DAVIS LOVE TO BE US RYDER CUP CAPTAIN IN 2012

FROM THE GOLFWEEK WEBSITE
By Doug Ferguson, Associated Press
HONOLULU – Davis Love III didn’t have much success against Jose Maria Olazabal as a player in the Ryder Cup. Now he gets to see how he fares against the Spaniard as a captain.
Two officials involved with the selection process confirm Love will be the next U.S. captain. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the official announcement is not until Thursday at Medinah, where the 2012 match will be played.
Reports out of Europe indicate Olazabal of Spain will be introduced as captain Tuesday at the Abu Dhabi Championship.
Love played on six Ryder Cup teams, winning the pivotal point at The Belfry in 1993. He played on only one other winning team, the great American comeback in 1999 at Brookline. His career record was 9-12-5.
Love was a vice captain in October when Europe won back the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor.
“The only thing I learned on the outside, instead of playing, is we cared too much,” Love said in an interview over the weekend. “We try too hard. I’ve talked to a couple of players about how we can treat this like another tournament. But it’s hard.
"It’s the same thing at the Masters and U.S. Open. How do we figure out how to treat it like another tournament and be more prepared to just play golf?”
Love has known all along he eventually would be a Ryder Cup captain, and he joked about trying to do it the same year as Darren Clarke. But he has some history with Olazabal, one of the most respected figures in golf.
Love faced Olazabal in his very first Ryder Cup match in 1993. He teamed with Tom Kite for a 2-and-1 victory over Olazabal and Seve Ballesteros, the most successful European team ever. That was his only win, though. Olazabal won the other four times they played in team matches at The Belfry and at Valderrama in 1997.
Love, whose lone major was the 1997 US PGA Championship, has 20 wins on the US Tour, trailing only Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Vijay Singh among players from his generation.
“He’ll be a great captain,” Steve Stricker said. “He’s played on a ton of these teams, and I remember when he had that deciding point. He’s still out here playing and he’s involved with all the guys.”
Love began his 2011 season at the Sony Open, where he shot in the 60s all four rounds and tied for ninth. He said he already had contemplated how he would juggle playing golf with Ryder Cup captain duties, not to mention his role running the McGladrey Classic in the Fall Series that is played in his Sea Island community.
He also said he had spoken to past captain Corey Pavin about how much time was required to promote the event.
“This year will be easy,” Love said. “There’s not a lot to do except to make Freddie’s Presidents Cup team.”
Love has not played in any cup since the 2005 Presidents Cup. Fred Couples returns as U.S. captain for this year’s event in Australia.

HIGH LEGH PARK GOLF CLUB BOUGHT BY BUSINESSMAN

NEWS RELEASE
After being put into receivership in August 2010 by its previous owners, High Legh Park Golf Club in Knutsford has been acquired by successful Altrincham-born businessman Andrew Vaughan who has promised to stabilise club finances in the short term and unlock its true potential through investment in the long term.
Andrew, who had moved away from the North West to pursue business interests, is now intent on moving back to the area to take a hands-on approach in developing the club’s future. He took over on January  4and immediately wrote to members to outline his blueprint for the club which he sees as a long-term project.
Situated not far from the M6 on the A50 Warrington Road, High Legh Park Golf Club opened in 1998 and boasts a state-of-the-art clubhouse with first class business and function facilities. Its challenging 18 hole course – set in historic parkland - was designed by Manchester-born former Ryder Cup Captain Mark James and offers a true test of golfing skills.
In a statement to the media Mr Vaughan, who beat several other interested parties to purchase the Club, said:
“I am very excited at the prospect of overseeing the long term transformation of this fine golf club. Whilst the Club has undoubtedly suffered from a period of neglect, I believe it has the potential and the facilities which, with the right management and investment, can develop quickly into one of Cheshire’s premier golf venues.”
“It is my intention to invest significantly in the Club and its facilities. The course will see immediate short term investment and, with the help of appointed experts, we will develop and implement a long term Course Development Plan.”
“What has also really impressed me in my short time here is the welcoming and relaxed atmosphere around the clubhouse. Our members are a huge asset to the Club and their enlightened modern approach to playing the game is a great strength. I am determined to retain and develop this ethos and this will be a major plus point for the Club in the years ahead.”
Despite only recently taking up his position, Andrew has already established a franchise agreement for the pro shop and golfing services with leading Cheshire Club Professional and businessman Gavin Beddow.
“Gavin has proved, at other courses in Cheshire, that he can introduce a wide range of quality golfing products to the pro shop and increase profitability for the course as a whole. I’m confident Gavin will soon establish an operation that will enable our members to boast one of the best Pro Golf Shops in the County.”
Inside the clubhouse things are looking up too with a new bar agreement being reached with Carlsberg Breweries, adding greater choice and value to the welcome 19th hole.
To outline his vision, Andrew invited all members to join him at the Club for an “Open House” on Saturday 15th January where he discussed his plans directly with the membership. The event also marked the opening of the new professional shop and bar.
Andrew has already acknowledged the disruption to members over the last few months with an announcement to keep fees in 2011 at the same price as 2010.
New members are very welcome and will also be rewarded if they pay a full fee on joining before the 1st April 2011 as they will then pay nothing until April 2012. In addition to no joining fee, if they join in January new members will effectively get two months free golf before the April deadline.
Visitors are also welcome to come and play the course or to visit the new Professional Shop and Andrew is promising to announce a radical new approach to visitors’ greenfee charges which will benefit both members and visitors in the near future.


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HUGH HUNTER'S CLACKMANNAN COUNTY NEWS

LOOKING FORWARD TO THE 2011 COUNTY GOLF SEASON

Now that the snow has gone (it could be temporarily of course), Wee County golf enthusiasts can smile a bit more and anticipate the 2011 competitive season in just over two months. Club officials are putting the finishing touches to their golfing calendars. Hopefully the local golfers will support the County events as well as their own Club competitions.

CLACKMANNAN COUNTY GOLF UNION NEWS

The Clackmannan County Golf Union Annual General Meeting was held at the end of last year to hear the 2010 reports, appoint officials and approve the 2011 fixtures. The leading office bearers appointed were

President George Kay (Alloa)
Vice-President Bill Hatley (Tillicoultry)
Secretary/Treasurer Tommy Johnson (Tulliallan)
Team Captain Jamie Aitken (Alloa)
SGU representative Kenneth Ellacott (Dollar)

The County Executive is completed with representatives of the six Clubs in membership and a few co-options.

George is looking forward to the new season “Clackmannanshire players have played well in recent years and hopefully this success will be maintained in 2011 at all levels from boys to seniors.” Bill echoed this “ Both boys and men’s teams did well in 2010, and with team Captain Jamie Aitken taking over from John Gullen, the County hope to maintain good performances. I would also like to see more County elite players taking on the challenge of National Golf events”


CLACKMANNAN COUNTY FIXTURES 2011
Only the main ones are listed.

Spring Meeting Saturday 23rd April A—Alloa B----Braehead
County Fours 3,5,10,12 May Dollar
Summer Meetings Saturday 21 May A—Tulliallan B Alloa
County Match Play 30 May, 2.6.9 June Braehead, Alva, Alloa Tillicoultry
County Seniors Open 31 May Dollar
County Mixed Fours 3rd July Dollar
County Championship 23rd July Braehead
Autumn Meeting 20th August Braehead

County Secretary Tommy Johnson is keen to see good support for the County events “ In recent years, entries for the events have fallen a bit----The County Golf Union are keen to see more entries in 2011--- it’s a chance to get an enjoyable game on an away local course at a very reasonable cost plus the chance to pick up some good prizes”

CALLUM STARTS WELL IN 2011

After a slight loss of form in 2010, Tulliallan’s Callum Macaulay must have been encouraged by a good performance in the Kensville Challenge Tour event held in India last week. He finished the top Scot from the four who made the long trip. His score of 4 over par 292 (72,73,75,72) gave him a share of 12th place and a welcome win of a few thousand euros. Callum had the disappointment of just missing the final qualifying for the European Tour in 2011, and must now work hard to regain his tour card next year.
The best route is through the Challenge Tour, and trying to finish in the top ten, or even better winning one. His local supporters will be wishing him well, and following his progress in the many 2011 events which are fully covered on the European Tour and Scottish Golf View websites.

GOLFER KILLED DURING ROBBERY ON S FLORICA COURSE

FROM THE GOLFWEEK WEBSITE
A golfer at a South Florida country club has been killed during a robbery attempt at the course, according to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
The Broward Sheriff’s Office is searching for the men who shot Lataurus Randall, 35, in the back on the 17th hole at Deerfield Country Club in Deerfield Beach, Florida, according to the Sun-Sentinel.
Police say Randall was playing golf with another man at about 6:30 p.m. when two masked men emerged from the bushes. During the robbery attempt, one of the men shot Randall.
Randall was rushed to North Broward Medical Center, where he died, according to the report.
This week’s shooting was the fourth such incident at a South Florida golf course in the past 13 years.

MARK WILSON WINS SONY OPEN AND TRIP TO MASTERS

FROM THE PGATOUR.COM WEBSITE
By Mike McAllister, PGATOUR.COM Managing Editor
HONOLULU -- Six minutes. That's how long Mark Wilson had between the end of his third round and the start of his fourth round Sunday during the marathon 36-hole finale of the Sony Open in Hawaii.
Six minutes. After signing his scorecard, Wilson had to race back to the clubhouse at Waialae, where he had stashed a chicken sandwich and a few sleeves of golf balls, then race back to the first tee box. It was a beat-the-clock moment.
Fortunately, the lay-out is Waialae is relatively compact, and Wilson is in pretty good shape. He made it back in four minutes. Plenty of time to spare. But not much time to dwell on the fact that he was leading the tournament, that he was 18 holes away from his third US Tour win.
That's probably a good thing. If you're going to be the 54-hole leader, not having to sleep on that lead could be beneficial. So is being able to maintain the momentum and stay on the kind of roll that Wilson got on Sunday.
Wilson played 36 holes Sunday and never made a bogey. He started the day two shots off the lead, climbed steadily up the leaderboard, shot a 5-under 65 to lead by one stroke after the third round ended, and never wavered after that, winning by two shots at 16 under.
"It was probably helpful that we played 36 holes and never stopped," Wilson said.
He was rock solid. Steady. For Wilson, relatively short off the tee, that's the formula for success. That's how he's managed to win three US Tour events. That's why he'll be making his first appearance at the Masters in April, thanks to his win on Sunday.
It may also be why he's a bit underappreciated. After all, winning any Tour event is difficult. But Wilson, who turned pro in 1997, has won three times in his last 107 starts. Compare that achievement to say, Matt Kuchar, whose three career wins have been spread over his last 207 starts. Or Justin Rose, who has two Tour wins (both of them last year) in 172 career starts.
Kuchar and Rose have higher profiles, and each is well deserved. Maybe Wilson should have a higher profile too.
"He's a steady player with a great short game," said Kuchar, paired with Wilson all day Sunday. "He was certainly steady with a great short game today."
Wilson is more worried about appreciating what he's achieved than wondering just how bright his star is shining. He readily acknowledges that he's not a top-tier guy who wins one week and then immediately puts the game face back on the next week.
"From what I've learned over the years, the more you succeed out here, the more people expect of you," he said. "I'm going to enjoy this like crazy. Last time at Mayakoba (when he won in 2009), I enjoyed it. I just soaked it in, went to the Honda (Classic) the next week and shot a pair of 72s and missed the cut. But I was still the happiest guy missing the cut. ... I let these soak in.
"That being said, I'd certainly want to play just as well every time I tee it up. I'm not going to be complacent. But I'm very grateful for the three wins and all the other great finishes out on Tour that I've had."
Sunday definitely was a great finish for Wilson, but it was not a frantic one. Frankly, he expected more heat from his pursuers.
But other than Tim Clark, whose final nine-hole flurry resulted in a 6-under 64, nobody really made him perspire too much. Since Clark started the round five shots behind Wilson, it was a difficult task to erase that kind of deficit against such a steady presence.
Clark did have an eagle putt on his last hole (the ninth) that, had he made it, would have tied for the lead at the time at 15 under.
"I was coming from behind, and always had a lot of work to do today to win the tournament," Clark said. "Mark always had it in his control and he was able to finish it off."
Wilson didn't look at a leaderboard but he didn't really need to. Kuchar and Steve Marino were two of his three closest chasers going into the final round (Jimmy Walker was the other) and both were in Wilson's group.
Kuchar couldn't make anything happen all afternoon and neither did Marino until late in the round. He posted consecutive birdies to get to 13 under going into the 72nd hole. After a brilliant second shot off a tricky lie, Marino had a chance at eagle from 27 feet. Roll it in and he would force Wilson to make his five-footer for birdie to avoid a playoff.
"I felt like if I could make that putt ... he had a tough putt, four- or five-footer straight down the hill," Marino said. "It's tough to see which way it's going to break. So I felt like if I could make that putt, I felt like I would have a pretty good chance of getting into a playoff."
But he didn't and Wilson calmly sank the birdie putt.In actuality, though, the key putt came on the previous hole, the par-3 17th, when Wilson found the bunker with his tee shot. He blasted out to 10 feet and then saved his par and his two-stroke advantage.
Wilson said he "wasn't stressing" about the situation but it did cross his mind that he had not bogeyed any hole since his 14th hole in the second round Saturday. He thought: Why start now?
"I don't have too many bogey-free rounds in my career," Wilson said, "so it's pretty cool to have two in the same day."
It's also pretty cool to have three US Tour wins, and finally get to celebrate one with the wife, as Mark did with Amy, who was waiting for him on the 18th green. It's the first time she's seen one of his wins in person.
The next time Wilson will play in Hawaii will be at next year's Hyundai Tournament of Champions. Amy will be there. So will the kids.
"Hopefully, they'll be running out on the green to give me a big hug," said the 36-year-old man from Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, richer by $990,000 for his latest win.

FINAL TOTALS
Par 280 (4x70)
1 Mark Wilson 65 67 65 67 264
T2 Tim Clark 68 68 66 64 266
T2 Steve Marino  65 67 66 68 266
4 Jimmy Walker  68 65 66 68 267
T5 Matt Bettencourt 68 65 68 67 268
T5 Matt Kuchar 65 68 66 69 268
T7 Shigeki Maruyama 65 65 70 69 269
T7 Roland Thatcher  67 65 68 69 269
T9 Chris Riley 66 69 66 69 270
T9 Jerry Kelly 68 67 69 66 270
T9 Steve Stricker 69 67 68 66 270
T9 Davis Love III 68 66 67 69 270
T13 Rory Sabbatini  69 66 67 69 271
T13 Anthony Kim  71 64 68 68 271
T13 Chad Campbell  67 67 68 69 271
T13 Tag Ridings 68 67 68 68 271
T13 Justin Rose 65 68 68 70 271
T13 Stuart Appleby  64 66 69 72 271
T13 Brian Gay  69 68 70 64 271
T20 Brendon de Jonge 68 67 66 71 272
T20 Jeff Overton 67 68 68 69 272
T20 John Senden 71 65 67 69 272
T20 Jason Day 69 67 66 70 272
T20 Kevin Na  67 67 69 69 272
T20 Cameron Beckman 69 67 68 68 272
T20 Alex Prugh 70 67 66 69 272
T27 Fredrik Jacobson 68 66 69 70 273
T27 Boo Weekley 68 66 69 70 273
T27 Marc Leishman 65 69 73 66 273
T30 Arjun Atwal 67 68 69 70 274
T30 Chris Kirk 68 67 70 69 274
T30 John Merrick  69 67 72 66 274
T30 Chris DiMarco 67 67 71 69 274
T34 Daniel Summerhays 71 64 70 70 275
T34 D.J. Brigman 70 66 71 68 275
T34 Jarrod Lyle 68 65 71 71 275
T34 Colt Knost 68 69 68 70 275
T34 Steven Bowditch  67 70 69 69 275
T34 Aaron Baddeley 73 64 70 68 275
T34 Jonathan Byrd 69 68 68 70 275
T34 Spencer Levin 70 67 71 67 275
T42 Ernie Els 70 65 67 74 276
T42 Nate Smith 65 68 69 74 276
T42 Brandt Jobe  67 70 70 69 276
T42 Kevin Chappell 70 67 68 71 276
T46 Charlie Wi  68 68 70 71 277
T46 WC Liang  66 70 70 71 277
T46 Webb Simpson 68 69 68 72 277
T46 Jason Bohn  68 69 72 68 277
50 Michael Connell 65 69 68 76 278
51 Billy Mayfair 67 70 70 72 279
52 Ryan Palmer 68 69 70 73 280
53 Michael Sim 68 67 72 74 281
T54 Jesper Parnevik 70 66 73 73 282
T54 Matt McQuillan 68 69 71 74 282
56 Jason Dufner  69 67 72 79 287

WESTWOOD, ELS, POULTER HEAD FOR BALLANTINE'S CHAMPIONSHIP

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE ASIAN TOUR
Seoul, South Korea: World number one Lee Westwood will headline a quartet of golfing greats at the €2.2 million Ballantine’s Championship in South Korea this April.
The English ace will be joined by South African superstar Ernie Els, world No.10 Ian Poulter and Asian Tour Honorary member, Y.E Yang, as the tournament moves to the prestigious Blackstone Resort in Seoul.
Westwood will be making his first visit to South Korea since playing in the 2009 Ballantine’s Championship at Pinx Golf Club on the holiday island of Jeju.
In the 21 months since he has been in superb form – winning the inaugural Race to Dubai in 2009, claiming four top-three finishes in Majors, winning on the US Tour for the first time in a decade, and ending Tiger Woods’ five-year reign at the top of the Official World Golf Ranking.
“I thoroughly enjoyed playing in the Ballantine’s Championship in 2009 and I’m very much looking forward to returning to the tournament this year,” said Westwood.
“It is exciting that the event is moving to Blackstone Resort. I’ve heard great things about the venue and, like the vast majority of the players, it will be my first time there so it promises to be quite a challenge.
“I enjoyed a fantastic 2010 and becoming the world number one has been the fulfilment of a lifelong ambition. Obviously, I’m very keen to maintain the momentum in 2011 so I’m aiming to put on a great display for the Korean fans.
“South Korea has really put itself on the world golf map these past few years with the performances of its top players and the facilities there are second to none, so it has all the makings of a great week.”
The 2011 Ballantine’s Championship, once again co-sanctioned by the European Tour, Asian Tour and Korea PGA, will be played at Blackstone Resort in Incheon, just south of Seoul, from 28 April to 1 May. The club will host the event for at least the next three years.
It will be the first time that the exclusive venue – which opened only in 2009 and has just 300 members – has hosted a professional tournament.
Westwood has an astonishing 20 European Tour titles to his credit – the second highest total by an Englishman after Sir Nick Faldo – and has been a mainstay of Europe’s successful Ryder Cup teams in the past decade.
He also has an excellent record in the Far East, including four wins in Japan from 1996-98 and victory in the 1999 Macau Open.
Els, meanwhile, has more than 60 victories worldwide including three Majors – the US Open in 1994 and 1997 and the British Open in 2002.
He recently won the South African Open Championship for an astonishing fifth time and will be looking to make it third time lucky at the Ballantine’s Championship after top 10 finishes in the past two years.