Bjorn to miss World Cup challenge through injury

If you’re thinking of backing Denmark to win this week’s Omega Mission Hills World Cup, then you might want to reconsider your decision following news that Thomas Bjorn will miss the event after suffering a recurrence of an old neck injury.

Bjorn, who has won three times on the European Tour in 2011 during a resurgent season, was due to partner Anders Hansen for the event which takes place at Mission Hills Resort on Hainan Island, China. However, the injury was sufficient enough to keep him out of last week’s Dunlop Phoenix Open tournament in Japan – won by home player Toshinori Muto.

“I am really disappointed to have missed out on the chance to play for my country at Mission Hills,” said the Dane. “I always really enjoy playing in China too, but the injury meant it was just not possible this year unfortunately.”

Bjorn, 8^th in the Race to Dubai standings has already won the Commercialbank Qatar Masters, the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles and the Omega European Masters at Crans-sur-Sierre this year, and hopes to be back in time to contest next week’s Sun City Challenge in South African.

Bjorn’s place in the Denmark team will be taken by 21-year old Tour rookie Thorbjorn Olesen, who has enjoyed a fine start to his top-flight career on the European Tour; finishing runner-up in both the Italian Open and French Open earlier in the year.

Mulroy claims maiden European Tour win with Alfred Dunhill Championship win

Garth Mulroy emerged from the shadows of some South African greats to lift his first European Tour title at the Alfred Dunhill Championship in his native South Africa. Mulroy, who has practiced with the likes of Ernie Els and Retief Goosen in the past, battled to a two-shot win over Scot George Murray at Leopard Creek Country Club to lift the €158,000 first prize and leave him with a difficult choice for 2012.

Mulroy qualified a month ago via the Nationwide Tour to compete in 2012 on the PGA Tour; now he also has a two-year exemption for the European Tour. But based in North Carolina, USA, it is likely Mulroy will opt for the riches of the PGA Tour.

Starting the day with a two-shot lead, Mulroy looked shaky early on, bogeying the second hole to allow Jbe Kruger to draw level. But that challenge faltered with a shot that found the water at the ninth and with the way seeming clear, Mulroy proceeded to make the best of his way home and posted four birdies between the 6^th and 13^th holes.

However, a dropped shot at the 14^th coupled with an eagle by George Murray at the 15^th put the title on a knife-edge – albeit briefly. The Scot couldn’t find another gain over the closing holes, but Mulroy pulled clear again with birdies at the 15^th and 16^th – the latter with a monster 60-foot downhill putt – before coming home with a pair of pars to seal the win.

For Murray, it was his best ever European Tour finish, and he was clear of third placed South African duo George Coetzee and Jaco Van Zyl, fellow Scot Peter Whiteford and Chilean Felipe Aguilar, who missed a three-footer on the final green that would have guaranteed him third spot outright on his own.

Murray’s win also all but guaranteed he wouldn’t need to go back to Qualifying School – he’s earned his Tour Card five times previously via Q-School – and his earnings from this event and his third place finish in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship at St. Andrews a few weeks ago move him inside the top-80 in the Race to Dubai.

Castle Stuart Golf Links to host 2012 Scottish Open

The Scottish Open will take place in 2012, and will return to Castle Stuart Golf Links near Inverness in the week prior to the Open Championship at Royal Lytham and St. Annes.

Although the event is yet to find a new sponsor following the decision of Barclays not to continue their backing of the event, the success of the 2011 event has ensured that the Scottish Open will be played in 2012, easing fears it could be scrapped.

The European Tour will officially confirm the date and venue next month when it announces the second portion of the 2012 tournament schedule in Dubai next month.

Despite inclement weather that saw the event shortened to 54 holes and parts of the course suffer from landslip, England’s Luke Donald emerged triumphant at the European Tour’s most northerly venue en-route to consolidating his position as the world’s number one in a stellar season that saw him also win the WGC-Accenture World Match Play Championship, the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, top the US PGA Tour money list and build up a lead in excess of $1million in The Race to Dubai amongst other strong performances.

The European Tour hope Donald will return to the venue in 2012 to defend his title, while Phil Mickelson has already suggested he would return to compete in the event.

Luiten wins first European Tour title in Malaysia

Dutchman Joost Luiten finally sealed his breakthrough European Tour win in the weather-affected Iskandar Johor Open at the Horizon Hills Golf and Country Club, Malaysia.

Luiten, who has threatened to become a winner several times in 2011 already, carded a third round 65 to overhaul halfway leader Daniel Chopra in the event, which had seen play reduced to 54 holes after a series of storm delays.

Luiten’s 65 gave him a 15-under par finishing total, good enough for a narrow one-shot victory over Swede Chopra, who could only muster a final round 70 to finish in second place.

Ireland’s Padraig Harrington, Englishman James Morrison and Welshman Rhys Davies finished locked together on 13-under par to share third spot; Harrington and Morrison carding 69s while Davies signed for a 65.

Luiten had taken the lead after day one with an opening 63 before slipping back down the leaderboard following a second round 70 – which included some fine recovery work to get back into contention. Knowing he had to pull out something special if he were to win his maiden European Tour title, Luiten came out of the blocks quickly on Sunday and ran in five birdies on his outward nine, before adding another gain at the 11^th as he posted a bogey-free effort to get the better of Chopra.

“I don’t believe it yet,” said Luiten afterwards. “I think when you’re in position to win you always have some nerves, but I think that’s normal.

“My caddie said to me when we had four holes left to play, ‘the only guy you’re going to lose to is yourself’, and I think he was right. I just had to play my game and let the other guys chase me. If they do chase me, well done, we come back. But it was good enough so I’m really happy.”

Luiten’s long-overdue win comes on the back of some impressive form that has seen him post top-15s in eight of his last 14 events, and finally erases the wrist injury that threatened to wreck his career before it had properly begun.

Frenchman Gregory Bourdy was sixth on 12 under following a 70 and Dane Søren Kjeldsen ended a shot further back in seventh after a 67.

Sergio makes it two-in-a-row with Valderrama victory

Sergio Garcia continued his rebirth back into the game’s elite with a gritty display to win the Andalucia Masters at Valderrama, beating compatriot Miguel Angel Jiminez by a solitary stroke.

After his demolition job last week at the Castello Masters, Garcia arrived at the venue where he has three-times finished as a runner-up, but made no mistake at the fourth time of asking; posting a level-par round of 71 to become the first Spaniard to win a strokeplay event over the course.

Jiminez had tied overnight leader Garcia early in the second round with birdies at the 2^nd and 3^rd holes, but found himself one behind his compatriot by the turn, after back-to-back losses at the sixth and seventh.

But on the homeward nine, Garcia first regained a share of the lead at the 11^th hole, before taking the lead outright at the 13^th when Jiminez made bogey. A birdie at the next gave Garcia a two-shot lead, and it became three when Jiminez dropped another shot behind at the 15^th before staging a late rally with a pair of birdies at the 16^th and 17^th holes to cut the gap back to one shot.

Another birdie at the 18^th hole looked likely when Jiménez found the fairway and then the green in two, but he left his 15-foot putt agonisingly short and Garcia, who had missed the putting surface at the last, held his nerve to get up-and down to claim a second successive triumph.

“It’s very, very special,” said Garcia afterwards. “Valderrama – I have so much history here and unfortunately it wasn’t as good as this until now!”

“I’m out of words. It’s been two amazing weeks. Miguel fought so hard and had some good chances coming in, 17 for eagle and 18 for birdie.”

“I wasn’t as good as probably the last 13 days, but we hung on and managed to pull through.”

Garcia now leads the points race for next year’s European Ryder Cup team and added:

“Ryder Cup years are always special for me, so hopefully we can make that team.”

Scot Richie Ramsay battled hard to match the two Spaniards, but will be left to rue a double-bogey five at the par-3 15^th hole which halted his momentum just as he was looking to get involved in the finish. The Scot eventually finished 4-under par to claim third spot – one behind Jiminez.

Irishman Shane Lowry and England’s Steve Webster took fourth and fifth spots on the leaderboard, finishing 3-under par and 2-under par respectively.

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