Monday, February 07, 2011

MARTIN LAIRD WINS $353,800 FOR JT 3RD FINISH IN PHOENIX OPEN

FROM THE US PGA TOUR WEBSITE
(with some additional words by Colin Farquharson)
SCOTTSDALE, Arizona -- Green Bay Packers fan Mark Wilson celebrated a big victory of his own on a playing field about as close to frozen tundra as it gets on the US PGA Tour today.
A self-described cheesehead from Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, Wilson won the frost-delayed Waste Management Phoenix Open, which spilled over into a fifth day, for his second victory in three starts this year. He holed a 9ft birdie putt on the second hole of a play-off with Jason Dufner after they had tied on 18-under-par 266.
They had finished two shots ahead of joint third-placed Martin Laird (pictured) from Glasgow and Fiji veteran Vijay Singh. Laird had the lowest aggregate for the last two rounds - 64 and 65 over the par-71 course. He was 12 under par for his last 27 holes and earned $353,800, bringing his earnings in 2011 up to $405,800 from three starts, having missed the cut in his last outing.
Sony Open winner Wilson said:"I'm just enjoying the ride here and that's just kind of the way I'm going to look at the year here, just ride this train as long as I can."
After playing until dark Sunday and fulfilling some parental duties, he was able to watch only a few minutes of the Super Bowl.
"I had to wash Lane's face and put his jammies on, and I had to eat, too," Wilson said. "The chaos, with two little kids running around -- I like the chaos; it's a good distraction. But at that time, I want to at least get to watch the last 15 minutes of this game. This doesn't happen every year, the Packers in the Super Bowl.
"Luckily, my son, after we played Candy Land in the middle of the fourth quarter, he said, `OK, the last two minutes we can watch it together.' So we watched that last stand, and I was happy that they somehow pulled it off."
Delays for frost and frozen turf the first four days forced the Monday finish.
Two strokes ahead when play resumed Monday, Wilson closed with a 2-under 69 to match Dufner at 18 under. Dufner shot a 66, with birdies on Nos. 16 and 17.
"I was a little more nervous today than I was expecting," Wilson said. "I didn't sleep great last night. It was probably the excitement with the Super Bowl and the uncertainty of today."
The Sony Open winner last month in a 36-hole Sunday finish, Wilson made a 4-foot par putt on the par-4 18th to extend the playoff. He won on the par-4 10th, setting up the deciding putt with a 7-iron approach from the middle of the fairway.
"That was an easy putt," Wilson said. "Just thankfully, I started it on line and knocked it in."
Dufner was facing a 7-foot par putt when Wilson ended the playoff.
"Came out and made a couple birdies to put maybe a little heat on Mark, and he played great," Dufner said. "Great two-putt on the first playoff hole from 70-plus feet and makes birdie on the next hole."
Wilson earned $1,098,000 for his fourth US Tour title and moved to No. 1 in the FedExCup standings. The former University of North Carolina player also won the 2007 Honda Classic and 2009 Mayakoba Golf Classic.
He has jumped from 91st to 51st in the world ranking -- locking up a spot in the 64-man field for the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship -- after finishing last season at No. 230 in the Official World Golf Ranking.
After resuming play Monday on the 13th green, Wilson made seven straight pars before holing the winning birdie putt.
He nearly drove into the water on the left side of the 18th hole in regulation, but the ball cleared the hazard and ended up in a bunker. He hit a 9-iron approach to about 14 feet and two-putted to force the playoff.
"I got away with a bad tee shot on 18, but luckily got a good bounce and was hoping I'd finish it off there," Wilson said. "But the playoff was fun."
Dufner is still winless on the US Tour. He also settled for par on the final hole of regulation after nearly holing out from a greenside bunker.
"It's a good start to the year," Dufner said. "To be honest, this is a course that I never really thought I could compete on. History on this golf course is a lot of long-ball hitters. Mark and myself probably aren't the longest, but we're probably not the shortest. But to be able to compete and be at the top of the field for the week is good, so it's definitely good momentum for the rest of the West Coast swing."
Martin Laird (65) and Vijay Singh (66) tied for third at 16 under, and Gary Woodland (66), J.B. Holmes (67) and Nick Watney (68) followed at 15 under.
Third-round leader Tommy Gainey, a stroke back with two holes left, closed with a 74 to tie for eighth at 14 under. He made a triple bogey on the par-4 17th after hitting into the water twice on the driveable hole.
"I guess I've just got to deal with it," Gainey said. "You've got to win with class and you've got to lose with class, so I'm trying to deal with that right now."
Phil Mickelson tied for 29th at 10 under. He finished with consecutive 71s after getting into contention with opening rounds of 67 and 65.
Mickelson, second a week ago in San Diego, needed at least a solo third-place finish to pass Tiger Woods for No. 3 in the world. Lefty hasn't been ranked ahead of Woods since the week before the 1997 Masters.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 284 (4x71)

Players from US unless stated otherwise
266 Mark Wilson 65 64 68 69, Jason Duffner 65 68 67 66 (Wilson won sudden-death play-off at second extra hole).
268 Martin Laird (Scotland) 68 71 64 65, Vijay Singh (Fiji) 69 65 68 66.
269 Nick Watney 70 66 65 68, J B Holmes 65 70 67 67, Gary Woodland 68 66 69 66.
270 Brandt Snedeker 69 68 66 67, Webb Simpson 70 66 67 67, Y E Yang (S Korea) 69 65 67 69, Chris Couch 66 65 68 71, Tommy Gainey 63 65 68 74.
Selected totals
274 Phil Mickelson 67 65 71 71 (T29).
277 Brian Davis (England) 70 68 69 70 (T49).

TO READ ALL THE FINAL TOTALS AND CHECK THE SCORES

CLICK HERE

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WHERE ARE THEY NOW? SERIES: No 2 - GRAHAM LOWSON



Lindsay Stewart (Merchants of Edinburgh), then president of the Scottish Golf Union, with the Scottish amateur match-play championship trophy, and the winner, Graham Lowson (Auchterarder) at Downfield GC, Dundee in 1991. No prizes for guessing the company that sponsored the championship in those days (image by Cal Carson Golf Agency).

GRAHAM LOWSON, THE WORKING AMATEUR

WHO WAS A GREAT MATCH-PLAYER

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Colin@scottishgolfview.com
Relatively easy to track down Graham Lowson (Auchterarder), the Scottish amateur match-play champion of 1991, for our “Where are they now?” series (which teed off last week with Laura Moffat: see www.kirkwoodgolf.co.uk).
That’s because (a) Graham still lives in Auchterarder and (b) He still works as an asset finance specialist.
My thanks to Dundee Courier golf writer Steve Scott and past SGU president Hugh Hunter, who has a library of golf reference books second only to Gillian Kirkwood, for their considerable help in compiling this article.
Graham Lowson’s forte as a golfer was match-play. He won far more matches than he lost, not only for Perth and Kinross in county matches but especially for Scotland, which was one of the reasons he was recalled to international duty in 1997-98 after his earlier cap career spanned the 1989-91 seasons.
Graham recalls: “I did not badly in the SGU Order of Merit in 1997-98 and got to the quarter-finals of the Scottish amateur in 1997. In the home internationals that year I won two out of three singles, playing No 1! Jamie Donaldson was the only man I lost to. I can remember playing against Justin Rose and Gary Wolstenholme in the foursomes – and lost!

Did Lowson, pictured right as he looks now, ever consider turning professional in the 1990s?

“Never. I was never a full-time amateur. I’ve always worked for a living and, anyway, I always thought it would be too difficult to make the grade and a living as a tour pro,” he said.
“Some more of the guys who did make the switch should have thought that way too!”
Lowson, area sales manager with First Independent Finance Ltd., has been an asset finance specialist for over 26 years “with a particular understanding of turfcare, agriculture, haulage, construction and the small business sector.
“I joined First Independent Finance Ltd as the business gave me the ability to offer greater choice and higher levels of trust to my customer base, along with a wide credit appetite and a service that has been proved to be second to none.
“If you are in the market for any asset for your business, I guarantee I will be one of your greatest asset for your business.”
Graham’s love of golf has never diminished over the years but he also enjoys shooting, walking and training three dogs.
SGU past president Hugh Hunter recalls the 1991 Scottish amateur championship at Downfield.

“In the semi-finals, Graham Lowson beat Garry Hay (Hilton Park) by one hole while Len Salariya ( Downfield), who was the ‘local hero’/ surprise packet of the tournament, beat Derek Paton (Dunnikier Park) 3 and 2 in the other.
“In the 36-hole final, Lowson and Salariya were all square after 28 holes. Then Lowson hit three birdies to stand three up with four to play. Salariya was bunkered at the 15th and failed to get up and down so Lowson won 4 and 3.“
Salariya’s great week was not rewarded with a Scotland cap in the home internationals. It was obviously considered a flash in the pan performance, aided by local knowledge on his home course. Perhaps the SGU selectors were right.


Graham Lowson (pictured left by Cal Carson Golf Agency) playing in the 2001 East of Scotland Open amateur stroke-play championship at Lundin Golf Club.

Any comments? You can E-mail them to Colin@scottishgolfview.com

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CHALLENGE TOUR 2011 TEES OFF AT DISNEYLAND, PARIS

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE EUROPEAN TOUR
The first tournament to be held in Europe on the 2011 European Challenge Tour Schedule will take place at Golf Disneyland near Paris, France, host venue of the Allianz Challenge de France, from May 5-8.
It is the first time the course will have been used on the Challenge Tour since the 1993 Tournoi Perrier de Paris, an event won by four-time Major Champion Phil Mickelson of America.
The complex, situated in the town of Marne-la-Vallée some 35km outside Paris, features three nine-hole layouts – the Red, Blue and Orange – all with several water hazards, an abundance of bunkering and large, firm greens.
The Allianz Challenge de France follows visits to India, Colombia and Kenya, for the Gujarat Kensville Challenge, the Abierto International Copa Antioquia and the Barclays Kenya Open respectively.
The €150,000 event is the first of four Allianz-sponsored tournaments due to be held in France on the 2011 Challenge Tour Schedule, with the Allianz Open Côtes d’Armor Bretagne (from June 9-12), the Allianz Golf Open Grand Toulouse (from September 22-25) and the Allianz Golf Open de Lyon (from October 6-9) to follow later in the season.

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BRIDGEND GOLF CLUB NEAR LINLITHGOW FOR SALE

NEWS RELEASE
You don’t have to be a billionaire like Donald Trump to own your own golf course. And there are no endless planning enquiries and millions of pounds of investment required to buy the Bridgend and District Golf Club, by Linlithgow, which is on the market through DMH Baird Lumsden at offers over £295,000.
The nine-hole golf course, which was founded in 1994 with a par of 34 is set in around 39 acres and also comprises a purpose-built clubhouse of just under 5,100 square feet with a large reception area and adjoining offices, bar lounge with restaurant, dancing area and all the other amenities you might expect in a modern golf club.
In addition, the clubhouse has an extensive attic area of just over 2,500 square feet within the roof structure which has been designed to allow easy conversion to additional accommodation subject to required consents.
Linlithgow, with its impressive royal palace and an extensive range of social, shopping, sporting and transport facilities, is only three miles west of Bridgend, a residential village with its own primary school and local shop.
The golf club is situated on the west side of the village and has fine views over the adjoining countryside and across the Forth. The surrounding land is mainly agricultural and to the south stands the impressive landmark, Cockleroy Hill.
Duncan Fergusson of DMH Baird Lumsden, who is marketing the club on behalf of its 130 members, said: “The course and the clubhouse offer an exciting opportunity for a golf course operator or a private individual who is fanatical about the game, to buy and operate it on a commercial basis. In addition the extensive attic space could be converted subject to the required consents to form first-class residential accommodation.”
+Bridgend and District Golf Club, Bridgend near Linlithgow, is offered for sale by DMH Baird Lumsden, 15 Alva Street, Edinburgh EH2 4PH. Tel: 0131 477 6001. Fax: 0131 477 6016. Web: www.dmhbl.co.uk.









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ELLIOT SALTMAN TALKS ON SKY SPORTS TONIGHT

FROM THE SKY SPORTS WEBSITE
TONIGHT'S (Monday) Special Report tackles the issues surrounding the often complicated laws and disciplinary procedures in the game of golf.
We examine the case of Elliot Saltman, the rookie golfer from Scotland suspended by the European Tour for "a serious breach of the rules".
We track him down in Spain, still competing against the pros on a minor tour, and he speaks for the first time about the stigma of the ban.
We're also in Qatar where Lee Westwood calls for Saltman's ban to be extended worldwide and in Scotland where the R and A, the body in charge of upholding golf's laws, say everyone deserves a second chance.
As Saltman's lawyers consider an appeal, we investigate the Tour's disciplinary procedures and some big names in the game call for them to be overhauled.
We also look at the recent cases of the top pros disqualified after being shopped by armchair fans and the rule makers' plans to stop it from ever happening again.
Sky Sports' Mark Roe talks about the day he was disqualified from The Open and we find out how much the amateurs understand in our golf rules quiz.
Don't forget to tune in to Special Report on Sky Sports News - now available in HD on channel 455 - at 7.30pm on Monday.

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