Irish Open restarts after five-hour wind break
- but Graeme McDowell quits with shin splints
The 3 Irish Open resumed after a five hour delay for strong winds this afternoon - but new County Louth course record holder Graeme McDowell did not go back out on to the Baltray A day after his sensational 61, 16 strokes better than his first round and the lowest round of his professional life, McDowell quit because of shin splints.
The Northern Irishman had played eight holes in the morning gales before the suspension came just before 10am, but had three bogeys and a double bogey to drop from six under par to one under.
That put him 14 strokes adrift of shock halfway leader Shane Lowry, the 22 year old Irish amateur playing his first ever European Tour event.
Lowry had time to complete only one hole before it was decided the wind was too strong for play to continue.
He chipped to four feet on the first to rescue a par and so retained his two shot lead over England's Robert Rock, but Welshman Jamie Donaldson, joint second overnight, bogeyed the hole to go back to 13 under.
Conditions were still far from easy on the resumption, but in the two and three quarter hours that were possible at the start of the day the 73 players were a cumulative 117 over par.
McDowell said: “I picked up a bit of an injury on Thursday, yesterday it got progressively worse and walking from the range this morning I got on the phone to my physio.
"I'm not making any excuses, but I was really struggling to walk. It's only my second withdrawal and not something I want to get in the habit of doing, but I couldn't risk it with two big events coming up.
"They're extremely swollen and not a lot of fun. It's a matter of resting and icing it."
He hopes to be back for the BMW PGA Championship starting at Wentworth on Thursday.
Lowry had equalled the lowest round ever on The European Tour by an amateur with his second round 62, but another par at the long second was enough to open a three shot lead as Rock took six.
Colin Montgomerie played the first five in a superb one under to climb from 12th to sixth on ten under and among those he overtook were Lee Westwood and Oliver Wilson.
Westwood had bogey 6s on the second and third, while Ryder Cup team-mate Wilson bogeyed the first and third to drop to eight under as well.
- but Graeme McDowell quits with shin splints
The 3 Irish Open resumed after a five hour delay for strong winds this afternoon - but new County Louth course record holder Graeme McDowell did not go back out on to the Baltray A day after his sensational 61, 16 strokes better than his first round and the lowest round of his professional life, McDowell quit because of shin splints.
The Northern Irishman had played eight holes in the morning gales before the suspension came just before 10am, but had three bogeys and a double bogey to drop from six under par to one under.
That put him 14 strokes adrift of shock halfway leader Shane Lowry, the 22 year old Irish amateur playing his first ever European Tour event.
Lowry had time to complete only one hole before it was decided the wind was too strong for play to continue.
He chipped to four feet on the first to rescue a par and so retained his two shot lead over England's Robert Rock, but Welshman Jamie Donaldson, joint second overnight, bogeyed the hole to go back to 13 under.
Conditions were still far from easy on the resumption, but in the two and three quarter hours that were possible at the start of the day the 73 players were a cumulative 117 over par.
McDowell said: “I picked up a bit of an injury on Thursday, yesterday it got progressively worse and walking from the range this morning I got on the phone to my physio.
"I'm not making any excuses, but I was really struggling to walk. It's only my second withdrawal and not something I want to get in the habit of doing, but I couldn't risk it with two big events coming up.
"They're extremely swollen and not a lot of fun. It's a matter of resting and icing it."
He hopes to be back for the BMW PGA Championship starting at Wentworth on Thursday.
Lowry had equalled the lowest round ever on The European Tour by an amateur with his second round 62, but another par at the long second was enough to open a three shot lead as Rock took six.
Colin Montgomerie played the first five in a superb one under to climb from 12th to sixth on ten under and among those he overtook were Lee Westwood and Oliver Wilson.
Westwood had bogey 6s on the second and third, while Ryder Cup team-mate Wilson bogeyed the first and third to drop to eight under as well.
Labels: EUROPEAN TOUR
posted by Colin |
See story on its own page | Saturday, May 16, 2009
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