Hoey Finishes 8th in China

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Michael Hoey finished in a tie for eighth place at the Volvo China Open on Sunday, after a final round 68 and dropping three shots on two of the last three holes. Which included a double bogey five on the par three 16th.

It was a good weeks work for Hoey who has three top ten finishes so far this season, one of which was a second place at the Tshwane Open in South Africa last month, with no missed cuts since December. 

A rich vein of form that currently places him 34th in The Race to Dubai with three hundred and seven thousand Euro in prize money through 12 tournaments so far played this year.

Hoey will retun to action in mid May for the Open de España at PGA Catalunya.

The winner of the Volvo China Open, Alexander Levy, was so relaxed on the course on Sunday, not even a double bogey that erased his comfortable lead could wipe the grin from his face.

Rather than get down over what could have been a costly mistake, the 23-year-old Frenchman recovered with back-to-back birdies on his final two holes to capture his maiden European Tour title by four strokes over Tommy Fleetwood.

The smile, he said, was the key to victory.

"You need to take the pleasure on the golf course and keep the smile because if you are upset about a missed shot or not lucky because you make a lip out or something like that, it's not good to have this feeling on the golf course," he said. "You need to enjoy and have the smile."

Levy, playing in just his second year on the tour, vaulted into the lead with a career-best 10-under 62 in the second round and looked to be headed for a runaway victory after making a birdie on the 13th Sunday to extend his lead to five shots.

But then he ran into trouble on the par-4 15th. After hitting his approach shot well past the green, he putted from the fringe and sent the ball off the other side of the green. He chipped back to the green and two-putted for a double bogey, allowing Fleetwood back within two strokes.

Fleetwood, playing in the group ahead of Levy, then tightened the pressure further with a birdie on the par-5 17th to pull another shot back.

Levy responded, however, with a flawless 3-iron approach shot over a lake on the same hole to set up a three-foot birdie putt.

"I just closed my eyes and got one of the best shots of the week to the green," he said.

After Fleetwood bogeyed the 18th, Levy sealed the win by dropping another perfectly placed approach shot three feet from the pin for another birdie. He shot a final-round 69 for a 19-under 269 overall.

"We aim for wins, but today I didn't really have a chance. I had to play outstanding golf, but Alex has led from Friday, and that's one of the hardest things you can do," Fleetwood said. "What a performance from him."

Levy has faltered under pressure before. Last year, he was tied with Ernie Els entering the final round of the BMW International Open in Munich but let the title slip away with four bogeys on the back nine. He ended up in third, his previous best result on the tour.

Since then, however, he said he's been inspired by the success of his good friend and compatriot, Victor Dubuisson, who beat Tiger Woods to win his first European Tour title at the Turkish Airlines Open in November and then was runner-up to Jason Day at the Match Play Championship in February.

The other French players have given him plenty of encouragement as he chased his first tour victory this week, too.

Dubuisson has sent him text messages throughout the week, and the French contingent in Shenzhen doused him with celebratory champagne after he sank his final putt on the 18th.

"We have some great players in France, both young and old, and we all have a great relationship," Levy said. "There are some very good players and have been some great wins for Victor, Julien Quesne, Greg Bourdy, Raphael Jacquelin over the past couple of years which is great for French golf and great with the Ryder Cup coming to France in 2018."

Fleetwood was second at 15 under and Alvaro Quiros of Spain was third, another two strokes back.

No. 3-ranked Henrik Stenson, who was bedridden with the flu earlier this week, finally put together his first solid round of the tournament, with seven birdies and no bogeys for a 65. The Swede improved to joint fifth place but still fell short of the win he needed to overtake Tiger Woods at the top of the world rankings.

"It's really tight and I just need to play better if I want to get to that spot. And I should have to play better than I have done earlier on this year if I want to get to world No. 1, that's for sure," he said.

PGA champion Jason Dufner opened with a birdie-eagle on his first two holes before slipping back to joint 54th with two double bogeys and a triple bogey on the 17th.

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Mixed Irish News at Volvo

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Michael Hoey was the best of the Irish on Thursday carding 69 in the opening round of the Volvo China Open in Shenzhen, with Shane Lowry three shots further adrift finish with 72 at the Genzon Golf Club.

Damien McGrane signed for a round of 73 and well inside the projected cut.

Gareth Maybin ended with a first round 77 and Peter Lawrie carding 78 leaving them both facing a difficult days work on Friday.

Alvaro Quiros enjoyed a superb start to the tournament with an eagle at the par-five 13th and two further birdies to card a five-under-par round of 67 having only dropped one shot at the 10th.

Quiros was happy with his start and believes it shows he is steadily improving.

He said: “It was a good round of golf.

“It was a bit of a shame on the last par five because I was half a metre away from having a great chance to make another eagle. My game is improving. You can’t see it yet on the rankings but I have been playing better.”

Dyson, whose last tournament success came in the 2011 KLM Open, carded three birdies on both the front and back nine to keep the pace alongside Quiros, with a bogey on the first the only blot on the Brit’s scorecard.

Five players failed to finish their rounds as fading light meant play was suspended and the leaders do not have much breathing space heading into Friday’s second round, with Dyson’s compatriots David Hornsey and Tyrrell Hatton just a shot adrift alongside defending champions Brett Rumford.

World number three Henrik Stenson can overhaul Tiger Woods at the top of the rankings with victory in Shenzen and he started steadily to finish his opening round on one-under par and four shots off the lead, while other big names Jason Duffner and Ian Poulter had differing days.

American Duffner, ranked 17th in the world, bogied three on the back nine to end one over par while Poulter tied for ninth on three under par.

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McGrane Joost in Touch

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Damien McGrane defied the miserable conditions to card a superb 67 and set the early clubhouse target in the third round of the KLM Open in Zandvoort.

McGrane, whose sole European Tour victory to date in the 2008 Volvo China Open was achieved in similar wet and windy weather, recorded three birdies and no bogeys to reach eight under par at Kennemer Golf Club.

The 42 year old began the day four shots off the lead, but with the leaders getting the worst of the conditions he was just one off the lead when he reached the sanctuary of the clubhouse.

Home favourite Joost Luiten recovered the lead after signing for a eound of 66.

France's Julien Quesne and Spain's Miguel Angel Jiménez shared the lead on nine under, Luiten having chipped in twice for birdie and Quesne carding 14 pars and just one birdie so far.

Jiménez had shared the overnight lead with compatriot Pablo Larrazábal, but Larrazábal's bid for a third European Tour title got off to a start as miserable as the weather.

The 30 year old ran up a triple-bogey seven on the opening hole and also dropped a shot on the fifth, and although he birdied the seventh another bogey on the 13th left him four off the lead.

Jiménez had topped his third shot on the par five second but rescued a par with a superb pitch, only to bogey the next after missing the green with his tee shot and failing to get up and down.

The 49 year old, already the oldest winner in European Tour history after his win in the Hong Kong Open aged 48 and 318 days last November, had to wait until the 13th for his first birdie of the day, but that was enough to reclaim a share of the lead.

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Hoey Magic Makes China Cut

Michael Hoey went about his business on the second day of the Volvo China Open on Friday and carded a second round 68 to get inside the cut, ensuring a weekend stay in Tianjan - following an opening day 2 over par 74.

Damien McGrane slipped five shots off the lead with a second round 71 and two strokes ahead of Shane Lowry and Peter Lawrie - both on 4 under in 29th place.

Gareth Maybin signed for a two under par 70 to finish 3 under ahead of the weekend.

At the top of the leader board France’s Jean-Baptiste Gonnet and England’s Gary Boyd will be vying for a maiden European Tour title this weekend after moving into a share of the halfway lead at the Volvo China Open.

Boyd, who has recorded two runner-up finishes during his three seasons on The European Tour, recorded a five under par 67 to reach 11 under.

Gonnet, whose only top-three finish came during his rookie 2007 season when he was second in Sweden, was also round in 67 after six birdies and a single bogey.

They are a shot clear of South African Branden Grace, already a two-time winner on The Race to Dubai this year, with defending champion Nicolas Colsaerts in fourth on nine under par.

Gonnet’s performance continues the good form that has seen him finish 12th in Abu Dhabi, sixth in India and fifth in Qatar this season.

“I played very well again today, even off the tee which is really good for me,” he said. 

“It’s good to be in the lead and the game is in good shape so I have a very good chance to win but I have to try and not think about it. 

“My confidence levels are high because I have been playing well for the last two months. I had a lot of fun out there today and that is very important for me on the course, to try and have fun and enjoy it because the last two years have been very tough for me. 

“It wasn’t tough to keep my card but I wasn’t getting too much enjoyment out of the game and I was bringing too much pressure on myself. I know this is a job but, for me, I have to enjoy it and remember why I started playing this game. 

“I have to go back to the five year old kid and try to play for fun. That will be the main aim for the weekend – to go out there and try to enjoy it because there is no point in playing the game if you are not having fun.”

Boyd’s round started on the back nine and his start was far from ideal, a bogey at the 12th not cancelled out until the par five 18th as he turned in 36.

But the 25 year old birdied five of his last eight holes, including a 12 foot putt at the fifth.

“It was good out there,” he said. “I had to stay patient on the front nine and was one over playing my ninth hole but managed to get on in two and two putt for birdie and really get my round going. 

“The back nine I managed to take a few more chances and finished it off with a three wood to eight feet on the ninth - it was the shot of the year so far for me. I hit the driver off the tee and it went left into the bunker and I didn’t know if it was a five or three wood but I went for the three and it just came out perfectly and I managed to make the putt. 

“I have been playing pretty well and I have just trusted what I have been working on with my old coach since two weeks ago. I was a bit lost in too many thoughts and trying too many different things for a while and that is not something that you want to be doing in tournament golf. It is starting to pay off this week. 

“It has been a long while since I was properly up there – probably Czech Republic or Switzerland round about September last year – but I am going to draw on those experiences going into the weekend.”

Grace, who won back-to-back titles in South Africa at the start of the year after coming through Qualifying School, had three birdies and an eagle two at the seventh after hitting his tee shot to five feet as he carded a second-straight 67.

“There are opportunities out there,” he said. “It wasn’t easy because you still had to hit the shots and get it going. 

“The most important thing I did today was to play the difficult holes for me sensibly. I didn’t take any chances on the holes that could cause me real trouble and then I managed to birdie the ones where I can make chances.”

Belgian Colsaerts, looking to become the first player in the history of the event to successfully defend the title, carded five birdies and two bogeys in his round, but for the second day running, the highlight of the biggest hitter on The European Tour’s round came at the par five second.

The 29 year old needed only an iron into the 575 yard hole, and struck it to two feet before holing the eagle putt.

“It was pretty good for the first two days,” he said. “Funnily enough I probably played better yesterday and shot four under and then went one better today in the tougher conditions. 

“I made one or two mistakes today but you just have to accept that on a day like this. It got really tough out there about halfway through the round. The wind really started to blow and the temperature went down about ten degrees.”

McGrane Memories at China Open

Damien McGrane returns to the Volvo China in Tianjin this week with memories of his achievements four years again no doubt, when he won the event in Beijing by nine strokes and earned the Golden Jacket.

This week the Irish interest also includes Shane Lowry and Peter Lawrie, also back in action after the two week hiatus for The Masters in Augusta.


Michael Hoey, already a winner this season, is also back in action, as is Gareth Maybin - a winner in China of the Qingdao Golf Open in 2008 on the Challenge Tour.

For Peter Hanson the returns to action will be welcome following his Masters' heroics where the Swede finished tied for third.

Part of Europe’s 2010 winning Ryder Cup Team, the 34 year old is now fourth on The Race to Dubai and second in the points list to be part of José María Olazábal’s side at Medinah in September.

“I think The Ryder Cup was really important for me - it showed that I can get in there and play with the big boys,” said Hanson.

“That is one of the reasons I have been able to do better in the WGCs this year and Augusta. Hopefully I can build on that for this week and then the Majors for the rest of the year. And the Ryder Cup again obviously. I am looking forward to this week and getting back into tournament mode again.

“It’s nice to be back on The European Tour and China is a special place. The way we get treated when we come, by Volvo and everyone else, is second to none.”

The fact the event at Binhai Lake is sponsored by Volvo provides extra motivation for Hanson and his fellow Swedes. He added: “They have always been great and it is one of those events where you look forward to. For me as a Swede it is one of those big brands that I think all Swedish people are extremely proud of and I always try to come here. 

“I am good friends with Per Ericsson who runs these events and it is nice to be able to come here and catch up with him and have a few dinners with old friends.”

Hanson led with 18 holes to play at Augusta National, but says there is no sense of disappointment at missing out on the play-off that eventually saw Bubba Watson overcome Louis Oosthuizen for the Green Jacket.

“I am very proud of the performance,” he added. “I have to say that I was a little bit disappointed when I walked off that 18th green on the Sunday but that left me pretty quick. I still had a smile on my face when I was driving the car home on the Monday as I realised had a great weekend and a great tournament. 

“It is such a special place that you have always dreamt about playing since you were a kid. You watched Freddie Couples and all those guys and now you are there, right in the mix with them.”

Volvo China Open Entry List