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Clarke Holds Nerves to Seal British Open Triumph
Factfile on Open Winner Darren Clarke
Last 20 winners of British Open
Open Championship Final Round Scores
Weather Spoils it for Downcast McIlroy
Open Double for Northern Ireland
Clarke Holds Nerves to Seal British Open Triumph
SANDWICH, July 17, 2011 (AFP) - Darren Clarke held his nerve to clinch victory at the British Open here Sunday, becoming the oldest winner of the championship in 44 years as he ended his long wait for a Major.
The popular 42-year-old from Northern Ireland kept his cool in demanding conditions to card a level-par 70, leaving him five under for the tournament and three strokes clear of Americans Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson.
"It's been a dream since I've been a kid to win The Open, like any kid's dream is, and I'm able to do it, which just feels incredible, incredible right now," Clarke told reporters.
The win capped a final round of twists and turns at Royal St George's, where wild fluctuations in the weather were mirrored early on by a fast-moving battle at the top of the leaderboard before Clarke's rivals fell away.
It also represented a triumph of persistence for the paunchy, cigarette-smoking Clarke, who finally claimed the famous Auld Claret jug at the 20th time of asking, a new record.
Clarke, whose ranking has slipped to 111 in recent years, becomes the oldest winner of the Open since Argentina's Roberto de Vicenzo won aged 44 in 1967.
Many observers had assumed that Clarke's days of challenging for Majors were over, with the veteran Ulsterman seemingly destined to forever rue his near-miss at the 1997 Open at Troon, where he tied for second.
But Clarke insisted he never doubted his ability to eventually win a Major.
"You know, bad times in golf are more frequent than the good times," he said. "There's times I've been completely and utterly fed up with the game.
"But friends and family say, get out there and practice and keep going, keep going, keep going, and that's why I'm sitting here now."
Clarke also paid tribute to his late wife Heather, with whom he had two sons, who died in 2006 from breast cancer.
"In terms of what's going through my heart, there's obviously somebody who is watching down from up above there, and I know she'd be very proud of me," he said. "She'd probably be saying, 'I told you so.'
"But I think she'd be more proud of my two boys and them at home watching more than anything else. It's been a long journey to get here. But I've got here in the end."
Clarke had started Sunday's final round with a one-shot advantage over Johnson, who was desperate to atone for suffering two agonising near-misses at last year's US Open and US PGA Championship.
Yet for long periods of a thrilling final 18 holes, it looked as if three-time Major winner Mickelson would pose the most serious threat.
Mickelson, who had started the day five behind Clarke, produced a dazzling putting display over the front nine to wipe out the Ulsterman's lead and join him at the top of the leaderboard on five under.
Mickelson reeled in Clarke with three birdies and an eagle to go out in five-under-par courtesy of some red-hot putting, and he might have had another had a birdie putt not lipped out at the eighth.
But Clarke then hit back with a 20-foot eagle putt of his own on the par-five seventh to move to seven-under and move two clear of Mickelson, setting the stage for a nail-biting climax over the back nine.
Mickelson closed to within one of Clarke after holing another long-range putt from 18 feet at the 10th for birdie.
Yet just as it seemed that the momentum was with the 41-year-old from California, Mickelson's flawless putting deserted him with bogeys on the 11th, 13th, 15th and 16th.
He eventually carded a two-under-par 68, leaving him two under for the tournament, three behind Clarke.
Mickelson's implosion left Clarke's playing partner Johnson as the man best placed to end American golf's long wait for a Major.
Johnson rolled in an eight-footer on the 12th for birdie to move within two shots of Clarke. But when the 27-year-old from South Carolina crashed his ball out of bounds par-five 14th, it was all over.
Johnson's double-bogey seven put Clarke four strokes ahead with four holes to play, and from there the result was never in doubt as he came home to roars from the thousands packing the grandstands around the last.
Clarke's victory was the third by a golfer from Northern Ireland in a Major tournament in just over a year, following Rory McIlroy's triumph at the US Open last month, an event won by Graeme McDowell 12 months earlier.
It also extended American golf's record Major losing streak to six. The last US golfer to claim a Major was Mickelson at the 2010 Masters.
Meanwhile pre-tournament favourite McIlroy concluded an unhappy Open with a three-over-par 73 to finish seven over for the tournament.
McIlroy, 22, later blamed the variable weather for undermining his challenge.
"I'm not a fan of golf tournaments that the outcome is predicted so much by the weather. It's not my sort of golf," McIlroy said.
Factfile on Open Winner Darren Clarke
SANDWICH, July 17, 2011 (AFP) - Factfile of Darren Clarke who won the 140th British Open at Royal St George's here on Sunday
DARREN CLARKE
Born - August 14, 1968
Age - 42
Place of Birth - Dungannon, Northern Ireland
Height - 6'2" - 1.89m
Weight - 200lbs - 89 kgs
Home - Portrush, Northern Irelandd
Turned pro - 1990
Joined European Tour - 1990
Joined US PGA Tour - 2003
European Tour wins - 14
US PGA Tour wins - 3
Major wins - 1 (2011 British Open)
Ryder Cup (Europe) - (1997, 99, 02, 04, 06)
Last 20 winners of British Open
SANDWICH, July 17, 2011 (AFP) - The last 20 winners of the British Open:-
2011 - Darren Clarke (NIR) at Royal St George's
2010 - Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) at St Andrews
2009 - Stewart Cink (USA) at Turnberry
2008 - Padraig Harrington (IRL) at Royal Birkdale
2007 - Padraig Harrington (IRL) at Carnoustie
2006 - Tiger Woods (USA) at Hoylake
2005 - Tiger Woods (USA) at St Andrews
2004 - Todd Hamilton (USA) at Royal Troon
2003 - Ben Curtis (USA) at Royal St George's
2002 - Ernie Els (RSA) at Muirfield
2001 - David Duval (USA) at Lytham St Annes
2000 - Tiger Woods (USA) at St Andrews
1999 - Paul Lawrie (SCO) at Carnoustie
1998 - Mark O'Meara (USA) at Royal Birkdale
1997 - Justin Leonard (USA) at Troon
1996 - Tom Lehman (USA) at Lytham St Annes
1995 - John Daly (USA) at St Andrews
1994 - Nick Price (ZIM) at Turnberry
1993 - Greg Norman (AUS) at Royal St George's
1992 - Nick Faldo (ENG) at Muirfield
Open Championship Final Round Scores
SANDWICH, July 17, 2011 (AFP) - Collated scores from the final round of the 140th British Open at par-70 Royal St George's here Sunday:
275 - Darren Clarke (NIR) 68-68-69-70
278 - Phil Mickelson (USA) 70-69-71-68, Dustin Johnson (USA) 70-68-68-72
279 - Thomas Bjorn (DEN) 65-72-71-71
280 - Chad Campbell (USA) 69-68-74-69, Anthony Kim (USA) 72-68-70-70, Rickie Fowler (USA) 70-70-68-72
281 - Raphael Jacquelin (FRA) 74-67-71-69
282 - Sergio Garcia (ESP) 70-70-74-68, Simon Dyson (ENG) 68-72-72-70, Davis Love (USA) 70-68-72-72
283 - Steve Stricker (USA) 69-71-72-71, Martin Kaymer (GER) 68-69-73-73, Lucas Glover (USA) 66-70-73-74
284 - George Coetzee (RSA) 69-69-72-74
285 - Richard Green (AUS) 70-71-73-71, Yang Yong-Eun (KOR) 71-69-73-72, Charl Schwartzel (RSA) 71-67-75-72, Fredrik Jacobson (SWE) 70-70-73-72, Webb Simpson (USA) 66-74-72-73, Zach Johnson (USA) 72-68-71-74
286 - Tom Watson (USA) 72-70-72-72, Tom Lehman (USA) 71-67-73-75, Anders Hansen (DEN) 69-69-72-76
287 - Rory McIlroy (NIR) 71-69-74-73, Adam Scott (AUS) 69-70-73-75, Miguel Angel Jimenez (ESP) 66-71-72-78
288 - Ryan Moore (USA) 69-74-76-69, Charles Howell III (USA) 71-70-73-74
289 - Stewart Cink (USA) 70-71-77-71, Jason Day (AUS) 71-70-76-72, Gary Woodland (USA) 75-68-74-72, Noh Seung-Yul (KOR) 69-72-75-73, Tom Lewis (ENG) 65-74-76-74, Bubba Watson (USA) 69-72-74-74, Pablo Larrazabal (ESP) 68-70-76-75, Ryan Palmer (USA) 68-71-72-78
290 - Simon Khan (ENG) 71-72-77-70, Jeff Overton (USA) 68-71-78-73, Gary Boyd (ENG) 71-70-76-73, Robert Rock (ENG), 69-71-74-76, Trevor Immelman (RSA) 70-72-72-76
291 - Spencer Levin (USA) 72-69-81-69, Justin Rose (ENG) 72-70-79-70, KJ Choi (KOR) 71-72-75-73, Kyle Stanley (USA) 68-72-77-740
292 - Gregory Bourdy (FRA) 73-70-77-72, Floris De Vries (NED) 70-73-76-73, Jim Furyk (USA) 72-70-76-74, Peter Uihlein (USA) 71-71-75-75, Robert Allenby (AUS) 69-72-75-76, Richard McEvoy (ENG) 69-72-75-76
293 - Paul Casey (ENG) 74-69-78-72, Rory Sabbatini (RSA) 71-70-77-75, Louis Oosthuizen (RSA 72-70-74-77, Richard McEvoy (ENG)
294 - Bill Haas (USA) 72-70-79-73, Gregory Havret (FRA) 72-71-78-73, Ricky Barnes (USA) 68-74-78-74, Fredrik Hed Andersson (SWE) 68-75-77-74, Stephen Gallacher (SCO) 70-71-77-76, Bo Van Pelt (USA) 73-69-73-79
296 - Matthew Millar (AUS) 71-72-80-73, Joost Luiten (NED) 73-69-79-75, Mark Wilson (USA) 74-68-75-79
297 - Paul Lawrie (SCO) 73-70-81-73, Edoardo Molinari (ITA) 69-74-76-78
298 - Henrik Stenson (SWE) 72-71-75-80
299 - Harrison Frazar (USA) 72-70-77-80
301 - Kenneth Ferrie (ENG) 71-71-76-83
304 - Hwang Jung-Gon (KOR) 68-74-83-79
Weather Spoils it for Downcast McIlroy
SANDWICH, July 17, 2011 (AFP) - Rory McIlroy was left bemoaning the state of the English summer weather on Sunday as his hopes of adding the British Open crown to the US Open one he won last month were blown away.
The 22-year-old Ulsterman came into the tournament as favourite thanks to his outstanding performance at Congressional Country Club outside Washington which took place for the most part in hot, sunny conditions.
That was in stark contrast to the deluge that hit him and the rest of the early starters in Saturday's third round when he effectively saw his chances vanish with a poor 74.
And the conditions were not much better on Sunday as gusting winds and the occasional rainy squall swept over the Royal St George's links. On several occasions playing partner Sergio Garcia was seen putting a consoling arm around the younger man's shoulder.
"My game is suited for basically every golf course and most conditions, but these conditions I just don't enjoy playing in really. That's the bottom line," was how McIlroy described his feeling about the last four days after coming in with a 73 which left him well down the field.
"I'd rather play when it's 80 degrees and sunny and not much wind.
"All the amateur tournaments I've won, they were played on links courses but they were all relatively calm. So I just play better and my game is more suited to calm conditions. Just glad I'm in the clubhouse. I'm just glad I'm in."
Some saw these as surprising comments from a player who was brought up, for a large part, playing on the links of his native Northern Ireland where rain and wind are common bedfellows for golfers.
But such was his disgust with how things had gone at Sandwich that McIlroy was adamant he had always felt that way and always would.
"I'm not a fan of golf tournaments that the outcome is predicted so much by the weather. It's not my sort of golf," he said.
"I'm disappointed with the way I finished obviously, but I'll just have to wait until next year to try and make a good run at this tournament.
"I'm looking forward to getting back to America, playing in Akron, and obviously the PGA and the Irish Open is a big one for us, as well. It's a week that I sort of enjoy."
McIlroy had come in for criticism from some quarters for taking three weeks off after Congressional during which time he took in Wimbledon tennis and David Haye's heavyweight boxing match in Hamburg.
And while he defended his preparations for Royal St George's, he agreed that he had been feeling the pressure following talk of him being good enough to one day overhaul Jack Nicklaus's record of 18 Major wins.
"I've won three tournaments as a pro - to start talking about winning 18 Majors and this and that, yeah, that was very premature," he said.
"I'm looking forward to getting home for a week and then going to the Irish Open.
"But I mean, I'm still one of this year's Major winners, so there's always going to be a little bit of expectation and a bit of pressure on you.
"Hopefully if the weather is decent at home, I'm going to spend a few days getting my swing back to where it needs to be.
"You know, the wind sort of messes it up a little bit, so I'll work for two or three days just working on my swing and getting it back into a nice groove."
Plaudits for Fowler at Open
SANDWICH, July 17, 2011 (AFP) - Going into this week's British Open at Royal St George's here, Rory McIlroy was by far the brightest new kid on the block, now he has company in the shape of Rickie Fowler.
The 22-year-old American may not have broken his tournament-win duck, but he gave a consummate display of links golf and his shot-making was second to none until the last few holes of a gruelling, wind-and-rain battered tournament.
He parred 13 holes in a row before a bogey on the par-five 14th effectively ended his challenge and he finally came in with a two over 72 for a level par total of 280.
Fowler said that his career could only benefit from the experience he had gained over the last four days grafting it out on the wind-swept Kent coastline.
"I haven't really been in contention in a Major yet, so to do that here and to play two solid weeks in a row, and obviously a Major is a little bit different than a normal Tour event," he said.
"So I am obviously pleased with where my game is right now and looking forward to getting on with the rest of the year," he said.
Fowler, the son of a lorry driver from California, grew up near a driving range and it was there that he learned his golf before his talent allowed him to move into the US collegiate system.
With his long hair and keen youthful fashion sense, Fowler quickly became a dream vehicle for brand promotion, but he also makes sure to take a very serious approach to his golf.
This was in clear evidence last year when he made a successful Ryder Cup debut in Wales despite several voices being raised at his wildcard selection.
Fowler notably birdied the last four holes in his singles match to salvage a tie against Edoardo Molinari.
Now he has proved that he has what it takes to win a Major and his no-nonsense attitude during the week impressed many.
In the first three rounds he played with US Open champion McIlroy with the spotlight being firmly on the 22-year-old Ulsterman, who was being touted as the new superstar of golf following his eight-stroke win at Congressional.
But it was Fowler who stole the spotlight, especially on Saturday when the two young tyros went out in the worst of a storm-lashed day.
The American came in with a superb 68 to McIlroy's 74 and by the end of the tournament he was seven strokes better off.
McIlroy headed for home bemoaning his bad luck with the weather, while for Fowler there were only positives to be taken from the week.
"I love playing links golf because I'm able to kind of show a little bit of my game and hit some shots around the course that I don't get to hit in the States a whole lot," he said.
"It's fun for me to be able to use my imagination and play the game a little bit differently and how it's meant to be played over here."
Next up for Fowler is winning his first tournament as a pro and a tilt at another Major in the US PGA in Atlanta in August.
Open Double for Northern Ireland
SANDWICH, July 17, 2011 (AFP) - Darren Clarke's victory on Sunday in the British Open means stunning back-to-back Major wins for Northern Ireland, following Rory McIlroy's triumph at the US Open last month.
And with Ulsterman Graeme McDowell preceding McIroy as US Open champion last year it means that three of the last six Majors have been won by golfers from Northern Ireland all born in different decades.
With a population of just 1.7 million, the prospects two years ago of that happening would have been astronomical.
Asked in his victory press conference what was the secret to Northern Irish success, Clarke replied: "I was waiting for that one, and I honestly don't know.
"We're blessed to have obviously two fantastic players in Rory and G-Mac, and I've just come along - the old guy coming along behind them.
"You know, we've just been lucky. We have fantastic golf courses, we have fantastic facilities, but to have three major champions from a little small place in a short period of time, it's just incredible."
Clarke at 42 is by a long stretch the oldest of the three Ulster Major winners with McIlroy just 22 and McDowell in-between at 31.
Asked if he had ever felt jealous of the recent successes of his two compatriots while he had failed over the course of a 20-year career to win a Major, Clarke insists that this was never the case.
What mattered was what it meant back home for the people of Northern Ireland where sectarian unrest has cast a black cloud over the country for the best part of the last 40 years.
"I'm sure they're having parties all the time, party for G-Mac at Portrush and party for Rory a couple of weeks ago, and I'm sure I'll have another one this week.
"They'd all just be very pleased. As I say, Northern Ireland is a very small place and it's all a very close knit community and everyone is very pleased for our sporting guys that do well, and I'm pleased to join them.
What would be the icing on the cake, Clarke added, was for a future Open to be awarded to the links course at Portrush where he and McDowell live.
The only time the tournament has been held outside of mainland Britain was in 1951 when Max Faulkner won at Portrush.
Since then it has been rotated between classic links courses in England and Scotland. Currently there are nine of these that meet all the requirements laid down by the Royal & Ancient which runs The Open.
"I would prefer to see it played at Royal Portrush every year. That's where I would like to see it," Clarke said.