Showing posts with label EurAsiaCup. Show all posts
Showing posts with label EurAsiaCup. Show all posts

Saturday, 16 January 2016

Captain Clarke Leads on Day 2

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Europe are in the driving seat heading into the final day of the EURASIA CUP presented by DRB-HICOM after history repeated itself on Saturday.

Just as he had done on Friday, Ian Poulter helped Europe put their first point on the board in the foursome matches as Europe earned 4½ points for the second day running to extend their advantage to 9-3.

But it was not all plain sailing for Darren Clarke's team, who were trailing in four of the day's six matches when Poulter and playing partner Danny Willett reached the turn.

Poulter, who along with Bernd Wiesberger delivered the visitors' first point in the fourball matches on Friday, was on song again as he and Willett beat Byeong-hun An and Thongchai Jaidee 3 and 2 in the day's first match.

Shane Lowry and Andy Sullivan combined to deliver a point for the second day in succession, beating Shingo Katayama and Prayad Marksaeng 3 and 2.

Wiesberger and Ross Fisher recovered from losing the first hole to beat K.T Kim and Jeung Hun Wang by two holes, while Lee Westwood and Matt Fitzpatrick cruised to a 5 and 4 win over Anirban Lahiri and Wu Ashun.

Victor Dubuisson and Søren Kjeldsen finished all square in their match with Danny Chia and Nicholas Fung, while Kristoffer Broberg and Chris Wood lost by two holes to Kiradech Aphibarnrat and SSP Chawrasia in match three.

Willett and Poulter found themselves two up after as many holes without making a single birdie, with the Asian pair twice missing the chance to halve the hole.

The Englishmen extended their lead at the fifth after Willett sent his tee shot to within a foot of the cup, and the Sheffield native sank his ten foot putt at the sixth to give the European duo a four-hole lead.

An and Jaidee took a hole back at the next, but Willett and Poulter won the ninth to regain their four-hole advantage.

The Asian pair reduced the deficit to two holes by taking the 12th and 13th before Europe won the 14th and safely parred the next two holes to close out victory.

Poulter was pleased with their day's work. He said: "It was good golf. We had all intentions to play smart today, keep them under pressure. 

"It's probably their strongest pairing. They played nicely yesterday.

Willett added: "I think me and Poults between us only missed a couple of shots. Like you say, when we were out there, when one of us hit a bad one, the other one backed him up and hit it close on a chip. 

"We didn't really make any mistakes and made a good few birdies for foursomes."

Sullivan and Lowry lost the first hole of the match and remained behind until the ninth, when opponents Katayama and Marksaeng failed to make par.

The European duo went two up after carding birdies at the tenth and 11th, but were pegged back as the Asian pair took the 12th. 

Lowry and Sullivan opened up a three-hole lead after taking the 13th and 14th, and although they lost the 15th, they claimed the 16th to seal the point.

Lowry said: "We went down pretty early and I said to Andy, we just need to be patient, we're playing good enough, and that should do us at the end of the day. 

"I holed a good putt from eight, ten feet on the eighth hole to stay one down and we won the ninth with a par.

"From there on, we played really good. Early doors, there was a lot of red on the board, so it was nice to see the lads dig in and get a bit of blue on the board, as well."

Westwood and Fitzpatrick found themselves one down after they were unable to make par at the first but they soon bounced back, taking the second and third to go one up.

The Englishmen then won the ninth, tenth, 13th and 14th holes to seal their win.

Westwood was happy with their performance. He said: "We played well, made a bogey on the first and gave them one, but after that we were six under and finished on 14, we didn't hit too many bad shots. 

"A lot of fairways, a lot of greens and made putts when we needed to and just always felt in control once we came back from the first hole."

Wiesberger and Fisher were all square with Kim and Wang at the turn after twice bouncing back from going one down.

The European pair went ahead for the first time thanks to Fisher's superb eagle putt at the 11th and they extended their lead further at the 13th.

Their lead was cut in half as their opponents fired a birdie at the next, but they took the 15th to restore their two-hole lead.

Another birdie from the hosts at the 16th reduced the deficit but Wiesberger and Fisher held their nerve, birdieing the last to make sure of the point.

Dubuisson and Kjeldsen were behind for much of their match with home favourites Chia and Fung and were trailing by two holes going into the back nine.

But a sensational eagle putt from the Frenchman cut the Malaysian duo's lead to one before the Europeans took the 15th to square the match.

Chia and Fung regained their one-hole lead at the next but after Dubuisson holed his tricky par putt at the 17th, Fung missed from three feet, so the match was all square going into the final hole, where neither team could do better than par.

After finding themselves two down after as many holes, Broberg and Wood struggled to get a foothold in the match and went three down when they lost the seventh hole.

A birdie at the 12th and a par at the 17th saw them take their opponents to an 18th hole but it was the Asian pair who came out on top, taking the 18th to win by two holes. 


Wednesday, 13 January 2016

Europe's Lowry EURASIA Ready

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Shane Lowry is enjoying his first taste of the atmosphere of professional team golf at the EurAsia Cup presented by DRB-HICOM but insists Europe will be all business when they tee off against Asia on Friday.

Captain Darren Clarke has brought a 12-strong team to Glenmarie Golf and Country Club as Europe look to win the trophy for the first time following a dramatic 10-10 draw in the inaugural event in 2014.

Lowry is part of that team after a brilliant 2015 season which saw him win the World Golf Championships – Bridgestone Invitational and finish fifth in The Race to Dubai.

With the Olympics and The Ryder Cup to play for this year, 2016 could prove to be the biggest yet of Lowry’s career and, while admitting the feeling off the course is very relaxed among Team Europe, he is determined to get his campaign off to a winning start and bring the trophy home.

“Darren is getting that across a lot,” he said. “We need to take this very seriously as a team. At the end of the day, we don’t want to be going home Sunday evening with our tail between our legs and we want to go out there and play as best we can.

“Obviously we need to enjoy ourselves as well, on our downtime and when we are chilling out in the team room, have a laugh or whatever. But when we get on the golf course, be very serious about it and we are definitely looking for a win on Sunday.

“We are all very competitive people. Professional golfers are very competitive people and no matter what we do, if you’re playing a game at home with your mates or if you’re out here playing EurAsia Cup, it’s all the same for me. I’m still trying to play as best I can.

“We’ll be really looking to play well this week and hopefully get off to a nice start on Friday and see what happens come Sunday.

“The environment is a little bit different and it’s nice. Obviously as professional golfers, we play a lot of individual (events), it can become a very selfish game. So to be in a team event and be rooting for the lads, it’s going to be nice this week.”

Matthew Fitzpatrick is another European making a professional team debut off the back of a breakout season, although he does have Walker Cup experience from 2013.

Great Britain and Ireland were beaten 17-9 by the United States on that occasion but Fitzpatrick picked up two points in the Foursomes, as well as one in the Singles, from his four matches and the British Masters supported by Sky Sports champion is hoping to use that experience.

“I’m playing foursomes and fourballs, last time I did was Walker Cup two years ago,” he said. “So I played it then.

“For me, I always enjoy it and it seems like all the lads are enjoying it so far. That’s the big thing, you’ve got to go out there and play as well as you can but at the same time enjoy it.

“I think the big thing is probably the banter within the team. I think everyone on the outside probably thinks we’re all so serious and really grim, but it feels like it’s just one big laugh.

“Me personally, I haven’t stopped laughing all day, playing with (Danny) Willett, Lee (Westwood) and (Ian) Poulter. I think for me, it’s obviously something I really enjoy and doesn’t feel like there’s so much pressure so far. It’s good to just keep enjoying it.”

While Fitzpatrick and Lowry may be rookies in the team room, Lee Westwood is a veteran of these types of situations, having played on nine Ryder Cup teams with seven wins.

The 42 year old was a captain’s pick for this week, along with Ian Poulter who has five Ryder Cups under his belt, and while he admits that brings some extra pressure, he does not think the younger players around the team will have to look to him for guidance.

“I think Darren probably looked at his team and sees it’s a young team,” he said. “Not too much team golf experience in it and wanted some experience in there. Therefore, he’s picked myself and Ian.

“Obviously when you’re a captain’s pick, you feel a little bit more pressure to perform and validate that pick. But I’ve been a pick for The Ryder Cup a couple of times, and this is the first time I’ve played the EurAsia Cup obviously and got picked this week.

“I think all the lads that are playing this week are great players in their own right and they really don’t need much. They have played on a big stage before, maybe not so much team golf but I’m sure they have played a bit of team golf coming through the amateur ranks, things like that.

“But it’s the same principle as anything else: You try to hit it down the middle, hit it close and then make the putt. That takes care of most forms of golf.

“Obviously this week and later on in the year, you’re representing Europe, but you try to not let that get in the way and not let that kind of thinking get in the way and just do your own thing, play your own game, and the game that got you into the team.

“Hopefully that’s good enough to win your points.”


Monday, 26 August 2013

EurAsia Cup Tees Off in 2014


Europe's top golfers will take on Asia in a new matchplay tournament, the EurAsia Cup, from next year.

The inaugural EurAsia Cup will be held at the Glenmarie Golf and Country Club in Malaysia on 28-30 March 2014, with a format similar to the Ryder Cup.

Europe's 10-man team will consist of the Race to Dubai 2013 top four, the top four available from the world rankings and two captain's picks.

The captain will be selected by the European Tour at a later date.

The Asian team will include the top four players from the final 2013 Asian Tour Order of Merit, the leading three players invited on the basis of their world ranking, and three captain's picks.

Hideki Matsuyama, 21, is expected to be the star of the Asian team with three top 20 finishes in majors this year.

It will become the third matchplay event involving Europe after the Ryder Cup and the biennial Seve Trophy, which began in 2000 and is contested between teams from Great Britain and Ireland, and Continental Europe.

The EurAsia Cup, which will be an early part of the European Tour 2014 schedule, is one of two new events announced.

The Nedbank Golf Challenge, which takes place in South Africa from 5-8 December 2013, will now feature a 30-player field instead of the usual 12.



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