European Tour: Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship

First topic message reminder :

Hi Folks

I have no time to write a proper article but it seems odd we have nowhere to discuss this.

Here is the leaderboard

http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2012/tournamentid=2012004/leaderboard/index.html


Seems board favourites hateful Tiger and numb skull mcilroy have got off to good starts.

Good to see the worlds best back in the same event and I for one am looking forward to being able to watch this over the weekend.

Sand

The caddie gets an A+ for sure, I think Rock was initially thinking of playing it as it lay.

Great win for Rock. Always thought he had a sweet swing. Woods not back yet but obviously getting there. Bet McIlroy is regretting that two-shot penalty....

Enjoyed that really pleased for him.gang of us watched at the golf club.
Bit confused on 18 about the drop .I thought it was a lateral hazard but good work from the caddie.Two 4 irons and a wedge would have been good but thats not the way these guys play it.
Top 50 and the masters has to be the target now.

BBC reporting that Darren Clarke has fired his caddie, John Mulrooney, with whom he won The Open.
Must be something to do with the no-Guinness fitness regime.

Or something to do with not being able to achieve the so called 'less putts than pints' target that DC has been struggling to reach again after winning the Open...

Rory McIlroy's comment on Twitter is polite and measured - acknowledges that the 2 shot penalty cost him without having a stroppy rant, and offers congrats to Rocky.

Coincidentally, I've just seen this having read through a piece "by" him in Golf World (although it strangely says "words by John Huggan"; definitely doesn't read like Huggy so am inclined to believe it is on behalf of / endorsed by Rory).

Am pleasantly surprised that he says he knows he sometimes says things before thinking through, and even expresses regret about both the Jay Townsend spat and his negative comments about The Open (on meteorological grounds). And the daft tree root shot at the US PGA.

Maybe he's growing up. Maybe it's the new PR machine. Whatever, I feel I like him a bit more than I did yesterday.

But still happier that Robert Rock won!

The Rockmeister getting plenty of good column inches and deservedly so.
Saw a couple of mates last night from different clubs and it appears every golf club in the midlands had a crowd around the TV.Rob spent a lot of seasons playing all the proams in Midlands PGA even when on tour he would pitch up whenever he could.I think it was 1996 he played our Midland Open and gave a little speech after about playing in the Open that year(Birkdale?)and mentioned standing next to Tiger on the practice range.
How things move on

Sorry 2006

Anyone know why Sean Foley probably didnt mind too much that Rock piped Tiger to the title?

Sean thinks that Rock has one of the best swings out there, has studied it for years and last year at the Open they both confessed a bit of man love for each other.

Interesting point.
I was thinking that he(rock) plays a lot of putts 'dead weight'and left a couple an inch short on Sunday but maybe the theory is that the lack of pace means the hole collects the ball more often.Old adage to knock it 18 inch past may not be correct.
Have to think that a couple more decent weeks would get him into the masters visa permitting of course.

dyna
I was learned that one about 50 years ago.
Dead weight putts have about 5" of the hole as a target, forced putts have about 2"

Thats where I have been going wrong for the last 30 years.I think part of the problem is that you tend to get cross if you leave one an inch or two short wheras mentally if it loops around the hole you are thinking good effort.I shall try it this weekend.
Rob is very thorough so maybe deliberate

It's not the complete argument though is it? Dead weight putts have 5'' as a target, overhit ones have 2'', but underhit ones don't have anything to target. That's the reasoning for hitting it a bit harder. Trying to judge your pace to finish about 2'' past the whole is what I usually aim for.