Saturday, October 29, 2011

GARCIA LEADS BY TWO AFTER LATE SLIPS BY RAMSAY

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Spain’s Sergio Garcia will head into the final round of the Andalucía Masters in pole position to record victory on home soil for the second week in succession.
Garcia, who triumphed by a staggering 11 shots at last week’s Castelló Masters in Valencia and needs to win again to qualify for next week's World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions in Shanghai,carded a 67 at Club de Golf Valderrama today for an aggregate score of six under.
That put him two ahead of fellow countryman Miguel Ángel Jiménez and Sweden’s Christian Nilsson, who equalled the best round of the week with a sparkling 65 containing eight birdies.
Overnight leader Richie Ramsay - third last week - was five under with two to play, but bogeyed the 17th and 18th for a 73 that leaves him three adrift.
Things could have been even better for Garcia, who almost recorded a hole-in-one at the sixth and collected six birdies in total, had he not made an eventful bogey at the 17th, Valderrama’s signature hole.
After finding a bunker off the tee, the 31 year old looked to have put his second shot into the lake guarding the green. However, the ball came to rest on a rock and Garcia took off his shoes and socks to play a risky pitch from inside the hazard.
He was unable to save par, missing the green to the right and then failing to get up and down, but a closing birdie, coupled with Ramsay’s failure to make par at 17, restored his two stroke advantage.
Asked to comment on his dramatic exploits at 17, Garcia said: “It obviously was risky, but I liked my chances better from there (to the right of the green) to get up and down than the drop zone.
"Today it was important after the three-putt on five to make birdie on the next and after the bogey on 17 to make birdie on the last. It was very nice to bounce back like I did.”
Looking ahead to tomorrow’s final round, he added: "I don't want to get ahead of myself. I think tomorrow is going to be a hard day. Hopefully I can come out and have the same feelings and mentality and my best will be good enough."
Jiménez, also looking to become the first Spaniard to win a strokeplay event at this venue, holed a delightful pitch for a three at the par five fourth and then claimed his second eagle of the day on the 11th when he struck a 246-yard approach shot to two feet.
A bogey at 15 prevented him from matching Garcia’s third-round score, yet the veteran remains very much in contention for a first win since last September, when he triumphed at the Omega European Masters at Crans-sur-Sierre.
Nilsson, whose only European Tour victory to date came at the co-sanctioned SAINT-OMER OPEN presented by Neuflize OBC in 2009, birdied four holes in a row from the fourth and, after a bogey at eight, then picked up further shots at the ninth and 13th to surge into contention.
He did suffer a second setback at the short 15th, but recovered the damage at 17 before holing a sizeable birdie putt at the last.
“It was a fun day on the course today, one of my best rounds this year, or ever, maybe,” said Nilsson.
“The course has played quite difficult, with a bit less wind, but I’m really happy with my game - good shot making and I holed a lot of putts as well.
“Tomorrow is going to be a tough day, it’s an important day for me. I’m just on the bubble to making the Race to Dubai final, so I need something good this week. I’ve put myself in a good position, so it’s going to be a big day for me tomorrow, interesting and quite nervous I guess.”
England’s Steve Webster went round in 66 to climb into fifth on level par, but Grégory Havret, Ramsay’s nearest challenger after round two, carded a 76 to drop back to two over.
Ramsay had two birdies, at the short third and the 16th, and four bogeeys - at the seventh, ninth, 17th and 18th in halves of 36-37.
Stephen Gallacher is a second Scot in the top 10. He shot a 71 for 214 and is seven off the pace in joint sixth place.
David Drysdale, the only other Scot to make the cut, is T26 on 219 after a 73.


LEADERBOARD
Par 213 (3x71)
207 Sergio Garcia (Spain) 70 70 67.
209 Christian Nilsson (Sweden) 73 71 65, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain) 71 70 68.
210 Richie Ramsay (Scotland) 66 72 73.
213 Steve Webster (England) 75 72 66.
214 Stephen Gallacher (Scotland) 68 70 70, Alejandro Canizares (Spain) 71 72 71, Shane Lowry (Ireland) 72 71 71.


OTHER SCOT'S SCORE
219 David Drysdale (Spain) 70 76 73 (T26).


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BO VAN PELT TAKES OVER LEAD IN ASIA PACIFIC CLASSIC

                   Bo Van Pelt, new leader in the CIMB Asia Pacific Classic

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE ASIAN TOUR
Kuala Lumpur: American Bo Van Pelt overcame a sluggish start to storm into the third-round lead at the US$6.1 million CIMB Asia Pacific Classic, Malaysia on a day local hero Danny Chia raised the roof at the Mines Resort and Golf Club.

Van Pelt bogeyed his opening two holes but showed his class with six birdies to take a one-shot lead from halfway pacesetter Jeff Overton, who battled to a 69 in the event sanctioned by the Asian Tour and US PGA Tour.
Sweden’s Fredrik Jacobson and American Mark Wilson shared third place, three behind Van Pelt, while Chia produced a superb 66 for equal fifth position with playing partner Vijay Singh of Fiji and Jason Dufner of the United States.
An in-form Van Pelt, who notched two top-10s in the recent FedEx Cup play-offs, showed wonderful composure to overcome the worst possible start. The 36-year-old, who has one win on the PGA Tour, said: “I think the biggest thing today is I didn’t make a big deal out of it. So I made two bogeys. It’s not the end of the world. There’s a lot of golf left.
“I think that’s the biggest thing I’ve learned, experience-wise. As much as golf as I’ve played, in the times I’ve let a bad start lead to a bad round, it was probably when I made too big a deal out of it, got upset or got quicker (in my swing). I think today was just a good example of not making a big deal out of it and trying to hit good golf shots.”
With a top cheque of US$1.3 million at stake tomorrow, Van Pelt said he would be driven by winning a second career title rather than the money in the bank.
“It’s not about the money. Like my grandpa said, you can’t take it with you. It’s never made a big deal to me, I guess,” said Van Pelt.
“Obviously any time you’re near the lead with 18 to go, you’re excited. That’s why we practice and why we enter tournaments. That’s all you can ask for, to have a chance to win on Sunday. It’s exciting, and I’m looking forward to it. It’s been a while since I won a golf tournament, so it would be great.”
After a course record 62 on day two, Overton managed only three birdies in the third round but none was more important than the six-foot conversion at the last hole.
“On 18, I saw Bo was two up and I thought I needed to get to within one and I know he was swinging it really well. I didn’t want him to get away too far,” said Overton, who is chasing a first career victory.
“Didn’t have the kick in like I had yesterday. It wasn’t my day on the greens … didn’t make anything.”
The former Ryder Cup player was looking forward to a final day duel with Van Pelt. “It’s crazy. We’re from the same state, Indiana and probably the only two players in the field or on Tour from Indiana. To actually come all the way here, a 12 hour time change, halfway around the world to play golf with each other, it’ll be fun,” said Overton.
The story of the day belonged to local favourite Chia. Playing alongside Singh, who is extremely popular in Malaysia, Chia produced some wonderful golf, including four birdies in his last five holes to move within the fringe of contention.
“I didn’t hole any birdies after the one on the third hole and I kept telling myself to stay patient and hopefully the birdies would come. And it really did in the last five holes,” said Chia, who is the first Malaysian winner on the Asian Tour.
“I guess the expectation is building up now. Every day when I begin my round, I don’t really think about the result. I just want to play my golf. I only started looking at the leaderboard on the second last hole and told myself ‘Hey, I still got an outside chance’,” he said.
THIRD-ROUND TOTALS
Par 213 (3x71). Yardage: 6,917
197 - Bo VAN PELT (USA) 66-64-67.
198 - Jeff OVERTON (USA) 67-62-69.
200 - Mark WILSON (USA) 67-66-67, Fredrik JACOBSON (SWE) 65-64-71.
202 - Jason DUFNER (USA) 70-67-65, Danny CHIA (MAS) 71-65-66, Vijay SINGH (FIJ) 72-64-66
203 - Ryan PALMER (USA) 71-65-67, Chris KIRK (USA) 71-65-67, Camilo VILLEGAS (COL) 69-66-68.
204 - Jerry KELLY (USA) 69-66-69, Jimmy WALKER (USA) 66-67-71, Stewart CINK (USA) 67-66-71.
205 - Jeev SINGH (IND) 69-69-67, John SENDEN (AUS) 67-70-68, Ben CRANE (USA) 69-68-68, Robert ALLENBY (AUS) 63-72-70, Jhonattan VEGAS (VEN) 64-69-72, Cameron TRINGALE (USA) 66-68-71.
206 - Ricky BARNES (USA) 69-71-66, Brandt SNEDEKER (USA) 71-68-67, Jonathan BYRD (USA) 69-68-69.
207 - Chez REAVIE (USA) 69-71-67, Thongchai JAIDEE (THA) 68-71-68.
208 - Tommy GAINEY (USA) 68-70-70, Chinnarat PHADUNGSIL (THA) 70-66-72.
209 - Mohd SIDDIKUR (BAN) 68-73-68, Scott STALLINGS (USA) 67-72-70, Kyle STANLEY (USA) 68-69-72, Spencer LEVIN (USA) 70-67-72, Kiradech APHIBARNRAT (THA) 70-67-72.
210 - Brendon DE JONGE (ZIM) 68-72-70, D.A. POINTS (USA) 71-68-71, Stuart APPLEBY (AUS) 72-67-71.
211 - Rory SABBATINI (RSA) 68-70-73.
212 - Lucas GLOVER (USA) 71-70-71, Jbe KRUGER (RSA) 70-70-72.
213 - Brian DAVIS (ENG) 71-71-71, Carl PETTERSSON (SWE) 68-67-78.
214 - David GLEESON (AUS) 73-71-70, Tetsuji HIRATSUKA (JPN) 70-72-72.
215 - Angel CABRERA (ARG) 73-73-69.
216 - CHAN Yih-shin (TPE) 72-70-74.
217 - Brendan STEELE (USA) 74-73-70 Charley HOFFMAN (USA) 69-73-75.
218 - Ryan MOORE (USA) 71-68-79.
219 - Shaaban HUSSIN (MAS) 72-72-75.
220 - S.S.P. CHOWRASIA (IND) 75-71-74.

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DANIEL CHOPRA HAS 16 SINGLE PUTTS IN RECORD ROUND OF 62

By Joe Chemycz, US Nationwide Tour staff
CHARLESTON, South Carolina: Sweden's Daniel Chopra fired a tournament-record, 10-under-par 62 Friday to move into a share of the 36-hole lead at the Nationwide Tour Championship at Daniel Island.
Chopra was nearly perfect, one-putting 16 times, en route to a piece of the lead in the Tour finale that features the top-60 money winners battling for 25 spots on next year's US PGA Tour.
Chopra posted an even-par 72 on the opening day Thursday, so his 10-under 134 total is the result of one big day. Jason Kokrak, a two-time winner this season, has posted back-to-back 67s to join Chopra heading into the weekend in the $1 million event.
Georgia Tech's Roberto Castro is at 8-under 136 after his second straight round of 4-under 68.
Danny Lee, winner of the WNB Golf Classic this fall, shot a 65 Friday and heads a group of three players at 7-under 137. Joining Lee are England's Greg Owen and Colombia's Camilo Benedetti.
Cliff Kresge and Darron Stiles, the Tour's all-time leading money winner, are in at 6-under 138 and four off the pace.
Chopra, 37, had heads turning with a career-best effort that started with six consecutive birdies out of the gate.
"It was a dream start. The first six holes I just played flawlessly," he said. "Every shot was just about perfect. When you get on a little dream run like that everything seems easy."
Easy might be one word to describe the front nine, where he made seven birdies, shot 29 and needed only 10 putts. His lone two-putt came from 25 feet on the par-5, 6thhole for birdie.
Seven-under through eight holes, Chopra was flirting with history -- again. Earlier this year at the Fresh Express Classic, Chopra was 10-under through 17 holes on the par-70 TPC Stonebrae course but bogeyed the final hole for a 9-under 61.
"I got a little protective with my score. I was trying to guide it out there a little bit and that never works," he said. "Maybe I got a little bit aware of it (shooting a 59) and was a tad apprehensive."
He made the turn and settled for five pars to open the back nine before returning to a more aggressive mode that resulted in birdies on three of his final four holes.
It was almost effortless for Chopra, who is No. 24 on the money list and is looking for a big finish to return to the TOUR, where he has chalked up victories at the end of the 2007 campaign and another one to open the 2008 season.
"I've been in this same position all year long," said Chopra, winner of the Fresh Express Classic back in April. "I felt that one good tournament would get me into safe territory but that hasn't happened yet. Hopefully, come Sunday I will be in a position of worrying about winning a golf tournament instead of being in the top-25."
Kokrak, No. 4 on the money list and assured of a US Tour spot in 2012, is playing with 'house money' while in search of his third victory and the spoils that go to the leading money winner -- full exemption on the US PGA Tour and an exemption into The Players Championship.
"There's really no pressure this week," said the 26-year old from Ohio. "I've got a lot of family and friends in town so it's a nice support group for me. It's a fun week for me."
Kokrak has been having a blast since busting through with his first career win seven weeks ago at the Albertsons Boise Open. He added win number two at the Miccosukee Championship in Miami earlier this month.
"I think you have to enter every golf tournament with the thought of winning," said Kokrak, who will be a rookie next year. "I've never been here before so this is a great experience."
Kokrak, the Tour's biggest hitter, has been using his distance off the tee to his advantage at the 7,446-yard Daniel Island Club.
"It's a long golf course and it plays long in the windy conditions," he said. "I really hit the driver a lot better today and put myself in the fairway. I made a lot of good putts yesterday but today my ball-striking was there."
Second-Round Notes
• Daniel Chopra started the second round with six consecutive birdies. He is the fourth player this year to begin a round with six in a row -- Drew Weaver, R4, Chiquita Classic; Jonas Blixt, R3, Midwest Classic; Jason Kokrak, R3, Albertsons Boise Open. The Nationwide Tour record for consecutive birdies to start a round is seven by Rocky Walcher in R3 of the 2000 Wichita Open.
• Chopra's 7-under 29 matches the lowest 9-hole score on the Nationwide Tour this year. A total of 20 players have posted 29s this season -- 9 of them were 7-under scores (par 36) and 11 of them were 6-under scores (par 35).
• Chopra won the Fresh Express Classic back in April when the tournament's final round in Hayward, Calif., was canceled due to heavy fog. Chopra grabbed the 54-hole lead with a course-record, 9-under 61 in the third round. He was 10-under through 17 holes at TPC Stonebrae and needed a birdie for a 59 but came up short on his second shot at the par-4, 18th and wound up missing his putt for par. Still, it was enough for the lead by one over Russell Knox, which turned into a victory when officials were forced to cancel Sunday's final round and the results reverted back to the 54-hole standings.
• Chopra's 20 putts in today's round matches the 6th-best putting day in Nationwide Tour history. Two players -- Mike Brisky, 2003 Preferred Health Systems Wichita Open, R1; Steven Bowditch, 2010 Soboba Golf Classic, R3 -- share the single-round record with 18 putts. Three others have had 19 putts, including Steve Wheatcroft in R2 of the Melwood Prince George's County Open earlier this year.
• Leading money winner J.J. Killeen moved back into contention with a 4-under 68 Friday. Killeen is a 2-under 142 for the opening 36 holes and T24. Killeen got off to a rocky start Thursday and was 5-over through his first 10 holes. He rallied with three birdies down the stretch and closed with a 2-over 74. Killeen entered the week a lead of $26,603 over Ted Potter Jr., on the money list.
• First-round leader Mark Anderson of nearby Beaufort, South Carolina, stumbled to a 6-over-par 78 Friday. Anderson, who has enjoyed putting success in his last two starts (2nd, T7), 3-putted four times during his round and finished the day with 37 putts. Anderson, No. 19 on the money list, had only 21 putts during his opening-round 66. He fell to a T38 spot in the standings.
• In a first, Golf Channel will bring Twitter to life on today's telecast of the Nationwide Tour Championship at Daniel Island with a new interactive TV experience. "Social Media Saturday" will feature GolfChannel.com senior writers Rex Hoggard and Randall Mell joining the on-air team's tournament coverage by providing live tweets from the course. Hoggard and Mell will offer their own takes on what they see, replacing traditional play-by-play commentary during select segments of the telecast.
+England's Greg Owen, who needs a very high finish tomorrow to regain the US Tour card he lost a year or two ago, finished Day 2 in a share of fourth place on 137 after rounds of 71 and 66.
+Compatriot Gary Christian is T31 on 143 (71-72) and Scotland's Russell Knox is T38 on 144 (71-73). Knox has 17 pars and a bogey at the 10th in his second round. Both Christian and Knox are guaranteed final placings in the top 25 of the money table through the prizemoney they have earned earlier this season.


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LUKE DONALD PULLS OUT OF WGC-HSBC CHAMPIONS TOURNEY

Luke Donald with his wife Diane and their first daughter Elie and the WGC-Accenture Match-play Championship Trophy. Photo: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images (c).

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY IMG
By TIM MAITLANDWorld number one golfer Luke Donald has reluctantly cancelled his trip to next week’s WGC-HSBC Champions in Shanghai to be with his wife for the birth of their second child.
The Englishman, who is trying to become the first player in history to win the money lists on both sides of the Atlantic, had been hoping that the daughter they are expecting would conveniently arrive this week.
Donald, who had his bags packed and was ready to go, finally conceded on Friday that family had to take precedence over the US$7 million event in China and his quest to get into the record books.
“It’s important for my wife and it’s important for me to make sure that I’m around to support her. It’s no coincidence that the birth of our first daughter inspired me to some really great golf. Family does put a lot of things into perspective; my job is very important but the family out-trumps everything,” said the 33-year-old Englishman in a phone interview from his home in the Chicago suburbs.
Professionally, Donald has every reason to want to be in Shanghai for the WGC-HSBC Champions. With five weeks left on the European Tour schedule he leads the Race to Dubai by over 1.3 million Euros from Rory McIlroy. He also has previous form at the Sheshan International Golf Club.
He finished third, albeit by ten and nine shots, behind Italy’s Francesco Molinari and fellow Englishman Lee Westwood whose ‘Duel on the Bund’ head-to-head battle earned comparisons with the legendary ‘Duel in the Sun’ Open Championship in 1977.
“It speaks volumes for the tournament. I got to witness it as the third man in that group. I was a few shots back – I didn’t have my best golf – but it was nice to see the quality of the golf down the stretch from both players; it was a fitting end to a great event,” Donald said, despite admitting to being what the English would call a ‘gooseberry’.
“I actually was feeling a bit ‘third wheel’. To finish third was actually a pretty good accomplishment. I was struggling with my game big time and I was using every bit of energy and strength just to give myself a chance to get into that final group. I didn’t have control of the golf ball. I was a little bit frustrated with my own game but it was still nice to see how it should have been done!” he explained.
“It’s a world-class golf course – a long course – and it’s produced some great winners. That’s the biggest bonus about the tournament: the winners have been world-class players. Francesco last year, how well he played down the stretch fending off Lee Westwood… that’s always a mark of a good tournament when it produces good winners,” he said, referring to a roll of honour that includes Phil Mickelson twice, Sergio Garcia and Asia’s first male Major champion ‘YE’ Yang Yong-Eun.
Donald added that the recent controversy over the last-minute decision to delay mailing out the ballots for the PGA Tour Player of the Year voting had nothing to do with his choice to stay by his wife’s side.
Donald won the Children’s Miracle Network Classic at Disneyworld to claim the US PGA Tour’s money list, but described holding off posting the voting slips to the players until after Shanghai, because a WGC win for a PGA Tour player might impact the outcome, as ‘sketchy’.
“I have no problem with them including the HSBC Champions, they should! It was just the timing of it. The thing that disappointed me is that the schedule has been the same all year. I feel bad for the Asian golf fans that they didn’t see that. It’s something that should have been known at the beginning of the year, not the day after Disney.
"The goalposts moved. It’s like running a marathon for 26 miles, crossing the finish line and then they say ‘actually we’re going to make it 27 miles’. It’s just the timing of it. It’s an important event; to have a WGC outside the US and such a big event in Asia. I’ve supported it the last few years when I’ve been eligible. I would be there if it wasn’t for the baby,” he said, adding that headlines describing him as ‘angered’ or ‘upset’ were wide of the mark.

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RORY McILROY GOES THREE CLEAR IN SHANGHAI MASTERS

FROM THE GOLF.COM WEBSITE
SHANGHAI (AP) — U.S. Open champion Rory McIlroy shot a 7-under 65 today to increase his lead to three strokes after the third round of the Shanghai Masters.
The 22-year-old star from Northern Ireland made seven birdies in another bogey-free round on Lake Malaren's Jack Nicklaus-designed Masters course to finish at 18-under 198.
"Another good day on the course! Excited to have a chance to get another win this year!" McIlroy tweeted, adding the hashtag "itsbeentoolong."
American Anthony Kim was second after a 65. He's coming off a third-place finish last week in the Asian Tour event in South Korea.
South Korea's Noh Seung-yul was 14 under after a 67.
Ian Poulter (67) and Hunter Mahan (68) were 11 under, second-ranked Lee Westwood (70) and Geoff Ogilvy (66) were another stroke back, and Robert Karlsson (72), Padraig Harrington (73) and Y.E. Yang (68) were 6 under.
Louis Oosthuizen struggled in the windy, overcast conditions, shooting a 76 to finish at 4 under. The 2010 British Open champion had a double bogey on the par-5 13th and made four bogeys.
The 30 players are vying for the $2 million first prize, the richest in golf. All the top players are getting appearance money, and last place pays $25,000. Because the International Management Group-run event isn't sanctioned by a major tour, it doesn't have world-ranking points.
The World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions is next week at nearby Sheshan International.

ALL THE THIRD-ROUND TOTALS
Par 216 (3x72)

1 Rory MCILROY NIR 64 69 65 198
2 Anthony KIM USA 68 68 65 201
3 NOH Seung-yul KOR 72 63 67 202
T4 Ian POULTER ENG 67 71 67 205
T4 Hunter MAHAN USA 65 72 68 205
T6 Geoff OGILVY AUS 73 70 66 209
T6 Lee WESTWOOD ENG 69 70 70 209
T8 Y E YANG KOR 69 73 68 210
T8 Robert KARLSSON SWE 69 69 72 210
T8 Padraig HARRINGTON IRL 67 70 73 210
11 John DALY USA 69 70 72 211
T12 Retief GOOSEN RSA 69 71 72 212
T12 Keegan BRADLEY USA 72 68 72 212
T12 7 Colin MONTGOMERIE SCO 70 69 73 212
T12 8 Charl SCHWARTZEL RSA 70 69 73 212
T12 10 Louis OOSTHUIZEN RSA 70 66 76 212
T17 4 K.J. CHOI KOR 73 70 70 213
T17 5 Paul CASEY ENG 67 73 73 213
T19 3 WU A-shun CHN 73 71 70 214
T19 4 HU Mu CHN 70 73 71 214
T19 5 LI Chao CHN 68 74 72 214
22 6 HUANG Wen-yi CHN 73 67 76 216
T23 2 Kevin NA USA 72 74 71 1 217
T23 3 Jim FURYK USA 75 71 71 1 217
25 2 TSAI Chi-huang TPE 74 74 70 2 218
26 3 ZHANG Xin-jun CHN 71 74 74 3 219
27 2 ZHANG Lian-wei CHN 78 70 73 221
28 1 WU Wei-huang CHN 80 75 69 224
29 1 SU Dong CHN 79 73 77 229
30 1 YUAN Hao CHN 79 78 74 231

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