Captain Clarke Hails European Masters

Darren Clarke at Portrush Golf Club

Ryder Cup captain Darren Clarke has hailed the “wonderful” performance of Europe’s top players at the US Masters.

With champion Danny Willett one of seven Europeans in the top 15 at Augusta, Clarke said the final leaderboard had delivered a real positive ahead of the much-anticipated showdown with the United States in the autumn.

Clarke also spent time with golf fan Alex Ferguson at Augusta and said he intended to visit him again in England to pick the former Manchester United manager’s brain.

The former Open champion, who missed the cut in Georgia, was at his home club at Royal Portrush on Tuesday to launch the start of a Ryder Cup trophy tour.

“It was a wonderful week from a European perspective,” Clarke said of the Masters.

“With the winner Danny Willett and indeed Lee Westwood playing a lot better and Justin Rose and Matt Fitzpatrick, there were so many Europeans up there in the top 10.

“So it was a very positive week for the Europeans.”

Willett’s victory was the first major of the Yorkshireman’s career, but Clarke said it came as no surprise to him.

“He’s been playing really well now for a couple of years, I am a good friend of his, I’ve spent a lot of time with him and his game has just been getting better and better,” said Europe’s Ryder Cup captain.

“It’s certainly no surprise whatsoever. He’s performed really well, especially of late again, and from a personal point of view I was delighted to see him win.”

Clarke, 47, said it was also great to see his close friend Westwood — who finished joint second at Augusta — contending in a major again.

“To see him playing in the manner and fashion that I know he can is certainly very, very heartening,” he said.

With so many up and coming stars emerging, Europe’s team is predicted to have quite a few fresh faces as they look to win the Ryder Cup for a fourth successive time.

Clarke insisted there was a long way to go in qualifying, though.

“It’s a long way off before the team is finalised, a lot of big tournaments, a lot of Ryder Cup points to be played for,” he said.

“While the make-up of the team at the moment may look slightly different to what we are used to, come the end of August I think it might be a little bit different.”

Clarke said Ferguson had given him “lots of advice” at Augusta.

“There would be very few people who have had as successful a career as he has had,” he said.

“He was very, very helpful. I will go over and spend a bit more time with him shortly over in Manchester — he was more than willing to help me.

“As a Liverpool fan it was quite difficult, but you know the man is a legend.”

The trophy tour will see the iconic prize travelling around Europe and the US ahead of September’s encounter. Its next stop will be Belfast City Hall on Wednesday.

“To have the Ryder Cup trophy tour start off here in Northern Ireland is very, very special,” said Clarke.

“To have it here at Royal Portrush, I only live up on the hill up there, so it’s wonderful to start off here.”

The 2016 Ryder Cup is being held at Hazeltine in the United States and takes place from September 30th to October 2nd.

Related articles

• Chris Wood fuelled by feeling of belonging ahead of Augusta
• McIlroy downs Na to advance at WGC Match Play
• McIlroy, Day take different paths to Match Play success
• McIlroy, Day advance in different manners at Match Play
• McIlroy, Day advance in different manners at Match Play
• McIlroy, Day advance in different manners at Match Play

McIlroy Beats Na in Sudden Death

Getty Images

Rory McIlroy relishes the mano a mano combat of raw matchplay, and the Northern Irishman – seeking to defend his title – was forced to demonstrate all those survival instincts to see off American Kevin Na in the WGC-Dell Matchplay Championship in Austin, Texas.

It required a sudden-death playoff to move on out of the group, but McIlroy ensured his progress into the last-16 and a match with British Open champion Zach Johnson. McIlroy, unbeaten in his last 10 WGC matchplay matches, is trying to become the first player since Tiger Woods (2003 and 2004) to win back-to-back titles.

“I had to dig pretty deep, Kevin’s a very good competitor and he wasn’t giving me much out there, so I holed a few long putts and I kept it together when I needed to . . .for the most part, I played pretty good. I responded to some of his good shots with good shots myself and that gives me some confidence going into the weekend,” said McIlroy afterwards.

In a way, McIlroy got the worst of any swing glitches out of the way early: a double-bogey six on the 446 yards Par 4 second – when his tee shot was pushed into the right rough and his approach found a greenside bunker from where he failed to find the putting surface – gave Na the impetus.

And the American went two-up on the world number three when his lob wedge approach to three feet on the fifth set up a birdie three. McIlroy responded with a tee shot to eight feet for birdie on the seventh and then won the ninth to level matters at the turn.

Again, McIlroy was forced to play catch-up when Na won the 10th and the Northern Irishman showed he was up for the battle when he rolled in a 30-footer for birdie on the Par 3 11th and then assumed the lead for the first time in the match when he rolled in a four-and-a-half footer.

However, he played the Par 5 16th poorly and almost salvaged a half when his pitch for birdie hit the hole but stayed out as Na levelled affairs.

Both McIlroy and Na halved the first playoff hole in pars but the match swung in the Ulsterman’s favour when his opponent pulled his tee shot into the hazard and was forced to take a penalty drop. He then put his third shot into a greenside bunker and a par was sufficient for McIlroy to close the deal.

Of facing Johnson, McIlroy said: “This is a course that sets up well for Zach, a precision sort of course and if he gets the ball in play he will be hard to beat. My matchplay game is pretty good and no matter what he does I will have to respond to it.”

Shane Lowry’s disappointing campaign finished with a 4 and 3 defeat to British Open champion Johnson, who won all three of his matches.

Johnson’s form was such that he never got beyond the 15th green in any of his matches and, so, after defeating Lowry, the American decided to finish off by playing the 16th, 17th and 18th holes on his own. “I hadn’t seen those holes since Tuesday,” explained Johnson.

“Shane didn’t have his best but rallied at the end and gave it a fight,” he added.

For Lowry, it is a case of moving on to next week’s Houston Open, his final preparation tournament ahead of the Masters.

Hot streaks can turn cold, as Adam Scott – after two wins on the Florida Swing – discovered in failing to escape from his group, after the Australian was trumped by Bill Haas who won by one hole to advance into the last 16.

“I can’t be upset I lost the match playing like that,” said Scott after his exit, shaking his head at what had been an unpredictable match in which no hole was halved from the seventh to the 18th. Over the last seven holes, the pair factored in five birdies and an eagle between them.

Haas, who had only required a halved match to move on to the knockout phase, duly secured a morale-boosting win when he rolled in a 12-footer for birdie on the 18th to rub salt into Scott’s wounds.

There was a much smoother transition from the group stage to the knockout phase for Jason Day who recovered from the back injury that flared up on Wednesday and which had threatened his participation.

He made it three wins from three in the group when his opponent Paul Casey withdrew after just six holes of the final group match. Casey had been battling an upset stomach all week. Although the Englishman won the opening two holes, Day had levelled the match by the sixth when Casey decided to call it a day .

SATURDAY ROUND OF 16 TEE TIMES

12.30pm Bill Haas v Chris Kirk

12.41pm Rory McIlroy v Zach Johnson

12.52pm Matt Kuchar v Brooks Koepka

1.03pm Jason Day v Brandt Snedeker

1.14pm Byeong-Hun An v Rafael Cabrera-Bello

1.25pm Patton Kizzirev Ryan Moore

1.36pm Dustin Johnson v Patrick Reed

1.47pm Jordan Spieth v Louis Oosthuizen

Related articles

• McIlroy, Day advance in different manners at Match Play (nbc12.com)
• McIlroy, Day advance in different manners at Match Play (jsonline.com)
• McIlroy, Day advance in different manners at Match Play (businessinsider.com)
• McIlroy, Day take different paths to Match Play success (thestar.com)
• Spieth, Day in position to advance in Match Play (journaltimes.com)

Clarke in Love at Hazeltine

Getty Images

Darren Clarke insists there will be no controversial gamesmanship at next year’s competition following the uproar at the women’s Solheim Cup.

Clarke said the incident at the Solheim Cup, when Europe’s Suzann Pettersen insisted on penalising the USA’s Alison Lee for picking up her ball after she believed a putt had been conceded, was against the spirit of golf.

Speaking at a news conference with USA captain Davis Love III to mark a year to go to the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine, Minnesota, Clarke said: “This Ryder Cup will be played in the manner in which Davis and I respect each other.

“We’ve been friends for such a long time; I hold Davis in the highest regard. He’s been a good friend but probably one of the best gentlemen in our sport.

“The Solheim Cup was an unfortunate thing. What Suzann did was correct in ‘The Rules of Golf’, but in the spirit of the game, it was wrong. And she admitted that on the Monday with hindsight. Hindsight is always a wonderful thing.

“In the Ryder Cup, we are always briefed by the referees earlier in the week and the rules officials, and we do not touch a golf ball until we hear either from our opposite number or from the referees, just one of those things. I hope and I’m sure it won’t happen under our watch.”

Love agreed that sportsmanship would be key.

He said: “Darren and I will set the tone with our teams, and with our messaging over the next year, what we expect and how we expect the matches to be played.

“Something will come up during the three days that is uncomfortable. But we’ll handle it as gentlemen and a sportsmanlike way. It will be fair and competitive and fun.

“In the end, one of us will win, one of us will lose, but we’ll enjoy a cigar and a tear afterwards on Sunday night.”

Love said he was “reluctantly” facing the fact he would not be a playing captain, and expressed his hope that Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson could be back in contention.

He added: “Tiger has had some surgeries and that’s slowing him down a little bit.

“I have a feeling Phil’s going to be strongly motivated to make the next team, and obviously Tiger wants to get healthy and play. They are just two of a lot of players that have stressed to me that they want to play on a winning Ryder Cup team.”

Related articles

• Mickelson needing big week for chance at 21st straight team
• Mickelson Needing Big Week for Chance at 21st Straight Team
• Would Love play on his own Ryder Cup team?
• Mickelson given spot on US Presidents Cup team
• Birdies & Bogeys: Sportsmanship question continues to arise
• Phil Mickelson, Bill Haas added to Presidents Cup team
• Reaction by 2015 Presidents Cup captain's picks

Mixed Day for McIlroy, GMAC and Clarke

Getty Images

Rory McIlroy battled Augusta National to finish one under par 71 after his first round at the 78th US Masters,

Pre-tournament favourite McIlroy had been in danger of dropping a shot on the first after spinning his approach back off the green, but almost holed his pitch and was left with a tap-in to save par.

The 24-year-old also made par on the second after finding the same bunker as Scott, but holed from five feet for birdie on the third and also birdied the fifth.

McIlroy fell back to level par after a bogey on the eighth and three-putt bogey on the 12th, but birdied the 13th to get back under par.

A birdie on the par 5 15th brought McIlroy to -2 and he parred his next two.

A poor drive on 18 saw McIlroy find the sand and he couldn't recover to save par to leave a little bit of a bitter taste after a decent opening effort.

"I feel okay about today. I think the golf course setup today was very difficult for a Thursday," he told Sky Sports.

"Some of the pin placements were pins that you would expect to see at the weekend. To shoot under par today I thought was a good effort.

"It got a little windier, and the wind was swirling all over the place. I think you've seen w lot of guys struggle on 12 today.

"I think you have to be really patient out there.

"I feel like I'm better prepared than I ever have been. I feel like that each and every year I come back because experience counts for so much on this golf course.

"I felt like I did a good job today in putting the ball in the right places for uphill putts or easy two-putts."

McIlroy is two shots behind the clubhouse leader, American Bill Haas.

Haas carded an opening 68 to finish four under par, to lie one shot ahead of Australian Adam Scott.

Defending champion Scott had been four under par after a flawless opening 11 holes, with one of his birdies coming on the par-four 10th where he sealed victory on the second hole of a play-off with Angel Cabrera last year.

He suffered a double bogey on the notorious 12th but managed to recover one shot on 14.

Graeme McDowell carded an opening level par 72 after making the turn on level par. However he then bogeyed 10 and 11 before battling back.

Darren Clarke was two over on Thursday.

Related articles

• Rory Augusta Ready
• McIlroy & McDowell one off Doral lead
• Rory McIlory wins Australian Open
• McIlroy off to a strong start at Honda
• Jones' playoff chip-in wins Houston Open
• McIlroy Off To A Strong Start At Honda

Padraig Ends Masters Era

Getty Images

Padraig Harrington suffered problems with the middle finger of his left hand on the 15th tee of the Shell Houston Open second round and had trouble gripping the club. As the Dubliner waited for medical personnel to arrive and treat him, the group behind played through.

Harrington then made two bogeys and a closing triple bogey on the last three holes en route to missing the cut by four shots with a second round 79 - ending his presence next week in Augusta.

“I couldn’t put any pressure on (the finger) and tighten it,” said Harrington, adding he felt no pain. “By the end of the round, I don’t think I was even gripping with that finger.”

Harrington said the medic on the tee stretched his finger, applied cream and gave him anti-inflammatory medication. “He did everything he could, but it needed time,” Harrington said.

Meanwhile Sergio Garcia was on his way in the other direction after posting a 7-under par 65 and matching the course 36-hole record of 12 under overall after the second round of the Shell Houston Open on Friday.

As well as Garcia played in taking a one-shot lead over Matt Kuchar, the focus afterward was a mix of this week -- with a heavy dose of attention turned toward next week's Masters.

Garcia has eight PGA TOUR wins in his career, but the 34-year-old world No. 8 -- once thought to be Tiger Woods' challenger for the top spot in the world -- is still in search of his first major championship.

He'd like nothing more than end that quest next week, while taking full advantage of his prep time at the Golf Club of Houston's Augusta National-like conditions for the rest of this weekend.

"I mean, obviously I feel good, but every week is different," Garcia said. "First of all, we got to finish this week, and hopefully next week I'll be feeling good (and) not too many things will be bothering me health-wise, and then just feel good on the course, hopefully play well and things happen."

Garcia, opening on the back nine, climbed the leaderboard with a birdie-eagle-birdie stretch on his front nine. His eagle on the par-5 13th came after sticking his 282-yard second shot to 5 feet, giving him a 4-shot lead following his morning round.

Kuchar, who opened with a 6-under 66 on Thursday, briefly tied Garcia at 12 under late in his afternoon round before closing with a bogey from the fairway bunker on the 18th.

The two will be paired with Matt Jones on Saturday after tournament officials decided to send threesomes off both tees early in the morning in an attempt to beat expected rain in the afternoon.

"If we get some rain and it doesn't blow too hard, of course the course will soften up and the scores will go even lower," Kuchar said. "No telling ... It could be really tough."

The weather was the clearest it's been all week on Friday, with the sun shining brightly and the wind gusting throughout the day at the 7,441-yard Golf Club of Houston.

The windy conditions limited first-round co-leader Bill Haas to a 2-over 74. Charley Hoffman, the other first-round leader, fell to 3 under par overall after a 4-over 76.

Darren Clarke carded to rounds of 75 and misses the cut.

Related articles

• Bowditch leads Texas Open
• Harrington Hits Houston 69
• Featured groups: Shell Houston Open
• Get Ready for Houston Hurricane Season with a Disaster Preparedness Kit
• Harrington Texas Title Hopes Fade