Bjorn leads as rain delays Singapore Open
Source: Agencies |
November 9, 2012, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THOMAS Bjorn shot a 5-under 66 yesterday to lead by a stroke with half the field still to finish the rain-interrupted first round of the Singapore Open.
The Dane holed six birdies to sit just in front of Simon Khan of England, Chinnarat Phadungsil of Thailand and Pablo Martin of Spain.
Top-ranked Rory McIlroy was at even par after eight holes when play was halted for the day due to rain and the threat of lightning.
Half the field - 78 golfers - were still on the course when play was stopped. They'll resume today morning.
McIlroy had girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki by his side on the course. He is trying to match Luke Donald's 2011 feat of capturing both European and US PGA Tour money titles in the same season.
The other big names in the field struggled. Three-time champion Adam Scott had three bogeys to go with three birdies to shoot a 71, while Phil Mickelson had a double-bogey and two bogeys on the back nine to hit a 73, one stroke in front of Padraig Harrington.
Bjorn said he adjusted quickly to the muggy conditions and the newly redesigned Serapong Course at Sentosa Golf Club, which players like Mickelson and Scott have deemed extremely challenging.
"I came here and saw the golf course and it's set up to be tricky this year," Bjorn said. "It's not the longest golf course in the world, so if you can keep it in the fairway you can produce a score, and I did that very well today. That's only round one, so we'll work from here."
The 41-year-old Bjorn is coming off a resurgent 2011 season in which he won three tournaments and finished fourth at the British Open at Royal St. George's - the scene of one of the biggest disappointments of his career.
At the 2003 British Open, Bjorn was leading by three strokes with four holes to play when his game completely unraveled. He needed three shots to get out of a bunker on the 16th hole and eventually ceded the Claret Jug to Ben Curtis.
So far this year, he's been unable to build on last season's strong results. His best finish is a share of second place at the Wales Open in June. Since then, he's only recorded two top-10 finishes on the European Tour.
Another player hoping for a boost in Singapore is Khan. He came out of nowhere to win the PGA Championship in 2010 as the 471st-ranked player in the world, earning a playing exemption on the European Tour through to 2015.
The 40-year-old Englishman has found limited success since and his previously improved ranking has slipped to No. 443. He pulled out of the second stage of the PGA Qualifying School this week to compete in Singapore.
Paul Casey of England was in a share of fifth with Y.E. Yang of South Korea and Kwanchai Tannin of Thailand after rounds of 68.
Edoardo Molinari hit a hole-in-one on the 17th en route to shooting a 70, two days after making a rare albatross on the par-5 fourth in a practice round.
His brother, Francesco Molinari, was 3 over after nine holes when play was halted. Former British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen was 2 over after eight, and John Daly was 1 over after six.
The Dane holed six birdies to sit just in front of Simon Khan of England, Chinnarat Phadungsil of Thailand and Pablo Martin of Spain.
Top-ranked Rory McIlroy was at even par after eight holes when play was halted for the day due to rain and the threat of lightning.
Half the field - 78 golfers - were still on the course when play was stopped. They'll resume today morning.
McIlroy had girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki by his side on the course. He is trying to match Luke Donald's 2011 feat of capturing both European and US PGA Tour money titles in the same season.
The other big names in the field struggled. Three-time champion Adam Scott had three bogeys to go with three birdies to shoot a 71, while Phil Mickelson had a double-bogey and two bogeys on the back nine to hit a 73, one stroke in front of Padraig Harrington.
Bjorn said he adjusted quickly to the muggy conditions and the newly redesigned Serapong Course at Sentosa Golf Club, which players like Mickelson and Scott have deemed extremely challenging.
"I came here and saw the golf course and it's set up to be tricky this year," Bjorn said. "It's not the longest golf course in the world, so if you can keep it in the fairway you can produce a score, and I did that very well today. That's only round one, so we'll work from here."
The 41-year-old Bjorn is coming off a resurgent 2011 season in which he won three tournaments and finished fourth at the British Open at Royal St. George's - the scene of one of the biggest disappointments of his career.
At the 2003 British Open, Bjorn was leading by three strokes with four holes to play when his game completely unraveled. He needed three shots to get out of a bunker on the 16th hole and eventually ceded the Claret Jug to Ben Curtis.
So far this year, he's been unable to build on last season's strong results. His best finish is a share of second place at the Wales Open in June. Since then, he's only recorded two top-10 finishes on the European Tour.
Another player hoping for a boost in Singapore is Khan. He came out of nowhere to win the PGA Championship in 2010 as the 471st-ranked player in the world, earning a playing exemption on the European Tour through to 2015.
The 40-year-old Englishman has found limited success since and his previously improved ranking has slipped to No. 443. He pulled out of the second stage of the PGA Qualifying School this week to compete in Singapore.
Paul Casey of England was in a share of fifth with Y.E. Yang of South Korea and Kwanchai Tannin of Thailand after rounds of 68.
Edoardo Molinari hit a hole-in-one on the 17th en route to shooting a 70, two days after making a rare albatross on the par-5 fourth in a practice round.
His brother, Francesco Molinari, was 3 over after nine holes when play was halted. Former British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen was 2 over after eight, and John Daly was 1 over after six.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
