Tiger claims Memorial to match Nicklaus on 73 wins

Updated June 04, 2012 09:05:12

Tiger Woods birdied three of the last four holes, one with an amazing chip shot, to win the PGA Memorial tournament in Ohio on Monday (AEST) and match host Jack Nicklaus for second on the all-time victory list.

Woods captured his 73rd career title with a 5-under par 67 final round, putting him on 9-under par 279 after 72 holes, two strokes ahead of South African Rory Sabbatini and Argentina's Andres Romero.

"I hit it good today," Woods said.

"That was some good stuff out there. I never really missed a shot. I hit it great. I had the pace of the greens really nice and I made a few putts."

Added to the legend of Woods was another spectacular shot - the superstar blasting out of the rough for a 48-foot chip-in birdie on the par-3 16th hole to seize a share of the lead.

"That was one of the most incredible golf shots I think you will ever see played," said Nicklaus, serving as a US television commentator.

"That was an unbelievable shot. That was the most unbelievable gutsy shot I've ever seen. If he hits it long the tournament is over. If he hits it short the tournament is over. He puts it in the hole."

Woods, a 14-time major champion chasing the all-time record of 18 major titles won by Nicklaus, pulled even with the legend in all-time US PGA wins, both now nine adrift of Sam Snead's record 82 triumphs.

"It has been a pretty nice run since I turned pro," Woods said.

"To do it at age 36, that's not too shabby. I have been very proud of what I have done so far. I have a lot of good years ahead of me."

The victory comes two weeks before Woods will try to move closer to Nicklaus on the major win list at the US Open at The Olympic Club in San Francisco.

"At Olympic, we're all going to have to hit the ball great," Woods said.

Nicklaus, who won the last of his titles at the 1986 Masters at age 46, designed the Muirfield Village course where Woods has won five Memorial crowns - in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2009 and this year.

But nothing in any of them was like the birdie Woods sank at the 16th, when he blasted the ball high out of the rough, landing it just on the green, and then watched it roll into the cup.

Woods reacted with a right fist pump, a double downward fist pump and another right fist pump, all while screaming with joy as the crowd roared in delight.

"I just hit it perfect," Woods said.

As Woods walked off the course, Nicklaus told him, "That shot at 16 was the best I've ever seen here."

Woods had snapped a 17-month win drought at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March at Bay Hill, but was lacklustre since then, sharing 40th at the Masters and Players Championship and missing the cut at Quail Hollow.

Woods, who last won a major title at the 2008 US Open, had not won an event in which he was not the 54-hole leader since 2009.

Woods birdied the par-4 second and ran off three birdies in a row starting at the par-5 fifth and ending at the par-5 seventh, but stumbled with bogeys at the par-3 eighth and par-4 10th, stalling him two strokes off the pace.

But 54-hole leader Spencer Levin stumbled with bogeys at the 10th and 12th holes and a double bogey at the par-4 13th.

Sabbatini charged to the top at eight-under with birdies at the par-5 11th and par-3 12th and Romero added to the pressure with an eagle at the par-5 15th and a closing birdie to reach the clubhouse on 281.

That is when Woods charged. He missed a 43-foot eagle putt at the 15th but tapped in for a birdie to pull within one of Sabbatini.

Then came his amazing shot at the 16th, but that only put him level with the South African. Sabbatini followed, however, with a bogey at the 16th to give Woods the lead alone and Woods followed with a nine-foot birdie putt at 18.

When Sabbatini failed to hole his approach shot at the 18th, the last hope of denying Woods was dashed.

AFP

Tags: sport, golf, united-states

First posted June 04, 2012 08:08:42

View the original article here

Day scrapes through match play opener

Updated February 23, 2012 12:21:57

Australian star Jason Day produced a stunning fight-back to defeat Spain's Raphael Cabrera-Bello in extra holes in the first round of the WGC Match Play Championship in Tucson, Arizona.

World number seven Day looked dead and buried at three down with three to play but, with some help from the nervous Spaniard, he rallied to win on the 19th hole.

Cabrera-Bello bogeyed the final three holes to almost gift Day a ticket to the second round where he will meet fellow Australian John Senden.

Cabrera-Bello only needed to two putt from six feet on the 16th hole but blasted his first putt six-feet past the hole and missed the comeback attempt.

Clearly rattled, he missed the 17th green on approach and failed to get up and down and then dumped his approach on the 18th into a near impossible lie in a bunker.

When he failed to make par he conceded Day a birdie, sending the match to extra holes.

On the first extra hole Day watched the Spaniard find some focus and stick an approach shot to 13-feet but the Australian refused to blink.

He almost holed out from 150 yards, then watched Cabrera-Bello lip out his birdie roll before tapping his in for a clutch victory.

"I felt like I just won the tournament," Day admitted.

"I did kind of just scrape through, but I'm glad I stuck in there and didn't give up."

Senden, the 39th seed, hammered English 26th seed Simon Dyson 4 and 3.

While Senden was impressive in the rout, Dyson is expecting a child on Tuesday in England and played as if he had the impending birth and the flight back home on his mind.

Otherwise it was a tough day out for the six-man Australian contingent.

Eighth seed Adam Scott lost to 57th seeded Englishman Robert Rock 1-up and Aaron Baddeley fell 2 and 1 to former British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen.

Two-time tournament champion Geoff Ogilvy was hammered 4 and 3 by Keegan Bradley and Greg Chalmers fell 4 and 2 to world number four Martin Kaymer.

Former world number one Tiger Woods scraped to a 1-up victory over Spaniard Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano.

Woods lost his opening two holes and was 1-down with four to play before rallying to win.

AAP

Tags: golf, sport, united-states

First posted February 23, 2012 12:06:32

View the original article here

McIlroy to meet Westwood in Match Play semi

Updated February 26, 2012 12:30:01

Rory McIlroy and Lee Westwood, each seeking a title to become world number one, advanced to a semi-final showdown at the World Golf Championships Match Play Championship.

World number two McIlroy of Northern Ireland defeated South Korea's Bae Sang-Moon 3 and 2 while Englishman Westwood, ranked third, defeated Scotland's Martin Laird 4 and 2 to set up a high-stakes semi-final at the $7.9 million event.

"It will be a great match," Westwood said. "I hope we both play well and make lots of birdies."

Either Westwood, a former world number on, or McIlroy, trying to achieve the mark for the first time, would replace England's Luke Donald as the world number one if he wins Sunday's 18-hole final.

But before one of them gets the chance to face either Hunter Mahan or Mark Wilson in Sunday's afternoon final, he must conquer the other in a morning semi-final.

"It's the match I wanted and the match everyone else wanted," said McIlroy, who at 22 would become the youngest WGC Match Play champion.

Not since 2004 have two of the four top seeds reached the semi-finals of the event and not since Tiger Woods and Davis Love met in 2000 have two top seeds met in a semi-final.

Mahan beat US compatriot Matt Kuchar 6 and 5 without losing a hole and Wilson ousted Sweden's Peter Hanson 4 and 3 in other quarter-finals to set up an all-American semi-final and ensure the event's first US finalist since Tiger Woods won in 2008.

"Hunter has made a ton of birdies this week," Wilson said. "I've got to focus on hitting the green and making that par. I'm not going to change anything about the way I'm playing."

Bae, 25, beat McIlroy in a head-to-head showdown in the final round of the South Korean Open three years ago, but the 44th-ranked Bae had never played in a WGC or match play event until this week.

McIlroy seized the lead with a birdie at the first hole but found water off the tee at the par-3 third and took a bogey that sqaured the match.

Bae sank a long birdie putt at the fourth, the longest par-4 hole in PGA history at 536 yards, but McIlroy kept the match level with a round-the-cup effort.

McIlroy sank a five-foot birdie putt at the eighth to regain a 1-up edge but went well right off the 10th tee and landed under a desert bush, forcing him to take an unplayable lie on the way to a bogey that squared the match.

McIlroy responded with a birdie to win the par-5 11th, then Bae found a bunker off the 13th tee while McIlroy blasted inches from the cup out of a greenside bunker to seize a 2-up advantage.

A tap-in birdie at the 15th put McIlroy 3-up with three holes to play and he halved the last to secure the triumph.

"I felt like I hit some really good shots," McIlroy said. "I felt like everything was pretty solid. I played really well out there."

Westwood, who had been number one until being overtaken by Donald last year, had not trailed in a match this week until Laird opened with a five-foot birdie putt.

"He started how I wanted to start, fast and strong," Westwood said of Laird. "I could have been 3-down after three.

But Westwood sank a 13-foot par putt at the sixth to square the match, then birdied to win the seventh and moved 2-up at the turn when Laird bogeyed the ninth.

Westwood moved 3-up when Laird bogeyed 10, but the Englishman missed a five-foot par putt and Laird tapped in to win the 11th.

Sinking a tense birdie putt from six feet allowed Westwood to halve the 13th and Laird found a greenside bunker to prompt a concession at the 14th that put Westwood 3-up. After they halved 15, Laird fell at the 16th.

Hanson had not trailed in any match this week, but promptly fell behind Wilson with a bogey at the opening hole.

A bogey by Wilson at the sixth squared the match. Wilson birdied the eighth to briefly reclaim the lead, only to have Hanson sink a five-foot birdie at the ninth.

Hanson began the back nine with back-to-back bogeys to fall 2-down and Wilson sank a three-foot birdie at 13 to move 3-up. After another bogey by Hanson put Wilson 4-up Wilson birdied 15 to halve the hole and seal the victory.

AAP

Tags: sport, golf, united-states

First posted February 26, 2012 11:04:22

View the original article here

Senden out of Match Play Championship

Updated February 25, 2012 14:32:52

John Senden has been bounced out of the WGC Match Play Championship in the third round by South Korean Sang-Moon Bae, ending Australia's tilt at victory in Arizona.

Bae beat Senden 1-up when the Queenslander could not get birdie putts on the final two holes to fall into the cup.

Left with an eight-foot try on the 17th and a 20-footer on the last, Senden could not coax either in and was eliminated from the tournament in Tucson.

It is still his highest ever finish in a WGC event and will catapult him to a career high world ranking on Monday.

Senden missed a golden opportunity to get off to a flying start when he missed a seven-foot birdie putt on the first hole and ended up halving with par.

Perhaps rattled by the miss the Queenslander pulled his next tee shot left into the rough and when he could not get a 12-foot putt from off the fringe to drop, Bae took a 1-up lead with a simple three-foot birdie.

Senden fell further into the mire when a missed green and flubbed chip led to a bogey on the third, allowing Bae an easy two-putt par and 2-up lead.

Australia's final hope bounced back to win the next hole after Bae found bunker trouble but was back to two down when he made a mess of the fifth hole.

Senden found trouble off the tee and eventually also three-putted from 10-feet to gift Bae another hole.

After halving the sixth the 40-year-old started his fightback.

He found some putting mojo with a great 20-foot effort on the seventh to pull within one hole and then squared the match on the eighth with another birdie.

The match remained square until the par five 13th when Bae hit a lovely third to about three-feet and converted the birdie while Senden could not get up and down from the sand leaving him one back once more.

Senden then made another move when he almost holed a lengthy eagle putt after driving the par four 15th green.

The tap in birdie was enough to square the match once more, but his next tee shot on the par three 16th was way right.

His chip could not get closer than 30 feet allowing the South Korean to take a one-hole lead with two to play.

Bae will meet Rory McIlroy in the quarter-finals after the Northern Irishman accounted for Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez 3 and 1.

McIlroy can become world number one if he hoists the trophy on Sunday.

England's Lee Westwood, another with a chance of becoming world number one, continued his roll with a 3 and 2 win over American Nick Watney.

He will play Martin Laird after Laird won the all-Scottish battle with Paul Lawrie 3 and 1.

Americans Matt Kuchar and Hunter Mahan crushed Germany's Martin Kaymer and fellow American Steve Stricker respectively.

Both matches ended on the 15th hole with 4 and 3 victories setting up a quarter-final showdown between the pair.

AAP

Tags: sport, golf, united-states

First posted February 25, 2012 11:42:17

View the original article here

McIlroy to play Mahan in Match Play final

Updated February 27, 2012 07:49:20

Rory McIlroy has stormed back from a heavy early deficit to take down Lee Westwood in the semi-finals of the WGC Match Play Championship in Arizona.

McIlroy was three down through four holes but went on an absolute tear to beat Westwood 3 and 1 and set up a final match with American Hunter Mahan.

Mahan took care of countryman Mark Wilson 2 and 1 to be the only man standing in the way of McIlroy's attempt to not only win but also take the world number one ranking.

Should the 22-year-old beat Mahan today he will usurp Luke Donald as the world's premier player, becoming the second youngest player in history to do so behind Tiger Woods.

Westwood won three of the first four holes to take a sizable early advantage.

The Englishman rolled in a four-foot birdie on two, two putted comfortably from distance on three while McIlroy failed to get up and down from a bunker and coaxed another four-foot birdie putt in on four to be 3-up and in control.

But a bogey on the fifth for Westwood allowed McIlroy to finally win a hole and arrest some of the momentum.

McIlroy then nailed a great 29-foot birdie on the par three sixth and when Westwood could not respond from 27-feet, the Northern Irishman was just 1-down - and he had tied it all up by the eighth hole.

Despite watching Westwood hit an approach to 12-feet on the ninth McIlroy already had a whiff of the blood in the water and stuck his approach inside his opponent at eight feet.

Westwood missed his putt while McIlroy had no such troubles and as such turned with a somewhat unlikely 1-up lead.

After a fortuitous bounce out of the desert on the 11th hole McIlroy scrambled for a half and landed a serious blow when he slammed a 24-foot birdie putt on the par three 12th to go 2-up.

Westwood then found a woman's shirt with a wayward drive on the 13th and after receiving relief hacked forward into the rough. He found the green with his third shot but could not get a long birdie putt to drop.

Meanwhile, McIlroy continued his march forward by reaching the par five green in two, eventually winning the hole and setting up a decisive 3-up lead.

Westwood tried to rally with an eagle on the drivable par four 15th but it was too little too late and McIlroy closed it out on the 17th hole.

"I was just trying to stay patient and I knew if I just kept chipping away I could get him," McIlroy said.

"He started well, I didn't, but I sort of found my rhythm and made some birdies."

Mahan jumped out to an early advantage and never trailed.

He won the opening hole when Wilson drove the ball into the waste area and ended up with a bogey and then extended the lead to 2-up through as many holes when he nailed a five-foot birdie putt.

Sensing the match getting away early Wilson responded by taking the third hole but Mahan and his red-hot putter returned on the fourth.

He drained a 16-foot birdie putt to once again jump out to a 2-up lead.

Wilson won the fifth, Mahan the sixth and Wilson the 12th to have the lead at just one hole but Mahan pulled away once more when Wilson found bunker trouble on the drivable par four 15th, setting up a 2-up cushion.

AAP

Tags: sport, golf, united-states

First posted February 27, 2012 07:42:24

View the original article here

Senden smashes Day in match play showdown

Updated February 24, 2012 11:30:33

John Senden is the only Australian left in the WGC Match Play Championship after he trounced countryman Jason Day 6 and 5 in the second round.

Senden, seeded 39th in the event, spanked the seventh ranked Day by the 13th hole.

While Senden played consistently impressive golf, Day was clearly out of sorts, getting into a fight with the desert which he duly lost.

Senden, not known as one of the best putters in golf, was steely on the greens and choked Day out of the match.

He made just the one bogey all day but did not lose a single hole.

"I had the pressure on him early. I had good putts on one, three and four and then I was two up through four," Senden said.

"Then basically from there I wanted to keep focused and keep the quality of shots going on and I did that.

"He sort of made the mistakes to force the match to go further and further my way."

The pair halved the opening two holes before Senden nailed a 19-foot birdie putt on the third to take the lead. It was an advantage he would never relinquish.

The 40-year-old made a clutch six-foot birdie putt on the very next hole before watching Day botch a five-footer on the same line.

Day failed to make any ground over the next three holes, although he did manage to salvage an impressive half on the seventh after taking an unplayable lie from the desert.

While Senden missed the opportunity on seven, he nailed one on eight, pitching to three feet and making the putt after Day missed from nine feet.

The score remained at 3-up until further disaster struck for Day on the par five 11th.

He pumped another wild drive left into the desert and ended up embedded in a dangerous jumping cholla cactus.

After considering trying to hack at the ball Day wisely decided to take an unplayable but he hit his third into another cactus near the green.

He attempted a crazy backwards left handed shot but when it ricocheted behind him further into the mire he conceded the hole to fall four holes behind.

A hole later he was five down when Senden made a routine par and Day could not get up and down from a greenside bunker.

Senden then closed out the 24-year-old with an eight-foot birdie on the 13th, his fourth of the day, to record an impressive rout.

Meanwhile, Nick Watney took care of former world number one Tiger Woods 1-up in a relatively tight all-American tussle, while Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy never trailed on the way to a 3 and 2 win over Denmark's Anders Hansen.

Lee Westwood destroyed Swede Robert Karlsson over their first 10 holes to lead 5-up and despite a few hiccups coming in, the Englishman held on for a 3 and 2 win.

AAP

Tags: sport, golf, united-states

First posted February 24, 2012 09:33:55

View the original article here

Mahan shocks McIlroy in Match Play final

Updated February 27, 2012 12:07:19

American Hunter Mahan ended Rory McIlroy's bid to become world number one for the first time with a 2 and 1 victory over the Northern Irishman in Monday's (AEDT) final of the WGC Match Play Championship in Arizona.

With McIlroy initially failing to replicate the stunning form he produced earlier in the day on the way to a 3 and 1 semi-final win over third-ranked Briton Lee Westwood, Mahan took advantage with a seven-birdie display.

The 29-year-old never trailed after going ahead at the par-three sixth, and he fended off a McIlroy fightback after the turn, ending the match with a comfortable two-putt par on the 17th green.

"Boy, it feels good," a smiling Mahan told reporters after clinching his fourth PGA Tour title and a second World Golf Championships (WGC) crown, having previously won the 2010 Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone.

"I didn't realise how difficult it is to win this week because it's six matches and you're playing against the best players in the world," said Mahan, who defeated fellow American Mark Wilson 2 and 1 in their semi-final.

"I played well from tee to green, putting to chipping to driving, irons, everything was there. And I needed everything to win. I'm very proud of how I played," added Mahan who totalled 35 birdies during the week from 96 holes.

World number two McIlroy, like Mahan appearing in his first Match Play final, would have replaced Britain's Luke Donald as the game's leading player when the rankings are issued on Monday had he claimed his first WGC crown.

"Deep down I wanted to postpone that crowning of the number one player in the world for Rory," Mahan said with a grin. "But he'll be number one eventually. I'm not worried about it, I'm sure he's not."

US Open champion McIlroy applauded Mahan's performance, but conceded that his hugely anticipated morning semi-final against Westwood had sapped some of his energy.

"Maybe mentally and emotionally it did take a little bit out of me but it still doesn't take away from the fact that Hunter played very, very solid golf," the 22-year-old said.

"Even though I threw a few birdies and an eagle at him on the back nine, he still responded well and held on. During the course of the week, he played the best golf and deserved to win."

In dazzling afternoon sunshine at Dove Mountain, both players bogeyed the opening hole, Mahan after duffing a chip from behind the green and McIlroy when he lipped out from four feet.

Matching birdies

The next two holes were halved with matching birdies and McIlroy was fortunate not to go one down at the par-four fourth where he had to take a penalty drop after his tee shot ended up in desert scrub.

He bogeyed the hole, as did Mahan who struck his approach into the front left greenside bunker after being perfectly placed off the tee.

Mahan finally broke the deadlock to go one up with a conceded birdie at the sixth where he struck an exquisite tee shot that settled within two feet of the cup.

The American then benefited from a poor match play decision by McIlroy at the par-four seventh.

After watching Mahan's approach from 135 yards pitch on and then spin back down the hill below the green, McIlroy followed suit and then failed to reach the green with his chip.

While Mahan bogeyed the hole, he went two up after the Northern Irishman missed a 10-footer to double-bogey.

McIlroy was again in trouble at the par-five eighth, finding a bunker off the tee, failing to reach the green in three and then lipping out with an eight-foot par putt to go three down.

Mahan went four up after nearly holing out from the fairway with a 180-yard approach at the par-four 10th, his ball finishing two feet past the cup for a conceded birdie.

Though McIlroy chipped in to eagle the par-five 11th and also birdied the par-four 14th to trim Mahan's lead to two-up, the American held him off over the next three holes.

In the consolation match, American Mark Wilson beat Westwood 1-up to secure third place.

Reuters

Tags: sport, golf, united-states

First posted February 27, 2012 10:26:08

View the original article here

Poulter celebrates World Match Play win

Published:Monday, May 23, 2011 6:32 AEST

Ian Poulter of England celebrates winning the World Match Play Championship at Finca Cortesin on May 22, 2011 in Casares, Spain.

Tags: sport, golf, spain

View the original article here

Favourites lead way in LPGA Match Play

Posted May 21, 2011 16:45:00

Bae Kyeong, Choi Na-yeong, Lee Meena and Park Inbee won second-round matches as four South Koreans reached the third round of the Sybase Match Play Championship in New Jersey.

Tseng Yani, of Taiwan and Japan's Ai Miyazato were other Asians who moved on as the favourites continued to dominate, winning seven of 10 matches.

Top-seeded Choi beat Britain's Karen Stupples in 20 holes while world number one Tseng defeated American Jenny Suh 3 and 2 at the Hamilton Farm Golf Club.

Suzann Pettersen of Norway also advanced to the round of 16 by beating Taiwan's Amy Hung 5 and 3.

Defending champion Cristie Kerr was the most impressive US player in a round that was began in rain but ended in sunshine.

Number three seeded Kerr won the third through eighth holes against Spanish rookie Belen Mozo of Spain en route to a dominating 7 and 6 victory.

-AFP

Tags: sport, golf, united-states

View the original article here