The Irish Golf Club Gazette: April 2014

4/27/2014

Hoey Finishes 8th in China

Getty Images

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.

4/25/2014

McGee and Dunbar Best in Delayed Catalunya

Getty Images

Strong winds hampered the second round of the Challenge de Catalunya on the European Challenge Tour, with players forced off the course early on Friday morning at Lumine Golf & Beach Club before play was eventually suspended for the day.

Little progress was possible in the second round, with officials calling a halt to play at 9.50am after the wind rendered the course unplayable.

With the early groups not even making it to the turn and first round leader Joakim Mikkelsen scheduled to have been among the afternoon starters, the limited play meant there was little impact on the leaderboard, with only Englishman George Woolgar making strides following a birdie on the second of the three holes he completed.

That moved him up to five under par, three shots behind Norwegian Mikkelsen who set a blistering pace on Thursday with a course record first round of eight under par 63.

Mikkelsen is a shot clear of Frenchman Adrien Saddier, who also did not get his second round under way, with American Connor Arendell a further shot back.

With the wind showing no signs of abating, the decision was taken at 12.55pm to cancel play for the rest of the day. The second round will resume on Saturday morning at 9am, with the afternoon groups teeing off between 12.20pm and 2.20pm.

Ruaidhri McGee fired a first round 66 on Friday to share fourth with Alan Dunbar and six other players.

David Higgins was one of the few to start the second round - before play was suspended - and was one over par after six holes. The Waterville man opened with a 68 on Friday.

Niall Kearney signed for a 69 and will tee off his second round on Saturday,.

Gareth Shaw played three holes in level par on Friday - before returning to the clubhouse - and remains two over par after a first round 73.

Harrington Classic 70 in Zurich

Getty Images

Padraig Harrington signed for a two under par 70 at the Zurich Classic in New Orleans on Friday to finish in share of 36th place - six strokes off the leader, Ben Martin.

The Dubliner is targeting the US Open and has decided to play the qualifier next month at Walton Heath as his five-year exemption ended last year. As did his automatic playing rights to The Masters where the three time major winner was forced to miss out for the first time in 14 years.

The US Open qualifier is immediately after the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth at the end of May. To date Harrington has competed in 16 US Opens since making his debut in 1997 at Oakmont.

A few weeks ago, Martin had missed seven of eight cuts and figured he'd better make some changes. He started by meeting with his sports psychologist and hiring an old buddy from Clemson as his new caddie.

The results have been pretty good so far.

On Thursday, Martin treated a tiny late-afternoon gallery to a course-record round, shooting a 10-under 62 in the first round of the Zurich Classic.

"Really, everything was working well," Martin said. "I had a pretty good start and just kept it rolling. It was just one of those days, just like you draw it up."

Martin birdied 10 holes and made pars on the rest. His final birdie came on his most spectacular shot in a round full of them when he chipped in from 55 feet with a 54-degree sand wedge on the par-3 17th hole. That came a hole after the 26-year-old South Carolina native hit the flag on a chip from behind the green, setting up a tap-in par.

The previous record at TPC Louisiana was a 64, accomplished many times, including once earlier Thursday, when Andrew Svoboda did it to take a lead that held up until Martin surged past late in the day.

Peter Hanson and Sueng-Yul Noh were tied for third at 65.

Martin stayed home during the Masters two weeks ago, when meetings with his psychologist persuaded him to focus more on the process of playing on the tour than his results. Then he hired fellow former Clemson player Alex Boyd to haul his clubs, giving him a sense of comfort as he walked the course with someone he could talk to about anything.

"We're good friends ... have a lot in common, so a lot to talk about in between shots," Martin said.

Last weekend, Martin matched his career best with a third-place tie in the RBC Heritage at Hilton Head, S.C. He also finished third in early March in the Puerto Rico Open, but missed four cuts after that.

Martin opened the Zurich with a 10-foot birdie putt, the first of six birdies on the front nine, most set up by approach shots within 10 feet. One exception was his 26-foot birdie putt on No. 5. He opened the back nine with a 14-foot birdie putt, made a 10-footer on 11 and a 20-footer on 13.

Most of the round was followed by only a dozen or so people, including his mother, Suzie, who could be heard making encouraging comments like, "nice putt," and "good par."

Svoboda birdied six of his last nine holes.

Like Martin, the 34-year-old Svoboda has never won on the PGA Tour and appreciates how much can change in the next three rounds. At the same time, New Orleans has seen its share of maiden tour triumphs. It has happened in six of the past nine years, and 10 of the past 16.

"I'll take that stat," Svoboda said.

Svoboda's best career finish on the PGA Tour is a tie for 15th at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Las Vegas last October.

Hanson's round was highlighted by an eagle on the par 4 sixth hole, accomplished with a 6-iron from 183 yards.

Hanson, who missed the cut at the Masters, put away his clubs for four days after that and tried to relax, which he said helped.

"We want to do this so exact and be so precise," Hanson said. "I over-read putts and overanalyze the shots, trying to figure this game out. I think sometimes you have to let the score come to you instead of you going after it."

Erik Compton, Chad Collins and Michael Thompson were tied for fifth at 66, and Jeff Overton, Stuart Appleby and Robert Streb followed at 67.

Compton, a two-time heart transplant recipient, spent the early part of the week meeting with children with heart conditions at a New Orleans-area hospital and participated in a junior golf clinic. Although that limited his practice time, he thought it put him in a good frame of mind.

"It seems to really relax me and really puts things in perspective," Compton said. "I seem to play better during the weeks where I have hospital visits."

On the par-5 seventh, his 297-yard drive sailed right of the fairway, crossing a cart path. But he belted a 227-yard shot out of the rough to the foot of the green and two-putted for birdie. He ended his round with a 22-foot birdie putt on nine to briefly put him atop the leaderboard.

"This is a course that I feel very comfortable on," said Compton, also winless on the PGA Tour. "You have to hit a lot of long iron shots and drive it well here, and those are some of the strengths of my game."

Mixed Irish News at Volvo

Getty Images

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.

4/19/2014

RBC Weather Delays McDowell

Getty Images

Graeme McDowell moved to two under after six holes in the second round of the RBC Heritage, which was then suspended due to weather, and closer to the top of the leaderboard as he defends his title.

K.J. Choi's early tee time and quick start moved him to the top of the rain-delayed RBC Heritage on Friday. Choi shot a 67 to get to 5-under 137, one stroke ahead of Robert Allenby and two in front of a group led by former Official World Golf Ranking No. 1 Luke Donald as the second round was suspended because of heavy storms.

Allenby was among 65 players still on the course when the rain hit Harbour Town Golf Links. Officials delayed the round shortly before 3 p.m. and then sent everyone home until Saturday morning after waiting through about 90 minutes of steady, heavy rain.

Allenby has 13 holes to finish when play resumes Saturday morning.

Donald shot a 69 and joined Billy Hurley III (69) and first-round tri-leader Scott Langley (73) in the clubhouse two shots behind Choi. Bo Van Pelt and Ben Martin were also at 3 under early in their rounds.

Masters contenders Matt Kuchar and 20-year-old Jordan Spieth faltered after their strong starts at Harbour Town.

Kuchar, who tied for fifth last week at the year's first major, had a pair of double bogeys on his first six holes before the rains came and stood four shots behind Choi.

Spieth, a Masters rookie who tied for second at Augusta National, had a 74 and was at 1-over 143 -- good enough to make the projected cut of 4 over, but well off his opening 69.

Choi was four shots back of first-round leaders Kuchar, Langley and William McGirt at the beginning of the day. Based on his recent play, he didn't figure to make much of a dent in the cool, drizzly conditions.

But Choi had three birdies on the front nine, including one on the difficult, par-4 eighth hole, to get into contention. He caught Kuchar on No. 16, rolling in a 20-footer for birdie.

Choi's usual schedule had him return home to South Korea after the Masters to help take care of his three children. However, after hearing for years how Harbour Town might suit his game, he decided to play the South Carolina course.

"If you just hit it beneath the trees, it's a good course to play," Choi said. "It has very small targets and this course is working well."

Kuchar probably wished the storm had arrived sooner. His tee shot found water on the par-3 fourth hole for a double bogey. He sent his drive out of bounds on No. 6 to drop two more shots.

Kuchar opened with a steady performance -- Thursday's 66 was his lowest career round at Harbour Town -- just a few days after contending in the Masters.

He'll see if he can find that game once play resumes. His bad start didn't seem to bother him much. He smiled after hitting his provisional drive on the sixth hole, and then talked about the good time he and his family were having at Hilton Head.

"Chasing my youngest around the beach, so had some fun this morning," Kuchar said. "It's going to be lots of games and some movies maybe the next couple of days."

Allenby jumped into second after birdies on the first and second holes and was glad to get out of the inclement weather.

"It's not fun when it's blowing 20 miles an hour every different direction and it's raining at the same time," he said. "So it was nice get out of there."

Donald is coming off a disheartening Masters (he shot 79-70 to miss the cut), but he generally plays well at the RBC Heritage. He's had four top threes in his past five appearances and, with his 69, broke par for the 17th time in his last 22 rounds here.

"It's a good course for me and my results have certainly showed that in the last few years," Donald said.

U.S. Ryder Cup captain Tom Watson improved on his first-round showing of 75 to shoot 73 on Friday. The 6-over 148 title was still two shots more than the projected cut line. While Watson hoped to play better, he was just as happy he got a chance to see young Ryder Cup contenders like Spieth and Patrick Reed up close. "Those were my intentions this week," he said.

Five-time RBC Heritage champion Davis Love III won't be around for the final two rounds after following a strong 1-under 70 Thursday with an 80 in the second round -- Love's highest score ever in 93 career rounds at Harbour Town.

4/18/2014

McElroy Targets West of Ireland

Getty Images

Dermot McElroy has shelved plans to turn professional mid-season and has set his sights on the West of Ireland Amateur Open which gets under way at Rosses Point on Friday.

The 21-year-old Ballymena star is tipped to become the next big thing in Irish golf, despite narrowly failing to win his tour card at last year's European Tour Qualifying School.

He's already 61st on the planet in the amateur rankings but knows he's going to have to find some form with the putter if he's to avoid another early exit in the West and finally add an amateur 'Major' to his list of achievements.

Second favourite behind defending champion Rory McNamara to win at Co Sligo, McElroy said: "It's all going to depend on how the putter is working. I've a habit of missing four three-footers a round and that's just giving holes away, so that's going to be key, especially if it's very windy.

"Hopefully this year it will be a bit different for me on the greens but to be honest, my putting's been very poor this year.

"After South Africa and the Spanish events, it was really awful. I just couldn't break 33 putts for any round, but I've put in a lot of practice since then and it's coming along.

"I've no idea when I will turn professional, but I don't think it will be this year. I'm going to finish the amateur season. I had thought about going after the British Amateur at Royal Portrush and Portstewart but I think I'd just like to wait."

McElroy's goal is to become a Major winner before joining the paid ranks.

"I just want to win one of the big amateur events, so it'd be nice to win a West or the North of Ireland," he said.

McDowell Plans for Albatros

Getty Images

Victor Dubuisson and Graeme McDowell will headline the field at the Alstom Open de France, the 98th edition of which will take place at Le Golf National in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines from 3-6 July.

The Frenchman, currently ranked 23rd in the world, and the defending champion and World Number 14 from Northern Ireland are the first two stars to commit to continental Europe's oldest national open.

Dubuisson burst onto world stage last November by winning the Turkish Airlines Open, a victory which elevated his status from France's next golfing great to one of Europe's exciting new stars.

At the start of the 2014 season, the man from Cannes launched his assault on the United States by reaching the final of the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship in February, which he eventually lost to Australian Jason Day after five sudden-death play-off holes.

This accomplishment helped Dubuisson, who will turn 24 on 22 April, to cement his place inside the world's top 50 (he his ranked 23rd as of 13 April). The “French Musketeer” will lead the local challenge at the 98th staging of the Alstom Open de France, which will mark his sixth appearance in his national open.

Tied for 18th last year, his best result in the event, Dubuisson wrote a page of history in the 2005 edition of the tournament, when he become at 15 years of age the youngest-ever golfer at that time to compete in a European Tour event.

Dubuisson will reunite with defending champion Graeme McDowell at Le Golf National. Last year, the Northern Irishman finally managed, on his eight attempt, to lift the Edward George Stoïber cup courtesy of a perfect week concluded four strokes ahead of South African Richard Sterne.

McDowell, the 2010 US Open champion, boasts an impressive résumé which includes eight additional European Tour titles, one PGA Tour win and one Asian Tour trophy. The 34 year old, beaten by Dubuisson in the WGC-Accenture quarterfinals last February, is likely to join the Frenchman in the European team which will aim to defend the Ryder Cup next September at Gleneagles, Scotland.

But before the biennial clash between Europe and the United States, a competition McDowell has won in 2010 and 2012, the two European stars will battle it out on the Albatros course.

4/27/2014

Related articles

4/25/2014

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

4/19/2014

Related articles

4/18/2014

Related articles

Related articles