Well it was a busy
weekend on the Major Professional Golf Tours from around the world. First I
will start with the PGA Tour of Australasia and this week it was in Melbourne
for the prestigious Talisker Masters (Australian Masters) and it was played on
the Kingston Heath GC, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. And it was the Golfer by
the name of Adam Scott (Australia) who scored rounds of 67-5, 70-2, 67-5 and a
final round of 67-5 for a 72 hole total of 271-17 and he won by four shots for
his maiden Talisker Masters title of his career. He won $AU 180,000 for his win
and moved to second position on the current 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order
of Merit list with $AU 180,000.00 earned from the one event he has played in.
Michael Hendry (NZL) leads that list with $AU 198,233.98 earned from the six
events he has played in so far this year.
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| Adam Scott (Australia) acknowledges the crowd during the final round |
Adam Scott
(Australia) played an awesome final round with scoring 67-5 which included a
front nine of 32-4 with birdies on the Par five, first hole, Par four, second
hole, Par four, sixth hole, Par four, Seventh hole and Par three, eighth hole
and his lone bogey came at the Par four, fourth hole. He made the turn at minus
16 and had a one stroke lead over Ian Poulter (England) who was minus 15. It
had become a match play duel between Adam Scott (Australia) and Ian Poulter
(England) because the nearest players to Ian Poulter (England) were nine
strokes back on minus 6 and they were Mark Brown (NZL) who was still on the
course and Adam Crawford (Australia) who scored the low round of the day by two
strokes which was a seven under par 65. Adam Scott (Australia) pared holes
10-12 and remained at minus 16 however, Ian Poulter (England) tried to clear
the lip of the fairway bunker for his second shot on the Par five, 12th hole
and came unstuck when he left his ball in the fairway bunker. He eventually had
to hole a good putt from just off the back of the green for his bogey six and
he fell back to minus 14 handing Adam Scott (Australia) a two stroke lead with
seven holes to play.
Adam Scott
(Australia) pared the 13-14 holes to remain at minus 16. Ian Poulter (England)
pared the Par four, thirteenth hole but made a poor bogey on the Par five,
fourteenth hole to fall back to minus 13 with four holes to play. He was now
three strokes behind Adam Scott (Australia). Both players pared the Par three,
fifteenth hole so the margin of lead was still three strokes in Adam Scott’s
(Australia) favour. Ian Poulter (England) birdied the Par four, sixteenth hole
and Adam Scott (Australia) could only manage a Par four so Adam Scott’s
(Australia) margin of lead had been reduced to two strokes with just two holes
to play. Adam Scott (Australia) must have been thinking about what happened to him
at the 141st Open Championship in July this year could not possibly happen
again? As it was the first time he had been in this position since then. Adam
Scott (Australia) hit a brilliant second shot into the Par four, seventeenth
hole and it came to rest pin high about 15 feet to the left of the flag stick.
Ian Poulter (England) hit his second shot on the green but it came up 40 feet
short of the flag stick. Ian Poulter (England) struck a good putt from 40 feet
for birdie and it came to rest about 3 feet short of the cup and he chose to
tap it in before Adam Scott (Australia) putted for his birdie. It was a bad
choice because he did the unthinkable thing and missed and eventually tapped in
for his bogey five to fall to minus 13.
Adam Scott
(Australia) now had his 15 foot birdie putt to move to minus 17 and to take a
four shot lead up the Par four, 72nd hole over Ian Poulter (England). He struck
a good putt but just missed on the right hand side and he easily tapped in for
his par four to remain at minus 16. Adam Scott (Australia) hit a booming drive
down the Par four, 72nd hole and only left himself with a short wedge shot to
the green. Ian Poulter (England) hit a poor drive and it eventually finished in
the bush to the right of the fairway. Ian Poulter (England) was lucky that he
could get a swing for his second shot and managed to put his second shot in the
left hand green side Bunker. Steve Williams who is Adam Scott’s (Australia)
caddie told him before he played his second shot “To finish off like a true
champion”. Adam Scott (Australia) took his advice and landed his short wedge
shot ten feet to the left of the flag stick pin high. The tournament was now
secured. But Ian Poulter (England) played a brilliant bunker shot from the left
green side bunker and it came to rest a foot from the cup and he tapped in for
his par four to finish at minus 13 and easily secure second place. Adam Scott
(Australia) now steadied himself and then rolled in his 10 foot birdie putt in
the centre of the cup to finish at minus 17 and he scored 35-1 on the back nine
to win by four shots over Ian Poulter (England). He punched the air in delight
and hugged his caddie Steve Williams.
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| Adam Scott (Australia) poses with the Talisker Masters Trophy and Gold Jacket he won |
It was the first
event Adam Scott (Australia) has played on the PGA Tour of Australasia in 2012 and
I feel he could well win the Order of Merit when it is finalised after the
final event in 2012 which is the Australian PGA Championship presented by Coca
– Cola which concludes on Sunday 16th December. Maybe he will do what Robert
Allenby (Australia) did seven years ago in 2005 when he won the triple crown by
winning the Australian Masters, Open and PGA Championship in the same season?
Every win he has can only easy the pain of losing the Open Championship? But he
has always maintained that he was not going to let the four bogeys he had at
the Open Championship bring him down and that he had moved on from that horror
last four holes straight after the Open Championship had finished. And at least
now he has a Gold Jacket to put around his shoulders. I wish Adam Scott
(Australia) all the best in the remaining events he plays in 2012.
Coming in solo
second position at 275-13 after 72 holes was Ian Poulter (England) as I
mentioned earlier. He will be very disappointed with his final round of even
par 72 as he was trying to be only the second player to win back to back
Masters Titles. It hadn’t been done in 22 years since Greg Norman (Australia)
did it way back in 1990. I feel if he could go back and play the back nine
again he would play a few of the shots he played differently. But hind sight is
a wonderful thing. He won $AU 102,000.00 for his efforts but because he isn’t a
member of the PGA Tour of Australasia he doesn’t get a ranking on the Order of
Merit. But he has still had a great season playing in Team Europe’s winning
Ryder Cup team and is having another great season on the European Tour and Race
to Dubai.
Coming in tied for
third position after rounds of 72 even par, 71-1, 67-5 and a final round of
69-3 for a 72 hole total of 279-9 was
Mark Brown (NZL); it was his best ever finish in the Talisker Masters and will
give him a lot of confidence heading into his own National Open next week in
Christchurch. He won $AU 57,750.00 for his efforts and now is in third position
on the current 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit list with $AU
114,287.45 earned from the four events he has played so far this year. The
other player to tie for third position with rounds of 71-1, 71-1, 69-3 and a
final round of 68-4 for a 72 hole total of 279-9 after 72 holes was Gareth
Paddison (NZL); it was also his best ever finish in the Talisker Masters and
will be a big boost to his confidence and he too will be looking to carry on
the fine form he displayed into the BMW New Zealand Open in Christchurch next
week. He won $AU 57,750.00 for his efforts and now is in fourth position on the
current 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit list with $AU 76,816.35
earned from the six events he has played so far this year.
Coming in solo fifth
position at 282-6 after 72 holes was Adam Crawford (Australia); he got a cheque
for $AU 40,000.00. He now is in fifth position on the current 2012 PGA Tour of
Australasia Order of Merit list with $AU 53,542.15 earned from the six events
he has played in to date so far this year. Coming in at tied for sixth position
at 284-4 after 72 holes was the two times Masters Champion, Peter Senior
(Australia). He played great on the weekend scoring back to back 68-4’s. He
earned a cheque for $AU 34,000.00 and he is now in 17th position on the current
2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit list with $AU 34,000.00 earned from
the one event he has played to date this year so far. Also tied for sixth
position was Michael Hendry (NZL) he scored rounds of 67-5, 69-3, 79+7 and a
final round of 69-3 for a 72 hole total of 284-4. He will be extremely
disappointed with his third round of 79+7 when he was playing in the final
group but will be pleased with how he bounced back so well with a 69-3 on
Sunday. He earned a healthy pay cheque of $AU 34,000.00 and as I mentioned
earlier he leads the current 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit list
with $AU 198,233.98 earned from the six events he has played in so far this
year. He is in fine form heading in to his national open next week and will be
looking for the double in New Zealand after winning the NZ PGA Pro – Am
Championship in early April this year in New Zealand at the Hills Golf Course just
out of Queenstown.
Coming in tied for
eight position at 286-2 after 72 holes was Graeme McDowell (NIR) who had been
invited to play in this tournament. After just scrapping through the cut on
Friday right on the number at +4 he played much better golf on the weekend
scoring 67-5 on Saturday and 71-1 on Sunday and because he finished so early on
Saturday he went up to the commentary box and did some commentary with the Fox
Sport Commentators. He won $AU 28,000.00 for his weeks work but because he
isn’t a member of the PGA Tour of Australasia he doesn’t get a ranking on the
Order of Merit. But he too has had another great season playing in Team
Europe’s winning Ryder Cup team and is having another great season on the
European Tour and Race to Dubai. Also tied for eight position was David
Brandson (Australia); he also earned $AU 28,000.00 for his weeks work and he
moved to 20th position on current 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit
list with $AU 30,308.00 earned to date from the seven events he has played in
so far this year.
Rounding out the top
10 in tied for 10th position at 287-1 after 72 holes was Matthew Millar
(Australia); he won $AU 22,333.33 for his weeks work and moved to 10th position
on the current 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit list with $AU
40,792.45 earned from the five events he has played to date this year so far. Also
tied for 10th position was the amateur, Jake Higginbottom (Australia) (Am) and
he won the low Amateur in the honours in the tournament. But because he was an
Amateur he wasn’t eligible to earn any prize money. Also tied for 10th position
was Matthew Guyatt (Australia); he will be disappointed with his final 36 holes
after having the 36 hole lead at minus 10. He won $AU 22,333.33 for his weeks
work and he is now in 16th position on the current 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia
Order of Merit list with $AU 34,237.66 earned from the six events he has played
in to date this year so far. The final player to tie for 10th position was the
2004 Australian Masters Champion, Richard Green; he won $AU 22,333.33 for his
efforts and moved to 33rd position on the current 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia
Order of Merit list with $AU 22,333.33 earned from the one event he has played
in to date this year so far. He has had another solid season in 2012 playing on
the European Tour and Race to Dubai where he finished in 78th position on the
final Race to Dubai Money list standings with € 329,965 earned from
the 23 events he played in.
Next best of the New Zealand Golfer in the field was Ryan
Fox (NZL) who scored rounds of 73+1, 73+1, 71-1 and a final round of 71-1 for a
72 hole total of 288 even par and he tied for 14th position. He won $AU
15,066.66 for his efforts and he moved to 14th position on the current 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia
Order of Merit list with $AU 37.367.89 earned from the six events he has played
in to date this year so far. Other New Zealand Golfers to make the cut were the
2003 NZ Open Champion, Mahal Pearce (NZL); he scored rounds of 69-3, 76+4, 73+1
and a final round of 73+1 for a 72 hole total of 291+3 after 72 holes and he
won $AU 8,150.00 for his efforts and he moved to 65th position on the current
2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit list with $AU 10,888.11 earned from
the five events he has played in to date this year so far. Next best New
Zealander was Michael Long (NZL); he scored rounds of 73+1, 75+3, 74+2 and 71-1
for a 72 hole total of 293+5 and he tied for 35th position. He earned $AU
5,814.28 for his efforts and moved to 64th position on the current 2012 PGA
Tour of Australasia Order of Merit list with $AU 11,097.61 earned from the six
events he has played in to date this year so far. Next best New Zealander was
Nick Gillespie (NZL); he scored rounds of 72 even, 75+3, 69-3 and 78+6 for a 72
hole total of for a 72 hole total of 294+6 and he tied for tied for 42nd
position. He earned $AU 4,800.00 for his efforts and moved to 89th position on
the current 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit list with $AU 6,569.00
earned from the five events he has played to date this year so far.
Next best New Zealander
was Kevin Smith (NZL); he scored rounds of 78+6, 69-3, 75+3 and a final round
of 73+1 for a 72 hole total of 295+7 and he tied for 45th position. He earned
$AU 3,800.00 for his efforts and moved to 101st position on the current 2012
PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit list with $AU 3,800.00 earned from the
four events he has played in to date this year so far. Next best New Zealander
was Brad Shilton (NZL); he scored rounds of 72 even par, 74+2, 76+4 and a final
round of 75+3 for a 72 hole total of 297+9 and he tied for 55th position. He
earned $AU 2,350.00 for his efforts and moved to 36th position on the current
2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit list with $AU 21,571.00 earned from
the six events he has played to date this year so far. The last player from New
Zealand to make the cut was Douglas Holloway (NZL); he scored rounds of 72 even
par, 74+2, 74+2 and a final round of 77+5 for a 72 hole total of 297+9 and he
tied for 55th position. He won $AU 2,350.00 for his weeks work and moved to
83rd position on the current 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit list
with $AU 7,623.00 earned from the earned from the seven events he has played to
date this year so far.
Other New Zealanders
in the field but failed to make the 36 hole cut that fell at 148+4 were Jared
Pender (NZL) who scored rounds of 70-2 and 80+8 for a 36 hole total of 150+6 to
miss the cut by two strokes. Pieter Zwart (NZL) who scored rounds of 73+1 and
77+5 for a 36 hole total of 150+6 to miss the cut by two shots also. Ben
Campbell (NZL) who scored rounds of 74+2 and 77+5 for a 36 hole total of 151+7
to miss the cut by three strokes. Hamish Robertson (NZL) who scored rounds 76+4
and 76+4 for a 36 hole total of 152+2 to miss the cut by four strokes. Sven
Puymbroeck (NZL) who scored rounds of 79+7 and 75+3 for a 36 hole total of
154+10 to miss the cut by six strokes.
Next week the PGA
Tour of Australasia heads across the Tasman to Christchurch, New Zealand for
the BMW New Zealand Open and it is being stage at the Clearwater Resort,
Christchurch for the second consecutive year. It has a good prize purse of $AU
400,000 for the taking. Brad Kennedy (Australia) is the defending champion but
won’t be defending his title because he has chosen to play the Casio World Open
on the Japan Golf Tour so there will be a new Champion and let’s hope it is a
New Zealander with some top New Zealand Professionals playing including 2001
Champion, David Smail (NZL) as well as the inform Mark Brown (NZL) as well as
the NZ PGA Pro – Am Champion, Michael
Hendry (NZL). It starts on Thursday 22nd November and I will report back
who won the Brodie Breeze Trophy next week.
The second event I am reporting on this week was on the
European Tour and part of the Race to Dubai and also co – sanctioned with the
Asian Tour and it was the UBS Hong Kong Open and it was played on the Hong Kong
GC, Fanling, Hong Kong and it was the golfer by the name of Miguel Angel
Jiménez (Spain) who scored rounds of 65-5, 67-3, 68-2 and a final round of 65-5
for a 72 hole total of 265-15 and he won by a single stroke. He won
€ 260,638.04 for his efforts and moved to 29th position on the Race to
Dubai Money list with € 910,255 earned from the 26 events he has played to
date this year so far. Rory McILroy (NIR) even though he missed only his third
cut of the season with rounds of 72+2 and 73+3 for a 36 hole total of 145+5 to
miss by three strokes, he had already ready won the Race to Dubai Money list
title for the 2012 season with the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai remaining
to be played. He has current earnings of €3,696,597 from the 14 events he has
played in to date this year so far.
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| Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain) salutes the crowd after holing the winning putt!! |
It was Miguel Angel Jiménez (Spain) 19th European Tour
International Schedule victory in his 597th European Tour event. At aged 48
years and 318 days becomes the oldest winner in European Tour history. He beats
the previous record of Des Smyth (Ireland) who was 48 years and 34 days at the
2001 Madeira Islands Open. It was his first European Tour victory since the
2010 Omega European Masters. This is a gap of two years and 74 days. In that
time he played in 61 European Tour events between victories. This victory beats
previous best 2012 performance of tied fifth in the Ballantine’s Championship.
He becomes the oldest winner on The European Tour since he won the 2010 Omega
European Masters, aged 46 years and 243 days. It was his third victory in the
UBS Hong Kong Open, following his wins in the 2005 and 2008 seasons. This
represents the first event he has won three times. His third victory comes in
his ninth appearance in the event since it became part of The European Tour in
the 2002 season. It was his fourth top six finish in his nine starts in the
event. Apart from his three wins he was also sixth in 2006.
It was the sixth victory by a player aged 40 and over to win
on The European Tour in 2012. They are: Paul Lawrie (Scotland) (Commercialbank
Qatar Masters presented by Dolphin Energy, Johnnie Walker Championship at
Gleneagles), Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) (ISPS Handa Wales Open), Jeev Milkha
Singh (India) (Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open) and Ernie Els (RSA) (The
141st Open Championship) and Miguel Angel Jiménez (Spain) (UBS Hong Kong Open).
He extends his own European Tour record for most wins by a player aged 40 and
over, to 12. He claims his sixth European Tour event on Asian soil. This
creates a new European Tour record. Ernie Els (RSA) is next with five. His win
was the third Spanish victory of the 2012 European Tour season. He follows
Rafael Cabrera-Bello (Spain) (Omega Dubai Desert Classic) and Gonzalo
Fernandez-Castaño (Spain) (BMW Italian Open presented by CartaSi). It was the 166th
Spanish victory in European Tour history. He extends his European Tour
exemption until the end of 2014 season. He gains a place in the 2013 Volvo Golf
Champions and 2013 WGC – HSBC Champions. And finally it was his 22nd win as a
professional.
Miguel Angel Jiménez (Spain) played a great final round with
scoring 65-5 that included a front nine of 30-4 with birdies on the Par 5,
third hole, Par 4, seventh hole, Par 3, eighth hole and Par 4, ninth hole. He
made the turn at minus 14 and had a three stroke lead over Fredrik Andersson
Hed (Sweden) who scored a front nine 31-3 and was at minus 11 and last week’s
winner, Matteo Manassero (Italy) was also minus 11 after a front nine of 32-2.
Michael Campbell (NZL) who was the joint 54 hole leader at minus 10 had scored
an even par front nine of 34 and was still minus 10 four shots back. Miguel
Angel Jiménez (Spain) birdied the Par 4, tenth hole to move to minus 15. Matteo
Manassero (Italy) birdied the Par 4, 10th hole also to move to minus 12 but Fredrik
Andersson Hed (Sweden) only pared it to remain at minus 11 and Michael Campbell
(NZL) birdied that same hole as well to move to minus 11. Miguel Angel Jiménez
(Spain) pared holes 11-13 and remained at minus 15 with five holes to play.
Fredrik Andersson Hed (Sweden) however made three consecutive birdies on those
same holes and moved to minus 14 only one stroke back. Matteo Manassero (Italy)
played those same holes in even par and found himself at minus 12 three strokes
back of Miguel Angel Jiménez (Spain) with five holes to play. Michael Campbell
(NZL) played those same holes in even par and stayed at minus 11, four shots
back with five holes to play.
Miguel Angel Jiménez (Spain) made four straight pars from
holes 14-17 and remained at minus 15 with only the 72nd hole to play. Fredrik
Andersson Hed (Sweden) also pared those four holes and was still minus 14 only
one stroke back playing the Par 4, 18th hole. He was playing in the group ahead
of Miguel Angel Jiménez (Spain). Fredrik Andersson Hed (Sweden) hit a brilliant
shot in to the difficult par 4, 18th hole and left himself with a 10 foot
birdie putt to tie Miguel Angel Jiménez (Spain) at minus 15. He struck a good
putt and it just missed and he had to settle for his par 4 and he was in the
Club House at minus 14. Matteo Manassero (Italy) eventually finished up at
minus 12 and Michael Campbell (NZL) had a horror finish on the 72nd hole where
he shanked his second shot in to the water short of the green and eventually
holed out for a double bogey 6 to finish at minus 8. Miguel Angel Jiménez
(Spain) hit a brilliant drive down the Par 4, 18th hole and struck a fine mid
iron second shot in to pin high 15 feet left of the flag stick. He rolled his
birdie putt up to within one foot of the cup and calmly sank the one foot par
putt to post minus 15 and win by one shot. Pablo Larrazabal (Spain) his fellow
Spanish Professional who had finished a few groups earlier was right there as
he walked off the 18th green to celebrate his win with him.
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| Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain) kisses the UBS Hong Kong Open Trophy he won |
It was a fine win for Miguel Angel Jiménez (Spain) who has
had another fine season on the European Tour with recording five top ten
finishes including this win here. I would look for him having a high finish at
the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai next week. He will be 49 years old on the
5th of January and I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if he has a go at the
Champions Tour in the USA in 2014? He is one of the real Characters and
Stalwarts of the European Tour having played on it for the last 20 odd years. Another
highlight of his 2012 season must have been being one of the Vice Captain’s for
Jose Maria Olazabal (Spain) winning European Team over Team USA at the 39th
Ryder Cup Matches in USA in late September. I wish him all the best with the
remaining events he plays in the 2012 season.
Coming in solo second position at 266-14 after 72 holes was Fredrik
Andersson Hed (Sweden); he will be very disappointed he wasn’t able to secure
his second win on the European Tour after winning the BMW Italian Open in 2010. This was his fourth top ten
finish of the season from the 25 events he has played in to date this year so
far and he has current earnings on the Race to Dubai Money list standings of € 673,159
earned from the 25 events he has played in which puts him in 41st position on
the current list and means he qualifies for the DP World Tour Championship,
Dubai next week. Coming in solo third position at 268-12 after 72 holes was
Marcus Fraser (Australia); he has had a fine season with recording six top ten
finishes from the 25 events he has played in and he has current earnings of
€ 976,345 from the 25 events he has played to date this year so far and is
in 25th position on the current Race to Dubai Money list which means he too
qualifies for the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai next week.
Coming in tied for fourth position at 269-11 after 72 holes
was Stephen Gallacher (Scotland); he has had another solid season on the European
Tour with recording six top ten finishes from the 24 events he has played to
date this year so far. He has current earnings of € 757,360 from the 24
events he has played in and he currently is in 34th position on the Race to Dubai
Money list standings which means he too easily qualifies for the DP World Tour
Championship, Dubai next week. Also tied for fourth position was Peter Lawrie
(Ireland); he has had another good season on the European Tour with recording
three top ten finishes from the 25 events he has played in to date this year so
far. He has current earnings on the Race to Dubai Money list standings of
€ 505,277 which puts him in 54th position on the current standings which
gains him entry to the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai next week. Also tied
for fourth position was last week’s Barclays Singapore Open Champion, Matteo
Manassero (Italy); he has had another brilliant season on the European Tour
with recording eight top ten finishes and that includes the win I mentioned
above. He has current earnings of € 1,560,100 earned from the 26 events he
has played to date this year so far. He is currently in 13th position on the
Race to Dubai Money list standings which means he too easily qualifies for the
DP World Tour Championship, Dubai next week.
Coming in solo seventh position at 271-9 after 72 holes was
Matt Kuchar (USA) who was playing in this tournament on the sponsors invite. He
has recorded six top ten finishes from the 8 events he has played in which just
proves how consistent he has been in the limited number of events he has played
in this year. He has current earnings of € 926,918 from the eight events
he has played in to date this year so far. But because he isn’t a member of the
European Tour he doesn’t get a Race to Dubai Money list ranking. Also he
doesn’t qualify to play in the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai next week.
Coming in tied for eighth position at 272-8 after 72 holes was Pablo Larrazabal
(Spain); he has recorded six top ten finishes from the 29 events he has played
to date so far this year and is currently in 36th position on the Race to Dubai
Money list standings with € 752,498 earned from the 29 events he has
played in and he too easily qualifies for the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai
next week.
Also tied for eighth position was Michael Campbell (NZL) who
scored rounds of 67-3, 64-6, 69-1 and a final round of 72+2 for a 72 hole total
of 272-8. He won € 37,063.10 for his efforts and moved to 77th position on
the final Race to Dubai Money list with € 333,798 earned from the 22
events he played in. After starting off the season with only making one cut in
his first nine events he entered it was looking like he was going to have
another shocking season with some golf experts saying “He should give
Professional Golf away and find another profession”. But in the last 13 events
he played in he made eight cuts and two of those cuts he made were top ten
finishes. His best finish of the year was his solo third place at the Portugal
Masters in mid October. He can be very content with his final 2012 position on
the Race to Dubai Money list of 77th and with a little bit better play early in
the season he could have made it into the top 60 on the list and he would have
been playing the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai next week. But he now has
secured his 2013 European Tour card. And to think in the 2009 European Tour
Season he only made €19,655 from the 22 events he played in and finished in
249th position on the Race to Dubai Money list; In his 2010 European Tour
Season he only made € 13,576 from the 20 events he played in and finished in
244th position on the Race to Dubai Money list and in his 2011 European Tour season
he earned €77,804 from the 23 events he played in and finished in 181st
position on the Race to Dubai Money list. So you can see he has made a huge
improvement this year and I feel big things are ahead for him in the 2013
season. I wish him all the best with his golf career.
Rounding out the top ten in tied for tenth position at 273-7
after 72 holes was Chris Wood (England); he scored the lowest final round of
63-7. He has had a solid season on the European Tour and has recorded four top
ten finishes from the 28 events he has played in and has current earnings of
€ 617,577 which places him in 43rd position on the current Race to Dubai
Money list. He gains a place in the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai next
week. Also tied for tenth position was Mark Foster (England); he has had a
solid season in 2012 with recording three top ten finishes from the 25 events
he played in and finished in 70th position on the Race to Dubai Money list with
€ 373,491 earned from the 25 events he played in. Also tied for tenth
position was Paul Lawrie (Scotland); he has just had a dream season in 2012
with recording nine top ten finishes from the 24 events he has played in so far
and two of those top ten finishes were wins with the first coming at the
Commercial Bank Qatar Masters presented by Dolphin Energy in early February and
the second coming at the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles in late
August. He has current earnings on the Race to Dubai Money list of
€ 1,802,903 earned from the 24 events he has played in and that places him
in 10th position on the current Race to Dubai Money list standings. He easily
qualifies for the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai next week. He is a real
chance to earn some of the $US 3,750,000 Bonus pool at the end of the season
that is shared out with the top 10 money
earners on the final 2012 Race to Dubai Money list. He was also a part of the
European Ryder Cup team that won the 39th Ryder Cup matches in USA over Team
USA in late September.
Also tied for ten position was Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand);
he has a very satisfying season with recording three top ten finishes from the
23 events he has played in to date this year so far and that includes a win at
the ISPS Handa Wales Open in early June. He has earned € 834,356 from the
32 events he has played in to date this year so far and is currently in 32nd
position on the Race to Dubai Money list and he too easily qualifies for the DP
World Tour Championship, Dubai next week. The final player to tie for tenth
position was Anders Hansen (Denmark); he has had a good season on the European
Tour with recording five top ten finishes from the 23 events he has played in
and has current earnings on the Race to Dubai Money list of € 717,753
earned from the 23 events he has played in to date so far and is in 37th
position. This means he easily qualifies for the DP World Tour Championship,
Dubai next week.
Next week is the finale to the Race to Dubai on the European
Tour and it heads to Dubai for the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai and it is
being played on the Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Only
the top 60 money earners on the Race to Dubai Money list prior to this
tournament are eligible to play in it. It has a huge prize purse of $US
8,000,000 for the taking plus the chance for those golfers who finish inside
the top 10 on the final Race to Dubai Money list standings to earn a share of
the $US 3,750,000 Bonus pool money. Alvaro Quiros (Spain) is the defending
Champion but because he finished in 73rd position on the Race to Dubai Money
list prior to this event in means he doesn’t qualify, so there will be a new
Champion. I will report back who won the tournament next week. But the Race to
Dubai Money list title has already gone to Rory McILroy (NIR) with earnings of
€3,696,597 heading into this event he has uncatchable advantage.
The final event I am reporting on this week was on the
European Tour as well and part of the Race to Dubai and also co – sanctioned
with the Sun Shine Tour. It was the SA Open Championship and was played on the
Serengeti Golf & Wildlife Estate, Ekurhuleni, South Africa. And it was the
golfer by the name of Henrik Stenson (Sweden) who scored rounds of 66-6, 65-7,
69-3 and a final round of 71-1 for a 72 hole total of 271-17 and he won by
three shots. He won € 158,500.00 for his efforts and moved to 45th
position on the Race to Dubai Money list with € 598,656 earned from the 14
events he has played to date this year so far. Rory McILroy (NIR) had already
ready won the Race to Dubai Money list title for the 2012 season with the DP
World Tour Championship, Dubai remaining to be played. He has current earnings
of €3,696,597 from the 14 events he has played in to date this year so far.
 |
| Henrik Stenson (Sweden) acknowledges the crowd as he walks up to the 18th green |
It was Henrik Stenson’s (Sweden) seventh European Tour
International Schedule victory in his 259th European Tour event. He moves to 45th
in The Race to Dubai standings. This secures his place in the top 60 for the DP
World Tour Championship, Dubai, after starting the week in 59th place. It was
his first European Tour victory since the 2007 WGC - Accenture Match Play
Championship. This is a gap of five years and 266 days. (It is five years and
287 days since his last European Tour stroke play victory, dating back to the
2007 Dubai Desert Classic). The gap of five years and 266 days represents the
largest gap between victories in his European Tour career. He played 94
European Tour events between European Tour victories. This victory beats his
previous best 2012 European Tour performance of tied fifth in the KLM Open.
This performance is his sixth top eight finish in his last ten European Tour
appearances. He becomes just the second Swedish victory in the SA Open
Championship, following Mathias Grönberg (Sweden) in 2000. He becomes just the
fourth European to win the SA Open Championship since the event began in 1893.
He follows: Tommy Horton (England) (1970), Mathias Grönberg (Sweden) (2000) and
Richie Ramsay (Scotland) (2010). This Victory comes in his second appearance in
the SA Open Championship. This victory beats his previous best performance in
the event of tied 34th in 2009. It is the fourth of his six European Tour
stroke play victories he has won when leading or sharing the lead going into
the final round.
He was playing on a sponsor's invitation. He was the first
player to win on a sponsor's invite since Tom Lewis (England) at the 2011
Portugal Masters. He was the 94th Swedish win in European Tour history. He was
the third Swedish victory of the 2012 season, following Peter Hanson (Sweden) (KLM
Open and BMW Masters). He moves into second place in the list of most prolific
Swedish winners on The European Tour with seven, four behind Robert Karlsson
(Sweden). He gains his 12th professional worldwide victory in his career. He
gains a place in the 2013 Volvo Golf Champions. He gains a European Tour
exemption until the end of the 2013 season. He becomes the 23rd European Tour
victory by a former Challenge Tour player on the 2012 European Tour from 44
events played so far. They are: Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) (Africa Open and Maybank
Malaysian Open), Branden Grace (RSA) (Joburg Open, Volvo Golf Champions, Volvo
China Open and Alfred Dunhill Links Championship), Robert Rock (England) (Abu
Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship), Rafael Cabrera-Bello (Spain) (Omega Dubai Desert Classic), Justin Rose (England)
(WGC - Cadillac Championship), Julien Quesne (France) (Open de Andalucía Costa
del Sol), Michael Hoey (NIR) (Trophée Hassan II), Thørbjorn Olesen (Denmark) (Sicilian
Open), Bernd Wiesberger (Austria) (Ballantine's Championship and Lyoness Open
powered by Greenfinity), Ricardo Santos (Portugal) (Madeira Islands Open - Portugal),
Nicolas Colsaerts (Belgium)(Volvo World Match Play Championship), Jamie
Donaldson (Wales) (Irish Open), Marcel Siem (Germany) (Alstom Open de France),
Richie Ramsay (Scotland) (Omega European Masters), Peter Hanson (Sweden) (KLM
Open and BMW Masters) and Ian Poulter (England) (WGC - HSBC Champions). And
finally he becomes the 307th European Tour victory by a former Challenge Tour
player.
Henrik Stenson (Sweden) played a steady final round under
the circumstances and scored 71-1 which included a poor front nine of 38+2
where he birdied the Par 5, third hole. He made a poor bogey on the Par 4,
sixth hole and a stupid double bogey on the Par 3, ninth hole. He turned after
nine holes at minus 14 and was tied for the lead with George Coetzee (RSA) who
was also minus 14 after scoring 35-1 on his front nine of his final round. Henrik
Stenson (Sweden) birdied the Par 4, tenth hole to move to minus 15 with eight
holes to play and now had a one shot lead over George Cortzee (RSA) who pared
that same hole. George Cortzee (RSA) birdied the par 5, eleventh hole to move
to minus 15 and Henrik Stenson (Sweden) could only manage a par 5. Again they
were all tied up at minus 15 each with seven holes to play. They each pared
holes 12-14 so both players were minus 15 with five holes to play. Henrik
Stenson (Sweden) made a solid par 3 at the 15th hole and George Cortzee (RSA)
could only manage a bogey four to fall to minus 14 and Henrik Stenson (Sweden)
was still minus 15 and had a one stroke lead with three holes to play. Henrik
Stenson (Sweden) birdied the Par 5, 16th hole and Par 4, 17th hole to move to
minus 17 with just the 72nd hole to play. George Coetzee (RSA) could only
manage pars on those same holes and was still on minus 14. He was now three
strokes behind Henrik Stenson (Sweden). So both players headed to the 72nd
tee. Both players hit their drives down
the centre of the fairway, and then they both hit excellent second shots that
landed on the green. George Cortzee (RSA) putted for his birdie first and just missed,
he tapped in for his Par 4 and finished the 72 holes at minus 14. Henrik
Stenson (Sweden) now with the tournament securely his putted for his birdie
from 12 feet and missed on the left hand side but easily tapped in for his Par
4. He scored an awesome back nine of 33-3 and won by three strokes. Henrik
Stenson (Sweden) pumped his fist in the air to celebrate his win.
 |
| Henrik Stenson (Sweden) poses with the SA Open Championship Trophy he won |
Henrik Stenson (Sweden) has had a solid season on the
European Tour with recording six top ten finishes from the small number of events
he has played in so far this season and that includes his win here. I feel 2013
could be the year that he finally wins a Major Golf Championship? I wish him
all the best for the remaining events in the 2012 season.
Coming in solo second position at 274-14 after 72 holes was
George Coetzee (RSA) who I mentioned before. He has had a very solid season on
the European Tour in 2012 with recording eight top ten finishes to date from
the 24 events he has played in and with current earnings of € 1,014,717 he
is currently in 20th position on the Race to Dubai Money list standings and
easily qualifies for the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai next week. He must
be due for his maiden European Tour win very soon? Coming in tied for third
position at 275-13 after 72 holes was Thomas Aiken (RSA); he has had another
solid season on the European Tour to date in 2012 with recording three top ten
finishes which includes a tied for 7th at the 141st Open Championship in mid
July. He has current earnings of € 528,628 from the 22 events he has
played in and that puts him in 51st position on the current Race to Dubai Money
list standings meaning he qualifies for the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai
next week. Also tied for third position was Martin Kaymer (Germany); he has had
another good season on the European Tour in 2012 with recording six top ten
finishes from the 23 events he has played in to date so far and he is currently
in 28th position on the Race to Dubai Money list standings with € 939,831
earned from the 23 events he has played in. He too easily qualifies for the DP
World Tour Championship, Dubai next week. But the best moment of the 2012
season personally for him must be holing the putt that retained the 39th Ryder
Cup for Team Europe?
Coming in tied solo fifth position at 277-11 after 72 holes
was Charl Schwartzel (RSA); he has had another good season on the European Tour
with recording four top ten finishes from the 17 events he has played to date
this year so far and he has current earnings on the Race to Dubai Money list
standings of € 865,043 which places him in 30th position on the current
Race to Dubai Money list standings. He too easily qualifies for the DP World
Tour Championship, Dubai next week. Coming in tied for sixth position at 279-9
after 72 holes was Tommy Fleetwood (England); it is his rookie season on the
European Tour after graduating off the Challenge Tour in 2011. He had struggled
for most of the season and this was his first top ten finish of the year was
very timely because he needed it to keep his full playing card for the 2013
season. He finished his rookie season with earnings of € 203,699 from the
31 events he played in which placed him in 109th position on the final Race to
Dubai Money list standings for 2012. Look out for him next year because his
maiden win isn’t far away. Also tied for sixth position was Darren Fichardt
(RSA); he has had a good season on the European Tour in 2012 but it has been a
little inconsistent as well. This was his second top ten finish of the season
with the other one being a win at the Saint – Omer Open presented by Neuflize
OBC in France in mid June. He finished in 84th position on the final Race to
Dubai Money list standings with € 295,708 earned from the 24 events he
played in. The last player to tie for sixth position was Magnus A Carlsson
(Sweden); he had a very solid season with recording four top ten finishes from
the small amount of events he played in which was eleven. His final position on
the 2012 Race to Dubai Money list was 93rd with € 255,233 earned from the
11 events he played in.
Rounding out the top ten in tied for ninth position at 280-8
after 72 holes was Hennie Otto (RSA); he scored the lowest final round which
was 62-10 the best score of the day by five strokes. His brilliant final round
included one eagle and eight birdies with no bogeys. He had a solid but
inconsistent season on the European Tour in 2012 with recording four top ten
finishes from the 23 events he played in with earnings of € 264,522 from
the 23 events he played in and his final position on the 2012 Race to Dubai Money
list standings was 89th.Also tied for ninth position was Michael Jonzon
(Sweden); he has had a poor season on the European Tour with this being his
only top ten finish of the season. His final earnings on the 2012 European Tour
were € 82,313 earned from the 26 events he played in and he finished in
165th position on the final 2012 Race to Dubai Money list standings. He will
now have to head back to 2012 European Tour Qualifying School finals to regain
his 2013 European Tour card.
Next week is the finale to the Race to Dubai on the European
Tour and it heads to Dubai for the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai and it is
being played on the Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Only
the top 60 money earners on the Race to Dubai Money list prior to this
tournament are eligible to play in it. It has a huge prize purse of $US
8,000,000 for the taking plus the chance for those golfers who finish inside
the top 10 on the final Race to Dubai Money list standings to earn a share of
the $US 3,750,000 Bonus pool money. Alvaro Quiros (Spain) is the defending
Champion but because he finished in 73rd position on the Race to Dubai Money
list prior to this event in means he doesn’t qualify, so there will be a new
Champion. I will report back who won the tournament next week. But the Race to
Dubai Title has already gone to Rory McILroy (NIR) with earnings of €3,696,597
heading into this event he has uncatchable advantage.
So to the Top 5 on the Official World Golf Rankings Points
list this week and coming in at Number
One Position for the 15th week of a 4th spell of his career and the 22nd week
of his career in total is the 94th PGA Champion, Rory McILroy (NIR) with 12.59
Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Two is Luke Donald
(England) with 9.06 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number
Three is Tiger Woods (USA) with 9.00 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming
in at Number Four is Lee Westwood (England) with 6.60 Official Golf World
Ranking Points and rounding out the top 5 on the Official Golf World Ranking
Points list is Adam Scott (Australia) with 6.59 Official Golf World Ranking
Points. Danny Lee (NZL) is
still the highest ranked New Zealand Golfer in the World. This week remains at
239th position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list with 0.80
Official World Golf Ranking Points on the list.
Now it is almost
into summer conditions remember to allow for run out on your shots!!
Source: pgatour.com,
europeantour.com, pgatour.com.au
