Indian Cut for Irish Trio

Getty Images

Peter Lawrie and Gareth Maybin missed the cut at the Jaypee Greens Golf and Spa Resort on Friday by one stroke, ending their their stay in Greater Noida in Delhi, and were joined by Michale Hoey who carded a second double bogey on the 12th in round 2.

Maybin dropped a shot at the par four eighteenth to sign for a level par round of 71, with Lawrie's three under not enough to make up for the opening day 73. But Hoey's troubles started on Friday when a good card was damaged when he double bogeyed the par five 12th to end the day one over par. On the second day  his round of 73 was four shots over the cut mark.

Chapchai Nirat and Liang Wen-chong share a two shot lead at the halfway stage of the Avantha Masters as both players look to end six year waits for a second European Tour victory.

China’s Liang, whose previous victory came at the 2007 Singapore Masters, had eight birdies and two dropped shots – the highlight a 25 foot birdie putt at the 17th – in a 66 that he described afterwards as “some of my best golf”.

The 34 year old added: “I managed to hole several long putts. Although I got two bogeys, I couldn’t have asked for a better round.

“I’ve had a good break with my family and I’m back feeling all recharged. I’ve learnt to be patient and my playing experience from all over the world has taught me well. There are two more rounds to go and hopefully, I can be atop the leaderboard like today.”

Nirat had seven birdies and a single bogey as he matched Liang’s 66 and 12 under par total at Jaypee Greens Golf & Spa Resort.

“I played very well indeed,” said Nirat, who won the Asian Tour’s SAIL Open with a record 32 under par total in 2009.

“This is a very long course and I managed to hit the balls long the last two days. I also managed to hole several long putts as well and luck did play a part in getting me to my position today.”

The chasing group on ten under contains Nirat’s compatriot Chawalit Plaphol, Scot David Drysdale, England’s Tommy Fleetwood and Finn Joonas Granberg.Overnight leader Chinnarat Phadungsil could not maintain his incredible opening round form as he took 12 shots more to complete the back nine.

After eight birdies in nine holes gave Phadungsil an inward 28, 11 under par total and five shot first round lead - just one shy of The European Tour record – the Thai golfer took 40 on the back nine today.

An inward 34 repaired some of the damage, but at nine under par he was down to a share of eighth on nine under.

Drysdale is chasing his first European Tour title in almost 300 starts and after his 67 said: "The golf course gives you a lot of opportunities for birdies, the par fives are all in reach so it's been a steady two days.

"I got through the turn today at nine under and expected to be four or five behind at that point after the lad shooting 11 under yesterday, but saw he had come back to the field so that was a pleasant surprise.

"In the pro-am on Wednesday I was thinking it would be somewhere in the 20s under par that would win this week, especially if the weather stays like this and the wind doesn't get up. After someone shoots 11 under you are just trying to shoot as many birdies as you can.

"When I first saw the course I thought it was a bit of a bomber's paradise, it looks wide from the tee but actually it's not that wide and it's quite a good design, quite narrow which suits me a little bit."

Related articles

• Chinnarat leads Avantha Masters
• Nirat, Wenchong share Avantha lead
• Phadungsil's 11-under tops Avantha Masters
• Phadungsil fires 11-under for five-stroke lead
• Thai Chinnarat on fire at Avantha Masters
• Liang, Nirat rise, Phadungsil falls in India

Irish Open Winner Targets India

Getty Images

The 2011 Irish Open winner, Simon Dyson, is determined to tee up in the Avantha Masters this week despite contracting a stomach virus before leaving for India.

It is five years since the Englishman, who is making his debut in this week’s €1.8million tournament, last competed in India on The European Tour, finishing in a tie for 34th at the 2008 Johnnie Walker Classic at DLF G&CC – also the host venue for the Avantha Masters for the past three years.

This year, the tournament moves to the stunning Jaypee Greens Golf & Spa Resort in Greater Noida, near New Delhi; but Dyson is unlikely to get acquainted with Greg Norman’s design before the first round on Thursday having been laid low with Norovirus, which he contracted from his wife Lyndsey and young daughter Isabella Rose.

Dyson’s breakthrough victory came on Asian soil, at the 2006 Enjoy Jakarta HSBC Indonesia Open, and the 35 year old is hopeful the phrase “beware the injured golfer” proves prophetic this week as he goes in search of a seventh European Tour title.

“I’ve had the virus for a few days now. My wife had it and then my little girl had it too, so I must’ve picked it up from them. I felt really bad all day Saturday then flew out here on Sunday, and I actually felt alright on the flight. But then I started feeling horrendous again yesterday, so we’re back to square one a little bit.

“I had to force myself to get out of bed this morning. I’m probably only going to do a bit of putting practice today then take all day tomorrow off, which means I’ll have to withdraw from the Pro-Am. But hopefully I will have shaken it off by the time the tournament comes round, and I’ll be okay to tee up on Thursday.”

Like his compatriot Dyson, David Howell recently travelled to Mumbai to take part in the inaugural Golf Premier League, a new concept organised by Challenge Tour champion Shiv Kapur which is based loosely on cricket’s Indian Premier League.

A shortened version of the game played partially under floodlights, the tournament pitted teams representing different regions of India against one another, with the competitors – which included Major Champions Michael Campbell, Angel Cabrera and Darren Clarke, whose team emerged victorious – all ‘bought’ at an auction.

Howell, who has played in all three previous of the Avantha Masters, saw great potential in the event, which carried a prize fund of US$400,000 and was televised live. 

He said: “It was a lot of fun to do something a bit different, and hopefully the concept takes off. It was a 14-hole, day / night team event, and it’s got great potential. Team golf’s always a lot of fun, and if they can get a few sponsors on board I can really see it taking off. It can be difficult to find the right week in the schedule for those sort of events, but if they can find a suitable date in the diary, I’m sure it could work.”

Pressed on his more serious outings this year, Howell is understandably delighted with a run of form which has included top ten finishes in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship (tied sixth) and the Tshwane Open (tied tenth).

He said: “I’m in a good run of form so I come into the week in confident mood, and if not expecting to do well then at least knowing that it’s a distinct possibility.

“When you’re in a bit of a slump, you can’t really see a way out of it. But bit by bit over the past year the results have picked up, and my confidence and belief have come back. I certainly feel a lot more confident now than I was a year ago, and it’s no coincidence that my game is also a lot better now.” 

In contrast, Howell’s fellow former Ryder Cup star Edoardo Molinari has struggled for form since the start of the year, missing four straight cuts this season.

But, like Howell, the Italian has also recently switched coaches, and believes it is only a matter of time before his fortunes improve.

He said: “I changed coach back in December, so it’s still a work in progress. But I’m very happy with the improvements I’ve made recently in practice. Now it’s a case of taking it out onto the course with me and putting together some good scores, hopefully starting this week.

“It’s my second time here in India – I played an Asian Tour event in Delhi in 2011, and it was great. Lots of people came along to watch, and I’m sure it’ll be the same here this week. I like coming to different parts of the world and playing new courses in different conditions. It’s a nice tournament, and hopefully it will be well supported because it’s always nice to play in front of big crowds.”

Related articles

• Irish Trio Head for India
• Gaganjeet Bhullar relishes the opportunity to play the Avantha Masters at Jaypee Greens
• Liang back on hunting ground at Avantha Masters
• Thai golfers keen on Avantha Masters
• Three-time Asian No.1 Thongchai Jaidee ready for Avantha Masters
• Bhullar upbeat ahead of Avantha Masters

Irish Trio Head for India

Getty Images

Michael Hoey, Peter Lawrie and Gareth Maybin are the Irish players entered for the Avantha Masters this week in India, where they will be part of a host of European Tour champions, led by the man who has been Number One an historic eight times, Colin Montgomerie.

Of the 156-man field assembling in ‘Incredible India’, 50 have put their names on European Tour titles.

That kind of pedigree will be required for a European Tour Member to lift the beautiful Avantha Masters trophy on Sunday evening as they go head-to-head with the best players from the Asian Tour and the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI).

No fewer than 38 Asian Tour winners, including four Order of Merit champions, are poised to make the Avantha Masters an intriguing contest between the two continents.

Montgomerie, the most prolific British winner in European Tour history, will make his first appearance in the event at Jaypee Greens Golf & Spa Resort, and he will be joined in Noida, near New Delhi, by his fellow former European Ryder Cup stars Niclas Fasth of Sweden, Ignacio Garrido of Spain, England’s David Howell, Italy’s Edoardo Molinari, Frenchman Thomas Levet and Welshman Philip Price.

Spearheading the Asian Challenge will be Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee, the Indian duo of Jyoti Randhawa and Jeev Milkha Singh and China’s Liang Wen-chong, who are all Asian Tour Order of Merit champions.

Jaidee, who won his fifth European Tour title in last year’s ISPS Handa Wales Open, has enjoyed a strong start to new season, finishing third in the Volvo Golf Champions and tied ninth in both the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters.

Singh, who held off Molinari’s younger brother Francesco to win the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open last July, will lead the Indian challenge as he attempts to win a fifth European Tour title.

Asia’s Number One in 2006 and 2008 is joined in the field by compatriot Shiv Kapur, who is going for a double on home soil after winning the Gujarat Kensville Challenge on the European Challenge Tour last month.

Kapur is looking to become only the seventh different player to win on The European and Challenge Tours in the same season.

Both Kapur and Singh will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of countryman S.S.P Chowrasia, who claimed the 2011 Avantha Masters title after overhauling overnight leader Robert Coles with a round of 67 on the final day to prevail by a single stroke.

Prior to that, Chowrasia became the first Indian to win a European Tour event on home soil – and only the third, after Arjuna Atwal and Jeev Milkha Singh, to win one anywhere – when he captured the EMAAR-MGF Indian Masters title in 2008.

Chowrasia was succeeded as Avantha Masters champion last year by South African Jbe Kruger, who won his maiden European Tour title 12 months ago, finishing two shots clear of Germany’s Marcel Siem and Spaniard Jorge Campillo. 

Coincidentally, both Kruger and Chowrasia stand at five feet five inches and are the smallest two players on The European Tour, but both produced big performances to win at the tournament’s previous host venue, DLF Golf and Country Club. 

This year’s event, which again carries a prize-fund of €1.8 million, is the European Tour’s first visit to the Greg Norman-designed course at Jaypee Greens Golf & Spa Resort, which at 7,347 yards is India’s longest golf course.

Related articles

• Gaganjeet Bhullar relishes the opportunity to play the Avantha Masters at Jaypee Greens
• Three-time Asian No.1 Thongchai Jaidee ready for Avantha Masters
• Bhullar upbeat ahead of Avantha Masters
• Thai golfers keen on Avantha Masters
• Waterfront Properties Congratulates Old Palm Golf Club Member for European Tour Win
• Thai golfers keen on Avantha Masters

Incident Filled Avantha Masters Sunday

Paul McGinley slipped out of contention for a top ten finish in New Delhi when a final round 73 pushing him to a share of 14th place. A double bogey on the par four 5th, the main cause of the problem on his card on Sunday.

However the news was rather worse for Peter Whiteford, who was disqualified from the final round of the Avantha Masters, over a ball-moving incident late in his third round. The Scot, one off the lead as he teed off for his fourth round, had asked those close to the scene for their opinions on whether the ball had moved.

But he signed his scorecard for a lower score without checking with officials.

Whiteford, 31, said: "I should have reviewed it. I'm not cheating. It's one of those things but disappointing."

Television replays of Whiteford's third shot to the 18th showed that his ball rolled a fraction before he played to the green.

Whiteford, still to win on the circuit, was leading the field after the first and second rounds and was still in front when he double-bogeyed the 17th hole on Saturday.

"I should have reviewed it. You can see it when you look at TV. John spoke to me before I went out, so to be honest my head wasn't in it from the first tee," he said.

Officials reviewed the matter as Whiteford began his final 18 holes and was given the bad news just after bogeying the short third.

European Tour chief referee John Paramor said: "Peter felt his ball may have moved and for confirmation asked his caddie, a fellow competitor and a TV cameraman, who said they didn't think it had and so he continued on to finish the hole and sign his scorecard for 72.

"Overnight, several viewers contacted the Tour website. This was reviewed by the rules committee, who were able to determine that the ball had in fact moved.

"He should have incurred a penalty of one stroke and replaced the ball.

"As he did not do so, he was disqualified for signing for a score lower than taken for failing to include the penalty he had incurred.

"If he had contacted a member of the rules team before signing his scorecard, the footage would have been reviewed at the time and he would have averted the disqualification penalty."

It was a happier tournament, however, for South Africa's Jbe Kruger, whose final-round 69 was enough to finish 14 under and secure a two-stroke victory.

Spain's Jorge Campillo signed for 67 - the joint best of the day - to finish tied for second with Germany's Marcel Siem.

Marcus Fraser, of Austria, and Spaniard Jose Manuel Lara finished three off the lead.

Final results

McGinley Cards Moving Day 68

Former Ryder Cup Vice Captain Paul McGinley has been plagued by knee problems over the years, but was delighted to show signs of his vintage form in a round of 68 on day three of the Avantha Masters in Delhi.

“This is only my second tournament this year because I had a knee injury at the end of last season which I’m still coming back from,” said Europe’s hero from the 2002 Ryder Cup victory at The Belfry. 

“I haven’t been able to play a full schedule this year so far because of the rehabilitation, but hopefully as the season goes on I’ll be able to play more and more.

“It’s a pleasant surprise to be in contention because I’ve played so little golf. It was nice to finish birdie-birdie, and I nearly eagled the last – I hit a four iron to about 20 feet but just missed the putt. I played nicely and 68 is a good score.” 

But it is Jbe Kruger who will take a one shot lead into the final round, with a host of players who will fancy their chances at DLF Golf & Country Club - where just three shots separate the top 15.

The South African had two eagles and two birdies in a round of 66 which left him 11 under, one stroke ahead of halfway leader Peter Whiteford, Germany’s Marcel Siem and France’s Jean Baptiste Gonnet.

On a day of fluctuating fortunes, Kruger’s consistency over the third round eventually proved the decisive factor as the 25 year old kept his card bogey free.

In contrast, Siem fought back brilliantly after double bogeys at the first two holes, Whiteford double bogeyed the sixth and 17th – the latter costing him the outright lead – and Gonnet did well to recover from four bogeys in his first 12 holes with a run of five birdies in the last six holes.

Kruger’s first eagle came at the par five sixth when he holed a 20 foot putt, and he was even more impressive at the driveable 15th, holing a putt from off the green after his five wood finished short of the putting surface.

Allied with birdies at the fourth and 18th, the former amateur star has a tremendous opportunity to collect his maiden European Tour title on Sunday.

“I’m going to try to play how I played today,” he said. “If it’s meant to be my week, it’ll be mine, so I don’t want to think too far ahead yet. 

“The putts need to go in and I think that’s what defines the winner. I’ve been reading the greens a little better as I’ve been struggling with it during the week. 

“My putting has been good and if I can see the line, I’m confident my putts will go in. I’m improving and I’m a lot more experienced, and I think that will give me the edge.” 

Asked about his eagles, Kruger added: “I got a little bit lucky on the sixth. I used a six iron and it landed about 20 feet away, and I managed to sink it. That was the longest putt I made today and I was lucky it went in.

“On the 15th, I just drove it a little short of the green and I made a pretty simple putt from about 12 metres. I managed to judge it to perfection and sink it.”

Scot Whiteford led by three when he birdied the first from 15 feet, but he needed four shots to find the green at the 486 yard fifth, then missed his bogey putt after chipping to three feet.

At that stage the 31 year old was locked in battle with compatriot Marc Warren, and birdies at the sixth and ninth looked to have restored Whiteford’s momentum.

Two bogeys and three birdies followed over the next six holes and a comfortable lead looked likely for the former Challenge Tour star, but his approach to the short 17th came up short and found the water.

“I’m raging, I’ve let everyone back in it with that score,” said Whiteford. “If I’d managed a three or four under, I would have had a good lead, and I gave myself enough chances to shoot a lower score. 

“It could’ve been a two or three horse race, but now everyone’s in it. It was disappointing on the 17th because my tee shot landed in a divot and I came up short with a nine iron. I had enough birdies to keep positive, but overall it’s disappointing.”

Siem’s nightmare start was followed by seven birdies, two bogeys and an eagle at the last after a magnificent four iron approach.

“It was a crazy day,” said the 31 year old, who finished fourth in Dubai last week. “The first hole I hit it left and tried to hit my second shot over the trees, but it hit a trunk and went into the trap on the 18th. 

“It was plugged and I ended up taking double bogey, then the next hole I hit another tree, didn’t get on in three and had a chip and two-putt for another double. So all of a sudden I was four over, but luckily I kept my head and came back with eight birdies and an eagle. It was pretty cool today. It showed a lot of heart to come back from a start like that and keep going.”

José Manuel Lara matched the best-of-the-week 64 to leap 38 places into a tie for fifth on nine under, alongside Warren (68), Italy’s Andrea Pavan (67), Australian Marcus Fraser (69), Thai Prom Meesawat – who chipped in at the last for a 71 – and Paul McGinley.

McGinley Moves in Avantha Masters

Paul McGinley swept to within reach of his first European Tour victory in seven years at the Avantha Masters yesterday as John Daly headed back to the US with his injured right elbow in plaster.

Daly withdrew overnight with a ligament injury sustained when he struck a tree root on the ninth hole of a disheartening first-round 79 at New Delhi's DLF Golf Club.

"No bones are broken, possible torn ligaments according to European Tour docs," he tweeted. "Getting home for X-rays!"

Boosted by his second eagle three on consecutive days, this time at the 537-yard 18th hole (his ninth), McGinley looked comfortable on hard and fast-running fairways and challenging greens as he compiled a three-under-par 69 in his second round.

Five-under for his opening 36 holes, the Dubliner went into the weekend just five shy of leader Peter Whiteford (29), who boosted his hopes of a first European Tour victory in New Delhi with a second-round 68.

The highlight of the Scot's round was an eagle three at the 538-yard sixth. Whiteford finished the day two ahead of Prom Meesawat (24). Known in Thailand as 'Big Dolphin', Meesawat barely came up for air as he birdied five of the last six holes for a stunning 64.

Gareth Maybin recovered from bogeys at the second and third to shoot a 69, leaving him in a tie for 30th on three-under.