The Irish Golf Club Gazette: August 2012

8/31/2012

Rory Not Chasing Major Records

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Rory McIlroy admits he has not set a target regarding the number of majors he wants to win during his career.

The 23-year-old already has US Open and USPGA victories to his name but says he will not be turning his career into a pursuit of Jack Nicklaus's record of 18 majors.

"I never grew up chasing records or trying to put a certain number on it," McIlroy said on the eve of the Deutsche Bank Championship, the second of four events in the US PGA Tour's playoff series.

"I've got my second major and I'm looking for my third. Hopefully it's not too long before I get my third, and then when I get my third, I want to get my fourth. That's the way I'm approaching it.

"I don't want to put any number on it because if I just throw a random number out there and I don't get to it, I don't want me to be disappointed with a career that's actually very good or everyone else to feel like I haven't lived up to expectations."

McIlroy's victory in the USPGA earlier this month move him back to the top of the world rankings but said the success did not feel anything special.

"Life since winning the second one hasn't changed at all," he said. "It felt much different than the first. It felt normal, felt like this is what I'm supposed to do, these are the tournaments that I'm supposed to win."

Although McIlroy will be the youngest winner of Europe's Ryder Cup team in the showdown with the United States next month, he says he thinks he is ready to be a leader on the team captained by Jose Maria Olazabal.

"You can't be afraid to voice your opinion," said McIlroy, who made his Ryder Cup debut two years ago. "If you really feel strongly about something in the team room, you've got to stand up and speak.

"This will be my second one. I know there's a lot of older guys than me that are going to be on the European team, but I feel like I'm in a position where I'd be one of the leaders of the team, and if I feel strongly about something, I'll voice that."

8/30/2012

Irish Open Winner Readies for Ricoh

Following her outstanding win at the Ladies’ Irish Open 2012, Carnoustie Country Ambassador Catriona Matthew has her sights firmly fixed on the 2012 Ricoh Women’s British Open, which tees off on September 13.

“I was delighted to claim victory in the Ladies Irish Open last month,” said Catriona. “This was my second win since being appointed Carnoustie Country Ambassador for a second year and bodes well for my chances at this year’s Ricoh Women’s British Open.

“After Britain’s successes at the Olympics, it’s good to be leading the home challenge at a Major. I won the Women’s British Open three years ago and, having now won nine Professional golf tournaments, I’m hoping to clinch number ten at Royal Liverpool in a couple of weeks.”

Carnoustie Country encompasses 30 golf courses within a 40-minute drive of Carnoustie Championship and Catriona was named Ambassador for this top golfing brand in April 2011 – an appointment which was extended for a further 12 months earlier this year. “I’m honoured to be continuing my role as Carnoustie Country Ambassador,” said Catriona. “I’ve enjoyed some fabulous rounds of golf on many Carnoustie Country courses, including, of course, Carnoustie Championship. It’s wonderful to be able to spread the word about how good golf is in Carnoustie Country.”

Cllr Mairi Evans, Angus Council golf spokesperson, revealed that Catriona’s endorsement of Carnoustie Country and its golf courses had further increased awareness of the brand across the globe. “We couldn’t have asked for a better ambassador for the brand or the county,” said Cllr Evans. “For example, since her appointment in April 2011, Catriona, who wears the Carnoustie Country logo on her golf shirts, has generated almost 10,000 press articles in at least 50 countries across the globe.

“In addition, as one of the world’s top women golfers, Catriona regularly appears on television – with her Carnoustie Country logo on display. In fact, during the 2011 Ricoh Women’s British Open, the Carnoustie Country logo on Catriona’s shirt received 2,040 seconds of coverage around the world, which has been estimated as being the equivalent of £24,500 of advertising.”

In April, Catriona spent two days in Carnoustie Country, hosting golf clinics, taking part in a Beat The Golf Pro competition, coaching junior golfers and visiting local golf courses, including Forbes of Kingennie. “We were delighted to make Catriona an honorary member of Kingennie during her visit here,” said Mike Forbes of Forbes of Kingennie.

Mike Forbes was very positive about how Catriona’s ambassadorship was promoting the Carnoustie Country brand. “It’s wonderful to see such a high profile golfer, especially one with such a loyal following amongst golfers, wearing the Carnoustie Country logo and mentioning Carnoustie Country during television, newspaper and magazine interviews.

“During the Women’s Open, Catriona will undoubtedly be one of the golfers the world’s media will focus upon, guaranteeing coverage for the Carnoustie Country logo. And the more exposure Carnoustie Country receives, the more golfers who will be tempted to come here and play a round or two of golf on our excellent courses.”

It's the Full Irish At Woburn Masters

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A cast of former Ryder Cup players reunited at Woburn Golf Club ahead of this week's Travis Perkins plc Senior Masters.

Manuel Pinero, Philip Walton, Gordon Brand Jnr and Christy O'Connor Jnr joined Senior Tour Managing Director Andy Stubbs for a Q&A session after the Wednesday Pro-Am was affected by heavy rain.

The quartet share memories of their Ryder Cup appearances with the guests.

Then on Thursday Roger Chapman and Barry Lane, the top two players on the European Senior Tour Order of Merit, will renew their battle in this week’s Travis Perkins plc Senior Masters, with both players looking to go one better than last year.

The English pair tied for second place with Scotland’s Gordon Brand Jnr over the Duke’s Course 12 months ago, finishing four strokes behind winner Boonchu Ruangkit.

Lane, who had won the Scottish Senior Open two weeks previously, was the joint leader going into the final round last year, but his hopes of back-to-back victories were dashed by a triple bogey on the 537 yard par five 14th hole as he carded a closing 75.

The former Ryder Cup player returns to Woburn in a fine vein of form following his victory in last week’s Speedy Services Wales Senior Open, and was also tied third in The Senior Open Championship Presented by Rolex last month and tied eighth in his defence of the SSE Scottish Senior Open, before claiming his fourth Senior Tour victory in Conwy.

“I’ve been playing really well this year and I’m in great form so I’m looking forward to going back to Woburn,” he said. “Having won in Scotland last year a couple of weeks before and then leading going into the final round I felt as though I should have won again but that mistake on the 14th cost me and Boonchu also played well.

“It was great to win last week in Wales and it would be nice to get back-to-back titles.”

Lane’s second place in last year’s Travis Perkins plc Senior Masters helped him to finish runner up in the Order of Merit, and he finds himself in the same position this year, behind Chapman, the US Senior PGA and US Senior Open champion.

Chapman has a healthy €103,681 advantage in pole position for the John Jacobs Trophy and will be hoping to extend that by securing the lion’s share of the £300,000 prize fund, which is up £15,000 on last year.

The 53 year old opened with a 74 last year, but weekend rounds of 67 and 70 helped him to one of three second place finishes in the 2011 season.

After winning his maiden Senior Tour title in the US Senior PGA Championship at Harbor Shores in Michigan, Chapman returned to the same state to complete at Major double in the US Senior Open at Indianwood Golf and Country Club.

In contrast Ruangkit returns to defend his title searching for form, the 2010 Senior Tour Order of Merit winner without a top ten finish so far this season.

The Thai succeeded Des Smyth as champion and the Irishman returns to Woburn following a tied seventh finish last week in Wales.

This week marks the 12th edition of the Travis Perkins plc Senior Masters at Woburn Golf Club’s making it second only to Bad Ragaz Golf Club, host of the Bad Ragaz PGA Seniors Open, as the longest standing venue on the Senior Tour schedule.

Carl Mason, the most successful player in Senior Tour history, is the only player to have won the event more than once, having captured back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007. Should the Englishman win a third it would mean he has won at least one title in each of his ten seasons on the Senior Tour, setting a new record.

Meanwhile Philip Golding will be hoping to continue his impressive start to life on the Senior Tour. The Englishman, who turned 50 the day before last month’s Senior Open Championship Presented by Rolex, finished runner up to Anders Forsbrand in the SSE Scottish Senior Open then runner up to Lane in last week’s Speedy Services Wales Senior Open, missing out by a stroke on each occasion.

Travis Perkins Senior Masters -Live leaderboard

8/29/2012

Ramon Sota Ocejo 1938 - 2012

Ramon Sota, an uncle of golfing great Seve Ballesteros and a successful tournament player in the 1960's and 70's, has died at the age of 74, the Spanish golf federation said.

Sota was a key figure in the growth of the game in Spain and a major inspiration for his nephew Seve, who passed away in May last year after battling a brain tumour.

Born on April 23, 1938, in Pedreña, Sota was one of the first Spanish professionals to tour the world along with the Miguel brothers, Miguel and Ángel.

After working as a caddie at Real Golf de Pedreña, he turned professional in 1956 and went on to win the Spanish Professional Championship four times.

He also won the a number of national Opens around the world including the Open de France in 1965 with a closing round 62, the Dutch Open in 1966 and 1971, the Open de Portugal in 1963, 1969 and 1970, the Italian Open in 1971 and his own national Open in 1963.

He also recorded several victories further afield, claiming the Brazil Open in 1965.

In 2001 he achieved his dream, along with his two sons Gabriel and José Antonio, of building a nine-hole par three course, driving range and a golf academy in the village of Agüero, near Pedreña.

He finished seventh at the British Open in 1963 and eighth in 1971 and was sixth at the U.S. Masters in 1965, the best result by a European up to that date.

"The members of the Royal Spanish Golf Federation would like to express their deepest condolences to family and friends," the federation said in a statement on their website.

Sota, whose sister Carmen Sota was the mother of Seve Ballesteros, Spain’s most successful golfer, died of pneumonia. His funeral will take place in Pedreña at 5pm on Thursday, August 30.

#RIP

Padraig Rooting for Medinah Team

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Padraig Harrington will be rooting for Europe's Ryder Cup side in Chicago next month.

Ireland's three-time major winner did not receive a wild card from captain Jose Maria Olazabal on Monday and so will not be part of the match for the first time since 1997.

"I've been aware of the Ryder Cup situation since the PGA Championship and I pretty much knew the outcome," Harrington said on his website.

"Ollie called me to let me know. The Ryder Cup is a team event and you should qualify by merit.

"I thoroughly believe the two picks (Ian Poulter and uncapped Belgian Nicolas Colsaerts) will deliver and do a good job.

"I will be watching and rooting for the team and I wish them well."

European Ryder Cup captain Jose Maria Olazabal denied that an old rift with Harrington affected the Irish player's chances of making the team.

Harrington questioned Olazabal about repairing pitch marks in the 2003 Seve Trophy in Spain, but the Spaniard dismissed suggestions the old spat will impact his two captain's picks for the matches next month at Medinah.

Annika Named Solheim Vice Captain

Annika Sorenstam has been appointed vice captain for the 2013 European Solheim Cup team.

Captain Liselotte Neumann announced the selection Tuesday at Colorado Golf Club, which will host the event next August. Carin Koch also was named a vice captain.

Sorenstam filled a similar role in 2011 when the Europeans won the Cup in Ireland. She has played in the event eight times, accumulating 24 points in 37 matches.

The former world No. 1 golfer retired in 2008. Sorenstam had quite a career as she won 90 tournaments, including 10 major championships.

Sorenstam said she is elated at the chance to help Neumann, who was her role model as a young golfer.

U.S. captain Meg Mallon announced in July that Dottie Pepper will be her vice captain.

McIlroy Misses Grand Slam of Golf

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Championship winner Rory McIlroy will be a conspicuous absentee from the elite end-of-season PGA Grand Slam of Golf in Bermuda in October due to a scheduling conflict, organisers said.

Northern Irishman McIlroy, who clinched his second major title by a staggering eight shots at Kiawah Island earlier this month, had already committed to the European Tour's BMW Masters inChina, the PGA of America said in a statement.

The BMW Masters, which was added to the European Tour schedule in April, will be played at Lake Malaren Golf Club in Shanghai from October 25-28.

The PGA Grand Slam of Golf, a 36-hole strokeplay event which brings together the winners of the year's four majors, will be held from Oct. 23-24 at Bermuda's Port Royal Golf Course.

American Keegan Bradley will replace world number one McIlroy on the picturesque Atlantic Ocean island of Bermuda where he will defend the title he claimed by one shot last year when he qualified as the 2011 PGA Championship winner.

Fellow Americans Bubba Watson , who won this year's Masters, and Webb Simpson (U.S. Open ), plus South African Ernie Els(British Open), complete the elite four-man field.

The Grand Slam of Golf, billed as 'the most exclusive tournament in golf', was held in Hawaii from 1991 to 2006 before moving to Bermuda in 2007.

8/28/2012

Olazabal Right About Harry - Gallacher

Europe captain Jose Maria Olazabal was right to ignore Padraig Harrington's claims for a Ryder Cup wild card pick, according to former skipper Bernard Gallacher.

Olazabal picked Belgian rookie Nicolas Colsaerts and Englishman Ian Poulter as his wildcard choices on Monday for the biennial event against United States in Illinois on 28-30 September.

The pair join automatic selections Rory McIlroy, Luke Donald, Lee Westwood, Sergio Garcia, Graeme McDowell, Peter Hanson, Justin Rose, Martin Kaymer, Francesco Molinari and Paul Lawrie in a powerful lineup.

"It's a very strong side," Gallacher told Reuters in an interview. "They are the best 12 players in Europe - it's perfect.

"There were absolutely no surprises. Jose Maria reduced the amount of wildcard picks from three to two this time round and the strong message he gave was that he wanted the players to play their way into the team.

"That's exactly what's happened. Martin Kaymer was in the 10th and final automatic position, Colsaerts was number 11 and the next highest player in the world rankings not already in the side was Poulter," said Gallacher.

The 63-year-old Scot echoed the sentiments of Spaniard Olazabal when he said Harrington was too low on the Ryder Cup points list - at number 19 - to be picked.

The Dubliner has performed well in two of this year's major championships, finishing fourth at the US Open and eighth at the Masters, but his form has not been good enough in the regular events.

"Jose Maria has actually gone straight down the points list - those that are playing good golf have been selected and Harrington was just too far down," said Gallacher.

"Padraig has three majors under his belt but he's probably tried to concentrate more on doing well in the majors rather than in regular tournaments week in, week out where you earn your Ryder Cup points.

"In a way he's a bit unlucky there but Jose Maria gave clear signals throughout his captaincy he was going to stick very much to his qualifying list."

Gallacher, who lost his first two Ryder Cup matches in charge before finally prevailing on American soil at Oak Hill in 1995, said the captain would have been mightily relieved to see fellow countryman Garcia's recent return to form.

Garcia won the Wyndham Championship in North Carolina two weeks ago and looked on course for back-to-back victories on the US Tour until a poor final round at the Barclays Classic on Sunday meant he had to be content with a share of third place.

"The last piece in the jigsaw was Sergio because he could have caused Jose Maria problems," Gallacher said.

"I'm sure Jose Maria said to himself, 'That's absolutely great, let's go and have a glass of champagne - he's a guy I really want in my team'.

"He didn't want to have to pick Sergio as a wild card - you always want your best players to qualify."

The Scot said the Ryder Cup holders would be concerned by the mediocre form of German Kaymer who chose to miss the last points-counting event, the Johnnie Walker Championship in Scotland last week, to work on his game.

"That's the only disappointment but Jose Maria has been on the phone to him and he's pleased he's working on his game and is going to be playing in a few tournaments before the Ryder Cup," said Gallacher.

"Martin's not the same player he was a couple of years ago when he was US PGA champion and world number one, that's for sure, but he's won enough money in this campaign to qualify automatically.

"Having only one worry out of 12 players is okay," Gallacher added. "In my time we had worries about a number of players.

"I think it's just a confidence thing with Martin. Sometimes you can just get on a bad run, but with a young player like Kaymer confidence can turn around very quickly."

8/27/2012

Wild Cards for Colsaerts and Poulter

Ian Poulter and Nicolas Colsaerts have received the two wildcard picks as captain Jose Maria Olazabal completed his 2012 European Ryder Cup side.

England's Poulter, 36, will be winning his fourth cap, while Belgian Colsaerts, 29, will make his debut in Medinah, Chicago from 28-30 September.

The pair joined the 10 automatic picks from the rankings after Sunday's Johnnie Walker Championship.

Europe have beaten the United States in four of the last five Ryder Cups.

The players who made the team by right are Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Graeme McDowell, Paul Lawrie, Francesco Molinari, Luke Donald, Lee Westwood, Sergio Garcia, Peter Hanson and Martin Kaymer.

The US-based Poulter, who struggled with pneumonia earlier this season, has built a reputation as a fearsome matchplay exponent. He was the highest points scorer for either side when selected as a wildcard for the 2008 Ryder Cup at Valhalla and won three points out of four in Europe's 14½-13½ win at Celtic Manor two years ago.

Poulter, who made the first of his three previous appearances in the biennial event in 2004, could have overhauled the Germany's former world number one Kaymer with a 35th-place finish in Scotland, but opted to stay in America.

Colsaerts, who won the World Match Play Championship in May, could also have sealed an automatic place with a top-two finish at Gleneagles, but his share of 19th meant the out-of-form Kaymer held on to the final qualification place, despite also opting to miss the event.

The 29-year-old Colsaerts, the longest hitter on the European Tour, is the next man on the Ryder Cup rankings list and is considered the leading contender for the final spot.

Colsaerts will become the first Belgian to compete in the Ryder Cup and will also be the only rookie in this year's side, compared to the six that played in Wales.

Padraig Harrington, a six-time Ryder Cup veteran, was also in contention for a wildcard - but Olazabal said it would take "at least a win" at the Barclays tournament in New York for the Irishman to stand a chance, but he finished eight shots behind eventual winner Nick Watney.

The 10 automatic choices were made up of the top five from a list based on ranking points won in European Tour events, followed by the next five best on the world rankings.

Olazabal, who played in seven Ryder Cups from 1987-2006 and was a key partner of the late Seve Ballesteros, will have four vice-captains to assist him in Chicago.

The two-time Masters champion will be joined by Northern Ireland's Darren Clarke, Ireland's Paul McGinley, Denmark's Thomas Bjorn and Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez.

Eight players have already qualified for the US team: Tiger Woods, Bubba Watson, Jason Dufner, Keegan Bradley, Webb Simpson, Zach Johnson, Matt Kuchar and Phil Mickelson.

US captain Davis Love names his four wildcard choices on 3 September after the first two events of the PGA Tour's FedEx Cup play-offs.

The 2012 Ryder Cup will take place from 28-30 September at Medinah Country Club in Illinois.

8/31/2012

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