Els remains on track for seventh HSBC title
BY iseekgolf.com | European PGA Tour | 2007 HSBC World Match Play Championship | Round Two | 13 Oct 2007
Henrik Stenson finally prevailed over Woody Austin by one hole on Friday morning after bad light had stopped the first-round match the previous evening on a cliffhanger – after the American had taken the 35th to square the tie.
The cat-and-mouse contest saw Stenson take a five-hole lead after the 13th, but the flamboyantly dressed American rallied, pulling back the 14th, 15th, 17th, and 18th – after hitting his second shot into the hospitality suites but getting a free drop – to ensure the half-way lead was just two.
Austin continued his good form in the afternoon session, taking the 20th and 26th to twice go within one of his opponent. Stenson won the 29th and 30th to regain a three-hole lead, but Woody refused to concede. The American clawed back the 33rd, 34th, and 35th – after Stenson had surprisingly opted to continue play in fading light – to finish all square as darkness fell across the West Course.
However, Stenson holed a birdie four at the 36th on Friday morning to wrap up victory and set up an all-Scandinavian final with Anders Hansen.
Ernie Els continued his quest for a seventh World Match Play title with a dominant 6 & 5 quarter-final victory over Andres Romero.
The South African was never behind and took the lead with a 40-foot putt to birdie the first, and then immediately went two up. Romero reclaimed the third after Els bogeyed to reduce the lead to one, and repeated the feat at the sixth then the tenth. However, the Big Easy made his lead a four-hole advantage by taking the 13th, after Romero missed a six-foot putt, and putted from 15 feet for a birdie at the 14th.
The Big Easy extended his lead to five straight after lunch by taking the 19th, though Romero won his first hole since the 10th as he clinched the 26th to reduce Els’ lead to five. However, the revival was short-lived as the South African sank a stunning putt to win the 31st and set up a semi-final with Henrik Stenson.
Andres Romero came from three holes down to beat Niclas Fasth 3 & 2 on Friday after bad light had stopped play the night before with the Argentinian lying two up with four to play. After a neck-and-neck start, Fasth pulled away and sank a superb 35-foot putt at the 10th to go three up. However, the 25-year-old Argentine fought back, taking the 15th and 16th, but missed a 20-foot putt by inches as the experienced Swede took the 18th for a two-shot lead at the half-way stage.
After a close start to the afternoon’s play, Romero took the 22nd, 23rd, and led for the first time in the time by clinching the 24th. Fasth squared it in the 25th, but Romero hit back to take the next two for a two-hole lead, and the pair called it a night on the 33rd hole as the light faded over the West Course.
Play restarted on Friday morning and Romero quickly sealed victory on the 33rd to set up a last-eight fixture with six-time winner Ernie Els.
Defending champion Paul Casey is out of the HSBC World Match Play Championship after an inspired performance by Angel Cabrera saw the US Open champion triumph 4 & 3 in the first quarter-final.
The quick-starting Argentinian led from the first as Casey was forced to take a drop shot and missed the green on the tricky 473-yard par-four. He railled to square it at the second, but Cabrera produced an eagle to take the third and then sealed the fourth with a birdie for a three-shot lead.
The Englishman seemed unruffled and took the next three holes to level, but Cabrera forged ahead at the 11th in a technically superb match which had already seen six birdies and an eagle. Casey clinched the 12th and, with a mixture of luck and judgement, led for the first – and only – time by taking the 15th before Cabrera began to take control.
The Argentinian won the 16th and 17th to lead by one at the turn, but he pulled away on the second round, winning the 19th, 26th, 27th and 29th to go five up. Casey – who had yet to be defeated at this tournament – produced a moment of magic to hole a 26-foot putt at the 31st to cling on. But the Englishman missed a putt at the 33rd as Cabrera triumphed to set up a semi-final with surprise last-four contender Hunter Mahan.
Debutant Hunter Mahan continued to wreak mayhem with the odds as the victor over Justin Rose repeated the feat with a comprehensive 6 & 4 drubbing of Dane Soren Hansen.  The American – a 25-1 outsider before the tournament – was never behind and took the first with a birdie three. Hansen, who levelled only on the third, failed to take his chances, as Mahan picked up victories and went five up after 13. Hansen finally won his second hole by sinking a birdie three at the 16th, then the 18th with a birdie four to go in three down at the turn.
Mahan started the second session brightly, taking the 19th to regain a four-hole lead, though Hansen hit cut this to three with a birdie three at the 24th. Mahan then sealed the 26th, 27th and 30th for a six-hole lead and all but condemn Hansen’s last-four chances.
The Dane pulled the 31st back from the death but Mahan clinched victory on the next hole with a birdie to set up a semi-final with Angel Cabrera.
Sweden’s Henrik Stenson thrashed Anders Hansen 7 & 6 in the all-Scandinavian quarter-final – despite the Dane hitting a stunning hole-in-one on the 28th.
Hansen started well, almost hitting an ace on the fifth, but was always behind from the seventh as Stenson clinically dominated a match in which he hit 11 birdies and just one bogey, and led by four at the turn.
The Swede went five clear after taking the 20th with a birdie two, though Hansen claimed one of only two second-round holes, at the 22nd, to reduce the deficit to four. However, Stenson clinched the 25th and 27th to go eight clear before there was brief joy for Hansen, as he finished the 28th with his crowd-pleasing 184-yard ace to win a car.
The result, however, was never in doubt, as Stenson took the 30th to seal a last-four encounter with Wentworth resident Ernie Els.
Source – HSBC
