Emirates Sponsor Irish Open

Emirates has announced its first sponsorship in Ireland by becoming the Official Airline of the Irish Open.

The 2012 Irish Open, which takes place in the spectacular surrounds of the Royal Portrush Golf Club, from June 28 - July 1, is one of the premier events on The European Tour calendar.

The tournament is set to feature home grown favourites and major champions Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell and Darren Clarke along with three-time Major Championship winner Padraig Harrington from the Republic of Ireland and an array of the world’s finest golfers. The three-year sponsorship deal is a further demonstration of Emirates’ commitment to Ireland following the highly successful launch of its Dublin service on January 9. 

“We have entered into another major sponsorship, supporting sport in Ireland and connecting with golf enthusiasts around the world,” said Salem Obaidalla, Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Europe & Russian Federation. “Irish golfers have never had a higher profile, with no fewer than nine current tournament winners active on the European Tour."

“Emirates is a world-class partner that brings added global exposure and prestige to the Irish Open,” said James Finnigan of The European Tour and the Commercial Director of the Irish Open. 

"This event has massive appeal, attracting audiences from all over the world, so it’s appropriate that a like-minded sponsor with an extensive global reach and a strong foothold in golf is on-board.”

The agreement with the Irish Open includes course branding, tournament hospitality, advertising, on-site activity including an exhibition unit and team participation in the Tournament Pro-Am. 

In addition to the Irish Open, Emirates is supporting 14 further golf events in 2012 as Official Airline, of which seven are tournaments on The European Tour International Schedule.

Emirates has a number of prominent sponsorships familiar to Irish fans, including Official Carrier status at the Dubai World Cup, where Irish horses, trainers and jockeys have excelled in recent years, while its sponsorship of Arsenal remains hugely popular in Ireland since the heydays of Liam Brady and Frank Stapleton.

Emirates flies daily from Dubai to Dublin with a modern Boeing 777-300ER, recently upgraded because of strong demand. The aircraft carries the award-winning ice entertainment system, with more than 600 channels of films, TV programmes, music, audio books and games, while highly trained cabin crew are on hand to serve gourmet-chef prepared food. A complimentary chauffeur-drive service, to and from the airport, is available to First Class and Business Class passengers.

Customers departing Dublin can take advantage of the airline’s 123 destination network, travelling to places such as Australia, India, Seychelles, Thailand and South Africa, with just one stop at Emirates’ exclusive Terminal 3 in Dubai.

In addition to generous luggage allowances; 30 kilos in Economy, 40 kilos in Business Class and 50 kilos in First Class, Emirates’ passengers may also check in one set of golf clubs and one pair of golf shoes free of charge in any class of service on any Emirates’ flight.

Rory and Luke in BMW No1 Chase

The tussle to be World Number One will once again be an enthralling sideshow to this week’s main event, the BMW PGA Championship, with Luke Donald and Rory McIlroy prepared for battle.

Donald is the only player who can overthrow McIlroy at the top of the Official World Golf Ranking, but he will need to repeat last year’s victory to guarantee a return to pole position.

If he does not triumph in The European Tour’s flagship event, as he did 12 months ago when he beat compatriot Lee Westwood in a play-off, it will depend on how McIlroy performs, although Donald must still finish eighth alone or better to have any chance of reclaiming the mantle of best player in the world.

Victory for Westwood, the man who deposed Tiger Woods as World Number One in October 2010 to start the ball rolling for European dominance, would leave him fractionally shy of the top spot.

Further down the Ranking, a number of players will be hoping for a good performance this week to ensure their place in the field for the second Major of the year, the US Open Championship, in three weeks’ time.

Monday May 21 was a cut-off date for qualifying for the US Open Championship through the top 60 in the Official World Golf Ranking, and Miguel Angel Jiménez in 60th place was the last of 16 European Tour Members to qualify through this route.

There is another cut-off date, June 11, for players looking to force their way into the top 60 in the next three weeks, so Matteo Manassero (62nd), Branden Grace (65th) and George Coetzee (72nd) will be hoping to pick up significant points at Wentworth to boost their chances of playing at the Olympic Club in California from June 14 – 17.

Monday May 21 was also the cut-off date for qualifying for The Open Championship, with the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking gaining entry. Former European Number One Robert Karlsson and Martin Laird earned their exemption through this category.

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Volvo Loss Hurts - GMAC

Graeme McDowell and Paul Lawrie have three months of the Ryder Cup race to make sure that they don't regret their defeats to Nicolas Colsaerts.

McDowell is still without a win since December 2010 after losing to the Belgian in the final of the Volvo World Match Play in Spain.

And that came after Lawrie had been knocked out by Colsaerts despite winning the first four holes of their semi-final.

All three are now in qualifying positions for Europe's team - Lawrie is fourth, McDowell eighth and Colsaerts in the 10th and last spot - but it could have been so different.

"I'm disappointed obviously," said 2010 Ryder Cup hero McDowell, who got back on level terms three times only to fall behind again.

"But I'm taking nothing away from Nicolas, he played fantastic golf.

"He's got a great wind game (there were gusts of over 30mph) and he's a fantastic talent - I got beat by the better man."

Colsaerts is the longest hitter in European golf at the moment, taking over from Spain's Alvaro Quiros with an average of 316 yards.

That is also a yard longer than Masters champion Bubba Watson, who heads the PGA Tour statistics, and it is 34 yards longer than McDowell, who ranks 155th in Europe.

"He really killed me off the tee box and flighted his irons fantastic," the Northern Irishman added after his last-green defeat.

"I would have preferred to get beat with birdies as opposed to pars, but that's just the way the course was set up this week.

"But he had to deal with the same elements I did and that's life."

Lawrie looked furious with himself for not making the most of a start which put on course for a final which, if he had won, would have lifted him to second in the cup race.

For a man who has not played in the match since 1999 - the year he won The Open - it is understandably a big deal.

It means so much to the 43-year-old, who was playing his 500th European Tour event, that he has not entered next month's US Open because he does not think it will aid his cup bid.

Colsaerts will be in San Francisco and he will be at Wentworth this week trying to add the Tour's flagship BMW PGA Championship.

There, though, he will also be up against world top three Rory McIlroy, Luke Donald and Lee Westwood, who after playing last year all turned down the Match Play.

Colsaerts still needed a play-off to survive his group - like last year's winner Ian Poulter he did not win either of his games - but two days later the first prize of £559,865 was his.

It is the 34 world ranking points, however, that take him into a cup qualifying position.

"It's just fantastic - it means everything," the 29-year-old from Brussels said at the end of a week which puts him into the world's top 50 for the first time.

"Two days ago I was in my room taking a nap thinking I was going to fly home.

"To have my name next to major winners and all of these on the trophy, it's a dream come true."

On the Ryder Cup he added: "It's always been a dream of mine as a kid to play, but there's a long way to go, so I don't want to make any plans or anything."

McDowell Loses Match Play on Last

Nicolas Colsaerts beat Graeme McDowell on the final green to win the Volvo World Match Play Championship.

In blustery conditions at Finca Cortesin, the Belgian bomber continued his remarkable record in Volvo-sponsored events. Since winning his maiden European Tour title at the Volvo China Open in 2011 he has finished third at last year’s Volvo World Match Play, fourth at the Volvo Golf Champions and second at the 2012 Volvo China Open.

GMAC is Back...

Graeme McDowell is through to the final of the World Match Play, but Paul Lawrie was beaten in the semi-finals.

Northern Ireland's McDowell recorded a two-hole win over Spain's Rafael Cabrera-Bello to book a final meeting with Nicolas Colsaerts.

Colsaerts recovered from losing the first four holes against Scotland's Lawrie to halve the match on the 18th.

The Belgian then claimed victory at the second extra hole to move into Sunday afternoon's final.

Both matches were held up because of a lightning threat, with Lawrie one up with two to play after Colsaerts had bogeyed the 16th.

But Colsaerts recovered to birdie the last, and got and up down from just off the green when the pair went down the 18th for a second time to advance.

McDowell won three of the first four holes against Cabrera-Bello, but was forced to go down the last after the Spaniard birdied the 16th following the lightning interruption.

"It was a tough one, Rafa had a head of steam after the delay," said McDowell.

"I haven't putted well enough so far this week so I'll be on the practice green before the final."