Graeme McDowell and his caddie Ken Comboy won’t be at Sherwood Country Club this year, Picture by golffile.ieGraeme McDowell has enough on his plate trying to survive another week in the FedEx Cup play-offs without thinking about the end of November.
Nevertheless, if he could get hold of Tiger Woods he’d tell him directly that he won’t be defending the Chervon World Challenge title he stole from under the host’s nose at Sherwood Country Club last year.
Graeme McDowell dented Tiger Woods’ battered reputation a little more with his play-off win over golf’s fallen idol in the Chevron World Challenge.
But the Portrush star still ensured himself a place on the 14-time major winner’s Christmas card list when he insisted that it isn’t the end of an aura for the former world No 1. Only time will tell if he was being kind or prescient.
Graeme McDowell celebrates after what proved to be the winning putt at the Chevron World Challenge.Graeme McDowell spectacularly birdied the 18th hole twice in a row to deny Tiger Woods his first win for more than a year and win the Chevron World Challenge at the first hole of a heart-stopping sudden death play-off.
“It’s the stuff of dreams — 2010 has been the stuff of dreams,” McDowell said.
Woods tweeted: “Really hate losing, Graeme did what he needed to do to win and I didn’t.”
Graeme McDowell surged back in the world's top 50 and secured an early Masters invitation when he finished a stroke behind Jim Furyk in the $5.75m Chevron World Challenge.
Standing in for absent host Tiger Woods, McDowell needed to hole his second shot at Sherwood's 18th to tie with Furyk, who posted a final round 67 to set the 13 under par target.
Graeme McDowell has set his sights on securing his Masters invitation before Christmas after a six-under 66 gave him a share the lead with US PGA champion Y.E. Yang going into the final round of the US$5.75 million Chevron World Challenge in California.
The pair lead by a shot on 10 under par from Padraig Harrington and Lee Westwood and world No 55 McDowell knows he has a golden opportunity to take full advantage of his late invitation to replace the beleaguered host Tiger Woods at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks.
"Obviously, a huge blow for the tournament not to have Tiger here," McDowell said. "I feel very fortunate to receive the invite. It was a great opportunity for me."
Like almost every other golf fan on the planet, Padraig Harrington has been engrossed in the drama surrounding Tiger Woods.
But he understands why Woods has pulled out of this week's Chevron World Challenge in Los Angeles and why he may be reluctant to speak about what really happened in Orlando in the early hours last Friday.
Under fire Tiger Woods has been replaced by Northern Ireland’s Graeme McDowell for this week's Chevron World Challenge in California. Barring a clash in next month's WGC-HSBC Champions, we may have to wait until next year to see Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods go head to head.
The Sun City resortWhen the Race to Dubai and the World Cup are over, the Holywood starlet will play for a $1.2m top prize in Sun City's Nedbank Golf Challenge rather than Tiger's clashing Chevron World Challenge in Los Angeles.
The reason McIlroy is not going to California is that he was ranked 24th in the world when the field was set in September and just missed out on an automatic place Tiger's 18-man wheelbarrow race.
King of Europe Padraig Harrington believes he will be better than ever in 2007.
But the Dubliner still rates Europe’s Ryder Cup win at The K Club as the highlight of his year - despite beating Tiger Woods in a play-off and being crowned European No 1 for the first time.
Tiger Woods clinched his 11th title of the year at the Target World Challenge and confessed: This is better than 2000.
The world No 1 has been virtually unstoppable since he missed the cut in the US Open in June - winning eight of his last 11 strokeplay starts, including two majors.
European No 1 Padraig Harrington produced a brilliant back nine performance in California to finish the season on a high.
The Dubliner, 35, crashed to three over par at the turn in the Target World Challenge in California. But he scorched home in four under par 32 to close with a 71 and finish alone in eighth place on five under par.
Padraig Harrington had a topsy-turvy finish to his season as Tiger Woods clinched a four-stroke victory in the Target World Challenge at Sherwood Country Club in California.
The European number one closed with a under par 71, going to the turn in three over par 39 before coming home in 32 to finish in eighth place on five under par.
Padraig Harrington mounted a thrilling comeback in the Target World Challenge last night with a sensational five under par 67 at sun-splashed Sherwood Country Club.
The Dubliner was bitterly disappointed to trail first round leader Henrik Stenson by nine shots after a making a string of mental errors in an opening round of 75.
But scorched through the field with seven birdies and two bogeys to haul himself back into contention for the $1.35 million winner’s cheque in his last event of the season.
Padraig Harrington mounted a thrilling comeback in the Target World Challenge last night with a best of the day, five-under-par 67 at sun-splashed Sherwood Country Club.
The Dubliner was bitterly disappointed to trail first round leader Henrik Stenson by nine shots after a making a string of mental errors in an opening round of 75.
But he was a different animal on another perfect day in the picturesque Hidden Valley as he cut a swathe through the field with seven birdies and two bogeys to move up from 13th to a share of eighth place with Colin Montgomerie and David Toms on two under par.
