PGAs OF EUROPE INTERNATIONAL TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP

ENGLAND LEAD FROM SCOTS ON ALGARVE

England are setting the pace ahead of Scotland with Wales fifth and Ireland joint 10th in a field of 26 countries at the end of the opening day of the PGAs of Europe international team golf championship over the Ocean Course at Vale do Lobo on Portugal's Algarve today.
David Shacklady with a five-under-par 67 and John Wells a 69 gave England an eight-under first-round total of 136. Jon Bevan had their non-counting score of 77.
Sam Cairns' 68 and Colin Gillies' 70 gave Scotland - six times winners of the 72-hole championship - a very good start with a six-under 138 tally. James McKinnon had the non-counting 77.
This is veteran Gillies' ninth appearance in the tournament which is being played in Portugal for the first time.
FIRST-ROUND
Par 144 (2x72)
136 England (David Shacklady 67, John Wells 69. Non-counter John Bevan 77).
138 Scotland (Sam Cairns 68, Colin Gillies 70. NC James McKinnon 77.
139 France.
140 Denmark.
142 Wales (Gareth Jones 69, Matthew Davies 73. NC Richard Dinsdale 74).
143 Norway, Switzerland.
144 Germany, Spain.
145 Greece, Ireland (Glen Robinson 72, John Kelly 73. NC Eamonn Brady 78).
146 Poland.
147 Austria, Netherlands, Italy, Sweden.
149 United Arab Emirates.
152 Slovenia.
153 Belgium, Hungary, Iceland.
154 Croatia.
155 Czech Republic.
156 Luxemburg, South Africa.
157 Finland.



ends

Great effort by Tom Lewis Down Under

2009 British boys' champion Tom Lewis

loses play-off to O'Malley for NSW Open

Australian Peter O’Malley has won the 2010 New South Wales Open
following a three-way play-off with South Australian Peter Cooke and the 2009 British boys amateur champion, Tom Lewis, who is a member at Welwyn Garden City GC, the London club of which Nick Faldo was a member during his amateur career.
The win for O’Malley is his first PGA Tour of Australasia title in five years, his last win coming at the 2005 NZ PGA Championship where he also won a play-off.
Out in the final group of the day O’Malley took a few holes to warm up, before rediscovering his groove at The Vintage with three consecutive birdies on holes 4, 5 and 6.

But it wasn’t all going O’Malley’s way- a triple bogey on the 11th brought him right back to the pack where the big mover on the front nine, Tom Lewis, was waiting.

The 19 year old (pictured by Tom Ward), a candidate for a place in the GB and I Walker Cup team against the United States at Royal Aberdeen next September 10 and 11, had notched five birdies in the first seven holes, but stumbled on the eighth with a double bogey.

In a tension-filled back nine, the lead see-sawed between O’Malley, new course record holder Cooke and Lewis, resulting in a three-way tie for first place at the end of the 72 holes.

The trio headed back to the par-418th to determine the winner in a sudden death play-off.

After playing the 18th hole twice more, Cooke was the first to stumble, leaving O’Malley and Lewis to fight it out for the third time on the 18th.

While O’Malley landed his second shot 5½ metres slightly uphill from the pin on the green, Lewis hit his second fairway shot into a bunker alongside the green.

Lewis extricated himself from the bunker but two-putted to hand the championship to O’Malley, much to the delight of the gallery who cheered home one of Australia’s most successful professionals.

TO READ ALL THE FINAL TOTALS

CLICK HERE

EUROPEAN TOUR SCHOOL STAGE 2

ARCOS GARDENS
THIRD ROUND
Par 216
Scots' scores:
215 Chris Doak 72 74 69 (jt 9th).
219 Joel Hendry 71 76 72 (jt 27th)
226 Ross Bain 72 77 77 (jt 58th).
231 Craig Matheson 74 79 78 (jt 65th).
Field of 72 players

TO SEE ALL THE THIRD-ROUND TOTALS AT ARCOS GARDENS

CLICK HERE

HACIENDA DEL ALAMO
THIRD ROUND
Par 216
Scots' scores:
210 Elliot Saltman 71 72 67 (jt 13th).
215 Craig Lee 74 72 69, Shaun McAllister 69 76 70 (jt 41st).
216 Stephen Gray 73 75 68 (jt 47th).
218 Wallace Booth 71 74 73 (jt 58th).
221 Andrew McArthur 73 72 76 (jt 65th).
222 Eric Ramsay 75 77 70 (jt 68th).
Field of 72 players.

TO READ ALL THE THIRD-ROUND TOTALS AT HACIENDA DEL ALAMO

CLICK HERE

EL VALLE
THIRD ROUND
Par 213 (3x71)
Scots' scores
211 Graham Fox 72 67 72 (jt 17th).
218 Keir McNicoll 71 74 73 (jt 48th).
221 Callum Macaulay 76 71 74, Jason McCreadie 76 72 73 (jt 60th).
224 Gavin Dear 78 76 70 (jt 65th).
Field of 71 players.

TO READ ALL THE THIRD-ROUND TOTALS AT EL VALLE

CLICK HERE

COSTA BALLENA
THIRD ROUND
Par 216 (3x72)
Scots' scores
209 Jack Doherty 68 71 70 (jt 9th).
210 John Gallagher 69 73 68, Lloyd Saltman 67 73 70 (jt 15th).
217 Mark Kerr 72 69 76 (jt 51st).
Field of 72 players.
TO SEE ALL THE COSTA BALLENA THIRD-ROUND SCORES
CLICK HERE

Karlsson beats penalised Poulter

 at second hole of play-off

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Sweden's Robert Karlsson overcame in-form Englishman Ian Poulter in a play-off to win the Dubai World Championship presented by DP World today.

The pair tied on the 14 under par mark of 274 after Karlsson, three behind overnight, played the first three holes in four under and then pitched to three feet for a birdie on the 620yd last hole.

They were round in 67 and 70 respectively and so sudden death decided who won the first prize of €910,348.

Both birdied the first extra hole after hitting approaches within five feet, and at the second extra hole Poulter miscued his sand wedge approach to leave a 30 foot putt.

Karlsson was precise again, his ball finishing three feet from the cup, and to make matters worse Poulter then picked up a one-shot penalty when he accidentally dropped his ball on his marker and moved it.

Two putts meant a bogey 6 for Poulter, but the penalty was irrelevant as Karlsson holed his birdie putt (scroll down beyond the final totals to read a more in-depth report on the incident)..

Karlsson, the 2008 European No 1, who has suffered a serious eye problem and glandular fever since then, will also remember his start.

From three behind Poulter overnight he birdied the first two holes and then sank an eight iron on the third for an eagle 2, just as Martin Kaymer did in the opening round.

World No 1 and defending champion Westwood shared third place with Alvaro Quiros a stroke behind, the Spaniard missing a long eagle putt on the 18th and Westwood pulling his second to the hole into water and taking 5 when a birdie would have made him part of the play-off. He got as close as that.

Kaymer and Graeme McDowell, the only two contenders for The Race to Dubai entering the event, finished joint 13th, which earned the 25 year old German - the youngest number one since Ronan Rafferty in 1989 - a bonus of €1,092,418.

McDowell had to finish third in the tournament just to have a chance, but the memories of the US Open Championship and Ryder Cup, of course - softened the blow of just missing out on the top spot.

Karlsson said: "It was a strange day to say the least. To start birdie-birdie-eagle is not what you expect to happen when you are three behind.

"Then there was the one-shot penalty. It's not the way you want to win, but these things happen in golf.

“It's a fantastic field, and obviously when we have all of the best players in Europe together, the way it looks now, it's going to be a great field - so to win here is fantastic.”

Poulter, winner of last week’s UBS Hong Kong Open and looking for consecutive wins for the first time in his career, struggled to contain his disappointment.

“A lot of positives to take away, but right now not really seeing them,” he said.

FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
Prizemoney in Euros
274 Robert Karlsson (Swe) 65 75 67 67 (Robert Karlsson won play-off at second extra hole), Ian Poulter 69 66 69 70. Karlsson 910,349; Poulter 606,897.

275 Lee Westwood 69 67 71 68, Alvaro Quiros (Spa) 72 67 69 67 (314,070 each).

276 Rory McIlroy 71 72 66 67 (218,484).

277 Francesco Molinari (Ita) 71 67 68 71, Paul Casey 70 67 71 69 (168,021 each).

279 Thongchai Jaidee (Tha) 68 69 69 73 (147,477).

280 Seung-yul Noh (Kor) 66 73 74 67, Luke Donald 74 67 69 70 (131,090 each).

281 Robert Jan Derksen (Ned) 71 70 70 70, Anders Hansen (Den) 74 70 67 70

282 Thomas Aiken (Rsa) 70 72 70 70, Ross Fisher 71 64 71 76, Graeme McDowell 72 73 69 68, Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa) 73 66 70 73, Martin Kaymer (Ger) 67 70 73 72, Peter Lawrie 76 67 68 71, Peter Hanson (Swe) 76 69 67 70, Y.E. Yang (Kor) 71 69 71 71

283 Charl Schwartzel (Rsa) 69 75 73 66, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 69 74 70 70, Raphael Jacquelin (Fra) 70 70 71 72

284 Soren Hansen (Den) 74 70 69 71, Henrik Stenson (Swe) 69 71 71 73

285 Soren Kjeldsen (Den) 71 71 70 73, Joost Luiten (Ned) 72 72 67 74

286 Brett Rumford (Aus) 71 70 74 71, Ernie Els (Rsa) 73 70 72 71, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (Spa) 73 71 70 72, Darren Clarke 71 71 73 71

287 Matteo Manassero (Ita) 74 68 70 75, Simon Dyson 72 71 73 71, Marcus Fraser (Aus) 72 71 69 75

288 Richie Ramsay 73 69 73 73, Oliver Wilson 75 73 68 72, David Horsey 70 73 74 71, Gregory Havret (Fra) 72 73 70 73 (39,327 each).

289 Retief Goosen (Rsa) 78 72 66 73, Padraig Harrington 74 70 69 76

290 Gary Boyd 70 75 70 75, Gregory Bourdy (Fra) 72 73 75 70, Ignacio Garrido (Spa) 73 72 75 70, Edoardo Molinari (Ita) 75 73 69 73, Johan Edfors (Swe) 73 74 71 72

291 Alejandro Canizares (Spa) 69 71 77 74

292 Fredrik Andersson Hed (Swe) 75 69 74 74

293 Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 70 69 79 75, Richard Green (Aus) 72 73 70 78, Jamie Donaldson 78 67 72 76

294 Stephen Gallacher 73 74 71 76 (23,487).

295 Thomas Bjorn (Den) 75 76 69 75

296 John Parry 75 69 76 76, Simon Khan 73 77 71 75

297 Gareth Maybin 73 71 77 76, Danny Willett 76 76 72 73

300 Robert Rock 76 73 74 77, Rhys Davies 75 74 74 77
301 Damien McGrane 74 78 77 72.


Butterfingers Poulter pays the penalty

DUBAI (AP) -- Whoever knew dropping a golf ball could cost a player $400,000?
That's just what happened to Englishman Ian Poulter on Sunday when he went to replace his ball on his marker and dropped it from a few inches above the ground, falling victim to one of golf's more arcane rules.
The blunder cost Poulter a shot and helped Swede Robert Karlsson win $1.25 million at the Dubai World Championship, the final event of the European Tour season.
Poulter's second prize is impressive nonetheless at $833,000.
Poulter and Karlsson were locked in a playoff on the 18th hole of the Dubai Earth course after four rounds in the desert where both finished at 14 under. The first play-off hole was tied and on the second play-off hole -- again on the 18th -- Poulter left himself with a 40ft putt while Karlsson's chip to the green landed within 4ft of the pin.
But as the English golfer marked his ball, it slipped from his grasp and fell on the marker, which jumped in the air and turned over.

Poulter let the match referee know immediately.

"Ian Poulter called me over just after he had marked the ball on the 18th and told me he had dropped his ball onto the ball marker which caused the ball marker to move, it just flipped over," chief match referee Andy McFee said. "This incurred a one-stroke penalty."

So instead of trying to force another play-off hole, Poulter realised his putt was for a 5. Poulter shrugged, putted and missed, while Karlsson holed his short putt. The gallery of a couple of thousand spectators was unaware of the drama.

Rule 20-1/15 is the one that impacted Poulter.

"Any accidental movement of the ball marker which occurs before or after the specific act of marking, including as a result of dropping the ball, regardless of the height from which it was dropped ... results in the player incurring a one- stroke penalty," McFee said in a statement.

Karlsson said after the tournament ended that Poulter had told him of the ruling before they finished the second play-off hole, but he had not been sure the ruling would stand. Regardless, Karlsson's putt was much shorter.

"These things happen in golf. It's not the way you want to win," the 41-year-old Swede said. "The rules are there for a reason but some of them can be tough."

Poulter's friend and rival Rory McIlroy was quick to see the funny side, even if Poulter's mistake cost him more than $400,000.

He tweeted: "Poults may not have won the Dubai world championship, but he could be in with a shout for tiddlywinks world championship."

Martin Kaymer Europe's No 1

 - now it's official

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Martin Kaymer is The European Tour's youngest Number One since Ronan Rafferty in 1989.The German, 26 in a month's time, had just one hole of the final event, the Dubai World Championship presented by DP World, to play when the year-long Race to Dubai was officially decided.

Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell, the only remaining challenger with a week to go, needed a top three finish to have any chance, but closing rounds of 69 and 68 were just too little too late.

Topping The Race to Dubai earned Kaymer a staggering bonus of € 1,092,418 from a €5,462,093 pool that rewards the leading 15 money winners.

McDowell, unable to add the finishing touch he wanted to an incredible season in which he won the US Open Championship and helped regain The Ryder Cup for Europe, said: "It's been a dream season and it just so happened that Martin had an unbelievable season as well.

"It's just been a great year for European golf and I'm just very proud to be part of that.

"My greatest moment was the putt on the 16th (at The Celtic Manor Resort). There's nothing like The Ryder Cup.

"To give Martin a run for his money this week was very good, but things didn't really go my way - it's a golf course which continues to frustrate me.

"I played unbelievably well this weekend, but could barely buy a putt."

Kaymer might well have finished Number One last year but for an August go-kart accident in which he broke three toes and was put out of the game for two months.

He eventually finished third behind Lee Westwood and Rory McIlroy, but started his season with victory at the Abu Dhabi Championship and then had a spell he will never forget.

Two months after McDowell had gone to Pebble Beach and become Europe's first US Open Champion since 1970 Kaymer won the US PGA Championship after a play-off with Bubba Watson, then added the KLM Open and Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on his next two starts.

The last of those came just six days after he had made his Ryder Cup debut - a winning debut, of course - so he could actually claim four triumphs in a row.

McDowell did well to make it a contest after that, but came up short in the final week.

Not that he allowed it to take the gloss off his year - and he now believes he could become World Number One.

"I know I can get a lot better. When I see one of my friends and colleagues Lee Westwood as the world's best player, of course I have to believe I can do the same thing."

Westwood took over from Tiger Woods a month ago and held off the challenge from Kaymer this week, but McDowell also said: "I expect Tiger to be back - and I think golf needs him back playing well."

Kaymer said: "It's been a fantastic season for me. To win my first Major (the US PGA) and to be part of the winning Ryder Cup team is way above my expectations to be honest.

"And obviously when you win a Major you know that you can win any tournament in the world."

BATTLING UDORN STORMS TO

KING’S CUP VICTORY




NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE ASIAN TOUR
Khon Kaen, Thailand: Thailand ’s Udorn Duangdecha sparked a superb final day charge to win his maiden Asian Tour title at the King’s Cup tournament today.
Udorn, who entered the final round five strokes off the lead, fired a sparkling six-under-par 66 for a four-day total of 12-under-par 276 for a two-stroke victory at the Singha Park Khon Kaen Golf Club.
South African Jbe Kruger settled for his third runner-up finish this season after narrowly missing his 50 feet eagle putt on the 18th hole. He signed off with a 73 for a 278 total to take a share of second place with Thailand ’s Pariya Junhasavasdikul and Korean Mo Joong-kyung at the Singha Park Khon Kaen Golf Club.
Joint overnight leader Prom Meesawat of Thailand slipped to tied fifth place following a 74 with countryman Kwanchai Tannin on a 279 total at the US$300,000 event presented by Singha and Sports Authority of Thailand.
Australian Tony Carolan (74) and Thai duo Thaworn Wiratchant (71) and Piya Swangarunporn (66) were a stroke back on 280 in tied seventh place.
“It is such an honour to win this tournament for the King. I really put in all my effort today to win the King’s Cup and I’m glad it all worked out in my favour. I want to dedicate this victory to my King,” said the 40-year-old, whose victory was worth US$47,550.
Udorn, who is the third Thai player to win on the Asian Tour this season, posted a bogey free round with six birdies and was delighted to finally land his first Asian Tour title in the event which was held to commemorate the King of Thailand’s birthday next month.
“The time felt right for me to win. I was feeling confident all day and made every shot with determination,” said Udorn, whose best placing prior to his victory was in tied second at the Mercuries Taiwan Masters and Queen’s Cup in Thailand last year.
“It was hard not to see all the big names on the leaderboard coming into the final day but I tried my best to ignore their scores and played against myself and remained focus. That eased some pressure off me,” added the Thai.
It was another case of so close but yet so far for Kruger as he rued a cold putter in a round of two birdies against three bogeys. He could have forced a play-off if he sank his final eagle putt.
“I hit the ball well but I could not buy a putt today. I think the last putt was the only one I had a chance of scoring. If the putter is not working on the final day, you can never win,” said Kruger who finished second at the Handa Singapore Classic and Brunei Open, where he lost to Siddikur of Bangladesh in a play-off.
“I’m really playing well and everything has to come together on the final round especially my putting. I’m in good form and I feel that my time to win will come soon,” said Kruger, a two-time winner in South Africa .
Korean Mo, who won his second Asian Tour victory in Thailand in 2008, charged into contention after turning in 33 but his title aspiration was dashed with a bogey on hole 13.
“I had a good early start but missed a few chances on the back nine. I could have played better this week but overall it was okay. I knew what I had to shoot to give myself a chance and I remained focus of achieving that,” said Mo, who shot a 66 today.
“I looked to be on my way to actually having a chance of winning until my bogey on the 13th hole. That was very crucial, you can never make a bogey like that if you want to win a tournament,” added the Korean.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
276 Udorn Duangdecha (Thailand) 70-71-69-66
278 Jbe Kruger (S Africa) 71-65-69-73, Pariya Junhasavasdikul (Thailand) 68-72-66-72, Mo Joong-kyung (S Korea) 67-70-73-68
279 Prom Meesawat (Thailand) 68-67-70-74, Kwanchai Tannin (Thailand) 68-70-72-69
280 Tony Carolan (Australia) 66-69-71-74, Thaworn Wiratchant (Thailand) 70-70-69-71, Piya Swangarunporn (Thailand) 75-68-71-66
282 Gavin Flint (AUS) 71-72-68-71, Baek Seuk-hyun (S Korea) 74-70-68-70, Unho Park (AUS) 69-70-75-68
284 Panuphol Pittayarat (THA) 71-66-73-74, Quincy Quek (SIN) 71-67-75-71, Lam Chih Bing (SIN) 73-68-72-71, Atthaphon Prathummanee (THA) 71-71-71-71, Hwang In-choon (KOR) 69-73-72-70, Rory Hie (INA) 70-72-72-70, Scott Hend (AUS) 74-71-71-68
285 Blair Wilson (AUS) 75-70-71-69

European Tour release dates and venues for 2011

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE EUROPEAN TOUR
The Race to Dubai on The 2011 European Tour International Schedule, featuring a minimum of 50 tournaments in 29 different destinations, including new events in the Kingdom of Bahrain, Malaysia and Sicily, will conclude with the Dubai World Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, from December 8-11.
As a consequence of the later finish to The Race to Dubai in 2011, it is anticipated that The European Tour’s International Schedule will, in future, be played within the same calendar year, with the 2012 season commencing in mid January of that year and culminating in late November.
Three new events - the Volvo Golf Champions at The Royal Golf Club, Kingdom of Bahrain, from January 27-30, the Sicilian Open from March 17-20 and the Iskandar Johor Open from November 17-20 - appear on a schedule further enhanced by the return of the Volvo World Match Play Championship in addition to the biennial team events, The Vivendi Trophy with Seve Ballesteros and the Omega Mission Hills World Cup.
The sixth edition of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship on January 20-23 will launch a month-long “Gulf Swing” taking in the Volvo Golf Champions – one of three Volvo-sponsored tournaments – and the established Commercialbank Qatar Masters presented by Dolphin Energy and the Omega Dubai Desert Classic. This will be the 14th Qatar Masters and the 22nd Dubai Desert Classic.
Wentworth Club will, for the 31st time and the 28th in succession, host The European Tour’s flagship event – the BMW PGA Championship - from May 26-29, one of three tournaments in six weeks organised by the German car manufacturer with the BMW Italian Open from June 9-12 and the BMW International Open from June 23-26.
New venues for The 2011 Race to Dubai will include those hosting the Ballantine’s Championship (Blackstone Golf Club, Seoul), the Hassan II Golf Trophy (Golf de Palais et Golf de L’Océan, Agadir) and the Omega Mission Hills World Cup (Mission Hills Resort, Hainan island).
For the first time, three of the four Major Championships will be defended by European Tour Members in 2011 – the US Open Championship at Congressional Country Club (Graeme McDowell), The Open Championship at Royal St George’s (Louis Oosthuizen) and the US PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club (Martin Kaymer).
Keith Waters, Chief Operating Officer and Director of International Policy for The European Tour, said: “We are extremely encouraged that The 2011 Race to Dubai comprises not only many of our established tournaments in addition to some new events and venues but also three significant month-long runs in designated locations. We start with four weeks in South Africa then four in the Gulf and later in the year there is a similar sequence with the Iberian Peninsula Swing.
“The success of our Members globally, including three Major Championship wins in 2010, and the winning of The Ryder Cup, has clearly contributed to the continuing development of The European Tour International Schedule but we are further inspired by the superb support of our many partners and sponsors whom we sincerely thank. The Tour’s business is geographically and culturally very diverse and while some territories remain positive we would particularly like to thank our partners, tournament promoters and sponsors in countries where the economic climate is very challenging and have continued to support us.
“With the return of the Omega Mission Hills World Cup, The Race to Dubai will conclude in December for the first time in 2011, enabling us to introduce a schedule based on the calendar year, which has been our stated intention for some time now. We anticipate, therefore, that the 2012 season will commence in January that year and conclude in late November.”

 2011 EUROPEAN TOUR INTERNATIONAL SCHEDULE
2010
DECEMBER
9‐12 Alfred Dunhill Championship Leopard Creek CC, Malelane, South Africa
16‐19 South African Open Championship Durban CC, Durban, South Africa
2011
JANUARY
6‐9 Africa Open East London GC, East London, Eastern Cape, South Africa
13‐16 Joburg Open Royal Johannesburg & Kensington GC, Johannesburg, South Africa
20‐23 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship Abu Dhabi GC, Abu Dhabi, UAE
27‐ 30 Volvo Golf Champions The Royal Golf Club, Kingdom of Bahrain
FEBRUARY
3‐6 Commercialbank Qatar Masters presented by Dolphin Energy Doha GC, Doha, Qatar
10‐13 Omega Dubai Desert Classic Emirates GC, Dubai, UAE
17‐20 Avantha Masters DLF G&CC, New Delhi, India
23‐27 WGC ‐ Accenture Match Play Championship Ritz‐Carlton GC, Dove Mountain, Marana, Arizona, USA
MARCH
10‐13 World Golf Championship Doral Golf Resort & Spa, Doral, Florida
17‐20 Sicilian Open Golf Donnafugata Golf Resort & SPA, Sicily, Italy
24‐27 Open de Andalucia de Golf Parador de Málaga Golf, Málaga, Spain
31‐3 Apr Trophée Hassan II Golf du Palais Royal and Golf de L’Océan, Agadir, Morocco
APRIL
7‐10 MASTERS TOURNAMENT Augusta National GC, Georgia, USA
14‐17 Maybank Malaysian Open TBA
21‐24 Volvo China Open TBA
28–1 May Ballantine's Championship Blackstone GC, Icheon, Seoul, S Korea
MAY
5‐8 Open de España TBA
12‐15 Iberdrola Open Pula GC, Son Servera, Mallorca, Spain
19‐22 Volvo World Match Play Championship Finca Cortesin, Casares, Andalucia, Spain
19‐22 Madeira Islands Open BPI ‐ Portugal Porto Santo Golfe, Madeira, Portugal
26‐29 BMW PGA CHAMPIONSHIP Wentworth Club, Surrey, England
JUNE
2‐5 The Celtic Manor Wales Open The Celtic Manor Resort, City of Newport.
9‐12 BMW Italian Open Royal Park I Roveri, Turin, Italy
16‐19 US OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP Congressional CC, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
16‐19 SAINT‐OMER OPEN presented by Neuflize OBC Aa Saint Omer GC, Lumbres, France
23‐26 BMW International Open Golfclub München Eichenried, Munich, Germany
30‐3 Jul Alstom Open de France Le Golf National, Paris, France.
JULY
7‐10 The Barclays Scottish Open TBA
14‐17 THE 140th OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP Royal St George's GC, Sandwich, Kent
21‐24 Nordea Scandinavian Masters Bro Hof Slott GC, Stockholm, Sweden
28‐31 Irish Open TBA
AUGUST
4‐7 WGC – Bridgestone Invitational Firestone CC, Akron, Ohio, USA
11‐14 US PGA CHAMPIONSHIP Atlanta Athletic Club, Johns Creek, Georgia, USA
18‐21 Czech Open Prosper Golf Resort, Čeladná, Czech Republic
25‐28 Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles, Gleneagles Hotel.
SEPTEMBER
1‐4 Omega European Masters Crans‐sur‐Sierre, Crans Montana, Switzerland
8‐11 KLM Open Hilversumsche GC, Hilversum, The Netherlands
15‐18 The Vivendi Trophy with Seve Ballesteros* Saint‐Nom‐la‐Bretèche, Paris.
22‐25 Austrian GolfOpen Diamond CC, Atzenbrugg, Austria
29‐2 Oct Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Old Course, St Andrews, Carnoustie, Kingsbarns.
OCTOBER
6‐9 Madrid Masters TBA
13‐16 Portugal Masters TBA
20‐23 CASTELLÓ MASTERS Costa Azahar Club de Campo del Mediterráneo, Castellón, Valencia, Spain
27‐30 Andalucia Masters Venue TBA, Andalucia, Spain
NOVEMBER
3‐6 WGC ‐ HSBC Champions Shanghai, China
10‐13 Barclays Singapore Open The Tanjong & The Serapong, Sentosa GC, Singapore
17‐20 Iskandar Johor Open TBA
24‐27 Omega Mission Hills World Cup Mission Hills Resort, Hainan Island, Southern China
DECEMBER
1‐4 UBS Hong Kong Open Hong Kong GC, Fanling, Hong Kong
8‐11 DUBAI WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP presented by DP World Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, UAE
* denotes Approved Special Event

Commanding victory for Kuramota in Japan

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE EUROPEAN TOUR
Masahiro Kuramoto claimed a four-stroke victory in the Handa Cup Senior Masters on the European Senior Tour’s first visit to Japan and immediately announced plans to compete in Europe.
Kuramoto of Japan shot a final round of 65 for a 17 under par total of 271 at Ohmurasaki Golf Club to finish ahead of Frankie Minoza of the Philippines and the Japanese pairing of Satoshi Higashi and Kiyoshi Murota.
Major champions Sandy Lyle of Scotland and Welshman Ian Woosnam, Scot Andrew Oldcorn and European Senior Tour No 1 Boonchu Ruangkit of Thailand all shared fifth place on 12 under par but were unable to threaten the leader.
Woosnam, the defending champion, did, however, have the consolation of a course record 63 in the final round.
“I am very happy to win this tournament as it is the first time we have co-sanctioned with the European Senior Tour,” said the Kuramoto. “In the future I want to play in Europe and aim to play the Senior Open Championship and other events next year.
“I am delighted that Dr Handa has made this tournament happen and for the efforts he makes for blind golf. I want to help in the future. And I am proud to win amongst these great players.”
Woosnam made ten birdies and one bogey in his defence of the title, finishing his golfing year off in style.
“I played reasonably yesterday but I couldn’t hole the putts but today they started going in early on and it’s just nice to get a good one for the last one of the year.
“It was a good defence. I wasn’t feeling well at the beginning of the week, but I’m starting to feel better now. I’ve still got it now and again. I will be back to try to win again.”
Lyle, enjoying his best tournament run for many years, carded a final round 70 to claim a second successive top five finish to round of the year while Oldcorn finished with a 69.
“My number going out today was 69 so I’m happy to have achieved that,” said Oldcorn. “I’ve got through emotional ups and downs today. I was tense all day, I think due to the reality of not being in that position in a big event in a long time. I’m delighted really, it turned out to be a great week after all.”
Runagkit proved once again why he was the European Senior Tour’s Number One golfer of 2010 with a strong finish with a 66 to join the group at 12 under par.
“I wanted to win it, but it is still an ok start to the new season,” he said. “The last two times in Japan I was leading until the final round so here I was hoping to win.”
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
271 M Kuramoto (Japan) 69 71 66 65
275 F Minoza (Philippines) 70 66 68 71, S Higashi (Japan) 69 68 67 71, K Murota (Japan)72 66 68 69
276 B Ruangkit (Thailand) 69 73 68 66, A Oldcorn (Scotland) 70 66 71 69, S Lyle (Scotland) 68 69 69 70, I Woosnam (Wales) 70 69 74 63
278 B Lane (England) 67 72 71 68
279 A Franco (Paraguay)70 69 72 68
280 M Harwood (Australia) 71 70 70 69, Kiyoshi Maita (Japan) 70 68 70 72;
281 R Drummond (Scotland) 72 69 71 69
282 T Watanabe (Japan) 70 72 69 71
283 K Takahashi (Japan) 69 69 72 73, W Grady (Australia) 71 72 69 71, S Okuda (Japan) 67 71 70 75, K Tomori (Japan) 66 72 74 71, R Chapman (England) 72 69 72 70, N Fujiike (Japan) 72 72 70 69.
Selected scores:
284 Marc Farry (France) 66 71 74 73 (jt 21st).
285 David J Russell (England) 71 68 73 73 (jt 24th).
286 Gary Wolstenholme (England) 73 72 71 70, Graham Banister (England) 74 72 70 70 (jt 27th).
287 Peter Fowler (Australia) 71 71 73 72 (jt 30th).
288 Des Smyth (Ireland) 71 72 70 75, Chris Williams 70 76 69 73 (jt 34th).
289 Nick Job (England) 71 72 75 71, Gordon J Brand (England) 68 75 75 71, Mike Clayton (Australia) 71 74 69 75, John Harrison (England) 71 71 73 74 (jt 37th).
290 Bill Longmuir (Scotland) 73 70 71 76 (jt 48th).
291 David Merriman 71 70 74 76, George Ryall 75 71 74 71 (jt 50th).
292 Kevin Spurgeon (England) 72 71 77 72 (jt 55th).
294 Mark Belsham 68 72 80 74 (jt 57th).
MISSED HALFWAY CUT
147 Sam Torrance (Scotland) 75 72.

EUROPEAN TOUR QUALIFYING SCHOOL STAGE 2

ARCOS GARDENS, Jerez, Spain
Scots' scores
Par 144
146 Chris Doak 72 74 (jt 25th).
147 Joel Hendry 71 76 (jt 30th).
149 Ross Bain 72 77 (jt 41st).
153 Craig Matheson 74 79 (60th).
73 players in field.

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HACIENDA DEL ALAMO, Murcia, SpainPar 144
Scots' scores
143 Elliot Saltman 71 2 (jt 32nd).
145 Wallace Booth 71 74, Shaun McAllister 69 76, Andrew McArthur 73 72 (jt 44th).
146 Craig Lee 74 72 (jt 50th).
148 Stephen Gray 73 75 (jt jt 63rd).
152 Eric Ramsay 75 72 (jt 70th).
71 players in field.

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EL VALLE GOLF RESORT, SPAIN
Scots' scores
Par 142 (2x71)
139 Graham Fox 72 67 (jt 7th).
145 Keir McNicoll 71 74 (jt 41st).
147 Callum Macaulay 76 71 (jt 50th).
148 Jason McCreadie 76 72 (jt 54th).
154 Gavin Dear 78 76 (jt 69th).
71 players in field.

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COSTA BALLENA, Jerez, Spain

At this venue, there was a suspension of play for 5 ½ hours because of storms and flooding so the second round was not finished on Saturday.
Sunday morning second-round totals completed
Scots' scores
139 Jack Doherty 68 71 (jt 7th
140 Lloyd Saltman 67 73 (jt 12th).
141 Mark Kerr 72 69 (jt 19th).
142 John Gallagher 69 73 (jt 27th).

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