Well it was another great weekend of Golf to finish off the year on the Professional Golf Tours from around the world. First I will start with the PGA Tour of Australasia and this week it was the final event of 2011 PGA Tour of Australasia season and it was the JBWere Masters from Victoria Golf Club, Melbourne, Australia. And it was the Golfer by the name of Ian Poulter (England) that scored rounds of 65-6, 68-3, 69-2 and a final round of 67-4 for a 72 hole total of 269-15 and he won by 3 strokes for his first ever JBWere Master win and he got to wear the Gold Jacket that comes with the win and the Waterford Chrystal Trophy as well. He won $AU 180, 000 for the win but because he isn’t a member of the PGA Tour of Australasia he doesn’t get a ranking on the Australasian Order of Merit.
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| Ian Poulter (England) with the Trophy and Gold Jacket he won |
He played a great final round with a score of 67-4 in very tough conditions with winds gusting up to 50kmph. He got off to the best possible start when he drove the short par 4, 1st hole with his rescue wood and sank the 25 foot putt for an eagle 2. Then he made 5 pars in a row with some good par putt saves. He made a long putt on the Par 3, 7th hole to get to -14, he then made a solid par on the long par 4, 8th hole. And made a fine birdie on the par 5, 9th hole where he struck his Wedge 3rd shot to within inches of the cup. He went out in an amazing 31-4 and was -15 for the tournament which meant he had a 2 shot lead over the 54 hole leader, Geoff Ogilvy (Australia) with nine holes to play. He then made six solid pars in a row to start the back nine. He moved to -16 when he holed a 25 foot birdie putt on the Par 3, 16th hole. He now had a 4 shot lead over Marcus Fraser (Australia) who had finished at 272-12 after 72 holes after a final round of 64-7 which was an excellent round under the circumstances. And it was the lowest score in the final round by 2 strokes. And his playing partner Geoff Ogilvy (Australia) also birdied the Par 3, 16th hole and he was only 4 strokes back with 2 holes to play.
On the Par 5, 17th hole Ian Poulter (England) hit his 3rd shot over the back of the green and was unable to get up and down and made his lone bogey of the round. But Geoff Ogilvy (Australia) hit his tee shot Out of Bounds and ended up making a Double Bogey 7. That meant that he fell back to -10 and Ian Poulter (England) now had a 4 shot lead over Marcus Fraser (Australia) and a 5 shot lead over Geoff Ogilvy (Australia). Ian Poulter (England) made a solid par 5 on the 72nd hole and it was enough for a 3 stroke victory. I feel the win will give him a lot of confidence to take into the 2012 season on the European Tour and USPGA Tour as well. He also moves to 20th on the Official World Golf Rankings list. I wish him all the best next year and hope he can win a Major Championship.
Coming in solo 2nd Position was Marcus Fraser (Australia), he scored rounds of 70-1, 69-2, 69-2 and a final round of 64-7 for a 72 hole total of 272-12 after 72 holes. He won $AU 102, 000.00 for coming 2nd and it was his second consecutive 2nd place finish on the 2011 PGA Tour of Australasia having finished tied for 2nd in the Australian PGA Championship presented by Coca – Cola, 3 weeks ago. His final position on the 2011 Australasian Order of Merit was 2nd with $AU 229,125.00 earned from all the events he played in. He continued on the fine form he has been showing of late with also easily keeping his European Tour card for 2012. I wish him all the best for the 2012 Season and hope he can grow on this success.
Coming in solo 3rd position was Geoff Ogilvy (Australia), he scored rounds of 71 even, 66-5, 63-8 (Which was a course record) and 73+2 for a 72 hole total of 273-11. He won $US 67, 500 for his weeks work and he finished in 6th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 126,030.00 earned from the tournaments he played in. He would be disappointed with his final round of 73+2 because the day before he was playing brilliant Golf having scored 63-8 with making 1 eagle and 9 birdies. But as so often happens after a brilliant round an average round follows. And he was just unable to hole the putts that counted in the final round. But he has just had an awesome year with having another fine year on the USPGA Tour and playing in the Presidents Cup in his home town of Melbourne just last month. I know he will get over this defeat quickly and will be ready for the USPGA Tour in early January. Maybe he can even win his 2nd Major Championship next year?
In tied for 4th position at 277-7 after 72 holes was Adam Crawford (Australia), he scored a brilliant final round of 66-5. He won $AU 44,000 for his efforts and finished up in 10th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 92,401.00 earned from the events he played in and he won the NSW Open Championship as well. It must be his best year on the PGA Tour of Australasia to date in his career? Also tied for 4th position was the ever green Peter Senior (Australia) who too won $AU 44,000 for his weeks work. He is 52 years old and finished in 17th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 51,100.00 earned from the events he played in. He too had another fine year on the Champions Tour in the US and I hope he can get a win on that tour next year after going so close this year.
In tied for 6th position at 278-6 after 72 holes was Kieran Pratt (Australia), he won $AU 32,333.33 for his weeks work and finished in 12th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 60,213.33 earned from the events he played in. Also tied for 6th position was the 2011 BMW NZ Open hosted by Christchurch Champion, Brad Kennedy (Australia), he too won $AU 32,333.33 for his weeks work and finished in 5th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 134,833.33 earned from the events he played in. The final player to tie for 6th position was Ashley Hall (Australia), he too won $AU 32,333.33 for his weeks work and finished in 16th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 51,149.07 earned from the events he played in. Life is going good for him at the moment because his wife has just had their first child.
Rounding out the top 10 in tied for 9th position at 279-5 after 72 holes was Peter Lonard (Australia) he earned $AU 24,666.66 for his weeks work and he didn’t have a final money list ranking on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit because he didn’t play the required amount of events to get one. Also tied for 9th position was Kurt Barnes (Australia), he too earned $AU 24,666.66 for his weeks work and he finished in 13th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 58,765.87 earned from the events he played in. The final player to tie for 9th position was Nathan Green (Australia), He too earned $AU 24,666.66 for his weeks work but he too didn’t have a final money list ranking on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit because he didn’t play the required amount of events to get one. The reason for that was he was at the USPGA Tour Qualifying School and he regained his card back for the 2012 USPGA Tour season so well done to him.
The world number 1 golfer Luke Donald (England) had a disappointing tournament finishing tied for 12th after 72 holes on 280-4. He won AU$ 14, 285 for his weeks work, but because he isn’t a member of the PGA Tour of Australasia so he doesn’t have a money list ranking. He said afterwards he would like to come back to Australia because he loved it so much. David Smail (NZL) was the best placed New Zealand Golfer in the field. He scored 70-1, 73+2, 65-6 and a final round of 72+1 for a 72 hole total of 280-4 and he too tied for 12th position. He too won AU$ 14, 285 for his weeks work and finished in 61st position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 17,578.33 earned from the events he played in.
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| Greg Chalmers (Australia) the 2011 Australasian Tour Order of Merit winner |
Greg Chalmers (Australia) who was going for the Triple Crown in Australian Golf this week which is winning the Australian Open, Australian PGA Championship and Australian Masters in the same year. He had already achieved the first two I mentioned by winning both of them. And this week at the JBWere Masters he was trying to do what only one Golfer had done before in PGA Tour of Australasia history. And that was done 6 years ago by Robert Allenby (Australia). He got off to a good start in the first round scoring 69-2. In the second round he scored 70-1 and was 3 under after 36 holes easily making the cut but 6 strokes back from the 36 hole leader Ian Poulter (England). In the third round Greg Chalmers (Australia) scored a fine round of 67-4 and moved to -7 after 54 holes and now 6 strokes back of the 54 hole leader, Geoff Ogilvy (Australia). He knew he need a final round in the low 60’s to have any chance of winning and gaining that Triple Crown Title. However the strong winds on the last day caused him to score a final round of 74+3 and he finished up at 280-4 after 72 holes and in tied for 12th place. He won AU$ 14, 285 for his weeks work and also won the 2011 Australasian Order of Merit Title with $AU 554,285.00 earned from the 3 events he played in which is great for him. And he was presented with the medal for that by the PGA Tour of Australasia Official. He won the 2011 Australasian Order of Merit Title by $AU 325, 160.00 over Marcus Fraser (Australia). For winning the 2011 Australasian Order of Merit Title he will gain an exemption into the 2012 Open Championship and all the WGC – Championships except the Accenture World Match play where only the top 64 on the Official World Golf Rankings get a start. I wish him all the best with his Golf Career and hope he can win his maiden event on the USPGA Tour in 2012.
Next best New Zealand Golfer was Gareth Paddison (NZL), he scored 69-2, 71 even, 70-2 and a final round of 73+2 for a 72 hole total of 283-1 and tied for 29th position. He won $AU 6,400.00 for his weeks work and he finished in 41st position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 28,144.00 earned from the events he played in. The next best New Zealand was Michael Hendry (NZL), he scored rounds of 71 even, 72+1, 71 even and 71 even for a 72 hole total of 285+1 and he tied for 40th position. He earned $AU 4,400.00 for his weeks work and he finished in 80th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 12,501.00 earned from the events he played in. Next best New Zealander was Josh Geary (NZL), he scored 73+2, 68-3, 73+2 and a final round of 72+1 for a 72 hole total of 286+2 and finished in tied for 44th position. He earned $AU 3,600.00 for his weeks work and he finished in 25th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 39,630.00 earned from the events he played in and he was the highest placed New Zealand Golfer on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit. Also tied for 44th position was Douglas R Holloway (NZL), he scored rounds of 71 even, 67-4, 76+5 and a final round of 72+1 for a 72 hole total of 286+2. He too earned $AU 3,600.00 for his weeks work and he finished in 48th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 25,356.58 earned from the events he played in.
Phil Tataurangi (NZL) scored rounds of 69-2, 71 even, 74+3 and a final round of 74+3 for a 72 hole total of 288+4 and he finished in tied for 52nd position. He earned $AU 2,350.00 for his weeks work and he finished in 125th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 3,186.00 earned from the events he played in. Brad Shilton (NZL) scored rounds of 74+3, 70-1, 73+2 and a final round of 73+2 for a 72 hole total of 290+6 and he was in solo 56th position. He earned $AU 2,180.00 for his weeks work and finished in 65th position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 16,912.79 earned from the events he played in. Mahal Pearce (NZL) was the final New Zealand Golfer to make the cut. He scored rounds of 67-4, 71 even, 75+4 and a final round of 78+7 for a 72 hole total of 291+7 and he finished in tied for 57th position. He earned $AU 2,160.00 for his weeks work and finished in 53rd position on the final 2011 Australasian Order of Merit with $AU 20,540.94 earned from the events he played in.
The lower Amateur for the week was Bryden MacPherson (Australia) (AM), he scored rounds of 73+2, 71 even, 74+3 and a final round of 67-4 for a 72 hole total of 285+1 and finished in tied for 40th position. The 36 hole cut fell at 144+2 and the New Zealand Golfers that failed to make the 36 hole cut were Ben Campbell (NZL) (AM) who scored rounds of 73+2 and 72+1 for a 36 hole total of 145+3 and missed the 36 hole cut by 1 stroke. Brenden Stuart (NZL) scored rounds of 77+6 and 69-2 for a 36 hole total of 146+4 and missed the 36 hole cut by 2 strokes. Bradley Iles (NZL) scored rounds of 72+1 and 75+4 for a 36 hole total of 147+5 and missed the 36 hole cut by 3 strokes. 2005 US Open Champion, Michael Campbell (NZL) scored rounds of 72+1 and 76+5 for a 36 hole total of 148+6 and missed the 36 hole cut by 4 strokes. David Klein (NZL) scored rounds of 76+5 and 72+1 for a 36 hole total of 148+6 and missed the 36 hole cut by 4 strokes as well.
The PGA Tour of Australasia now takes a break till January 2012 when it will recommence.
The second event I am reporting on this week was the final event on the Asian Tour for 2011 and it was the Thailand Golf Championship. It was played at the Amata Spring Country Club, Bangkok and it was the Golfer by the name of Lee Westwood (England) who scored rounds of 60-12, 64-8, 73+1 and a final round of 69-3 for a 72 hole total of 266-22 and he won by 7 strokes. He won $US 158,500.00 for the win but because he didn’t play enough events on Asian Tour in 2011 he doesn’t have a ranking on the Asian Tour Order of Merit. And it was a shame because he won 3 times this year on the Asian Tour with the other two wins being on back to back weeks in April and they were the Indonesian Masters and Ballantine’s Championship. He played a steady final round of 69-3 that included a front nine 35-1 where he birdied the Par 5, 2nd hole and Par 4, 3rd hole. He made a poor bogey on the Par 3, 5th hole. He came home in 34-2 which included birdies at the Par 4, 12th hole, Par 3, 13th hole and Par 5, 15th hole with his lone bogey coming at the Par 3, 17th hole. His win at the Thailand Golf Championship was his fourth victory of the season. It was Lee Westwood’s (England) 37th career victory, thanks to a 22-under-par 266 aggregate total and will see him move up one rung to second place on the Official World Golf Rankings to finish the year for 2011.
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| Lee Westwood (England) in action during the final round of the Thailand Golf Championship |
Lee Westwood (England) said this after his win “It means a lot. Any win does. It’s special this week because of the difficulty of the golf course, and whom I was up against in the weekend. Charl is the Masters champion and he’s had a great year. 20 under after two rounds, it’s yours to lose really with an 11 shot lead. There was pressure involved. I was pleased with the way I played today,” . It was a commanding wire-to-wire victory for Lee Westwood (England) and ended his year on a winning note. I hope in 2012 he can finally break through and win that first Major Championship that he long deserves. I wish him all the best on the European Tour and USPGA Tour for the 2012 season.
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| Lee Westwood (England) with the Thailand Golf Championship trophy he won |
Coming in solo 2nd position was Charl Schwartzel (RSA), he scored rounds of 69-3, 66-6, 66-6 and a final round of 72 even par for a 72 hole total 273-15. He won $US 108,500.00 for his weeks work but because he isn’t a member of the Asian Tour he doesn’t have a ranking on their Order of Merit. Charl Schwartzel (RSA) has just concluded one of his best years in Professional Golfer and winning his first Major Championship in April which was the Masters Tournament must be the highlight. I hope he continues his fine form in 2012 on both the European Tour and USPGA Tour. Coming in solo 3rd position was Michael Thompson (USA), he scored rounds of 69-3, 66-6, 69-3 and a final round of 70-2 for a 72 hole total of 274-14 and he earned $US 61,000.00 for his weeks work but because he only played one event in 2011 on the Asian Tour he doesn’t get an Order of Merit ranking.
Coming in tied for 4th position was Simon Dyson (England), he scored rounds of 69-3, 70-2, 68-4 and a final round of 69-3 for a 72 hole total of 276-12 and he won $US 45,150.00 for his weeks work but because he only played a few events he doesn’t get an Order of Merit ranking. Also tied for 4th position was Chawalit Plaphol (Thailand), he scored rounds of 73+1, 71-1, 65-7 and a final round of 67-5 for a 72 hole total of 276-12 and he won $US 45,150.00 for his weeks work. He finished in 19th position on the final Asian Tour Order of Merit for 2011 with $US 180,020.86 earned from the 13 events he played in. Coming in tied for 6th position was Guido Van Der Valk (Netherlands), he scored rounds of 71-1, 69-3, 66-6 and a final round of 73+1 for a 72 hole total of 279-9 and he won $US 31,500.00 for his weeks work. He finished in 59th position on the final Asian Tour Order of Merit for 2011 with $US 68,261.25 earned from the 7 events he played in. And he managed to just keep his card for the 2012 Asian Tour season. Also tied for 6th position was Daisuke Maruyama (Japan), he scored rounds of 73+1, 68-4, 68-4 and a final round of 70-2 for a 72 hole total of 279-9 and he too won $US 31,500.00 for his weeks work. He finished in 20th position on the final Asian Tour of Merit for 2011 with $US 178,560.44 earned from the 7 events he played in. In solo 8th position was Alex Cejka (Germany), he scored rounds of 71-1, 71-1, 71-1 and a final round of 67-5 for a 72 hole total of 280-8. He won $US 25,100.00 for his weeks work but because he isn’t a member of the Asian Tour he doesn’t have a ranking on their Order of Merit.
Rounding out the top 10 in tied for tied for 9th position was Tetsuji Hiratsuka (Japan), he scored rounds of 71-1, 72 even, 68-4 and a final round of 70-2 for a 72 hole total of 281-7. He won $US 20,850.00 for his weeks work. He finished in 2nd position on the final Asian Tour Order of Merit for 2011 with $US 456,667.93 earned from the 8 events he played in. Also tied for 9th position was Jeev Milkha Singh (India), he scored 71-1, 68-4, 72 even and a final round of 70-2 for a 72 hole total of 281-7. He won also $US 20,850.00 for his weeks work. He finished in 3rd position on the final Asian Tour Order of Merit for 2011 with $US $192,808.15 earned from the 10 events he played in.
The only New Zealander Golfer in the field was Mark Brown (NZL), He scored rounds of 72 even, 73+1, 70-2 and 74+2 for a 72 hole total of 289+1. He won $US 8,850.00 for his weeks work. He finished in 79th position on the final Asian Tour Order of Merit for 2011 with $US 44,323.70 earned from the 7 events he played in. It was a good effort considering he played a full schedule on the European Tour this year. This might be the tour that he will focus on next year now that he doesn’t have his European Tour Card for 2012. I wish him luck with his golf next year where ever he chooses to play his Golf.
The Happiest Golfer in the field must be Keith Horne (RSA), he scored rounds of 71-1, 75+3, 75+3 and a final round of 77+5 for a 72 hole total of 298+10. He won $US 2,950.00 for his weeks work. He finished in 61st position on the final Asian Tour Order of Merit for 2011 with $US 65,897.10 earned from the 8 events he played in and was the final player exempt for the 2012 Asian Tour Season. He was US $250.00 ahead of Filipino teenager Miguel Tabuena (Philippines) who was in 62nd position on the final Asian Tour Order of Merit for 2011 with $US 65,647.02 earned from the 13 events he played in. He will now have to go back to the Asian Tour Qualifying School in early 2012 to regain his playing status.
Juvic Pagunsan (Philippines) had a poor tournament scoring rounds of 76+4 and 81+9 for a 36 hole total of 157+13 and he missed the 36 hole cut by 10 strokes. But it didn’t make a difference to him winning the Asian Tour Order of Merit Title for 2011. He earned $US 788,298.60 from the 14 events he played in. He won the Order of Merit by $US 331, 630.67 over Tetsuji Hiratsuka (Japan). He became the first Filipino Golfer in the history of the Asian Tour to win the Order of Merit Title. He also won the Players’ Player of the Year title on the Asian Tour at the Asian Tour Awards Gala to go with the prestigious Order of Merit crown held at the St. Regis Hotel on Sunday night (18th December). 33 year old Juvic Pagunsan (Philippines) will enter the Asian Tour golf annals as the first Filipino to reach the summit in the just concluded 2011 season which came to an exciting close at the inaugural Thailand Golf Championship.
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| Juvic Pagunsan (Philippines) the Asian Tour Order of Merit and Players Player of the Year Trophies he won |
Juvic Pagunsan (Philippines) rise was due largely to a magical November where he finished second in the lucrative Barclays Singapore Open, which earned him $US 666,660. He also registered three other top-10’s at the ISPS Handa Singapore Classic, Mercuries Taiwan Masters and UBS Hong Kong Open to end the year with US $788,298. The unassuming Filipino also earned the respect of his peers by picking up the Players’ Player of the Year title, which is determined through voting, after a consistent season which saw him miss only two cuts. In his acceptance speech he said “It is an honour to be voted as the Players’ Player of the Year. It shows that my fellow competitors also believe in my abilities. I am proud of this achievement,” he also received products from BlackBerry and Starwood Hotels and Resorts points as well for his success. I hope Juvic Pagunsan (Philippines) keeps up the excellent form he displayed in 2011 and goes on to bigger and bright things in 2012 on the Asian Tour and perhaps even make it onto the European Tour?
Now to the Top 5 in the Official World Golf Rankings for the final time in 2011. Coming in at Number One for the 31st week running is Luke Donald (England) with 10.03 Official Golf World Ranking Points, coming in at Number Two is Lee Westwood (England) with 8.06 Official Golf World Ranking Points, coming in at Number Three is Rory McILroy (NIR) with 7.77 Official Golf World Ranking Points, coming in at Number Four is Martin Kaymer (Germany) with 6.55 Official Golf World Ranking Points and rounding out the top 5 is Adam Scott (Australia) with 5.50 Official Golf World Ranking Points. Tiger Woods (USA) this week slips one place to be at 23rd position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list with 3.59 Official World Golf Ranking Points. Danny Lee (NZL) is still the highest ranked New Zealander in the World. This week he moves up 6 places to be at 151st position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list with 1.14 Official World Golf Ranking Points.
So that brings an end to my Golf Blogs for 2011. I hope you all enjoyed reading them and I wish you all to have a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Prosperous New Year in 2012. So until early January 2012 when I do my next golf blog, I hope you all manage to get a few games in over the Holidays and lower your handicap.
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