Poults delighted with Ryder bid start

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November 2, 2009

Ian Poulter has made the perfect start in his bid to qualify for a third consecutive Ryder Cup appearance.

Ian Poulter made the perfect start in his bid to qualify for a third consecutive Ryder Cup appearance when he won the Barclays Singapore Open on Sunday.
After a six-week break, Poulter embarked last week on a seven-week stretch of highly lucrative events that started in Singapore and will continue through Shanghai and Hong Kong to Dubai, and after his great start in Singapore must feel the run could go a long way to securing him his place on Colin Montgomerie’s team at Celtic Manor even before the year is over.
His wire-to-wire victory over China’s Liang Wen-chong at Sentosa Golf Club on Sunday has moved Poulterv up to fourth in the Ryder Cup standings.
After claiming his first title since the Dunlop Phoenix in 2007 and first on the European Tour since Madrid the previous year, the 33-year-old will also move into the top 15 in the Race to Dubai and has his sights firmly set on on overhauling the leading trio Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer and Rory McIlroy.
“It’s great to win but there is more to winning right now,” Poulter said.
“It is the right time to win as the Ryder Cup points race has now started and I wanted to come out well over the next seven weeks – five of which are counting for world ranking points and Ryder Cup points – and put as much money on the board as I possibly could.
“I have got off to a great start, of course
“I have got three more tournaments before the Race to Dubai and I would like to think that I can have a chance to push Rory or Lee all the way.
“It’s an exciting few weeks leading to Dubai and I am very much looking forward to getting to Shanghai and staying fresh and working on a few shots which got away from me this week.
“I have got better things to come over the next three weeks, I am only going to get better.
“I have had six weeks off and I removed some cobwebs this week when there were some very promising signs and I am hitting it as good as I have ever hit it.”
Poulter had led the field by five shots at the halfway mark of the weather-interrupted event after following up an opening 66 with a sparkling 64.
And even though he saw that lead erased after just six holes of his third round, and then trailed with six holes of his final round to play, he strode up onto the final green with a one-shot lead.
“It has been a dramatic two days. It has been hard with the stopping and starting, but being five shots in front after 36 holes surprised me a little,” he added.
“I have done a lot of work in the six weeks I had off, but I was looking to ease into the week, not come out with all guns blazing.
“Over the last two days, whether I was distracted, not concentrating or whether I was tired, I found myself dropping silly shots and making this tournament a lot more interesting.”