TOUR NEWS:IF, IN a way, Rory McIlroy will be ploughing a lone furrow in the Volvo World Matchplay Championship at Finca Cortesin in the south of Spain this week, a veritable throng of Irishmen – all with different aims and anxieties as the European Tour season enters its concluding stage – will be competing in the Barclays Singapore Open, with Gary Murphy yesterday adding his name to the field thanks to a late sponsor's invite.
While Murphy is in a desperate, back-to-the-wall fight to retain his tour card having slipped to 123rd on the order of merit (with the top 115 earning full playing privileges for the 2010 season) and will be aware of how much this invitation could potentially mean in a tournament with a €3.3 million prizefund, the Singapore Open also offers world number six Pádraig Harrington an opportunity to stage a late, late charge for the tour title.
Currently 16th in the Race to Dubai, Harrington – who hasn’t won on tour since the USPGA Championship last year, some 14 months ago, but with three top-10s in his last four outing on the European Tour – has targeted a couple of wins in his final three tournaments. The 38-year-old Dubliner is also playing next week’s WGC-HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai and the season-ending Dubai World Championship next month and still has a chance of challenging for the Harry Vardon trophy.
As of now, only three Irish players – Harrington, McIlroy and Shane Lowry (as the winner of the Irish Open) – are definitely in the field for next week’s HSBC limited-field money fest in Shanghai, but the carrot for those competing in Singapore is that the winner (if not already exempt) will earn the final ticket to the Chinese event.
There are, in fact, nine Irish players competing in Singapore this week where Harrington, who finished second in the tournament last year, is joined by Murphy, Paul McGinley, Graeme McDowell, Damien McGrane, Darren Clarke, Peter Lawrie, Shane Lowry and Michael Hoey.
Ernie Els, the last winner of the Matchplay (in 2007), has bypassed the man-to-man combat in Spain to play in Singapore, where world number two Phil Mickelson is also in the field.
Murphy has been given a lifeline to retain his card with the late sponsor’s invite to Singapore. The Kilkennyman will conclude his season’s work by playing the Australian Masters, only recently added to the European Tour, in a fortnight’s time.
McIlroy, meanwhile, has been drawn in a group with Henrik Stenson, Angel Cabrera and Simon Dyson in the new-look Volvo World Matchplay which has four groups of four players playing round-robin matches. The top player from each group progresses to the semi-finals on Saturday, with the 36-hole final due to finish on Sunday.
Currently third in the Race to Dubai standings, behind Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer, McIlroy – who earned four points from a possible five in the Vivendi Trophy last month – will open his Matchplay campaign against US Masters champion Cabrera on Thursday before facing Stenson, who was on the wrong end of a singles defeat to McIlroy in the Vivendi, and Dyson on Friday.
McIlroy remained on in Portugal last week to practice before driving to the south of Spain for a week that will start a hectic end-of-season run that also takes in next week’s HSBC, the following week’s Hong Kong Open, the Dublin World Championship (the culmination of the European Tour campaign) followed by the World Cup in China (where he links up with McDowell) and, finally, an appearance in Sun City.
Although the winner of the Matchplay will pocket €750,000, only €500,000 of that money will count towards the Race to Dubai standings because of the limited field nature of the championship.
England’s Paul Casey resumes tournament action in Spain after a three month lay-off caused by a torn rib muscle injury.
Casey led the Race to Dubai standings when he suffered the injury at the British Open in Turnberry in July but has since slipped to fourth in the rankings but finally believes he is ready to return to competition. “I’m pretty much recovered from the injury to the intercostals muscles . . . it has been a frustrating time but I feel my patience is being rewarded, having practiced with no ill effects,” said Casey.
Despite his long lay-off, Casey is the top seed for the World Matchplay. The seeding was based on the world rankings and Casey has been drawn in a group alongside Retief Goosen, Anthony Kim and Scott Strange.
Westwood, who currently leads the European Tour order of merit, has been drawn in a group alongside Ross Fisher, Camilo Villegas and Jeev Milkha Singh while Martin Kaymer, who made a stunning return to tournament play in the Castello Masters after a long lay-off due to a foot injury, has been grouped alongside Sergio Garcia, Robert Allenby and Oliver Wilson.
Volvo World Matchplay Draw
(seeded positions in brackets)
Group A: (1) Paul Casey, (8) Retief Goosen, (9) Anthony Kim, (16) Scott Strange.
Group B: (4) Sergio Garcia, (5) Martin Kaymer, (12) Robert Allenby, (13) Oliver Wilson.
Group C: (3) Henrik Stenson, (6) Rory McIlroy, (11) Angel Cabrera, (14) Simon Dyson.
Group D: (2) Lee Westwood, (7) Camilo Villegas, (10) Ross Fisher, (15) Jeev Milkha Singh
DESTINED FOR DUBAI
(Irish players currently occupying places in the Top 60)
Rory McIlroy
Race To Dubai (R2D) position: 3rd
Money: €2,032,695
Tournaments played (on European Tour): 21
Top 10s: 10
Missed cuts: 1
Padraig Harrington
R2D position: 16th
Money: €1,056,462
Tournaments played: 13
Top 10s: 4
Missed cuts: 2
Graeme McDowell
R2D position: 38th
Money: €668,972
Tournaments played: 20
Top 10s: 1
Missed cuts: 3
Gareth Maybin
R2D position: 48th
Money: €578,527
Tournaments played: 26
Top 10s: 6
Missed cuts: 6
Peter Lawrie
R2D position: 49th
Money: €571,829
Tournaments played: 25
Top 10s: 3
Missed cuts: 10
Damien McGrane
R2D position: 53rd
Tournaments played: 30
Top 10s: 3
Missed cuts: 10
Darren Clarke
R2D position: 59th
Tournaments played: 22
Top 10s: 3
Missed cuts: 6
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