Golf Events from the Weekend 22nd January 2012

Well it was another exciting weekend on the Major Professional Golf Tours from around the world. First I will start with the European Tour and the Race to Dubai. This week it was the Volvo Golf Champions which had only the winners of Tournaments on the European Tour in 2011 eligible to enter. It was played on the Links at Fancourt, George, South Africa where the 2003 Presidents Cup was held and it was the Golfer by the name of Branden Grace (RSA) who scored rounds of 68-5, 66-7, 75+2 and a final round of 71-2 for a 72 hole total of 280-12 and was tied for the lead with Ernie Els (RSA) who scored rounds of 71-2, 71-2, 71-2 and a final round of 67-6 for a 72 hole total of also 280-12 and the final player to tie for the lead after 72 holes was Retief Goosen (RSA) who scored rounds of 72-1, 68-5, 70-3 and a final round of 70-3 for a 72 hole total also of 280-12.

Branden Grace (RSA) holding the Volvo Golf Champions Trophy he won with his Fan Club in the back ground

So those three players head back to the Par 5,18th tee for the first playoff of the 2012 European Tour Season. Branden Grace (RSA) and Retief Goosen (RSA) both found the fairway, but Ernie Els (RSA) found the left hand rough and was forced to lay up with his second shot. Retief Goosen (RSA) hit his 2nd shot and it landed just short to the right of the green and he was unable to get up and down for his birdie 4 and had to settle for a par 5. Branden Grace (RSA) hit a great 2nd shot on to the front of the green but left himself with a difficult 2 putt. Ernie Els (RSA) after having been forced to lay up with his 2nd shot hit a nice 3rd shot into 12 feet just past the hole. Branden Grace (RSA) putted for his eagle from 45 feet and rolled it down to within 4 feet of the cup. Ernie Els (RSA) putted for his birdie 4 but just missed on the left hand side and tapped in for his Par 5. So that left Branden Grace (RSA) with his 4 footer to win the Volvo Golf Champions. It was the same length of putt he missed on the 72nd hole to win in regulation play. But this time there was no mistake and he rolled in right in the centre of the cup. He won his second title in two weeks and has a healthy lead a top the Race to Dubai Money list after the 3 tournaments that have been completed in 2012 so far.

He won € 350,000.00 and increases his lead in the 2012 Race to Dubai with €570,000 earned from the 3 events he has played to date this year so far. He also gains his second European Tour International Schedule victory in his 51st European Tour event. He moves inside the top 100 of the Official World Golf Ranking, from 164th. Prior to winning the Joburg Open seven days ago, Branden Grace (RSA) was 258th. Branden Grace (RSA) becomes the first player to win back-to-back European Tour events since Sergio Garcia (Spain) in 2011 at the Castelló Masters and Andalucia Masters. He graduated from the 2011 European Tour Qualifying School. He becomes the first Qualifying School graduate to win twice the year after graduation since Johan Edfors (Sweden) in 2006 who won three times at the TCL Classic, British Masters and Scottish Open. He becomes just the fourth Qualifying School graduate to record multiple victories they year after graduation. He follows Gordon Brand Jnr  (Scotland) (1982 - Coral Classic and Bob Hope British Classic), José María Olazábal (Spain) (1986 - European Masters and Sanyo Open) and Johan Edfors (Sweden) in 2006.

Branden Grace (RSA) holding the Volvo Golf Champions Trophy he won

Branden Grace (RSA) becomes just the sixth player to win their first two European Tour events in back-to-back tournaments. He follows: Graham Marsh (Australia) (1972 - Swiss Open and German Open), Jack Newton (Australia) (1972 - Dutch Open and Benson and Hedges Festival), Charles Coody (USA) (1973 - W.D and H.O Wills and John Player Classic), Baldovino Dassu (Italy) (1976 - Dunlop Masters and Italian Open) and Fred Couples (USA) (1995 - Dubai Desert Classic and Johnnie Walker Classic). He becomes the second youngest player in European Tour history to win their first two European Tour events in back-to-back events, aged 23 years and 247 days. The youngest was Jack Newton (Australia), who was 22 years and 202 days in 1972. He becomes the fifth South African golfer to win back-to-back European Tour events. He would follow: Dale Hayes (RSA) (1978 Italian Open and French Open), Ernie Els (RSA) (2005 Dubai Desert Classic and Qatar Masters), Richard Sterne (RSA) (2009 Alfred Dunhill Championship and South African Open Championship) and Charl Schwartzel (RSA) (2010 Africa Open and Joburg Open). This victory continued with South Africa's recent run of wins on The European Tour. They have now won five of the last seven European Tour events. They are: Garth Mulroy (RSA) (2011 Alfred Dunhill Championship - Nov 11), Hennie Otto (RSA) (2011 South African Open Championship - Nov 11), Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) (2012 Africa Open) and Branden Grace (2012 Joburg Open and 2012 Volvo Golf Champions).

Branden Grace (RSA) becomes the 30th different player in European Tour history to win back-to-back European Tour events. He is the 104th South African victory in European Tour history. He gains his largest European Tour prize of €350,000. He gains a place in the 2012 WGC - Bridgestone Invitational, WGC - HSBC Champions and 2013 Volvo Golf Champions. He gains a European Tour exemption until the end of 2014. And finally gains his third win as a professional. It was a steady final round for Branden Grace (RSA) after his poor 3rd round of 75+2. He scored 37+1 on the front nine that included birdies at the Par 4, 6th hole and the Par 5, 9th hole. But he made a poor Bogey on the Par 4, 4th hole and that followed a stupid Double Bogey on the Par 4, 3rd hole. But he played a Tournament winning back nine of 34-3 that included birdies on the Par 4, 12th hole, Par 5, 13th hole and Par 5, 16th hole. It all added up to a 71-2.

The win will do big things for Branden Graces (RSA) confidence having won last week as well at the Joburg Open. And this was a much higher calibre field than last week. He will now be looking to move inside the Top 50 Golfers on the Official World Golf Rankings by the end of March that get to play in the first Major of the year which is the Master Tournament. I wish him luck with the rest of his 2012 season on the European Tour and hope he has more wins.

Coming in tied for 2nd at 280-12 after 72 holes and both lost out in the Playoff were Ernie Els (RSA) and Retief Goosen (RSA). Coming in at solo 4th position at 281-11 after 72 holes was Nicolas Colsaerts (Belgium); he was very unlucky not to be in the playoff with missing a short par putt on the 72nd hole to get in the playoff. Coming in solo 5th position at 282-10 after 72 holes was the current Masters Tournament Champion, Charl Schwartzel (RSA). Coming in solo 6th place at 284-8 after 72 holes was the real surprise of the Tournament, Jose Maria Olazabal (Spain). Coming in tied for 7th position at 286-6 after 72 holes was Raphael Jacquelin (France) and Louis Oosthuizen (RSA).  In solo 9th position at 287-5 after 72 holes was Thomas Aiken (RSA). Rounding out the top 10 in tied for 10th position at 288-4 after 72 holes were Paul Lawrie (Scotland) and Padraig Harrington (Ireland).

Next week the European Tour and the Race to Dubai heads to Abu Dhabi for the first tournament of 3 in the Gulf Swing. It is the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and it is being played at the Abu Dhabi GC, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. It has a large prize purse of $US 2,700,000 up for grabs. Martin Kaymer (Germany) is the defending Champion and will be gunning for back to back titles. It starts on Thursday 26th January and I will report back who won the Trophy next week.

The 2nd event I am reporting on this week was on the USPGA Tour and was part of 2012 FedEx Cup. This week was the first tournament on Mainland, USA for 2012. It was the Humana Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation and this year it had been reduced to 72 holes rather than 90 holes from the previous years. It was played on the PGA West (Palmer Course), La Quinta, California, PGA West (Nicklaus Course), La Quinta, California, La Quinta CC, La Quinta, California. And it was the Golfer by the name of Mark Wilson (USA) who scored rounds of 66-6, 62-10, 67-5 and a final round of 69-3 for a 72 hole total of 264-24 after 72 holes. He won $US 1,008,000.00 for the win and that moved him to 3rd position on the 2012 USPGA Tour Money list with $US 1,099,500 earned from the 3 events he has played in so far this year. Johnson Wagner (USA) is leading the money list with $US 1,573,133 earned from the 3 events he has played to date this year so far.

Mark Wilson (USA) in action in the final round

Mark Wilson (USA) is in 2nd position on the 2012 FedEx Cup points list with 553 points earned from the 3 events he has played this year to date. He earned 500 of those with this win. He is 230 points behind Johnson Wagner (USA) who has the early lead after 3 events with 783 FedEx Cup points. It was Mark Wilson (USA) 5th win on the USPGA Tour having won previously the 2007 The Honda Classic, 2009 Mayakoba Golf Classic at Riviera Maya-Cancun.  2011 Sony Open in Hawaii and the 2011 Waste Management Phoenix Open. He has started the 2012 USPGA Tour season the same way he started in 2011 with getting an early win. He played a steady final round that was enough to carry him to victory. He scored an average front nine of 37+1 that included a bogey 4 on the Par 3, 3rd hole. But he played a Tournament winning Back Nine when it counted with scoring 32-4 that included birdies at the Par 5, 11th hole, Par 3, 12th hole, Par 4, 16th hole and Par 5, 18th hole. His final round 69-3 was a great round under pressure. I hope he continues on the good form for the rest of the 2012 USPGA Tour season and gets his 2nd win of the season in the next few tournaments like he did last year. I wish him all the best.

Mark Wilson (USA) holding the Hope Trophy he won for winning the Humana Challenge

Coming in tied for 2nd position at 266-22 after 72 holes were last week’s winner Johnson Wagner (USA), John Mallinger (USA) and the long hitting Robert Garrigus (USA). Coming in solo 5th position on 267-21 after 72 holes was the ever green Jeff Maggert (USA). Coming in tied for 6th position at 268-20 after 72 holes were John Senden (Australia) and David Toms (USA). Rounding out the top 10 in tied for 9th position at 269-19 after 72 holes were the 2010 NZ Open Champion, Bobby Gates (USA), Ben Crane (USA), Brandt Snedeker (USA) and the 2007 Masters Tournament winner, Zach Johnson.

Danny Lee (NZL) in his 2nd tournament as a full USPGA Tour member scored rounds of 69-3, 69-3, 69-3 and a poor 74+2 in the final round that included a Hole in One on Par 3, 17th hole. He finished with a 72 hole total of 281-7 and finished in tied for 66th position. He earned $US 11,368.00 for the week and moves to tied for 110th position on the 2012 USPGA Tour money list with $US 11,368.00 earned from the 2 events he has played to date this year so far. He also moves to 110th position on the 2012 FedEx Cup points list with 3 points earned from the 2 events he has played to date this year so far. He earned those 3 points in this tournament. He is 780 points behind Johnson Wagner (USA). Danny Lee (NZL) has not got off to the fast start I hoped he would so far in the first two events. But he has many more chances in 2012 to prove himself and maybe next week he will fear better? I wish him all the best for great success in 2012.

Next week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup head up the west coast to California for the Farmers Insurance Open and it is being played at the Torrey Pines (South Course), La Jolla, California and Torrey Pines (North Course), La Jolla, California. It has a huge prize purse of $US 6,000,000 up for grabs and Bubba Watson (USA) is the defending champion and will be looking for back to back titles. It starts on Thursday 26th January and I will report back who took home the trophy next week.

Now to the Top 5 Players on the Official Golf World Rankings Points list for this week. Still coming in at Number One for the 34th week running is Luke Donald (England) with 9.89 Official World Golf Ranking Points, Coming in at Number Two is Lee Westwood (England) with 7.63 Official World Golf Rankings Points, Coming in at Number Three is Rory McILroy (NIR) with 7.41 Official World Ranking Points, Coming in at Number Four is Martin Kaymer (Germany) with 6.20 Official World Ranking Points and rounding out the top Five is Steve Stricker (USA) with 5.95 Official World Ranking Points. Tiger Woods (USA) this week remains in 25th position on the Official World Golf Ranking Points list with 3.44 Official World Golf Ranking Points. Danny Lee (NZL) is still the highest ranked New Zealander in the World. This week he slips down one place to be at 154th position on the Official World Golf Ranking Points list with 1.15 Official World Golf Rankings Points on the list.

The Final event I am reporting on this week was on the Champions Tour and was the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai and the only players eligible to play in it were the winners on the Champions Tour in 2011. It was played on the Hualalai Golf Course, Ka'upulehu-Kona, Hawaii. And it was the Golfer by the name of Dan Forsman (USA) who scored rounds of 67-5, 65-7 and a final round of 69-3 for a 54 hole total of 201-15 and he won by 2 strokes. He won $US 307,000.00 for the win and is Number One on the Champions Tour Money list after the first event of 2012. He also got 307 Charles Schwab Cup Points and is at the top of that list as well. He has a 127 point lead over Jay Don Blake (USA) after the first event. It was Dan Forsman’s (USA) 3rd win on the Champions Tour having won also the 2009 AT&T Champions Classic and the 2010 Regions Charity Classic. 

Dan Forsman (USA) holding the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai Trophy he won

He played a steady final round of 69-3 which included a front nine of 34-2, with birdies on the Par 4, 1st hole and Par 5, 7th hole. He scored a back nine of 35-1 which included birdies on the Par 5, 10th hole and Par 5, 14th hole. He made a poor bogey on the Par 3, 12th hole. The first time I saw Dan Forsman (USA) play golf was on TV in the Final Round of the 1993 Masters Tournament. He had just taken the lead after completing the 11th hole in the final round. He came to the second hole of Amen Corner which was the short Par 3, 12th hole and put 2 balls in the Water and made a Quadruple Bogey 7 and didn’t win but had a good finish. But he has had a great career on the USPGA Tour with winning on 5 Occasions. Now he is starting to make his presence felt on the Champions Tour. I wish Dan Forsman (USA) all the best and to have many more wins in 2012 on the Champions Tour.

Coming in solo 2nd place at 203-13 after 54 holes was Jay Don Blake (USA). In tied for 3rd position at 204-12 after 54 holes were John Cook (USA) and Michael Allen (USA). In tied for 5th position at 205-11 after 54 holes were Gary Hallberg (USA) and Jeff Sluman (USA). Rounding out the top 10 in tied for 7th position at 206-10 after 54 holes were Mark Calcavecchia (USA), Jay Haas (USA), Tom Watson (USA) and Brad Bryant (USA).

Next event on the Champions Tour is in two weeks time and is the Allianz Championship and is being played at the Old Course at Broken Sound, Boca Raton, Florida. It has a huge prize purse of $US 1,800,000 for the taking which will attract the best players on the Champions Tour. Tom Lehman (USA) is the defending Champion and will be looking for back to back titles. It starts on Friday 10th February. I will report back who won the Trophy in two weeks time.

So until next week’s report remember to keep hitting the ball long and straight and put a smooth stroke on all your putts!!

Source: pgatour.com, europeantour.com

Golf Events from the Weekend 15th January 2012

Well it was another exciting weekend on the professional Golf Tours from through the world. First I will start with the European Tour and the Race to Dubai. This week it was the Joburg Open and it was played on the Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club, Johannesburg, South Africa. And it was the Golfer by the name of Branden Grace (RSA) that scored rounds of 67-5, 66-5, 65-7 and a final round of 72 even par for a 72 hole total of 270-17 and won by 1 stroke. It was his maiden win on the European Tour after gaining his card at the Qualifying School last month. He won € 206,050.00 for the win and moves to number one position on the Race to Dubai Money list € 220,000 earned from the 2 events he has played this year so far.

Branden Grace (RSA) celebrates after winning the the Joburg Open

Branden Grace (RSA) played a solid final round of 72 even par which included a front nine of 37 even par where he birdied the Par 4, 9th hole but made a poor bogey at the Par 3, 2nd hole. He played a very solid back nine of 35 even par which included nine consecutive pars. With this win he gains his first European Tour International Schedule victory in his 50th European Tour event. He moves to just outside the top 160 on the Official World Golf Ranking, from 258th. This victory beats his previous best European Tour performance of tied sixth in the 2009 South African Open Championship. He becomes the first, first-time winner of the 2012 season. This victory is the third consecutive South African victory in the Joburg Open, following Charl Schwartzel (RSA) in 2010 and 2011. Branden Grace (RSA) graduated from the 2011 European Tour Qualifying School. He becomes the first Qualifying School graduate to win on The European Tour, the year after graduation since Simon Khan (England) at the 2010 BMW PGA Championship. This victory continues with South Africa’s recent run of wins on The European Tour. They have now won four of the last six European Tour events. They are: Garth Mulroy (RSA) (2011 Alfred Dunhill Championship – Nov 11), Hennie Otto (RSA) (2011 South African Open Championship – Nov 11), Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) (2012 Africa Open) and Branden Grace (RSA) (2012 Joburg Open).

Branden Grace (RSA) becomes the 30th different South African to win on The European Tour. He also becomes the 103rd South African victory in European Tour history. He becomes the 399th different player to win on The European Tour. He becomes the third different South African to win the Joburg Open, following Richard Sterne (RSA) (2008) and Schwartzel (RSA) (2010-2011) and for the fourth time out of the six it has been played, dating back to the 2007 season. He joins Ariel Canete (Argentina) (2007) as players to make the Joburg Open their first European Tour victory. This victory sees the Joburg Open follow the Africa Open from seven days ago in producing three consecutive South African winners of these two events, dating back from the 2010 season. Branden Grace (RSA) becomes the 34th different player to win on The European Tour Qualifying School, the year after graduation. He gains his largest European Tour prize of €206,050. He gains a European Tour exemption until the end of 2013. He gains a place in the 2012 Volvo Golf Champions and finally he gains his second victory as a professional.

Branden Grace (RSA) holding the Joburg Open Trophy he won

This win at the Joburg Open will give Branden Grace’s (RSA) professional golf career a huge boost of confidence and I wouldn’t be surprised if he won again this year. I wish him all the best for the remaining events on the European Tour and Race to Dubai in 2012.

Coming in solo second with a 72 hole total of 271-16 and a brilliant final round of 63-9 which included one eagle and seven birdies was Jamie Elson (England). He earned € 149,500.00 for his effort and moves to 3rd position on the Race to Dubai Money list with € 153,020 earned from the 2 events he has played to date this year so far. Coming in at tied for 3rd position at 273-14 after 72 holes were David Drysdale (Scotland), Jaco Van Zyl (RSA), Marc Warren (Scotland), Trevor Fisher Jnr (RSA), Dawie Van Der Walt (RSA) and Michiel Bothma (RSA). They all won € 53,972 for their efforts. Rounding out the Top 10 in tied for 9th position at 274-13 after 72 holes were George Murray (Scotland), Bernd Wiesberger (Austria), Robert Rock (England) and Jbe Kruger (RSA).

Next week the European Tour and Race to Dubai stays in South Africa for the final event of the South African swing for this part of the season and it is the Volvo Golf Champions and it is being played at the Links at Fancourt, George, South Africa which is where the 2003 Presidents Cup was staged. It has a prize purse of €2,000,000 for the taking. Paul Casey (England) is the defending Champion and will be looking for back to back titles. It starts on Thursday 19th January and I will report back who took home the trophy next week.

Now to the final event I am reporting on this week and it was the first regular season event on the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup for 2012 and was the Sony Open in Hawaii and was played on the Waialae CC, Honolulu, Hawaii. And the Golfer by the name of Johnson Wagner (USA) scored rounds of 68-2, 66-4, 66-4 and 67-3 for a 72 hole total of 267-13 and won by 2strokes. He won $US 990,000.00 for the win and he moved to Number One position on the 2012 USPGA Tour Money list with $US 1,155,000 earned from the two events he has played in so far this year. He also leads the FedEx Cup points list with 575 points from the 2 events he has played to date this year so far. He leads by 45 points over Steve Stricker (USA) who won last week.

Johnson Wagner (USA) pumps his fist in celebration

Johnson Wagner (USA) played a steady final round of 67-3 which included a front nine 34 -1 with birdies on the Par 4, 2nd hole, Par 3, 7th hole and Par 5, 9th hole. He played a great back nine of 33-2 which included birdies on the Par 4, 10th hole and Par 4, 15th hole. It was Johnson Wagner’s (USA) 3rd win on the USPGA Tour having previously won the 2008 Shell Houston Open and the 2011 Mayakoba Golf Classic at Riviera Maya-Cancun. He is now in the Masters Tournament and secures his place in the 2013 Hyundai Tournament of Champions. This win will give him a huge boost of confidence and I look for him to continue on his good form throughout the 2012 season. I wish him all the best in the future.

Johnson Wagner (USA) holds aloft the Sony Open in Hawaii Trophy he won

Coming in tied for 2nd place at 269-11 after 72 holes were Carl Pettersson (Sweden), Sean O’Hair (USA), Harrison Frazer (USA) and Charles Howell III (USA). Coming in tied for 6th position at 270-10 after 72 holes were Michael Thompson (USA), Brian Gay (USA), D. A. Points (USA) and the 54 hole Co – Leader, Matt Every (USA) who scored a disappointing final round of 72+2 but he will learn a lot from it in the future. Rounding out the Top 10 in tied for 10th position at 271-9 after 72 holes were John Rollins (USA), David Hearn (Canada) and Brendon de Jonge (Zimbabwe). Steve Stricker (USA) had a surprisingly poor final round of 74+4 and finished 72 holes on 276-4 in tied for 38th position. He might have been a bit tired from last week’s win at the 2013 Hyundai Tournament of Champions.

Danny Lee (NZL), in his first USPGA Tour event as a Full Member of the USPGA Tour scored rounds of 72+2 and 71+1 for a 36 hole total of 143+3 and he missed the cut by 4 strokes. The cut fell at 139-1. It was a shame because I would have liked to see Danny Lee (NZL) start off with a top 10 finish and gain some real confidence in his first event. I hope for better results when he tees off in the Humana Challenge in Partnership with the Clinton Foundation which starts on Thursday (19th January).

Next week the USPGA Tour and the FedEx Cup head to Mainland USA for the Humana Challenge in Partnership with the Clinton Foundation and it is being played on the PGA West (Palmer Course), La Quinta, California. PGA West (Nicklaus Course), La Quinta, California and La Quinta CC, La Quinta, California. It has a prize purse of $US 5,600,000 for the taking and will attract some of the best USPGA Tour players. Jhonattan Vegas (Columbia) is the defending Champion and will be looking for back to back titles. Danny Lee (NZL) is also entered and will be looking for a better performance than he showed last week. It starts on Thursday 19th January and I will report back who won next week.

Now to the Top Golfers 5 in the World this week. Coming in at Number One for the 33rd straight week in a row as the World Number One Golfer on the Official World Golf Rankings is Luke Donald (England) with 10.05 Official World Golf Ranking Points, Coming in at World Number Two Golfer is Lee Westwood (England) with 7.78 Official World Golf Ranking Points, Coming in at World Number Three Golfer on the list with 7.53 Official World Golf Ranking Points is Rory McILroy (NIR), Coming in at World Number Four Golfer in the World is Martin Kaymer (USA) with 6.32 Official World Golf Ranking Points and rounding out the Top five is Steve Stricker (USA) with 5.92 Official World Golf Ranking Points. Tiger Woods (USA) this week remains in 25th position on the Official World Golf Ranking Points list with 3.49 Official World Golf Ranking Points. Danny Lee (NZL) is still the highest ranked New Zealander in the World. This week he slips down 4 places to be at 153rd position in the Official World Golf Ranking Points list with 1.16 Official World Golf Rankings Points on the list.

So until my next blog next week remember the key to any successful Golf Swing is to keep the head still.

Source: pgatour.com, europeantour.com

Golf Events from the Weekend 8th January 2012

First I will start off with one tournament I missed reporting on at the end of last year and it was the 2011 Final Stage - Qualifying School for the PGA Tour of Australasia and it was played at the Peninsula Golf and Country Club, Victoria, Australia. And it was the Golfer by the name Daniel Popovic (Australia) who scored rounds of 68-4, 67-5 and a final round of 71-1 for a 54 hole total of 206-10 and won by 1 stroke to be the Medallist at the 2011 Final Stage - Qualifying School for the PGA Tour of Australasia. Daniel Popovic (Australia) will be teeing it up in the first event on the PGA Tour of Australasia for 2012 which is the Victorian Open that is being played at the Spring Valley Golf Club, Melbourne, Australia. I wish him luck in that event.

Coming in solo 2nd was Jason Scrivener (Australia) who was the 36 hole leader. He scored rounds of 66-6, 68-4 and a final round of 73+1 for a 54 hole total of 207-9. Jason Scrivener (Australia) was bogey free after two rounds and entered the final round as the tournament leader but the dream run was not to last. He suffered a mixed final round that included three bogeys, a double bogey and four birdies that saw him sign for a one-over 73 yet it was still enough to earn him a tour card for the 2012 season. In tied for 3rd position at 211-5 after 54 holes was Hamish Robertson (NZL), he scored rounds of 69-3, 74+2 and a final round of 68-4 for a 54 hole total of 211-5 and he was the best placed New Zealand Golfer at the 2011 Final Stage - Qualifying School for the PGA Tour of Australasia. And he was given the 3rd ranking position on the final qualifying list. Also tied for 3rd was Andrew Kelly (Australia), he scored rounds of 72 even, 70-2 and a final round of 69-3 for a 54 hole total of 211-5 and he got the 5th ranking position on the final qualifying list. And the last player to tie for 3rd position was James Carr (Australia), he scored rounds of 70-2, 67-5 and 74+2 for 54 hole total of 211-5 and he got the 4th ranking position on the final qualifying list.

Coming in at solo 6th position was the Amateur Golfer, Christopher Wood (am) (Australia), he scored rounds of 73+1, 69-3 and a final round of 70-2 for a 54 hole total of 212-4. Coming in at solo 7th position was the Amateur Golfer, Ryan Fox (am) (NZL), he scored rounds of 70-2, 71-1 and a final round of 72 even for a 54 hole total of 213-3. In solo 8th position was Peter Cooke (Australia), he scored rounds of 72 even, 69-3 and a final round of 73+1 for a 54 hole total of 214-2. Rounding out the Top 10 in tied for 9th position was Andrew Evans (Australia), he scored 68-4, 73+1 and a final round of 74+2 for a 54 hole total of 215-1 and he was given the 9th ranking position on the final qualifying list. Also tied for 9th position was Brody Ninyette (Australia), he scored rounds of 71-1, 73+1 and a final round of 71-1 for a 54 hole total of 215-1 and he was given the 10th ranking position on the final qualifying list. Another player to tied for 9th position was the Amateur Golfer, Ryan Lynch (am) (Australia), he scored 74+2, 71-1 and a final round of 70-2 for a 54 hole total of 215-1 and he was given the 11th ranking position on the final qualifying list. And the final player to tied for 9th position was Brett Rankin (Australia), he scored rounds of 72 even, 71-1 and a final round of 72 even for a 54 hole total of 215-1 and he was given the 12th ranking position on the final qualifying list.

All 62 players that teed it up in the final round have earned themselves status on the PGA Tour of Australasia for the 2012 season. The other New Zealand Golfers to qualify for the 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia were Pieter Zwart (NZL) (216 even par) (15th ranking); Jared Pender (NZL) (219+3) (31st ranking); Kevin Smith (am) (NZL) (220+4) (38th ranking); Nick Gillespie (NZL) (220+4) (41st ranking); Sven Puymbroeck (am) (NZL) (220+4) (42nd ranking); Peter Spearman-Burn (NZL) (224+8) (55th ranking) and David Klein (NZL) (225+9) (57th ranking).

Now to the second event I am reporting on this week and it was the opening tournament of the 2012 USPGA Tour season and was the Hyundai Tournament of Champions which only has the winners on the USPGA Tour in the 2011 season playing in it. It was played on the Plantation Course at Kapalua, Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii and for the first time in its history it had a scheduled Monday finish because of NFL Football TV commitments with NBC Sports. And it was the Golfer by the name of Steve Stricker (USA) that scored rounds of 68-5, 63-10, 69-4 and a final round of 69-4 for a 72 hole total of 269-23 and he won by 3 strokes. It was his first time he has ever won the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and it was his 12th USPGA Tour win and his first for the 2012 Season. He won $US 1,120,000 for the win and is leading the USPGA Tour 2012 Money List with $US 1,120,000 earned from the one event he has played in so far this year. Steve Stricker (USA) also leads the 2012 FedEx Cup points list with 500 points earned after the first event of the 2012 season was completed.

Steve Stricker (USA) gives his Daughter a kiss after winning the Hyundai Tournament of Champions

Steve Stricker (USA) got off to a shaky start in the final round with making 5 straight pars and then a poor bogey on the Par 4, 6th hole. At that point his lead had been reduced to one stroke over Jonathan Byrd (USA) who had birdied 3 out of the first 6 holes. They both pared the Par 4, 7th hole. But there was a 2 stroke swing on the Par 3, 8th hole where Steve Stricker (USA) made a birdie 2 to Jonathan Byrd (USA) bogey 4. Steve Stricker’s (USA) lead was now back to 3 strokes. They both made birdie 4’s on the Par 5, 9th hole. Jonathan Byrd (USA) then birdied the short Par 4, 10th hole to reduce Steve Stricker’s (USA) lead back to 2 strokes. But Steve Stricker (USA) came back with a birdie of his own on the short Par 4, 12th hole and his lead was back to 3 strokes over Jonathan Byrd (USA). Jonathan Byrd (USA) came back with a birdie of his own on the Par 4, 14th hole and Steve Stricker’s (USA) lead was only 2 strokes again with 4 holes to play. They both only pared the Par 5, 15th hole and Steve Stricker (USA) now had a 2 stroke lead with 3 holes to play. They both then birdied the Par 4, 16th hole so Steve Stricker (USA) had a 2 stroke lead with 2 holes to play.

Meanwhile Martin Laird (Scotland) had finished with 5 birdies in his last 7 holes and posted a final round of 67-6. His 72 hole total was 272-20 and he was the leader in the Club House. Steve Stricker (USA) pared the tricky par 4, 17th hole but Jonathan Byrd (USA) could only manage a bogey five so that left Steve Sticker (USA) with a 2 Stroke lead over Martin Laird (Scotland) with the 72nd hole to play. Steve Stricker (USA) hit a great drive down the long par 5, 18th hole and hit his 2nd shot just short of the green. He chipped his 3rd shot to within 8feet of the cup and holed the birdie putt for a round of 69-4. It was a great start to the season for him. Steve Stricker (USA) has set himself a huge goal this year and that is to win a Major Championship. I think he has the talent to do it, but age may be against him as he turns 45 in February. But I wish him all the best on the USPGA Tour in 2012. Coming in Solo 2nd place with rounds of 68-5, 70-3, 67-6 and a final round of 67-6 for a 72 hole total of 272-20 was Martin Laird (Scotland), it was a good way to start his 2012 USPGA Tour season off.

Steve Stricker (USA) holding the Hyundai Tournament of Champions Trophy he won

Tied for 3rd position on 273-19 after 72 holes were Webb Simpson (USA) and last year’s Champion in this very tournament Jonathan Byrd (USA). Coming in at tied for 5th position at 277-15 after 72 holes were K. J. Choi (South Korea) who scored 65-8 which was the lowest round in the final round and Harrison Frazar (USA) was also tied for 5th. Coming in at tied for 7th position on 278-14 after 72 holes were Chris Kirk (USA) and Bryce Molder (USA). Rounding out the top 10 in tied for 9th position on 279-13 after 72 holes were Johnson Wagner (USA), Rory Sabbatini (RSA) and Ben Crane (USA).

Next week is the first regular USPGA Tour event of the 2012 season which is the Sony Open in Hawaii. It is being played on the Waialae CC, Honolulu, Hawaii and has a prize purse of $US 5,500,000 for the taking. Mark Wilson (USA) is the defending Champion and will be looking for back to back titles. It is Danny Lee (New Zealand) debut appearance on the USPGA Tour as a Full playing member after gaining his card from the 2011 Nationwide Tour where he finished 6th on the final money list. It starts on Thursday 12th January and I will report back who won next week.   

Now to the third event I am reporting on this week and it was the opening tournament of the 2012 European Tour and Race to Dubai season. It was the Africa Open and was played at the East London GC, East London, South Africa. And it was the Golfer by the name of Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) who scored rounds of 69-4, 62-11, 67-6 and a final round of 67-6 for a 72 hole total of 265-27 and he won by 2 strokes. He won € 158,500 for his efforts and moves to Number one position on the Race to Dubai Money list with € 158,500 earned from the one event he has played in. He played a great final round with going out in 33-4 which included birdies at the Par 5, 1st hole, Par 4, 6th , 7th and 9th holes and an eagle at the Par 5, 3rd hole. He had poor bogeys at the Par 3, 2nd hole and Par 4, 5th hole. He came home in 34-2 which included birdies at the Par 5, 11th hole and Par 3, 17th hole which added up to a final round 67-6.

Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) in action during the final round of the Africa Open

It was his fourth European Tour International Schedule victory in his 192nd European Tour event. He goes to the top of The Race to Dubai with €158,500. Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) made a successful defence of his Africa Open title, having defeated Manuel Quiros and Chris Wood in a play-off 12 months ago. This victory represents the first time he has successfully defended a title on The European Tour International Schedule. (He did win the Telkom PGA Championship on the Sunshine Tour in back-to-back years in 2007-08). He becomes the fourth different South African player to make a successful defence of a European Tour title. He follows: Ernie Els (RSA) (2002-04 Heineken Classic), Trevor Immelman (RSA) (2003-04 South African Open Championship) and Charl Schwartzel (RSA) (2010-11 Joburg Open). The Africa Open is the just the second official European Tour event that South Africa has won for three consecutive seasons. This follows the South African Open Championship, between 2002-04 and 2005-07.

It was the third consecutive South African victory in the Africa Open, following Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) (2011) and Charl Schwartzel (RSA) (2010), since the event became part of The European Tour. (The Africa Open was first played in 2008. Shaun Norris (RSA) won that year, followed by Retief Goosen (RSA) in 2009, both from South Africa). Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) became the first player since Martin Kaymer (Germany) (2010-11 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship) to win the same European Tour event in back-to-back years. He becomes the 33rd different player to successfully defend a European Tour title. Has now finished inside the top eight in his last six consecutive European Tour events and is a total of 93 under par for these tournaments. This dates back to the 2011 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. It was the 102nd South African victory in European Tour history.

Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) kisses the Africa Open Trophy he won for the 2nd straight year

Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) claimed his ninth win as a professional. He has now won on the European Tour in each of the last three seasons. And finally he moves over €6 million in European Tour Official Career Earnings. This win should give him a lot of confidence for the 2012 European Tour Season and Race to Dubai. And maybe he can with his 2nd Major of his career this year? (He won the Open Championship at St Andrews in 2010). I wish him all the best for the 2012 season. Coming in solo 2nd place at 267-25 after 72 holes was Tjaart Van Der Walt (RSA). Coming in solo 3rd place at 268-24 after 72 holes was two time US Open Champion, Retief Goosen (RSA). Coming in solo 4th place at 269-23 after 72 holes was Jaco Van Zyl (RSA). Coming in solo 5th place at 270-22 after 72 holes was Alastair Forsyth (Scotland). Coming in Solo 6th place at 272-20 after 72 holes Richard Sterne (RSA). Coming in Solo 7th place at 273-19 after 72 holes was Danny Willett (England). In tied for 8th place at 274-18 after 72 holes was Lyle Rowe (RSA) and Craig Lee (Scotland). Rounding out the top 10 in tied for 10th place at 275-17 after 72 holes were Emiliano Grillo (Argentina), Peter Karmis (RSA), Matthew Baldwin (England) and Magnus A Carlsson (Sweden).

Next week on the European Tour and the Race to Dubai it is the Joburg Open. It is being played at the Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club, Johannesburg, South Africa. Charl Schwartzel (RSA) is the two time defending Champion and will be looking for the 3 peat. It has a prize purse of €1,300,000 for the taking and will attract some of the best players on the European Tour. It starts on Thursday 12th January and a will report back who won the Trophy next week.

So to the Top 5 on the Official Golf World Rankings Points list for the first time in 2012. Coming in number one for the 32nd week in a row is Luke Donald (England) with 10.21 Official World Golf Ranking Points, Coming in number two is Lee Westwood (England) with 7.92 Official World Golf Ranking Points, Coming in number three is Rory McILroy (NIR) was 7.65 Official World Golf Ranking Points, Coming in number four is Martin Kaymer (Germany) with 6.43 Official World Golf Rankings Points and rounding out the top five is Steve Stricker (USA) with 6.00 Official Golf World Ranking Points. He was fresh off his win at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions victory last week. Tiger Woods (USA) this week slips two places to be at 25th position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list with 3.54 Official World Golf Ranking Points. Danny Lee (NZL) is still the highest ranked New Zealander in the World. This week he moves up 2 places to be at 149th position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list with 1.17 Official World Golf Rankings Points on the list.

The final event I am reporting on this week was the Opening event of the PGA Tour of Australasia for the 2012. It was Victorian Open and was played at the Spring Valley Golf Club, Melbourne and it was the Golfer by the name of Scott Arnold (Australia) who rounds of 71 even, 66-5, 67-4 and a final round of 68-3 for a 72 hole total of 272-12 and won by 1 stroke. He won $AU 18,750.00 for his efforts and moves to the top of the Australasian Tour Money list after the first event in 2012.

Scott Arnold (Australia) in action during the final round of the Victorian Open

It was a thrilling finish to the 2012 Victorian Open for Scott Arnold (Australia) as claimed his first professional win at the Spring Valley Golf Club today. He started the round tied with New Zealand’s Michael Hendry (NZL) at 9-under par; it was an exciting round of golf which saw the lead change many times before Arnold eventually prevailed. "It's great, especially the way I did it as well, I just sort of hung in there all day,” said Arnold. With scores of 71, 66, 67 and 68 for a tournament total 12-under the card Arnold showed composure when his playing partners made charges for the title. He said “I didn't play fantastic golf but was still playing within myself and getting done what I needed to do”. He said “Barnesey was really putting the heat on, especially on the back nine at 11 and 12 and 13, I got out of my little zone and had to get back in and I was happy that I pulled it off."

Kurt Barnes (Australia) headed into the final day three shots back from his playing partners, Scott Arnold (Australia) and Michael Hendry(NZL), but with a birdie on his opening hole followed by birdies on the 5th and 6th and an eagle on the 7th he looked unstoppable. “I had to get out of the blocks early and I did, through nine holes I thought it was probably mine to lose,” said Kurt Barnes (Australia). A double bogey on the 11th followed by two more bogeys on 13th and 14th had all but worked Barnes out of the Victorian Open until an eagle on the 17th had him back in contention. He said “I faltered a bit on the back nine, but I come home strong there”. He said “I thought if I made my eagle on 17 and Scotty missed his, I was still a chance, but that's golf.” 

Barnes finished with a final round score of 5-under 66 to take him to a tournament total of 11-under par, one shot back from Arnold in second place. “Well done to Scotty, I gave it a good run,” added Barnes. Michael Hendry (New Zealand), who had dominated the tournament throughout the first two rounds, earning himself a six stroke lead heading into the weekend, unfortunately couldn’t finish the way he started, with his putting let him down. Michael Hendry said “I've never seen so many putts hit the hole, at not a lot of speed either, and find a way not to go in”. He added “On another day, they'd all drop and it would have been my day”. It was just one of those things. Hendry’s final round saw him record four bogeys to finish the day at 2-over. With scores of 65, 66, 73, 73 to be 7-under the card and five shots from the lead, Hendry finished the Victorian Open third. But it was still a great start to the 2012 Australasian Tour season for him with earning $AU 8,750.00 for his effort and is in 3rd position on the Australasian Tour Money list for 2012 after the first event.

 Coming in at tied for 4th position at 279-5 after 72 holes were Matthew Ballard (Australia), Peter Lonard (Australia), Leigh McKechnie (Australia) and Nick Cullen (Australia). In solo 8th position at 280-4 was the 2011 Final Stage - Qualifying School for the PGA Tour of Australasia winner Daniel Popovic (Australia), it was nice to see him get off to a great start to his 2012 campaign on the  Australasian Tour. Round out the top 10 in tied for 9th position at 281-3 after 72 holes were Craig Parry (Australia) and Quinton Howe (Australia). Other New Zealand Golfers in the field that made the cut were Michael Long (NZL) and Doug Holloway (NZL), they were both tied for tied for 18th position at 283-1 after 72 holes. They both earned $AU 1,500.00 for their weeks work and are tied for 16th position on the Australasian Tour Order of Merit after the first event of 2012.

Daniel Bringolf (Australia) finished as the highest ranked amateur at282-2 after 72 holes. Other New Zealand Golfers that missed the 36 hole halfway cut that fell at 146+2 were Ben Campbell (Amateur) (NZL) on 147+5, Kevin Smith (NZL) 152+10, Sven Puymbroeck (NZL) 157+15.

Next tournament on the PGA Tour of Australasia is the Adroit Insurance Group Victorian PGA Championship and it is being played on the Forest Resort, Creswick. It has a prize purse of $AU 120,000 for the taking. James Nitties (Australia) is the defending champion and will be looking to defend his title. It starts on Thursday 16th February, I will report back who won the trophy once it has been completed.

So until then remember to keep striking the ball long and straight and make all your Putts!!

Source: pgatour.com, europeantour.com, www.pga.org.au

How I defended the Brownlee Cup

On the 30th April 2011 the first qualifying round of two was held for the 2011 Brownlee Cup.  The format for the 2011 Brownlee Cup was two rounds of qualifying on Nett, one on Saturday 30th April and the other on the Saturday 4th June. With the best Nett of the two rounds being you’re qualifying score. Then there were five rounds of match play (Meaning only 32 players qualified) starting on Saturday 18th June and the final was scheduled for Saturday 23rd July.

In the first round I scored 78 off my 6 handicap and retuned a 72 nett and was right on the cut off point in 32nd position. The second round (Saturday 4th June) I chose not to play because it rained all day. Only 10 players played and it was decided by the Match Committee there would be a third qualifying round the following Saturday (11th June). I scored a 77 off my 9 handicap and returned a 68 nett and qualified Mid Field.

So to the first round that was scheduled for the Saturday 18th June. My Opponent in the first round was Kane Lucas. He was on a 5 handicap and I was on a 9 handicap so I received 4 strokes from him. We decided by mutual agreement to play our match on Sunday 19th June because it rained all day on Saturday when it was scheduled to be played. I won the first hole with a birdie 2 to go 1up, won the third hole with a par 4 to go 2up, and the fourth hole with par 4 to go 3up. I lost the fifth hole to a par to go back to 2up, won the sixth hole with a birdie to go back to 3up. Lost the seventh hole to a par 4 to back to 2up, won the 8th hole with a par 3 to go back to 3up and we halved the ninth hole. I turned 3up. I won the tenth hole with a par 3 to go to 4up. We halved the eleventh and twelfth holes so I was 4up with 6 holes to play. I won the thirteenth hole with a par 4 and I was now dormie with 5 holes up with 5 holes to play. I lost the fourteenth hole to a par 3 and went back to 4 up. But won the fifteenth hole with a birdie 4 to win the match 4&3 and advance to the second round on Saturday 2nd July. 

So to the second round and my opponent was Stu Blok. It was played on a lovely Sunny Saturday afternoon (2nd July) in bright winter sun shine. I was on a 9 handicap and Stu was on an 11 handicap so I gave him 2 strokes. I won the first hole with a par 3 to go 1up, the fifth hole with a par 4 to go 2up, lost the seventh hole when I made a double bogey 6. And I also lost the eighth hole when I made a bogey 4. So we were all square after 8 holes. I won the ninth hole with a par 5 to turn 1up. Then won the tenth hole with a par 3 to go 2up, the eleventh hole with a par 4 to go 3up, we halved the twelfth hole with par 4’s so I was still 3up with 6 holes to play. I won the thirteenth with a par 4 to go 4up. We both made par 3’s on the fourteenth hole for a half. I was now dormie 4up with 4 holes to play. I won the fifteenth hole with a birdie 4 and won the match 5&3 to advance to the Quarter Finals on Saturday 9th July. 

So to the quarter finals and my opponent was Geoff Sainty. I was on an 8 handicap and Geoff was on a 22 handicap so I had to give him 14 strokes. I knew this match would be my hardest as I was giving away the most strokes of all the games I played. It had been an extremely wet week and on Saturday 9th July the course was boarder line to be closed. But the Green keeper (John Trim) decided to leave it open. We halved holes One and Two; I won the third when Geoff conceded to me so I went to 1up.  I won the fourth hole with a par to go 2up and the fifth with a Par 4 to go 3up. Lost the sixth hole when I made a bogey 5. I was back to only 2up.  Also lost the Seventh hole when I made bogey 5 and I was now only 1up. Won the ninth hole with a par 5 and that meant I turned 2up. Lost the tenth hole when I scored a bogey 4 and was now only 1up. Won the eleventh hole when Geoff conceded to me so I went back to 2up. Lost the twelfth hole with a bogey to go back to 1up and also lost the thirteen hole with a bogey to be all square. We halved the fourteenth hole when I made a par 3. I won the fifteenth hole with a Par 5 to go 1up. We halved the sixteenth hole when I made a bogey. When I sank my 7 foot par putt on the seventeenth hole I had won the match 2&1 and had advanced the Semi – Final on Saturday 16th July.  

So to the Semi – Final, and again it had been a really wet week leading up to it. This was the closest match I had out of the 5. I was playing Gordon Lindsay, he was on 14 handicap and I was on an 8 handicap so I had to give him 6 strokes. I won the first hole with a par 3 to go 1up, and the third hole with a Par 4 to go 2up. Lost the sixth hole when I made a bogey 5 and went back to 1up. I lost the eighth hole when I made a bogey 5 to bring the match back to All Square. I won the ninth hole with a Par 5 to turn 1up. Lost the tenth hole with a bogey 4 and the 11th hole with a bogey 5 to go 1down for the first time in the match.  I won the 12th hole with a par 4 to get back to all square with 6 holes to play. We halved the next 5 holes (13th to 17th), so we came to the eighteen hole all square.  We both hit good tee shots. I played my second shot first with a seven iron and landed it on the green 15 feet below the hole. Gordon then left his second shot just short of the green in the rough. Gordon played a good third shot chip leaving it about 3 feet below the cup. So now I knew what I had to do and that was hole my 15 foot birdie putt to win the match and advance to my second Brownlee Cup Final. And that is exactly what I did! I won this extremely close match 1up.

So to the final of the Brownlee Cup for 2011. It was scheduled to be played on Saturday 23rd July but the Heavy Winter Rains caused the course to be closed. My opponent in the final was Gary Webber. Under Mutual agreement we agreed to play the final on Sunday 31st July because fine weather was predicted for that day. So, Sunday 31st July dawned a lovely sunny clear winter’s day.  We teed off in the final just after 12 noon. I was on an 8 handicap and Gary was on a 12 handicap so I had to give him 4 strokes. I won the first hole with a par 3 to go 1up. I won the second hole when Gary conceded to me so I went to 2up. We halved the third and fourth holes. I won the fifth hole with a birdie 3 to go 3up. Won the sixth hole with a birdie 3 to go 4up. We halved the seventh hole when I made a bogey 5. I won the eighth hole with a par 3 to go 5up and also won the ninth hole with a Par 5 to go 6up after the front nine holes. Out of the five games I won to win the Brownlee Cup for 2011, the front nine holes of the final was the best nine holes I played with scoring 34 one under par. I lost the tenth with a bogey to back to 5up. Lost the eleventh hole with a double bogey to go back to 4up.  Lost the twelfth hole with a bogey to go back to 3up. I won the thirteenth hole with a par 4 to get back to 4up. We halved the fourteenth hole with bogey 4’s so I was now dormie 4up with 4 holes to play. I won the fifteenth hole with a Par 5 to win the match 5&3 and win the Brownlee Cup for 2011 and I also became the first player to defend the Brownlee Cup in 57 years. The last player to defend the Brownlee Cup was G. A. Poulgrain in 1954.

Me holding the the Brownlee Cup (On the Left) that I won for the 2nd Consecutive year!!!

I received the Brownlee Cup on Prize – Giving afternoon which was Saturday 12th November 2011 and got my Voucher to spend in the Golf Shop as well.      

Golf Events from the Weekend 18th December 2011

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Source: asiantour.com, pga.org.au, pgatour.com