The Irish Golf Club Gazette: Justin Rose

Showing posts with label Justin Rose. Show all posts

9/01/2016

Rookies Will Shape Clarke Wildcards

Europe’s team to defend the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine in September will contain at least five rookies after the nine automatic qualifiers were decided with a week to spare.

Thomas Pieters needed to defend his Czech Masters title and Shane Lowry required a top-four finish in the Wyndham Championship to keep their hopes alive heading into the final qualifying event in Denmark.

However, Pieters lost out by a single shot to the American Paul Peterson on Sunday and Lowry was certain to finish down the field in North Carolina after a closing 67.

And that means Rory McIlroy, Danny Willett, Henrik Stenson, Chris Wood, Sergio Garcia, Justin Rose, Rafael Cabrera-Bello, Andy Sullivan and Matt Fitzpatrick are guaranteed to be on the plane to Minnesota in search of an unprecedented fourth successive win in the biennial event.

Willett, Wood, Cabrera-Bello, Sullivan and Fitzpatrick are the rookies, although Willett won the Masters in April and Wood claimed the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in May.

Europe’s captain, Darren Clarke, will name his three wild cards on 30 August, with Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer strong favourites to be selected as Clarke has stressed he would favour experience for a contest on US soil.

Scotland’s Russell Knox and Pieters are understood to be the leading contenders for the final place.

Fitzpatrick has been in the qualifying places ever since winning his maiden European Tour title in the British Masters last October, the 21-year-old then claiming the Nordea Masters in June before a worrying dip in form. “It’s very exciting now,” he said after finishing fifth in Prague. “We can look forward to it and get my game in shape.

“I’ve probably been in the team for the longest period of time. It [the qualifying period] started a few weeks before I won at the British Masters and jumped into the team and I’ve managed to stay there since then. It’s been absolutely phenomenal and I’m just delighted to be in the team. It’s a great opportunity, I’ve got my first one coming up and hopefully I can just keep pushing on my game and getting better.”

8/19/2016

Rory Watched Olympic Golf - Rose

Justin Rose has revealed that golf’s successful return to the Olympics even prompted Rory McIlroy to change his mind and watch the thrilling climax.

McIlroy was one of more than 20 top players to withdraw from the Games, the 27-year-old initially citing concerns over the Zika virus but later admitting that major championships remained the “pinnacle” of the sport and he would only watch “the stuff that matters” in the Olympics.

But after securing golf’s first Olympic gold medal in 112 years by beating the Open champion, Henrik Stenson, in a thrilling duel at the Marapendi reserve, one of the many congratulatory messages Rose received was from his Ryder Cup team-mate McIlroy.

“I did get one from Rory. Absolutely,” Rose said. “He said he was very, very proud and he said he was pulling for me. He said he could see how much it meant to me and congratulated me.

“He was very complimentary and obviously he watched. He made the point that he really wants golf to succeed as an Olympic sport. He has some of his own opinions that are very personal to him and that’s fine, but as a whole he’s very, very much behind golf succeeding in the Olympics.

“All the guys that missed out probably made their decision for good reasons and they probably persuaded themselves it was a good decision, but I think they’re going to have sat back and realised what a successful event this was.

“They’re all great competitors and to be sitting at home watching other guys getting the glory is not going to sit well with them. They want experiences like this and they’re going to have to wait four years. That’s what makes this special. It just doesn’t come around next week and I’ll have another go.

“It’s an opportunity that comes around so rarely and I’m certainly happy it’s fallen on my plate. I certainly targeted it and went after it and therefore feel really proud of it, but it’s an opportunity that hopefully they’re going to take in 2020.”

Rose was close to tears as he described how much his victory meant to his seven-year-old son, Leo, whom he was supposed to take to see Chelsea play West Ham United at Stamford Bridge .

“Obviously I’m going to miss that but I’ll make it up to him,” the 36-year-old added. “He was so excited. I’ve never seen my little boy in tears, and I might start crying myself.

“I’ve never seen it resonate so much with him. He’s just beginning to understand what sport is all about. He went to a little football camp this last week and he got a medal, and he said to me: ‘Right, Dad, I’ve got my medal it’s time for you to get yours.’ He was actually crying when I phoned him and I’ve never seen that in him before, and that was very, very special.”

Rose had fully embraced the Olympic experience by watching numerous other sports and walking in the opening ceremony, after which he shared a bus journey back to the athletes’ village with Andy Murray. Nine days later, both he and the Wimbledon champion were Olympic gold medallists after Murray battled past Juan Martín Del Potro in the men’s tennis final, later on Sunday.

“Nigel Tilley, who is the GB physio, bumped into Andy at the village last night and he said that Andy had watched my last hole before going on to the court, so it was cool that I was able to watch his last two games,” Rose added.

“If you look at Team GB’s tally of medals, it’s amazing for a relatively small country to be doing so well on the medal count. Every time I see a medal go up on my app I feel proud of the wider team and that’s what makes it different and special.”

8/11/2015

Rory is PGA Contender - Clarke

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Darren Clarke believes Rory McIlroy can contend for a fifth major title this week, despite his long injury lay-off.

McIlroy's last competitive round was a closing 66 in the US Open on June 21, the world No 1 then rupturing a ligament in his left ankle during a game of football with friends on July 4.

The 26-year-old was forced to miss the defence of his Open title at St Andrews and last week's Bridgestone Invitational, but has confounded expectations by declaring himself ready to defend his US PGA crown at Whistling Straits.

"No, I'm not surprised to see him back here," Clarke said. "He obviously has got a wonderful team around him and he would have done everything he could to get back as quickly as possible.

"I'm sure with an ankle injury he would have been advised not to come back until fully fit. If you injure an ankle and keep playing on it, it gets worse and worse and worse.

"He may not be competitively sharp, for obvious reasons, but he's world No 1. He's done many amazing things in his young career, so I wouldn't be surprised to see him contending this week."

Clarke has backed the European Tour's decision to withdraw the Bridgestone Invitational from its 2016 schedule, even though that creates a dilemma for potential team members.

A re-working of the PGA Tour's 2016 calendar to accommodate golf's return to the Olympics has seen the prestigious World Golf Championship event brought forward to the end of June, bring it in to direct conflict with the Alstom Open de France.

The European Tour then withdrew its sanction of the WGC event at Firestone Country Club, meaning money won in Akron will not count for Ryder Cup points or towards the Race to Dubai.

Shane Lowry will undoubtedly want to defend the title he won on Sunday, but he and others could be in need of Ryder Cup points at that time, with the qualifying race set to end on August 28 in Denmark.

"It's a tough decision for Shane, he won his first World Golf Championship at Firestone and he may have a decision to make come next summer," Clarke added. "But in terms of what the European Tour has done, I think they've done the right thing by standing beside one of their mainstays.

"The French Open is steeped in history, around a wonderful venue that we have the 2018 Ryder Cup around. They've showed loyalty to the French Open and rightly so."

8/10/2015

Shane Lowry Now Nineteen

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Shane Lowry heads into this week’s US PGA Championship at a career-high 19th in the world after claiming the biggest victory of his career in brilliant fashion in the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.

Lowry carded a flawless final round of 66 at Firestone Country Club to finish 11 under par, two shots ahead of double Masters champion Bubba Watson, with former US Open champions Justin Rose and Jim Furyk another two shots back.

“It’s hard to believe but I played good today,” Lowry told Sky Sports 4. “I was quite nervous out there towards the end but made a lot of good decisions, hit the ball well and got a bit of luck as well which was nice.

“It’s great to be able to pull something off. I was kind of doubting myself a little this year, things haven’t been going my way but when you come out the other end it’s always nice.”

Lowry began the final round two shots off the lead but wiped out the deficit with birdies on the second and eighth before a spectacular recovery over the trees on the 10th set up another from two feet.

That gave the 28-year-old a two-shot lead and although Watson twice closed within a shot, Lowry found himself needing to par the last two holes for victory.

After his approach to the 17th ran up against the collar of rough Lowry produced an excellent chip and held his nerve to hole from five feet, but looked to be in trouble when he pulled his tee shot on the last into the trees.

However, the former Irish Open champion – he was still an amateur when he won the title in 2009 – found a good lie in the rough and powered a wedge over the trees to 11 feet, from where he holed for a birdie to make certain of the first prize of 1,570,000 US dollars.

“I was trying to get it on the front right of the green but pulled it a little bit, it went through the tree and rest is history,” added Lowry, who missed the cut on his US PGA debut at Whistling Straits in 2010.

8/09/2015

Lowry Wins WGC-Bridgestone

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Shane Lowry shot a flawless final round of 66 to win the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in Akron and claim his third European Tour title.

The Irishman fired four birdies on Sunday to finish the tournament on 11 under par, two shots ahead of two time Major Champion Bubba Watson.

Lowry began the final round at Firestone Country Club two shots off the lead held by overnight co-leaders Justin Rose and Jim Furyk, but he wiped out the deficit with birdies on the second and eighth holes.

The 28 year old began his back nine with a birdie on the tenth to take a two shot lead over the chasing pack on ten under par.

Furyk went within a shot of Lowry when he sank his five foot birdie putt on the 11th, only to bogey the next and drop back to eight under.

Lowry maintained his two shot advantage with a superb par save from 20 feet on the 14th after finding a fairway bunker off the tee.

Lowry's lead was cut to one shot when Watson fired his sixth birdie of the day at the 17th to go to nine under par.

But he held his nerve and went 11 under par when he sank his six foot putt at the last to win his first WGC title.

Rose and Furyk finished in a share of third place on seven under, with Robert Streb one shot further back.

Shane Lowry Leads Bridgestone

Shane Lowry moved to the top of the leaderboard after making a bright start on the final day of the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.

Birdies at the second and eighth holes took the Irishman to the turn in 33, and with overnight co-leaders Jim Furyk and Justin Rose dropping shots early on, the 28 year old led the field heading into his back nine.

Lowry then made another gain at the tenth to go ten under par with eight holes left to play.

Furyk, who began the day on nine under, made a gain at the second to increase his lead before dropping a shot at the par three fifth.

Another bogey at the eighth saw Furyk slip back to eight under alongside countryman Bubba Watson, who fired four birdies and a solitary bogey in his opening 11 holes.

Rose fell off the top of the leaderboard when he carded bogeys at the fourth and seventh to drop to seven under par.

But the World Number Eight was back in a share of second place after a superb birdie at the tricky par four ninth.

Meanwhile Ryder Cup star Ian Poulter started strongly, carding an eagle on the par five second, but he then fell off the pace after a double bogey at the fourth and bogeys at the sixth and seventh, ninth and tenth.

Søren Kjeldsen fired seven birdies and three bogeys as he posted a battling 66 on Sunday to finish on three under par.

7/10/2015

Lowry and McDowell in Chase

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Shane Lowry was one of five players to set the early clubhouse target in the second round of the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open on Friday, with defending champion Justin Rose and Graeme McDowell as in the group. All three strokes of leader Daniel Brooks.

Lowry followed up on Thursday’s 66 replicating his impressive first round to leave him at eight under par overall. He is joined by Rose, Johan Carlsson, Grégory Havret and McDowell.

Lowry was quick out of the blocks with two birdies from his opening five holes, before three further birdies on the back nine were marred by a bogey on the 15th.

Carlsson was in the first group out at 6:30am and carded four birdies and one bogey to add a 67 to his opening 65 in damp conditions to finish eight under par.

However, Rose had also improved to eight under with nine holes to play thanks to a front nine of 31, the former US Open champion looking to become the first player to successfully defend the Scottish Open following his win at Royal Aberdeen 12 months ago.

Rose bogeyed the opening hole but two-putted the par-five second for birdie and then carded four more in the space of five holes from the fourth.

Playing partner Phil Mickelson, who won the 2013 Open a mile down the road at Muirfield, could only manage one birdie on the front nine to lie two under, one shot inside the projected cut after 77 players broke par on Thursday.

The best scoring of the day so far was coming from Chile’s Felipe Aguilar, who began the day in 140th place after struggling to an opening 73, but jumped up the leaderboard in style with birdies at the first and second before firing a hole-in-one on the third, holing from 170 yards with an eight iron.

The 40-year-old has a habit of brilliant bursts of scoring, winning his second European Tour title in Singapore last year with a final round of 62 at Laguna National, holing his second shot to the 18th to complete the back nine in just 28 shots.

And after carding what would prove to be his only par on the front nine today on the fourth, Aguilar followed it with three birdies and two bogeys for an eventful front nine of 30.

Aguilar could not repeat such fireworks on the back nine but did birdie the 14th to move to six under for the day and three under overall.

Rose found trouble off the tee on the 10th but produced a superb pitch from 55 yards to within inches of the hole to save par and remain tied for the lead, along with fellow English man Brooks, who had eagled the second.

In contrast, Mickelson bogeyed the 11th and 12th after finding sand off the tee on both occasions and, at level par, was facing an uphill battle to make the halfway cut.

Lowry had no such worries, the links specialist going to the turn in 33 and picking up another shot on the 11th to get within a shot of the lead on seven under.

Mickelson produced the ideal response with birdies on the 14th, 15th and 16th, the latter coming thanks a typically deft chip from the side of the green.

That took the five-time major winner to three under par and safely inside the cut line, while playing partner Rose remained eight under and appeared shaken by hitting an elderly spectator on the head with a wayward drive on the 16th.

MIchael Hoey fired a second round 65 to share 24th place ahead of the weekend.

Padraig Harrington was 34th after second round 68.

Damien McGrane and Paul McGinley missed the cut

6/22/2015

Spieth Heads Towards Top Spot

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Jordan Spieth has closed the gap on world No 1 Rory McIlroy to less than two average ranking points after his US Open win.

The 21-year-old American’s second major triumph of the season lifted his average to 11.06 ranking points per event, up from 9.28.

Northern Irishman McIlroy dropped from 12.92 to 12.77 after finishing in a share of ninth place at Chambers Bay on Sunday.

American Dustin Johnson jumped four places to third in the list after his agonising near miss in the US Open, when he three-putted the last hole to finish one shot behind Spieth.

South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen, who shared second place with Johnson, returns to the top 20 in 16th.

England's Justin Rose is up one place to fourth, while Australia's Jason Day, who played on at Chambers Bay after collapsing from vertigo to finish alongside McIlroy on level par, rises from 10th to eighth.

Australian Cameron Smith is the big mover up the list from 167th to 89th after finishing in a share of fourth place.

Former world No 1 Tiger Woods has tumbled a further 10 places to 205th after his miserable run continued as he missed the cut at the US Open after firing an 80 and a 76 in the opening two rounds.

Latest leading positions and points average:

1 Rory McIlroy (NIrl) 12.77

2 Jordan Spieth (USA) 11.05

3 Dustin Johnson (USA) 6.97

4 Justin Rose (Eng) 6.65

5 Bubba Watson (USA) 6.64

6 Jim Furyk (USA) 6.61

7 Henrik Stenson (Swe) 6.44

8 Jason Day (Aus) 5.90

9 Sergio Garcia (Esp) 5.84

10 Rickie Fowler (USA) 5.70

11 Adam Scott (Aus) 5.38

12 Jimmy Walker (USA) 5.17

13 JB Holmes (USA) 4.78

14 Hideki Matsuyama (Jpn) 4.52

15 Patrick Reed (USA) 4.29

16 Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa) 4.10

17 Matt Kuchar (USA) 4.08

18 Chris Kirk (USA) 4.02

19 Billy Horschel (USA) 3.96

20 Phil Mickelson (USA) 3.87

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