Man of the moment stays humble
There’s no doubt who is Europe’s man of the moment going into The Open on Thursday – it’s 24-year-old Martin Kaymer.
There is no doubt who is Europe’s man of the moment going into The Open on Thursday – it has to be 24-year-old Martin Kaymer.
The young German headed to Turnberry from Loch Lomond last night as both the French and Scottish Open champion following an eight-day double worth more than £1million.
Now he will try to become the first player to win three consecutive European Tour titles since Seve Ballesteros in 1986.
There is a big difference, though, and Kaymer knows it – and says so..
Ballesteros captured the Irish, Monte Carlo and French Opens 23 years ago, but the Dusseldorf star said: “Everybody asks me about the third win in a row, but we are playing a major and the field is going to be the best we have all year long.”
“I just might not be ready just yet to take it on
This time, of course, he will have to beat world number one Tiger Woods, one of the few players who have ever done such a hat-trick – 10 years ago when he won the last two events of the US Tour season, then travelled to Spain and added the American Express world championship.
Kaymer is now second on the Race To Dubai money list and a best-ever 11th in the world following his play-off victory over Lee Westwood in Paris and his two-stroke win over France’s Raphael Jacquelin and Spaniard Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano on Sunday, was delighted with his Scottish heroics.
“I think if you win in the home of golf in Scotland it’s always very special,” he continued.
“I struggled after my first two wins (he missed the cut both times), but this week was different. I don’t know why, but just my form I think.
“I’m playing so solid and not making any big mistakes – and my short game is good.
“I’ve never been to Turnberry, but my manager played there a couple of weeks ago and said it’s going to be really, really difficult.
“That’s always good. If you play majors they should be difficult.”
Kaymer had not played any majors until last season and is yet to have a top 50 finish in one, but just to make the cut at Birkdale 12 months ago was no mean effort as it was his first tournament back after his mother died of cancer.
He has failed to go beyond the second round in The Masters and US Open this season, but never has his confidence been as high as it is now.
All his four rounds were in the sixties last week and three of the four were at the French Open, including a course record-equalling 62.
Three behind in joint third place onn Sunday were Dane Soren Kjeldsen and, in a long-awaited return to form, Australian Adam Scott – supported all week by tennis star Ana Ivanovic.
Scott, who said he was not sure if she would be there as well at The Open, has had nothing better than an eighth-placed finish in nine appearances at the event.
Lee Westwood fell back to joint eighth with fellow Englishman Ross Fisher yesterday, but the way he came back from a chest infection to shoot middle rounds of 66 and 64 is the memory he will be trying to focus on at Turnberry.
Rory McIlroy, himself concerned by his iron play as he managed only a share of 46th with Colin Montgomerie, played with Westwood both those days.
“Lee was very, very impressive,” said the 20-year-old northern Irishman. “He could have shot 10 under both days easy and if you have a bit of money put a bit on him.”
As for his own game McIlroy added: “I was just struggling a bit (with his iron play). I wanted to give myself some momentum, but now I’ll have to spend more time practising than I will on the course over the next three days because I want to get it sorted out.”
ALL THE FINAL ROUND SCORES
(Gbr & Irl unless stated, par 71):
269 Martin Kaymer (Ger) 69 65 66 69
271 Gonzalo Fdez-Castano (Spa) 65 70 64 72, Raphael Jacquelin (Fra) 67 72 66 66
272 Soren Kjeldsen (Den) 67 68 67 70, Adam Scott (Aus) 66 67 73 66
273 Nick Watney (USA) 67 68 71 67, Retief Goosen (Rsa) 68 63 69 73
274 Ross Fisher 69 67 71 67, Lee Westwood 73 66 64 71
275 Martin Laird 65 70 69 71
276 Steve Webster 71 70 67 68, Richard Sterne (Rsa) 70 69 67 70
277 Brian Gay (USA) 70 69 65 73, Ernie Els (Rsa) 69 69 67 72, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 69 70 67 71, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 69 70 66 72
278 Jamie Donaldson 69 68 65 76, David Lynn 70 72 65 71, Kenneth Ferrie 67 68 74 69
279 Rodney Pampling (Aus) 68 71 67 73, Oliver Wilson 74 65 70 70, Angel Cabrera (Arg) 69 70 69 71, Camilo Villegas (Col) 69 67 73 70, Graeme Storm 65 76 71 67
280 Anthony Wall 70 69 69 72, Damien McGrane 71 68 73 68, Paul Lawrie 68 72 68 72, Soren Hansen (Den) 67 68 73 72, Mark Foster 68 68 72 72, Marcus Fraser (Aus) 68 66 69 77, Seve Benson 70 72 69 69
281 Jose-Maria Olazabal (Spa) 71 69 69 72, Ian Poulter 69 72 68 72, Thomas Levet (Fra) 70 71 69 71
282 Francesco Molinari (Ita) 67 73 68 74, Brett Rumford (Aus) 68 69 73 72, Richard Green (Aus) 64 72 73 73, Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra) 70 71 66 75, Gregory Bourdy (Fra) 72 70 69 71, Peter O’Malley (Aus) 74 66 69 73
283 Graeme McDowell 70 72 71 70, Darren Clarke 69 69 68 77, Mads Vibe-Hastrup (Den) 69 67 71 76, Paul McGinley 65 71 75 72, Gregory Havret (Fra) 67 70 72 74
284 Gary Orr 70 68 71 75, Rory McIlroy 68 71 72 73, Thomas Aiken (Rsa) 69 66 76 73, Colin Montgomerie 73 69 69 73, Markus Brier (Aut) 69 69 73 73, Pablo Martin (Spa) 69 72 71 72, Stuart Appleby (Aus) 70 68 72 74
285 David Drysdale 67 73 72 73, Alvaro Velasco (Spa) 71 70 75 69, Scott Drummond 70 71 72 72, Thongchai Jaidee (Tha) 69 70 69 77, Christopher Doak 72 68 69 76
286 Gary Lockerbie 69 73 73 71, James Kingston (Rsa) 69 72 67 78, Alejandro Canizares (Spa) 70 69 76 71, Scott Strange (Aus) 70 72 74 70, Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa) 70 69 70 77, Andrew McLardy (Rsa) 68 72 73 73
287 Boo Weekley (USA) 71 70 72 74, Miles Tunnicliff 70 72 72 73, Ross McGowan 67 72 75 73
288 Alexander Noren (Swe) 70 71 74 73, Jason McCreadie 70 67 74 77, John Bickerton 72 69 71 76, Paul Broadhurst 71 71 74 72
289 Sam Little 70 72 72 75
290 Lee Slattery 71 70 73 76, Shane Lowry 69 71 71 79, Oliver Fisher 73 68 72 77
291 Michael Lorenzo-Vera (Fra) 70 72 75 74
292 Nick Dougherty 71 71 74 76
293 Shiv Shankar Prasad Chowrasia (Ind) 73 69 75 76
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