Poulter and other Ryder Cup stars miss the cut
Kiradech Aphibarnrat from Thailand shot an impressive opening round of 8-under par 64 in the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, Virginia Water, Surrey on Thursday, 9 September. But he wasn’t the only star in the PGA’s leading tournament. South African Christiaan Bezuidenhout rose to the challenge too by producing back-to-back birdies on the last two holes to draw even with Aphibarnrat.
Padraig Harrington also has a keen interest in the BMW PGA Championship. The Captain of Ryder Cup Team Europe is also playing at Wentworth and has earmarked this event as the deciding factor for his three wild card picks for the team. Will Harrington be tempted by England’s Ian Poulter (pictured) whose ball sploshed agonisingly into the greenside water at the 18th on day two? He had just missed a short birdie putt on the hole before. But he was undeterred in front of the mass of crowds down the last, and dropped his ball out of the water only to then cooly hole the chip for birdie. Jubilation but sadness too. Poulter missed the weekend cut by one stroke.
Who will be Harrington’s three wild card picks? “Mr Ian Poulter Ryder Cup” must surely be in the mix for Harrington’s announcement on Sunday evening.
Dutchman Joost Luiten has long been in search of a Ryder Cup invitation. He opened at Wentworth with a promising 68 for a top-10 start but alas let things slip on day two with a level par round. But at least he is still in the running for the weekend. Let’s think positive for the player from Rotterdam.
The grizzly cut on day two
The projected cut for the BMW PGA Championship was 2-under par. A damp day greeted the players on Friday who were desperate to leave their mark on the 7,267 yard course in Surrey.
The 32-year old four time winner on the European Tour Kiradech Aphibarnrat produced a super second round at Wentworth by adding a 4-under par score to his opening 8-under. After a level par second round the co-leader Bezuidenhout slipped down to a share of 7th place. The challenge for the field is to get ahead of Aphibarnrat’s halfway lead of 12-under par. Now with seven birdies on the back nine on day one, and one on the front nine, and not a single bogey in sight, that is a mighty challenge for the best players in the world.
So who are the at the top of the world list? The halfway cut saw an interesting mix of players. Indeed, six continents were represented in the top 16. Here is how the top-10 looked:
Leader: Kiradech Aphibarnrat (Thailand) – 12; 2. Laurier Canter (England) – 11; 3. Adam Scott (Australia) – 10; T4. Jamie Donaldson (Wales), Justin Rose (England) and Billy Horschel (USA) – 9; 7. Masahiro Kawamura (Japan), Fabrizio Zanotti (Paraguay), Thomas Pieters (Belgium) and Christiaan Bezuidenhout – 8.
Alas, ten players missed the weekend cut by one stroke. Among them were three Englishmen, BMW PGA defending champion Tyrrell Hatton, Ian Poulter and Luke Donald. One-under par was just one stroke too few for these potential Ryder Cup stars, but will a wild card secure their future in the team in two weeks’ time?
It’s halfway through the tournament at Wentworth. Can Aphibarnrat hang on to his lead for another 36 holes? Saturday is moving day. The players are all desperately hungry for victory in the BMW PGA Championship which began way back in 1972 when England’s Tony Jacklin lifted the trophy.
Wendy Hoad
MAIN PHOTOGRAPH: England’s Ian Poulter holed his chip shot at the final hole for birdie. Alas he has missed the cut at Wentworth by one stroke but will he get a wild card into the Ryder Cup team in two weeks’ time?