The Irish Golf Club Gazette

11/15/2014

Missed Cut Ends Harrington PGA Tour

Padraig Harrington carded a second round 72 in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba in Mexico on Friday and missing the cut. It draws to a close this season tournaments on PGA Tour with only invites on offer next year having already lost his automatic playing rights. The five year exemption following his US PGA Championship in 2008 now expired.

Michael Putnam birdied five of the first eight holes Friday and finished with a 7-under 64 to take the lead in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba.

Putnam had a 12-under 130 total, playing the first 36 holes without a bogey on Mayakoba's El Camaleon course. He won the Web.com Tour's 2013 Mexico Championship.

"I've kept the ball in play really well," Putnam said. "It's a tight golf course and got to keep it between the trees. After that, I've hit a lot of greens and made a lot of two putts. I did make about a 10-footer for par on 16 -- probably the hardest hole on the course. Other than that, it was a pretty easy bogey-free round."

Winless in 95 career PGA TOUR starts, the 31-year-old former Pepperdine player birdied the par-4 18th to close his morning round.

"It's a hard hole today," Putnam said. "Driver, 6-iron into the wind and an 18-foot putt."

Shawn Stefani and Jason Bohn were a stroke back. They each shot 65.

Stefani had seven birdies and a bogey.

"I've been hitting the ball really well for quite some time now," Stefani said. "The last few days really has been credit to my putter. I kind of figured something out on Wednesday and just kind of focused on that."

Bohn had six birdies in his second straight bogey-free round.

"It's about positioning yourself in the middle of the fairway or right side of the fairway and trying to attack some of these flags," Bohn said. "One of my strengths is just getting the ball in play. If I can get my putter hot, we'll see what happens."

Ken Duke was 10 under after a 63, the best round of the day.

David Hearn, Nicholas Thompson, Will MacKenzie and Alex Cejka were 9 under. Hearn and Thompson shot 65, Cejka had a 67, and MacKenzie a 68.

Fred Funk, the oldest player in the field at 58, was 8 under after a 65. He won the 2007 event at 50 years, 8 months, 12 days to become the fifth-oldest PGA TOUR winner.

Oscar Fraustro topped the seven Mexican players in the field, shooting a 67 to reach 7 under.

"I'm happy with my round today again, very good score again," Fraustro said through a translator. "It could have been better, but I had better control of my game."

Countryman Carlos Ortiz was another stroke back, overcoming an early double bogey for a 69. He won three times on the Web.com Tour last season.

"I'm proud of myself," Ortiz said. "I got it back and finished under par. I'm still in the tournament."

Defending champion Harris English was 4 under after a 71.

Irish Golf Desperately Seeking Cards

The momentum of a next generation of Irish golfers to follow Shane Lowry, Michael Hoey, Damien McGrane and Graeme McDowell, is very much needed in order to maintain a strong Irish presence in the game. Or protect market share to build on the pioneering work of the latest generation - two time major winner Padraig Harrington, Open Champion Darren Clarke.

As well as the first Irish Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley.

Leaving the case of Wunderkind Rory McIlroy as a separate story given the Holywood golfer is a once in a lifetime phenomenon.

In reality the game on these shores was built by the legends of the domestic game - men and women - who ploughed the furrow decades ago. In the days when prize money was minimal; travel not done by private jet; the sponsorship meagre and the hard work seeming even harder no doubt.

That roll call includes Fred Daly, Christy O'Connor, Eamonn Darcy, Des Smyth, Philip Walton, David Feherty, Ronan Rafferty and Christy O'Connor Jnr. A highlight of just some of the names who did more than their bit for Irish golf - including winning Ryder Cup's. Doing so on foreign shores and far flung places.

In those days it was just as hard to get a European Tour card. Maybe even harder they might say. Though the truth now is that there is increased competition from Sweden, Spain, France and Germany which was somewhat less then.

These days Stephen Grant, Niall Turner, Michael McGeady, Gareth Shaw, Michael McGeady, Niall Kenney annually pitch their skills amongst a host of international hotshots. Also chasing their dream of a place on the Tour from larger golf playing population’s. The statistic of the players on tour reflect that reality and so this year it is vital that the Irish representation improves.

Last year only Kevin Phelan made it.

To be fair the Waterford man is a product of the US scholarship system and has been a talent waiting to happen for some years. Current indicators confirm he is on his way and the hurdle of a return to Q School this weekend hopefully just a formality.

As far back as 2009 only Simon Thornton and Gary Murphy got through. With both losing their cards within the season and having to return again. Unsuccessfully.

David Higgins has regained and lost his card frequently in recent years. The last time being 2011 and now surviving since on accumulated exemptions. No doubt 2015 offering fewer events having failed at Second Stage this year. Perhaps closing the chapter on a professional golf with career earnings of over one million Euro.

A decade ago Damien McGrane broke through and has retained his place ever since 2003. Gareth Maybin made it from the Challenge Tour in 2008 with Michael Hoey also getting through the final stage in 2008. Then Shane Lowry skipped school, never looking out of place in the big time after earning an exemption following the 3 Irish Open win in 2009 at Baltray, Doing so as an amateur.

Undoubtedly at Qualifying School the uninitiated face a level of intensity alien to their daily life on either the Irish PGA Region, PGA EuroProTour or in gold club pro ams. The step up needed is not easy given it is impossible to replicate that dog eat dog atmosphere at PGA Catalunya. As hopefuls of all ages and creeds fight for their livelihoods.

For neophyte tour card chasers it requires a discipline that perhaps can only be gained by long seasons on the Challenge Tour.

More recent years have highlighted that even maintaining exemptions for Irish players on the satellite tour is no easy feat. But forms a vital apprenticeship as Henrik Stenson, Martin Kaymer and others can attest. Or the 2010 Challenge Tour winner Edoardo Molinari proved. The Italian having become a household name after his first season on the main tour that saw him also play a pivotal role in the 2010 Ryder Cup.

In fairness, there are others that have also been successful with names such as Jose Felipe Lima, Nicolas Colsaerts, Rhys Davies and Peter Whiteford coming to mind. None more successful than Davies who within his first year reached 15th in the Race to Dubai, and spent five days with Ryder Cup Captain, Colin Montgomerie, around Celtic Manor in 2010.

However as golf is not a fairy-tale and such are the twists in the sport that Davies returns to reclaim his playing rights this weekend after a number of barren seasons. Those days of a promising protégé now a distant memory.

In Ireland Colm Moriarty, Jonathan Caldwell and Gareth Shaw know it is not that easy either and the so called failure at Q School is a reality that can dent even the strongest ambitions. Walker Cup pedigree or not. Taking the best of playing talent along with it. Golf is completely equitable in sharing bad news about the European Tour cards.

Other Irish players of the same era, Stephen Browne and Alan Murray, making the decision to pursue other careers and bring more certainty to their lives. Happy to abandon the annual ritual of tour school. Undoubtedly the toughest mental challenge there is in the sport of golf.

However there is a developing group that one hopes one day soon will get fulfil their calling. They should include Ruaidrhi McGee, Niall Turner and Niall Kearney.

But it requires patience, diligence and above all money. The latter being the scarcest commodity these days and the one that could end dreams instantly. In summary the cavalier days of registering for Q School should be over as the beyond the First Stage it is a serious business. Anyone not fully prepared should just save their entry fee.

The career of Philip Walton epitomises what that odyssey can become. The Dubliner having made the pilgrimage first in 1999 - only to follow it in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004* - when he regained his card for one year. Then a return 2005 and then finally in 2006.

Today he plays the European Senior Tour where he automatically qualifies having been a three time winner in Europe. His eye distracted on a few occasions by qualification for the much more lucrative Champions Tour. Which as yet has proved unfruitful.

This week all five Irish challengers are not novices, with the youngest Kevin Phelan a veteran of one gruelling European Tour season. With two top five finishes.

Gareth Maybin, Peter Lawrie, Simon Thornton carrying enough combined experience that the nerves won't be a worry. Rather the quality of the shot making to battle the contrasting demands of the Stadium and Tour courses at PGA Catalunya.

For Michael McGeady the heady ambitions of someday making it on the tour, for at least one season, maybe closer than we imagine. he is not encumbered by memories of the past in Catalunya.

So there is no reason to fear that any of five this weekend is not fully prepared. The reality is that all five making the final twenty five spots is a mathematical impossibility. But then again we said that about an Irish player ever winning a major after Fred Daly.

Then look what happened.

11/14/2014

Lowry Eagle Start Trails Poulter

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Shane Lowry made a blistering start on day one of the Turkish Airlines Open by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, making the turn five under par after an opening eagle three.

The Clara man reached the fourteenth hole without loss - having carded a birdie on thirteen and then a bogey - after which the tournament was suspended due to lightning.

Up ahead Ian Poulter continued his brilliant form at the Montgomerie Maxx Royal before bad weather cut short the second round of the Turkish Airlines Open by the Ministry of Youth and Sports on Friday.

Tee times had been brought forward by 90 minutes in an attempt to get play completed, but the forecast thunderstorm arrived earlier than expected and forced play to be suspended shortly after noon local time.

Poulter had just completed the 14th hole at the time, and although tournament officials initially announced play would resume after a delay of more than two-and-a-half hours, the weather closed in again shortly before the planned restart.

Play was therefore abandoned for the day and scheduled to restart at 8am on Saturday, with Poulter on 13 under par and holding a three shot lead over Zimbabwe's Brendon de Jonge.

Tournament Director Miguel Vidaor said: “Obviously we stopped play for lightning at 12.04. We knew that there was bad weather coming today; that's why we moved the tee times forward by an hour and 15 minutes, as much as we could, given the daylight available.

“After watching that storm system coming through, the weatherman thought we were going to get a break of about an hour and 45 minutes until the next one - because of instability in the air, there would be other thunderstorms popping up.

“As we went for the restart at 2.40pm, we had another cell just popping up southeast of us heading towards us and within 18 miles.

“So unfortunately there's more and more thunderstorms all over the place, and there's a big band coming behind them, so we have had to cancel it and call it for the day and come back tomorrow and restart at 8.00.

“A 72-hole tournament is still very much achievable. What we are going to do now is we are restarting at 8.00 tomorrow morning. We don't have a cut, which means that we don't have to do a new draw between rounds two and three.

“The players are going to go with the same groupings as they are in round two, and they are going to play the same groupings on round three, which means we are going to gain a lot of time.

“All going well, we are looking at the last group going off for round three just after 11.00 tomorrow, which means we are going to be back on track finishing round three just after 4.00 tomorrow, which then gives us the option to redraw for the final round and have a proper final round on Sunday.

“The weather forecast tomorrow is still a low chance of a thunderstorm, nothing like today, and Sunday looks very good. So fingers crossed, I think we should be able to achieve 72 holes on Sunday.”

Poulter, whose opening 64 meant he was a total of 27 under par for his last five rounds in Antalya, began the day a shot behind Spain's Miguel Angel Jiménez and saw the gap widen as the oldest winner in European Tour history made birdies at the first two holes.

However, Jiménez - who will celebrate his 51st birthday in January - then bogeyed the fourth and Poulter took advantage with birdies on the same hole and the sixth and seventh to move into the lead.

The 38 year old extended his advantage to three shots with a birdie from six feet on the tenth before chipping to within inches of the hole on the par five 11th to set up another.

Poulter carded just his second bogey of the week by three-putting the 12th as a strong wind suddenly kicked up ahead of the storm, but the change in conditions meant the World Number 40 was able to reach the par five 13th in two and card an easy birdie.

“I’m playing nicely, and to be on the top of the leaderboard is always nice,” said Poulter. “It would have been nice to finish the round off, but I guess it wasn't meant to be today.

“So I guess we'll have to wait this one out, see what the weather is going to be like. Hopefully we can get round two finished at some stage tomorrow and obviously get cracking on round three.

“I'm playing great, so it's obviously a great feeling to be on the golf course when you're playing like that, and making birdies is always fun. Right now I'm pretty happy.”

De Jonge had carded four birdies and one bogey in 13 holes to move into second place on ten under par, with Australian Wade Ormsby and American Brooks Koepka a further shot back.

Jiménez had bogeyed the 12th and 13th before play was suspended to fall five off the pace on eight under alongside South African Branden Grace.

Profile - Michael McGeady

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Michael McGeady began playing golf at the age of twelve as a member of the City of Derry club and quickly progressed in the game. He became a member of the Ireland set up and represented the Ireland Boys team from 1996, graduating to the Senior Team during the 2003 season.

He was also a member of that years winning Home International team and in 2004 earned a place on the Great Britain and Ireland Walker Cup panel. The runner up in the 2004 Irish Close, he captured the Dundalk Scratch Cup in 2005 and was again a member of the Ireland team for the Home Internationals and European Team Championships.

In late 2005 Michael made the decision to turn professional and began playing on the European Challenge Tour and PGA Europro Tour. In just his fourth event on the Challenge Tour, the 2006 Challenge of Ireland in Killarney, Michael finished in second position, missing out on taking the last round to a playoff by just one shot.

This result, combined with a top 20 finish in the Open des Volcans ensured that Michael received a category on the Challenge Tour for the 2007 season.

A disappointing 2007 was soon followed by his best season to date when in 2008 Michael secured his first Challenge Tour victory at the SWALEC Wales Challenge, following a play-off with overnight leader Joel Sjoholm of Sweden.

McGeady finished 42nd in the 2008 Order of Merit and gained entry into the Final Stage of Tour School. Agonisingly for Michael, he bogeyed the final hole to finish only one stroke outside the top-30, and with that the glory of full European Tour status in 2009.

Michael competed on the Challenge Tour in 2009 and finished 53rd at the Challenge of Ireland presented by Movalley, missing the cut at the 3 Irish Open in Baltray and progressing only to Stage 2 at European Tour Qualifying School at Sherry Golf in Jerez, Spain.

That season Michael played in five events missing the only cut at the ECCO Tour Championship in Germany finishing 121st in the Challenge Tour rankings At Stage 1 of Q School at The London Club he fished in third place to qualify.

2011 was a season of missed cuts in all the four tournaments entered and a trip to Q School at Ribegofle which left him 31st and outside the reckoning for another year.

In 2013 the Donegal-based McGeady golfer played in only his second Challenge Tour event of the year at Galgorm Castle after having lost lost his card for the second-tier European circuit at the end of the 2011 season. In the end he finished 34th at the Northern Ireland Challenge presented by Clannah and XJet.

A month later at the Cassidy Golf 103rd PGA Irish Championship at Roganstown McGeady won the title in a close finish with Damian Mooney and Cian McNamara.

McGeady posted rounds of 66, 72, 70 and 67 for a nine-under-par winning 275, one stroke ahead of Mooney and McNamara, after the leadership changed hands a few times during the day.

An attempt a few days later to win a Challenge Tour card at the PGA European Championship at Sandwich fell short when he finished T7.
Career Highlights

2008 Winner SWALEC Wales Challenge (European Challenge Tour)

2006 2nd Place Challenge of Ireland (European Challenge Tour)

2005 Ireland Senior Team Member

2005 Winner Dundalk Scratch Cup

2004 Member of Walker Cup panel

2004 Runner up in Irish Close

2003 Member of the Winning Irish Home International team

2013 PGA Irish Chapionship

Fact file

Date of Birth: May 11th 1978

Attachment: McCambridge Duffy - www.mccambridgeduffy.co.uk

Residence: Donegal, Ireland

Turned Professional: 2005

Qualifying School: (2005), (06), 07, 08, (09), (10), (11), (12) (14)

Five Irish Face Final Catalunya Test

Gareth Maybin, Michael McGeady, Simon Thornton, Peter Lawrie and Kevin Phelan start the campaign to regain their playing rights on Saturday at the European Tour Final Qualifying Stage at PGA Catalunya.

The Irish contingent joins group that includes some very familiar names with Carlos del Moral, Philip Price, Kenneth Ferrie, Julien Guerrier, Michael Jonzon, Pele Edberg, Rhys Davies all in the mix.

Along with 29 players - in the field of 156 - having tasted victory on The Race to Dubai in the past – and includes five former Challenge Tour Number Ones and six of the last seven Final Qualifying Stage winners.

When play gets under way in Girona on Saturday morning the field will be required to play two rounds each on both the Tour and Stadium courses to establish the top 70 and ties who will qualify for the final 36 holes.

The closing two rounds will then be contested on the Stadium Course, recently voted the best in Spain, at the culmination of which the top 25 and ties will earn their place on The European Tour in 2015.

For Peter Lawrie it is the first time back since qualifying in 2001 and the result of some loss in consistency over the past two seasons. Which last year dragged him into the danger zone only to survive with a top twenty finish in Perth just over twelve months ago. However indifferent form this season - and too many missed - brings the Dubliner back to where it all started over a decade ago.

Gareth Maybin returns after first qualifying in 2007 and arrives in unfamiliar territory having held his card ever since. But with only two top ten finishes in 2014 and twelve missed cuts the Ballyclare golfer ended the season 124th in The Race to Dubai - and twenty thousand euro from safety.

Simon Thornton was unable to match his victory in the 2013 Najeti Hotels et Golfs Open this season and at 146th place faced the inevitable return to a place he knows too well. Having first sought his card in 2005 and battled through successfully the final stage in 2010.

Rookie Kevin Phelan clocked up one hundred and seventy five thousand euro in his first season on the European Tour. With a top ten finish at The Tshwane Open earlier in the season in South Africa.

The third place at the Hong Kong Open just wasn’t enough though to keep his card. So he returns to Catalunya looking to repeat his feat of last year. Where he was impressive in a pressured his final day to earn his rights at the first time of asking.

Michael McGeady travels to Final Qualifying buoyed by a solid four rounds at the Second Stage in Spain last week. As the winner of the Irish PGA Championship as season ago the Derryman’s added experience is now matched perhaps with a greater belief than in previous efforts.

Although McGeady did not compete in 2013 he has been a Q School hopeful every year since 2005.

However the Final stage is different. Only 25 spots available for the group of 156 if they survive not only six attritional rounds of golf. But also can shoot the lights out just about every day to ensure they stay within the top half of the leader board.

As history shows PGA Catalunya at this time of year can be a brutal battlefield and is littered memories of many broken dreams down the years.

This year though the five Irish contenders are amongst the most talented and experienced for many year. Indeed it is probably the largest Irish field for some time.

We wish them well!