GOLF:THIS IS a time of the year when players with mere European Tour cards tend to live in the shadows, as only those privileged enough to possess places in the top-50 of the world rankings and such like compete in the megabucks World Golf Championships.
As such, with the Accenture a fortnight ago and this week’s Cadillac championship siphoning the elite players away, there has been a three-week hiatus from regular events on the European Tour.
In actual fact, the regular tour only clicks back into gear with next week’s Sicilian Open, where Shane Lowry, who suffered a fracture to the scaphoid bone in his wrist in a fall over the winter, will belatedly kick-start his season.
The three-week break in tournaments in Europe – whilst only those qualified for the WGCs competed in the United States – has eased the pain somewhat for the Offalyman as he finally recuperated from the injury.
In fact, Lowry, who was advised to rest completely for a month after sustaining the injury last December before commencing intensive physiotherapy, is “almost 100 per cent” and has spent a couple of weeks in Dubai sharpening his game ahead of returning to the tour in the inaugural Sicilian Open, which will be the first of a three-week run that also takes in events in Spain and Morocco.
Although Lowry missed out on the Middle East swing in January and February, which he has described as “unfortunate,” his priority was to ensure he was fit and healthy on his return.
“I am happy my progress has been good. I was very conscious not to rush things and do any further damage,” said Lowry, who has slipped to 193rd in the world rankings, having occupied a place in the top-80 last August.
Lowry, who added the Sicilian Open into his schedule after the enforced absences through injury ruled out the Gulf Swing which ran from Abu Dhabi to Dubai, hasn’t played competitively since the Hong Kong Open last November.
Meanwhile, 16-year-old Lisa Maguire’s win in the Spanish Amateur Open championship has moved her to the top of the European qualifying table for the Junior Solheim Cup, which takes place at Knightsbrook in Trim, Co Meath, in September.
The event traditionally forms part of the build-up to the Solheim Cup proper – which this year will be held at Killeen Castle in Dunsany, Co Meath – and Lisa, along with twin sister Leona, was on the team which played against the United States in Chicago in 2009.
Lisa’s win in the prestige Spanish championship has catapulted her to number one in the Junior Solheim rankings with Leona, who earlier this year was a runaway winner of the Portugese strokeplay, currently in third position.
Leona, though, is the number one ranked women’s amateur player in Europe.
Luke Donald has been named the European Tour’s Golfer of the Month for February after his astonishing victory in the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship in Arizona.
