Monday, January 11, 2010

This week's World Pro Rankings

1. (1) Tiger Woods 14.13 average points
2. (2) Phil Mickelson 7.95
3. (3) Steve Stricker 6.73
4. (4) Lee Westwood (Britain) 6.43
5. (5) Jim Furyk 5.58
6. (6) Padraig Harrington (Ireland) 5.35
7. (7) Henrik Stenson (Sweden) 5.23
8. (8) Paul Casey (Britain) 5.18
9. (14) Geoff Ogilvy (Australia) 5.09
10. (9) Rory McIlroy (Britain) 4.75

11. (10) Kenny Perry 4.69
12. (11) Ian Poulter (Britain) 4.51
13. (12) Sergio Garcia (Spain) 4.46
14. (13) Martin Kaymer (Germany) 4.32
15. (15) Sean O'Hair 4.31
16. (16) Stewart Cink 4.08
17. (17) Ernie Els (South Africa) 3.99
18. (18) Ross Fisher (Britain) 3.92
19. (19) Retief Goosen (South Africa) 3.89
20. (21) Robert Allenby (Australia) 3.79
+Last week's rankings in brackets.

SELECTED RANKINGS

31 Luke Donald (England).
40 Graeme McDowell (Northern Ireland).
41 Oliver Wilson (England).
45 Simon Dyson (England).
46 Michael Sim (Scotland/Australia).
67 Ross McGowan (England).
70 Justin Rose (England).
76 Chris Wood (England).
84 Martin Laird (Scotland).
85 Anthony Wall.

OTHER SCOTS' RANKINGS
117 Richie Ramsay.
156 David Drysdale.
177 Gary Orr.
204 Paul Lawrie.
261 Colin Montgomerie.
271 Alastair Forsyth.
332 Marc Warren.
333 Peter Whiteford.
366 Andrew McArthur.
381 Callum Macaulay.
391 Andrew Coltart.
436 Steven O'Hara.
449 Stephen Gallacher.
452 Eric Ramsay.
458 Jamie McLeary.
486 Scott Drummond.

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Ryder Cup 2018 venue is up for sale this week

FROM THE GOLFWEEK.COM WEBSITE
By Alistair Tait
Cheque books should be on display in London this week at the start of an auction to determine who stages the 2018 Ryder Cup match.
Representatives from six nations will gather near Heathrow Airport to bid to stage the match. France, Germany, Holland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden are the countries in the running.
The country with the most cash will get the match.
Of course, the European Tour is not calling Wednesday’s powwow an auction. The official term is “Symposium.”
The official media blurb reads: “Headed by the European Tour’s Ryder Cup Director Richard Hills, the Symposium will outline the entire process required for a nation to host The Ryder Cup with various speakers summarising all areas of the contest including the commercial aspect, infrastructure, security, environmental issues and media.”
The first area of concern, “the commercial aspect,” is only one that matters. That’s the way it is with the Ryder Cup.
We’ve been here before. The Tour instigated a bidding process back in the 1990s to see which Spanish course would hold the match after the decision had been made to stage the match in Spain. I seem to remember bids from courses like Novo Sancti Petri, Las Brisas and others along with eventual host course Valderrama.
Many, including me, saw the bidding process as a bit of a sham, since Valderrama was the favoured course all along. Valderrama owner Jaime Ortiz Patino’s deep pockets made sure of that. When you’ve got billions in the bank that you’re willing to spend on the European Tour, then the Ryder Cup is all yours.
It’s been the same ever since. Money has been the driving force behind Ryder Cups staged in Europe for as long as I can remember. In fact, I’ve never been to a Ryder Cup in Europe where the quality of the golf course was the priority.
Dr. Michael Smurfit used the cash he made from his packaging empire to buy the 2006 match, and Sir Terry Matthews has done the same this year. Don’t think the Tour is taking the match to Celtic Manor, Wales, to reward Welsh golfers Ian Woosnam, Brian Hugget, Dai Rees, Dave Thomas and Philip Price.
No. The match is going to Wales because Matthews put up the most cash.
If the quality of the golf course was the driving force then no one would ever have heard of The Belfry, and Royal Porthcawl would be staging this year’s Ryder Cup, just as Portmarnock would have staged the 2006 match. Porthcawl is the best layout in Wales.
The Tour will defend its decision not to take the match to this Welsh gem on the basis of logistics. Royal Porthcawl has some issues when it comes to staging the match, although the Ryder Cup probably generates enough cash to overcome such logistical problems and still show a profit.
Given the plethora of great courses around these islands, it’s almost sacrilege to take the Ryder Cup to yet another American-style layout in Celtic Manor. The Tour doesn’t care about hosting golf tournaments on classic golf courses. That notion went out the window ages ago. Mammon rules when it comes to the Ryder Cup, or any other tournament.
It’s been 29 years since the match was held on a classic British course – the 1981 contest at Walton Heath, a classic heathland gem. It’s even longer since the match was staged on a true links. The 1977 match at Royal Lytham & St Annes was the last to be played beside the sea on this side of the pond.
It could be decades before the match is staged over one of Britain’s or Ireland’s classic courses. The 2014 match will be played over the PGA Centenary Course at Gleneagles, another American-type layout. Moreover, the Tour has previously said it’s committed to staging the match on Continental Europe until 2030.
For my money, I’d rate the bidding countries in the following order: Sweden and France equal first, Germany second, Holland third, Portugal fourth and Spain last.
However, it’s not my money that counts. I don’t have enough it. Whoever has the most will get the greatest team event in golf.

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Scottish pro championship switches to King's

Course, Gleneagles in mid-October this year

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE PGA SCOTTISH REGION
As the Gleneagles Hotel gears itself up for the 2014 Ryder Cup, its famed King’s Course, often dubbed Britain’s finest inland lay-out, can already stake its claim as host to the original match, in 1921, between American and British golf professionals.
To mark the return, 93 years later, to the illustrious Perthshire resort of what became the Ryder Cup, the Gleneagles Scottish Championship will be played this year over the King’s Course in mid-October, just over a week after the Celtic Manor contest.
The heritage of the King’s is unquestionable – host, among many others, to the European Tour’s Bells Scottish Open from 1987 till 1994, in which US Masters winner, Ian Woosnam, was twice a winner, the 1936 Curtis Cup, and the Double Diamond World Classic in the 1970’s, when Nick Faldo was the 1977 champion.
But it’s the 1921 challenge match between two 10-man teams, representing the United States and the British Isles, over the newly-opened King’s Course, that sowed the seed of the biennial contest in the mind of Samuel Ryder – who just happened to be a seed merchant.
The Americans had travelled over to Scotland for the Open Championship at St Andrews, and among their group was exiled Scot, Jock Hutchison, who triumphed on the Fife course for the second of his two major titles. The home side won 9-3, with three matches halved.
The Gleneagles Hotel, having hosted and sponsored the Scottish PGA Championship since 2000, will provide a £45,000 prize fund, and this now means that the modern-day championship will have been played on all three of the hotel’s courses (European Tour player Alastair Forsyth won over the Queen’s in 2000, and defending champion, David Orr, won by three shots last year over the PGA Centenary Course).
The 2010 Gleneagles Scottish professional championship moves to a later date – October 14-17 , the week after the Dunhill Championship at St Andrews – and after qualifying rounds the field will be restricted to 66 players.
The PGA’s Chief Executive, Sandy Jones, commented “I’m delighted that the Gleneagles Hotel has now extended its sponsorship of this event. For the coming years, the Gleneagles Scottish Championship will be played on the King’s Course.
“The Championship’s dates in subsequent years will be re-examined to find the best fit for it within the overall golfing calendar.”
New PGA Scottish Region Secretary, Michael MacDougall, added “Gleneagles Hotel’s continuing support of our championship is fantastic news. We’re excited at the prospect of staging the event over the superb King’s Course, which will present an altogether fresh challenge to our members.”
This year’s other Order of Merit events on the Tartan Tour will be the 72-hole Northern Open, at a venue yet to be decided, and seven 36-holers - three Callaways (the first at Monifieth in early April), the Wateraid, Kilmarnock Barassie (May 5-6), Deer Park Masters (August 3-4 ), the Ayrshire Hospice, West Kilbride (August 9-10), and the Kerr Investments, Dumfries & Galloway (September 4-5).
Main 2010 Tartan Tour dates:
April 6-7 Callaway 36-hole, Monifieth.
May 5-6 Scottish Wateraid 36-hole, Barassie.
July 20-21 Callaway 36-hole, Craigielaw.
August 3-4 Deer Park Masters.
August 9-10 Ayrshire Hospice 36-hole, West Kilbride.
Sept 4-5 Kerr Investments 36-hole, Dumfries & Galloway.
Sept 20-21 Callaway 36-Hole, venue to be arranged.
Oct 14-17 Gleneagles Scottish Championship, King's Course.

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The Oxfordshire to stage Glenmuir PGA Professional

and WPGA Championships in August

FROM THIS WEEK'S PGA E-MAIL BULLETIN
The flagship event of this year’s PGA tournament programme – the Glenmuir PGA Professional Championship – will be staged at The Oxfordshire Golf Club for the first time.
The Thame club, which is having a 50-bedroom, four-star hotel built on site, will play host to the UK and Ireland’s best PGA professionals as they contest the coveted title in August (10-13).
The defending Glenmuir champion will be Caerphilly’s James Lee and more than 650 pros will be striving to join him in the £78,000 final, via eight regional qualifiers along the way.
The Oxfordshire will also double up for the PGA South Region qualifier with the other qualifying
venues at Abridge (East), The Heritage (Ireland), Hesketh (North West), Scotscraig (Scotland),
Moortown (North East), Little Aston (Midlands) and Saunton’s East Course (West).
As usual the WPGA final will also take place at the same time (August 12-13) over 36 holes with
a qualifier at Dunham Forest. Tracy Loveys (Bigbury) will be chasing a third successive title.
Colin Mee, managing director of Glenmuir, who are sponsoring the event for a record 18th year,
said:
“The Oxfordshire is a fabulous venue for the final and we’re looking forward to working closely
with the PGA to make this year’s championship the best ever.
“With an equally impressive list of qualifying
venues I’m confident the professionals will
respond by taking part and creating a truly
memorable championship.”
PGA chief executive Sandy Jones added: “The
Glenmuir PGA Professional Championship is one
of the highlights of the year for our members and
it has been our policy in this event for many
years now to play on genuine championship golf
courses and The Oxfordshire will without doubt
provide a superb test to determine the champion
golfer for 2010.”
The Oxfordshire, which is owned by Leaderboard
Golf, enjoys the distinction of being the first UK
design of renowned architect Rees Jones who has
carved out a challenging and testing 7,200-long
course, with more than 100 bunkers and four
man-made lakes.
The course has proved a popular tournament
venue and some of golf’s biggest names have
tasted success there including Ryder Cup
captains past and present, Bernhard Langer
and Colin Montgomerie.
Tim Pettifer, general manager of The
Oxfordshire, is looking forward to staging the
Glenmuir final which he said caps an exciting
year for the club.
“Leaderboard Golf is synonymous with only
the best names in golf and so we are delighted
to now be able to add Glenmuir to the list by
staging the Glenmuir PGA Professional
Championship,” he said.
“In particular with The Oxfordshire being
chosen for August 2010, shortly after the
opening of its new 50-bedroom four star hotel
and spa, the timing could not be better.”
Qualifying venues
ENGLAND REGIONS

East - Friday, April 30 Abridge
Irish - Tuesday, May 4 The Heritage
North-West - Friday, May 7 Hesketh
North-East - Monday, May 10 Moortown
South - Wednesday, May 19 The Oxfordshire
Midland - Friday, May 21 Little Aston
West - Thursday, May 27 Saunton (East Course).
SCOTLAND
Monday, May 24 Scotscraig, Fife.

WPGA CHAMPIONSHIP
Qualifier - Thursday May 13 Dunham Forest
36-hole championship - August 12-13 The Oxfordshire.

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PAY-AND-PLAY TRIP TO AUSTRALIA

BY SCOTT BORROWMAN

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Dollar's Scott Borrowman, a Palmer Cup player while a student, Scottish youths champion in 2007 and South-east District title-winner in 2008, is in Australia, about to start a self-funded and testing competitive schedule of six tournaments, almost in succession.
Borrowman, pictured in action by Cal Carson Golf Agency, tees off in the Avondale Medal over 54 holes at Avondale Golf Club, New South Wales on Friday and Saturday this week.
Then he will compete in the Australia Cup at Australian Golf Club on January 17.
From there he moves on to the Lake Macquarie international amateur championship at Belmont Golf Club (January 21-24), the New South Wales Medal at Newcastle and Muree golf clubs (January 26-28), The Lakes Medal at The Lakes Golf Club (January 31), finishing up with the New South Wales Amateur match-play championship at Royal Sydney Golf Club from February 1 to 4.
He has to do well in the New South Wales Medal to figure among the leading 32 players who will go forward to the match-play stages the following week.
The English Golf Union are sending Walker Cup players Tommy Fleetwood (Formby Hall), last year's Scottish open amateur stroke-play winner at Murcar Links, and Matt Haines (Rochester & Cobham) to play roughly the same schedule.

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North-east Alliance hopes high of resumption at Peterhead

North-east Golfers' Alliance secretary Ron Menzies is hopeful that the first competition since December 9 will go on over Peterhead Golf Club's Craigewan Links on Wednesday.
"Most of the course was clear of snow today and with a good thaw on, I would say there is a 90 % chance that the Alliance season will resume on Wednesday. A final decision will be made at 4pm on Tuesday," he said.


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Message from Keith Liddle
Secretary of Edinburgh & East of Scotland Allaince

Subject: Competition at Gullane No.3 on Wednesday (January 13).
I telephoned Alison McLeod at Gullane this morning. All three courses are open for play (although there are a few temporary greens being used).
I will phone Alison again tomorrow for an update and will let you know if we can go ahead with the outing on Wednesday.

Keith Liddle

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Busy time for Fleetwood, Haines Down Under

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY ENGLISH GOLF UNION
Walker Cup men Tommy Fleetwood (Formby Hall, Lancashire) and Matt Haines (Rochester & Cobham, Kent) have swapped Britain’s snow for southern hemisphere sunshine where they will carry England hopes in six successive Australian tournaments.
The pair will contest the Master of the Amateurs at Yarra Yarra Golf Club from January 11 to 14, the Australian Cup at The Australian GC on January 17, followed by the Lake Macquarie International at Belmont from January 21 to 24.
They then move on to the New South Wales Medal at Newcastle and Muree Golf Clubs from January 26 to 28, with the leading 32 players qualifying for the match play at Royal Sydney GC from February 1 to 4.
Sandwiched between they will take in The Lakes Medal at The Lakes GC on January 31. Fleetwood, who will celebrate his 19th birthday on 19th January, has been a full England international for the past two years having made his debut in the 2008 Home Internationals in Scotland. A former under 16 and boy cap, Fleetwood was English County Champion in 2008 when he also won the Lancashire Championship.
Last year, he won the Scottish Open Stroke Play, was a joint winner of the Henriques Salver at the Brabazon Trophy where he finished tied fourth, and was a quarter finalist in the Amateur Championship.
Haines, 20, a former boy international, made his full England debut against France in 2008 and has been a regular in the team since then. A former winner of the McEvoy Trophy, Haines won the Lytham Trophy in 2008 when he also represented GB&I in the St Andrews Trophy.
He enjoyed a successful 2009, winning the Berkhamsted Trophy, the Hampshire Hog and Salver and finishing runner-up in the Welsh Open Stroke Play and the St Andrews Links Trophy.
He also reached the quarter finals of the Spanish and English Amateur Championships.
Both Fleetwood and Haines were members of last year’s GB&I Walker Cup team.
The Master of the Amateurs tournament has an international field. The opening round is played with club professionals and guests with a shotgun start. The other three rounds comprise just the amateurs.
The 18-hole Australian Cup at The Australian Golf Club sports a field of 72 international players, including some from Scotland and Wales, while the long established 72-hole Lake Macquarie International at Belmont Golf Club has been won by England’s Roger Chapman, Russell Claydon, Ricky Willison, Nick Dougherty and Adam Gee, while Gary Wolstenholme lost a play-off in 1998.
The field in the New South Wales Medal will play one round over the Newcastle and Muree courses after which there will be a cut with the leading 60 players plus ties playing 36 holes at Newcastle on January 29. The leading 32 players from that will enter the match play knockout competition for the NSW Amateur at Royal Sydney.

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Practice Day tickets for Ryder Cup available now

Golf enthusiasts will be afforded an unprecedented opportunity to experience the anticipation and excitement of the build-up to The 2010 Ryder Cup later this year by buying Practice Day tickets immediately.
From next Monday (January 18), anyone applying through the official ticket Website, www.rydercup.com/tickets will be able to book their places at The Ryder Cup by purchasing up to eight tickets per application for the three Practice Days at The Celtic Manor Resort, City of Newport, Wales, on September 28, 29 and 30.
The purchase of those Practice Day tickets will not affect other applications which individuals may have made for Match Day Tickets in the second computerised random ticket ballot draw to take place at the end of April, 2010, but will allow all those attending the practice days to firm up their travel plans NOW.
Practice Day tickets enable golf fans an opportunity to study the superstars of Europe and the United States as the build-up gathers momentum for the drama and theatre of the biennial contest over The Twenty Ten Course from October 1-3.
Captains Colin Montgomerie (Europe) and Corey Pavin (United States) will be eager to monitor the form of their Team Members as they seek to determine who to send out first on Friday October 1 when the next edition of this enthralling contest starts.
Entry to The Celtic Manor Resort will provide every ticket holder with the chance to soak up the stunning views afforded by The Twenty Ten Course while watching the practice rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the additional bonus of witnessing first-hand the Opening Ceremony on Thursday.
With that comes a not-to-be-missed opportunity to sample the Official Ryder Cup Merchandise on sale in the Tented Village, to trip down memory lane by visiting The Ryder Cup Memorabilia Exhibition and to marvel at the skills of golfing trick shot exponent, David Edwards – all in all, an unforgettable experience.
Practice Day Tickets for Tuesday (September 28) and Wednesday (September 29) cost £30 each – on these two days there is also a special concession for Under 16’s with tickets priced at £15 – and for Thursday when the Opening Ceremony takes place, the price is £40 (concessions £20). Car parking costs £10 per car on Tuesday and Wednesday and £20 on Thursday.
Richard Hills, the European Ryder Cup Director, said: “This opportunity to buy Practice Day tickets with immediate effect, irrespective of the outcome of the random ticket ballot in the Spring, represents a wonderful chance for the golfing public to savour the electric atmosphere of the three-day build-up to The 2010 Ryder Cup.
“ Practice Day tickets not only afford spectators the fantastic experience of visiting the greatest team event in golf but also the opportunity to get close and personal to the players, walk the first course in history built to host The Ryder Cup, enjoy some ‘retail therapy’ and generally become immersed in the colour of the event .”

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Callum Macaulay wants to get

back to enjoying golf


FROM THE SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY WEBSITE
By JOHN HUGGAN
It's been said before, but professional golf can be a cruel business at times. While obviously and outwardly glamorous, the European Tour's almost worldwide schedule can be little more than a relentless treadmill for those outside the game's privileged elite.
The rewards are great in both material terms and notoriety, but the level of competition in such a high-profile sport inevitably leads to struggles for the majority. Where there are winners, there have to be losers.
Callum Macaulay isn't a loser, of course, far from it. But he isn't yet a winner either. Not as a professional anyway. The 2008 Scottish Amateur champion and perhaps the most promising member of the three-man Scotland side that returned from Australia as world champions at the end of that same season, the now 26-year-old from Tulliallan sailed through all three stages of the European Tour school – a remarkable feat of endurance involving 252 holes – and immediately left the unpaid ranks.
Then, in only his fourth European Tour event, he played the last nine holes of the Madeira Islands Open in an astonishing eight under par to finish second behind Argentine Tano Goya. He was, it seemed, off and running.
But he wasn't. Hampered by the lowliness of his ranking, Macaulay, like all rookies, struggled not so much for starts – he eventually made 22 appearances on tour last year – but for the right sort of starts.
"Relegated" to the lowest-paying prize funds (Madeira, by way of example, is the smallest event on the European Tour), retaining that coveted tour card is both a reasonable and difficult target for every first-year player.
And Macaulay, sad to say, came up just short. Despite performing steadily – he made more than twice as many cuts as he missed – his final ranking of 134th on the Order of Merit wasn't quite good enough to attain all-exempt safety.
Then, even worse, he returned to the tour school in Spain and missed out by one agonising shot."My first year was always going to be tough," he concedes. "I hit the ball well for most of the year until near the end. I'd been working on my short game all season and it finally came around – but only at a time when my long game went on holiday!
"Which is typical golf, but it stopped me from getting that one week where everything came together at the one time. A huge week is so important these days. There are plenty of guys surviving on tour on the back of one great event every year. And that same sort of thing is so important for young guys setting out, like me. It kick starts your whole career.
"In baseball terms, it is all about hitting home runs. I hit plenty of singles last year, but none of them ever got me to home plate. But don't get me wrong, mine isn't a hard-luck story. I knew what I was getting into. And at the end of the day I just didn't play well enough.
"I got myself into a few good positions and Madeira obviously sticks out. But I was going well at the Czech Open – I had a putt to take the lead in the second round – before falling away a bit. I still finished 11th but it could and should have been better. Had I been two or three shots lower, it would have made a huge difference to where I am now.
"Where he is now is facing a season spent mostly on the Challenge Tour – from which the top-20 money-winners will gain promotion to the European circuit – with a few major league events thrown in. But it is also a season in which the likeable and endearingly down-to-earth Macaulay is determined to learn from the disappointments he endured in 2009.
"I played pretty well in quite a few weeks and I feel like I hit the ball well," he continues. "But at tour level you just can't afford to be mediocre on and around the greens. And that is what I was. My putting average has improved by almost a shot in the year and a bit I have been a pro, yet I'm still one of the worst on tour. Everyone else is just so good at chipping and putting. That's where everything is won and lost.
"The big problem is that living in Scotland is no good for putting practice. It's too cold at this time of year and the condition of the surfaces is no good. So all the work I get done is when I'm on the road. At home there is nowhere to practise. Plus, my coach, Ian Rae, can't be with me every week. So I end up working on my own."
Macaulay is also mature enough to recognise that his attitude on and off the course needs some work. Like so many others used to success, he found himself lapsing too often into self-criticism when things weren't going quite as well as he hoped they would.
"Missing out so narrowly at the tour school (where he actually shot one shot lower than in 2008) was a kick in the teeth and quite hard to take," he admits. "I felt like I'd let myself down. But, on the other hand, I was far too hard on myself last year. I got really angry, which is not like me, especially in the last third of the season when I knew what was at stake.
"I stopped enjoying it. I was out on the course and getting angry with myself and with my Dad, who caddies for me. I'd get angry at anything really. It stopped being a game I love and became a job I was struggling with."
Still, at least on the temperament front, Macaulay has an example to guide him in 2010. Compatriot Richie Ramsay, fourth in the Dunhill Links Championship – "that was his home run," says Macaulay – and winner of last month's South African Open has seen his performances improve dramatically in the wake of a change in attitude.
"I still see 2009 as a disappointment because I set my goals high," says Macaulay. "But my main aim this year is to stop being so hard on myself. I need to enjoy it more and play as if I'm having fun.
"I look at Richie and see how he has changed. He was always hard on himself but he seems to be over that now. I've noticed a huge difference in him over the last six months. He's a lot more relaxed. That's how I want to be."
+The above article was published in the "Scotland on Sunday" newspaper.

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Great news from Seve: He does not need more treatment

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH.COM WEBSITE
By OLIVER BROWN
When Tom Watson smiled wistfully upon letting slip his moment of Open fantasy, commentators in the Turnberry press tent were unanimous in arguing that there was only one scenario that could eclipse such a moment.
All eyes turned to St Andrews for the next instalment, and to a prospect of a comeback not of Watson, but of Seve Ballesteros. Against all odds, it has emerged that the Spaniard's return to the scene of his greatest triumphs could yet come to pass.
If Watson's exploits on the Ailsa produced a lump in the throat, then expect Ballesteros's walk to the first tee of the Old Course to prompt a collective crumpling. After 15 months of battling a brain tumour, the 52-year old has been cleared by his specialists to start a fitness regime that could culminate in a short but profoundly emotional appearance in Fife this summer.
Ballesteros has scarcely been seen in between draining sessions of chemotherapy and radiotherapy in Madrid, save for a speech last month accepting a BBC lifetime achievement award and an interview that he gave to the broadcaster's Peter Alliss. On both occasions he bore the scars of his ordeal, appearing frail and drawn.
Remarkably, though, he joined a conference call with players at the Royal Trophy in Thailand on Saturday to communicate the happy news that doctors have informed him he needs no more treatment. He has already gleefully told Jack Nicklaus about his first visit to the golf course since the therapy, and how he hit his first shot straight and true.
While Ballesteros is unlikely ever to regain the strength to play professionally again, he is targeting an entry into the four-hole "past champions" event at St Andrews, held on the final practice day before the Open, to signal to the world his status as golf's great survivor.
The "home of golf" is renowned for the stylish honouring of its champions: the same Wednesday evening competition was staged in 2000, featuring winners as diverse as Tom Lehman and Tom Weiskopf. When Nicklaus, the only other man besides Ballesteros to have lifted the Claret Jug twice at St Andrews, played his final Open there in 2005, tens of thousands of spectators lined the fairways to mark their appreciation.
The Royal & Ancient Golf Club has sent a formal invitation to Ballesteros to take part in the four-hole challenge, as they have to all other 31 living Open champions. It is an occasion designed to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Open, although prior to the latest development, few R&A members can have expected Ballesteros, who won over the Old Course in 1984 and 1988, to stand any chance of playing.
But it seems there is to be no containing his energy, even in extremis. One rumour holds that Ballesteros, having ceded the Ryder Cup captaincy to Colin Montgomerie, is thinking seriously of trying to retake the reins in Chicago in 2012.
"There is no need to schedule any further treatment at the moment," he told the Europe and Asia teams at the Royal Trophy, a Ryder Cup-style match that he founded four years ago.
"Despite admitting that his last bout of radiotherapy had sapped him, he said: "Everyone is pleased with the way it has gone – especially me, of course. I very much wished to be in Thailand, but I am still working on my health recovery and I am hopeful I will see all of you personally next year."
Should that reunion come at St Andrews, Ballesteros will join his fellow champions in a valedictory procession across the first, second, 17th and 18th.
The symbolism, the sheer improbability of seeing the man take on the Road Hole one last time, before posing for photographs on the bridge over the Swilken Burn, could prove too much for some to bear.

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AUSSIE OGILVY REPEATS 2009 HAWAII VICTORY

Late bogeys costly for Martin Laird but

he still wins $300,000 for jt 4th place


A couple of late bogeys - at the 16th and 17th - cost Martin Laird third place in the winners-only first event of the 2010 US PGA Tour season, the SBS Championship, over The Plantation Course at Kapalua, Hawaii.
But, let's not be greedy, the Glasgow man still finished joint fourth with rounds of 67, 68, 69 and 70 for a 18-under-par total of 274 over the 7,411yd, par-73 course. Laird collected $300,000 for his effort, which can't be bad. In seasons past, he has sometimes taken a good few tournaments to reach that figure.
Laird had birdies at the third, fifth, ninth, 10th, 15th and 18th, bogeys at the first, 16th and 17th. The 6ft 2in, long-hitting Scot, who breaks into the World Pro Rankings top 100 at No 84, finished four shots behind the repeat winner, Australian Geoff Ogilvy.
Last year Ogilvy won by six shots. On Sunday, Geoff had to come from behind, making up a two-shot deficit over the final 10 holes, to pip clubhouse leader, South African Rory Sabbatini who had signed off with a 10-under-par 63 for 271. Ogilvy shot a 67 for 270. The Australian is only the second player to score back-to-back victories in the season-opening tournament.
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PGATOUR.COM: Complete coverage of the SBS Championship
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Even though he was stunned to see Sabbatini run off five straight birdies and close with a 63, Ogilvy knew what he had to do. He wasn't playing the course, or even a player. He was playing against a number.
"If you beat Sabbo's score, you're going to win the tournament," Ogilvy said. "It's hard to make birdies when you have to make birdies. I've had that situation with a couple of holes to play, but never with nine holes to play. I'm pretty proud of the fact I did it."
Ogilvy posted his eighth consecutive round in the 60s at Kapalua and joined Stuart Appleby, a fellow Australian, as the only players to win in consecutive years since the winners-only season opener moved to Kapalua in 1999. Appleby won three straight years. Only five other players have won back-to-back in the 58 years of this event.
"I like the golf course, I think it's fair to say," Ogilvy said.
Even though he trailed in the middle of his round, Ogilvy still had plenty of holes in front of him.
He played short of the par-4 14th, a 272-yard hole where most players were hitting driver, and pitched to 4 feet for birdie. And he took the outright lead with a 5-wood into 25 feet for a two-putt birdie on the 15th.
With so much talk about the V-shaped grooves required this year, Ogilvy said that helped him on the 14th, where it's easy to spin the ball off the front of the green and back into the fairway.
"I was happy with the smart play, and it paid off," he said.
Sabbatini, who started the final round six shots behind, ran off five straight birdies on the back nine to seize the lead. He couldn't reach the green on the 663-yard 18th in two, however, and missed a 10-foot birdie putt that ultimately cost him.
"I said to my caddie, 'We need to birdie the last two holes to have a chance,'" Sabbatini said. "The situation was you had to keep moving forward to put pressure on him. I had my opportunity, and unfortunately, it didn't pan out."
Ogilvy finished at 22-under 270 and moved back into the top 10 in the world with his seventh career US PGA Tour victory.
It was his first win since the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship last February. The trick now is for Ogilvy to keep this form throughout the year, and he hopes he can learn from mistakes a year ago when he tried too hard and practiced more than usual.
He is taking next week off before playing in Abu Dhabi, then returns home to Arizona for the birth of his third child.
U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover's bid to become the second straight wire-to-wire winner at Kapalua ended early when he hit into the hazard on consecutive holes and lost three shots. He closed with a 76 and was 14th in the 28-man field.
Matt Kuchar lingered without seriously threatening, missing several chances on the middle of the back nine as Ogilvy pulled farther ahead. He closed with a 67 and finished alone in third.
Sean O'Hair made all the right moves to give himself a chance. He was at 20 under, two shots out of the lead with a chance to reach the par-5 18th in two. He was quick with his swing and pulled it into the weeds, leading to double bogey and a 68 to finish fourth.
The Kona wind returned again, which makes Kapalua a tough start and finish, with birdies available in between and trouble on any hole with a poor shot. Sabbatini breezed through with a 32 on the front to get in the mix,
"I was just battling the putter the first three days," Sabbatini said. "I came out today not knowing what to expect, and the flat stick showed up early."
Even so, he got some help from the leaders. Ogilvy was in the lead until he pushed his tee shot badly to the right and into the knee-high native grass for a one-shot penalty. Glover followed him into the hazard, and both made bogey. From the middle of the next fairway, Glover came out of his shot and shoved it into the high grass again, leading to double bogey. While he bounced back with two birdies, a three-putt on the 10th ended his chances.
Sabbatini, a bundle of South African energy who always looks to be in a hurry, wasted no time seizing the lead.
He attacked a dangerous pin on the par-3 11th with an 8-iron for the first of five consecutive birdies, finishing the streak by driving to the back of the green on the 282yd 14th and hitting his approach to the par-5 15th to 15ft for another easy two-putt birdie. Most impressive was a five-iron into 12 ft for one of only two birdies all day on the 552yd 17th.
That was supposed to be the hard part of his plan to birdie the last two holes. His 10ft birdie putt on the 18th caught the right lip.
In his only other chance to win at Kapalua, he missed a 3ft birdie putt on the 18th in 2002 that would have forced a play-off.
"I swear I'll make a putt one of these years on 18," he said.
For only the second time at Kapalua, everyone in the winners-only field broke par. Mark Wilson and Heath Slocum tied for last at 2-under 290. The other time was in 2003, when Rich Beem finished last at 290.
Paul Casey, battling a rib injury since July, had his first top-10 finish since the Colonial. He finished joint 10th with scores of 70, 69, 69 and 69 for 15-under-par 277.

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US PGA Tour Scoreboard
SBS CHAMPIONSHIP
The Kapalua Plantation GC, Kapalua Resort, Maui, Hawaii
FINAL TOTALS
Par 292 (4x73). 7,411yd.
270 Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 69 66 68 67
271 Rory Sabbatini (Rsa) 70 68 70 63
273 Matt Kuchar 67 68 71 67
274 Sean O'Hair 68 67 71 68, Martin Laird (Sco) 67 68 69 70
275 Kenny Perry 70 67 70 68, Retief Goosen (Rsa) 70 69 67 69, Ryan Moore 69 68 68 70
276 Stewart Cink 68 69 69 70
277 Steve Stricker 73 70 68 66, Pat Perez 71 70 67 69, Paul Casey (Eng) 70 69 69 69, Angel Cabrera (Arg) 68 68 70 71
278 John Rollins 68 66 72 72, Lucas Glover 66 65 71 76
279 Nick Watney 67 71 70 71, Dustin Johnson 67 71 72 69
280 Zach Johnson 72 69 71 68
281 Y E Yang (Kor) 70 74 66 71
282 Stephen Ames (Can) 71 69 71 71
283 Brian Gay 72 71 70 70
286 Nathan Green (Aus) 67 70 77 72
287 Jerry Kelly 69 70 74 74, Troy Matteson 73 70 73 71
288 Michael Bradley 73 72 71 72, Bo Van Pelt 72 70 73 73
290 Heath Slocum 75 71 71 73, Mark Wilson 74 71 70 75

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