Well it was another exciting weekend from the Golf Tournaments from all over the World. First I will start with the European Tour and the finale to the Race to Dubai which was the Dubai World Championship presented by DP World and it was played on the Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. And it was the Golfer by the name of Alvaro Quiros (Spain) that scored rounds of 68-4, 64-8, 70-2 and a final round of 67-5 for a 72 hole total of 269-19 and won by 2strokes. He won the huge first prize winners cheque of € 922,645.41 for his efforts. He moved to 6th position on the final 2011 Race to Dubai Money list with € 2,259,242 earned from the 23 events he played this year and he only missed 3 cuts. And € 332,152.35 of the money he won was Race to Dubai Bonus Pool money for finishing inside the top 15 on the final Race to Dubai Money list. Luke Donald (England) won the Race to Dubai Money List with €5,323,400 earned from the 13 events he played in. I will mention more about his amazing feat he achieved later.

Alvaro Quiros (Spain) played a great final round after leading by 2 strokes after 54 holes. He scored a final round of 67-5 which included a front nine of 34-2, with birdies on the Par 4, 1st hole, Par 5, 2nd hole, Par 4, 3rd hole, Par 4, 5th hole and Par 5, 7th hole. But he made poor bogeys on the Par 3, 4th hole, Par 3, 6th hole and Par 4, 9th hole. He had a brilliant back nine of 33-3 that included a birdie on the Par 5, 14th hole, he came to the 18th hole with a one stroke lead at -17 over Luke Donald (England) who had finished on -16 and Paul Lawrie (Scotland) who was also -16 who he was playing with. He hit the Par 5, 18th hole in 2 shots and was left with a 30 foot putt for eagle. Paul Lawrie (Scotland) had knocked his 3rd shot with his wedge into 7feet from the hole. So Alvaro Quiros (Spain) knew that he had to 2 putt for the win. But he went one better and holed his 30 foot putt for eagle to win by 2 strokes. Alvaro Quiros (Spain) then danced about in celebration.

Alvaro Quiros (Spain) holding the Dubai World Championship presented by DP trophy he won

It was Alvaro Quiros (Spain) sixth European Tour International Schedule victory in his 119th European Tour event. He moves to €2,259,242 in The Race to Dubai. This is his highest single-season earnings. It was his second victory of the 2011 European Tour season, following the Omega Dubai Desert Classic. And he would record multiple victories in the same season for the first time in his career. Alvaro Quiros (Spain) moves into the top 20 of the Official World Golf Ranking, from 52nd. He becomes the 11th multiple winner of the season. They are: Luke Donald (England) (WGC – Accenture Match Play Championship, BMW PGA Championship and Barclays Scottish Open), Thomas Björn (Denmark) (Commercialbank Qatar Masters presented by Dolphin Energy, Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles and Omega European Masters), Charl Schwartzel (Joburg Open and Masters Tournament), Martin Kaymer (Germany) (Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and WGC – HSBC Champions), Darren Clarke (NIR) (Iberdrola Open and The 140th Open Championship), Alex Noren (Sweden)  (Saab Wales Open and Nordea Masters), Simon Dyson (England) (Irish Open presented by Discover Ireland and KLM Open), Michael Hoey (NIR) (Madeira Islands Open and Alfred Dunhill Links Championship), Sergio Garcia (Spain) (Castelló Masters and Andalucía Masters), Rory McIlroy (NIR) (US Open Championship and UBS Hong Kong Open) and Alvaro Quiros (Spain) (Omega Dubai Desert Classic and Dubai World Championship presented by DP World).

This victory is his third Desert title from his six European Tour triumphs overall, including three of his last four wins. They are: 2009 Commercialbank Qatar Masters presented by Dolphin Energy, 2011 Omega Dubai Desert Classic and 2011 Dubai World Championship presented by DP World. He makes European Tour history by becoming the first player to win three different European Tour events in the Desert. They are: Commercialbank Qatar Masters presented by Dolphin Energy, Omega Dubai Desert Classic and Dubai World Championship presented by DP World. This victory comes in his third appearance in the Dubai World Championship presented by DP World. He was tied 42nd in 2009, tied third in 2010 and first in 2011. He joins Ernie Els (RSA) (2005 Dubai Desert Classic and 2005 Qatar Masters), as the only players to win consecutive European Tour events in the Desert, having won the 2011 Omega Dubai Desert Classic. Alvaro Quiros (Spain) continues his wonderful record in recent years in European Tour events in the Desert. Since the start of the 2009 season he has played in 13 events in the Middle East, winning three and finishing in the top ten in eight of the 13. This win is the sixth Spanish victory of the 2011 season. They are: Pablo Martin (Spain) (Alfred Dunhill Championship (Dec 2010), Alvaro Quiros (Spain) (Omega Dubai Desert Classic and Dubai World Championship presented by DP World), Pablo Larrazabal (Spain) (BMW International Open) and Sergio Garcia (Spain) (Castelló Masters and Andalucía Masters). It was the 163rd Spanish victory in European Tour history. It was Alvaro Quiros (Spain) seventh win as a professional. He has now won €5 million in European Tour Official Career Earnings. He gains a five year European Tour exemption until the end of the 2016 season. This is his largest European Tour prize of €922,645. And finally gains a place in the 2012 Masters Tournament (as a result of moving back into the top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking by the end of 2011), the 2012 US Open Championship and 2012 Open Championship, as a result of his finishing position in The Race to Dubai and the three World Golf Championship events.

I hope Alvaro Quiros (Spain) can build on this win and Achieve even better things in the 2012 European Tour season with perhaps even a Major Win? I wish him all the best with his golf career in the future. Coming in at solo 2nd position at 271-17 after 72 holes was the 1999 Open Champion, Paul Lawrie (Scotland), he earned € 615,094 for his efforts and end up in 18th position on the final Race to Dubai European Tour Money list with € 1,142,013 earned from the 24 events he played in. It ended a fine season for him in which he won the Open de Andalucía de Golf by Turkish Airlines in late March ending a 9 year winless drought. I hope he can continue on his great form in 2012 on the European Tour.

In solo 3rd position at 272-16 after 72 holes was Luke Donald (England) he won € 359,831.71 for his weeks work and also a share of € 1,107,174.49 from the Race to Dubai Bonus Pool Money for finishing top of the Race to Dubai Money List and his final earnings on that list were € 5,323,400 from the 13 events he played in. He achieved 3 wins that included the WGC – Accenture Match Play Championship, BMW PGA Championship, Barclays Scottish Open. He was Runner up in the Volvo World Match Play Championship, WGC – Bridgestone Invitational. He had 5 other top 10 finishes which included a tie for 3rd at the Dubai World Championship presented by DP World, a tie for 4th at the Masters Tournament, a tied for 6th at the WGC – Cadillac Championship, a tie for 8th at the US PGA Championship and a tied for 9th at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. The money he won on average per event was €324,325 (excluding Bonus Pool). He had a stroke average of 69.12 strokes per round. He was a total of -90 under par for the 41 rounds of stroke play he played. And 37 of those rounds were par or better. And 27 of those rounds were under par and 22 of those under par rounds being in the 60’s. Luke Donald (England) becomes the European Tour Number One for the first time. He becomes the first player to be Number One on The European Tour and the US PGA Tour Money lists in the same season. He becomes the fifth Englishman to win the Harry Vardon Trophy since The European Tour’s first season in 1972. He follows: Peter Oostherhuis (England) (1972, 73, 74), Sir Nick Faldo (England) (1983, 92), Lee Westwood (England) (2000, 09) and Justin Rose (England) (2007). And finally became the World Number One when he won the BMW PGA Championship in May and has been there for 30 consecutive weeks by the final ranking of 2011. It has also been a very happy year for him on and off the course when just last month his wife Diane gave birth to their 2nd child Sophia Ann Donald, but sadness struck a few days before with the death of Luke Donald’s (England) Father. And this coming week he is heading down to Melbourne, Australia to play in the JBWere Masters. And he won the USPGA Tour Player of the Year title. So it will be great for the Australians to see the World Number 1 play in the flesh. The only thing Luke Donald (England) is lacking now is a Major Championship, but I believe he will win a Major next year. I know he will continue the great form he displayed in 2011 in 2012 on both the USPGA Tour and the European Tour. I wish him all the best in the future as well.

Luke Donald (England) is presented the Race to Dubai Trophy from George O'Grady from the European Tour

In solo 4th position was Peter Hanson (Sweden), he scored 274-14 after 72 holes and earned € 276,793.62 for his efforts. His final position on the Race to Dubai Money list for 2011 was 13th with € 1,500,590 earned from the 24 events he played in and € 166,076.17 of the money he won was Race to Dubai Bonus Pool money for finishing inside the top 15 on the final Race to Dubai Money list. In solo 5th position was Charl Schwartzel (RSA), he scored 275-13 after 72 holes and won € 221,434.90 for his weeks work. His final position on the Race to Dubai Money list for 2011 was 4th and he earned € 2,929,829 from the 18 events he played in which included 2 wins. And € 442,869.80 of the money he won was Race to Dubai Bonus Pool money for finishing inside the top 15 on the final Race to Dubai Money list.

Tied for 6th position at 276-12 after 72 holes were Francesco Molinari (Italy), he earned € 170,290.82 for his weeks work and his final position on the 2011 Race to Dubai Money list was 21st with € 1,087,852 earned from the 22 events he played in. Also tied for 6th position was Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) who too earned € 170,290.82 for his weeks work. He finished in 15th position on the final Race to Dubai Money list with € 1,409,126 earned from the 22 events he played in and € 138,396.81 of the money he won was Race to Dubai Bonus Pool money for finishing inside the top 15 on the final Race to Dubai Money list. In tied for 8th position at 277-11 after 72 holes was Shane Lowry (Ireland), he won € 143,932.68 for his weeks work and he finished in 41st position on the final Race to Dubai Money list with € 764,778 earned from the 25 events he played in. Also tied for 8th position was Robert Rock (England) he too earned € 143,932.68 for his weeks work and finished in 34th position on the final Race to Dubai Money list with € 818,014 earned from the 32 events he played in.

Rounding out the top 10 in solo 10th position at 278-10 after 72 holes was Pablo Larrazabal (Spain), he won € 127,325.07 for his weeks work and finished in 17th position on the final Race to Dubai Money list with € 1,183,040 earned from the 33 events he played in.

So that brought an end to the Race to Dubai European Tour season for 2011 with the 52 tournaments being completed and it travelled through 29 different Destinations. The European Tour has turned into the World Golf Tour. The European Tour now takes a break until early January where it will begin the 2012 Race to Dubai season in South Africa.   

The second tournament I am reporting on this week is the Franklin Templeton Shootout and it was played on the Tiburon GC, Naples, Florida. It is a unique Tournament where 12 two man teams play the first round Modified Alternate Shot - Each player hits a drive on every hole and one drive is selected. The player whose drive is NOT selected hits the second shot, and then play alternate shots until the ball is holed. Second Round, Better Ball - Each player plays through every hole using his own ball. The player whose score is the lowest on each hole will be the team score for that hole. Final Round, Scramble - Each player hits a drive on every hole and the best drive is selected. Each player then plays a second shot from the spot where the selected drive lays, and the best second shot is selected. This process is repeated until the hole is completed. And it was the Team of Keegan Bradley (USA)/Brendan Steele (USA) who scored 63-9 in the first round Modified Alternate Shot, 62-10 in the Second Round, Better Ball and 59-13 in the Final Round, Scramble for a 54 hole total of 184-32 and won by 3 strokes in their very first attempt.

Keegan Bradley (USA) in action during the final round

They both combined very well as a team and proved why Keegan Bradley (USA) had won the Rookie of the Year title on the USPGA Tour for the 2011 season. They both won $US 375,000 for their efforts which just adds to their bank balances for 2011. They just played too steady on the back nine for all the other teams that were chasing them with making lots of birdies and the odd eagle. Coming in tied for  2nd place, 3 strokes back at 187-29 after 72 holes was Rory Sabbatini (RSA) & Jhonattan Vegas (Venezuela), they came home strong in the final round scoring 60-12 and they won each $US 187,500. Also tied for 2nd place was two Champions Tour Golfers by the names of Mark Calcavecchia (USA) & Nick Price (Zimbabwe). They too won each $US 187,500 for their efforts. Coming in at tied for 4th position on 188-28 after 54 holes were Charles Howell III (USA) & Justin Leonard (USA) and they scored the equal best final round of 58-14, they each won $US 102,500 for their efforts. Also tied for 4th position were Jerry Kelly (USA) & Steve Stricker (USA), they too each won $US 102,500 for their efforts and they record an awesome final round of 59-13.There were 4 teams tied for 6th position on 190-26 after 54 holes and they were Rickie Fowler (USA) & Camilo Villegas (Columbia), Stewart Cink (USA) & Bo Van Pelt (USA) who too scored the equal best final round of 58-14. Chad Campbell (USA) & Chris DiMarco (USA) and they too had an awesome final round of 59-13. And the final team to tie for 6th position was Kenny Perry (USA) & Scott Stallings (USA), all these 4 teams earned $US 81,875 each for their efforts.

In solo 10th position at 191-25 after 54 holes were the team of Jason Dufner  (USA) & Sean O’Hair (USA). They won each $US75,000  for their efforts. In solo 11th Position at 192-24 after 54 holes were the Tournament host Greg Norman  (Australia) & Scott McCarron (USA), they each earned $US 72,500 for their efforts. And getting the wooden spoon for coming last out of 12 teams and in solo 12th position on 193-23 after 54 holes were Anthony Kim (USA) & Webb Simpson (USA) and they won $US 70,000 each for their efforts.

The USPGA Tour now takes a break to early January 2012 where it will recommence on the Thursday 5th January for the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and it is being played at the Plantation Course at Kapalua, Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii. It is only for the players that won a tournament on the USPGA Tour in 2011. It carries a huge prize purse of $US 5,600,000. Jonathan Byrd (USA) is the defending Champion and will be looking to win back to back titles. I will report back who won next year.    

Now to the Top 5 players on the Official World Golf Rankings. Coming in at Number One for the 29th week in a row is Luke Donald (England) with 10.29 Official World Golf Ranking Points, coming in at Number Two is Rory McILroy (NIR) with 8.00 Official World Golf Ranking Points, coming in at Number Three is Lee Westwood (England) with 7.81 Official World Golf Ranking Points, coming in at Number Four is Martin Kaymer (Germany) with 6.78 Official World Golf Ranking Points and rounding out the Top 5 is Adam Scott (Australia) with 5.66 Official World Golf Ranking Points. Tiger Woods (USA) this week slips one place to 22nd on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list with 3.69 Official World Golf Ranking Points. Danny Lee (NZL) is still the highest ranked New Zealander in the World. This week he slips 1 place to be at 157th position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list with 1.16 Official World Golf Ranking Points.

The third tournament I am reporting on this week is the Final Qualifying Stage of the European Tour which was 108 Holes, and it was played on the PGA Cataluyna Resort, Girona, Spain. And it was the Golfer by the name of David Dixon (England) that was the medallist at the Final Qualifying Stage of the European Tour. He scored rounds of 74, 65, 63, 69, 67 and a final round of 69 for an 108 hole total of 407-21 and won by 1 stroke. He won € 16,000.00 for the win and will be playing on the European Tour and Race to Dubai in 2012. He regained his European Tour Card back for another year after finishing in 139th position with € 175,108 earned from the 31 events he played on the 2011 European Tour, Race to Dubai season (Only the Top 115 players kept their full playing Status for the 2012 European Tour Season). He played a solid final round with scoring 69-3. He went out in a front nine of 36 even par with birdies on the Par 4, 1st hole and Par 4, 2nd hole but suffered a poor double bogey on the Par 4, 9th hole. He came in with a back nine of 33-3 that included two eagles, one on the Par 5, 12th and the other one on the Par 5, 16th hole. He added a couple of birdies as well, one on the Par 3, 11th hole and the other one on the Par 3, 16th hole. He made bogey on the Par 4, 10th hole and had a poor double bogey on the Par 4, 13th hole.

David Dixon (England) holding the Medallist trophy he won for winning the European Tour Qualifying School

So I feel he will have a much better 2012 season on the European Tour and he will be looking to put some good performances in on the early tournaments in South Africa in early January. And he has already won a European Tour Event back in 2008 when he won the SAINT-OMER OPEN presented by NEUFLIZE OBC. I wish David Dixon (England) lots of success on the European Tour and Race to Dubai in 2012.

In solo 2nd place on 408-20 after 108 holes was Sam Hutsby (England). In solo 3rd place on 409-19 after 108 holes was Andy Sullivan (England). In solo 4th place on 410-18 after 108 holes was Richard Bland (England). In tied for 5th place on 411-17 after 108 holes were Steven O’Hara (Scotland) and Jordi Garcia (Spain). In solo 7th place on 412-16 after 108 holes was Knut Borsheim (Norway). In tied for 8th place on 413-15 after 108 holes were Gary Orr (Scotland) and Emiliano Grillo (Argentina) and rounding out the top 10 in tied for 10th position at 414-14 after 108 holes were Guillaume Cambis (France) and Branden Grace (RSA).

The cut off for a 2012 European Tour Card came at 421-7 after 108 holes and 37 Golfers achieved that mark and now have full playing Status on the 2012 European Tour and Race to Dubai. Here are the remaining 26 Golfers that qualified: Joakim Lagergren (Sweden), Thomas Norret (Denmark), Matthew Nixon (England), Bernd Ritthammer (Germany), Warren Abery (RSA), Lloyd Kennedy (England), Darren Fichardt (RSA), Adrien Bernadet (France), Mikael Lundberg (Sweden), Agustin Domingo (Spain), Julien Guerrier (France), Adrian Otaegui (Spain), Matthew Southgate (England), Wil Besseling (Netherlands), Peter Gustafsson (Sweden), Reinier Saxton (Netherlands), Alex Haindl (Netherlands), Scott Pinckney (USA), Tjaart Van Der Walt (RSA), Tim Sluiter (Netherlands), HP Bacher (Austria), Jamie Elson (England), Victor Riu (France), Taco Remkes (Netherlands), Maarten Lafeber (Netherlands) and Andrew Marshall (England).

.

So until my next Golf Blog next week remember a smooth putting stroke will hole more short putts!

Source: pgatour.com, europeantour.com