Wed, May 23, 2012 14:41:54 PM
Bangkok Post
Wed, May 23, 2012 14:41:54 PM
Bangkok Post
Top-ranked defending champion Luke Donald was hammered by Ernie Els on Wednesday while Tiger Woods had a narrow first-round escape at the World Golf Championships Match Play Championship.
South Africa's Els dumped the Englishman 5-and-4, only the third time in event history the top seed has been ousted in the opening round. Els won five of seven holes from the eighth to close out the match on the 14th hole.
Former World No. 1 Woods survived a scare before progressing through to the second day at the $8.5 million event.
Despite losing the opening two holes, Woods clawed his way back against unheralded Spanish World No. 46 Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano to win 1-up and set up a second round match with fellow American Nick Watney.
Facing a potential first-round elimination for just the third time in his career, Woods won two of the last four holes and made a clutch up and down from a bunker on the 18th to seal the victory.
"I don't think either one of us had our best stuff today. Subsequently the match is back and forth. It was the epitome of match play," Woods said.
"We both made our share of mistakes. There's no doubt about that. But somehow I was able to move on."
Earlier, Woods spent plenty of time in the desert and paid the price.
Having managed to wrestle the lead back after eight holes despite his awful start, Woods double bogeyed the 10th hole and backed up with bogey on the 11th to once again trail by a hole.
The deficit remained until the 14-time major champion drove the par-4 15th green and managed a birdie to square the match.
When Fernando-Castano failed to par the 16th, Woods was back in the driver's seat and despite a wayward approach into the sand on the 18th the American held on when his nine-foot par putt dropped.
Fernando-Castano was left to rue a great chance at victory.
"If there was one day to beat Tiger Woods, this was it," he lamented. "I didn't take the opportunity."
Japanese superstar Ryo Ishikawa pulled off a miraculous comeback to upset last week's US PGA winner and reigning US PGA playoff champion Bill Haas.
Ishikawa, seeded 54th, was three down with five holes to play but won four of the final five holes, three with birdies, to take out the 11th seeded Haas 1-up.
"It was really tough but maybe more than myself Bill felt pressure, especially as I am ranked lower in the world golf ranking and being a first match of the week," Ishikawa said.
"Through the first 13 holes, it had been really tough and I wasn't playing that well. But the last five holes, I was able to compete with the opponent."
If Ishikawa's comeback was miraculous, Australian Jason Day's was stupendous.
At three down against Spain's Raphael Cabrera Bello on the 16th green, World No. 7 Day thought he was gone with the Spaniard needing to make a six-footer for the match.
But Cabrera Bello blasted his putt well past to lose the hole and begin his nightmare. He then made back-to-back bogeys on 17 and 18 to allow Day a chance in extra holes.
On the first extra hole, Day watched the Spaniard find some focus and stick an approach to 13-feet, but the Australian refused to blink.
He almost holed out from 150 yards, then watched Cabrera Bello lip out his birdie roll before tapping in for a clutch victory.
In other upsets, 53rd-seeded South Korean Y.E. Yang took care of Northern Ireland's 12th-seeded Graeme McDowell 2 and 1 while 19-year-old Matteo Manassero, the 59th seed from Italy, took down US sixth seed Webb Simpson 3 and 2 and top seeds Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer moved on with comfortable wins.
