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Tue, 1st Mar 2005 A total of 260 amateurs from 14 countries from Europe, N. & S. America and Africa, played in the 72-hole 'TAP (Air Portugal) Open' on the Vilamoura Laguna, Millennium and Pinhal courses as well as the nearby Vila Sol layout. This year there were particularly large contingents from Switzerland (70), and South Africa (60). The former once again included Georges Galay - now 88 years old - showing that age is no obstacle in taking part. Former lady skiing champion, Ingrid Gutzwiller from Austria played in the event for the first time and promised to return. The ladies prize went to local player Lurdes Cerol and John Coelho from the U.S.A. succeeded in taking the overall men's trophy. Following on the success of U.S. amateurs in Algarve events, 49-year-old pro Bob Boyd from Magnolia Greens Golf Plantation in N. Carolina and former PGA Tour player, won the PGA European Seniors Tour Qualifying School held at the Vale da Pinta course, near Carvoeiro. Boyd, who scored a record-equaling tally of 265 (19 under par) won by 7 strokes, but he must now wait until he completes the age of 50 next July to be able to play on the Tour. His impressive display over the 72 holes included only a single bogey, 4 holes from the end, and three missed greens in regulation. The remaining 7 qualifiers who earned their cards to play on the 2005 'Seniors Tour' were Englishmen Kevin Spurgeon, Gordon Townhill and Martin Foster, the Americans Rex Caldwell and Lee Carter, Spaniard Emilio Rodriguez and Frenchman Jean Pierre Sallat. The qualifiers placed 9th to 16th were assured provisional cards. Although Nigel Mansell scored 74 in his first round at the Penina pre-qualifying event, his 2nd round 78 unfortunately fell short of the total required to play in the finals at Vale da Pinta. A 13-year-old Portuguese girl, Maria Moreira da Silva, the youngest ever to pass a Royal & Ancient's rules test anywhere, attended the Penina 36-hole pre-qualifying event to gain experience as a future referee. Maria decided to study the rules of golf after being given an incorrect decision at a tournament and took part in a rules seminar near Lisbon earlier this year. |
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Tue, 1st Mar 2005 The 13th International 'Portuguese Senior Ladies Amateur' competition was held on three of the Vilamoura courses during the last week in January. Although the sunny Algarve weather prevailed throughout the 3-day event week, a cold north wind brought early morning frost on the final day, especially at the Vilamoura Old Course, making it seem more like its St. Andrews counterpart, temperature-wise. The field of 140 players from several European countries was split into four handicap divisions (Scratch to 6; 6.1 – 12.0; 12.1 – 18.0 and 18.1 – 24.0). A total of 15 of these senior ladies were playing off handicaps of 5 or under, including French sisters-in-law Cecilia (0.1) and Florence Mourgue d'Algue (4.2). The format for the 1st day competitions was better-ball pairs with Spanish duo Isabel Lorenzano and Beatriz Ramirez de Hero winning the gross prize in the 1st Category (two lower handicap divisions) scoring 71 at Laguna. The best net (65) was returned by Joan Broady and Linda Bennet (UK). As for the 2nd Category better-ball competition held at Vilamoura Old Course, Adeleide Lezana Leguizamon and Isabel Martinez Cubells (Spain) carded 85 to win the gross whilst Conceicao Alves do Rio and Teresa Negrao took the net prize with a score of 69. The closing event was a 36-hole stroke-play individual competition, with Cecilia Mourgue d'Algue - a member at Quinta da Ria, near Tavira in the Algarve - scoring a magnificent one over par 147 gross to win the 1st handicap division by 11 strokes. In the 2nd, 3rd and 4th divisions, the winning gross scores were returned by Luise van den Bergue, who also won the super senior prize, Adeleide L. Leguizamon and Marion Zielke respectively. |
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Victoria Tue, 1st Mar 2005 On 29th January, one of the largest and outstanding annual charity event in the Algarve chose the Vilamoura's new Victoria as it competition course. Thanks to the generosity of the tournament participants, companies all over Portugal and Gala dinner guests, a magnificent sum of about € 60,000 was raised. The proceeds went to the Loule charity, Existir, who are involved with aiding and rehabilitating disabled and underprivileged people. The main winners in the better-ball pairs golf event were the father and son team of Manuel and Jose Candido Oliveira with a net score of 42 Stableford points, followed by Elmo and Lynn D'Souza (40) and Fernando and Lurdes Serpa (39). |
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Palmares Tue, 1st Mar 2005 Palmares held their well-known annual Almond Blossom Championship week in early February with brilliant sunshine throughout, although unusual frost welcomed the early starters. Golfers who were able to master the lightning fast undulating greens topped the leader-boards in the four separate tournaments, and the overall winners therefore deserved their well won prizes. In the opening competition William Milliken won the men's prize with 43 Stableford points, and Dra. Maria de Lourdes Cerol (35 points) was the leading lady. This was followed by a Stableford better-ball pairs event which was won by Ed Aldiss and Julio Pires with 44 points. The names of Candido de Oliveira Sr. and Jr., keep appearing in the winners lists at Algarve golf events and this was no exception as they took top spot in Thursday's aggregate Stableford competition played off 3/4 handicap. They amassed an impressive 67 points to coast into first place by 6 points. In the culminating Palmares Golf Trophy, a stroke-play tournament played off the championship tees, Julio Pires was the overall winner with 67 strokes net, with Alan Winstanley taking 1st place gross after carding 73 strokes (2 over par). The ladies' prizes went to Kornelia Troyer (2nd division, 70 net) and Maria Keupers (1st division, 69 net), and the men's 1st and 2nd division winners were Doug Gilchrist (73) and Alex Winstanley (74). |
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Boavista Tue, 1st Mar 2005 The 3rd 'John Aldridge Celebrity Charity Golf Classic' was held at Boavista Golf in Lagos on the 4th and 6th. This event was held to raise much needed money for 3 children's charities, one each in the Algarve, in Dublin and John's home town, Liverpool. By special request this year a donation was also made to benefit two young Liverpuddlian sisters, Chloe and Jamie-Lee Lathom, who lost their mother to serious illness and their dad as a result of a road accident. Main sponsor Oceanico fielded six teams and it was their representatives from the U.S.A. plus celebrity Vince Earl from Channel 4’s Brookside, that led the way after day one with a score of 92 points. This was closely followed by local team Kelly’s Heroes (T. Cash, P. Pope, S. Hyams and A. Sequeira) sponsored by Kelly's Bar in Praia da Luz, and last years winners, The Rednecks, led by ex-Liverpool defender Nigel Spackman, both teams scoring 89 Points. Although 'Kelly's Heroes' increased their day 1 score by 91 points to finish on 180, it was the U.S. visitors who maintained the edge and emerged as victors on 185 points. In 3rd place was another local team of G. Warton, B. Hawkins, S. Tanner and R. Price with 177. In the individual competition the winning celebrity was David Speedie on 73 points, but special mention should be made of the best non-celebrity, Brian Hickey who scored a superb 78 points playing-off a handicap of 1. |
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Penina Championship Tue, 1st Mar 2005 Le Meridien Penina staged the 10th Henry Cotton Team Trophy on the 26th-27th with 21 four-player teams taking part. Included were teams from clubs with which Sir Henry in his lifetime had close connections, such as Temple, Ashridge and the Penina itself. The team comprising PGA European Tour staff, Ian Barker, James Finnigan, Gary Tait and M. Lichtenhein, cruised to victory with a total of 165 better-ball Stableford points, nine ahead of local team, GMDA, with the Le Meridien team a further point behind in 3rd place. The best individual prize for golf writers playing in the tournament went to Jeremy Elmwood with a score of 72 points. |
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Tue, 1st Mar 2005 Craig Parry - (Australia) Heineken Classic Royal Melbourne - Victoria - Australia - 3rd to 6th February, 2005 Australian Craig Parry defeated Nick O'Hern at the fourth hole of a sudden-death play-off to win the Heineken Classic at Melbourne after the pair finished tied on 14 under par on 270. Craig Parry climbed 27 places to Nº 38 while O'Hern moved from Nº 47 to a career high position of Nº 30. |
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Tue, 1st Mar 2005 Niclas Fasth - (Sweden) Holden New Zealand Open Gulf Harbour - Auckland - New Zealand - 10th to 13th February, 2005 Swedish Niclas Fasth was involved in a playoff with Englishman Miles Tunnicliff in order to win the New Zealand Open in Auckland on the European Tour. A good four strokes behind was Australians Richard Green and Simon Nash. |
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Tue, 1st Mar 2005 Thongchai Jaidee - (Thailand) Carlsberg Malaysian Open Saujana - Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia - 17th to 20th February, 2005 Thailand golfer Thongchai Jaidee successfully defended the Carlsberg Malaysian Open. A closing two under par 70 gave him a 21 under par total of 267, three clear of India's Jyoti Randhawa with Sweden's Henrik Stenson, both a further shot adrift. Thongchai Jaidee climbed to Nº 58 with a move up of 32 places. |
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Tue, 1st Mar 2005 David Toms - (USA) WGC - Accenture Match Play La Costa - Carlsbad - California - USA - 23rd to 27th February, 2005 American golfer David Toms beat Chris DiMarco to this victory in the WGC Accenture Match Play in Carlsbad in the USA. Fellow American golfer Tiger Woods who arrived with the intention of winning his third WGC Accenture Match Play failed in his attempt being placed seventeenth at the end of play. |
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