Wee Mac on GMac collision course
The 22 year-old finished it off in style by sinking a chip at the final hole to forge a win that puts him in with every chance of advancing to the knock-out stages over the weekend.
Indeed, the likelihood of a clash between McIlroy and fellow Irishman Graeme McDowell in tomorrow afternoon’s quarter-finals improved significantly when the Portrush man won the battle of the British Open champions against South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen by 2 and 1.
Local man Miguel-Angel Jimenez caused the biggest upset of an opening day played in a fresh breeze and intermittent sunshine when he thrashed US Masters champion Charl Schwartzel by 6 and 5, the margin by which number one seed Lee Westwood disposed of Denmark’s Anders Hansen.
World number 2 Luke Donald beat Ryan Moore, the only American in the field, by 4 and 3 and number three ranked Martin Kaymer came from behind to defeat Y E Yang, his predecessor as US PGA champion in 2009, by 2 and 1.
Finca Cortesin is a formidable golf course measuring more than 7,400 yards but it held no terrors for McIlroy who again displayed his liking for match play by coming up with crucial birdie putts at crucial stages of a really tough clash with Goosen.
Two down after seven, he narrowed the gap with a four at the long 8th and then rolled in a crucial 30 footer for another birdie on the 9th with the South African less than half that distance away in two.
While Goosen missed his putt for a half, he wasn’t giving anything away and found the target himself with another 10 yarder at the 10th. McIlroy was quickly on terms with his next birdie at the 11th and two of the next three were exchanged before the Irishman struck a crucial blow with another 30 foot putt for a winning birdie at the 15th.
The 16th was halved in birdie 3s and just when it looked like McIlroy might have opened the door at the 18th when failing to get a bunker recovery on the green, he chipped in for his seventh birdie of the day and the match.
McIlroy now meets Nicholas Colsaerts, the recent winner of the Volvo China Open, and goes into the match as a warm favourite. He certainly looked the part yesterday as he more than matched Goosen off the tee and also looked sharper on and around the greens.
“Retief didn’t give me much but it was nice to finish off with that chip-in”, said McIlroy.
“This course gives you chances and the way the greens are, you are going to hole some putts and you’re going to have to make a lot of birdies to win matches. I made those important birdies on 8 and 9 and started playing some nice golf on the back nine. I was pleased at the way I played. I made birdies when it counted most, the kind of thing you need to do in match play. Everything was very solid.”
While McDowell always looked to have the edge over Oosthuizen, it was still a tight battle for much of the journey.
The Irishman reeled off a hat-trick of birdies from the 2nd, winning two of those holes, but was eventually reeled in by the South African after the par three 10th. McDowell, however, was deeply satisfied by his response as he eagled the 11th to regain an advantage he would never again lose. And like McIlroy, he finished it off in style with a birdie at the short 17th. That left him three under par for the holes played and in good shape for today’s clash with the little-known Jhonnatan Vegas from Venezuela.
“I kept it in play and putted well”, said McDowell, who seems to have bounced back in positive fashion from the disappointment of his final round collapse in the Players Championship at the week-end. “I positioned the ball well off the tee whereas Louis was a little loose with the driver.”
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