US COLLEGE GOLF WAS THE CATALYST IN McDOWELL CAREER

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE
GRAEME McDOWELL INTERVIEW
"I’m not like a Sergio Garcia or a Rory McIlroy, thrust into the limelight every week. I wasn’t a boy wonder like them. A lot of people would have been thinking who the hell I was after picking up the US Open.”
Not now. McDowell’s magic carpet ride in 2010 also took him to victory at the Wales Open, the Andalucia Masters and last week at the Chevron World Challenge in California, where he became the first player to give Woods a four-shot lead on the final day and emerge the winner. McDowell was required to sink a 20-footer to take Woods to a play-off and a 25-footer to win at the first extra hole.
Graeme McDowell is on a roll, an overnight sensation eight years in the making. The spectacular shedding of anonymity in 2010 is part of the charm of McDowell’s story. The years spent grinding in the ranks, and before that in the alien environs of American college golf, provide the substance.
“I went out to the States in 1999. I was 19. I was at Queens in Belfast studying engineering, but I was distracted. I got a phone call in THE November, asking if I would be interested in playing college golf in Alabama. Hell yeah.
“I grew a lot as a person, put on a stone eating ---- and drinking beer. I was spending time around guys brought up to be winners. We are much more humble people in Northern Ireland, understated.
"All of a sudden I was thrust into this American lifestyle where everyone seemed brash and cocky and wanted to be winners. That did a lot for me. I came back that first summer and won pretty much everything in Ireland, got myself in the Walker Cup team and by the third year was No 1 college player in the States.
“If I hadn’t gone over there would I be sitting where I am now? I kind of think I wouldn’t. I believe everybody is probably capable of great things but not everyone gets the opportunity, or finds something they are passionate about.
"I was pretty average at most things. I’m not the kind of guy who can pick up a tennis racket and start whipping forehands over the net. Luckily I got the golf bug early.”

KINGSBARNS LINKS ENJOYS 30% IN VISITOR ROUNDS IN 2010

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY GOLF COMMUNICATIONS INTERNATIONALKingsbarns Golf Links, a few miles south of St Andrews. celebrated its tenth anniversary season in style with a 30% surge in Visitor rounds of golf played.
More than 27,000 rounds were played this season over the links, capping an excellent season. Such was the increase in demand that the season was extended by two weeks in November to accommodate additional play.
Kingsbarns also recently cemented its position as one of the UK’s finest courses when it was ranked 11th in the prestigious Golf Monthly Top 100 courses.
Stuart McEwen, General Manager at Kingsbarns, said, “We are absolutely delighted with the way the season has gone especially as we celebrated such a major milestone. We have now passed the 280,000 round mark since the course opened in July 2000 and that is testimony to the excellence of the course design and the hard work of the greenkeepers and other staff here who help to ensure the course and facilities are in top class condition every day of the season. The signs are already looking good for 2011 with bookings up by 10% on this period last year and we look forward to another ten years of success.”
The staging of the Open Championship in nearby St Andrews placed Kingsbarns in the spotlight and led to some of the greatest golfers ever to have played the game making the short trip down the coast. Tom Watson, Gary Player and Lee Trevino took to the fairways and were warm in their praise for Kingsbarns.
While the course condition attracted widespread praise throughout the season, Kingsbarns also excelled off the course with caddie manager Davy Gilchrist being named the Caddiemaster of the Year in the Golf Tourism Scotland Annual Awards for the second year in succession.
“We work very hard to ensure that golfers enjoy an outstanding experience when they play golf at Kingsbarns and leave with wonderful stories to tell,” said Davy.
“Caddies have a huge role to play in that regard with 60% of all visitors taking a caddie for their rounds. I am fortunate to have such a great team here and they are fully committed to providing the highest standards of service.”
Kingsbarns reopens for the 2011 season on April 1. The green fee for next season is £185 with a 50% discount for golfers playing a second round within seven days.
For booking information contact 01334 460861 or visit www.kingsbarns.com.

NORTH-EAST DISTRICT OFFICIALS FOR 2011

Former Scottish League football referee Mike Pocock, pictured, group sales manager of Styropack UK, stepped up to become president of the North-east District Association of the Scottish Golf Union at yesterday's annual district meeting.
He succeeds Ron Menzies who died in office last October.

Full list of officials for 2010-11:

President: Mike Pocock (Oldmeldrum).
Vice-president: Jim Hunter (Ballater) 
Secretary/Treasurer George Young (Inverallochy)
Committee: Alan Joss (Royal Aberdeen), David Rennie (Deeside), Willie Donald (Stonehaven), Paul Gallacher (Turriff), Joe Phillip (Northern), Raymond Penny (Stonehaven) and Ken Bennions (Peterhead).

"We still have room for two more committee members. Anyone interested in volunteering should contact myself or George Young," said president Pocock.
Mike Pocock's E-mail address is mike.pocock@styropack.co.uk and George Young's is georgemyoung24@btinternet.com

PETER SENIOR WINS AUSSIE PGA TITLE PLAY-OFF

FROM THE GOLF.COM WEBSITE
COOLUM, Australia (AP) — Australia's Peter Senior won the rain-delayed Australian PGA Championship today, beating Geoff Ogilvy with a par on the second hole of a playoff to become the oldest player to win a major professional tournament in Australia outwith the over-50s' events.
The 51-year-old Senior, a regular on the US Champions (Seniors) Tour, made a 10ft birdie putt on the 18th hole in regulation for a 1-under 71 to match Ogilvy, the Australian Open winner last week in Sydney, at 12-under 276. Ogilvy finished with a 66.
Both players parred the 18th hole on the first hole of the playoff, and Ogilvy three-putted for a bogey on the second extra hole to give Senior his third Australian PGA title. He won the 1989 event at Riverside Oaks near Sydney and the 2003 tournament at Coolum.
"What a great way to finish the year," Senior said. "Geoff hit a pretty indifferent iron shot into 18, and we all know how difficult it is to get down from that area. But I would have rather made my (birdie) putt instead of Geoff three-putting, but that's what happens."
Ogilvy said he was disappointed with the finish but not with his play overall in the past two weeks.
"That's the best way I've finished a year in a long time," Ogilvy said. "But to be honest, I never really felt that I was in this tournament until Sunday. And I never thought my 12 under would hold up for a play-off."
Ogilvy had to wait at least an hour - "I hit a lot of balls on the range" - between his finish and Senior completing his round in the final pairing.
Twenty-four players finished the round Monday after heavy rain delayed play Sunday.
Australians Nick O'Hern (69), Peter Fowler (71) and Andre Stolz (71) tied for third at 11 under. Stolz bogeyed the 18th after hitting his tee shot into the water.
American Bobby Gates, who led by a stroke after the third round, bogeyed two of his final nine holes Monday and finished with a 74, leaving him two strokes out of the play-off
Ogilvy resumed play Monday on the 14th hole, and birdied that hole and No. 16. Senior, ahead by one when play resumed, bogeyed his first hole of the day - the 10th - after his tee shot in pouring rain Sunday left him in the trees.
Defending champion Robert Allenby finished four strokes back after a 70.
Gates, playing the Coolum course for the first time, tried to be diplomatic Sunday when play was called despite a tough officiating decision that had forced him to hit an awkward shot out of a bunker that was nearly flooded by rain. He ended up bogeying the hole."I've never played where it's gotten to this point before, but I understand they want to try to get it in," Gates said.
Senior, who said he felt Gates got a bad decision on his bunker shot, said the last three holes that he and Gates played were extremely difficult, and "the 10th tee was actually underwater when we got there."
"I was just a little disappointed that the round wasn't called a little earlier," Senior said. "A lot of guys were suffering out there, not so much with the rain, but when the fairways become so water-logged that you can't actually hit golf shots that's when it should be called. ... Poor old Bobby Gates. The bunker was just riddled with water on the ninth hole there and had to play his shot and he could have made 4 if he just putted the hole. But when the course is unplayable, the day should be called and that's it."

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IAN POULTER, DUSTIN JOHNSON WIN SHARK SHOOTOUT

FROM THE GOLF.COM WEBSITE
NAPLES, FLORIDA (AP) — Dustin Johnson and Ian Poulter won the Shark Shootout on Sunday, shooting a 13-under 59 in the scramble format to beat Darren Clarke and Graeme McDowell by two shots.
Johnson and Poulter, pictured right, took the lead with birdies on their first four holes and had no trouble the rest of the way in finishing at 30-under 186. Clarke and McDowell (59) never came closer than two strokes.
The two teams passed second-round co-leaders Jerry Kelly and Steve Stricker (64) and Fred Funk and Kenny Perry (66). Kelly and Stricker, the defending champions, tied for third at 26 under with Chris DiMarco and Anthony Kim (61).
The 12 teams in the tournament hosted by Greg Norman at Tiburon Golf Club played modified alternate shot in the first round and better ball in the second. Johnson and Poulter split $750,000 from the $3 million purse.
Johnson and Poulter, who played for the rival U.S. and European Ryder Cup teams two months ago, made the perfect duo in the three-format tournament.
After a birdie on No. 3, they maintained sole possession of the lead, although Clarke and McDowell gave chase.
"They kind of pushed us around," Poulter said. "You know what, making the birdies they did, it was kind of good for us to see good shot after good shot, and good putts going in. It's a lot easier to hole putts when your playing partners do."
Funk-Perry and Kelly-Stricker started the day in front by a shot, but both teams started slowly. Funk-Perry made a birdie, then eight straight pars. Kelly-Stricker had three birdies on the front.
With Johnson putting first in the scramble format, Poulter took advantage, perhaps nowhere more so than on the par-4 15th. Holding a two-shot lead, Poulter knocked his approach to 7 feet after Clarke had put his close.
After Johnson missed his putt, Poulter made his to keep the two-shot advantage.
The two teams parred the par-3 16th, but with the par-5 17th ahead, Clarke and McDowell had another chance. They couldn't reach the green in two, but neither could Johnson and Poulter.
"It was definitely a lot harder than it looked," Johnson said. "Standing there we were like, 'Oh, this is a piece of cake.'"
Poulter came through, pitching to 7 feet. Then Johnson made the putt to follow Clarke and McDowell's birdie.
"Ian is one of the best chippers of the ball in the world, and he was the man for the job," McDowell said. "He was pretty clutch today. He played great."

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