Graeme McDowell loves nothing better than to close out a long year with a win, and there’s no better place for him to do that than Sherwood Country Club and the World Challenge.

Graeme McDowell’s victory at the World Challenge in California – his first title since the same event two years ago – has lifted him from 24th to 14th in the world.

Nick Watney topped the leaderboard after the first round of the World Challenge in California, with European Ryder Cup hero Graeme McDowell in a chasing pack of three.

Rory McIlroy may be on a week off, but he remains in the news and at the centre of debate – both for the clubs he plays with and for his choice of tournaments.

Rory McIlroy outscored Tiger Woods for only the third time in 11 head-to-head clashes in China today, winning their 'Duel at Jinsha Lake' with a five-under-par 67 to the American's 68.

Tiger Woods does not deny that appearance money is one of the factors in determining where he plays.

Usain Bolt ran a season’s best 9.85 seconds to win the World Challenge meeting in Zagreb tonight in his first 100 metres since false starting at the World Championships.

TONY McCOY last night became the first jockey to be named the BBC’s sports personality of the year in the 57 years of the award.

IT certainly was an ill wind that blew in favour of Graeme McDowell when Tiger Woods pulled out of his own tournament last week.

Tiger Woods carded a final round four-under-par 68 to win the Target World Challenge by seven strokes from Zach Johnson last night.

Justin Rose’s rise up the world rankings goes on even when he is not playing.

The odds on Paul Casey winning the European Order of Merit have shortened even further with David Howell rating his chances of teeing off in the Volvo Masters at Valderrama tomorrow as only “50-50 at best“.

PÁDRAIG HARRINGTON returns to the scene of his maiden US Tour victory with a great deal more expectation on him to defend his title at Florida’s Palm Beach Gardens, today, than he faced 12 months ago.

Irish golfers Darren Clarke and Pádraig Harrington have given themselves every chance of victory, placed second and third respectively, after the opening round of the Target World Challenge at the Sherwood Country Club in California.

Colin Montgomerie fired a four-under-par 67 to take a two-shot lead from Tiger Woods and two other Americans at the Target World Challenge in California.

Colin Montgomerie, Tiger Woods, the host of the Target World Challenge since its inception in 1999, and Jim Furyk were tied for the lead after the first round of this year’s event.

AS the only representative of the world’s top 60, Pádraig Harrington will never be a stronger favourite for a golf tournament than he is for the Qatar Masters starting today.

First round scores from the Williams World Challenge at The Sherwood Country Club Golf Course, Thousand Oaks.