CANADIAN PGA TOUR OFFERS 60 CARDS AT MAY Q SCHOOL

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE CANADIAN PGA TOUR
Oakville, Ontario - The Canadian Tour announced its plans for 2012 Spring Qualifying School today. Canadian Tour Q-School will take place May 8-11 at The Country Club at Soboba Springs and Oak Valley Golf Club.
Both courses have US PGA Tour pedigree with Soboba Springs hosting the Nationwide Tour's Soboba Golf Classic in April and Oak Valley having hosted second and first stages of US Tour Qualifying school in years past.
"The decision to consolidate the Canadian Tour Q-School into a single competition was done for a number of reasons," stated Rick Janes, Commissioner of the Canadian Tour.
"The first reason was to offer a maximum number of cards to the field and to move it closer to the start of the domestic Canadian Tour schedule," added Janes, who confirmed the season will kick off at the 28th playing of the Times Colonist Island Savings Open June 7-10, 2012.
A record total of 60 Canadian Tour cards will be awarded to top finishers regardless of field size, which will be capped at 264 players. This marks the first time since 1986 that the Canadian Tour has only offered one Q-School.
Play will be conducted on two tournament courses with each competitor playing both courses twice. Deadline for entries is set for April 30, 2012.
Canadian Tour Q-School graduates include a number of players that have gone on to make a name for them selves in the world of golf be it on the US PGA Tour or in Europe.
Notables include US Tour winners Mike Weir, Ian Leggatt, Chris DiMarco, Steve Stricker, Todd Hamilton, Nathan Green, D.A. Points, Will MacKenzie, Kirk Triplett, Jason Bohn, Brendan Steele, Notah Begay and Tim Herron to name a few.

For more information please visit qschool.cantour.com or contact the Canadian Tour office at 1-877-CANTOUR (226-8687)

KEITH HORNE LEADS SOUTH AFRICAN PGA CH/SHIP BY TWO SHOTS

FROM THE SOUTH AFRICAN PGA WEBSITE
Keith Horne birdied his final four holes for a two-stroke lead in the Telkom South African PGA Championship on a day when almost everyone made a run at the lead, including a player who went from ‘putt putt’ to professional golfer in the space of 10 months.
Horne looked every bit the experienced professional he is as he carved out a patient 67 for the lead on 16-under-par 200 at Country Club Johannesburg on Saturday.
Darren Fichardt, Alex Haindl and second round leader Dean Burmester are his nearest challengers on 14-under, while James Kamte is in a group three off the pace.
But it was Horne’s experience that shone through on Saturday as he had to weather a slow start. “It was a patient round,” he said. “I drove the ball well, but wasn’t making any birdies out there. I tried to stay patient, and fortunately it finally happened on the last few holes. I felt like it was a bit of a struggle out there and I came through it with a 67, so I’m feeling quite confident.”
It’s a confidence built around his putting form, which has improved considerably with his use of a belly putter for a full tournament for the first time this week.
“I’m feeling very relaxed with my putting, and that is filtering through to the rest of my game.”
But on a course that yields some very low scoring, Horne admits he will be hoping for something even better in the final round.
“There are a lot of players just a couple of shots behind me, so there certainly won’t be any defending going on in the final round. Anybody can shoot nine under in the final round. The course is there to shoot a low score on if somebody gets the putter going, so I’ll be doing my best to go as low as possible again.”
At the age of 22 and leading a tournament for the first time in his career going into the third round, Burmester did well not to drop too far off the pace and closed with three straight birdies for a 70 that will do his confidence the world of good.
But one of the more remarkable stories of the day came from Morné Buys. The Free State professional produced a 65 that puts him right in the mix on 13-under, and which is just as amazing as his career.
Buys only started playing golf in 2003. He was a national age-group tennis player and Free State cricketer, but for various reasons decided not to pursue either.
“A friend asked me to join him for a round of golf. I told him it wasn’t the game for me. I’d only ever played putt putt,” said the 33-year-old Buys, whose father Kobus and uncle Danie were both Springbok tennis players.
But his view of the game changed when he shot 85 the first time out. “Two months later I was a plus-one handicap, and eight months later I turned pro.”
Michael Vlismas

TO VIEW ALL THE THIRD-ROUND TOTALS

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GREG OWEN DROPS OUT OF THIRD-ROUND PICTURE IN MEXICO

FROM THE US PGA TOUR WEBSITE
By Staff and wire reports

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico -- Daniel Summerhays shot a 4-under 67 on Saturday to take a two-stroke lead over Chris Stroud in the Mayakoba Golf Classic.

Summerhays had a 12-under 201 total on the windy, seaside El Camaleon course. The 28-year-old former BYU player won the Nationwide Tour's 2007 Nationwide Children's Hospital Invitational as an amateur for his biggest career victory.

"Tomorrow, I'm just going to try and do the same things I've been doing all week," Summerhays said. "I'm going to try and hit the driver really well again. My swing feels really good, so I'm picking out good targets. I'm judging the wind correctly and I'm managing it well. ... I'm really looking forward to the opportunity tomorrow to take the lead into the final round of a (US) PGA Tour event and see how I perform. "

Stroud had a 68. He and Summerhays are the only players with three rounds in the 60s on the Greg Norman-designed course.

"The wind is everything on this course," Stroud said. "The wind has a huge effect on every shot, into the greens, off the tees. You have a lot of elevated tee boxes into the wind and you better hit it really straight off the tee or you're going to be in the mangrove out there and trying to find your ball."

Marc Turnesa, Will Claxton and 53-year-old Michael Allen were four strokes back at 8 under. Allen shot 66, Turnesa 67 and Claxton 71.

Defending champion Johnson Wagner was 1 over after a 71. He won the Sony Open in Hawaii in January and tied for second the following week in the Humana Challenge.

Last year, Wagner beat Spencer Levin with a par on the first hole of a playoff.

Levin was even par after a 69.

BRITSWATCH: England's Greg Owen, 40 on February 19, from Mansfield, dropped out of a share of the halfway lead with a two-over-par third round of 71. He made a dreadful start with bogeys at the second, third and fifth ... straightened up with birdies at the long seventh and ninth, before slipping again with a 4 at the short 10th.

Owen, pictured right, looked to be heading for a par round at least when he birdied the 11th and 13th - four birdies on the day - but he slipped two over with shots spilled at the 14th and 18th. He starts the final round in joint seventh position on 207, six shots off the pace. He has so far shot 67-67-73.

Owen could have done with Russell Knox's third round of 68. The Inverness 26-year-old is seven under par for the 36 holes over Friday-Saturday and has climbed up eight places to joint 19th with a round to play - a sign that he has found his form at last after missing a sequence of cuts.

Florida-based Knox is on 209 after rounds of 74-67-68.

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"EDGE" TO McILROY v WESTWOOD WORLD MATCH--PLAY SEMI-FINAL

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE
By OLIVER BROWN Rory McIlroy has ratcheted up the tensions with Lee Westwood, his arch rival for golf’s world No 1 spot, with an extraordinarily bullish statement ahead of their semi-final duel on Sunday at the Accenture Match Play.

QUARTER-FINALS

M Wilson bt P Hanson 4 and 3.

H Mahan bt M Kuchar 6 and 5

R McIlroy bt S Bae 3 and 2

L Westwood bt M Laird 4 and 2.

TO VIEW THE LIVE SCORING FROM SUNDAY'S PLAY

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A froideur (coldness?)has developed between the pair since their days together at Chubby Chandler’s management stable, and the young Ulsterman did not conceal his relish at staring down his adversary in a straight head-to-head.

Brimful of confidence in Arizona on Saturday night, McIlroy declared: “It’s a match I wanted, it’s a match everyone else wanted, and I look forward to seeing him on the first tee tomorrow.”
 The 22 year-old could not have sounded any more primed for this Wild West confrontation than if he had just swung through a set of saloon doors in a stetson. He and Westwood take to the Dove Mountain course here at 7.20am local time with scores to settle and, potentially, the No 1 ranking at stake. Pistols at dawn, indeed.

The chance for both golfers to usurp Luke Donald at the top of the rankings, should either claim the Accenture title, lends added piquancy to an already explosive encounter. It is no secret on tour that relations between these two are cool.
Westwood expressed as much when, with McIlroy in the throes of meltdown at last year’s Masters, he argued that the youngster had a “pull-hook in his bag under pressure.”
He also described McIlroy’s decision to leave Chandler’s International Sports Management last autumn as “bizarre”.

Westwood hardly exuded warmth on that theme again last night, as he admitted they did not spend much time in each other’s company. “Rory doesn’t want time with the people who manage me, and I don’t want to spend much time with the people who manage Rory,” he said.

The only pity is that the tussle could not have been saved for tonight’s final – one guaranteed to pit Britain against the United States, after Hunter Mahan and Mark Wilson both won their quarter-finals convincingly yesterday.
 McIlroy, the world No 3, could scarcely wait to try to overhaul Westwood, whom he trails by just 0.01 points in the standings.
“I think, with both of us being up there in the world [rankings], and both of us with the possibility of going to No 1, it definitely gives the match an extra little bit of spice.”

There is a sense that Westwood, at 38, would dearly love to slap McIlroy down for his precocity, although he refused to be drawn. “I’d have to go and get and dictionary and find out the definition of ‘precocious’ first, before I answer that,” he said with a grin. “Rory said before I went out, ‘See you tomorrow morning’. That’s the trouble with kids nowadays – they think they’re always right, don’t they?”

Westwood did not exactly achieve the fast start he had planned in his quarter-final against Martin Laird, as the Scot’s opening birdie put him in a trailing position for the first time in the event. But thereafter he ground Laird steadily into submission with his accurate iron play, eventually sealing a 4 and 2 triumph.
McIlroy’s 3 and 2 win over Sang-Moon Bae proved a similarly fluctuating affair. The pair were still level after seven, before the US Open champion offered a belated statement of intent with an assured birdie at the par-five eighth.
He floundered when he thrashed his tee-shot at the 10th into the bushes, but mercifully for McIlroy, Bae also appeared beset by nerves, slicing his drive into at the 13th into an awkward position in a fairway bunker.
It was the Ulsterman’s cue to assert his superiority, as he delivered a straightforward four on the same hole, before prevailing on the 16th. His thoughts immediately turned to Westwood. It promises to be a contest every bit as fascinating as it is frosty.

JAMES BYRNE FINISHES JT 60th IN INDIA'S SAIL OPEN FOR $915

Banchory's James Byrne finished T60 in the Asian Tour's Sail Open at New Delhi, India.
He had rounds of 72, 73, 78 and 75 for a total of 10-over-par 298, which earned him 915 US dollars.
India's Anirban Lahiri led from start almost to the finish, being caught close home on 14-under-par 274 by Thailander Prom Meesawat who made up three shots on the leader with a final-round 70 to Lahirie's 73.
Lahiri won the sudden-death play-off at the first hole.
Australia’s Scott Barr looked set to for a grandstand finish until a disastrous triple-bogey six on the 17^th hole put paid to any hopes of a maiden win.
The Singapore-based Australian had to settle for third place on 275 while Ben Fox of the United States closed with a 278 to take fourth place with Bangladesh’s Siddikur a further shot back in fifth place on 280.
The SAIL-SBI Open is the second of the four events scheduled to be played in India on the Asian Tour this season.

FINAL TOTALS

Par 288 (4x72)

             
1   Anirban LAHIRI IND 65 69 67 73 274 -14 F $47,550.00
2   Prom MEESAWAT THA 72 64 68 70 274 -14 F $32,550.00
3   Scott BARR AUS 71 68 65 71 275 -13 F $18,300.00
4   Ben FOX USA 70 70 72 66 278 -10 F $14,790.00
5  SIDDIKUR BAN 74 67 70 69 280 -8 F $12,300.00
6   Shankar DAS IND 74 69 70 68 281 -7 F $8,810.00
6   Ashok KUMAR IND 74 68 69 70 281 -7 F $8,810.00
6   Gaganjeet BHULLAR IND 68 69 70 74 281 -7 F $8,810.00
9   Vinod KUMAR IND 70 68 74 70 282 -6 F $5,975.00
9   Stephen LEWTON ENG 72 73 66 71 282 -6 F $5,975.00
9   Shamim KHAN IND 71 68 71 72 282 -6 F $5,975.00
12   Martin ROMINGER SUI 72 69 73 69 283 -5 F $4,765.00
12   Thaworn WIRATCHANT THA 69 71 69 74 283 -5 F $4,765.00
12   P GHULFAM IND 73 68 66 76 283 -5 F $4,765.00
15   Rikard KARLBERG SWE 67 70 74 73 284 -4 F $4,230.00
15   Ron HARVEY JNR CAN 66 75 69 74 284 -4 F $4,230.00
17   Randhir GHOTRA IND 70 71 73 71 285 -3 F $3,870.00
17   Chapchai NIRAT THA 70 70 69 76 285 -3 F $3,870.00
19   Elmer SALVADOR PHI 71 73 70 72 286 -2 F $3,472.50
19   Wade ORMSBY AUS 70 74 70 72 286 -2 F $3,472.50
19   Sanjay KUMAR IND 71 71 71 73 286 -2 F $3,472.50
19   Abhinav LOHAN IND 70 71 71 74 286 -2 F $3,472.50
23   Harmeet KAHLON IND 70 71 75 71 287 -1 F $3,060.00
23   Mithun PERERA LKA 71 69 73 74 287 -1 F $3,060.00
23   Kunal BHASIN AUS 74 69 70 74 287 -1 F $3,060.00
23   KIM Gi-Whan KOR 74 70 68 75 287 -1 F $3,060.00
23   Rahil GANGJEE IND 73 67 71 76 287 -1 F $3,060.00
28 Daisuke KATAOKA JPN 71 72 72 73 288 0 F $2,570.00
28 Quincy QUEK SIN 70 74 71 73 288 0 F $2,570.00
28 Panuwat MUENLEK THA 70 72 72 74 288 0 F $2,570.00
28 Kiradech APHIBARNRAT THA 73 70 71 74 288 0 F $2,570.00
28 Mardan MAMAT SIN 72 71 74 71 288 0 F $2,570.00
28 Atthaphon PRATHUMMANEE THA 71 68 73 76 288 0 F $2,570.00
34 Shiv KAPUR IND 70 71 73 75 289 1 F $2,220.00
34 Mukesh KUMAR IND 68 77 71 73 289 1 F $2,220.00
34 Vijay KUMAR IND 73 72 71 73 289 1 F $2,220.00
34 Sattaya SUPUPRAMAI THA 71 72 70 76 289 1 F $2,220.00
38 Rashid KHAN IND 72 73 70 75 290 2 F $1,950.00
38 HSU Chia TPE 70 72 74 74 290 2 F $1,950.00
38 R. MURTHY IND 73 71 75 71 290 2 F $1,950.00
38 Thitiphun CHUAYPRAKONG THA 71 71 78 70 290 2 F $1,950.00
38 Himmat RAI IND 74 71 75 70 290 2 F $1,950.00
43 Manav JAINI IND 68 70 76 77 291 3 F $1,620.00
43 Zaw MOE MYN 70 72 74 75 291 3 F $1,620.00
43 Scott HEND AUS 68 73 73 77 291 3 F $1,620.00
43 Pariya JUNHASAVASDIKUL THA 72 71 74 74 291 3 F $1,620.00
43 Roop SINGH IND 70 75 73 73 291 3 F $1,620.00
43 Vikrant CHOPRA IND 73 70 76 72 291 3 F $1,620.00
49 Namchok TANTIPOKHAKUL THA 74 66 75 78 293 5 F $1,320.00
49 Gaurav GHEI IND 71 72 71 79 293 5 F $1,320.00
49 Chawinroj RUNGSRICHAI THA 71 74 72 76 293 5 F $1,320.00
49 Jarmo SANDELIN SWE 73 72 74 74 293 5 F $1,320.00
53 CHAN Shih-chang TPE 72 72 72 78 294 6 F $1,125.00
53 Javi COLOMO ESP 69 74 74 77 294 6 F $1,125.00
53 Mohd ISLAM IND 68 76 74 76 294 6 F $1,125.00
53 Harendra GUPTA IND 72 72 74 76 294 6 F $1,125.00
57 Raju ALI IND 75 69 77 74 295 7 F $1,035.00
57 Lindsay RENOLDS CAN 71 74 77 73 295 7 F $1,035.00
59 Paul DONAHOO AUS 71 74 76 76 297 9 F $990.00
60 Jay BAYRON PHI 72 71 72 83 298 10 F $915.00
60 LEE Sung KOR 75 70 75 78 298 10 F $915.00
60 Feroz ALI IND 71 74 76 77 298 10 F $915.00
60 James BYRNE (Scotland) 72 73 78 75 ($915)

64 Angelo QUE PHI 73 72 74 83 302 14 F $840.00

65 Sanju MD. IND 71 74 77 81 303 15 F $810.00

LAWRIE CONQUEROR LAIRD SAYS HE'S READY FOR WESTWOOD

+ SCROLL DOWN TO READ INTERVIEW WITH MARTIN LAIRD AFTER HIS 3 AND 1 WIN OVER PAUL LAWRIE


FROM THE SKY SPORTS.COM WEBSITE
Scotland's Martin Laird will not be intimidated by the prospect of facing Lee Westwood in the last eight of the Accenture Match Play Championship in Arizona today.
Laird has three European scalps already in Tucson this week, having taken out Alvaro Quiros, Matteo Manassero and compatriot Paul Lawrie whom he beat by 3 and 1 in the round of the last 16.
Now Laird, pictured, originally from Glasgow and a former Scottish youths champion and the current World No 40, who has been based in America since his college days and lives only two hours away in Scottsdale, tackles third seed Westwood in the quarter-finals.
Westwood will be a hot favourite as he chases the win on Sunday that would restore him to the world number one ranking, but the 29-year-old Laird said: "I'm looking forward to it and if I keep playing like I am it will be a good game."
Westwood, though, has been impressive so far in seeing off Nicolas Colsaerts, Robert Karlsson and then Tiger Woods' conqueror Nick Watney in reaching the third round for the first time in 12 attempts.
Watney knocked out the third seed the last two years and Westwood said: "I didn't want to make it a habit. It's nice to get my own back and I feel in control of nearly every part of my game."
He has played 49 holes so far and has led for 48 of them, so could repeat the feat of Donald last year in winning without ever being behind or playing the final hole.
Westwood is trying to become the third successive English player to lift the trophy. Before Donald it was Ian Poulter.
Rory McIlroy added the scalp of Ryder Cup team-mate Miguel Angel Jimenez, having earlier beaten George Coetzee and Anders Hansen.
"I felt like I hit a lot of quality shots, especially coming down the stretch when I needed to," said the 22-year-old Northern Irishman, preferring to remember those rather than a couple of fluffed chips and a few missed short putts.
"I'm driving the ball really well and that's a big positive."
McIlroy takes on the unheralded South Korean Bae Sang-moon in the quarter-finals, while Europe's other survivor Peter Hanson faces American Mark Wilson.
If the Swede comes through that it is certain to be another of the home contingent blocking his path to the final. Hunter Mahan beat one Ryder Cup colleague Steve Stricker in the third round to set up a match with another, Matt Kuchar.

MARTIN LAIRD INTERVIEW AFTER WIN
 OVER PAUL LAWRIE

Q. You were telling a story yesterday about how Paul Lawrie had come along as a champion and coached you as a young kid in the Scottish boys team, and now you're duffing him up. Tell us about that.

MARTIN LAIRD: Yeah, it was a shame we were both paired together. I would have liked to see two Scots go through. But yeah, Paul Lawrie, when I was 16 came to Scotland boys' session, and I remember that. And it's kind of surreal my playing against him now. But I'm pleased to go through.

Q. You told us your coach flew in from South Africa earlier in the week. It looks like he's going to crack a joke, because you're playing really well?

MARTIN LAIRD: Yeah, I really didn't play very well the last two weeks on the West Coast over here. He came in last Sunday and we worked hard the last four days. He left yesterday. I'm feeling comfortable. And I'm hitting the ball as well as I was in probably a good 6, 8 months, anyway.

Q. You've got a home in Scottsdale, which is not that far from here, desert golf, does it help you understand this part of the game better?

MARTIN LAIRD: Yeah, you know, it's only a couple hour drive away. And one thing is when it warms up in the desert the ball starts going far. And Paul hit good shots today that went over the green. And that's the thing, getting late in the day, it's a little bit local knowledge, probably half a club different from the front nine to the back nine, and that's definitely an advantage.

Q. Lee Westwood tomorrow (Saturday), thoughts on that one?

MARTIN LAIRD: Yeah, excited for whoever is next and turns out it's Lee. I'm getting all the Europeans it seems like this week, and I'm obviously looking forward to that. And if I keep going as I am it should be a good game.

Q. Martin, many congratulations. It must feel like you're on a real roll now?

MARTIN LAIRD: Yeah, you know, every round you get through the field gets a little smaller and you get a little more confident. I'm looking forward to the match tomorrow.

Q. Was there an odd feeling slightly going into this match being you against a Scot, as you were?

MARTIN LAIRD: Yeah, it was unfortunate we got paired together, I'd love to have seen both of us go through. But the way it turned out you can't do much about it. It was a little strange, but obviously pleased to go through.

Q. What was the key to your win, did you feel?

MARTIN LAIRD: I just played real solid. I don't think I made a bogey all day. In match play when you don't give any holes away, it's tough to get beat. Especially the pin positions today, seemed to be tougher today, there's not going to be as many bowing birdies thrown out as the last few days. The course is firming up. The greens and the fairways are getting firmer, so it's been harder.

Q. Might be an exaggeration to say this, but I'll say it anyway, you are the Scot in Scottsdale. So you live out here for much of the year. Does that help you this week?

MARTIN LAIRD: Definitely helps. I feel comfortable playing desert golf. I've got a pretty good record in desert golf. My first win in Vegas came on a [CK] difficulties earth golf course. And I play practice on a desert course. I feel comfortable and I'm used to how far the ball goes out here. When it warms up like it did today, the ball starts going pretty far. Paul hit some good, quality shots today it just went over the back of the green in not great shots. That might have something to do with not being used to the conditions.

Q. Just in terms of the all Scottish nature of the match you played, that added edge from the fact that Paul Lawrie came along as an Open champion and dispensed words of advice to you as a teenager?

MARTIN LAIRD: That was fun, back in 99, I remember I was 16 years old, and the current Open champion came along to a Scottish training session. It was fun. I remember looking up and thinking that's where I want to be. And it's fun to be there now and go out and play him today. We had a good game. I knew it was going to be a tough game. He's been playing great recently and he wasn't going to give me anything. I'm pleased to go through.

Q. The irony of that one didn't get lost to you today when you were teeing up?

MARTIN LAIRD: No, trying not to think too much about that and trying not to think about who I'm playing. Just go out and play my game. If I keep playing the way I am, it doesn't matter who I'm against, I feel like I can win.

Q. What do you think of playing Lee Westwood, obviously, in the quarter finals now?

MARTIN LAIRD: I'm looking forward to it. I've never actually played with Lee. You've got to look forward to playing the guys that are ranked up in the world. He's definitely proven that he's one of the best players in the world over the last few years and I'm looking forward to tomorrow.

Q. A lot to play for this weekend?

MARTIN LAIRD: Yes, there is. That's what it's all about. That's what you practice hard for. I've been looking forward to this tournament ever since last year. I love match play golf and I'm looking forward to it.

WESTWOOD AND McILROY ON A COLLISION COURSE IN ARIZONA

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE
By OLIVER BROWN, Maracana, Arizona
Lee Westwood and Rory McIlroy, two players vying ferociously to wrest the world No 1 spot from Luke Donald, kept alive a potential semi-final showdown on Sunday after both moved serenely into the last eight here at the Accenture Matchplay.
This corner of Arizona desert, framed by many a Saguaro cactus and the odd passing lizard, could hardly form a more fitting backdrop to their Wild West shoot-out.
Wisely, Westwood refused to countenance such a prospect. In sealing his place in Saturday’s quarter-final against Martin Laird, he moved into unchartered territory, having never advanced beyond the second round at this tournament in 11 previous attempts.
“There’s a danger you’re looking too far ahead,” he shot back, when the possibility of a McIlroy duel was raised. “I’m just happy to be looking for a different restaurant for Friday night.”
But his commanding 3 and  2 victory on Friday night over Californian Nick Watney suggested Westwood was on the cusp of a maiden World Golf Championship triumph.
Every department of his game looked perfectly watertight yesterday - even his traditionally suspect chipping, as he lob-wedged to within three inches of the cup to wrap up his third-round win.
“While I was at home last week, I did some work on finding a reliable technique,” explained Westwood, who shook off memories of the botched chip that cost him a victory in Dubai earlier this month. “All over, my game has been pretty good. There has not really been a weakness.”
Westwood is fiercely committed to reclaiming the No 1 ranking, which he lost to Donald last season, and has displayed this week the type of ominous form to do so. He is assuredly treading a Donald-like path to success in Arizona: his rival did not trail in any match en route to grasping the matchplay title a year ago and neither, so far, has he.
Reinforcing his reputation as the consummate front-runner, Westwood birdied each of the first two holes against Watney and never looked back. The pair looked at ease in each other’s company, as the Englishman sought to illuminate his opponent about Championship football and the charms of his beloved Nottingham Forest.
“Nick knows a lot about it,” he said, approvingly. “He’s a Spurs fan.”
McIlroy appeared equally menacing for stretches of his 3 and 1 vanquishing of Spain’s Miguel Ángel Jiménez. The duo formed a wonderful contrast: the young buck, taking great pride in his new-found chiselled physique, and the Rioja-swilling, 48-year-old Spaniard, who prepared for the encounter by puffing a giant cigar on the driving range.
McIlroy’s approach play was a joy to behold - nowhere more so than the 17th, when he was within four feet of the pin in two to close out the match.
The US Open champion, who plays South Korean Sang-Moon Bae today, reflected: “I felt like last year was a great stepping stone for me to go on to bigger and better things. It’s nice to get to the quarter-finals and I’d like to go a little bit further.”
Westwood excepted, the field has opened up invitingly for McIlroy, who lies a mere 0.004 points behind him in the rankings and could also take over at No 1 should he win Sunday’s final.
Germany’s Martin Kaymer fell to a 4 and 3 defeat by Matt Kuchar, while Steve Stricker lost by the same margin to compatriot Hunter Mahan.
Sweden’s Peter Hanson continued his sparkling form with a 5 and 3 thrashing of Brandt Snedeker.