The Irish Golf Club Gazette: Joost Luiten

Showing posts with label Joost Luiten. Show all posts

9/21/2014

Lowry Claims Share of Second in Wales

Getty Images

Shane Lowry was never able to get on level terms with the leaders on the final day of the ISPS Handa Wales Open, carding two bogeys and one birdie in his first five holes to sign for a round of 70 at The Celtic Manor.

So it was Joost Luiten who breathed a sigh of relief after overcoming a poor start and nervous finish to claim his fourth European Tour title in Wales.

The Dutchman, who was fifth in the defence of his KLM Open title on home soil last week, saw his two shot overnight lead disappear when he bogeyed the first two holes of the final round at The Celtic Manor Resort.

But the 28 year old hit back with three birdies and one bogey on the back nine to card a closing 71 and finish 14 under par, one shot ahead of England's Tommy Fleetwood and Ireland's Shane Lowry.

Fleetwood had looked out of contention following a double bogey on the 13th, but then chipped in for a birdie on the 14th, holed from five feet for eagle on the next and also birdied the last three holes for a closing 67.

That left Luiten needing to par the last three holes to win and he looked to have done the hard part with a superb up and down from a greenside bunker on the 17th, only to hit an amazingly wild drive on the last.

It took several minutes for the ball to be found in dense rough but Luiten was able to hack it across the fairway and into more rough, from where he found the green with his approach and two-putted from long range.

"It was tough, it was hard work down the last," Luiten admitted. "I didn't have the start I wanted with two bogeys and I just tried to hang in there and wait for my chances and made some nice birdies at the end and a par down the last was luckily enough.

“There's always a lot of tension on the first hole – you try to settle down, try to make an easy par or birdie and then I left myself quite a tricky first putt and I just didn't read it well. I didn't give the right pace and you leave yourself an eight footer downhill left to right and that's one you can make or miss and I missed it today.

“You just try to settle down the first couple holes, and after that, I got back into my game. I started to hit greens, and I just didn't really make any putts in the middle part - luckily we made a couple at the back.”

Like Luiten, Fleetwood has also come into form late in the season, finishing fifth in both the D+D REAL Czech Masters and Omega European Masters recently.

The 23 year old, who won his maiden European Tour title at Gleneagles last year, said: "After the double bogey on 13 I definitely wasn't thinking about getting to 13 under, just try your best on the last few and see what you can get. I wanted to get back to level par or under par for the day. I thought that would have been a good effort.

"After a poor summer, I wanted to finish the season well. I've been playing well recently and the more you get up there, the better. This is how you learn. You can't practice this on the range when you're coming down the stretch in the top five and just the more you do it, the better it is."

Five players shared fourth place, Ryder Cup debutant Jamie Donaldson carding a 67 to finish alongside Nicolas Colsaerts, Eddie Pepperell, Marc Warren and Edoardo Molinari.

"I'm very pleased," Donaldson said. "Celtic Manor is a tough golf course which doesn't quite suit my eye. It's been hard for me this week to keep focused and try and see the shots. If you take your foot off the pedal and there's a lot of trouble about.

"I'm happy the way I played over the last four or five weeks, building up to the Ryder Cup. I couldn't have asked for any more, really."

Team-mates Thomas Björn and Lee Westwood carded closing rounds of 74 and 76 respectively, Westwood having to birdie the 16th and 18th to avoid an even worse score.

"I needed to play some competitive golf and I've done that," said the 41 year old ahead of his ninth Ryder Cup. "I hit a few good shots (this week), not so good today, but I probably had one eye on next week. I don't think the concentration and the focus was there.

"The Ryder Cup is very special, I am looking forward to getting there tonight and preparing for Friday when it starts."

9/19/2014

Lowry Tops Leaderboard in Wales

Getty Images

Shane Lowry tops the leaderboard at the halfway stage of the ISPS Handa Wales Open after a flawless second round 65 at The Celtic Manor Resort, but admitted his position was something of a surprise.

The Clara man, who has recorded all three of his top-ten finishes this season on British soil, carded six unanswered birdies to move one ahead of first round leader Joost Luiten and big-hitting Belgian Nicolas Colsaerts on nine under par.

The 2012 winner Thongchai Jaidee and Italy’s former Ryder Cup star Edoardo Molinari are a shot further back on seven under, while one of Europe’s Team members for next week’s contest at Gleneagles, Jamie Donaldson, maintained his chances of becoming the first Welsh winner of his National Open with a second round 67 that left him five under.

The 27 year old Lowry’s four previous visits to the 2010 Ryder Cup venue had yielded only one made cut when he finished 39th four years ago, and after his round the two-time European Tour winner said: “I'm pretty happy. I've never, ever done well here before, so to be leading after two rounds is nice.

“There is still a long way to go in the tournament but I'm really looking forward to the weekend.

“I didn't drive it that good yesterday but still shot a decent score. I drove it a lot better today, drove it a lot straighter and gave myself a lot of chances and rolled in a few putts, so it was nice.

“I felt like coming over that I could give it a go this week. I was around tenth going into the back nine on Sunday last week, and similar the week before in Switzerland. If I can get myself in a good position come the back nine this weekend, again, hopefully I can give it a go.”

The 28 year old Luiten finished fourth in the 71° OPEN D'ITALIA Presented by DAMIANI and fifth in the defence of his KLM Open title last week and said: “I’m happy. It was tough today because the greens were very soft compared to yesterday with all the rain they had last night, and with the back pins, even seven irons spun back four or five yards, and it was tough to fly them all the way to the back.”

Colsaerts has not won since the Volvo World Match Play Championship in 2012 which secured his Ryder Cup place that year, but eagled the par five 18th for the second day running in his round of 68.

"It would mean a lot to win again after two years and struggling the first few months of the season," Colsaerts said. "Today I started very nicely but made two silly mistakes in the middle of the round and I almost lost it but it was nice to hole that putt on the last. It was about 35 feet with eight feet of break."

Ryder Cup wild cards Stephen Gallacher and Lee Westwood experienced differing results but similar emotions.

While Gallacher headed home in relaxed mood despite seeing his preparations cut short by missing the halfway cut, Westwood was equally happy that a battling performance ensured he would have two more rounds to get his game into shape for Gleneagles.

"Yesterday was quite tough," Gallacher admitted after a round containing two birdies - both on par fives - and one bogey. "It was tough to get going and get my head around it but today was a lot better. I was maybe trying a wee bit too hard yesterday and still thinking about next week.

"I feel good, I'm physically and mentally good so I am really looking forward to next week. I'll get up the road this afternoon and relax this weekend and maybe play nine holes with Thomas (Björn) on Monday morning. I've done my preparation for it and I just want to get up there and get going."

Westwood had also not played competitively since bowing out of the FedEx Cup play-offs after the first event, but recovered from an opening 73 with a 69 which featured two crucial birdies in the last four holes.

"I needed a couple more rounds," Westwood said. "I was not particularly competitive yesterday, it was pretty scratchy, but today was more solid. A few iffy shots but it was nice to finish with two birdies in the last four holes to ensure being here for the weekend and two more competitive rounds.

"I have been working on my game and been in the gym quite a lot, but I'm not quite match fit. I had three weeks off and you lose your sharpness."

Team-mate Björn, who played alongside Gallacher, added a 69 to his opening 71 to lie two under par, with Donaldson’s 67 most impressive of the Gleneagles-bound quartet.

9/11/2014

Zanotti Strike Raises Medical Questions

Getty Images

At the KLM Open two leading players questioned why there was no ambulance on site after Fabrizio Zanotti was struck on the head by a ball on Thursday.

Zanotti was on the 16th fairway at Kennemer Golf Club when he was hit by an errant drive from France’s Alexandre Kaleka on the 14th.

According to the European Tour, Zanotti did not lose consciousness and received treatment on the course from a doctor and a paramedic before he was taken to hospital. The 31-year-old from Paraguay was accompanied by fellow players Felipe Aguilar and Ricardo Gonzalez, who withdrew from the tournament to stay with their friend.

Zanotti was later discharged from hospital and wrote on Twitter that he would now take a few weeks off, but the incident caused a delay of almost two hours and left Italian pairEdoardo Molinari and Matteo Manassero particularly unhappy.

In reference to the death of caddie Iain McGregor in Madeira earlier this season, Molinari wrote on Twitter: “Seems like fabrizanotti is ok. How is it possible there is no ambulance on site after what happened in Madeira.”

Manassero added on Twitter: “Let’s hope now that the second incident will guarantee ambulances on site for everybody’s safety.”

In a statement released to Press Association Sport, tournament director Miguel Vidaor said: “Fabrizio received impeccable medical care and attention from the team of doctors and paramedics who were already on site as part of the tournament and who are fully equipped to deal with any medical emergency.

“They subsequently deemed it necessary for Fabrizio to go to hospital as a precaution for further assessment and we are pleased to report that he has been discharged after receiving the all clear.”

KLM Open director Daan Slooter added: “We have worked with The European Tour to upgrade the medical provision at this year’s KLM Open. Unfortunately, there was not an ambulance on site, as requested by The European Tour, since we took the decision not to have one because the first aid provision on site was capable of dealing with an incident like this, and indeed any other medical emergency.

“The hospitals nearby and the ambulance system in Holland could respond quickly if further assistance was required, and indeed the ambulance responded within the parameters of Dutch law. In light of what happened with Fabrizio, we now have an ambulance on site for the remainder of the tournament.”

Zanotti had started his round from the 10th and was level par after six holes when the incident occurred. Molinari carded an opening 66 to lie one shot off the lead held by defending champion Joost Luiten and Scotland’s Jamie McLeary.

Luiten carded four birdies, an eagle and just one bogey in his 65, while McLeary joined the Dutchman on five under with a birdie on the 16th just before play was suspended for the day. Play in the first round will resume at 8am on Friday.

“It is always nice to shoot a 65,” said Luiten, who had downplayed his chances of a repeat victory on Wednesday. “I played well and didn’t make any mistakes. That’s the key on this course, keep the ball in play and take your chances. For me it was a good solid round and I hit some nice spots.

“Sometimes you can be conservative and take irons off the tee but if you feel good with the driver you have to hit it and make a tough hole into a birdie hole. It all depends how the winds are but I was hitting my drive well and I tried to take advantage of that.”

Italy’s Andrea Pavan and France’s Gary Stal were alongside Molinari on four under, with Ryder Cup player Thomas Bjorn and vice-captain Miguel Angel Jimenez off the pace on one over.

In the clubhouse Irish players, Shane Lowry and Pádraig Harrington, are best place on level par - one ahead of Damien McGrane.

Darren Clarke is three over after a 73.

Simon Thornton was one over after 14 holes, one ahead of David Higgins, who had played 12.

Michael Hoey was one over through 14.

Gareth Maybin and Kevin Phelan were two over through 16 and nine respectively, and Peter Lawrie was three over through 12.

8/26/2014

McGinley Plans Italian Job

Getty Images

The race to make Paul McGinley’s European team for the upcoming Ryder Cup at Gleneagles will reach its denouement at this week’s 71° Open d’Italia Presented by DAMIANI.

With the nine automatic qualification places set to be determined on Sunday evening – four from the European Points List and five from the World Points List – McGinley knows that Ryder Cup D-Day is fast approaching.

“This is the last lap of qualifying for The Ryder Cup and from the World Points angle this tournament could make a contribution,” said the Irishman who is at Circolo Golf Torino this week to also compete himself after a number of weeks on the sidelines nursing a shoulder injury. All eyes will be on Stephen Gallacher, the Scot needing to finish in the top two to force his way past Graeme McDowell into the final qualifying place, but the likes of Joost Luiten and Francesco Molinari will be among those hoping to impress McGinley in this final week as he weighs up his wild card options.

It has been a lengthy process since the qualification began at the Celtic Manor Resort during the ISPS Handa Wales Open 12 months ago, with the golfing cream rising to the top over that period.

On Tuesday September 2, McGinley will finalise the 12-man squad which will take on the United States in Perthshire from September 26-28, as the 47 year old names his three Captain’s Picks in the ballroom at Wentworth Club.

“I think a lot of what happens with the nine automatic qualifiers determines where you go with your picks,” said the captain.

“But it’s important that we have players who are on form – which I think the qualification process will provide. It’ll identify the leading nine European players throughout the world over a 12 month period and then it’s up to me and my vice captains to complete the jigsaw. Of course, as someone once said, with great power comes great responsibility and McGinley is acutely aware that some of the aspects of September 2 will be more testing than others.

“Being a Ryder Cup captain, there are good bits of the job and there’s bad bits,” he continued. “And everybody has talked about how difficult it is calling guys, particularly friends of yours, to tell them they haven’t made the team.

“That’s going to be difficult, I know it is. But I’ve been very upfront with them, they know where they stand, and I’ve tried to be very open and transparent with where I was going with the picks and it was up to the players to show me some form and some reason why they should be picked.”

Since being made captain 19 months ago, the meticulous Irishman has traversed the world, delved into form guides, statistics, the Ryder Cup history books and more, but the preparation period is almost over.

With little more than four weeks left before the first ball is struck at Gleneagles, this week – and next week’s wild card announcements – represent the culmination of hundreds of hours of hard work.

“Once the picks are made, that’s a significant milestone in terms of the captaincy,” reflected McGinley. “You then have 12 players in place which enables you to start thinking seriously about tactics, about strategy. You start communicating with the players on a lot more of an individual level than you’ve done before.

“Before it was generic but after September 2 it’s right down to the nitty-gritty of when you’re arriving, what practice rounds you’re going to play and who your potential partners could be. It’s exciting.”

3/28/2014

Europe Battle Asia Rally

Getty Images

Asia battled back from a disastrous first day at the inaugural EurAsia Cup - but Europe still remain firmly on course for victory in Kuala Lumpur.

After being whitewashed 5-0 in Thursday's fourballs, Thongchai Jaidee's side secured three points from Friday's foursomes to leave the score at 7-3.

Prayad Marksaeng and Kim Hyung-sung got the better of Thomas Bjorn and Thorbjorn Olesen 4&3 while Anirban Lahiri and Siddikur Rahman defeated Joost Luiten and Victor Dubuisson by one hole.

It seemed there would be another victory for the hosts when Jaidee and Kiradech Aphibarnrat led going down the last, only for Europe captain Miguel Angel Jimenez to deny them in stunning fashion.

The 50-year-old, who made two eagles at Glenmarie Golf and Country Club for the second day running, produced a superb approach to the 18th green to set up fellow Spaniard Pablo Larrazabal for a birdie to snatch a half.

That meant the spoils were deservedly shared in a high-quality contest. Jimenez had holed a bunker shot on the third for an eagle and then a putt from 30ft on the 11th for another, although that effort was only good enough for a half.

Missed chance

Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano and Stephen Gallacher also halved their match with Koumei Oda and Hideto Tanihara, although the duo missed a birdie chance on the last to win.

"We managed to half a couple of matches and win another one. It was a tough day in the heat and Asia played very well today."

Gallacher missed from 12 feet on the 18th to snatch victory after he and his Spanish playing partner had let slip a three-hole lead from the 10th onwards. They lost lost four of the next five but levelled matters at the 17th hole.

Europe's only winners were Graeme McDowell and Jamie Donaldson, who came from behind for the second match running to beat Gaganjeet Bhullar and Nicholas Fung 2&1.

For the second successive day McDowell and Donaldson had to recover from an early deficit, though they were rather gifted a number of holes after finding themselves two down just before the turn.

"At the end of the day I am happy," Jimenez said. "We managed to half a couple of matches and win another one. It was a tough day in the heat and Asia played very well today.

"At one point it looked like it was going to be the opposite of yesterday but we managed to get the points and 7-3 is a good lead for tomorrow."

Europe now need just three-and-a-half points from Saturday's 10 singles matches to secure overall victory.

3/25/2014

McDowell EurAsia Cup Ready

Getty Images

Graeme McDowell is the highest-ranked player at the EurAsia Cup being held in Kuala Lumpur this week.

Miguel Angel Jimenez is Team captain with a number of Ryder Cups under his belt, along with McDowell and Thomas Bjorn.

However Victor Dubuisson, Jamie Donaldson and Stephen Gallacher are all currently in qualifying positions, with Joost Luiten, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano and Pablo Larrazabal all with a chance at Gleneagles.

Paul McGinley's Ryder Cup team may contain a couple of the EurAsia team come Gleneagles.

"One of the toughest parts of the Ryder Cup is putting pairings together, and getting foursomes pairings right," said McDowell.

"That's why a tournament like this, the EurAsia Cup, to me is something that's very, very important for both The European Tour and the Asian Tour. Asia is the main area of growth for the game of golf in the world, so it's a natural place for The European Tour.

"It's obviously a big part of the European Tour and to have a Europe versus Asia match is something that our schedule needs from a Ryder Cup point of view.

"We need this event to become something very special, something the guys look forward to and something that is part of Ryder Cup Team building; a chance to put ten guys together, come out here and play against a good team and try some pairings and really enjoy playing team golf.

"Team golf is very different from what we are used to as individuals because you're playing for each other.

"You just don't want to let your team mates down and there is a lot of extra pressure from that, but it's also one of the main reasons why European Teams have been so successful."

McGinley's vice-captain for Gleneagles, Des Smyth, will operate in the same role for Jimenez in Kuala Lumpur this week, so he will get to know the players as they get a chance to impress.

Playing captain Jimenez has featured in four Ryder Cups as a player, winning two, and has also been a vice-captain twice and he agrees that the EurAsia Cup could be a vital part of the preparation.

"The Ryder Cup started in 1927 and probably now is the event in golf and everyone wants to play and I think is the important thing," said Jimenez. "Now we start the EurAsia Cup in 2014 and hopefully with the support of the players and the effort of these two big tours, the EurAsia Cup will become a big event along with the Ryder Cup."

All ten players on each team will be in action in every session at Glenmarie's Garden course, with five fourball matches played on the opening day on Thursday, followed by five foursomes on Friday and ten concluding singles matches on Saturday.

Team Asia

Thongchai Jaidee (Captain, Thailand), Kiradech Aphibarnrat (Thailand), Gaganjeet Bhullar (India), Nicholas Fung (Malaysia), Kim Hyung-sung (Korea,) Anirban Lahiri (India), Prayad Marksaeng (Thailand), Koumei Oda (Japan), Siddikur Rahman (Bangladesh), Hideto Tanihara (Japan).

Team Europe

Miguel Angel Jimenez (Captain, Spain), Thomas Bjorn (Denmark), Jamie Donaldson (Wales), Victor Dubuisson (France), Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (Spain), Stephen Gallacher (Scotland), Pablo Larrazabal (Spain), Joost Luiten (Netherlands), Graeme McDowell (N Ireland), Thorbjorn Olesen (Denmark).

1/12/2014

Padraig Finished Fifth in Durban

Getty Images

Padraig Harrington signed for a final round of 67 to secure a top five finish at the Volvo Masters in Durban, the Dubliner finishing three shots adrift of winner Louis Oosthuizen.

Only Harrington and South African Thomas Aiken managed to go as low as 67 on the final day but it was too little too late thanks to the 68s shot by Oosthuizen and Branden Grace, who finished second on 11 under.

Joost Luiten (71) and Tommy Fleetwood (72) both finished on 10 under, one ahead of the Irishman and the French pair of Raphael Jacquelin and Victor Dubuisson.

“It was nice to feel I had a chance coming down the stretch. “I’m happy with how I am hitting the ball but distraught with the way I’m putting.”

Darren Clarke, whose weekend began so positively with a 69, dropped to one over thanks to a 77, while Michael Hoey (74) and Simon Thornton (71) ended on four over and five over, respectively.

Oosthuizen was one shot behind Grace with two holes to play, but birdied them both to card a closing 68 and 12-under-par total. Grace had watched on television as former Open champion Oosthuizen holed from two feet on the 17th and then chipped to the same distance for another birdie on the short par-four 18th.

That meant all seven European Tour events staged at Durban Country Club have now been won by South Africans, while eight of the last 11 tournaments in South Africa have been won by home players.

Fleetwood had held a one-shot advantage heading into the final round and briefly stretched that to three thanks to a birdie at the second and mistakes from his rivals. However, three bogeys in five holes from the fifth threw the tournament wide open and Grace was the first to take advantage with a hat-trick of birdies from the sixth.

Oosthuizen then vaulted into contention with an eagle from 12ft on the par-five eighth and the South African duo swapped the lead on the back nine before Grace - winner of the title in 2012 — looked to have made the decisive move with birdies on the 16th and 18th.

Oosthuizen had fallen victim to the 16th for the second day running, following his triple-bogey seven on Saturday with a bogey five to fall one behind, but a brilliant approach to the 17th got him back on level terms and set up a simple winning birdie on the driveable 18th.

“After my tee shot on 16 I was lucky that I could chip it out and nearly made a great par,” Oosthuizen said. “But when I stood over the ball on 17 I saw that Branden had made birdie on 18 so I knew that second shot was crucial to give myself a good opportunity and I hit it really close.

“And then 18, everyone thinks you just need to make a birdie but around that green it’s not easy and luckily I was far enough past where I could pitch it back into the grain and get it close.

“It was nerve-wracking through the round but I finished strong and I’m just happy that I got it done. It’s an awesome start for the year. Confidence-wise it’s great. I haven’t really played well last year with all the injuries so hopefully I can build from here on and just go better next time.”

9/21/2014

Related articles

9/19/2014

Related articles

9/11/2014

Related articles

8/26/2014

Related articles

3/28/2014

Related articles

3/25/2014

Related articles

1/12/2014

Related articles