For someone who’s on top of the world, Trevor Immelman has lately spent a lot of time looking up. One day after becoming the Masters champion, Immelman was courtside at Madison Square Garden for the Boston Celtics’ 99-93 victory over the New York Knicks.
Sporting heroes inspire others to become sporting heroes, as new Masters champion Trevor Immelman testified following his two-stroke win over Tiger Woods on Sunday. It was a minor miracle that he was even playing in the Masters, having undergone a major operation just 15 weeks ago.
Britain’s Justin Rose reeled off six birdies in eight holes to share the first-round lead at the US Masters while Tiger Woods laboured to stay in touch on Thursday. Rose shrugged off two early bogeys to fire a four-under-par 68 in bright sunshine. He launched his sizzling run at the par-three sixth before ending the day level with South African Trevor Immelman.
Tiger Woods opens his quest for an unprecedented Grand Slam of golf at Augusta National on Thursday, carrying the lowest odds ever for a player at the outset of a Major. The world number one is quoted at evens or just above evens to win a fifth Green Jacket, with the next best being two-time winner Phil Mickelson.
World number three Ernie Els is in buoyant mood for this week’s Tampa Bay Championship at Palm Harbour after winning his first title on United States soil in nearly four years. The smooth-swinging South African shrugged off gusting winds in Sunday’s final round of the Honda Classic to seal his 16th PGA Tour victory by one shot.
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/ 21 December 2007
As much as golf looked the same in 2007, some of the greatest triumphs were long overdue. Until a dramatic and calamitous Sunday on the cruel links of Carnoustie, the only time Padraig Harrington had reason to wave the Irish flag was during the Ryder Cup or perhaps a World Cup.
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/ 5 December 2007
South Africans Ernie Els and Charl Schwartzel return to one of their favourite hunting grounds this week, both looking for a second victory in the Alfred Dunhill Championship beginning at Leopard Creek on Thursday. They are two of the bigger names in this €1-million event which forms part of the 2008 European Tour.
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/ 2 December 2007
South Africa’s Trevor Immelman won the 27th edition of the Nedbank Golf Challenge on Sunday, in spite of bogeying the final three holes at the Gary Player Country Club. He outplayed England’s Justin Rose, who blew up with a double-bogey six at the last, in what turned into a nervy two-horse race between the two players in the final round.
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/ 1 December 2007
A terrific duel between Justin Rose of England and South Africa’s Trevor Immelman at the Nedbank Golf Challenge continued at the Gary Player Country Club on Saturday. Both players scored five-under-par 67s to share the 54-hole lead on 16-under-par 200.
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/ 1 December 2007
Ernie Els believes he still has what it takes to catch Tiger Woods at the top of the world rankings. The South African is one year into his stated three-year plan to catch Woods, and believes he’s made significant strides towards this goal in 2007. ”I feel I’ve made some improvements,” Els said of Friday.
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/ 30 November 2007
Justin Rose of England fired a seven-under-par 65 on Friday, which equalled the day’s best round, while South Africa’s Trevor Immelman signed for a 66 as the pair shared the second-round lead on 11-under 133 in the Nedbank Golf Challenge. Heavy mid-morning rain before play started softened the Gary Player Country Club course.
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/ 29 November 2007
Adam Scott of Australia and Trevor Immelman of South Africa both scored five-under-par 67s to share the first-round lead in the Nedbank Golf Challenge at Sun City on Thursday. English pair Justin Rose and Luke Donald are lying one off the pace on 68, with tournament favourite Ernie Els of South Africa, who is trying for a record fourth title in this annual 12-man event.
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/ 27 November 2007
Three of the world’s top 10 golfers and eight of the top 20 will contest the annual Nedbank Golf Challenge over the Gary Player Country Club course at Sun City, beginning on Thursday. South Africa’s world number five, Ernie Els, who is chasing a record four victories in the 27th edition of the tournament, is the highest ranked player in the 12-man line-up.
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/ 25 November 2007
Bravehearts Scotland won their first World Cup title in dramatic style on Sunday, beating tournament front-runners the United States at the third play-off hole. Eight-time European number one Colin Montgomerie and young gun Marc Warren went one better than last year when they lost a spirit-crushing play-off to Germany.
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/ 23 November 2007
Americans Boo Weekley and Heath Slocum hit a solid three-under-par 69 to retain a one-shot lead over their more fancied rivals after the second-round foursomes at the Golf World Cup on Friday. England topped the leaderboard by two shots midway through the round, but they found the alternate-ball format more taxing and a late bogey dragged them down.
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/ 1 November 2007
Ernie Els has told Colin Montgomerie to stop ”shooting his mouth off” after the Scottish star hit out at the South African for skipping the European Tour’s season-ending Volvo Masters in Spain. ”I know where he’s coming from so it’s no surprise,” said Els in response to Montgomerie’s comments.
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/ 31 October 2007
World number four Ernie Els lashed out Wednesday at the European Tour for ”screwing up” their dates by scheduling the Volvo Masters to clash with the Barclays Singapore Open. Els leads the European Order of Merit by €222 000 from Ireland’s Padraig Harrington but is unable to play at the Masters in Spain this week.
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/ 10 October 2007
World number three Jim Furyk will bid for a third successive Nedbank Golf Challenge victory at Sun City from November 29 to December 2. The presence of American Furyk was confirmed when the field of 12 was named in Johannesburg on Wednesday. British Open champion Padraig Harrington will also be in action, as will South African favourites Ernie Els and Rory Sabbatini.
Englishman Nick Dougherty took advantage of a disastrous 16th hole for Ernie Els to claim the biggest win of his career at the Dunhill Links Championship on Sunday. The overnight leader nearly squandered his three-stroke advantage as he bogeyed the opening two holes but he recovered to post a one-under par final round of 71 and finish on 18 under, two shots clear of Justin Rose.
England’s Nick Dougherty will take a three-shot lead into the final round of the Dunhill Links Championship after firing a six-under 66 on the Old Course at St Andrews on Saturday. Dougherty, seventh in June’s US Open, has strung together a series of top-10 finishes on the circuit this season.
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/ 9 September 2007
Australian Aaron Baddeley is hoping the hard lessons he learned at the US Open will pay off with a victory at the BMW Championship on Sunday. Going into the final round of -million event Baddeley once again finds himself in the last pairing, triggering painful flashbacks of a US Open meltdown