JAY DON BLAKE BEATS JOHN COOK IN CHAMPIONS TOUR PLAY-OFF

FROM THE GOLF.COM WEBSITE
INCHEON, South Korea (AP) — Jay Don Blake beat fellow American John Cook on the fifth play-off hole at the Songdo IBD Championship today for his first Champions Tour victory.
The pair both shot a 68 in the final round to finish tied on 13-under 203 with Mark O'Meara and Australian Peter Senior at the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea. O'Meara and Senior were eliminated from the play-off after bogeys on the third.
Senior shot a final-round 64 to reach the playoff, while O'Meara had a 67.
Overnight leader Michael Allen shot a 75 and fell back to 7 under to finish in a tie for sixth.

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GLASGOW BEAT LANARKSHIRE 7-3 AT HAGGS CASTLE

Glasgow beat Lanarkshire A team 7-3 today at Haggs Castle GC in the first round of the West of Scotland League fixtures:
Details (Glasgow names first):
G Miller (Cawder) bt J Steven (Bothwell Castle) 3 and 2.
G Sangster (Cathkin) bt R Jenkins (Crow Wood) 4 and 3.
J Hendrick (Pollok) lost to S Rennie (Drumpellier) 2 and 1.
C Clelland (Haggs Castle) lost to A McDonald (Crow Wood) 2 holes.
J Laurie (Cowglen) lost to C Ross (Kirkhill) 1 hole
A Welsh (Cathkin Braes) bt M Dubber (Bothwell) 1 hole.
S Robertson (Sandyhills) bt S Douglas (Drumpellier) 3 and 2.
G Belch (Haggs Castle) bt C Kerr (Cambuslang) 4 and 3.
M Lamb (Cawder) bt David Ford (Airdrie) 2 and 1.
C Wedgeworth (Cowglen) bt N Fagan (Bothwell Castle) 2 and 1.

Kris Nicol in action. Image by Tom Ward Photography

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Colin@scottishgolfview.com
Fraserburgh's international golfer Kris Nicol has turned professional following his qualification at Dundonald Links last week for Stage 2 of the European Tour Qualifying School.
Nicol, who had his 27th birthday on August 3, won the North of Scotland open amateur stroke-play championship for the David Blair Trophy at Nairn in 2008 and was runner-up to Irishman Paul Cutler in the 2010 Lytham Trophy.
He was a member of the North-east squad who won the Scottish area team championship in 2010.
This year he had a top 20 finish in the European men's individual amateur championship in Sweden.
Kris also took part in the GB and I practice matches at Balgownie prior to the Walker Cup match earlier this month.
He was on the Fraserburgh Golf Club greenkeeping staff for several years.
His mother Fiona told http://www.scottishgolfview.com/
"Kristofer feels that at this stage of his golf career he would like to move on.
He will be in Spain for the second stage of Tour School but will also be going
to try to qualify to play on the Alps Tour."

TORRANCE FINDS BARRY LANE IS A ONE-WAY ROAD TO VICTORY

By Neil Ahern, European Seniors Tour Press Officer
nahern@europeantour.com
Sam Torrance made a swift foray up the leaderboard in the final round of the Casa Serena Open but did not do enough to catch Barry Lane as the Englishman sealed his second win of the season in the Czech Republic, having won the Cleveland Golf/Srixon Scottish Senior Open last month.
Torrance entered the final day nine shots off the lead set by Lane, who brok the course record with an incredible second round nine under par 62 at Casa Serena Golf.
Torrance did threaten Lane’s lead after a front nine 29 left him just four shots back but his challenge for the title was knocked back after he failed to card a single birdie on the way home, instead dropping a shot with a bogey on the 15th on the way to a 66.
That left him tied for fifth place alongside Marc Farry, as Lane shot a steady two under par final round of 69 to clinch a two shot victory in the Czech Republic.
Roger Chapman and Peter Fowler led the charge to topple Lane in a tense final group but while the five-time European Tour winner did not quite match his second-round heroics he showed nerves of steel to card a 69 and finish on 15 under par, sealing a third Senior Tour title.
The Englishman has been on fire since finishing as the highest European at The Senior Open Championship presented by Rolex in July, defending his Cleveland Golf/Srixon Scottish Senior Open title on his next Senior Tour appearance before following that up with a second place finish at the Travis Perkins plc Senior Masters a fortnight ago.

FINAL TOTALS
Par 213 (3x71)
198 B Lane (Eng) 67 62 69,
200 P Fowler (Aus) 69 64 67,
202 R Chapman (Eng) 64 68 70, C Mason (Eng) 69 66 67,
204 S Torrance (Sco) 67 71 66, M Farry (Fra) 68 68 68,
206 A Murray (Eng) 69 68 69, M James (Eng) 77 63 66, G Wolstenholme (Eng) 68 67 71, M Harwood (Aus) 67 68 71,
207 A Franco (Par) 73 70 64, D Russell (Eng) 66 70 71, B Lincoln (RSA) 68 72 67, T Thelen (USA) 68 69 70, G Manson (Aut) 66 73 68,
208 K Tomori (Jpn) 71 68 69, M Mouland (Wal) 65 70 73, R Drummond (Sco) 71 68 69, C Williams (RSA) 71 69 68, J Quiros (Esp) 70 67 71, D Hospital (Esp) 66 70 72, A Sowa (Arg) 70 71 67, B Cameron (Eng) 69 74 65, D Cambridge (Jam) 69 70 69,
209 G Banister (Aus) 70 68 71, A Forsbrand (Swe) 67 73 69, C Rocca (Ita) 70 66 73, D Merriman (Aus) 69 71 69, L Carbonetti (Arg) 69 71 69, N Job (Eng) 67 74 68,
210 P Mitchell (Eng) 68 71 71, A Fernandez (Chi) 74 71 65, G Brand Jnr (Sco) 71 70 69, G Ralph (Eng) 74 68 68, J Gould (Eng) 69 72 69,
211 I Woosnam (Wal) 73 71 67, E Darcy (Irl) 70 69 72, D O'Sullivan (Irl) 69 73 69, A Oldcorn (Sco) 69 72 70,
212 M Bembridge (Eng) 70 69 73, J Chillas (Sco) 69 69 74, B Longmuir (Sco) 68 68 76,
213 M Cunning (USA) 71 71 71,
214 B Vaughan (USA) 72 72 70, G Brand (Eng) 71 71 72, D Durnian (Eng) 71 71 72, J Harrison (Eng) 69 73 72, J Rhodes (Eng) 72 71 71,
215 A Sherborne (Eng) 74 69 72, J Bruner (USA) 70 75 70, B Smit (RSA) 72 73 70,
216 H Carbonetti (Arg) 72 72 72, S Van Vuuren (RSA) 72 73 71,
217 M Moreno (Esp) 70 75 72, N Ratcliffe (Aus) 71 74 72, J Rivero (Esp) 70 74 73, T Johnstone (Zim) 67 75 75, R Davis (Aus) 70 75 72,
218 G Cali (Ita) 71 75 72, M Belsham (Eng) 70 75 73, M Clayton (Aus) 72 76 70,
219 J Juhaniak (Cze) 74 69 76,
220 K Spurgeon (Eng) 74 71 75, D Smyth (Irl) 77 70 73, P Dahlberg (Swe) 70 76 74, J Stuart (USA) 71 72 77,
222 J Seifert (Cze) 72 71 79,
223 A Garrido (Esp) 76 73 74,
225 F Mann (Sco) 72 77 76,
227 H Chang (Tpe) 77 72 78,
237 E Polland (Nir) 80 76 81,
265 P Tsai (Tpe) 87 89 89,
** G Ryall (Eng) 76 WD 0,

SKIPPER McGINLEY PRAISES SCOTT JAMIESON ROLE IN VICTORY

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Great Britain and Ireland’s lower order clung on as they retained the Vivendi Seve Trophy at St-Nom-La-Bretèche, France - but only after a magnificent fightback from the Continental Europeans.
Trailing 11 1/2-6 1/2 overnight, Jean Van De Velde’s side won the first five singles contests to square the match.
It looked as if they might end their 11-year wait for the title when Nicolas Colsaerts took a half off David Horsey late on, but rookie Scott Jamieson, pictured by Cal Carson Golf Agency, held firm to win a first point for Paul McGinley’s side.
And when Ian Poulter snatched victory from Matteo Manassero on the final green and Mark Foster went one up on the 17th, it guaranteed the 14 1/2 points needed for victory.
It finished 15 1/2-12 1/2, but it was a tremendous effort by the Continental Europeans to take it to the wire after being thoroughly outplayed on the first and third days.
“Lucky I had the team well balanced out, and had not just experience but guys in form balanced throughout the team, so they came through in the end,” McGinley said.
“Scott Jamieson’s match was huge, that kind of turned the tide in our favour.  I actually focused mostly on Scott’s game, I walked every shot with him from the 14th. I knew how pivotal that match was going to be and he was brilliant.
“I wanted Scott to keep playing pretty conservatively coming in there because it was difficult conditions, and he did exactly as I said.
“I’m so proud of the way he’s come through this week, and he’s just one guy. David Horsey as well, a huge half point there
“I get a huge sense of satisfaction seeing someone like Scott or David Horsey coming though the way they did. Mark Foster as well, it was pivotal that his game stayed one up, that it stayed in the red or it stayed in the green and it never got into the blue, and he did that. And of course Ross Fisher was a rock at the end.”
Van de Velde had loaded his top order with form players, and it immediately paid off as recent back-to-back winner Thomas Björn came from three down to beat World Number Two Lee Westwood 2 and 1.
Westwood had looked unstoppable as he birdied the first from ten feet, the third from 30 feet and played his approach shot within inches of the cup at the fifth.
But Björn used all his experience to hang tough and errors crept into Westwood’s game after he three-putted the sixth.
The Dane, captain when Continental Europe lost two years ago, holed a 30 foot putt on the 14th to lead for the first time and when Westwood pulled his approach left into thick rough on the 17th and duffed his chip it was all over.
“Lee came out this morning and was sensational the first few holes,” said Björn. “It was just a case of hanging on and hanging on, but a couple of mistakes and it let me back in. I played some nice stuff near the end but it was a hard-fought battle.”
A wave of blue was sweeping over the leaderboard at that stage and Björn’s compatriot Anders Hansen secured a gritty one up win over Simon Dyson.
The Englishman had won three-and-a-half points out of four over the first three days, but went three down after seven.
Dyson played a magnificent wedge approach to the next to spark a comeback, but no sooner was last week’s KLM Open winner all square than Hansen struck a hammer blow with a 30 footer at the 14th.
A 20 foot putt at the 16th put Hansen dormie two, and although Dyson took the par five next Hansen displayed nerves of steel on the final green to roll in a birdie putt from 25 feet.
If the first two wins were hard fought, the next three games were relatively straightforward for the Continental Europeans.
Francesco Molinari tapped in a two foot birdie putt on the 15th for a 4 and 3 victory over Jamie Donaldson.
The Italian was up-and-running with a par at the second after his Welsh opponent was forced to play his approach left-handed from behind a tree and never looked back.
Alex Noren then beat Robert Rock 4 and 3 - the Englishman failed to make a single birdie - and suddenly there was only one in it.
McGinley might have hoped Open Champion Darren Clarke could stop the rot in game five but the Northern Irishman had a round to forget as he lost 4 and 2 to former Ryder Cup partner Miguel Angel Jiménez to leave the contest tied at 11 1/2-11 1/2.
At that stage both sides needed three points from the last five matches, all of which went to the final hole on a nail-biting day.
Horsey looked set to win a first point for Great Britain & Ireland as he continued his week-long putting masterclass with a 25 foot effort at the first.
He was two up with four to play, but big-hitting Belgian Colsaerts tapped in for birdie at the par five 15th, scrambled par from a bunker at the short next and levelled the contest with an eight footer at the 17th before both players parred the last for a half.
Scotland’s Jamieson added a first win for McGinley’s side with a one-holw win over Pablo Larrazábal, despite a brave fightback from the Spaniard.
It was an impressive performance from the rookie - all the more so considering the drama that had been going on in the groups ahead.
Needing one and a half points from the last three groups, Poulter produced the goods as he has so many times before in match play.
Having been far from his best all week, the Ryder Cup star and former WGC-Accenture Match Play champion trailed for most of his round against Italian 18 year old Manassero.
One down at the turn, he made a vital 25 foot par save on the 13th, rolled in a 12 foot birdie putt at the 16th to draw level and - after watching Manassero stiff his approach at the last to 12 feet - played a remarkable shot from the rough to five feet.
That point meant Great Britain & Ireland needed only a half, and moments later Foster guaranteed exactly that by going one up on Raphaël Jacquelin at the 17th.
“I needed to do something to finish,” revealed Poulter. “He hit a great shot and I said to Paul walking down the fairway ‘I'm going to go straight at this’.
“And he's like ‘hang on a minute, hang on a minute’. It was nice, I did go straight at it in the end against his orders but you know what, it came off.
“They played some great golf obviously, so McGinley came out and said to me on one of the holes ‘it's looking like it's pretty much down to your game, so you'd better turn it around’."
Veteran Foster held on at the last for a point, and Ross Fisher took a half off Peter Hanson in what had been an enthralling final contest.
“It's been a team effort this week,” said Fisher.
“Everyone's played with various partners. The big guns, Poults and Westy and Clarke, they have been fantastic. Paul McGinley has been just a tremendous captain, very inspiring, just absolutely brilliant.”
Van De Velde said: “It was extremely close, even going down the stretch.
“As Paul mentioned, it could have swung either way. All credit to Poulter for making three birdies in five holes. You're rarely going to lose a game when that happens when you are only one down.”

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SAM LITTLE SCORES A LARGE WIN IN RUSSIA

CHALLENGE TOUR REPORT BY PAUL SYMES

European Tour staff press officer

England’s Sam Little earned the biggest paycheque of his Challenge Tour career with a one shot win at the M2M Russian Challenge Cup.

Little collected the €40,000 winner’s cheque after holding off a late surge from his compatriot Andrew Johnston, who picked up four shots in his final five holes to set up a nail-biting finale at Tseleevo Golf and Polo Club, near the Russian capital Moscow. 

When Little hit an exquisite bunker shot to within a foot of the hole for a tap-in birdie on the 17^th to move to 11 under par and open up a two shot gap over the field, the title appeared to be his. But Challenge Tour rookie Johnston had other ideas, holing a huge birdie putt on the 18^th green to ensure that Little would need to make at least a par to secure his third Challenge Tour victory.

Little duly found the middle of the fairway with his drive, and after hitting his approach to the heart of the green, the 36 year old made no mistake with two putts for par for a closing round of 68 and a 277 aggregate winning total. Incredibly, Little had been four over par for his first four holes of the tournament, but he covered the next 68 in 15 under par to record his first victory for seven years.

The win moved the Londoner up to from 43^rd to sixth place in the Challenge Tour Rankings, and assured him a swift return to The European Tour. An emotional Little attributed his victory to his short game, having made four crucial up and downs on the back nine.

He said: “It feels fantastic. I played really well today – in fact, I’ve played really well all week, except for my first four holes. At that point I was thinking about catching an early flight home, but I turned it around and couldn’t be happier. I’ve come close to winning a couple of times on the main Tour but it’s been a while since I last won on the Challenge Tour, so I had wondered if I still had it in me.

"It’s been a tough year, and I did think I might’ve blown my chance after playing poorly on the last day in Kazakhstan last week. So I’m really relived to get the job done here, and now I can look forward to getting back onto the main Tour next year.
“There were obviously a few nerves first thing this morning, because it’s been a while since I was in this position going into the final day. But I got off to the perfect start with a birdie on the first, and I couldn’t have played much better on the front nine. I hit two great approach shots to the ninth and tenth, and really should have birdied at least one of those holes to give me a bit of breathing space.
“Then when I hit my ball into the bunker on the 12^th and gave myself a horrid lie, it had looked like I may live to regret the missed chances. But I played a great bunker shot, and managed to get up and down again on the 14^th, 16^th and 17^th holes. Obviously I didn’t really know it at the time, but looking back now they were absolutely crucial. My bunker play is probably the strongest part of my game, so I’m so relieved it stood up under pressure, because it makes all the hours of practice worthwhile.”   
Johnston’s consolation for missing out on his first Challenge Tour victory was a cheque for €27,500 which moved him up to 21^st place in the Challenge Tour Rankings, and within sight of a debut season on The European Tour next year.
He said: “I gave it my best shot today, and unfortunately I came up just short in the end. But I’m proud of the way I played the last few holes and put pressure on Sam, because it shows I can do it when it really matters.

"My goal at the start of the season was just to get my Challenge Tour card for next year, because my current category didn’t get me into many events. So now that I’ve done that, the new goal is to finish in the top 20.”
Third place was shared between joint overnight leader Pelle Edberg (72) and the English duo of Andrew Marshall and Sam Walker, who both shot rounds of 70 to join the Swede on seven under par. 
Despite dropping down the leaderboard with a closing round of 77, England’s Tommy Fleetwood still extended his lead at the top of the Rankings after his nearest rival, Portugal’s Ricardo Santos, missed the cut.

SCOTSWATCH: Scots duo Chris Doak and Callum Macaulay both finished in the top ten  to boost their respective Ranking positions with just four regular events of the Challenge Tour season remaining.
Macaulay made the most of the benign scoring conditions on the final day to close with a round of 70 for a five under par aggregate total, which was good enough to take a share of sixth place behind the winner Sam Little of England.
Macaulay started and finished his round strongly, with two successive birdies from the first hole and another one on the 18th green, to secure a cheque for €8,333 which moved him up to 55th place in the Challenge Tour Rankings.
In contrast, Doak bogeyed his final hole to sign for a round of 72 which kept him on four under par.
But the native Glaswegian still collected €5,750, and is currently just three places outside the top 45 who earn qualification to the season-ending Apulia San Domenico Grand Final in November.


FINAL TOTALS

Par 288 (4x72)

277 S Little (Eng) 74 69 66 68,

278 A Johnston (Eng) 72 72 66 68,

281 S Walker (Eng) 68 74 69 70, P Edberg (Swe) 74 67 68 72, A Marshall (Eng) 74 68 69 70,

283 C Macaulay  (Sco) 69 73 71 70, A Maestroni  (Ita) 72 69 73 69, J Van Der Vaart (Ned) 71 73 75 64,

284 C Doak (Sco) 75 69 68 72, M Erlandsson (Swe) 68 74 70 72,

286 C Ford (Eng) 71 70 70 75, J Heath  (Eng) 76 70 69 71, C Paisley  (Eng) 71 72 73 70, J Campillo (Esp) 69 67 79 71, M Lorenzo-Vera  (Fra) 70 70 73 73,

287 A Pavan (Ita) 73 66 73 75, D Vancsik (Arg) 65 76 75 71,

288 J McLeary  (Sco) 75 72 73 68, G Lockerbie  (Eng) 74 70 75 69, J Garcia  (Esp) 74 74 73 67, J Doherty  (Sco) 75 73 69 71,

289 C Lee (Sco) 76 72 72 69, A Otaegui  (Esp) 73 67 78 71, M Baldwin (Eng) 73 72 69 75, J Clément  (Sui) 72 76 71 70, W Besseling  (Ned) 71 70 78 70, A Tadini (Ita) 73 74 72 70,

290 S Bebb (Wal) 75 73 69 73, C Russo (Fra) 73 70 73 74, F Praegant (Aut) 70 71 68 81, T Fleetwood  (Eng) 70 70 73 77, A Hartø  (Den) 77 69 73 71, E Dubois (Fra) 68 75 74 73, A Forsyth (Sco) 73 70 73 74,

291 J Hepworth (Eng) 72 73 74 72, M Delpodio  (Ita) 71 73 70 77, A Ahokas (Fin) 75 72 74 70, N Meitinger  (Ger) 78 69 71 73, T Ferreira  (RSA) 74 73 73 71,

292 J Robinson (Eng) 75 68 75 74, G Houston (Wal) 73 71 75 73, R Steiner (Aut) 74 74 71 73, M Kieffer (Ger) 72 74 73 73, P Oriol (Esp) 73 70 73 76, C Brazillier  (Fra) 75 72 76 69,

293 J Moul  (Eng) 74 69 74 76, L Kennedy  (Eng) 73 73 77 70, P Del Grosso  (Arg) 74 72 76 71,

 294 T Whitehouse  (Eng) 72 72 71 79, A Canete (Arg) 73 70 80 71, C Carranza  (Arg) 72 73 78 71,

 295 A Hansen  (Den) 74 71 77 73,

 296 L Jensen (Den) 71 74 72 79, A Levy (Fra) 70 74 76 76, P Archer (Eng) 73 74 75 74,

 297 L Westerberg (Swe) 75 72 74 76,

 298 M Evans (Eng) 73 72 78 75,

 300 J Zapata (Arg) 71 75 76 78,

 301 J Grillon  (Fra) 71 77 79 74,

 302 P Golding (Eng) 76 72 83 71,

 304 B Chapellan (Fra) 72 74 78 80,

 305 B Åkesson (Swe) 75 73 80 77,

 ** T Feyrsinger  (Aut) 71 71 74 WD

Paul Symes

CAN SURVIVES DOUBLE BOGEY TO WIN MACAU OPEN

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE ASIAN TOUR
Macau, September 18: Chan Yih-shin of Chinese Taipei recovered from an opening double bogey to win his second Asian Tour title by three shots in the US$750,000 Macau Open today.
Chan’s tee shot went out-of-bounds for double bogey on the first hole but he rallied with a massive chip in birdie from 40 feet on 12 before closing with two-under-par 69 in blustery conditions at the Macau Golf and Country Club.
He ended his campaign with a winning total of 14-under-par 270 and took home a winner’s cheque of US$118,875 and a two-year exemption on the Asian Tour.
David Gleeson of Australia and Thaworn Wiratchant of Thailand, both former Macau Open champions, shot matching 66s to finish in second and third place respectively for their first top-10 finish on the Asian Tour this year.
Chan’s victory ended a poor run of form where he has no top-10 finishes since last October. However, he needed to overcome a nervy start where the lead changed hands between him and Mo Joong-kyung of Korea on several occasions.
He was trailing Mo by one shot after the turn but produced a magical run starting from his chip in birdie on 12 before adding crucial birdies on 13, 14 and 16 to cruise home with a wire-to-wire victory as Mo faded.
Mo signed off in tied fourth place after a round of 72 with Zaw Moe of Myanmar and Asian Tour honorary member Jeev Milkha Singh of India, who closed on identical 69s.
“I didn’t know what to think after my double bogey but I kept telling myself to calm down. The pressure was there in the first nine and I felt better only after my chip in birdie,” said Chan, winner of the 2009 King’s Cup in Thailand.
“I didn’t putt very well in the beginning of the year and that was why I didn’t get a good result. This whole week was the best that I’ve putted and I’m glad to be able to come out victorious,” said Chan.
Gleeson eagled the last hole to complete a superb week where he ended a five consecutive run of missed cuts on the Asian Tour. The Australian credited a new set of golf clubs for his return to form, where he has enjoyed very little success in the last two years.
“I was just not comfortable with all my clubs in the last two years. I thought I was getting weaker but it was actually because I had the wrong shafts on my clubs,” said the two-time Asian Tour winner.
“That’s a technical issue and once I felt comfortable with my swing then my game came back to me again,” he added.
Thaworn, the 2009 Macau Open champion, turned in a superb 30 highlighted by an eagle three on the second hole after his seven wood from 240 yards landed nine feet from the pin. However, he failed to maintain his title charge as his putter went cold.
“It would have been my week again if my putter worked in the back nine. Obviously I’m disappointed but it is my best result this year and I hope to continue my form in the coming weeks,” said Thaworn, a 12-time Asian Tour champion.
LEADING FINAL TOTALSPar 288 (4x72)
270 - CHAN Yih-shin (TPE) 66-67-68-69.
273 - David GLEESON (AUS) 71-70-66-66.
274 - Thaworn WIRATCHANT (THA) 70-67-71-66.
275 - Jeev M SINGH (IND) 68-68-70-69, Zaw MOE (MYN) 69-70-67-69, MO Joong-kyung (KOR) 70-68-65-72.
277 - Jbe KRUGER (RSA) 70-68-69-70, WANG Ter-chang (TPE) 67-73-67-70, Joonas GRANBERG (FIN) 72-62-68-75.
278 - HWANG Inn-choon (KOR) 68-75-67-68, Shiv KAPUR (IND) 69-71-69-69, Adilson Da SILVA (BRA) 71-69-68-70, Thanyakon KHRONGPHA (THA) 70-66-70-72.
279 - Rikard KARLBERG (SWE) 66-69-68-76.
280 - Brad SMITH (AUS) 67-70-73-70.

CHALLENGE TOUR SCOREBOARD

M2M Russian Challenge Cup
THIRD-ROUND TOTALS
Par 216 (3x72)
209 P Edberg (Swe) 74 67 68, F Praegant (Aut) 70 71 68, S Little (Eng) 74 69 66,
210 A Johnston (Eng) 72 72 66,
211 C Ford (Eng) 71 70 70, S Walker (Eng) 68 74 69, A Marshall (Eng) 74 68 69,
212 C Doak (Sco) 75 69 68, M Erlandsson (Swe) 68 74 70, A Pavan (Ita) 73 66 73,
213 T Fleetwood (Eng) 70 70 73, C Macaulay (Sco) 69 73 71, M Lorenzo-Vera (Fra) 70 70 73,
214 M Baldwin (Eng) 73 72 69, A Maestroni (Ita) 72 69 73, M Delpodio (Ita) 71 73 70,
215 J Campillo (Esp) 69 67 79, J Heath (Eng) 76 70 69, T Whitehouse (Eng) 72 72 71,
216 P Oriol (Esp) 73 70 73, T Feyrsinger (Aut) 71 71 74, C Paisley (Eng) 71 72 73, A Forsyth (Sco) 73 70 73, C Russo (Fra) 73 70 73, D Vancsik (Arg) 65 76 75,
217 J Moul (Eng) 74 69 74, E Dubois (Fra) 68 75 74, J Doherty (Sco) 75 73 69, L Jensen (Den) 71 74 72, S Bebb (Wal) 75 73 69,
218 N Meitinger (Ger) 78 69 71, A Otaegui (Esp) 73 67 78, J Robinson (Eng) 75 68 75,
219 R Steiner (Aut) 74 74 71, W Besseling (Ned) 71 70 78, J Van Der Vaart (Ned) 71 73 75, M Kieffer (Ger) 72 74 73, A Tadini (Ita) 73 74 72, G Houston (Wal) 73 71 75, J Clément (Sui) 72 76 71, A Hartø (Den) 77 69 73, G Lockerbie (Eng) 74 70 75, J Hepworth (Eng) 72 73 74,
220 C Lee (Sco) 76 72 72, J McLeary (Sco) 75 72 73, A Levy (Fra) 70 74 76, T Ferreira (RSA) 74 73 73,
221 A Ahokas (Fin) 75 72 74, L Westerberg (Swe) 75 72 74, J Garcia (Esp) 74 74 73,
222 P Del Grosso (Arg) 74 72 76, J Zapata (Arg) 71 75 76, P Archer (Eng) 73 74 75, A Hansen (Den) 74 71 77,
223 M Evans (Eng) 73 72 78, C Brazillier (Fra) 75 72 76, C Carranza (Arg) 72 73 78, L Kennedy (Eng) 73 73 77, A Canete (Arg) 73 70 80,
224 B Chapellan (Fra) 72 74 78,
227 J Grillon (Fra) 71 77 79,
228 B Åkesson (Swe) 75 73 80,
231 P Golding (Eng) 76 72 83

Paul Symes
Press Officer

CASA SERENA OPEN SENIOR SCOREBOARD FROM CZECH REPUBLIC

SECOND-ROUND TOTALS
Par 142 (2x71)
129 B Lane (Eng) 67 62
132 R Chapman (Eng) 64 68
133 P Fowler (Aus) 69 64
135 G Wolstenholme (Eng) 68 67, M Harwood (Aus) 67 68, C Mason (Eng) 69 66, M Mouland (Wal) 65 70
136 C Rocca (Ita) 70 66, M Farry (Fra) 68 68, D Russell (Eng) 66 70, D Hospital (Esp) 66 70, B Longmuir (Sco) 68 68
137 J Quiros (Esp) 70 67, A Murray (Eng) 69 68, T Thelen (USA) 68 69
138 S Torrance (Sco) 67 71, G Banister (Aus) 70 68, J Chillas (Sco) 69 69
139 P Mitchell (Eng) 68 71, G Manson (Aut) 66 73, E Darcy (Irl) 70 69, D Cambridge (Jam) 69 70, M Bembridge (Eng) 70 69, R Drummond (Sco) 71 68, K Tomori (Jpn) 71 68,
140 C Williams (RSA) 71 69, B Lincoln (RSA) 68 72, M James (Eng) 77 63, L Carbonetti (Arg) 69 71, A Forsbrand (Swe) 67 73, D Merriman (Aus) 69 71,
141 A Oldcorn (Sco) 69 72, G Brand Jnr (Sco) 71 70, J Gould (Eng) 69 72, N Job (Eng) 67 74, A Sowa (Arg) 70 71
142 G Brand (Eng) 71 71, G Ralph (Eng) 74 68, M Cunning (USA) 71 71, D Durnian (Eng) 71 71, T Johnstone (Zim) 67 75, J Harrison (Eng) 69 73, D O'Sullivan (Irl) 69 73
143 J Stuart (USA) 71 72, J Rhodes (Eng) 72 71, J Seifert (Cze) 72 71, A Franco (Par) 73 70, A Sherborne (Eng) 74 69, B Cameron (Eng) 69 74, J Juhaniak (Cze) 74 69
144 B Vaughan (USA) 72 72, H Carbonetti (Arg) 72 72, I Woosnam (Wal) 73 71, J Rivero (Esp) 70 74
145 N Ratcliffe (Aus) 71 74, M Moreno (Esp) 70 75, J Bruner (USA) 70 75, M Belsham (Eng) 70 75, S Van Vuuren (RSA) 72 73, A Fernandez (Chi) 74 71, K Spurgeon (Eng) 74 71, B Smit (RSA) 72 73, R Davis (Aus) 70 75,
146 P Dahlberg (Swe) 70 76, G Cali (Ita) 71 75,
147 D Smyth (Irl) 77 70
148 M Clayton (Aus) 72 76
149 H Chang (Tpe) 77 72, A Garrido (Esp) 76 73, F Mann (Sco) 72 77,
156 E Polland (Nir) 80 76
176 P Tsai (Tpe) 87 89,

** G Ryall (Eng) 76 WD,



Neil Ahern

Assistant Press Officer

AMERICANS LEAD BY FIVE POINTS AFTER PGA CUP DAY TWO

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE PGA
By NATHANIEL SYLVESTER
Great Britain andIreland face an uphill battle to land the PGA Cup after another awesome foursome display by the United States at CordeValle, California.
The Americans closed to within two-and-a-half points of retaining the Llandudno Trophy on the back of their least favoured format.
They closed the second day leading 10 ½ - 5 ½, forged on the back of another impressive foursomes display, winning 3-1 and giving them a possible six-and-a-half points from eight in the sessions of alternate shot.
Only Yorkshire duo Gary Brown and John Wells posted blue on the board in the stifling California heat with another gritty display which saw them again come from behind.
Wells holed a clutch par putt on the par-3 16th, before Ganton pro Brown played a superb approach to three feet at 17 to put them in front which they cemented when their opponents David Hutsell and Mark Sheftic found the water on 18.
“We never give up and we were in some pretty tough spots and it wasn’t pretty but we got the job done,” said Wells.
Unfortunately hopes of a half in the last pairing of Stuart Little and David Mortimer were extinguished on 17 when Brad Lardon sank a 15ft putt for par to seal a 2 and 1 win with partner Sonny Skinner.
It leaves the GB and I team, captained by Cowal's Russell Weir (pictured above), the proverbial mountain to climb with eight wins needed in the 10 singles.
Reflecting on the second day, Weir revealed the pride in his team.
“As the sun got it up to its peak, it was quite sapping strength wise but the guys gave everything,” he said.
“Shacklady and Edwards, those guys brought tears to my eyes today while Wells and Brown were pure Yorkshire grit. They gave everything but there’s more to give tomorrow.
“We need points early, to make it very interesting. The spirit is fine, the guys know there are still 10 points to play for and they are going to give it a go.”
He added: “This has been the experience of my life, I feel more pressure actually than when I played because you can’t hit the shots. I’ve been thinking about this for a long time and it’s been great.”
Trailing 6-2 after the opening day, Weir’s GB and I team needed a strong start and won the Saturday morning four-ball session by 2 ½ - 1 ½.
Agonisingly, a third point was within grasp of Craig Goodfellow and David Mortimer to add to the wins for David Shacklady and Simon Edwards (2 and 1), and Stuart Little and Rob Giles (5 and 4).
The pair were locked in a titantic tussle with Sonny Skinner and Brad Lardon who holed clutch putts on 16 and 17 to be one down on the 18th tee.
However both GB and I players found trouble off the tee on the right of the par-5 hole, handing the initiative to the Americans which Skinner, the oldest player on either side, punished with a superb third shot approach to four feet Goodfellow’s third shot from the semi rough bounced through the green into the bunker.
Meanwhile Mossock Hall pro Shacklady was marvelling at the standard of play in his two clashes with David Hutsell and Mark Sheftic.
“We worked it out on the seventh green, having played 23 holes together as a four-ball we had 24 birdies,” he said.
“It gives you an idea of what it’s been like. Every hole someone’s been doing something spectacular. That’s fabulous, something special to be involved in and it is something I will never forget.”
For the Americans the highlight of the day came with Danny Balin’s hole-in-one at the 180-yard par-3 eighth hole in his clash with partner Scott Erdmann against Stuart Little and Rob Giles.
Giles said: “Stuart hit a great shot all over the flag to two feet on eight, Danny hits a nice shot, but it’s going 20 ft left of the flag on the left edge of the green, hits the bank and rolls in the hole.”
Ironically it was the first ace since current Great Britain and Ireland PGA Cup captain Russell Weir achieved the feat back in 1996 at Knollwood Golf Course, Illinois when he was making his PGA Cup debut.
RESULTS
Saturday morning four-balls
US names first
David Hutsell and Mark Sheftic lost to David Shacklady (Mossock Hall) and Simon Edwards (Windermere) 2 and 1.
Mike Small and Faber Jamerson bt John Wells (Cherry Burton) and Gary Brown (Ganton) 3 and 2.
Danny Balin and Scott Erdmann lost to Stuart Little (Minchinhampton) and Rob Giles (Greenore) 5 and 4.
Sonny Skinner and Brad Lardon halved with David Mortimer (Galway) and Craig Goodfellow (Carlisle Driving Range)

Saturday afternoon foursomes
Rob McClellan and Marty Jertson bt David Shacklady (Mossock Hall) and Simon Edwards (Windermere) 2 and 1.
David Hutsell and Mark Sheftic lost to John Wells (Cherry Burton) and Gary Brown (Ganton) 2 holes.
Mike Small and Faber Jamerson bt Chris Gill (Exeter) and John Kennedy (Wexham Park) 4 and 3.
Sonny Skinner and Brad Lardon bt Stuart Little and David Mortimer 2 and 1.

Match summary after two days:
UNITED STATES 10 ½, GREAT BRITAIN and IRELAND  5 ½

Visit www.PGACup.com and www.PGA.info for more information on the PGA Cup and all PGA tournaments

JUSTIN ROSE FOUR SHOTS AHEAD OF FIELD IN BMW CHAMPIONSHIP

FROM THE BBC SPORT WEBSITE

Justin Rose leads by four strokes after the third round of the BMW Championship, staying on course to reach the Tour Championship in Atlanta.

The Englishman, who carded a two-under par 69, arrived at Cog Hill ranked 34 in the FedExCup standings. The top 30 will qualify for Atlanta.

Rose, pictured, produced some daring shots to finish the round at 13-under par.
Australian John Senden was outright second at nine-under after recovering from a bad start to his third round.
Rose started the round tied for the lead with American Mark Wilson but, after back-to-back birdies at the fourth and fifth, had the lead to himself for the rest of the day.
His only miscue was a bogey at the 12th but he recovered with a birdie at 13 then held steady while his challengers failed to keep their composure.
Rose has vowed to learn from his previous experiences while leading on the final day of events, on the last day of this tournament.
Discussing how he will approach it, Rose said: "Just keep seeing good shots and keep playing one shot at a time. I don't think you can get defensive. A four-shot lead isn't really a big enough lead to waste holes."

The BMW Championship is the third of four events in the FedEx series involving the top 70 players in the standings.

The top 30 will go on to compete for a $10m (£6m) bonus in the finale, the Tour Championship in Atlanta, from 22-25 September.

Wilson's day went wrong with back-to-back bogeys at 12 and 13 followed by a double-bogey at 16. He finished the day with a 77 to be tied for seventh with Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia, Jim Furyk, Brandt Jobe and Martin Laird.

Senden bogeyed three of his first five holes but picked up four shots on the back nine for a 70. Lurking a further shot back is another Australian, Geoff Ogilvy.
THIRD-ROUND LEADERBOARD
Par 213
Players from US unless stated
200 Justin Rose (England) 63 68 69.
204 John Senden (Australia) 68 66 70.
205 Geoff Ogilvy (Australia) 69 68 68, Bill Haas 70 66 69.
206 Webb Simpson 65 68 73.
207 Keegan Bradley 71 66 70.
208 Sergio Garcia (Spain) 69 72 67, Luke Donald (England) 75 66 69, Brandt Jobe 75 64 69, Jim Furyk 68 70 70, Mark Wilson 65 66 67, Martin Laird (Scotland) 72 69 68.
SELECTED SCORES
216 Brian Davis (England) 74 70 72, Phil Mickelson 72 73 71 (T42)