Donald returns to number one ranking

Updated May 28, 2012 10:05:42

Luke Donald looked back with pride after successfully defending his PGA Championship title at Wentworth and returning to the top of the world rankings.

A year after becoming number one for the first time at the same event Donald was back at the head of the list for the fourth time in his career.

The Englishman carded a four-round total of 273, 15-under par and won by four shots from Scotland's Paul Lawrie and Justin Rose from England.

Rose, who missed a six foot putt at the last which would have given him second place outright, had put the pressure on during the front nine before Donald eased away to win and displace Rory McIlory as world number one.

"There is something special about going 12 months and still being number one," the 34-year-old said.

"We have swapped it a couple of times but to go a 12 month span is something I am very proud of and is a vindication that what I am doing is right and shows that my game is improving."

This was a much more comfortable win for Donald than last year's when he had to win a play-off against Lee Westwood to take the crown.

"I enjoyed the walk up the 18th more this time with a four-shot lead. It is very special to come back here - this is the biggest event we play on the European Tour," Donald added.

"I played nicely for the whole week but today was the most difficult day in terms of pressure. I had a two-shot lead but I was trying to defend and I had never successfully defended a title before.

"I felt some tension out there - it is not easy going out with a lead and trying to close out a tournament. Justin is a solid player and I knew he was not going to give it away - I had to go and earn it."

Ireland's Peter Lawrie, who had shared the lead after the first round, had two birdies in the first seven holes but his hopes went up in smoke with a triple bogey seven at the eighth and he finished on 280, level par and in fourth spot with South African Branden Grace a further shot back in fifth.

Donald became only the third player to win back-to-back PGA titles following in the footsteps of Sir Nick Faldo (1980-1981) and Colin Montgomerie, who won three times from 1998 and this was the fourth English win in a row here after Paul Casey, Simon Khan and Donald's first victory last year.

Rose got level with Donald with successive birdies at the third and fourth whilst Donald dropped a shot at the fourth. However Donald responded by holing putts of 15 and 18 feet at the sixth and seventh to go clear again.

Donald played serene golf for the rest of the back nine making up shots at the 10th, 12th and 16th whilst Rose bogeyed the 16th after hitting his second shot into a greenside bunker and Donald shut the door.

AFP

Tags: golf, sport, england, united-kingdom

First posted May 28, 2012 09:27:51

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Scott returns to form at Players

Updated May 11, 2012 11:29:00

Adam Scott came within one stroke of the lead in The Players Championship before two ill-timed bogeys forced the Australian to settle three strokes off the pace after the opening round in Florida.

Scott carded a 4-under 68, joining a large pack of players in sixth trailing leaders Ian Poulter and Martin Laird, who both shot 7-under 65s at the TPC Sawgrass.

American Blake Adams was a shot further back while countrymen Kevin Na and Ben Crane finished at 5-under.

World number one Rory McIlroy had to settle for an even-par 72 after finding water at the par-three 17th, famous for its island green, while Tiger Woods risks missing consecutive cuts for the first time as a pro after shooting a 2-over 74.

Scott, champion in 2004, birdieing three of his first four holes to be 3-under at the turn before going eagle-birdie at the 11th (courtesy of a massive 34-foot putt) and 12th to move to 6-under and within sight of the clubhouse lead.

Bogeys at 13 and 15 brought the 31-year-old back to the field but well within striking distance at an event he has struggled in the last four years.

"Overall I am very happy with the start," Scott said.

"The greens were quite spicy and while I dropped a couple of shots coming in, which was unfortunate, four-under is a good spot to be."

Geoff Ogilvy was the next best-placed Aussie at 2-under with Rod Pampling a shot back and Robert Allenby at even par, followed by Jason Day and Marc Leishman at 1-over while Aaron Baddley had a nightmare 6-over with three double bogeys.

Poulter, whose lone US victory came in the 2010 World Golf Championships Match Play Championship, took advantage of his early round.

After birdies on the par-5 second and par-4 fourth, the Englishman took his lone bogey of the day at the seventh. He answered by running off four birdies in a row starting at the par-5 ninth and including the par-5 11th.

"It was a very, very good round of golf," Poulter said.

"That's definitely probably in the top 10 of the rounds of golf I have ever played.

"To turn around and say that you're going to walk off 7-under par a little bit disappointed, but if I look at the chances I had on the front nine, that could have easily been a few more."

Scot Laird fired the only bogey-free round, finishing with seven birdies and 11 pars.

"Any time you go around this golf course bogey-free is obviously a very good day," said Laird, who won in Florida last year, clinching the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill.

"I missed a few greens out there from good spots in the middle of the fairways but managed to scramble really well and chipped them up close enough ... but the key was the putter and any time I had a chance for birdie, I rolled it in."

World number two Luke Donald recovered to make even-par with birdies on the 16th and 17th, while defending champion KJ Choi shot a 3-over 75.

The worst performance at the popular 17th hole came from Argentine Angel Cabrera, who found water three times as he made a nine.

Cabrera later withdrew, citing personal reasons, one of five players to pull out of the tournament on the opening day.

Lee Westwood, ranked third in the world, finished the day 1-under along with Phil Mickelson, the 2007 Players winner.

Woods was 1-over after nine but staggered around the turn with bogeys at the 18th and the first and a birdie at the par-5 second negated by a bogey at the par-3 third before he righted the ship and parred his way back to the clubhouse from there.

"Any kind of momentum that I would build, I would shoot myself in the foot on the very next hole. Just one of those days," Woods said.

"I didn't get a lot out of that round. It should have been probably 1- or 2-under par."

Woods won the 2001 Players but has struggled at the course in recent years, withdrawing last year after nine holes with left knee pain and in 2010 he withdrew with 12 holes remaining in the final round due to a neck injury.

This time, Woods was fit but unable to post a score among the leaders.

"I just didn't score. I hit decent shots in there and just got some of the worst lies," Woods said.

"It was frustrating in the sense that my good shots ended up in bad spots and obviously my bad shots ended up in worse spots."

ABC/wires

Tags: golf, sport, australia, united-states

First posted May 11, 2012 10:37:05

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Donald returns to number one with play-off triumph

Updated March 19, 2012 10:52:09

Britain's Luke Donald sank a six-foot birdie putt on the first extra hole on Monday (AEDT) to win a four-man play-off at the US PGA Tour event in Florida and reclaim the world number one ranking.

Donald had surrendered the top spot to Rory McIlroy just two weeks ago but ended the Northern Ireland prodigy's reign by capturing the $934,000 crown in the $5.2 million event, the Englishman's final tune-up for next month's Masters.

Hoping to finally capture his elusive first major title at Augusta National next month, reigning US and European prize money champion Donald took his tension-packed triumph in stride.

"It's another step in the right direction to winning majors," Donald said. "This is prefect preparation - two weeks off now and looking toward Augusta."

Donald, South Korean rookie Bae Sang-Moon and Americans Jim Furyk and Robert Garrigus finished 72 holes deadlocked for the lead at 13-under par 271 at the Innisbrook resort's Copperhead course.

The play-off took place on the par-4 18th hole, with Donald the only player to find the dense rough off the tee. Donald blasted his approach six feet from the hole but Garrigus put his second shot only seven feet from the cup.

After Bae and Furyk missed long birdie putts, Garrigus pushed his birdie bid just left of the cup, setting the stage for a dramatic birdie putt that brought reigning US and European PGA money champion Donald his first US play-off win.

"I certainly was a lot more nervous the first time trying to get to number one," Donald said. "This time I was just focused on winning the tournament and it all worked out."

South African star Ernie Els, needing a victory to secure a berth in next month's Masters, led by a stroke at the 17th tee but a bogey-bogey finish left him level fifth with Americans Jeff Overton, Scott Piercy and Ken Duke on 272.

At one stage in the final holes of regulation play, six players shared the lead. Garrigus birdied four of the last five holes to finish a round of 64 for the clubhouse lead while rivals were just starting on the back nine.

"I just needed the putter to wake up and it finally came through for me," Garrigus said.

AFP

Tags: sport, golf, united-states

First posted March 19, 2012 10:52:09

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