Part two: A tale of the rising and falling in the ranks of golf
Continued….
Lee Westwood worked on his swings and made a huge comeback, which was reckoned by the golf world. This recognition earned him the top most spot
of the world rankings.
The next player who surprised and entertained the world was Martin Kaymer. The German won four titles including the Professional Golf Association
Championship in 2010 and became the next Bernhard Langer in golf. The 25-year-old worked his way up and after six years of turning professional conquered the world-number-one spot. He overthrew Westwood after finishing second in the WGC-Accenture Match Play
Championship.
Next to Kaymer was the Northern Irishman, who claimed three titles in 2010, finished second in the Race to Dubai and became the man responsible
for the great triumph in the Ryder Cup. Apart from winning the tournaments, the 31-year-old was named ‘Golfer of the Year’. In courtesy to all these achievements, McDowell surged up and became the world-number-four.
Graeme demonstrated skills in short game, which were soon reckoned by another player from Northern Ireland. Rory McIlroy was another teen prodigy,
who earned a place at the eight spot after winning the Quail Hallow Championship.
McIlroy was seen fighting the undulating fairways of link-styled courses in Scotland. His prowess earned recognition in the opening round of Open
Championship, where he smashed a 63; the lowest score ever recorded in the history of the Open Championship.
The 21-year-old was chosen by Colin Montgomerie for the 12-man team in 2010 and proved as an asset. He became a source of energy for the team of
veterans, which eventually proved fruitful.
Another player who surged up in recent times was yet another Englishman. Ian Poulter who is known for his vivid style of dressing and tweets won
the Accenture Match Play Championship in 2010, which eventually earned him a spot in the Ryder Cup too. The early success took him to Hong Kong, where he posted his second victory and became the 13th
most successful golfer.
All these successful punters shared the same style of golf: All have a short game, which means they have outstanding on the greens. The reason behind
the fixed-style weighs back to the region they belong. Europe is the land of link-styled courses, where devising strategies to reach the green safely and earning a birdie is the essentiality of the game.
Whereas, on the other side of the Atlantic, a certain amount of preference is given to long hitters, thereby, nearly all the top 10 Americans on
the Official World Golf Rankings are prone towards long game.
Steve Stricker, Bubba Watson, and Matt Kuchar are three names aligned after Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. All of the five punters top the stats
in driving with Watson in the lead. Watson finished second in the money list of 2010 with 314.8-average in driving distance.
Despite hitting the longest tee shots, the players from this side of the Atlantic failed to capture the highest four spots in the world. Ironically,
one man (Woods) who did a long time back, slipped off the rankings in a span of five months, and gave way to the predators for an open attack.
After looking at the picture, it seems, the Americans need to rework on their putting skill and short game or else, the Europeans are here to stay.
Part two: A tale of the rising and falling in the ranks of golf
Continued….
Lee Westwood worked on his swings and made a huge comeback, which was reckoned by the golf world. This recognition
earned him the top most spot of the world rankings.
The next player who surprised and entertained the world was Martin Kaymer. The German won four titles including the
Professional Golf Association Championship in 2010 and became the next Bernhard Langer in golf. The 25-year-old worked his way up and after six years of turning professional conquered the world-number-one spot. He overthrew Westwood after finishing second
in the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship.
Next to Kaymer was the Northern Irishman, who claimed three titles in 2010, finished second in the Race to Dubai and
became the man responsible for the great triumph in the Ryder Cup. Apart from winning the tournaments, the 31-year-old was named ‘Golfer of the Year’. In courtesy to all these achievements, McDowell surged up and became the world-number-four.
Graeme demonstrated skills in short game, which were soon reckoned by another player from Northern Ireland. Rory McIlroy
was another teen prodigy, who earned a place at the eight spot after winning the Quail Hallow Championship.
McIlroy was seen fighting the undulating fairways of link-styled courses in Scotland. His prowess earned recognition
in the opening round of Open Championship, where he smashed a 63; the lowest score ever recorded in the history of the Open Championship.
The 21-year-old was chosen by Colin Montgomerie for the 12-man team in 2010 and proved as an asset. He became a source
of energy for the team of veterans, which eventually proved fruitful.
Another player who surged up in recent times was yet another Englishman. Ian Poulter who is known for his vivid style
of dressing and tweets won the Accenture Match Play Championship in 2010, which eventually earned him a spot in the Ryder Cup too. The early success took him to Hong Kong, where he posted his second victory and became the 13th
most successful golfer.
All these successful punters shared the same style of golf: All have a short game, which means they have outstanding
on the greens. The reason behind the fixed-style weighs back to the region they belong. Europe is the land of link-styled courses, where devising strategies to reach the green safely and earning a birdie is the essentiality of the game.
Whereas, on the other side of the Atlantic, a certain amount of preference is given to long hitters, thereby, nearly
all the top 10 Americans on the Official World Golf Rankings are prone towards long game.
Steve Stricker, Bubba Watson, and Matt Kuchar are three names aligned after Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. All of
the five punters top the stats in driving with Watson in the lead. Watson finished second in the money list of 2010 with 314.8-average in driving distance.
Despite hitting the longest tee shots, the players from this side of the Atlantic failed to capture the highest four
spots in the world. Ironically, one man (Woods) who did a long time back, slipped off the rankings in a span of five months, and gave way to the predators for an open attack.
After looking at the picture, it seems, the Americans need to rework on their putting skill and short game or else,
the Europeans are here to stay.