McDowell can move on with Volvo

GRAEME McDOWELL has the chance to atone for his final round collapse at the Players Championship when he contests the Volvo World Match Play Championship at Finca Cortesin in Spain this week.

McDowell, who showed a cool head on several occasions in 2010, most notably in his US Open win at Pebble Beach and in Europe’s Ryder Cup triumph, succumbed badly over the final day at Sawgrass.

Having held a three-stroke advantage playing the 18th in the weather-delayed third round, he subsequently faltered spectacularly.

A double-bogey seven at the 18th cut his lead to one entering the final round and he had to battle hard for a 79 for a share of 34th.

McDowell vowed the pain of this collapse would be short-lived and regards this week’s tournament as the ideal way to bounce back, a view shared by Rory McIlroy, the other Irishman in the star-studded 24-man field in Spain.

The manner in which they collapsed in the Masters and the Players respectively was strikingly similar, although both remain fifth and sixth in the world rankings behind Lee Westwood, Luke Donald, Martin Kaymer and Phil Mickelson.

The term ‘World’ ahead of the Match Play may have seemed a little grandiose at one time but no longer as Volvo and promoters IMG have wooed six of the game’s nine top ranked players to their tournament. Indeed, it is the first time that numbers one, two and three on the globe have ever played in Spain at the same time. Furthermore, the field includes all four major champions, Charl Schwartzel (Masters), McDowell (US Open), Louis Oosthuizen (British Open) and Kaymer (US PGA).

The organisers have cleverly come up with a “Champions League” format for the event. The 24 players have been grouped in pools of three who will meet over a round robin system on Thursday and Friday with two from each going forward to the knock-out stages on Saturday, with the semi-final and final on Sunday.

The financial rewards are considerable. The winner picks up €800,000, the runner-up €420,000 going all the way down to €70,000 for those who finish last in each of the eight pools. Apart from the elite group in the top 10 (completed by Paul Casey in ninth spot) the entry also includes Ross Fisher, the winner when the event last took place two years ago; other major championship winners in YE Yang, Retief Goosen and Paul Lawrie along with 2011 tournament winners Miguel-Angel Jimenez and Aaron Baddely of Australia.

At 22, McIlroy still isn’t the youngest player in the field, a distinction that rests with the Korean Seung-yul Noh, winner of the 2010 Malaysia Open (18). And the presence of Jimenez and another Andalucian Alvaro Quiros will generate plenty of local interest, both anxious to follow in the footsteps of their idol, Seve Ballesteros, a five-time winner of the title back in its days at Wentworth.

The course layout may not to be to everyone’s liking, constructed and opened five years ago in extremely hilly territory to the design of American architect Cabell Robinson.

Darren Clarke’s splendid victory in Majorca at the weekend demonstrated that at 42 he is still one of the most impressive ball strikers in the game. The manner in which he holed a ‘putt’ from off the 16th green for a priceless par using a utility club spoke volumes for the big man’s vision and execution. Clarke has improved to 88th in the world rankings as a result and is now focused on next week’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.

It is an event in which Pádraig Harrington badly needs to make an impression.

Having missed the cut at Sawgrass, he has slipped to 43rd in the world rankings.

The €700,000 Madeira Island Open also takes place this week with Gary Murphy, Michael Hoey, Simon Thornton, Colm Moriarty and Niall Kearney providing the direct Irish interest.