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Post by silap on Jan 4, 2015 15:10:06 GMT -5
Hi everybody and welcome to the first edition of The Dubai Drive. Finally the long wait is over; let’s get this show on the road. The big question is: “Do you have what it takes to make it to Dubai?” For those unfamiliar with the Race to Dubai I would like to point out the great difference in prize money up for grabs each week. It stretches from as little as $700,000 (Madeira) to as much as $10,000,000 (US PGA C’ships). So for those eying the top positions in the order of merit Madeira won’t be as interesting as to those that are fighting and struggling to keep hold of that all important European Tour Card. There are so many battles to be fought and every single one of them will have their place in “The Dubai Drive”. The top of the order of merit, the top 60 who will earn their place in the final tournament and of course the fight for not being in the bottom 20% at the end of the season. Finally at the end of August, probably starting with the ‘D+D Real Czech Masters’, new leader boards will be introduced; a European Tour money list and a world golf ranking points list from which by the 31st of Augustus 2016 a Ryder Cup team will emerge. I have no doubt that we will have a TGC Tours Ryder Cup and The Dubai Drive will help to get the buzz starting and keeping it going. But first things first let’s head on over to the South African Open where my companion awaits you. Brionne how’s the excitement over there in Johannesburg? Well Marco... The excitement and anticipation of the first European tour event of the season here in Johannesburg is reaching fever pitch as golfers from all around the world are reporting to the Eagleton Bend Resort clubhouse before day 1 tomorrow. Eagleton Bend Resort was designed by the legendary Dale Burger, who is no slouch with a golf club in his own right. This course is absolutely stunning and is a great season opener. Kevin O'Neall, a European Tour card holder and participant this week had this to say: "Eagleton Bend is an absolutely breathtaking course, one the most beautiful courses I have played". Let's hope the beauty of the course doesn't put him off his game. Since the Hyundai Tournament of Champions is a PGA invitation only event, it has been correctly predicted by event organizers that many of the PGA players would cross over this week. At the close of registration, no less than 60 PGA card holders had laid down the challenge to the remaining 114 Euro Tour players. With the Euro Tour holding a two-thirds majority in this event, will a PGA player steal the limelight? That may be a big ask, especially since I bumped into Chris Bird on the driving range. Mr Bird, a Euro tour member, was an invite to the TOC but shrewdly decided to play the SA Open instead after placing overall 11th during Q-School. He is going to be exceptionally hard to beat this week. Hoping to set the cat among the pigeons and rain of the Euro parade, will be Scott Wildman and Mark L Touring, both PGA players who narrowly missed an invite to the TOC by just 1 stroke. Jeff Traynor, Euro tour player, also missing an invite by 1 stoke, I'm sure will have something to say about that. Other notable players are Adriaan Maarschalk and Johan Vermuelen both of South Africa. There will be a lot of pride on the line for these two guys. GO SAFFAS! The field is looking diverse, with 19 countries being represented. USA, United Kingdom, Canada and England make up 82% of the field. Player representation by country: USA - 83 England - 28 Canada - 16 United Kingdom - 16 Australia - 6 Ireland - 4 Scotland - 4 Wales - 3 Germany - 2 Italy - 2 South Africa - 2 Argentina - 1 Austria - 1 Japan - 1 New Zealand - 1 Norway - 1 Spain - 1 Sweden - 1 Switzerland - 1 It's all systems go for the first event of the year! Brionne Beaumont-Thomas: Field reporter European Tour and The Dubai Drive Good luck and Drive safe!
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Post by silap on Jan 7, 2015 16:55:07 GMT -5
What an amazing first week we are witnessing on the European Tour. The anticipation was feverish days before the tournament and I would like to think that the first TGC Tours tradition was born right here in South Africa, the moment 62 PGA Tour players decided to book their flight and say 'hello' to their European Tour advisaries. It's time for some figures and stats, with still more than two days of play before the dreaded cut will see about 100 people packing their bags. 1st round played | 150 | 2nd round played | 141 | Waiting to tee off | 25 | Current cut | -16 | Projected cut | -17 | 1st round average | 64.05 | 2nd round average
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Now it has to be said that, before the tournament, there were rumours of 'snitching' that first European Tour trophy and bringing it home to the US of A. This may very well happen as Mark L. Touring is currently in the top spot. But this first tournament tells us that it will not happen without a proper fight. 13 ET players are sitting comfortably in the Top 20, and they won't be looking down. It just shows that TGC Tours provided us with two top tier tours and a bright and promising future ahead for all to enjoy. That's it for now .. looking forward to a nail biting 3rd and 4rd round. How low can you go? Good luck to all, friend or foe Kind regards from Hawaii, Marco
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Post by Brionne on Jan 10, 2015 3:41:22 GMT -5
SA Open: Post Cut Update:
It has certainly been a very interesting tournament so far. We have seen some incredible scores with the likes of Damian Cacceviello shooting a ridiculous 55 (-17) in the first round, only to have what seems like a bit of a meltdown in the second round dropping 9 strokes on his first round score. That being said, a 64 is still a very respectable score for this course. Steve Mendelson was looking good after his first round 65 and was on track to make the cut, but unfortunately had the largest meltdown of the field and dropped a staggering 12 strokes on his first round. That must have been heartbreaking, but Steve, hang in there. It's a long season... There are plenty of cuts to be made and you proved with your first round score you have what it takes to make the cut.
Many golfers went the other route, improving significantly. Three players improved on their first rounds by 8 strokes. Although all three didn't make the cut, they all shot 62s (-10) proving they are indeed capable of challenging the top 20. Many of the field improved with between 5 and 7 strokes,... just squeaking it.
But.... By the end of the 2nd round, it was consistency that held firm and climbed the leaderboard. As predicted, Mark L. Touring (59,59) and Chris Bird (60,59) are leading the field, however, they are not running away with it. An amazing 31 players are only 6 strokes within the lead. The SA Open is still wide open and pressure can do funny things.
Some interesting stats:
170 golfers have completed rounds 1 and 2 (174 original field) 86 golfers made the cut (49.4% of the field of 170 completed) 84 golfers missed the cut (50.6% of the field of 170 completed) Average 1st round score - 64.27 (-7.73 under par) Average 2nd round score - 64.65 (-7.35 under par) Cut line - 16 EUR players making cut 52 (45.6% of the 114 EUR golfers) PGA players making cut 34 (56.7% of the 60 PGA golfers) EUR average after 2 rounds -14.48 PGA average after 2 rounds -16.17
The PGA golfers are putting in the better performances at the moment, but with the final two rounds to come, will the EUR tour put up a fight?
This is going to be a close finish and the EURO players currently competing in the Tournament of Champions had better take notice of the top 30 here. They are hunting down that elite invitation to Dubai like lions stalking gazelle.
Until the final report,
Good luck and Drive safe!
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Post by Brionne on Jan 13, 2015 3:34:01 GMT -5
South African Open:
The question was asked: Could anyone overthrow some of TGC Tours’ elite golfers? Week 1 of the season delivers an emphatic YES! Congratulations to Andi Smith, TGC’s newest elite and the first winner of a European Tour event in the TGC Tours inaugural season. He showed fantastic consistency through rounds 1, 2 and 4, but it was a superb round of 55 (-17) that did all the damage to the rest of the field. This win is an especially good one, since the field was expanded to allow many PGA members to cross over. Sweetening the victory is that Smith is a EURO member and keeps the trophy on our side of the Atlantic. Andi pockets a cool $241,390. The top 10 + ties showed that EURO members are no push-overs, only allowing 2 PGA players into the mix. The top 6 + ties were all EURO members. Very well done guys. Great sportsmanship was shown in the press tent with great comments and interviews. If you haven’t read them, go and have a gander… They are quite entertaining. “It has to be the Hole in One on hole 2, was in complete shock” – Andi Smith “ I was ready. I was ready. How.. what... I was ready. What?” – Nic Zaiser Comment of the tournament: “My caddy went AWOL. But he left the putter at least. I battled 0 mph winds and pretty soft greens” – Steve McFlinn Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Chamionship
On to week 2 we march…. Straight into the dessert! Abu Dhabi is being hosted by Jebel Ali Emirates golf course designed by Chris Lane. This course is very hard to master with its undulated fairways so beware your approach shots and pay attention to your course management. Attack the pin at your peril! The purse is $2,700,000 and will be hotly contested with the return of the participants from the HTOC in Hawaii, they will have a big task to catch up with last week’s top performers. This week we only have 3 crossover players from the PGA. Players looking to threaten this week will be Germany’s Benjamin Kleinknecht and Mike Ballon. Included in the mix will be Andi Smith and all the returning HTOC players. Other notables are Nathan Allen and Ewan Baird.. Both recent qualifiers fresh out of Q-School playing under the season's first exemptions. Good luck and Drive safe!
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Post by silap on Jan 14, 2015 16:28:48 GMT -5
South African Open - Recap:The South African Open at Eagleton Bend Resort has come to an end; time to look back one last time. From the moment TGC Tours started some contestants were afraid that they would never be able to compete. No surviving cuts, no money to be earned and no World Ranking points to collect. After week 1 these comments already seem unfounded. Let’s take American Nicholas Saban as an example. Nicholas entered the European Tour as a Nr.210 Q-school graduate (-3). A few weeks later he receives a check worth $ 48,278 as he finishes in a well-earned 6th place.Fellow-countryman Bill Wenzel; ended Q-school at level par and this week he finishes inside the top 10. How brilliant is that! Order of Merit:Andi Smith is our very first tournament winner and if we take time zones into account, he’s TGC Tour’s first winner ever averaging -13, five strokes better than the tournament average of 64,18. With this win Andi is fully exempt for every regular European Tour event in 2016 and 2017. Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship:Now the Jebel Ali Emirates course has a totally different story to tell. Almost 90 players have started their Desert Swing campaign so far and it looks like the cut line will be drawn at possibly -6. So a stunning 10 strokes off last week’s cut line. Japanese Robert Karlsson is looking comfortable at -15 after missing the cut by 5 strokes in Johannesburg. Is this another great story in the making? Good luck out there and enjoy!
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Post by silap on Jan 20, 2015 18:06:50 GMT -5
Veni Vidi Vici "I came; I saw; I conquered"Famous words once used by Julius Caesar after achieving a swift victory in the battle of Zela .. and now these words belong to the new emperor Scott Doyley. Scott entered the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship with victory in mind and that's exactly what he got. Yeah he did come, he did see and he did conquer .. but what should scare you the most is .. "He friggin' STAYED!!". Hehe .. welcome to the European Tour Scott and congrats! Jebel Ali Emirates Golf Club most definitely showed it's teeth with rounds averaging 68.18 over the entire tournament and not one sub 60 round was recorded. Scott and Brionne both shot 60 in the first round and shared the clubhouse lead after round 1. For Craig Archer things were not looking good after round 1 (103rd place) but a 30 foot putt on the 18th was a sign for better things to come. In round two Craig scored a rare eagle 2 on the backnine and through the whole round he did what he had to do. Fairway's, greens and holing putts led to a steady 61 and at -8 he was well inside cut line. Rounds of 65 and 68 eventually led to a finish in 31st place and $16,011 in prize money. With that Craig's stands just outside the top 10 in the Race to Dubai with $85,746 in total money earned so far.
That's a wrap for week 2 and now over to Brionne for this weeks ... Commercial Bank Qatar MastersStaying in the desert for week 3 and moving across the bay to Qatar (the world's wealthiest country per capita), we take on the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters. This event will be hosted by the fantastic Powderfinger Golf Course, designed by Rich Banker. This course has earned the TGC Tours 5 star badge of approval and boasts a purse of $2,500,000. This will also be the first event we have different pin positions and green speeds. Rounds 3 and 4 will prove very interesting. The field consists of 121 EUR players and 4 crossover players from the PGA this week, along with new edition to the EUR tour, Nathan Allen. Adding to the field are 10 players using sponsored exemptions vying to make the cut and earn promotion. Scott 'The Machine' Doyley, winner at Abu Dhabi, is in the field and a clear threat to take out the title. Making the cut here is going to be extremely difficult due to the entire field being able to post very low scores. There may even be a tie and playoff for the win. Will we see our first repeat winner of the season? It's very possible Good luck and Drive safe, Brionne Marco
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Post by Brionne on Jan 28, 2015 11:18:38 GMT -5
A look back at the Qatar Masters:The Commercial Bank Qatar Masters has brought us our first repeat winner. A very well done to Scott 'The Machine' Doyley on a fantastic win and going back to back in weeks 2 and 3. Scott was sitting at T5 after round 2 and 4 strokes behind the leaders Nathan Allen and James Carlson, but it was the change in pin locations and tee positions that unraveled the top of the leaderboard. The Machine made up the 4 strokes and then some, eventually posting a -50 for the win. Scott increases his lead on the money list substantially with this win. Will he be able to make the top 10 on both the PGA and Euro tours? It looks very likely. Rumor has it Mr Doyley will be returning home this week. It was great having you with us. The change in pin locations and tee positions this week were certainly interesting. There were a few drastic drops from the top of the leaderboard, as well as some major jumps. 5 players jumped 23 places or higher, with Ian Sweeney (UK) with the best improvement of 28 places while on the other end of the spectrum, 4 players dropped by 30 places or more. Of the players that made the cut, Rounds 1 and 2 together averaged -22, while Rounds 3 and 4 averaged -9. There was definitely far more movement up and down the leaderboard as a result and the course proved to be far more challenging. We had a number of players fresh from Q-School and the Web.com tour playing under exemptions this week, with no less than 8 making the cut and earning their tour cards. Congratulations guys, and welcome to the tour. Let's take a look at a few stats:127 golfers completed rounds 1 and 2 (135 original field) 70 golfers made the cut (55.1% of the field of 127 completed) 57 golfers missed the cut (44.9% of the field of 127 completed) Average round scores: - Round 1 62.35 (-8.65) - Round 2 62.00 (-9.00) - Round 3 66.57 (-4.43) - Round 4 66.59 (-4.41) Lowest rounds: - Round 1 55 (Nathan Allen ENG) - Round 2 53 (James Carlson USA) - Round 3 59 (Brionne B-Thomas RSA) - Round 4 58 (Scott Doyley CAN) EUR players 121 (58 made the cut) 47.9% PGA players 4 (all 4 made the cut) 100% Sponsor players 10 (8 made the cut) 80% Top 10 - 1 PGA, 1 SPR, 9EUR Players on a cut streak: - 3 cut streak 21 - 2 cut streak 23 Countries represented by players in full field: 47 USA 35 England 10 Scotland 9 United Kingdom 6 Australia, Canada 4 Wales 3 South Africa 2 Germany, Italy 1 Argentina, Czech Rep, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, N Ireland, Norway, Spain Highlight reel of the tournament: Tim Owens with two (yes two) aces in 1 Round Comments of the tournament: - 'I'm not bad, but did you see that picture of Job Fickett in the pics thread? Holy $%@#!!! What a stud. Looked like the second coming of Sonny Crockett' - Tom Morgan - 'Yeah thinking about getting a new driver and also think ill throw Mr Acid a few notes to get himself some underwear for the next event' - Ewan Baird That's all for now. Good luck and drive safe! Next up, we have the Omega Dubai Desert Classic with Marco.
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Post by silap on Jan 28, 2015 14:57:01 GMT -5
Thank you Brionne .. and welcome all to the preview of this week’s Dubai Desert Classic
The European Tour’s lack of desert courses ended back in 1989 as the Tour made its first stop at Emirates GC in Dubai. From 1992 onwards the Dubai Desert Classic has been part of the European Tour ever since. The tournament has seen great winners over the years, such as Seve Ballesteros (’92), Fred Couples (’95), Tiger Woods (’06 and ’08). In January 2009 Rory McIlroy won his first ever European Tour event right here at the Emirates GC. So needless to say .. if you want a stellar career @ TGC Tours, a win here would be a great way to start If you look at TPC Scarpacci West and compare it with Emirates GC, three keywords come to mind: ‘birdies’, ‘Birdies’ and ‘BIRDIES’. That’s right folks.. dig deep and go low, very low if you want to make any kind of an impression here. 35 sub-60 rounds have been carded already.. don't hold back Time to have a first look at the leaderboard:Ewan Baird missed the cut in Abu Dhabi, got his first pay check in Qatar and the Scotsman is looking good now for a career changing moment in 1st place. Don’t look too surprised though as fellow countryman Stephen Gallacher won the real life event the last couple of years. Steady Irishman Tony McGettigan is in hot pursuit. After a T24, T12 and T10 in the first three weeks of the tour there’s no question if Tony is going to win a tournament. The question is .. will it be this one? The same goes for Englishman Chris Bird; he has two Top 10’s under his belt already .. could this be the one Chris was aiming for all along? Cut line prediction:95 out of 132 players got out there already and shot 62.66 in average. 87 Players finished their 2nd round with the average showing a small decline (63.16) due to tension of making this week’s cut. For now players on -17 look safe, but I wouldn’t bet my right hand on it. Or the left one for that matter. Good luck out there .. and remember go low!
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Post by Brionne on Feb 5, 2015 8:45:28 GMT -5
Week 4 Wrap-up: Omega Dubai Desert ClassicWeek 4 ushers in our third winner of the season. A very well done to Chris Bird, taking out the Omega Dubai Desert Classic and pocketing $477,000, propelling him to 2nd place on the Euro Tour money list. After Round 2, Ewan Baird was leading by 1 stroke, closely followed by Tony McGettigan, with Chris Bird sitting in 3rd place waiting to pounce on any mistakes made by the leaders. Cue the slips… Ewan had a mediocre 3rd round, shooting 62 to Bird's brilliant 56, and dropping 6 strokes and losing the lead. Bird's final round 60, was just enough to hold off the fight back from Ewan an Dan Turner, who was quietly sitting in 6th place after round 2. Chris must have been extremely nervous watching the leaderboard flesh out in the closing hours of the tournament. Well done Chris! It was just a matter of time before you took a win. I'm sure it won't be your last. Further down the leaderboard, we saw some fantastic performances from a few players, snapping their 3 week 'bogey cut streaks'. Well done to Andy Hasty (ENG), Bryan Buckner (USA), Craig Pawley (ENG), Kevin O'Neall (USA), Nat Watt (ENG), Nicholos Ross (USA) and Randy Elkins (USA) for snapping their streak and making the cut for first time this season. May this be the first of many. This brings the percentage of players making the cut in a Euro event at least once (including crossovers) to 94.14% Congratulations to the 8 players making the cut with exemptions this week. The Euro tour is expanding nicely and becoming far more competitive, and will continue to do so for weeks to come. Weekend Stats:
118 golfers completed rounds 1 and 2 (132 starting field) 77 golfers made the cut (65.3% of the field of 118 completed) 41 golfers missed the cut(34.7% of the field of 118 completed) EUR players 115 (66 made the cut) 57.4% PGA players 6 (3 made the cut) 50% Sponsor players 11 (8 made the cut) 72.7% Tournament round average: 63.08 (-8.92) Average round scores (Cut only): - Round 1 61.49 (-10.51) - Round 2 61.81 (-10.19) - Round 3 62.69 (-9.31) - Round 4 62.08 (-9.92) Lowest rounds: - Round 1 56 Ewan Baird (SCO) - Round 2 56 Brionne B-Thomas (RSA), Tony McGettigan (IRE) - Round 3 53 James Carlson (USA) - Round 4 57 Ewan Baird (SCO), Dan Turner (USA), Joe Greenhalgh (ENG) Top 10 - All Euro players Players on a cut streak: - 4 cut streak 16 - 3 cut streak 13 - 2 cut streak 25 Wins by continent: 2 North America 2 Europe World Golf Ranking: 8 Euro players in the top 20 17 Euro players in the top 50 38 Euro players in the top 100 Highlight reel of the tournament: James Carlson's (USA) entire round 3 with an amazing 53 (-19) Comment of the tournament: What is your goal for the final 2 rounds? Answered with: 'Winning obviously' - Dan Turner Week 5: Maybank Malaysian OpenSo on to week 5 we role, into the Maybank Malaysian Open hosted by Jeremy Blaylock's Kobeoshi Royal, winding it's way around Kobeoshi Lake. This course boasts fast green speeds, compensated by softer landings, making approach play as important as ever. The Maybank offers the highest purse to date ($3,000,000) on the Euro tour and a good opportunity to get yourself within the top 30 of the Euro money list and earn an invitation to the WGC - Cadillac Championship in a months time. The deadline for round 2 is closing fast, and at the top of the leaderboard we find Tony McGettigan with a commanding 5 stroke lead. Adam Birch is yet to post his rounds, but is a favorite this weekend to catch Tony. But as we saw last week, leads can be lost. Especially when you have the likes of James Gemmil, Daniel Waring and Jeremy Blaylock in the field, two of which are rank in the top 10 WGR and another in the top 20. Good luck, Drive Safe and may your balls land softly!
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Post by silap on Feb 11, 2015 15:51:26 GMT -5
Maybank Malaysian Open - recapWith a purse of $ 3,000,000 in total the Maybank Malaysian Open was THE big event on the European Tour calendar for the first three months of the season. Add the beauty of Kobeoshi Royal to the equation and unsuprisingly a stellar field showed up on the first tee to make their mark in TGC Tours world of golf. With two sub-60 rounds at the start of the tournament Tony McGettigan seemed to be the man with the plan, but 'moving day' took Tony by surprise ultimately missing a second top 10 finish by one shot. After two top fives and a runner-up finish Brionne Beaumont-Thomas started february off brilliantly with his first win ever adding $ 540,000 to the order of merit and replacing Scott Doyley as the money leader in the Race to Dubai. Let's see how he feels about that.. : Brionne, thanks for joining us. You just won your first tournament, did you see it coming?- I am really surprised to come away with the win this week. I didn't rate my chances with Jeremy Blaylock, James Gemmill and Daniel Waring in the field, and especially with Tony McGettigan enjoying a very comfortable 5 stroke lead after the second round.
Yes .. the Irishman looked comfortable before the weekend, your thoughts on that?- I don't know what happened to Tony in round 3, but he gave the entire field a chance to come back
After round 3 you must have fancied your chances out there..- After taking the lead in round 3 with an inspired 14 under, and knew going into the final round I only needed a possible 9 or 10 under to win the event. With Tom Humphries and Alan Browne adding to the pressure, my nerves got the better of me on the front 9, and I was falling to pieces, but I pulled myself together on the back 9 to post a 61 and take my first career win.
Enjoy this special moment Brionne .. and welcome to winner's circle!Another standout this week was American John McCluskey. After missing the cut in the first couple of events John now has a string of three cut's made and is improving himself every week. A 3rd round of 56 equaled the course record set a day before. And after finishing inside the Top 10 this week, John now has a serious chance of qualifying for the first World Golf Championship as he currently sits in the all important 30th position of the Orde of Merit. Sam Spomer (USA) managed to achieve his first ever cut in five tries. Way to go Sam .. Week 5 Stat report116 golfers completed rounds 1 and 2 (134 starting field) 75 golfers made the cut (64.7% of the field of 116 completed) 41 golfers missed the cut(35.3% of the field of 116 completed) EUR players 119 (67 made the cut) 56.3% PGA players 6 (5 made the cut) 83.3% Sponsor players 9 (3 made the cut) 33.3% Tournament round average: 64.84 (-7.16)Average round scores (Cut only): - Round 1 63.32 (-8.68) - Round 2 62.89 (-9.11) - Round 3 64.11 (-7.89) - Round 4 64.47 (-7.53) Lowest rounds:- Round 1 58 Jeremy Blaylock (USA), Tony McGettigan (IRE) - Round 2 56 Tony McGettigan (IRE) - Round 3 56 John McCluskey (USA) - Round 4 59 James Gemmill (SCO) Top 10 + ties - EUR 9, PGA 3 Players on a cut streak:- 5 cut streak 15 - 4 cut streak 7 - 3 cut streak 15 - 2 cut streak 27 94.9% of all players participating in at least 2 events and completing Rounds 1 and 2 have made the cut at least once Wins by continent:2 North America 2 Europe 1 Africa Wins by country:2 Canada 2 England 1 South Africa Wins by league:EUR 3 PGA 2 World Golf Ranking:2 Euro players in the top 10 7 Euro players in the top 20 17 Euro players in the top 50 38 Euro players in the top 100 Most wins: 2 - Scott Doyley (CAN) Most top 5s: 4 - Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA) Most top 10s: 2 - Joe Greenhalgh (GBR) Most top 20s: 3 - Nathan Allan (ENG), Tony McGettigan (IRE) Locker room fun:'Well that lead i was talkin about lasted 12 minutes' - Ken Wenzel When asked to make a cut prediction: Answered with: 'Um, one shot more than my two round score' - Dave Mills When asked 'tied for 2nd Mr Blaylock, how do you feel?' Answered with: 'Its not first!, how the hell can you lose on your home-court? I am 0-1 on my home-court!!!! how do you think I feel!!' [Followed by - Mr. Blaylock punches reporter out, and then gets arrested and taken away]. - Jeremy Blaylock Preview Thailand Classic
If it weren't for all the darn musquitos buzzing around your head while you're scratching your head and thinking your way out of a deep pot bunker, you might think you are at St. Andrews - Scotland. It's Links time right here in Thailand and this beautiful Dario Logan creation has taken it's toll on some of the big players already. With 25 players yet to sign a scorecard PGA Tour player Clint Carlson looks comfortable with two sub-60 rounds under his belt. European Tour star Bradley Garcia isn't far of the pace though and he will fancy his chances going into the weekend. It's hard to tell where the cut line will end up. Players at -6 look good at the moment but on this tricky course you never know. If the wind picks up -6 should do the trick. Averages so far: Round 1 - 66,30 Round 2 - 65,33 Good luck out there and stay out of those deeeep pot bunkers Marco
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Post by silap on Feb 17, 2015 16:35:32 GMT -5
Hidden Links Golf Club gave the European Tour it's long awaited challenge. Of the 102 players that did have a go this week only 8 managed to average 8 under par or better per round over the entire tournament. In the end Englands Bradley Garcia saw off the competition with a 5 stroke victory over PGA Tour regular Clint Carlson. The Canadian propelled himself right back into the Top 30 of the World Rankings with this stellar performance. Now let's hear from this weeks winner. Bradley thanks for joining us.. the long wait is over, your first reaction please.- At last I was able to get over the finish line and take my first European Tour win, The Thailand Classic.
You seemed quite at home on this links course so far from home- When I saw that this course was going to be used I couldn't sign up quick enough. It is a course that I really like, it's difficult but you don't need to play for birdie on every hole. minimizing mistakes is key to keeping your score ticking along around here.
After round 1 you were in 6th place, did that worry you at all?- After starting with an inauspicious 62 which included three bogies, I thought that could seriously hurt my chances of being successful, when I looked at the leaderboard I was only a few shots back so it wasn't as bad as I had feared. I know the course quite well so I stayed calm, knowing that if I cut out the mistakes I could go low in the following rounds and move up the leaderboard. To win by five strokes in the end was very surprising.
So as long as you keep your focus you're likely to some more damage in the near future..- After my first round I played solid golf for the remaining three rounds, especially on the front nine, then consolidated on the back nine. Hopefully this can be the first of many? Although with the strength of play worldwide that will be so difficult.
The Hero Indian Open is next .. will we see back-to-back wins from you? Are you going to a pull off a 'Doyley'?- This will be a completely different tournament, one where you will need to birdie almost every hole to stand a chance of winning. This isn't the type of tournament I would normally earmark as a potential win as it will be a birdie fest, but I have had success around here on the LGGT tour so who knows?
- With all the unknown exempt players coming in, it could be very interesting to see how those guys get on, there might be a new "Scott Doyley" amongst them.
Thanks for your time Bradley and best of luck to you!
When the going get's tough the tough get going! After missing five consecutive cuts, Colin E. Watt also from England managed to get his first pay check. Give em wind and give em tall grass and the English will prevail! Good job Colin!
Well that's a wrap from Thailand .. now over to Brionne in India for this weeks preview, followed by the full European Tour Stat Report. Brionne are you there mate?
Hero Indian Open - New Delhi
Pack your sandals and sitars this week coz we're off to New Delhi, India for the Hero Indian Open hosted by Red Diamond G&C designed by Dan Hebert. This is Dan's third course to be hosting a TGCtours event, including Q-School 2nd round - Whispering river and Web.com week 4 - Shivering Pines.
Our seventh stop of the season is sure to be extremely competitive despite having one of the smaller purses of $1,500,000 on tour. In fact, this will be one of the most competitive stops on the calendar to date, since we have 35 entrants playing with sponsor exemptions all coming from a mix of Q-school qualifiers and the best of the Web.com tour. Euro players beware! These guys are here to play and are hungry for the chance to earn their Euro tour cards. Making the cut this week will not be a cake walk.
The Red Diamond is an interesting course and very well designed. The gentle breaks on the greens can often be deceptive along with some extremely dangerous hazards, requiring approach shots to be deadly. The most deceptive characteristic of this course.. The Wind!.. Higher winds will aid you more and can improve your rounds by a stroke or two than playing in calm conditions. You will be faced with a few decisions like.. Should I try and clear that bunker, or rivine? Or maybe just be safe and lay up? The wind and bravery will be the two deciding factors in how low your scores will be. Attacking the pins will be rewarding, but making an error in judgement will see you falling behind the pack in a flash.
So who do we expect to see at the top of the leaderboard this week? Dubai Drive's very own Marco Raterink (NED), coming off another top 5 finish last week, is sure to be a contender. Also last week's winner Bradley Garcia (ENG) is not just going to lay down and give it away. Can he make it two in a row? Andi Smith (ENG), winner of the SA Open, and Alan McSpadyen (SCO) are both having a return to form and looking dangerous. Chris Bird (ENG), winner of the Omega Dubai, is back after his week long vacation and will definitely be chasing his second win of the season. Gary Best (ENG) has been threatening to crack the top 10 all season, along with Tom Morgan (USA) threatening to break into the top 5. Will this be the tourney for them?
Good luck, drive safe and may your balls land softly.
Stats
102 golfers completed rounds 1 and 2 (117 starting field) 71 golfers made the cut (69.6% of the field of 102 completed) 31 golfers missed the cut(30.4% of the field of 102 completed)
EUR players 107 (63 made the cut) 58.9% PGA players 3 (3 made the cut) 100% Sponsor players 7 (5 made the cut) 71.4%
Tournament round average: 65.71 (-4.29)
Average round scores (Cut only): - Round 1 64.99 (-5.01) - Round 2 63.73 (-5.27) - Round 3 64.94 (-5.06) - Round 4 65.18 (-4.82)
Lowest rounds: - Round 1 58 James Carlson (USA) - Round 2 57 Mark Davies (WAL) - Round 3 58 Andi Smith (ENG) - Round 4 58 Bradley Garcia (ENG), Marco Raterink (NED)
Top 10 + ties - EUR 10, PGA 1
Players on a cut streak: - 6 cut streak 6 - 5 cut streak 10 - 4 cut streak 14 - 3 cut streak 19
93.84% - 183 out of 195 players participating in at least 3 events and completing Rounds 1 and 2 have made the cut at least once
Wins by continent: 3 Europe 2 North America 1 Africa
Wins by country: 3 England 2 Canada 1 South Africa
Wins by league: EUR 4 PGA 2
Wins by platform: PC 3 PS4 3 XB1 0
World Golf Ranking: 3 Euro players in the top 10 ▲1 6 Euro players in the top 20 ▼1 19 Euro players in the top 50 ▲2 41 Euro players in the top 100 ▲3
Most wins: 2 - Scott Doyley (CAN) Most top 5s: 4 - Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA) Most top 10s: 2 - Joe Greenhalgh (GBR) Most top 20s: 4 - Nathan Allan (ENG)
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Post by silap on Feb 25, 2015 15:10:11 GMT -5
In week 7 The European Tour found itself deep in the sand once again. This time Red Diamond G&C was the center of our attention and man did we score well this time. Not so long ago 10 players shot -50 or less in the Omega Dubai Desert Classic where Chris Bird was victorious shooting a tremendous -57. But records are meant to be broken and that’s exactly what happened here at the Hero Indian Open. A whopping number of 14 players joined this week’s minus-50-club, including Chris (-55) and Canadian crossover Steve Lillico (-56), but they all found themselves falling short of the minus-60-man Brionne Beaumont-Thomas.. snatching his 2nd win in three weeks’ time. Brionne thanks for joining us once again A hop-skip and a jump Sprinkbok style; what a performance .. you’re first thoughts please- I was looking forward to Red Diamond this week. I seem to perform extremely well in the desert. I felt confident I could get a top 10 and possibly challenge for the win.
When did you first started realizing you could actually pull it of .. again?- My confidence took a dip after the first round though, after seeing what the leaders had posted. After moving up from 12th to 3rd in the second round, I was just 2 behind the leaders and realized the win is still on.
You managed to keep the pace in the weekend, but still the pressure never let off?- Round 3 was another excellent round for me, but as good as it was, Argentine Damian Caccaviello went one better. This, and the fact that we now had a 4 way tie for first, stirred up the butterflies again.
So as long as you keep your focus you're likely to some more damage in the near future..- After my first round I played solid golf for the remaining three rounds, especially on the front nine, then consolidated on the back nine. Hopefully this can be the first of many? Although with the strength of play worldwide that will be so difficult.
And then .. magic happened- Round 4 was a career best for me, posting a 54. Knowing that anyone sharing the lead after round 3 could post a 55 or less in the final round, made this tournament the most nerve wracking to date.
After 6 weeks of Asia the tour turns home, well your home that is .. fancy being a home crowd favourite?
- Going into the Joburg countryside next week is going to be interesting. I'm feeling the pressure of performing in my homeland, especially at lion's gate. Though I'm quietly confident I could challenge for the win, it's not the desert and I predict we may see a new winner this week.
Well see you there than and good luck to you!
Now as both top tours are getting crowdier and the player's standard improve every week it's great to see some of us breaking a four week missed cut streak. This is exactly what Michael Shoemaker (USA) and Rob Davey (WAL) did in India .. so great performance guys; keep it up.
Joburg Open preview by Brionne Egoli (Place of Gold), otherwise known as Johannesburg, South Africa, is the location for week 8 and the home of braais and biltong. Hosted by Lion's Gate Country Club, designed by Job Fickett, the Joburg Open is nestled in the open country side just outside the city limits, featuring multiple pin placements and tee positions for all four rounds for the first time this season. Generous greens and gentle slopes welcome pin attacks under the baking African sun and will provide plenty birdie opportunities. Long irons are the order of the day for most holes, unless you're brave enough to drive the ravines.
With a starting field of 179 entrants waiting to tee off, this is sure to be another tightly contested title, possibly revealing a 6th different winner for the season. Players to look out for would be the likes of Brian Lemons (USA), winner of two Web.com events, and Wendy Airey (ENG), who is due for a good result. Brendan Buckley (IRE) has been consistent all season and will be looking for another solid performance. Big guns joining from the PGA and looking to shoot well would be Dale Burger (USA), Daniel Waring (ENG) and Adam Birch (CAN). Adding to the field are plenty challengers taking the leap from Web.com.
Who's flat blade will tame the lion?
Good luck, drive safe and may your balls land softly
Stats
152 golfers completed the tournament (167 starting field) 72 golfers made the cut (47.4% of the field of 152 completed) 80 golfers missed the cut (52.6% of the field of 152 completed)
EUR players 123 (58 made the cut) 47.2% PGA players 9 (4 made the cut) 44.4% Sponsor players 35 (10 made the cut) 28.6%
Tournament round average: 61.32 (-9.68)
Average round scores (Cut only): - Round 1 59.88 (-11.12) - Round 2 59.32 (-11.68) - Round 3 60.63 (-10.37) - Round 4 59.89 (-11.11)
Lowest rounds: - Round 1 55 Alan McSpadyen (SCO), Tom Humphries (GBR), Andi Smith (ENG), Ian Sweeney (GBR), Michael Renkes (GER), Peter Mckay (USA) - Round 2 55 Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA), Nathan Allen (ENG) - Round 3 54 Steve Lillico (CAN) - Round 4 54 Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA), Nathan Allen (ENG)
Top 10 + ties - EUR 11, PGA 1
Players on a cut streak: - 7 cut streak 5 - 6 cut streak 10 - 5 cut streak 11 - 4 cut streak 12 - 3 cut streak 9
94.31% - 199 out of 211 players participating in at least 3 events and completing Rounds 1 and 2 have made the cut at least once
Wins by continent: 3 Europe 2 North America 2 Africa
Wins by country: 3 England 2 Canada 2 South Africa
Wins by league: EUR 5 PGA 2
Wins by platform: PC 4 PS4 3 XB1 0
World Golf Ranking: 2 Euro players in the top 10 ▼1 7 Euro players in the top 20 ▲1 19 Euro players in the top 50 ~ 0 41 Euro players in the top 100 ▼1
Most wins: 2 - Scott Doyley (CAN), Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA) Most top 5s: 5 - Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA) Most top 10s: 2 - Joe Greenhalgh (GBR), Tom Morgan (USA), Chris Bird (ENG) Most top 20s: 4 - Nathan Allan (ENG)
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Post by Brionne on Mar 5, 2015 10:01:28 GMT -5
Joburg Open at Lion's GateWho had the biggest roar of them all? Tom Morgan (USA). That's who. Tom has claimed his first win of the season, and a purse of $270,000 by taming the lion in Johannesburg, South Africa this weekend. After round 2, Tom was holding a 2 stroke lead and started showing his class after sharing the lead with 3 others in round 1, and despite charges from Ricky Banville (CAN) and Mike Shoemaker (USA) in round 3, it was not enough to stop Tom from enjoying a very comfortable 4 stroke lead going into the final round. Round 4 was merely a formality for Tom as he managed to stay ahead of Bradley Garcia (ENG), who posted an amazing 54 (-18) for the final round. Steve McFlinn (NZL) showed some great resolve to snap a 6 week bad luck streak making the cut this week and posting a fantastic 59 (-13) in the final round This win sees Tom climb 20 places to number 7 in the European order of merit, along with claiming the record for the lowest 54 holes in a tournament. Well done Tom! May this be the first of many. Other news around TGCtours is the new and improved World Golf Rankings. Tim and the TGCtours staff have a done an amazing job with this so be sure to check it out at TGCTours World Golf Rankings
Week 8 Stats
157 golfers completed the tournament (179 starting field) 84 golfers made the cut (53.5% of the field of 157 completed) 73 golfers missed the cut (46.5% of the field of 157 completed) EUR players 129 (62 made the cut) 48.1% PGA players 11 (10 made the cut) 90.9% Sponsor players 39 (12 made the cut) 30.8% Tournament round average: 62.67 (-9.33) Average round scores (Cut only):
- Round 1 60.29 (-11.71) - Round 2 61.25 (-10.75) - Round 3 62.35 (-9.65) - Round 4 62.56 (-9.44) Lowest rounds: - Round 1 55 Tom Morgan (USA), Ron Duncan (CAN), Alan Browne (NIR), Matthew Lazell (ENG) - Round 2 55 Mike Shoemaker (USA) - Round 3 56 Tom Morgan (USA), Ricky Banville (CAN), Mike Shoemaker (USA) - Round 4 54 Bradley Garcia (ENG) Top 10 + ties - EUR 11, PGA 1 Players on a cut streak:- 8 cut streak 5 - 7 cut streak 9 - 6 cut streak 9 - 5 cut streak 10 - 4 cut streak 7 Wins by continent:
3 Europe, North America 2 Africa Wins by country:
3 England 2 Canada, South Africa 1 USA Wins by league:
EUR 6 PGA 2 Wins by platform:
PC 5 PS4 3 XB1 0 World Golf Ranking:
2 Euro players in the top 10 ~ 9 Euro players in the top 20 ▲2
27 Euro players in the top 50 ▲8
45 Euro players in the top 100 ▲5
Most wins: 2 - Scott Doyley (CAN), Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA) Most top 5s: 6 - Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA) Most top 10s: 2 - Joe Greenhalgh (GBR), Tom Morgan (USA), Chris Bird (ENG), James Carlson (USA) Most top 20s: 4 - Nathan Allan (ENG) * Top finishing positions isolated to finishing bracket: * Top 5 bracket: positions 1 - 5 * Top 10 bracket: postions 6 - 10 * Top 20 bracket: positions 11 - 20 Previews with Marco
Africa Open
With the big guns showing off their skills across the pond, this week’s Africa Open presents an excellent opportunity for the non-qualifiers to make their mark on the European Tour and give their campaign a boost. Beautiful Zithobeni Golf Club (An Adriaan Maarschalk production) will provide a challenge to all those contending (95 in total) and with a good result here .. who knows next month’s Masters could be very much within your reach. Halfway through the tournament Robert Karlsson (JPN) is looking comfortable, currently chased by Colin Greenshields (AUS), Fabrizio Donadoni (ITA) and James Moon (USA) in a three-way tie in second place. WGC – Cadillac Championship
Trump National Doral is the centre of TGC Tours this week where “The Euros” are trying to make an good impression on the global stage. With great pride I can mention the fact that out of the top 19, so far eleven players are European Tour based. So well done guys. Still early days though, the world number 1 still has to tee up and the same goes for world number 6 James Gemmill. If Trump National has shown us one thing, it is the fact that being a world top 20 player doesn’t mean much if you don’t bring you A-game. The average world ranking of the current T-19 is 55. And really, this is a good thing .. real good. Good luck, drive safe and may your balls land softly
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Post by Brionne on Mar 13, 2015 9:01:56 GMT -5
Africa OpenThis week sees another brand new winner for the season. Congratulations to Andrew Johnson (USA) for taking out his first win at the Africa Open. Andrew pockets $270,000 and moves 199 places up the Euro order of merit to secure 16th position. Johnson led from round 1 and never let go, staying on top of the leaderboard through every round and fighting off the field to finish ahead of the pack by 2 strokes. Despite some inspired rounds of 57 from Robert Karlson (JPN) and Matt Seymour (USA) in rounds 2 and 3 respectively, no one could find an answer for the damage done by Johnson's two 58s in rounds 1 and 2. This is the first time a player has led from start to finish on the Euro tour. Glenn True (USA) finally had a break through snapping an 8 week bogey streak and making the cut for the first time. The same is true for Bill Doran (USA), snapping a 6 week bogey streak, as well as Dan Toon (USA) and John Gray (USA), both snapping 5 week bogey streaks. Congrats guys and keep it up. WGC - Cadillac ChampionshipIn case you haven't heard yet. Our very own Tom Humphries cruised to a spectacular victory across the pond at the WGC Cadillac Championship. Tom is the tour's first Euro winner on PGA soil and brings back this gorgeous trophy Equally as pleasing was seeing 9 Euro players in the top 20 and 4 in the top 10 in the heavily talented field of the top 100. Great representation guys! Week 9 Stats82 golfers completed the tournament (96 starting field) 69 golfers made the cut (84.1% of the field of 96 completed) 13 golfers missed the cut (15.9% of the field of 96 completed) EUR players 86 (63 made the cut) 73.3% PGA players 7 (5 made the cut) 71.4% Sponsor players 3 (1 made the cut) 33.3% Tournament round average: 63.92 (-8.08) Average round scores (Cut only):
- Round 1 63.28 (-8.72) - Round 2 63.06 (-8.94) - Round 3 63.75 (-8.25) - Round 4 63.68 (-8.32) Lowest rounds:
- Round 1 58 Andrew Johnson (USA) - Round 2 57 Robert Karlsson (JPN) - Round 3 57 Matt Seymour (USA) - Round 4 58 Cedric Erzinger (CAN) Top 10 + ties - EUR 14, PGA 0 Players on a cut streak:
- 8 cut streak 5 - 7 cut streak 10 - 6 cut streak 9 - 5 cut streak 10 - 4 cut streak 10 Wins by continent:
4 North America 3 Europe 2 Africa Wins by country:
3 England 2 Canada, 2 South Africa, 2 USA Wins by tour:EUR 7 PGA 2 Wins by platform:PC 6 PS4 3 XB1 0 World Golf Ranking:
2 Euro players in the top 10 ~ 9 Euro players in the top 20 ~ 28 Euro players in the top 50 ▲1
44 Euro players in the top 100 ▼1
Most wins: 2 - Scott Doyley (CAN), Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA) * Top finishing positions isolated to finishing bracket:
Most top 5s: 6 - Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA) Most top 10s: 2 - Joe Greenhalgh (GBR), Tom Morgan (USA), Chris Bird (ENG), James Carlson (USA), Ian Sweeney (GBR) Most top 20s: 4 - Nathan Allan (ENG) * Top 5 bracket: positions 1 - 5 * Top 10 bracket: postions 6 - 10 * Top 20 bracket: positions 11 - 20 Tshwane Open previewStaying in South Africa for the 3rd week in a row and for the 4th and final time this season, we have the Tshwane Open. Tshwane metropolitan houses South Africa's capital city, Pretoria, which is where we find Lunenberg National Golf Club, designed by Andre Quenneville. Lunenberg is fast becoming known for it's ferocious greens. Approach play is always important on any course, and this one is no different. However, Lunenberg will test the putting skills of even the very best and we fully expect to see some broken putters along the way. As of round 3, Ricky Banville (CAN) seems to be in a commanding lead. Will he be able to close out the weekend with his first ever win? James Gemmill (SCO) and Gary Best (ENG) are hanging in there and applying the pressure, but is it enough to rattle the Canadian? Sunday will reveal all. Good luck, drive safe and may your balls land softly
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Post by Brionne on Mar 19, 2015 2:47:22 GMT -5
Tshwane openWeek 10 has seen our third repeat winner of the season in Tom Morgan (USA) taking out the Tshwane Open hosted by Lunenberg National Golf Club. Round 1 saw Nathan Roy (CAN) set the pace with a 58 only to fall by the wayside in round 2 and allowed Ricky Banville (CAN) to take over the lead. Ricky continued to dominate through round 3 and extended his lead to a comfortable 3 strokes over Gary Best (ENG) and James Gemmill (SCO). Closing this one out should have been a formality for Banville.. Ricky was staring down the barrel of his first win. But let's be honest, in this game, pressure does incredible things to one's thought process. Putts look more difficult than they are, doubt sets in. One poorly executed approach shot is often the beginning of the end and it all goes to pot. Try telling that to Tom Morgan though. Tom's final round 58 was as gutsy as they come. 6 strokes off the pace after round 3, Morgan powered his way up the leaderboard, sinking a 21ft breaking putt on the 17th to force a 4 way tie with the leaders. Knowing a tie would mean second place, Tom knew his 13ft downhill breaker on the 18th had to go. And go it did! Someone call the cops as this was a mugging through nerves of steel. Just a brilliant win and the best of the season so far. This win moves Tom up to 8th in the WGR and 5th on the Euro order of merit and makes him a force to be reckoned with. Congratulations must go to a few others as well. Namely Gary Best (ENG) on his T2 and first top 5 finish of the season and to Bradley Garcia (ENG) for another T2 and his 6th top 5 of the season. Wendy Airey (ENG) finished in T12 and nearly had her first top 10 finish. Just one stroke better per round would have seen her achieve that. Well done Wendy. Congrats to Stevan Bowles (USA) for earning his Euro card. Wade Zelazny (USA) and Maark Latta (SCO) both ended a 4 Euro event bogey streak to make the cut this week. WGRWe've had a change of the guard this week in the WGR. Yours truly, Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA), have moved up to number 1. More importantly is we finally have a Euro member on top and a third in Tom Morgan (USA) in the top 10, with Bradley Garcia (ENG) maintaining 3rd. Week 10 stats111 golfers completed the tournament (127 starting field) 73 golfers made the cut (65.8% of the field of 111 completed) 38 golfers missed the cut (34.2% of the field of 111 completed) EUR players 116 (68 made the cut) 58.6% PGA players 8 (4 made the cut) 50% Sponsor players 3 (1 made the cut) 33.3% Tournament round average: 65.94 (-6.06) Average round scores (Cut only):
- Round 1 64.36 (-7.64) - Round 2 64.27 (-7.73) - Round 3 65.25 (-6.75) - Round 4 65.34 (-6.66) Lowest rounds:
- Round 1 58 Nathan Roy (CAN) - Round 2 59 Bradley Garcia (ENG) - Round 3 57 Colin Greenshields (AUS) - Round 4 58 Tom Morgan (USA) Top 10 + ties - EUR 9, PGA 2 Players on a cut streak:
9 cut streak 3 8 cut streak 10 7 cut streak 7 6 cut streak 9 5 cut streak 9 4 cut streak 5 Wins by continent:
5 North America 3 Europe 2 Africa Wins by country:
3 England, USA 2 Canada, South Africa Wins by tour:
EUR 8 PGA 2 Wins by platform:
PC 7 PS4 3 XB1 0 World Golf Ranking:
3 Euro players in the top 10 ▲1
8 Euro players in the top 20 ▼1
25 Euro players in the top 50 ▼3
45 Euro players in the top 100 ▲1
Most wins: 2 - Scott Doyley (CAN), Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA), Tom Morgan (USA) * Top finishing positions isolated to finishing bracket:
Most top 5s: 7 - Brionne Beaumont-Thomas (RSA) Most top 10s: 3 - Ian Sweeney (GBR) Most top 20s: 4 - Nathan Allan (ENG), Tony McGettigan (IRE) * Top 5 bracket: positions 1 - 5 * Top 10 bracket: postions 6 - 10 * Top 20 bracket: positions 11 - 20 Madeira Islands Open - Portugal - BPIWeek 11 returns us to Europe at the Madeira Islands Open hosted by Isla Madeleine Resort designed by Chris Biggins. A course that features slow greens and plenty eagle opportunities. Given the right conditions, extremely low scores can be had. At the time of this posting, Tom Humphries (GBR), winner of the first WGC event, has taken this event by the scruff of the neck and is in a commanding lead. We will surely see a winning score in the -70s this week. Will Humphries take out his first Euro win this week? We'll know on Sunday. Good luck, drive safe and may your balls land softly
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