Tag Archives: Luke Donald

Open Championship Day One Review

Posted on July 15, 2011 by | Comments Off on Open Championship Day One Review

Tom Lewis, an amateur who had to come through qualifying, is the surprise leader of the British Open Championship after day one, sharing the lead with Danish veteran Thomas Bjorn after the first round.

Bjorn, who went out earlier in the day, shot a five-under 65 and was joined later on by the 20-year-old Lewis.

The pair lead by one from Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez, 2009 US Open champion Lucas Glover and American debutant Webb Simpson.

Northern Ireland’s 2010 US Open champion Graeme McDowell and countryman Darren Clarke (playing in his 20th Open!), England’s Simon Dyson (one of my Outside Bets) and Germany’s world number three Martin Kaymer were in a large group on two under.

World number one Luke Donald had a bad day with the putter, shooting 71, (+1), as did Lee Westwood and US Open champion Rory McIlroy, who got off to a shaky start, dropping two shots in his first three holes, fighting back to play the last 15 in one under.

The other star of the day was Dustin Johnson who shot a hole-in-one on the 16th during a roller-coaster round.

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British Golfers Hold Top Three World Ranking Places

Posted on June 28, 2011 by | Comments Off on British Golfers Hold Top Three World Ranking Places

British golfers currently hold the top three spots in the world ranking, the first time that’s happened in the 25-year history of the ranking.

Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland rose to third on Monday following his triumph at the U.S. Open last week.  Luke Donald remains top, with fellow Englishman Lee Westwood in second place.

“We’ve fed off each other’s success,” McIlroy told Sky Sports. “We saw Lee get to No. 1 in the world and Luke has been very consistent for the last two years. We’re working hard to beat one another and strive to be better than everyone else.”

Having started the year at No. 10, McIlroy overtook PGA champion Martin Kaymer without playing last weekend because of the German’s poor showing at the BMW International Open.

McIlroy,who won the U.S. Open by a record score, is next scheduled to play at the British Open at Royal St. George’s – starting in just over a fortnight.

McIlroy says he wants to keep playing well while Tiger Woods continues his recovery from an injured left leg.

“It’s a good time for me to win things when he’s not playing his best,” McIlroy said. “The first thing for Tiger is to get healthy and see what happens from there. I don’t know if anyone can answer if he’ll get back to where he was 10 years ago, but a lot of people would like to see him back on the course.”

Woods hasn’t won a title since the Australian Masters in November 2009. The 14-time major champion has plunged to No. 17 in the world rankings, his lowest spot since 1997. He is yet to announce whether he will be healthy enough to play in the British Open.

 

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Donald And Westwood Struggle On Day One Of US Open

Posted on June 16, 2011 by | Comments Off on Donald And Westwood Struggle On Day One Of US Open

Luke Donald and Lee Westwood both struggled on the opening day of the 111th US Open at Congressional.

World number one Donald shot a three-over 74, while second-ranked Westwood took 75 to trail clubhouse leader YE Yang by six strokes.

The English duo played with world number three Martin Kaymer, who hit 74.

Defending champion Graeme McDowell made a promising start with a one-under 70.

South Africa’s Open champion Louis Oosthuizen was two under with American Ryan Palmer, while 2009 Open winner Stewart Cink ended one under alongside fellow Americans Davis Love and Chez Reavie and Swedes Johan Edfors and Henrik Stenson.

Three-time major champion Padraig Harrington of Ireland carded a level-par 71.

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Donald Is World Number One After PGA Win

Posted on May 30, 2011 by | Comments Off on Donald Is World Number One After PGA Win

Luke Donald beat Lee Westwood in a play-off to win the PGA Championship at Wentworth and overtake him as the world number one.

Donald won at the first play-off hole when Westwood found the water in front of the 18th green.

Donald hit 70 to Westwood’s 68 to tie on six under, while Englishman Simon Dyson (69) was third at four under.

On climbing one spot to the top of the rankings, England’s Donald said: “Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?”

The American-based golfer added: “It’s something I’ll be very proud of. Obviously, there’s a lot of work still to do and hopefully there’ll be much more to come, but I’ll savour this.

“It’s a lot of responsibility and I’m looking forward to the challenge of being number one and hopefully I can hold onto it for a few more weeks. I know Lee and Martin [Kaymer] will be chasing me hard.

“To come through in these circumstances in one of the biggest tournaments in the world, going head-to-head with Lee is pretty special. It doesn’t get much better.

“To win here with the top three in the world, top six out of seven, all of the Ryder Cuppers, all four major champions, and to beat them in stroke play feels pretty good.”

 

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Donald Sets The Wentworth Pace

Posted on May 27, 2011 by | Comments Off on Donald Sets The Wentworth Pace

Luke Donald set the pace on day one of the  PGA Championship at Wentworth, shooting a wonderful 64 to go into day two leading the pack on -7.

Donald, currently world number two, equalled his best ever round on the European Tour and held firm despite occasional treacherous conditions at the famous Surrey course.

He leads by two shots from 18-year-old Italian Matteo Manassero and Sweden’s Johan Edfors.

Another Swede, Oscar Floren, will resume today on -4 with four holes of his first round still to play, as a 36-minute delay for thunder and lightning during the afternoon left several players with unfinished rounds.

England’s Ian Poulter and Ross McGowan, Welshman Bradley Dredge and Spaniard Jose Manuel Lara were three under.

Europe’s 2010 Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie also lit up the morning with some vintage golf to lead alongside Donald for a spell before slipping back to a two-under 69.

 

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Luke Donald: Titles More Important Than Rankings

Posted on May 25, 2011 by | Comments Off on Luke Donald: Titles More Important Than Rankings

England’s Luke Donald insists that being the number one ranked player in the world would not diminish his appetite for silverware and major championship titles.

Donald is locked in a three-way tussle for the top spot with Lee Westwood, the current incumbent, and Germany’s Martin Kaymer who lies third.

Any one of the three could be the number one player by the end of the PGA Championship at Wentworth on Sunday.

Donald missed out on a chance to overtake Westwood when he lost to Ian Poulter in the final of the World Match Play Championship at Finca Cortesin in Spain last week.

But Donald is adamant that becoming statistically the top golfer in the world is a secondary consideration compared to adding to his collection of eight tournament wins worldwide.

“Being number one is not a focus of mine. Winning tournaments is,” said Donald as he prepared for the European Tour’s flagship event.

“It is a fun topic to debate and there has not been a world ranking for a long time where it has been this close, where there has been some movement in it.

“If everything goes to plan and I get to number one, it doesn’t mean I have made it – it would be an honour and a great achievement but it doesn’t mean I can just stop working, that’s the end of the road and I can put my clubs away.

“There’s plenty more to do in this game, to improve and get better and being number one would be great but it is not everything.”

 

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Poulter Beats Donald In World Match Play Final

Posted on May 23, 2011 by | Comments Off on Poulter Beats Donald In World Match Play Final

Ian Poulter beat Luke Donald 2&1 to win the World Match Play Championship in Spain on Sunday.

Had Donald won, he could have replaced Lee Westwood as world number one, but was unable to find form at the crucial times.

Poulter took the lead at the 14th and held his nerve to become the first player to win both world match play titles on either side of the Atlantic.

It was the 14th trophy of Poulter’s career but the first since the Hong Kong Open in November of last year. He moves up seven places in the world rankings as a result, from 22nd to 15th.

“I thought it would be pretty special to win this,” said Poulter.

“I finally started holing some putts. I’ve been frustrated for a few months and you have to hole putts to win.

“It’s a nice boost. Questions have been asked of me over the last five months.”

Poulter knocked out Westwood on his way to the final, and in a thrilling semi-final, he trailed Nicolas Colsaerts by two with four to play but fought back to take the match to sudden death. He then secured the win when the Belgian missed a par putt on the 19th hole.

 

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Westwood and Donald Record Early Wins

Posted on May 20, 2011 by | Comments Off on Westwood and Donald Record Early Wins

(From www.bbc.co.uk)

Lee Westwood and Luke Donald both recorded comprehensive victories in their opening games at the World Match Play Championship in Casares.

Englishman Westwood beat Denmark’s Anders Hansen 6&5, while countryman Donald defeated American Ryan Moore 4&3 in the first round of group matches.

Northern Ireland duo Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell also won but Paul Casey lost 3&1 to Alvaro Quiros of Spain.

Ian Poulter birdied the last to force a half with Italy’s Francesco Molinari.

McIlroy defeated South African Retief Goosen on the last hole and US Open holder McDowell beat Open champion Louis Oosthuizen 3&1.

Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez trounced Masters champion Charl Schwartzel 6&5, while former world number one Martin Kaymer beat 2009 US PGA champion YE Yang 2&1.

The format sees 24 players divided into eight groups of three based on world rankings, with two points for a win and one for a halved match.

The top two from each group will progress to the last 16 knockout stages.

 

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Donald Looks To Claim Number One Slot Back From Westwood

Posted on May 19, 2011 by | Comments Off on Donald Looks To Claim Number One Slot Back From Westwood

Luke Donald has another opportunity to claim the world number one slot from Lee Westwood at the World Match Play Championship in Marbella, which started earlier on today.

Westwood leads the field for the new format, with 24 players in eight groups of three and the top two progressing to the knock-out phase which will take place across the weekend.

Should Donald win, he will become the first player to win two match play titles on both sides of the Atlantic.

“I enjoy the challenge of one against one over 18 holes,” he said.

Donald beat Martin Kaymer in the final of the WGC-Accenture Match Play in February and has since been in decent form.

The Englishman has made 12 top-10 finishes in his previous 13 tournaments, surging up the world rankings to second behind Ryder Cup team-mate Lee Westwood, who goes into the tournament at the Finca Cortesin course on the back of successive titles in Indonesia and Korea.

The match play event is returning to the European Tour after a 12-month absence.

“I think my records in the Ryder Cup, Walker Cup, the Match Play this year speak for themselves,” said Donald.

Westwood is in fine form himself,  after winning the recent Ballantine’s Championship.

“We play a lot of individual stroke play and match play is a different feel and mindset. It’s certainly nice to break it up.”

World number one Westwood will be up against Dane Anders Hansen and Australian Aaron Baddeley, while Donald faces holder Ross Fisher and Ryan Moore.

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Golf Stars Impressed With 2018 Ryder Cup Venue

Posted on May 18, 2011 by | Comments Off on Golf Stars Impressed With 2018 Ryder Cup Venue

Golf stars Martin Kaymer and Luke Donald are in agreeance that Le Golf National in Paris will make a great Ryder Cup venue. They were speaking as France were awarded the 2018 tournament ahead of Spain, Germany, Portugal and Holland.

“France had a very strong bid and had a lot of support from the French government. I think the most important thing is that they have a fantastic golf course,” said  Kaymer who won the French Open there in 2009, and is currently number 3 in the world rankings.

“That golf course that they have there, I think it’s made for The Ryder Cup. It’s great for the spectators, especially the last five holes. I think France will do a fantastic job, as well.”

Donald, the world number two, said:

“From an outsider’s view, France is a very logical choice. It has a great course already, great accommodations there, the Trianon Palace and the Palace of Versailles. They can do a lot of fun events down in Paris. I think it will be a great event.

“I played The French Open last year. It’s a linksy style course, it’s tough, it’s tight, great finish. There should not be any complaints about the course. I think it will be a fantastic venue.”

Asked if he would like to be there himself, Donald replied: “Yeah, I would love to. It’s 2018, so seven years, I’ll be 40. Hopefully I’m still chugging along. I kind of have that kind of game where hopefully I can keep competing for a long time.”

What are your views? Are you happy that it’s gone to France? Let me know!

 

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