The Irish Golf Club Gazette: Martin Kaymer

Showing posts with label Martin Kaymer. Show all posts

8/16/2015

Can Rory Break Records

Getty Images

Rory McIlroy requires a record nine-shot recovery to win the 97th edition at Whistling Straits and overcome Jason Day heading who leads into the final day.

5. Bob Tway

Greg Norman held the lead going into the final round of every major championship in 1986, and the PGA Championship at the Inverness Club was no exception.

But the Australian was usurped in Ohio by Bob Tway, who overturned a four-stroke deficit to clinch his only major title, before later being named PGA Player of the Year.

Tway's comeback began with Norman's double-bogey at the 11th, and ended by holing from a bunker at the last to win by two shots.

4. Keegan Bradley

Despite trailing by just a single stroke at the start of the final round, Bradley found himself five shots off the lead with three holes remaining.

A gain at 16 followed by a 35-foot birdie on the 17th, coupled with three consecutive bogeys by Jason Dufner, forced a play-off between the Americans at the Atlanta Athletic Club in 2011.

Bradley wasted no time in the three-hole showdown, triumphing by one-shot after a birdie at the first. "I can't believe it, I feel so proud," the 25-year-old said afterwards - and rightly so.

3. Bob Rosburg

Bob Rosburg trailed Jerry Barber by six shots going into the final round at the Minneapolis Golf Club in 1959.

Despite Rosburg carding the best round of the final day with 66, Barber still looked in control with three holes to play.

Three pars would have been enough for Barber, but two bogeys meant he ended the tournament one stroke behind Rosburg.

2. Steve Elkington

Ernie Els set a three-day record at the PGA Championship in 1995 with 197, but was unable to prevent Steve Elkington from lifting the Wanamaker Trophy on the final day.

Elkington fired a final-day 64, which remains the greatest closing round by a PGA champion to date, and he was joined in a play-off by Colin Montgomerie when the Scot holed an 18-foot birdie at the last.

As if Elkington's 64 wasn’t enough, he buried a 25-foot putt for birdie on the first extra hole for victory.

1. John Mahaffey

Mahaffey's seven-shot comeback in 1978 remains the greatest in the history of the PGA Championship.

Tom Watson offered a helping hand, struggling to a final-round 73, while Mahaffey ripped through the course with a stunning 66.

A four-foot miss by Jerry Pate at the last forced a play-off, which Mahaffey won with a birdie on the second to avenge his 18-hole play-off defeat at The Open three years earlier.

Rory Retains Whistling Chance

Getty Images

Rory McIlroy was frustrated at being unable to build on a "dream start" to his third round at the 97th PGA Championship, as his lengthy injury lay-off caught up with him at Whistling Straits.

The defending champion was nine shots off the lead at the halfway stage following a pair of erratic 71s, but he made early strides up the leaderboard when he birdied the second and fourth and then holed a monster 65-foot putt for eagle at the fifth.

But a poor wedge cost him a shot at the next, and he also bogeyed the eighth before mixing four birdies with two further shots on the inward half to post a 68 - six under for the tournament.

McIlroy will have to break the tournament comeback record if he is to retain his title on Sunday, and he admitted his lack of competitive golf while recovering from ankle ligament damage over the last seven weeks had hampered his chances.

"I got off to a dream start, really," said McIlroy, who had not played since the US Open in June after suffering his ankle injury playing football with friends on July 4. "To be four under through five, having not birdied the first and third, was a bonus.

"I knew six was a chance and the way the wind was on seven and eight, they weren't playing as tough as they had been earlier in the week. If you get a good tee shot down on nine, you've got a wedge in your hand there and all of a sudden you're thinking about shooting 30 on the front nine and then you've got some chances on the back nine.

"But to give those shots away again on six and eight, you really have to battle to shoot four under in the end. I guess that probably shows just a lack of competitiveness considering this is the first week back in a few weeks.

"But really positive signs out there. Hitting the ball great. I putted much better today thankfully. So if I keep showing improvement each and every day like I have done, it's a good sign going into the rest of the season."

The 26-year-old conceded that his chances of lifting the Wanamaker Trophy for the third time were remote, but he is refusing to hand over his title without a fight.

"It's all about setting a realistic goal and target," McIlroy added. "I know that the way the back nine's playing there, the leaders could be 14, 15 under by the time the day ends. So, that would leave me eight or nine shots back.

"In the back of your mind, you still think you have a chance, because that's what your competitive nature tells you. But if you're looking at it realistically, I want to go out there tomorrow and shoot the best score that I've shot this week.

"I've stood still a little on Thursday and Friday, but definitely improved today and you want to improve on that again tomorrow. If I do that, I think that, as a whole, the week would be somewhat of a success. It wouldn't be quite what I wanted, but as I said, I can take positives from it and move on."

8/14/2015

Rory Recovers After Wet Start

Getty Images

Rory McIlroy overcame a nervy start to open the defence of his PGA Championship title with an encouraging one-under 71 at Whistling Straits.

In his first competitive round since the US Open, the world No 1 hit back from a three-putt bogey at the first with a birdie at the next and missed good chances at three and four before producing a stunning par-save from shallow water at the fifth hole.

McIlroy pulled a seven-iron left of the green with his third to the par-five, but he rolled up his right trouser leg, splashed out to 12 feet and calmly knocked in the putt to stay at level par.

He couldn't avoid a bogey after missing the fairway at the eighth, but he responded with a pure approach to four feet to set up a birdie at nine and a huge drive and an eight-iron into the long 11th yielded a comfortable two-putt for birdie.

McIlroy failed to convert mid-range birdie putts on each of the next four greens, but he got one to drop after pitching to six feet at the 16th before he was berating himself for pushing his approach to the last into thick rough, from where he played a poor chip and two-putted for bogey.

But he reflected on a good day's work in tough, blustery conditions, and he had no concerns with his left ankle after completing his recovery from the ligament damage he suffered during a friendly game of football with his friends just before the Scottish Open early last month.

And he was delighted with his highlight of the day at the fifth, where his main worry was getting his feet wet.

"The only thing I was trying not to do was get my feet wet, because if the water gets through this shoe, then the tape [on his left ankle] gets wet and then that would be annoying or uncomfortable for the rest of the day," McIlroy said.

"It was a little bit deeper on the right side, so I just rolled my right trouser leg up and it was fine. I just had to remember to hit it hard. And I was very fortunate to escape with a par there.

"I think anything under par this afternoon was a decent score. I thought trying to shoot something under 70 was realistic. I sort of had a chance to do that after birdieing the 16th. I missed a good chance there on 17. Unfortunate bogey on the last, I guess. Just hit a 3-iron and held it up a little bit too much into the wind and leaked it right."

McIlroy's 71 was matched by playing partner and rival for the world No 1 spot Jordan Spieth, the Masters and US Open champion looking to become only the third player after Ben Hogan and Tiger Woods to win three majors in a year.

Spieth followed 10 straight pars with a three-putt bogey on the 11th, but chipped in on the next and also birdied the 16th.

"We really battled back after 10 and 11, which were disappointing holes for me, to salvage an under par round and really stay in this tournament," the 22-year-old said. "If I didn't get that good break on 12, it could have been a different story the rest of the round."

8/13/2015

Rory Has Strait Chance - McGinley

Paul McGinley expects four-time major champion Rory McIlroy to be firmly in contention for this week's 97th PGA Championship.

McIlroy will return to play his first tournament since rupturing an ankle ligament six weeks ago, but McGinley has backed the 26-year-old's decision to compete at Whistling Straits.

"I think he can contend no doubt," said McGinley.

"He's the world number-one player, he's confident, he's had a good few weeks practice, his game is in good shape, and the golf course suits him.

"He's proven in the past that coming back form a big lay-off doesn't really affect him, he can come back and hit the ground running. But coming back from a serious injury, it will be interesting to see how it all unfolds for him.

"Steve McGregor [McIlroy's fitness trainer] has done a great job on him. He's very highly respected within the game and within this industry knowing exactly what fitness is about.

"He couldn't have been in better hands in terms of this rehab with Steve. I'd say he's in good shape but is he going to be competitively sharp? That's going to be the question."

8/08/2015

Rory Whistles While He Works

Photo: James Haddock

Rory McIlroy stepped up his bid to play in next week's US PGA Championship by playing a practice round at Whistling Straits on Saturday.

The world No 1 has been sidelined for the last month after rupturing ligaments in his ankle while playing football with his friends.

That injury forced him to miss the defence of his Open title at St Andrews, but he published videos of a training session earlier in the week before heading to Wisconsin.

Speculation that McIlroy would play in the final major championship of the season stepped up a notch on Friday when he was handed a 1.20pm local time (7.20pm BST) grouping for Thursday's opening round.

The Irishman will, assuming he is fit to play, go out alongside Masters and US Open champion Jordan Spieth and Zach Johnson, who claimed the Claret Jug in thrilling fashion last month.

McIlroy enjoyed success on his last visit to Whistling Straits, a tough links-style course, when he finished third at the 2010 US PGA, one shot away from getting into the three-hole play-off Martin Kaymer went on to win.

7/03/2015

McDowell Misses French Cut

Graeme McDowell admits he has work to do on his game after missing the cut at Le Golf National.

The Northern Irishman's bid for a third successive title in France came to a frustratingly early end, as the former US Open champion's poor form continued.

McDowell was one of the early starters on Friday after thunderstorms had left 42 players unable to complete their opening rounds on day one, making par at the 18th to close and opening 72 and lie within four of the lead.

However, after a short break McDowell was back out on the course which will stage the 2018 Ryder Cup and slumped to a second round of 78, his worst score in 32 rounds at the venue.

The 35-year-old failed to register a single birdie during his second round, posting three bogeys and two double-bogeys, including at the second after sending his shot in to the hazard, to end the week eight over.

"I struggled to get in the fairway mainly and, as firm and as fast as this course is, if you're not hitting the fairway you have a bit of a problem getting close to the flag," McDowell said. "It's just a bad first nine both days.

"I rescued it coming in last night but it was a fast turnaround from a 9pm finish last night to an early start this morning and I just didn't come out of the blocks this morning at all.

"It's very disappointing, this course has been so good to me over the years, just not to be this year. It's a work in progress, I'll keep grinding and it's a big summer ahead."

It leaves McDowell without a top-ten finish since February's Dubai Desert Classic, with the Ryder Cup star in danger of dropping out of the world's top 50 unless he can produces an upturn in results.

"I have a lot of technique in my head to be honest and I have to strip that out," McDowell told Sky Sports 4. "I've got to get back to basics and try to clear the mind.

"I've been working too hard on trying to get the technique fixed and been making it worse. I know it's in there; you take the rough with the smooth and it's been a great three or four years. I will dig this out and I'll be back."

6/22/2015

Spieth Heads Towards Top Spot

Getty Images

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

6/18/2015

GMAC's Vale of Motivation

Getty Images

Graeme McDowell has revealed a tough 12 months has seen him questioning his motivation to stay in golf.

The 2010 US Open champion has recorded just one top-10 finish on the European Tour this year and says he struggled for motivation after the birth of his daughter Vale in 2014.

McDowell's victory in 2010 was the first of four wins in the past five years by European players, with fellow Northern Irishman Rory McIlroy and Ryder Cup team-mates Justin Rose and Martin Kaymer following in his footsteps.

I've been wrestling a little bit with my level of motivation the last 12 months with getting married and having a baby and all the exciting things in my life happening," McDowell said ahead of this week's US Open at Chambers Bay.

"I haven't felt the same desire and urge to go out there and grind and practice, and that's affected my game.

"It's one of those things that you never think is going to happen to you, I suppose. But I think when it happens, I think it's important to have a good team of people around you to help you acknowledge it and help you sift through kind of where the problems lie.

"Is it that you don't love the game anymore or is it the fact that you just love being home with the family a bit more than normal? So I think just acknowledging it is obviously a big part of it. It's not fun.

"I obviously haven't enjoyed the season; not playing well, not scoring well, losing a little of confidence and belief. Thinking am I done, finished, washed up? Should I think about getting a new job?

"All these crazy human-instinct thoughts go through your mind and it's just about trying to get back in your processes and trust what you're doing.

"And knowing that it's not necessarily going to happen fast.

"You've got to just dig in and start grinding again and go back to all the things that worked in the past. And just start enjoying the game really.

"It's hard. It's not been fun this year, definitely been one of the tougher seasons in the last seven or eight.

"But I feel like I'm learning a lot from it. Something I've done well in my career to this point is reacting well to the tough years and coming out the other side better and stronger and smarter.

"That's what I'm kind of in right now, I'm in that learning curve and looking forward to being back on the leaderboard very soon."

Asked what other job he could have done, McDowell joked: "I don't know what I'd do. I didn't get my engineering degree, so I can't see me going back to college at this point."

8/16/2015

Related articles

Related articles

8/14/2015

Related articles

8/13/2015

Related articles

8/08/2015

Related articles

7/03/2015

Related articles

6/22/2015

Related articles

6/18/2015

Related articles