Match Play magic
- 14 Sep 06, 10:32 AM
WENTWORTH - Like a famous journalist once said about far more weighty matters than golf, I've counted them all out and now I'm going to wait roughly 36 holes each to count them all back in.
The got under way at 0736 BST at a dank and soggy Wentworth this morning with defending champion Michael Campbell against England's Simon Kahn.
It certainly promises to be a fascinating event, with a pretty stellar line-up .
Six of the world's top 10 are here, including that man Tiger Woods for the first time since he lost in the final to close pal Mark O'Meara in 1998.
And now that I've held off for the first four paragraphs I can finally mention it. With the Ryder Cup next week, this is the last chance for some of its participants to put down a marker, and especially in the matchplay form of the game.
Five of are here - Montgomerie, Howell, Casey, Donald and Karlsson - while have Woods and world number two Jim Furyk, his likely partner at the K Club.
Woods, game face firmly back on, teed off in the final group against countryman Shaun Micheel. And with , Woods, the world number one, is the firm favourite.
Victory for Micheel, , however, could certainly irk the sponsors and give US Ryder Cup fans a short, sharp shock.
But we could be in for the mouth-watering prospect - or worrying prospect, depending on how you see it going - of a Woods/Donald rematch in the second round.
The American, you'll remember, dominated Donald into submission when last month. Another Woods demolition could give Donald a complex.
And if Woods goes all the way, it would pump American Ryder Cup spirits, already advertised as sky high, into the stratosphere.
But just having a sneaky look ahead, there could also be a Monty v Tiger final. If that happens, cancel Sunday鈥檚 plans immediately.
But there's plenty of golf to be played before that and the not inconsiderable distraction of a million quid. And if talking to the likes of last week is anything to go by, our motto should be "expect the unexpected".
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Karlsson 8 under and 6 up after 17 - lets hope he saves some birdies for the K Club!
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I have been to 2 ryder cups one here one in the states and although it is a sporting event I have failed to get excited by the standard of play. I will get hailed down on that comment alone. If you look at the presidents cup the standard of Golf seems so much higher. Just look at the world rankings and the standard of player on show. Is this competition just another example of the british public trying to hold onto the dream that this is the premier team event in world golf. Look how the british people got behind the ashes after the first test the Ashes were a joke after the third it was the finest example of team against team combat(this was true). Tiger sums it up when asked to explain the hype" I have no idea do you". I think this is more a hype driven from this side of the pond then the other side. This is why Europe always win because the US would rather be at home playing for a million dollar purse then a competition they can't quite understand.
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A question for your golf panel; we know of the golfers that have won all four majors but do you know of any caddies that have been on the bag of all four majors, one would be steve williams any more.
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When are Tiger Woods and Mark O'Meara ever mentioned in the same sentence without the prefix 'close pal/ friend/ chum'?
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How Great it is to see Woods & Furyk beaten in matchplay dare we say it again. They should make a good pairing!! Bring on the Ryder cup, it will be tighter this time but Darren & Lee will do it for us!
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AJ - how quickly you forget.
When the US team is down its amazing how quickly it becomes 'we dont care - its only you guys that do' compared with the Presidents Cup which is suddenly 'the premier team competetion' (which by a shock co-incidence the US are actually winning!!).
How quickly you forget the reactions of the US players from when they were winning - Tom Lehman et al running over the green, Chris Dimarco 2 years ago, even Double D who said he didnt care then getting seriously pumped while on the course in 99.
These guys care (with the possible exception of Tiger 'team player' Woods), they are just on a losing run so downplaying it slightly.
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As a big supporter of the European Ryder cup team, I would have liked to have seen Tiger get to the final of the World Matchplay (and lose to Montgomery).
36 holes, four days in a row, around the West Course at Wentworth is no cakewalk. As it is he can put his feet up for the next few days and get some important R & R before a much more important event.
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