Scottish Golf View - Golf News from Scotland

Paul Lawrie Foundation leading trophy-winners in 2009

2010-03-15T20:09:00.006Z

Paul Lawrie Foundation's leading trophy winners in 2009 with their prizes at last night's junior conveners' evening at The Marcliffe at Pitfodels Hotel. Left to right: Alex Wiseman (Order of Merit winner), Ryan Bain (boys' match-play champion again) and Louise McGillivray (girls' match-play champion, with, of course the man himself, writes Colin Farquharson.
I forgot to take my camera but I am sure that Paul will not mind me having "lifted" the above picture from his website!
Sad news that Murray Carnie is having to stand down as the Paul Lawrie Foundation Manager due to pressure of work - he is a P.E. teacher.
Murray has put in a power of work over the past three or four years and his successor, Iain, Powell, has a hard act to follow.
We'll be telling you more about Iain when the Media Release comes out. This is, in fact, a bit of a scoop for Scottishgolfview.com!

Next to playing in Ryder Cup, Paul would love to be one of Monty's lieutentants

Paul Lawrie conducted a Question-and-Answer session with the junior conveners and other guests. The 1999 Open champion has become quite polished in this routine - and that's a fact.
He expressed the opinion that Colin Montgomerie will be a "phenomenal" Ryder Cup team captain, having played in three Seve Trophy matches under Colin's captaincy, so Paul knows what he's talking about.
And Lawrie thinks that the European line-up is also shaping up to be a very powerful force.
Paul, who played in the 1999 Ryder Cup match at Brookline, Massachusetts after winning the Open at Carnoustie, would love to earn a place in Monty's team for the Celtic Manor Summit Meeting but, failing that, he would like to be one of Colin's lieutenants. Fingers crossed for you, Paul.
Paul responded to one question from the floor about just how good a player Tiger Woods is.
"I've played with him three or four times in tournaments, so I have seen him in action at close quarters .... even at 60 per cent of his powers, Tiger is good enough to beat anyone in any tournament .... he can play some shots that are not within my range, such as a three-iron out of a bunker, which carried a tall tree between him and the green, magnificent shot!"

Lawrie and Monty were partners four times in 1999 Ryder Cup match

+Paul Lawrie and Colin Montgomerie were paired together four times by skipper Mark James in the 1999 Ryder Cup match which the Americans won by a single point: 14 1/2-13 1/2.
Lawrie and Montgomrie beat David Duval and Phil Mickelson 3 and 2 in the lead-off foursomes on the first morning. In the afternoon, they again were first off the tee and got a halved match with Davis Love and Justin Leonard in the four-balls.
On the second day, Colin and Paul lost to Hal Sutton and Jeff Maggert by one hole in the morning foursomes but beat Jerry Pate and Tiger Woods, no less, by 2 and 1 in the afternoon four-balls.
In the final set of singles on the Sunday, Lawrie completed what was a great Ryder Cup personally by performing the anchor role and beating Jeff Maggert 4 and 3.

2010-03-15T19:39:00.003Z

Stephen Clark aims to be on

European Tour next year

Former United States college circuit player Stephen Clark is in Turkey this week for the TGI pro-am, having turned professional recently.

Stephen, born February 12, 1985, comes from Glasgow and was a student at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

"I had a pretty succesful time there, winning three times on the college circuit and achieving several top 10 finishes," recalls Clark.

He became the first player in the school's history to become Conference Player of the Year and the first golfer in the school's history to be named Athlete of the Year for the university, an award which normally is won by a basketball of (American) footb all player.

"I turned pro recently and had my first top 10 finish at the Major Golf Pro-am at Archerfield. I will be playing on the 2010 EuroPro Tour with the goal of getting on the European Tour for 2011.

"Another big target for 2010 is to qualify for the Open at St Andrews. I have recently become attached to The Carrick on Loch Lomond as a playing professional. I have been up there practising the last couple of weeks and feel that the world class facilities there will help me develop as a player.

"During the winter I have been working with Simon Payne with my long game and since joining the team at the Carrick I have been working with their new Head of Instruction, Spencer Edwards who has a wealth of knowledge and experience teaching players on the European Tour."

+When Stephen turned pro he had an amateur handicap of +4 (When Nick Faldo and Padraig Harrington turned pro, they both were +2!).

+Stephen played for Scotland at boys and youths level and was in Scotland men's squads.

+He was four times Ralston Golf Club junior champion and four times Glasgow boys' champion.

NORTH GOLF ALLIANCE REPORT

2010-03-15T19:19:00.005Z

Liam pips Calum on card countback at Brora

By ROBIN WILSON
Two local teenagers, Liam MacDonald-Macleod (19) and Calum Stewart (17), left the Alliance's leading player, Tain's Munro Ferries, in the shade when playing their home course in Sunday's North Golf Alliance fixture at Brora.
Each local protege returned a gross card of one-over-par 70 and with a one-under-par inward half of 33, MacDonald, pictured by Robin Wilson, pegged back Stewart's outward lead of two strokes to make it into first place, adding his name to the list of scratch winners after a handicap win at Royal Dornoch last November.

Scottish junior cap Stewart matched his rival's outward 35 shots over the next nine holes but it was at the 13th and 14th holes where MacDonald made up ground with back-to-back birdies to win the card play-off.
Tain's left-hander Ferries finished with the fourth best score of the day, a 73, which matched his two earlier scores of 73 at both Royal Dornoch and Tain. After adding a 66 at Tarbat the previous week and an opening season 70 at Durness, the +2 handicapper, now with a four scores' total of 282, has built up a six-shot aggregate lead over Thurso's Bryan Ronald whose 77 at Brora did not improve his situation.

Ferries' lead should be a sufficient to guarantee retention of the Scratch Quaich with two fixtures remaining.
Reducing his previous net aggregate total of 283 by 10 shots to 273 with a superb handicap- winning score of 64 at Brora, Seann Sutherland (Bonar-Bridge/Ardgay) is on track to retain the Mackintosh Salver. He has gone ahead of Ronald's net 276 total by three with remaining fixtures left to play this weekend at Golspie on Saturday, followed by Reay on Sunday.

Tain's Andrew Watt occupies third net place with 277, Watt unable to improve on any of his counting scores at Brora. Missing a chance to get into the mix was Durness's Billy MacBain who unfortunately along with playing partners Alister Corbet and John Morrison disqualified themselves after discovering they had played from a wrong tee.
Sutherland has had two strokes taken from his handicap (8 to 6) for the final two events but he won't grumble too much after his gross 72 (38-34) for a net 64 was six ahead of the next best score in Class 1.

This came from former Alliance secretary Robin Wilson (Brora) who has been out of the prize lists for the whole of last season and all of the current while his handicap was rising to seven. But he got back into the scene with a closing birdie 2 for a gross 77, net 70, and second place. The local member finished two ahead of Tain pair, Steve Holmes and Alec Gunn.
The overnight rain and strong wind that had even blown out several of the flag poles from the greens had abated by morning but Brora's winter tee positions toughens several holes and this was reflected with no player in the Class 2 section getting close to the net par.

Three net 72s were separated into order by inward half counts and it was local Peter Etheridge, who came home in net 34, who got first place ahead of Jim Johnstone (Thurso) and Tain's Ali Melville.
As mentioned above, the final fixture is at Reay on Sunday but Golspie are giving three hours of their members' times on Saturday morning - 8.30 to 11.30am - to get all ten fixtures completed. RESULTS
Scratch

70 L MacDonald-Macleod (Brora) 37-33, C Stewart (Brora) 35-35.

72 S R S Sutherland (Bonar-Bridge/Ardgay) 38-34.

73 M Ferries (Tain) 38-35.

74 J Sangster (Thurso) 37-37.

75 B Ferries (Tain) 39-36.

76 S Holmes (Tain) 40-36).

Handicap

Class 1 – S R S Sutherland (BBA) (8) 64; R J Wilson (Brora) (7) 70; S Holmes (Tain) (4) (bih), A Gunn (Tain) (6) 72.

Class 2 – P Etheridge (Brora) (12) (bih), J Johnstone) (Thurso) (16), A Melville (Tain) (11) 72; D A Matheson (Brora) (15) 75.

2010-03-15T17:09:00.004Z

Tartan Tour Scoreboard
WINTER SERIES (Four-ball, better-ball)
DUNDONALD LINKS
Par 72
65 Graeme Brown (Montrose) & Chris Kelly (Cawder); Mark Loftus (Cowglen) & Simon Payne (Adam Hunter Golf).
68 Kenneth Monaghan (Bothwell Castle) & Christopher Russell (RAW Golf Design).
69 Iain Colquhoun (Dundonald Links) & Christopher Currie (Caldwell); Tom Eckford (Ranfurly Castle) & Stuart Kerr (Strathaven).
70 Paul Brookes (Pitreavie) & Jamie Stevenson (Braehead); Ricky Gray (Torrance House) & Stephen Gray (Hayston); Scott Henderson (Kings Links) & Greig Hutcheon (Banchory).
72 Richard Hall & Michael Sweenie (Westin Turnberry) & Billy Marchank (Crieff) & Alan White (Lanark); Gary McFarlane (Clober) & Neil Colquhoun (Merchants of Edinburgh).
73 Gregor Abel & David Herd (Alloa) & Craig Everett (Esporta Dougalston) & Stewart Savage (Dalmuir); Brian Gibson (Carrick at Cameron House) & Colin White (unatt); Guy Redford & David Ross Nicol (Dundonald Links).
74 Kenneth Kelly (Baberton) & Steve Kelly (Tulliallan); Alistair Brown (Whitecraigs) & Scott Herald (Whitecraigs); Robert Collinson & Bobby Wallace (Bearsden Golf Range).
75 Sean O'Donnell (Balbirnie Park) & Graeme Lornie (Aspire); James McKinnon (Irvine) & Duncan Williamson (Kirkhill).
76 Derek Watters (Gourock) & Euan Cameron (Hamilton); Daniel Welsh (Port Royal Driving Range) & Derek McIntosh (Elderslie); Peter Kerr (Hayston) & James Clive (Carrick).
78 Robert Irvine (Douglas Park) & Ross Neill (Drumpellier); Andrew Fullen (Largs) & James Smallwood (Fereneze); Graeme Stewart (Gleddoch) & Stuart Williamson (unattached);
80 Anthony Mackrell & Richard Mannering (Playsport Golf); Keith Baxter (Buchanan Castle) & Alastair McLean (Duddingston).
84 David Snodgrass (Hilton Park) & Paul Wilson (World of Golf); Craig Knowles & Christopher McMaster (Panmure).

2010-03-15T17:03:00.001Z

US Tour chief calls conference - to make

Tiger comeback announcement?

US PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem has called a news conference for this evening, a day after hinting he knows when Tiger Woods will return to golf.
The tour gave no details of what Finchem will talk about in the conference, which is set for 18.30 GMT.
However, on Sunday Finchem said he expected Woods to announce his comeback date "pretty soon."
The world number one is taking an extended break from the game after admitting cheating on his wife, Elin.
In an apology for his conduct which was televised worldwide last month, Woods again said he did not know how long he would be away from the sport.
But the New York Post, citing two unnamed "sources in the golf community", said on Thursday that the 34-year-old was preparing for a possible return at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in Orlando on 25 March.
Another suggestion is that Woods will return to action at The Masters at Augusta on 5-11 April.
On Sunday Finchem said: "I'm as excited as everybody else to see him back I hope this spring, but my sense is we'll know pretty soon.
"Everybody's done looking back at the circumstances that resulted in him stepping away from the game and [are] now focused on when he's going to play golf - I think that's good."
Woods has been working with his coach Hank Haney, further fuelling expectations of a return before or for the Masters.
"If he wasn't going to play for six months, why would Hank be there?" said Australian pro Roger Allenby, a Florida neighbour of Woods.
"I look at that as maybe he's getting ready."
The Bay Hill tournament is run by Woods' management company, International Management Group, but tournament director Scott Wellington said he has not heard from the player's agent, Mark Steinberg.
"At this point, we still don't know," he said. "Tiger has until next Friday to commit."
Woods has won at Bay Hill six times, from 2000 to 2003 and again in 2008 and 2009, and it is the only PGA Tour event he has never missed since turning professional.
Meanwhile, Augusta National, the home of the Masters, the first major of the year, is famed for its watertight security, which means it would be next to impossible for the paparazzi to gain access to the course.
Speculation has also centred on the Tavistock Cup, a made-for-TV exhibition team event between PGA talent from rival Florida clubs Isleworth and Lake Nona.
Golfer Mark O'Meara, a friend and neighbour of Woods, fanned that flame this week when he told the Golf Channel that he "wouldn't be surprised" to see Woods play the 22-23 March competition.

Hugh Hunter's Clackmannan county news

2010-03-15T12:42:00.002Z

IT'S ALL GO FOR THE 2010 GOLF SEASON

With lengthening days and better weather, the local golf season will be underway in a week or two when golf clubs stage their usual opening events.
New members will be especially welcome at the six golf clubs in Clackmannan county (Alloa, Alva, Braehead, Dollar, Tillicoultry and Tulliallan).
Anyone interested in joining a club should contact a local golf club secretary or golf club member whether they are a new starter to the game or a former player returning to the game.
There is considerable fun and pleasure to be gained on the local golf courses, playing socially or competitively.

COUNTY GOLF FIXTURES 2010

At the annual general meeting held in November, the small group of golf enthusiasts set up Clackmannan's county golf arrangements for 2010. Bill Abernethy (Braehead) takes over the Presidency for 2010 with George Kay appointed as Vice President. Tommy Johnson continues in the crucial role of Secretary and Treasurer, and John Gullen was re appointed team Captain. Tillicoultry’s Sam Kinnaird was appointed Junior Convenor, and Kenneth Ellacott continues as the county delegate to the Scottish Golf Union.
The Clackmannan county team are in action right at the start of the season with the usual Provan Salver matches against the other Midlands areas of Angus (March 28), Fife (April 4) and Perth & Kinross (April 18).
On the competition side, the Spring meeting (Division 1 at Tulliallan; Division 2 at Alloa) is on Saturday, April 24 followed by the boys' championship on Sunday, April 25. Entry forms for these events will be posted in local clubs shortly.
The Clackmannan county dinner has been rescheduled for Friday, April 9 where presentations will be made. Details are on club notice boards, with tickets available in the golf clubs.

FAST START FOR LAWRENCE IN 2010

Junior golfer Lawrence Allan (Alva) has made a quick start to the 2010 season. In the four events of the winter series for the best Scottish Under-16 golfers, Lawrence finished in the top 10 three times out of four, and over the four events, he finished a highly creditable third in the Under-16s' Order of Merit.
Indeed, had he been one shot better at the last event held at Forrester Park near Dunfermline, he would have been in the runner-up spot. As a result of this fine performance, he has been selected for the Under-16s Quadrangular match in April.
The team of eight boys representing Scotland will take on teams from Ireland, Wales and the Netherlands over the Rijk van Nunspeet course to the east of Amsterdam from April 13 to 15.
Lawrence played well at the Under-16s International held last year at Arbroath, and with his current handicap of 1.7, he will be hoping for some good results in 2010 boys' events.
Lawrence will be joined by Dollar’s Gary Chalmers in the Scottish boys' championship, to be held at West Kilbride from April 5 to 10. Gary plays his first match at 12.29 on the Monday while Lawrence has to wait till 11.57 on the Tuesday.

HOPE FOR CALLUM IN 2010
Tulliallan’s Callum Macaulay is finding the professional game difficult. After missing cuts in early season events, he bounced back in true Macaulay fashion with a second place finish in the Hi5 tournament in Spain. He is in the field for the Kenya Open a Challenge Tour event, and will be hopeful for another good performance.
His aim is of course to return to the main European tour, and with the experience he is building up this should be achievable during 2010. Best of luck!

MIDLAND ALLIANCE

Clackmannan county golfers continue to make their presence felt in Midland Alliance events held weekly during the winter. This winter has been a real headache for the organisers with cancellations and rescheduling.
Recent good results have been 1st equal handicap from Alloa’s Chris Westland and Hugh Hunter with net 68’s at Arbroath and at Burntisland last week, Senior Internationalist Bob Stewart (Tulliallan) gave the younger golfers ( including several professionals) something to think about with a well compiled 71.
Bob leads the voucher list, with Alloa’s Michael Niven also in the top ten.

2010-03-15T12:34:00.002Z

World Cup to be held every two years on

Hainan Island, southern China

The Omega Mission Hills World Cup will return to the international golfing calendar in 2011 as a biennial event – staged in every odd year – with a record prize fund of US$7,500,000 at a brand new venue in the Mission Hills Resort on Hainan Island in Southern China from November 24-27 next year.
This was announced today by the International Federation of PGA Tours, the International Golf Association, Omega and Mission Hills.
The re-positioning of the Omega Mission Hills World Cup, which has been played at Mission Hills Shenzhen, China, between 2007 and 2009, as a biennial event follows last year’s decision by the International Olympic Committee to re-introduce golf to the Olympic movement from 2016.
By playing the event in alternate years from 2011, the World Cup is aligned with many of the major sports in the Olympic movement, such as the World Athletics Championships, which are contested biennially and are not in any potential conflict with the summer and winter Olympic Games.
However, the Olympic golf tournament will be staged as an individual competition, whereas the Omega Mission Hills World Cup remains the only team event in the men’s professional game where players can proudly represent their own countries, thus maintaining its status as the oldest international team event in professional golf.
In 2011, the Omega Mission Hills World Cup will be among the richest events in world golf, with prize money for the 28 team competition increasing from US$5,500,000 in 2009 to a record US$7,500,000 when the event makes its debut at the newly opened Mission Hills Resort Hainan.
Next year’s winning team will earn US$2,400,000 - US$1,200,000 to each player - which is $350,000 more than last year’s winners. The new prize fund elevates the 2011 Omega Mission Hills World Cup right up alongside the Major Championships and the World Golf Championships.
The format for the contest will remain unchanged, with two series of foursomes and two series of fourballs on alternative days, which has the capacity to create huge swings in fortune and adding to the drama and excitement of the event.
The Omega Mission Hills World Cup will be hosted on the Blackstone course, a spectacular, 350-acre lay-out that weaves through a striking landscape of mature trees, expansive wetlands, ancient town ruins and ever-present lava rock.
The 7,777-yard Blackstone features a myriad of risk / reward opportunities throughout the back nine. The course is set in front of the 525-room 5-star resort complex and the 238,000 square-feet clubhouse, making it ideal for hosting the world’s foremost golf tournaments.
Stephen Urquhart, President of Omega, said: “In addition to finding a coherent strategy in relation to the Olympics, one of the main reasons for making the World Cup of Golf a biennial event is that it should give all the Federations involved a better opportunity to send their best teams to represent their country. We are confident that we can make important inroads in our primary objective which is to re-establish the World Cup of Golf in its rightful position.”

2010-03-15T08:20:00.004Z

Puerto Rico Open splashes

over into Monday

FROM THE PGATOUR.COM WEBSITE
Chad Collins is getting used to surging the top of the Puerto Rico Open leaderboard with his strong short game just before darkness suspends play in the rain-delayed competition which will now finish on Monday.
Just before the horn suspended third-round play on Sunday, Collins birdied the par-5 fifth hole as night descended over Trump International Golf Club-Puerto Rico. With the clutch shot, he claimed a share of the lead at 12 under with Kevin Streelman, who also made a last-minute birdie on the par-4 seventh hole.
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RELATED LINKS
Leaderboard: Round 3
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"Just late in the day, and I guess I'm pretty loose," Collins said after staying atop the leaderboard for the second straight day on the scenic par-72 course framed by the Atlantic and the tropical El Yunque rain forest.
On Saturday, Collins eagled the par-5 second hole to top the leaderboard at 9 under before second-round play was suspended. The former Methodist College player's strong putting and bunker play are giving him his best position after any round on TOUR.
Collins finished second on the Nationwide Tour money list in 2009, a year after his rookie season on the US PGA Tour.
Derek Lamely, 7 under for 13 holes in the round, was a stroke back at 11 under with Steve Wheatcroft and Kris Blanks. Wheatcroft played six holes in the third round, and Blanks completed seven.
Lamely, No. 4 on the 2009 Nationwide Tour money list, seemed easy to overlook in the Puerto Rico Open until he vaulted up the leaderboard with his Saturday scoring assault. He strung together strong shots from tee to green.
"I've got greens like this at home. So for whatever reason, I feel like my lines are good. My speed is pretty good here. Just a good fit," said Lamely, who tied for 13th last year in the Puerto Rico event.
Lamely credited his Saturday surge with getting more rest lately than he had been.
"My brain's working a little better. I just think I just jot so beat up there for a little while, just traveling all the time," he said.
His strategy on Monday? "Make a lot of birdies," Lamely said.
Monday TV -- Puerto Rico Open
The Puerto Rico Open got off to a soggy start Thursday, with only 18 players able to tee off that day because of drenching rain. It was the first suspension of play in the history of the young tournament, now in its third year. The weather woes continued Friday.
The tropical course began to dry out Saturday under a day of strong Caribbean sunshine. But because of previous days' soggy conditions, players were allowed to use preferred lies in the fairways. The maintenance crew worked through the night with squeegees and pumps to sop up the water.
A few players voiced surprise that the course wasn't soggier than it was, after the deluge leading up to the tournament and the first two day of competition.
"It's actually surprising how much drier it is. It's still very wet out there, but it's getting to the point where we don't need to take it 15 yards to get out of casual water," said Australia's James Nitties, who was in a 6-way tie for sixth place at 10 under.
It also helped that the cut came at 2-under 142, with 70 players moving on to the third round. Among those headed home were Greg Kraft, who won the first Puerto Rico Open in 2008 with a 14-under finish, and the highest-ranked player, South Africa's Rory Sabbatini, No. 55.
Last year's Puerto Rico Open champ, Michael Bradley, was still in the hunt. He shot 3 under for the day and was tied 12th place at 9 under.
The competition, which was scheduled to end Sunday, will stretch into Monday due to the rain delays. The winner will earn $630,000.
THIRD ROUND TOTALS TO COME

2010-03-14T23:53:00.002Z

Els ends two years without

a victory -- and it's a South

African 1-2 at Doral

FROM THE PGA.COM WEBSITE
Ernie Els showed his South African protege what it takes to win a World Golf Championship. Just as important was that he showed himself how to win again, too.
Ending the longest drought of his 20-year career, Els played the final 23 holes on the Blue Monster at Doral Golf Resort, Miami, without a bogey and closed with a 6-under 66 today to win the CA Championship by four shots over 25-year-old Charl Schwartzel.
It was far closer than the margin suggested.
Schwartzel, in his first time on a world stage, refused to let Els get away from him. Els was clinging to a one-shot lead as he stood over a 25-foot par putt on the 14th hole, and the Big Easy was relieved to see it fall on the final turn.
Schwartzel, a houseguest of Els the last two weeks, caught a bad break on the 15th hole when his ball plugged in a front bunker, and he knocked that into a back bunker on his way to a crucial bogey. He missed short putts on the next two holes and closed with a 70.
That allowed Els a strange sensation, walking up to the 18th green with his cap in hand, waving to the gallery, unable to contain a smile that showed equal parts relief and satisfaction.
"I'm 40 years old. I've had a tough run," Els said. "Whew! The hairs are standing up. It's just great."
Els last won two years ago at the Honda Classic, which he won while warming up on the range for a possible play-off. He became only the fifth player with multiple victories in the World Golf Championships, joining Tiger Woods, Darren Clarke, Geoff Ogilvy and Phil Mickelson.
It was his 61st victory worldwide, and 17th on the PGA Tour, and moved Els to No. 8 in the world ranking.
"My game was in good shape," said Els, who finished at 18-under 270. "I just wanted to prove to myself for once. Charl came at me all day. I had to come up with the goods."
It was a strong effort by Schwartzel, who has considered Els a hero since he first started playing golf. Despite two bogeys on the final four holes, he was the only player to give Els a run. And he was poised to take him down until his tee shot left him little hope in the sand.
"I plugged and that was a killer," Schwartzel said. "For me, it's been the biggest stage I've had. This is a good day for me."
Padraig Harrington fell out of the with three straight bogeys on the back nine, closing with a 72 to tie for third at 11-under 277 along with Matt Kuchar (68) and Martin Kaymer of Germany, who had a 69 and moved up to No. 7 in the world.
Alistair Presnell of Australia matched the best round of the day with a 64 and tied for sixth. Defending champion Phil Mickelson, who was never in the mix, shot a 68 and tied for 14th.
Els could not have imagined being in the final group at Doral with Schwartzel, and to see the two South Africans standing on the first tee under warm sunshine, it was easy to see what the Big Easy meant.
To think that Schwartzel was 2 when his father and Els won a club tournament together, or that he was among the gangly teens who traveled with the Ernie Els & Fancourt Foundation junior team. More recently, Els invited the Schwartzel to stay in his south Florida home while Schwartzel was passing time between two WGC events.
And they stayed together for so much of the final round, trading birdies and keeping their names atop the leaderboard.
Els made birdie from the bunker on the opening hole. Schwartzel answered with a 25-foot birdie on the second. Els followed with two straight birdies, the most impressive on the 223-yard fourth with a shot into 8 feet despite a vicious right-to-left wind. Schwartzel fell three shots behind with a bogey from the bunker on No. 5, only to birdie his next three holes.
No one else joined the chase.
Harrington played bogey-free for 12 holes, but he had only two birdies. Robert Allenby pulled within a shot with an opening birdie, then went 10 holes before making another one. Kaymer went out in 33, then failed to make birdie on the par 5s on the back nine.
It became a South African duel in Miami, and Schwartzel gave Els about all he could handle until the end. After his bogey on the 15th, he left a 10-foot birdie putt short on the 16th, then drove into the palm trees on the 17th and took bogey.
Els suddenly has good vibes as he begins his road to the Masters, the one major that has haunted him throughout his career. His victory was worth $1.4 million, and moved him past Colin Montgomerie and atop the European Tour career money list with about $33.6 million.
SCROLL DOWN TO READ ALL THE FINAL TOTALS

2010-03-14T23:41:00.002Z

Coming soon ... Details of the inaugural Morocco Golf Festival

Watch this space later this week for details of the Morocco Golf Festival.
Based at Marrakech, it will offer the chance to play five top courses in the area.
It's an amateur golf week with competitions for senior men, senior women, men, women, Under-16 boys and girls & Under-18 boys and girls.
It will be held from October 9 to 16 and the Tournament Director will be the man who started the successful Hacienda del Alamo Women's/Girls' Festival in Spain - yes, Colin Farquharson.

2010-03-14T23:14:00.003Z

Stewart Wilson wins North Scottish Alliance at Muir of Ord

By ALAN COWIE
Secretary, North Scottish Golfers' Alliance
Stewart Wilson (Inverness) won the penultimate North Scottish Golfers' Alliance fixture as the Alliance played Muir of Ord for the first time. Halves of 36 and 31 gave him a one under 67 and a one stroke victory from Graham Mackenzie of Hopeman.

LEADING SCRATCH
67 S Wilson (Inverness).
68 G Mackenzie (Hopeman).
69 C Campbell (Nairn Dunbar) p.
71 G. Burnett (Nairn), K Thomson (Moray), N. McWilliam (Elgin)
72 G Mellis (Muir of Ord), J D Forbes (Inverness)
73 G. Hay (Grantown), I. Macaulay (Elgin)
74 J. Wright (Forres)
75 M.L. Macleman (Moray), A. Henry (Inverness);
76 W. Weatherall (Muir of Ord), S. Aird (Forres) p, A. Cameron (Inverness), R Harrower (Boat of Garten) p.
77 A.W. Mair (Moray), S. Mitchell (Moray), J.C. Milne (Moray), D. Joel (Inverness)
78 R. Stewart (Nairn Dunbar), S. Chisholm (Nairn), J.A. Grant (Grantown).
79 B.A. Watson (Nairn Dunbar), W Hutchison (Inverness).
80 V. Tilman (Muir of Ord), W R Duncan (Moray), J. Treasurer (Inverness), D. Hector (Elgin), D.R. Mackellar (Grantown), K. Williamson (Torvean)
HANDICAP
Class 1 (eight and under).
63 G. Mackenzie (Hopeman) (5)
68 I. Macaulay (Elgin) (5)
70 G. Mellis (Muir of Ord) (2), A. Henry (Inverness) (5), W. Weatherall (Muir of Ord) (6)
Class 2 (nine to 14)
69 J. Kennedy (Moray) (13)
71 E.P. Lamsdell (Forres) (14)
72 L. Duncan (Elgin) (9)
73 A. Boxx (Boat of Garten) (10), I. Turner (Boat of Garten) (14), W.B. Johnston (Moray) (9)

The Aggregate competitions were decided on Saturday in the penultimate fixture of this winter's North Scottish Golfers' Alliance. Results:

Scratch Section
K M Cameron Trophy (First three apart from A Cameron win prizes).
337 C Campbell (Nairn Dunbar) 69 68 65 67 69.
343 B Fotheringham (Forres) 70 69 69 69 66, A Cameron (Inverness) 68 69 66 70 70.
346 K Thomson (Moray) 70 69 69 68 70.
349 J S D Campbell (Grantown) 74 63 73 67 72.
351 M L Macleman (Moray) 71 69 69 74 68, N McWilliam (Elgin) 66 70 71 73 71.

Handicap
Section One (eight and under).
(Playing for the Burnett Trophy, first three win prizes).
343 A Cameron (Inverness) 68 69 66 70 70.
345 S Johnston (Elgin) 72 67 65 69 72.
347 S Wilson (Inverness) 69 71 71 71 65, J C Milne (Moray) 72 66 71 71 67, J A Grant (Grantown) 69 66 71 71 70.
348 K Williamson (Torvean) 71 67 62 74 74.
350 G Hay (Grantown) 68,69,69,72,72.
351 R Stewart (Nairn Dunbar) 70,70,68,71,72.
352 A Cowie (Moray) 64,73,73,69,73.
353 S. Chisholm (Nairn) 72,68,70,71,72.
354 D. Hector (Elgin) 67,66,66,77,78, A.W Mair (Moray) 70 70 74 71 69, A Henry (Inverness) 73 72 70 68 71.

Section Two (nine to 14)
(Playing for the Bill McQueen Trophy. First three win prizes).

350 C. Small (Nairn) 69 69 74 64 74.
352 L. Duncan (Elgin) 69,69,72,73,69.
R.G. Macpherson (Moray) 68,69,70,71,74.
355 L. Macbean (Boat of Garten) 72,71,71,74,67.
358 D. Macleod (Loch Ness) 72,62,79,74,71.
360 A. Grigor (Boat of Garten) 75,73,71,71,70.
361 W.B. Johnston (Moray) 73,74,68,73,73.
362 A.A. Lees (Moray) 72,73,71,76,70.
363 A. Boxx (Boat of Garten) 69,74,73,73,74.

Els and Schwartzel make it a South African 1-2

2010-03-14T22:49:00.005Z

WORLD GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS - CA
FINAL TOTALS IN CLUBHOUSE (before end of play)
Blue Monster at Doral Golf Resort, Miami, Florida
Par 288 (4x72)
270 Ernie Els (South Africa) 68 66 70 66.
274 Charl Schwartzel (South Africa) 67 70 67 70.
277 Martin Kaymer (Ger) 70 72 66 69, Matt Kuchar 71 71 67 68, Padraig Harrington (Ireland) 70 68 67 72.
278 Bill Haas 71 66 70 71, Graeme McDowell (NIrl) 74 68 70 66, Alistair Presnell (Aus) 72 70 72 64, Paul Casey (Eng) 69 72 68 69, Alvaro Quiros (Spa) 72 69 69 68.
279 Vijay Singh (Fij) 68 71 70 70, John Senden (Aus) 69 70 71 69, Robert Allenby (Australia) 68 67 71 73.
280 Francesco Molinari (Ita) 69 71 72 68, Phil Mickelson 71 69 72 68
281 Steve Stricker 73 69 71 68, Camilo Villegas (Col) 72 68 70 71
282 J.B. Holmes 69 70 73 70, Sean O'Hair 71 71 74 66, Jason Dufner 73 69 75 65, Soren Hansen (Den) 69 69 71 73
283 Anthony Kim 71 73 71 68, Yuta Ikeda (Jpn) 71 68 74 70, Tim Clark (Rsa) 70 69 74 70, Heath Slocum 74 71 70 68
284 Peter Hanson (Swe) 74 66 74 70, Nick Watney 73 72 71 68, Mike Weir (Can) 73 66 75 70, Luke Donald (Eng) 70 75 69 70
285 Hunter Mahan 72 70 69 74, Brian Gay 74 69 74 68, Scott Verplank 76 72 69 68, Liang Wen Chong (Chn) 72 69 71 73, Lee Westwood (Eng) 74 68 74 69, Ross McGowan (Eng) 76 71 70 68, Y.E. Yang (Kor) 73 72 75 65
286 Ben Crane 74 73 69 70, Jim Furyk 70 76 69 71, Zach Johnson 76 70 71 69, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 74 72 71 69, Ian Poulter (Eng) 72 78 72 64, Stewart Cink 75 74 72 65, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (Spa) 72 68 71 75, Henrik Stenson (Swe) 71 72 71 72
287 Kenny Perry 73 74 68 72, Ross Fisher (Eng) 73 72 70 72, Anders Hansen (Den) 76 70 74 67, Ryan Palmer 79 68 72 68, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 72 71 75 69
288 Jerry Kelly 70 72 73 73, Kevin Na 78 70 70 70, Adam Scott (Aus) 74 69 71 74, David Toms 72 72 72 72, Angel Cabrera (Arg) 74 71 70 73, Simon Dyson (Eng) 72 73 73 70
290 Dustin Johnson 69 72 76 73, Retief Goosen (Rsa) 76 71 73 70, Lucas Glover 72 72 71 75, Thongchai Jaidee (Tha) 73 72 73 72
291 Soren Kjeldsen (Den) 74 78 73 66
292 Edoardo Molinari (Ita) 72 74 72 74
293 Robert Karlsson (Swe) 78 70 73 72
294 Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 73 75 73 73, Marc Leishman (Aus) 78 73 71 72
295 Rory McIlroy (NIrl) 76 73 73 73, Steve Marino 75 71 77 72
296 Oliver Wilson (Eng) 78 74 77 67
300 Michael Sim (Aus) 75 74 77

Hooters Tour runner-up for second week in a row

2010-03-14T22:16:00.005Z

DOUBLE BOGEY AT LAST

COSTS KNOX WIN IN US

A double-bogey 6 at the last hole saw Inverness exile Russell Knox finish runner-up today for the second week in a row on the NGA Hooters Tour golf circuit in the United States.
Knox, pictured by Cal Carson Golf Agency, led the field into the final round of the 72-hole F&S Asset Management Group Classic at Amelia National Golf & Country club at Fernandina Beach, Florida but a final round of 74 for a 10-under-par total of 278 saw him pipped by one shot for the $30,000 first prize by American Michael Welsh from Massachusetts.
Knox, who had bogeyed the third and fifth, regained his overnight one-stroke lead with birdies at the long seventh and 14th but a 6 at the par-4 18th cost him dearly.
He had earlier rounds of 70, 66 and 68. He shared second place with Todd Bailey from Alabama and Philip Pettitt from Tennessee. Each earned $11,967.
In the first two weeks of the NGA Hooters regular season, Knox has now earned $25,174.
He finished the 2009 season as the third leading money-winner on the US satellite circuit with $95,252 to his credit.
Recently, Knox, who stayed on at Jacksonville Beach, Florida after four successful years on the US college golf circuit as a student at Jacksonville University, won the eGolf Tour's Palmetto Hall Championship, giving him his biggest single cheque ($34,306) as a pro golfer.
Barring Glasgow's Martin Laird and Aberdeen-born Michael Sim on the US PGA Tour, Knox can claim to be the most successful Scot in American pro golf. And, in many ways, the standard of golf at the top of the tree on the Hooters Tour is as competitive as it gets.
Normally the winner of an event shoots around the 20 under par mark for a 54-hole event. This weekend's 11-under-par for 72 holes was abnormally low, suggesting the weather in Florida was not all that great for golf.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
277 Michael Welsh (Massachusetts) 67 68 70 72 ($30,000).
278 Todd Bailey (Alabama) 71 67 73 67, Russell Knox (Scotland) 70 66 68 74, Philip Pettitt (Tennessee) 71 65 70 72 ($11,967 each).
281 Daniel Blades (Alabama) 69 71 70 71, Bruno Buccolo (Oklahoma) 69 69 71 72 ($7,275).

2010-03-14T17:35:00.006Z

Italian Delpodio scores first pro win on Alps Tour

FROM THE ALPS TOUR WEBSITE
Matteo Delpodio won his maiden victory as professional (in the Alps Tour event in Spain). He eagled the last hole to grab the trophy by one stroke from Spain's Jordi Garcia Del Moral.
Jordi had a three-stroke advantage teeing off this morning. Delpodio started with a birdie but, two holes later, his friend Jordi regained the lead.
Garcia Del Moral still had a two-stroke margin after nine holes of the final round. At this time, the show was not in the leader group. A few holes ahead, another Spanish player was lighting fire on greens.
Carlos Del Moral, a European Tour player in 2009, claimed seven birdies on the front nine. He birdied every hole except the two par 3s. He said he “offered” the tournament on the 17th hole.
“This hole is tough. Long par 3 over the water, I was 4 metres short of the flag, good shot but many things crossed my mind and I was nervous and impatient since the 10th hole. I made four putts on the 17th... and let victory go...”
Meanwhile, nothing happened on leaders'side until this famous 17th hole. Garcia Del Moral still had a two-shot lead over Delpodio, but he missed the green and luck changed its mind.
Delpodio was still one stroke behind teeing off at the last hole. He drove perfectly and found the middle of the fairway. So did Jordi, 10 metres shorter, so he played first - and missed the green.
Then, Delpodio fired the most astonishing two-iron. His ball landed two metres from the flag.
Jordi Garcia Del Moral hit his chip a little too long, stopping in small rough. He stayed short on his fourth shot.
“It is golf, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, today I lost but I feel confident. I putt for birdie almost on every hole. On 17th I missed the green on the left, chipped long twice and dropped one shot," he said
Matteo holed his putt for a spectacular eagle.
“As I had said on the first day, it is a question of time. Being patient, agree to wait. Once you are OK with that, good things obviously are going to happen. Today, I stay patient. I had a little luck on the 17th because Jordi dropped one shot and when I hit the second shot on the 18th par 5, I was only thinking about the flag," said Delpodio.
"I had about 2 metres to hole to win but I never though missing it. When you hit such a good shot (2 iron) you can not miss the putt. The first win is difficult to get, but once it's done...”
Delpodio took the lead of the Alps Tour order of merit ahead of Englishman Lawrence Dodd and Scot Gavin Dear.

FINAL TOTALS
El Scorpion Golf Club, Spain
Par 213 (3x71)
202 Matteo DELPODIO (Italy) 66 69 67 (6,633.60 Euros).
203 Jordi GARCIA DEL MORAL (Spain) 68 64 71 (4,713.60).
205 Andrea PERRINO (Italy) 67 74 64, Carlos DEL MORAL (Spain) 70 70 65 (3,000.60 Euros each).
206 Christophe BRAZILLIER (France) 67 73 66 (2,040.00)
208 Xavier GUZMAN SADABA (Spain) 71 68 69, Steve LEWTON (England) 69 69 70 (1,550.40 Euros each).
209 Carlos BALMASEDA (Spain) 71 70 68, Santiago LUNA (Spain) 69 70 70, Borja ETCHART (Spain) 70 69 70 (1,145.60 Euros each).
210 Juan PARRON (Spain)) 72 70 68, Lawrence DODD (England) 69 72 69, Marco GUERISOLI (Italy) 71 69 70, Jorge CAMPILLO (Spain) 71 66 73 (930 Euros each).
211 Neil CHAUDHURI (England) 73 71 67, Bruno-Teva LECUONA (France) 72 70 69 *842.40 Euros each).
212 Jorge GARCIA FERNANDEZ (Spain) 74 68 70, Simone BRIZZOLARI (Italy) 71 71 70.
Olivier SERRES (France) 72 69 71, Gavin DEAR (Scotland) 71 70 71, Moises COBO (Spain) 69 72 71, Ivo GINER (Spain) 69 71 72, Steven HUME (Scotland) 69 70 73, Jesus LEGARREA (Spain) 71 66 75 (730.80 Euros each).
213 Par Vicente BLAZQUEZ (Spain) 71 71 71, Pedro ORIOL (Spain) 69 72 72, Jose Manuel LARA (Spain) 70 71 72, Jose Manuel OCEJO (Spain) 76 65 72, Alex LARRAZABAL (Spain) 71 70 72, Ivan LARA (Spain) 73 67 73, Jose ROMERO (Spain) 69 71 73, Emanuele CANONICA (Italy) 70 68 75 (589.80 Euros each).
214 Andrea SIGNOR (Italy) 73 71 70, Jason PALMER (England) 71 72 71, Sam ROBINSON (England) 72 70 72, Matthew CRYER (England) 72 70 72, Kim JOON (Italy) 70 70 74 (506.88 Euros each).
215 Jose Luis ADARRAGA (Spain) 72 70 73 (475.20).
216 Matjaz GOJCIC (Slovenia) 72 72 72, Ismael DEL CASTILLO (Spain) 70 73 73, Paolo TERRENI (Italy) 74 68 74, Daniel ALONSO (Spain) 74 68 74 (451.20 Euros each).
217 Javier COLOMO (Spain) 71 73 73 (427.20).
218 Michael MOSER (Austria) 73 71 74, Uli WEINHANDL (Austria) 73 71 74 (415.20 each).
219 Jose Miguel ROSILLO (Spain) 73 71 75, Damien PERRIER (FRA) 71 73 75, Pol BECH (ESP) 70 72 77, Farren KEENAN (England) 71 71 77 (400.80 Euros each).

2010-03-14T11:56:00.003Z

Record-breaking Ruangkit romps to Thailand victory

By SCOTT CROCKETT
Chief Press Officer, European Tour
Thailand’s Boonchu Ruangkit rewrote the European Senior Tour history books when he romped to a stunning 11 shot victory in the Chang Thailand Senior Masters presented by ISPS.
The 53 year old was simply in a different class to the rest of the field at the picturesque Royal Gems Golf Club in Nakhonpathom, rounds of 64-66-65 giving the host nation favourite a whopping 21 under par winning total of 195.
Fellow countryman Jamnian Chitprasong, Frankie Minoza of the Philippines and Japan’s Katsuyoshi Tomori shared a distant second place on ten under par 206 but, as with the rest of the field in the third European Senior Tour event of the 2010 season, they were all merely bit part players in the Boonchu master class.
Ruangkit – who won The Aberdeen Brunei Senior Masters seven days ago and is now 35 under par for his last six competitive tournament rounds – became the first player to win consecutive European Senior Tour events since England’s Peter Mitchell won the Scottish Seniors Open and the Italian Seniors Open in October 2008.
In addition to that, he also carded the lowest 54 hole score to par in European Senior Tour history – beating the 18 under par 198 posted by David Good in the 2003 Tunisian Seniors Open and Bob Lendzion in the 2005 Jolie Ville Sharm El Sheikh Open – and also claimed the biggest 54 hole winning margin in Tour history, topping the nine shot victory Tommy Horton achieved in the El Bosque Open in 1998.
“I am extremely pleased with my performance today and very proud of what I have achieved here this week,” said Ruangkit who moved to the top of the Senior Tour Order of Merit. “My putting was just right and my whole game just came together.
“Last night I wasn’t certain that I could win it as Chiprasong and several other players were playing very well. But I went out and played the best I could and fortunately everything fell into place for me.
“To be honest, I didn’t know that there was a chance to break some Senior Tour records but I am delighted that I have managed to get my name in the history books and extremely proud to have done it in my home country as well.”
Leading by three shots overnight, Ruangkit laid down a marker to the rest of the field with a birdie four at the opening hole. Although six par figures followed to give the chasing pack a glimmer of hope, the Thai star ended the tournament as a contest around the turn with five birdies in a row from the eighth.
Another birdie followed at the 15th and although he dropped only his third shot of the entire tournament at the testing 440 yard 16th, Ruangkit made amends and ensured he finished in style with a closing birdie four at the 18th.
Of the three players in second place, Tomori – who won the 2006 Scandinavian Senior Open – produced the best round with a 69. Minoza challenge never truly ignited after a double bogey six at the second and he had to settle for a 71 while consecutive bogeys at the 11th and 12th and another at the 17th accounted for Chitprasong’s 73.
Further down the final leaderboard, England’s Kevin Spurgeon - the winner of the Senior Tour season opener in Mauritius and who Ruangkit replaced at the head of the Order of Merit – finished in a tie for 24th place on one under par 215 alongside the winner of the 2009 Order of Merit, Scotland’s Sam Torrance.
Although satisfied with his own performance in the stifling heat, the former European Ryder Cup Captain paid tribute to the new champion. “Boonchu is amazing,” he said.”I know him very well and he has been a great player for a long time. He showed that once again this week.”
FINAL TOTALS
Royal Gems Golf Club, Nakhonpathom, Thailand
Par 216 (3x72)
195 B Ruangkit (Tha) 64 66 65,
206 J Chitprasong (Tha) 66 67 73, F Minoza (Phi) 70 65 71, K Tomori (Jpn) 66 71 69,
208 A Sowa (Arg) 67 70 71, G Brand (Eng) 70 70 68, M Saengsui (Tha) 65 71 72, S Ebihara (Jpn) 68 70 70,
209 D Russell (Eng) 67 68 74,
210 C Williams (RSA) 72 69 69,
211 H Carbonetti (Arg) 69 71 71, R Chapman (Eng) 71 69 71, M Williams (Zim) 68 74 69, J Rhodes (Eng) 68 69 74
212 J Quiros (Esp) 68 74 70
213 T Johnstone (Zim) 69 69 75, S Lyle (Sco) 70 71 72, B Cameron (Eng) 70 72 71, D O'Sullivan (Irl) 69 74 70, D Merriman (Aus) 70 72 71
214 C Rocca (Ita) 71 70 73, L Carbonetti (Arg) 69 73 72, B Lincoln (RSA) 68 75 71
215 P Harrison (Eng) 67 71 77, J Chillas (Sco) 72 77 66, M Clayton (Aus) 75 70 70, J Bruner (USA) 68 71 76, M Farry (Fra) 68 76 71, K Spurgeon (Eng) 70 73 72, S Torrance (Sco) 73 71 71
216 N Job (Eng) 71 70 75, J Rivero (Esp) 70 73 73, P Mitchell (Eng) 71 75 70
217 S Bennett (Eng) 69 74 74, G Banister (Aus) 71 74 72, S Taylor (USA) 74 73 70, M Harwood (Aus) 69 74 74, N Meesom (Tha) 67 76 74, B Boyd (USA) 71 71 75, G Ralph (Eng) 72 71 74, J Heggarty (Nir) 71 73 73, F Mann (Sco) 70 71 76,
218 S Saengsui (Tha) 71 73 74, N Ratcliffe (Aus) 75 72 71, L Yong-Kun (Kor) 69 77 72, G Ryall (Eng) 70 73 75, I Woosnam (Wal) 72 74 72,
219 P Oakley (USA) 75 70 74,
220 B Longmuir (Sco) 73 74 73, M Ramayah (Mas) 71 72 77, S Bunpimuck (Tha) 71 73 76, G Gunn (Can) 70 72 78, G Cali (Ita) 70 76 74,
221 J Hall (Eng) 74 76 71, L Stephen (Aus) 72 73 76, M Cunning (USA) 69 78 74, J Hawkes (RSA) 76 70 75,
222 T Chen (Tpe) 76 73 73, M Gray (Sco) 78 68 76, D Cambridge (Jam) 74 77 71,
223 B Hardwick (Can) 72 76 75, M Poxon (Eng) 72 77 74, S Owen (Nzl) 72 74 77, D Johnson (USA) 76 75 72,
224 A Tapie (USA) 75 73 76, K Nam (Kor) 73 77 74, M Miller (Sco) 75 73 76, P Dahlberg (Swe) 71 77 76,
225 I Mosey (Eng) 76 75 74,
226 T Gale (Aus) 73 73 80, T Burgoyne (Sco) 77 75 74, M Piñero (Esp) 75 79 72, P Allan (Eng) 74 75 77,
227 P Teravainen (USA) 74 70 83,
230 A Johnsson (Swe) 77 75 78, B Smit (RSA) 74 77 79,
233 I Palmer (RSA) 75 79 79,
234 A Garrido (Esp) 75 83 76,

2010-03-14T08:30:00.004Z

United States PGA Tour Scoreboard
PUERTO RICO OPEN
Trump International Golf Club, Rio Grande
FIRST ROUND SCORES
Par 144 (2x72)
134 Chad Collins 69 65, James Nitties (Aus) 68 66
135 Kris Blanks 65 70, Steve Wheatcroft 68 67, Skip Kendall 65 70, Kevin Streelman 67 68
136 Jeff Maggert 69 67, Paul Stankowski 66 70, Jeff Overton 66 70, Craig Barlow 71 65, Kevin Johnson 70 66, Graham Delaet (Can) 67 69, Jhonattan Vegas 69 67
137 Brendon De Jonge 69 68, Aron Price (Aus) 72 65, Woody Austin 69 68, Nicholas Thompson 68 69
138 Spencer Levin 69 69, Kirk Triplett 69 69, Robert Garrigus 68 70, Steve Flesch 72 66, Michael Bradley 71 67, Tom Pernice Jnr. 71 67, Steve Elkington (Aus) 68 70, Henrik Bjornstad (Nor) 70 68, Guy Boros 71 67, Jay Williamson 70 68, Cameron Tringale 69 69
139 Jarrod Lyle (Aus) 69 70, J J Henry 70 69, Kevin Stadler 72 67, Carl Pettersson (Swe) 72 67, Matt Bettencourt 67 72, Johnson Wagner 70 69
140 Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind) 70 70, Bill Lunde 68 72, Jeff Gove 72 68, Chris DiMarco 68 72, Peter Gustafsson (Swe) 67 73, Mathias Gronberg (Swe) 69 71, Michael Connell 71 69, Derek Lamely 69 71, Jeff Klauk 72 68, Daniel Barbetti (Arg) 68 72
141 Erik Compton 72 69, Marco Dawson 70 71, Martin Flores 71 70, Phil Tataurangi (Nzl) 72 69, John Merrick 71 70, Jeff Quinney 72 69, Steve Lowery 71 70, Manuel Villegas (Col) 72 69, Cameron Percy (Aus) 69 72, Roger Tambellini 70 71, Chez Reavie 70 71, Mark Calcavecchia 68 73, Jerod Turner 71 70
142 Brent Delahoussaye 69 73, Bryce Molder 71 71, Kent Jones 68 74, Jonathan Kaye 73 69, Chris Stroud 76 66, Omar Uresti 70 72, Billy Mayfair 69 73, Shaun Micheel 73 69, John Daly 69 73, Richard S Johnson (Swe) 70 72, Jimmy Walker 73 69, Boo Weekley 74 68, Rich Barcelo 70 72
MISSED THE CUT
143 Brian Stuard 71 72, Tim Herron 72 71, Andy Matthews 70 73, Greg Kraft 72 71, Cliff Kresge 73 70, Brenden Pappas (Rsa) 73 70, John Mallinger 73 70, Brian Bateman 74 69, Chris Wilson 71 72, Dean Wilson 68 75, John Bloomfield (Jm) 71 72
144 David Lutterus (Rsa) 69 75, Joe Ogilvie 72 72, Mark Brooks 73 71, Chris Smith 73 71, Todd Hamilton 75 69, Alex Cejka (Ger) 67 77, Tim Wilkinson (Nzl) 71 73, Deane Pappas (Rsa) 71 73
145 Charles Warren 70 75, Charley Hoffman 68 77, Rory Sabbatini (Rsa) 77 68, Chris Riley 73 72, Eric Axley 73 72, Andrew McLardy (Rsa) 68 77, Michael Clark II 73 72, Francis Quinn 76 69, Jay Delsing 71 74, Notah Begay III 75 70, Glen Day 74 71, Shigeki Maruyama (Jpn) 70 75, Frank Lickliter II 74 71
146 Max Alveiro (Pr) 72 74, Cesar Costilla (Arg) 76 70, Vance Veazey 72 74, Tom Kite 73 73, Ronnie Black 77 69, Christopher Baryla (Can) 73 73, David Morland IV (Can) 75 71, Grant Waite (Nzl) 75 71, Justin Bolli 71 75, Ken Duke 72 74
147 Pierre-Henri Soero (Fra) 72 75, Garth Mulroy (Rsa) 73 74, Eric Morales 76 71, Alex Prugh 73 74, Joe Durant 75 72, Len Mattiace 74 73, Robert Damron 75 72, Rocco Mediate 73 74, Matt Weibring 74 73
149 Harrison Frazar 73 76
150 Julio Santos (Do) 72 78
153 Ryan Garrity 75 78
154 Rafael Campos 81 73
155 Miguel Suarez (Sco) 79 76
Withdrew: Jason Gore 77, Dicky Pride 74, David Peoples 73, Brett Quigley 77, Craig Bowden 77, Carlos Franco (Par) 76

WGC-CA CHAMPIONSHIP AT DORAL, MIAMI

2010-03-13T22:17:00.005Z

Harrington in hunt, one off pace

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE
Padraig Harrington is right in the thick of things with a round to go at the WGC-CA Championship over the Blue Monster course at the Doral Resort in Miami, Florida.
Ireland's three-time major winner, pictured right, whose last Tour title was the US PGA 19 months ago, moved into a tie for the lead before three-putting the last for his only bogey of the day.
A five under par 67 leaves Harrington 11 under par, one behind South Africans Ernie Els and Charl Schwartzel in the race for a first prize of over £925,000.
Els, one in front of Australian Robert Allenby at halfway, had a chance to establish a firm grip on the event, but missed from four feet at the 13th and three feet on the 16th.
He returned a 70, while 25-year-old Schwartzel - twice a winner in his home country already this year - matched Harrington's round.
Allenby is in fourth place two back, while German Martin Kaymer (66) and England's Paul Casey (68) are not out of the running at eight under and seven under respectively.
Casey was given extra motivation afterwards when told about television commentator Johnny Miller calling him "the biggest under-achiever in golf."
Second and fourth in his last two events - and three times a winner last season before tearing a rib muscle - Casey could go second in the world with victory.
"I feel I'm coming into the prime of my career," he said. "I've gone through ups and downs and I'm just coming off an injury."
Kaymer, Europe's best putter last season, showed American golf fans what he was capable of, needing only 22 putts in his best-of-the-day effort. Already a winner in Abu Dhabi this season, he is currently eighth in the world, but relatively unknown in the States.
THIRD-ROUND SCOREBOARD
Blue Monster, Doral Resort, Miami, Florida
Par 216 (3x72)
Players from United States unless stated otherwise
204 Charl Schwartzel (Rsa) 67 70 67, Ernie Els (Rsa) 68 66 70
205 Padraig Harrington (Irl) 70 68 67
206 Robert Allenby (Aus) 68 67 71
207 Bill Haas 71 66 70
208 Martin Kaymer (Ger) 70 72 66
209 Vijay Singh (Fij) 68 71 70, Soren Hansen (Den) 69 69 71, Paul Casey (Eng) 69 72 68, Matt Kuchar 71 71 67
210 John Senden (Aus) 69 70 71, Camilo Villegas (Col) 72 68 70, Alvaro Quiros (Spa) 72 69 69
211 Hunter Mahan 72 70 69, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (Spa) 72 68 71
212 Phil Mickelson 71 69 72, Francesco Molinari (Ita) 69 71 72, J.B. Holmes 69 70 73, Graeme McDowell (NIrl) 74 68 70, Liang Wen Chong (Chn) 72 69 71
213 Steve Stricker 73 69 71, Yuta Ikeda (Jpn) 71 68 74, Tim Clark (Rsa) 70 69 74
214 Peter Hanson (Swe) 74 66 74, Adam Scott (Aus) 74 69 71, Mike Weir (Can) 73 66 75, Alistair Presnell (Aus) 72 70 72, Luke Donald (Eng) 70 75 69, Henrik Stenson (Swe) 71 72 71
215 Jerry Kelly 70 72 73, Ross Fisher (Eng) 73 72 70, Lucas Glover 72 72 71, Angel Cabrera (Arg) 74 71 70, Heath Slocum 74 71 70, Kenny Perry 73 74 68, Anthony Kim 71 73 71, Jim Furyk 70 76 69
216 Nick Watney 73 72 71, Ben Crane 74 73 69, Sean O'Hair 71 71 74, David Toms 72 72 72, Lee Westwood (Eng) 74 68 74
217 Dustin Johnson 69 72 76, Jason Dufner 73 69 75, Zach Johnson 76 70 71, Brian Gay 74 69 74, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 74 72 71, Scott Verplank 76 72 69, Ross McGowan (Eng) 76 71 70
218 Kevin Na 78 70 70, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 72 71 75, Simon Dyson (Eng) 72 73 73, Thongchai Jaidee (Tha) 73 72 73, Edoardo Molinari (Ita) 72 74 72
219 Ryan Palmer 79 68 72
220 Anders Hansen (Den) 76 70 74, Retief Goosen (Rsa) 76 71 73, Y.E. Yang (South Korea) 73 72 75
221 Robert Karlsson (Swe) 78 70 73, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 73 75 73, Stewart Cink 75 74 72
222 Rory McIlroy (NIrl) 76 73 73, Marc Leishman (Aus) 78 73 71, Ian Poulter (Eng) 72 78 72
223 Steve Marino 75 71 77
225 Soren Kjeldsen (Den) 74 78 73
226 Michael Sim (Aus) 75 74 77
229 Oliver Wilson (Eng) 78 74 77

CHANG THAILAND SENIOR MASTERS

2010-03-13T12:39:00.003Z

Local hero Boonchu leads by three after three rounds

By SCOTT CROCKET
European Tour Chief Press Officer
Home hero Boonchu Ruangkit kept on course for back-to-back victories on the European Senior Tour when he fashioned a three-shot lead going into the final round of the Chang Thailand Senior Masters presented by ISPS.
England’s Peter Mitchell was the last man to notch successive Senior Tour victories back in October 2008 when he won in consecutive weeks in Scotland and Italy but now Ruangkit is poised to follow him into the record books after another stirring showing in front of his adoring Thai public.
The 53 year old followed his stunning opening 64 on Friday with a second round 66 at the Royal Gems Golf Club in Nakhonpathom for a 14 under par total of 130, three shots clear of his fellow countryman Jamnian Chitprasong who kept the Thai flag flying at the head of affairs with a 67 for 133.
England’s David J Russell and Frankie Minoza of the Philippines share third on nine under par 135 in the third European Senior Tour event of the 2010 season but, as with last week when he captured The Aberdeen Brunei Senior Masters, the tournament so far has been all about Boonchu.
“I am very happy with my form right now although I must admit I’m a little tired,” he said. “But if I get a good night’s rest I am sure I’ll be up for the challenge tomorrow.
“To win two weeks in a row would be a fantastic achievement for me and one I’ll be going all out to accomplish although I know it won’t be easy as there are a lot of good players behind me, especially Jamnian who played really well today and who I know will be difficult to beat.”
Certainly if Ruangkit produces similar form to his first two days, he will be tricky to topple from pole position. Four birdies in a flawless opening half to his second round saw him to the turn in 32 and while his momentum was halted slightly with a bogey six at the tenth, he recovered in style with further birdies at the 12th, 13th and 18th.
Second placed Chitprasong continued his fine week’s showing with a flawless second round 67 to add to his opening 66, the highlight of the round for the 51 year old coming at the 523yd 10th where he notched an eagle 3.
Leading European challenger, England’s David J Russell finished in style with an eagle three at the 507 yard 18th hole for a 68 to see him share third place with Frankie Minoza whose flawless 65 was the best round of the second day’s play.
“I was hitting some good shots but I didn’t really feel I was getting the reward for them which is why it was nice to finish with the eagle at the end there,” said Russell.
“To have a chance tomorrow I’m going to have to go out and shoot low because Boonchu and Jamnian ahead of me are obviously playing very well. But I’m just going to go out and try and play the best I can and if I can shoot in the mid to low 60s then it might worry them a little.”
Further down the leaderboard, current European Senior Tour Order of Merit leader, England’s Kevin Spurgeon, is in a share of 28th place on one under par 143 following his second round 73 while last season’s Number One, Scotland’s Sam Torrance, is one shot further back on level par 144 after his second round 71.

SECOND-ROUND TOTALS
Royal Gems Golf Club, Nakhonpathom, Thailand
Par 144 (2x72)
130 B Ruangkit (Tha) 64 66,
133 J Chitprasong (Tha) 66 67,
135 D Russell (Eng) 67 68, F Minoza (Phi) 70 65,
136 M Saengsui (Tha) 65 71,
137 J Rhodes (Eng) 68 69, A Sowa (Arg) 67 70, K Tomori (Jpn) 66 71,
138 P Harrison (Eng) 67 71, S Ebihara (Jpn) 68 70, T Johnstone (Zim) 69 69,
139 J Bruner (US) 68 71,
140 G Brand (Eng) 70 70, R Chapman (Eng) 71 69, H Carbonetti (Arg) 69 71,
141 S Lyle (Sco) 70 71, C Rocca (Ita) 71 70, F Mann (Sco) 70 71, C Williams (South Africa) 72 69, N Job (Eng) 71 70,
142 B Cameron (Eng) 70 72, B Boyd (USA) 71 71, M Williams (Zim) 68 74, J Quiros (Esp) 68 74, D Merriman (Aus) 70 72, G Gunn (Can) 70 72, L Carbonetti (Arg) 69 73,
143 G Ryall (Eng) 70 73, K Spurgeon (Eng) 70 73, G Ralph (Eng) 72 71, S Bennett (Eng) 69 74, B Lincoln (South Africa) 68 75, D O'Sullivan (Irl) 69 74, J Rivero (Esp) 70 73, M Harwood (Aus) 69 74, N Meesom (Tha) 67 76, M Ramayah (Mas) 71 72
144 S Bunpimuck (Tha) 71 73, P Teravainen (US) 74 70, M Farry (Fra) 68 76, S Saengsui (Tha) 71 73, S Torrance (Sco) 73 71, J Heggarty (N Ireland) 71 73
145 G Banister (Aus) 71 74, L Stephen (Aus) 72 73, P Oakley (US) 75 70, M Clayton (Aus) 75 70
146 J Hawkes (South Africa) 76 70, M Gray (Sco) 78 68, P Mitchell (Eng) 71 75, T Gale (Aus) 73 73, I Woosnam (Wal) 72 74, G Cali (Ita) 70 76, S Owen (Nzl) 72 74, L Yong-Kun (South Korea) 69 77,
147 N Ratcliffe (Aus) 75 72, S Taylor (US) 74 73, B Longmuir (Sco) 73 74, M Cunning (US) 69 78
148 A Tapie (US) 75 73, P Dahlberg (Swe) 71 77, B Hardwick (Can) 72 76, M Miller (Sco) 75 73,
149 J Chillas (Sco) 72 77, M Poxon (Eng) 72 77, P Allan (Eng) 74 75, T Chen (Tpe) 76 73,
150 K Nam (Kor) 73 77, J Hall (Eng) 74 76
151 B Smit (South Africa) 74 77, D Johnson (US) 76 75, I Mosey (Eng) 76 75, D Cambridge (Jam) 74 77, 152 T Burgoyne (Sco) 77 75, A Johnsson (Swe) 77 75
154 M Piñero (Esp) 75 79, I Palmer (South Africa) 75 79
158 A Garrido (Esp) 75 83

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2010-03-13T08:36:00.002Z

More stops than starts on US PGA Tour event on Puerto Rico

FROM THE PGATOUR.COM WEBSITE
RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico -- Skip Kendall topped the Puerto Rico Open leaderboard at 5 under after nine holes when first-round play was suspended because of darkness onFriday in the rain---delayed US PGA Tour event. No-one has yet completed 18 holes!
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PGATOUR.COM: Complete coverage of the Puerto Rico Open
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Heavy morning rain suspended play just 20 minutes after the first tee time and the round didn't resume until 4:35 p.m. Downpours also forced the suspension of play Thursday, when 6.6 inches fell at oceanside Trump International Golf Club-Puerto Rico.
The 45-year-old Kendall holed a 7-iron shot from 159 yards for eagle on the par-4 10th on Thursday, then chipped in for birdie on the par-3 11th Friday morning. He also birdied the par-4 13th and par-3 16th.
"Overall, I hit some really quality shots out there. I like the way I'm playing right now, and hopefully that will continue," Kendall said.
Richard S. Johnson and Kevin Streelman were 4 under. Johnson completed eight holes, and Streelman played seven. John Daly was 1 under through eight.
Kendall has barely used his putter, which elicited some good-natured ribbing from his fellow players.
"Coming back into the clubhouse, I took a lot of heckling from the guys. `Are you not going to use your putter today? How's that putting lesson I gave you working out?' I took a lot of heck from the guys," Kendall said.
Tournament Chairman Sidney Wolf was looking forward to better weather for the weekend, but he said he was pleased with how the course was faring amid the rains.
"The golf course is in better shape than most of us knew it would be after 14-plus inches of rain. It's held up very nicely," Wolf said.
During the delay Friday, players lingered around the clubhouse when they weren't practising putting or testing their drivers.
At midday, an unusual strategy for drying the waterlogged course got under way. A helicopter belonging to Trump International Golf Club owner Jorge Diaz hovered over the first fairway, its powerful propeller acting as an enormous blowdryer.
Tommy Armour III withdrew Friday. He was replaced by alternate Grant Waite.

2010-03-12T23:05:00.007Z

Harrington makes move but Poulter has a painful day

FROM THE SCOTSMAN SPORT.COM WEBSITE
By Mark Garrod in Miami
Playing partners Ian Poulter and Padraig Harrington went in totally opposite directions in the second round of the WGC-CA Championship in Miami yesterday.
Harrington moved into contention on six-under-par following a four-under 68, four behind clubhouse leader Ernie Els in joint fifth place. But, three weeks on from his World Match Play victory, Poulter crashed to near last place with a 78 for 150 and then revealed that he had nearly quit the event because of a neck problem.
The pair finished their day's work just before play was held up briefly because of an approaching thunderstorm, officials having made a very wise move in bringing forward tee times by nearly three and a half hours.
South African Els, 40, added a 66 to his opening 68 to lead on 10-under-par 134 by one shot from Australian Robert Allenby who had a hole in one - the 14th of his career - at the 233yd 13th. Allenby finished with a 67 for 135.
Harrington's only 2009 success came in the non-Tour Irish PGA Championship, but he was making no promises about putting that right this weekend.
The Dubliner has dropped to 13th in the world with nothing better than a 16th place finish in four starts so far this season. With that in mind he said:
"I have a tradition that I don't normally win out of the blue. It's very rare. I normally warm up by getting into contention a few times. I'm happy with my scoring but I made a few mental errors out there and missed a few putts. Obviously, though, I hit enough good shots and I seemed to have a lot of reasonable chances for birdies."
His only dropped shot came after he hooked his drive into the lake on the treacherous 18th, his ninth of the day.
Poulter did the same, but for him it was one of seven bogeys.
"I nearly didn't play yesterday," said the world No 5. "My usual physio guy is in Australia so I had to get some treatment when I got to the course and as I went to practice I still wasn't sure I'd be playing."
SECOND-ROUND TOTALS
Blue Monster at Doral Golf Resort, Miami, Florida
Par 144 (2-71)
134 Ernie Els (South Africa) 68 66.
135 Robert Allenby (Australia) 68 67
136 Bill Haas 71 67.
137 Charl Schwartzel (South Africa) 67 70.
138 Soren Hansen (Denmark) 69 69, Padraig Harrington (Ireland) 70 68.
139 Yuta Ikeda (Japan) 71 68, J B Holmes 69 70, Vijay Singh (Fiji) 68 71, Mike Weir (Canada) 73 66, Tim Clark (South Africa) 70 69, John Senden (Australia) 69 70.
140 Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (Spain) 72 68, Peter Hanson 74 66, Phil Mickelson 71 69, Camilo Villegas (Colombia) 72 68, Francesco Molinari (Italy) 69 71.
141 Alvaro Quiros (Spain) 72 69, Paul Casey (England) 69 72, Dustin Johnson 69 72, Wen-Chong Liang 72 69.
142 Alistair Presnell 72 70, Hunter Mahan 72 70, Steve Stricker 73 69, Matt Kuchar 71 71, Jason Dufner 73 69, Sean O'Hair 71 71, Lee Westwood (England) 74 68, Martin Kaymer (Germany) 70 72, Jerry Kelly 70 72, Graeme McDowell (N Ireland) 74 68.
143 Geoff Ogilvy (Australia) 72 71, Brian Gay 74 69, Adam Scott (Australia) 74 69, Henrik Stenson (Sweden) 71 72.
144 David Toms 72 72, Lucas Glover 72 72, Anthony Kim 71 73.
145 Heath Slocum 74 71, Luke Donald (England) 70 75, Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) 73 72, Simon Dyson (England) 72 73, Y E Yang 73 72, Nick Watney 73 72, Ross Fisher (England) 73 73, Angel Cabrera (Argentina) 74 71.
146 Steve Marino 75 71, Zach Johnson 76 70, Sergio Garcia (Spain) 74 72, Anders Hansen 76 70, Edoardo Molinari (Italy) 72 74, Jim Furyk 70 76.
147 Ryan Palmer 79 68, Ben Crane 74 73, Kenny Perry 73 74, Ross McGowan (England) 76 71, Retief Goosen (South Africa) 76 71.
148 Kevin Na 78 70, Robert Karlsson (Sweden) 78 70, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain) 73 75, Scott Verplank 76 72.
149 Michael Sim (Australia) 75 74, Stewart Cink 75 74, Rory McIlroy (N Ireland) 76 73.
150 Ian Poulter (England) 72 78.
151 Marc Leishman (Australia) 78 73.
152 Oliver Wilson (Engloand) 78 74, Soren Kjeldzen 74 78.

2010-03-12T20:09:00.004Z

Soren Hansen in court next Friday on tax evasion charge

Danish Ryder Cup player Soren Hansen will be in a Danish court next Friday to answer charges of tax evasion.
Hansen, 35, is charged with misreporting earnings from the years 2000 to 2006, stemming from his claim that he resided in Monaco and not Denmark, his country of birth.
In February this year, US Seniors Tour player Jim Thorpe, 61, was sentenced to 12 months in prison and ordered to pay $2million in back taxes for tax evasion.

2010-03-12T19:59:00.004Z

Ernie Els early clubhouse leader at Miami

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
South African Ernie Els was the clubhouse leader at the second round of the World Golf Championships-CA Championship before play was held up briefly because of an approaching thunderstorm at the Doral Golf Resort, Miami in Florida.
It vindicated the officials, who made a very wise move in bringing forward tee times by nearly three and a half hours.
Els, 40, who last year failed to land a title for the first time since his rookie season in 1990, has been putting in the hours on the practice range recently.
That certainly paid off as he added a 66 to his opening 68 and he shared top spot with Australian Robert Allenby, who still had three holes to complete when the suspension came.
The pair were three clear of closest challenger Bill Haas and overnight leader Charl Schwartzel.
Padraig Harrington finished just before the break, sitting tied for fifth with Søren Hansen on six under.
The Irishman's only 2009 success came in the Irish PGA Championship, but he was making no promises about putting that right this weekend.
The Dubliner has dropped to 13th in the world with nothing better than a 16th place finish in four starts so far this season.
With that in mind he said: "I have a tradition, unfortunately for me, that I don't normally win out of the blue.
"It's very rare. I normally warm up by getting into contention a few times.
"I'm happy with my scoring but I made a few mental errors out there and missed a few putts.
"Obviously, though, I hit enough good shots and I seemed to have a lot of reasonable chances for birdies."
His only dropped shot came after he hooked his drive into the lake on the treacherous 18th, his ninth of the day.
Els said: "I'm just pleased we got it done. The weather is changing a lot.
"I'm in pretty good shape. Halfway there and, you know, just got to keep it up."
Dane Hansen kept alive his hopes of the first prize with a second successive 69 to be alongside Harrington.
“Playing really well. Hitting a lot of greens. Giving myself a lot of chances and I suppose that's what it's all about in this game,” he said afterwards.
SCOREBOARD TO COME

2010-03-12T18:48:00.005Z

Spaniard Del Moral leads by three on home territory

FROM THE ALPS TOUR WEBSITE
Jordi Garcia Del Moral, a 24-year-old Spaniard, took the lead at the Peugeot Open El Escorpion in Spain, signing for the best score of the day, a seven-under-par 64, for a three-stroke advantage ahead of Italian Matteo Delpodio.
Del Moral is full member of the Challenge Tour but is just coming back from wrist surgery.
“I know the course well. I live about one hour from here and I often play practice rounds here. I feel relaxed to play here because it is not my circuit. I came to train. I have a medical exemption from the Challenge Tour.
"I will play some small European Tour events in April if I can, then I will focus on the Challenge Tour. Today, my back nine was a dream. I putted so well and I holed one putt for eagle on the 15th hole after a great three-wood of 243 metres.
"I am very pleased to play with Matteo tomorrow. We are good friends.”
Yesterday's leader, Delpodio holed a beautiful eagle putt too on the 18th hole, his ninth. Confident teeing off the back nine, he missed some putts to increase his advantage. He dropped one shot with a three-putt on the third hole, short par 4.
On the following green, after a wonderful shot from 60m range, he holed for a birdie. It was his last one. After that his driving was not so precise and he had to play great golf to save pars. He scored 69 and completed his two rounds with a seven-under-par total.
“I know Jordi well. We have played together for the Continent of Europe in the St Andrews Trophy match of 2006 as amateurs. We are really good friends. Tomorrow will be a good and fun day. I will need to hole more putts if I want to challenge him.”
In third place are two Spanish players at five-under-par, Jorge Campillo and Jesus Legarrea. Then one stroke behind, a big-hitting former European Tour player, Italy's Emanuele Canonica and English Steve Lewton, recently graduated from the Challenge Tour via his second place at the 2009 Alps Tour final order of merit.
The cut is fixed at +2.
SCOTSWATCH: Murrayshall members as amateurs, Steven Home and Gavin Dear continue stick fairly close together on the Alps Tour. Hume is outscoring is star Pertshire colleague with rounds of 69 and 70 for a share of sixth place of three-under-par 139. Dear is two shots back with scores of 71 and 70.
SECOND-ROUND TOTALS
Par 142 (2x72)
132 Jordi GARCIA DEL MORAL (ESP) 68 64
135 Matteo DELPODIO (ITA) 66 69
137 Jorge CAMPILLO (ESP) 71 66, Jesus LEGARREA (ESP) 71 66
138 Steve LEWTON (ENG) 69 69, Emanuele CANONICA (ITA) 70 68 »»
139 Borja ETCHART (ESP) 70 69, Steven HUME (SCO) 69 70, Santiago LUNA (ESP) 69 70, Xavier GUZMAN SADABA (ESP) 71 68
140 Jose ROMERO (ESP) 69 71, Kim JOON (ITA) 70 70, Christophe BRAZILLIER (FRA) 67 73, Carlos DEL MORAL (ESP) 70 70, Ivan LARA (ESP) 73 67, Marco GUERISOLI (ITA) 71 69, Ivo GINER (ESP) 69 71.
141 Moises COBO (ESP) 69 72, Alex LARRAZABAL (ESP) 71 70, Jose Manuel OCEJO (ESP) 76 65, Carlos BALMASEDA (ESP) 71 70, Gavin DEAR (SCO) 71 70, Jose Manuel LARA (ESP) 70 71, Andrea PERRINO (ITA) 67 74, Lawrence DODD (ENG) 69 72, Pedro ORIOL (ESP) 69 72, Olivier SERRES (FRA) 72 69.
142 Farren KEENAN (ENG) 71 71, Pol BECH (ESP) 70 72, Vicente BLAZQUEZ (ESP) 71 71, Juan PARRON (ESP) 72 70, Daniel ALONSO (ESP) 74 68, Jose Luis ADARRAGA (ESP) 72 70,
Simone BRIZZOLARI (ITA) 71 71, Paolo TERRENI (ITA) 74 68, Bruno-Teva LECUONA (FRA) 72 70, Matthew CRYER (ENG) 72 70, Jorge GARCIA FERNANDEZ (ESP) 74 68, Sam ROBINSON (ENG) 72 70.
143 Jason PALMER (ENG) 71 72, Ismael DEL CASTILLO (ESP) 70 73.
144 Damien PERRIER (FRA) 71 73, Uli WEINHANDL (AUT) 73 71, Michael MOSER (AUT) 73 71, Jose Miguel ROSILLO (ESP) 73 71, Andrea SIGNOR (ITA) 73 71, Javier COLOMO (ESP) 71 73, Neil CHAUDHURI (ENG) 73 71, Matjaz GOJCIC (SLO) 72 72.
MISSED THE CUT
145 Mariano SAIZ (ESP) 73 72, Carlos GARCIA SIMARRO (ESP) 75 70, Matthew BALDWIN (ENG) 72 73, Pedro LINHART (ESP) 71 74, Jann SCHMID (SWI) 73 72, Francisco VALLS (ESP) 75 70, David ANTONELLI (FRA) 73 72, Benn BARHAM (ENG) 76 69, Nicholas MURTAGH (ENG) 71 74.
Selected non-qualifiers:
146 Richard KILPATRICK (NIR) 70 76.
148 Max BRACKLEY (ENG) 72 76.
149 Andy SMITH (ENG) 76 73
150 Ricki NEIL-JONES (ENG) 76 74
151 Jason Barnes (Eng) 75 76, Mark Hooper (ENG) 73 78.
156 Jordon Smith (Eng) 79 77.

2010-03-12T15:10:00.003Z

Chang Thailand Senior Masters Scoreboard
FIRST ROUND
64 B Ruangkit (Tha)
65 M Saengsui (Tha)
66 K Tomori (Jpn), J Chitprasong (Tha)
67 A Sowa (Arg), P Harrison (Eng), N Meesom (Tha), D Russell (Eng),
68 J Bruner (US), S Ebihara (Jpn), M Williams (Zim), J Quiros (Esp), J Rhodes (Eng), B Lincoln (RSA), M Farry (Fra)
69 S Bennett (Eng), D O'Sullivan (Irl), L Yong-Gun (Kor), M Harwood (Aus), T Johnstone (Zim), M Cunning (USA), L Carbonetti (Arg), H Carbonetti (Arg),
70 S Lyle (Sco), J Rivero (Esp), G Brand (Eng), F Minoza (Phi), F Mann (Sco), D Merriman (Aus), G Gunn (Can), G Ryall (Eng), G Cali (Ita), K Spurgeon (Eng), B Cameron (Eng),
71 S Saengsui (Tha), C Rocca (Ita), M Ramayah (Mas), N Job (Eng) , R Chapman (Eng) , G Banister (Aus) , B Boyd (US) , J Heggarty (Nir) , P Mitchell (Eng) , P Dahlberg (Swe) , S Bunpimuck (Tha)
72 L Stephen (Aus) , J Chillas (Sco) , C Williams (RSA) , M Poxon (Eng) , S Owen (Nzl) , G Ralph (Eng) , B Hardwick (Can) , I Woosnam (Wal) ,
73 B Longmuir (Sco) , T Gale (Aus) , S Torrance (Sco) , K Nam (Kor) ,
74 P Teravainen (USA) , J Hall (Eng) , B Smit (RSA) , P Allan (Eng) , S Taylor (US) , D Cambridge (Jam) ,
75 N Ratcliffe (Aus) , M Miller (Sco) , M Piñero (Esp) , P Oakley (US) , I Palmer (RSA) , A Garrido (Esp) , M Clayton (Aus) , A Tapie (USA) ,
76 I Mosey (Eng) , J Hawkes (RSA) , T Chen (Tpe) , D Johnson (US)
77 A Johnsson (Swe) , T Burgoyne (Sco)
78 M Gray (Sco)

2010-03-12T14:57:00.002Z

Nine Scots warm up in South Africa - thanks to Rupert!

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE SCOTTISH GOLF UNION
Nine of Scotland’s leading amateur golfers arrive in South Africa today to complete their winter training programme, boosted by the support of the man behind the Dunhill Links Championship, Johann Rupert.
The South African business tycoon has sponsored the SGU’s Men’s Elite Squad training camp in his home country, providing golf, accommodation and facilities to the Scotland players over the next ten days. The Scots will use three different world-class courses during the trip as the final part of their preparation for the season ahead under the warmth of the South African sunshine.
The trip will include a two-day Test Match against South Africa at Leopard Creek, a three-team tournament against the South African Development and Junior sides at Houghton Golf Club and a match at Pearl Valley – scene of Richie Ramsay’s recent win in the South African Open - against a combined Provincial team.
A mixture of youth and experience has been selected for the squad, with four other players heading for Spain to play in the European Nations Cup next week. Former Allied Surveyors Scottish Amateur Champion Glenn Campbell is included in the squad alongside the youngest member of the team, Jack McDonald, the reigning firstpointusa.com Scottish Boys Stroke Play Champion.
Kirkhill’s Paul Shields, a recent Academy graduate to the Men’s Elite Squad makes the trip, whilst another youngster, 18-year-old Scott Gibson earns his first call up to the senior team. Fraserburgh’s Kris Nicol and Hilton Park’s Gordon Yates, fresh from reaching the knock-out stages of the Spanish Amateur Championship, are included alongside former SGU Order of Merit winner Steven McEwan, 2008 Scottish boys stroke play champion Mark Bookless and St Andrews’ Greg Paterson.
Rupert, who is the current chairman of the South African PGA Tour, said:
“I am delighted to support the Scotland Men’s Elite Squad and bring them over to South Africa to experience our wonderful facilities and beautiful golf courses. I am very proud to be associated with the Home of Golf through the Dunhill Links Championship and wanted to give something back to the development of talented young golfers in Scotland.”
“We will also be offering our support to the young South African golfers by way of competition against some of Scotland’s best, which will assist with their development. There should be some great matches in prospect.”
Douglas Connon, SGU Chairman, added:
“This is an exceptional gesture from Johann Rupert and we are very grateful for his generous support. This new partnership allows us to further expand our winter training programmes for our elite squads, providing opportunities for our players to experience world class facilities.”
The Scotland squad is also sponsored by Aberdeen Asset Management and TaylorMade adidasGolf.
Scotland Squad for Player Development Camp in South Africa:
1. Mark Bookless (Sandyhills)
2. Glenn Campbell (Blairgowrie)
3. Scott Gibson (Southerness)
4. Jack Macdonald (Kilmarnock Barassie)
5. Steven McEwan (Caprington)
6. Kris Nicol (Fraserburgh)
7. Greg Paterson (New Club, St Andrews)
8. Paul Shields (Kirkhill)
9. Gordon Yates (Hilton Park)

Squad Itinerary:
March 12-13
Practice at Vodacom World of Golf in Johannesburg
March 14-15
Triangular Match: Scotland v South Africa Junior Team v South Africa Development Team, Houghton GC
March 16
Practice, Leopard Creek Golf Club
March 17-18
Test Match: South Africa v Scotland, Leopard Creek Golf Club
March 19
Fly to Cape Town
March 20
Practice at the River Club
March 21
Provincial Match: Combined Provincial Select v Scotland, Pearl Valley GC
Depart