ON THE GREEN By Denis Kirwan 880 words The third and final leg of the ‘Gulf Swing’ – the Dubai Desert Classic – takes place next week on the magnificent Majlis course at the Emirates Golf Club in the heart of Dubai. World No. 1 Rory McIlroy will be the star attraction but faces a strong field. McIlroy made his first cut in a European Tour event at the Emirates Golf Club as a 17-year-old amateur in 2007 and he went on to record his first win as a professional in this event as a 19-year-old back in 2009. The Emirates course is an oasis in this ever-growing desert metropolis with wide generous fairways and water coming into play on ten holes. Its four par 5’s offer birdie and eagle opportunities so this will play very much into the hands of big-hitting McIlroy, as it effectively turns this par 72 course into par 68 for him, so it would be a huge surprise if he was not involved at the In 2014, Scotland’s Stephen Gallacher became the first person in the history of the Dubai Desert Classic to successfully defend his title. Gallacher, on 16 under par, had a single shot to spare over Emiliano Grillo with Romain Wattel, Brooks Koepka and Mikko Ilonen filling the places. Gallacher also became just the third multiple champion of this event following in the illustrious footsteps of Tiger Woods and Ernie Els. Gallacher won had won this title impressively in 2013 by three shots from Richard Sterne with Felipe Aguilar, Thorbjorn Olesen and Lee Westwood making up the top five. The Scot had also been runner-up the year previous along with Lee Westwood when Spain’s Rafael Cabrera-Bello landed the Dubai Desert Classic by a single shot. Marcel Siem was fourth with Scott Jamieson and George Coetzee among those tied for fifth. Gallacher’s game is clearly suited to challenge that the Majlis course provides and although his win in this event was his sole success of last season, it is hard to ignore those impressive form figures and he is a must for Martin Kaymer had a shocking meltdown at the Abu Dhabi Championship, blowing a 10-shot lead in the early stages of his fourth round to eventually finish third, two shots behind France’s Gary Stal, who recorded his maiden success on tour. It was a most uncharacteristic collapse by the normally ice- cool US Open champion and you can expect him to bounce back strong on a course very similar to the Abu Dhabi layout. On the PGA Tour, Tiger Woods will make his first appearance of 2015 at next week’s Waste Management Phoenix Open. The former World No. 1 hasn’t played an official PGA Tour event since missing the cut at the PGA Championship last August. After failing to qualify for the Fed Ex Cup Playoffs, Woods took nearly four months off to rest his ailing back. He returned to action in December at his own Hero World Challenge with a new coach, Chris Como, and a new swing after parting ways with previous coach Sean Foley in August. But Woods struggled with his short game and tied for last in the 18- man field. He is best watched on this occasion. Kevin Stadler is the defending champion having won this title in 2014 on a 16 under par total by a single shot from Bubba Watson and Graeme DeLaet with Hideki Matsuyama and Hunter Mahan rounding out the Top 5. Matsuyama’s progress continues apace and Japan’s top player has the potential to be a multiple winner on tour this season. A recent Victory at the Dunlop Phoenix Open on home soil was followed by a T-3rd at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and he looks a good bet to go close in this event for the second Phil Mickelson won the Waste Management Phoenix Open for a third time in 2013 with a quite brilliant four shot victory over Brandt Snedeker. He had begun with an opening round of 60 and finished on 28 under par. However, Lefty was winless in 2014 for the first time since 2003 in what he called “the worst year of my career” and he embarked on a fitness programme over the winter months to lose weight and build core strength. Expect Phil to come Bubba Watson seldoms puts in a bad shift. He had three wins and a total of seven top-3 finishes in 2014 and he began 2015 with a top 10 at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. Watson generally gives you a good run for your money and he is likely to do so again next week. Meanwhile, Padraig Harrington will make his first start since his encouraging victory in December’s Indonesia Open – his first success in five years. The Dubliner remains as positive as ever that he can turn things around and be a force to be reckoned with once again. He missed the cut at Phoenix last year but will be hoping to build on the momentum of that first win in four years and looks a good bet for a top 20 on the exchanges. STAR BETS Dubai Desert Classic Rory McIlroy Stephen Gallacher Martin Kaymer Phoenix Open Phil Mickelson Bubba Watson Hideki Matsuyama
Posted on: Tue, 27 Jan 2015 19:44:00 +0000
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