Els, Casey amongst day one winners at HSBC
BY iseekgolf.com | European PGA Tour | 2007 HSBC World Match Play Championship | Round One | 12 Oct 2007
Defending champion Paul Casey fought off a spirited challenge from American Jerry Kelly to win his first-round match 3 & 2 in the opening encounter of the 2007 World Match Play Championship on the West Course at Wentworth.
After a two-hour fog-delayed start, Arizona-based Casey forged ahead to take a three-hole lead, claiming the fourth with a birdie four, sinking a beautiful putt on the fifth and then winning the sixth amid misty conditions. However, Kelly fought back, taking the seventh, 11th and 12th holes to see the match go all square.
Undaunted, Casey fought back to take the 13th, 14th and 15th, showing the type of quality he demonstrated in last year’s recording-breaking victory over Shaun Micheel. Kelly and Casey traded victories at the 16th and 17th but the top seed still went in three up at the half-way stage.
After a quick lunch in an effort to fit in the day’s play, the pair halved all five of their next holes before Casey finally forged a commanding five-hole lead with wins at the 24th and 26th and looked set to book a quarter-final place. However, Kelly – the lowest seeded player at the event did not roll over and produced pinpoint golf to take the next three holes – to surprise the crowd and cut Casey’s lead to two as conditions finally improved at Wentworth.
The Englishman then steadied the ship by winning the 31st to need just one hole for victory. But again Kelly refused to lie down, playing with precision to claim the following two holes as Casey’s title defence again looked uncertain – but the top seed finally sealed victory at the 34th to set up a quarter-final with US Open champion Angel Cabrera.
Cabrera had a surprisingly easier passage to the next round after he beat Retief Goosen 6 & 5 in the second match.
In a closely fought first 18 holes, it was the South African who took the lead after sinking his second shot to win the par three second and then the fourth as the fog crept back across the course. The Argentinian rallied and pulled back the eighth and 11th to go all square and the two traded wins at the 12th and 14th before Cabrera took the lead for the first time – and never lost it – by claiming the 16th, then the 17th for a two-hole half-way advantage.
After a quick turnaround, the Argentine began to show some superb form and broke away, taking the 20th and 22nd for a four-hole lead. Goosen hit a birdie two to take the 23rd, but it was the last hole he was to claim as Cabrera took the 26th, 29th – and finally the 31st for a comprehensive victory.
One of the day’s biggest upsets was in match three, where unfavoured American Hunter Mahan beat an out-of-sorts Justin Rose 5 & 4.
The fifth seed never led in a match he was favourite to win as Mahan took the first hole on a bogey as Rose double-bogeyed in the mist, and the American quickly went two up after three as the Englishman found the bunker. The two traded holes as Rose squared the match at the tenth and then the 14th, but a late run saw Mahan go in two up at the break – despite a 60-foot second-shot putt setting Rose up to take the 18th.
The fifth seed parred the 19th to reduce American’s lead to one but then bogeyed the 21st, missed a sitter at the 22nd to see the hole halved, then again missed from four feet at the 24th as Mahan held on to a three-hole advantage. Rose rallied to take the 26th, but the 12th seed claimed the 28th, 31st and then the 32nd hole to run out a comfortable winner.
Mahan will face Soren Hansen in the next round as the Dane beat fourth seed Rory Sabbatini 4 & 3 in tightly-fought fourth match.
The two played cat-and-mouse for the first 18, though it was the South African who went into the lunch break with a one-hole lead. Sabbatini “shanked” his second shot at the 18th but finished with a fortunate lie and, though Hansen also pulled back a wayward tee-shot as both players took five, the hole was halved as Sabbatini finished one up.
However, despite the South African going two ahead after the 19th, the second session belonged to Hansen. The Dane found his form and began to pick up holes to turn the match around, and was three up by the 29th – before finally clinching the 33rd for victory.
The day’s other surprise result saw Dane Anders Hansen knock out Open Champion and European Order of Merit leader Padraig Harrington.
The first hole proved ominous as Hansen swiftly took it, though the Irishman levelled at the fourth. The Dane then took a two-hole lead with the eighth and ninth, before Harrington sank a wonderful putt at the 10th to lie just one behind. But Hansen forged ahead to lead by three with wins at the 15th and 16th, though Padraig reduced the deficit at the 17th.
However, the Dane’s form gathered momentum in the afternoon session to see him go three ahead after 19, and every time Harrington pulled back a hole, the Dane went further ahead. Hansen went four ahead at the 24th, and then five at the 30th. Yet never-say-die Harrington took the 31st to snatch the match back from the brink, and sensational play saw him escape from the rough to take the 33rd to cut Hansen’s lead to three.
However, the cool Dane thwarted any chances of a headline-grabbing comeback to take the 34th and beat the much-fancied Harrington 4 & 2.
Bad light stopped play at crucial times in match six – after Woody Austin took the 35th to leave his cliffhanger encounter with Henrik Stenson all square – and match seven, where Niclas Fasth lies two up against Andres Romero with four to play, after a thrilling see-saw contest. Play will resume in both matches at 08:00 on Friday to decide who will face Anders Hansen in the third quarter-final – and Ernie Els, who knocked out Scot Colin Montgomerie.
Second seed and six-time winner Els was in sublime form as he inflicted the 6 & 5 defeat on an ill-at-ease Monty.
Els, a Wentworth resident, took the first before his opponent promptly levelled with a birdie. The trade in victories was repeated at the fourth and fifth before Els broke the pattern by winning both the sixth and seventh – then the ninth – for a three-hole lead. This became four after Monty hit his tee shot into the trees at the 15th, though he claimed back the 16th. However, Els took the 17th and holed a six-foot putt at the 18th to take a commanding five-hole half-way lead.
The Scot made a promising start to the second session by taking the 19th to pull Els’ lead back to four, but he then lost the 20th, 21st and 22nd to fall seven behind. There was a ray of hope for Monty as he pulled back the 23rd and 26th to lie five behind – yet this was short-lived as Els won the 29th, and wrapped up victory when the 31st was halved.
Source – HSBC
