Wood Sets Pace Day 3 at BMW

Chris Wood posted an eight under par on Saturday at the BMW PGA Championship to take the outright lead from Robert Karlsson, who despite some travel problems overnight, set a the course record on day three but found it was not enough as he remains two shots off the pace at Wentworth, tied with 1st round leader Danny Willett. Both are one ahead of Luke Donald.

Despite very little sleep Sweden Karlsson carded a blitz of birdies making the turn in 30 and then finishing the back nine in 32. Chris Woods dropped a few shots on the back nine but made them up ending the last nine in one under for a 67 total.

Karlsson was so convinced he had missed the halfway cut that he took a mid-afternoon flight from London to Nice. On landing in France he heard the cut was at 3 over and returned to Nice Airport to make his way back to Wentworth via Paris. He reached the course on Saturday making with an hour to spare and proceeded to produce a stunning round of 62.

Padraig Harrington was one over for the day after bogeys on 5 and 17 and only one birdie on the 9th which places him in a tie for 5th and three under for the tournament.

Graeme McDowell opened with a bogey but then traded birdies to remain level for the day and one under for the tournament .

Paul McGinley reached the twelfth on 3 under roar and then went through the last three holes in bogey, bogey and double bogey to finish on 71 and remain two over par.

Damien McGrane dropped four shots on the back nine to finish with a 38 after making the turn in level par. He signed for a 78 and remains 2 over par overall.

Rory McIlroy eagled the 4th hole but dropped some shots to make the turn in 34. Then three bogeys on the back nine put him at 39 shots with a total of 73 for the day on 3 over.

Shane Lowry finished 3 over par for a 4 over total after dropping two shots on the back nine.

Peter Lawrie reached the fourth one shot worse off and the proceeded to card an eagle. He then dropped four more shots two each side of the turn to sign for a 76 and remain 4 over.

Gareth Maybin triple bogeyed the 15th which added to his two other dropped shots and signed for a 75.

Clarke and Higgins Cut at BMW

The overnight leader of the BMW PGA Championship Danny Willett of England carded three birdies in the first four holes to set the pace at 9 under at one point. But two dropped shots on 5 and 7 brought him back to 7 under – one shot ahead of the club house leader, Luke Donald. But a three over par 39 on the back nine left him 5 under on Friday and in a three-way tie for second place with fellow Englishman Ross Fisher and James Kingston of South Africa.

A round of 68 by Luke Donald was enough to post the lead ahead of Saturday at 6 under topping the leader board out right pushing the cut out to 3 over – which benefited a few of the Irish players hovering on the projected cut of 1 over.

Three time major winner Padraig Harrington was the best of the Irish field following a round of 67 with two birdies either side of the run to push him back into the chase after the misery of Thursday.

Next best was Meath man Damien McGrane who went one under after three holes reaching half way on 34 and only dropping one shot on the back nine to finish on 71.

Graeme McDowell reached the 10th in 36 shots having bogeyed the 3rd and 9th with only one birdie on the 4th to recover a shot. A bogey on 12 was corrected with a birdie on 13 and was followed by another birdie on 16 to finish one under for the day and one under for the tournament.

Rory McIlroy was the first of the Irish players to finish on day two and reached the thirteenth hole on 4 under. But a double bogey on the par four 15th and then a bogey on the 16th left him waiting anxiously for a while when the projected cut of was 1 over. In the end he was safely through to the weekend.

Gareth Maybin reversed some of the good work from Thursday by reaching the turn in 37 after bogeys on holes 6 and 8. With two more dropped shots on the 10th and 13th holes he also fell close to one over par for the first two rounds hovering on the cut having signed for a 75.

Shane Lowry finished on 1 over for the day courtesy of a double bogey on the 17th having made the half way under par with a 34.

Paul McGinley was through four holes dropping shots on the 3rd and 5th hole with one birdie on 4 to complete the front nine in 35. But a two over par back nine left him signing for a73 and put 2 over for the tournament..

Pewter Lawrie remained level all day making up for mistakes with birdies until reaching the 18th where a costly triple bogey left him 2 over for the tournament and on the verge of going out only for the revised cut.

Darren Clarke opened with a birdie and then bogeyed 3 and 4 with a triple bogey to follow on the par three 8th hole to put him under pressure at the turn. Then a double bogey on 18 left him signing for a 10 over and a short drive home to Sunningdale for a free weekend.

David Higgins was 12 over after playing 15 holes trading birdies and bogeys to make the turn in 35. But three dropped shots on the back nine pushed the Waterville man well down the leader board and a missed cut as he returned from the Irish PGA region to the main Tour for the first time in a year.

Michael Hoey of Ballymoney withdrew from the tournament on Thursday.

Maybin Best at Wentworth Day One

Danny Willett of England finished day one with a 65 and held his nerve despite a dropped shot on the 15th hole to recover with three consecutive birdies on 16, 17 and 18 to lead the European Tours flagship event, the BMW PGA Championship, at Wentworth by one shot from Australian Richard Green on day one.

Padraig Harrington, who had been in the chase with Danny Millett and Ernie Els for most of the day then fell back after triple bogey at the 17th and signed for a level par round of 71 –having made the turn in a three under par 32.

Ernie Els ended the day on 2 under after dropping a shot on the 18th.

Gareth Maybin continues his good form unfazed by the field at Wentworth and returned to his hotel on Thursday night in an eight way tie for 7th place having also made the turn in 32 shots but then completing the round on the back nine on level par - matching birdies with bogeys.

Graeme McDowell finished his round on 1 under carding three birdies and two bogeys on day one for a 71.

Peter Lawrie signed for a one under par recovering from mistakes at 5 and 16 with three birdies to sign for a 70.

Paul McGinley remains level overnight having failed to pick up shots after matching three birdies with 3 bogeys.

Damien McGrane went through the redesigned West Course in two under having made it to the 15th level with any mistakes corrected with birdies. Then two birdies on 16 and 17 gave the Kells man a two under par finish for the day and some momentum ahead of Friday.

 

Shane Lowry returned to Wentworth after his first appearance last year and signed for a one over par round with two dropped shots on the back nine erasing the birdie he picked up on the  2nd hole.

Rory McIlroy, saw his day hit trouble when a triple bogey on 11 added to his three bogeys on the front nine as he made the turn in 38. But two birdies on 16 and 17 left him on 3 over for day one.

Darren Clarke was unable to break the cycle of recent weeks on the European tour finishing with a four over round having double bogeyed the third hole.

Michael Hoey had a triple on 17 and a double  bogey on the redesigned 18th and signed for a four over round of 75.

David Higgins of Waterville returned to the fray of the European Tour after an absence and found trouble on the 11th with a double bogey and then quadrupled the 15th to leave him fighting for weekend playing rights on 9 over.

Defending champion Paul Casey of England was one over par after round one.

2011 European Solheim Cup Team Vice Captains

Ladies European Tour members Annika Sorenstam and Joanne Morley have been selected as vice-captains for The 2011 European Solheim Cup Team by Captain Alison Nicholas.

Sorenstam, the event’s all time leading points scorer with 24, played in eight straight Solheim Cup competitions from 1994-2007. The former world number one won 89 tournaments around the globe before stepping away from competitive play at the end of 2008 to focus on business interests and start a family. Morley, who was a vice-captain to Nicholas at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Illinois, in 2009, competed in The 1996 Solheim Cup and is a two-time Ladies European Tour winner.

“I am thrilled, humbled and honoured that Joanne and Annika have accepted my invitation to be my vice-captains for The 2011 Solheim Cup matches at Killeen Castle in Ireland,” said Nicholas. “I am looking forward to working with them both over the next 15 to 16 months. Their combined Solheim Cup experience will be invaluable. Joanne’s expertise working behind the scenes in two previous Solheim Cups and Annika’s wealth of experience as the most successful female golfer of all time provides a strong, inspirational, passionate and unified team which will guide the European players to success in bringing The Cup back to Europe.

“Joanne is a great character with a gift of encouragement to whomever she is with and gives her all in whatever she does. Annika is a born winner who thrives under pressure with a cool efficiency and passionate desire to win in whatever she undertakes. I am adopting the same strategy as last time in terms of having a vice-captain on both sides of the Atlantic.”

Sorenstam, a winner of 10 major championships, holds a number of records in Solheim Cup competition. In addition to earning the most points (24), she has won the most matches with 22 and scored the most points in foursomes with 11.5. She has also competed in 15 of the 19 foursomes matches played, tying for the most foursomes matches played with Laura Davies.

“I was a little quiet on the phone when Alison asked me because I was totally surprised,” said Sorenstam. “She asked me and I said, “Could you give me 24 hours?” I knew my answer would be yes but I wanted to make sure I could live up to her expectations with my schedule and fulfil my role properly. I called her back and said: yes. Some of the highlights of my career as a professional have been at The Solheim Cup. That helped with my answer, but I would love to be a part of it. Now I can participate and help to bring the trophy back.

“I’m looking forward to being with the players again, not inside the ropes, but closer. I can help from past experience: the way I approached it, give a different perspective and provide an extra hand when needed. I can help with strategy with regards to course set-up, administrative roles and anything Alison needs help with. I’m just going to follow my orders!”

Morley commented: “I am humbled at Alison's confidence in me to help bring home The Cup and grateful for this opportunity. I am looking forward to once again learning and growing under Alison's captaincy. The thing that struck me about Alison is that she left no stone unturned in her quest to bring The Cup back. Alison is not just a great golfer, she is also a fantastic business person with good communication skills I could not think of a better person more suited to lead Team Europe in 2011.”

Alexandra Armas, Executive Director of the Ladies European Tour, commented: “We are delighted that Alison has been able to build such a strong team for the 2011 matches at Killeen Castle and we are confident that, in Annika and Joanne, she has selected the best possible vice-captains to help achieve an historic home victory when the competition is played for the first time in Ireland.”

John A. Solheim, Chairman and CEO of PING, said: “The Solheim family is very pleased to have Annika Sorenstam and Joanne Morley named as vice-captains to assist Alison Nicholas. The Solheim Cup experience of both Annika and Joanne will add tremendously to the European team. Having World Golf Hall of Fame member Annika involved will generate a special excitement all its own.”

The 2011 Solheim Cup will be the 12th staging of the biennial, transatlantic team match play tournament, which features the best 12 European players from the Ladies European Tour and the best 12 US born players from the LPGA. The US leads the series 8-3, having won by a score of 16-12 at The 2009 Solheim Cup at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Illinois. The Europeans last won the event at Barsebäck in Sweden in 2003, when Nicholas was a vice-captain to Catrin Nilsmark and Sorenstam played a pivotal on-course role.

Simon Thornton Gains In Re-Rank

European Tour Rookie Simon Thornton received good news today following the first re-rank of the season when he moved up 10 places in Category 11 to hold 18th place. The former Royal County Down Assistant Professional had been hoping to do even better and already had the re-rank in his sights when he committed to the Madeira Islands  Open BPI  - Portugal, the weekend his first child was due.

Last weekend’s event in Mallorca though was the final chance for those players who earned their cards at the 2009 Qualifying School, or through finishing 11th to 20th in the Challenge Tour Rankings, to improve their ranking, with the second opportunity coming in August.

Having started his first season on the Tour in difficult personal circumstances - given the untimely passing of his Father in January - Thornton stuck to his schedule and played the Africa Open ahead of the funeral - as he had agreed with his Father. Understandably Thornton missed the cut.

Having flown home for the funeral he then returned to make the cut at the Jo’Burg Open with a 17th place finish. In the subsequent two events, the Open de Andalucia and in Madeira Islands he also made the cut garnering valuable pay cheques in both. However at the Open de España in Seville, Thornton had a poor second round missing his first cut in months.

He then travelled to a very rainy Turin for the BMW Italian Open only to suffer the same fate after two poor rounds.

On arriving in Mallorca last weekend Thornton was looking for a timely reversal to his fortunes only to be forced to withdraw midway through the first round due to a back injury - which intense physio therapy could not improve.

For Gary Murphy though the bad news continues who battled hard last week by leading the Irish challengers in Mallorca – even reaching 3rd place on day 1 – to suffer a major setback with a nightmare collapse on Friday afternoon after carding a 79 to miss his 11th cut of the season.

Having qualified in 17th place at “Q School” he now drops to 28th place and moves in the reverse direction to Thornton as he was outside the top 20 money earners in Category 11.

The real story though is Alejandro Cañizares of Spain who topped the first Re-Rank of 2010 after the Iberdrola Open Cala Millor Mallorca - which he lost on a play off – with €280,000 in prize money, mostly of which was the result of a second place finish at the Open de España.  

The first event to be affected by the re-rank will next week’s Madrid Masters.