The year of 2012 has been an absolutely memorable one for golfer Rory McIlroy. He has cemented his place at World Number One in the Official Rankings and the Northern Irishman also won four times in America including a second Major victory at the US PGA Championship.
And earlier this week he was quite rightly voted the player of the year by the PGA Tour leading to congratulatory messages from legends of the game including Jack Nicklaus.
In my view, McIlroy is only going to get better as he develops in the years to come and that is something not just golf fans should be excited about, but sports fans in general. However, it is those in the world of marketing that should be rubbing their hands with glee at the prospect of him being the world's dominant golfer over the next decade.
Golf for many is a sport that is dull and takes far too long to complete. Even casual viewers only regularly turn in for The Open each year due to it being one of the main events of the British sporting summer. Many only tune into the Ryder Cup every two years to try and see us beat the Americans.
There's only a select group of fans and media writers who closely follow the game of golf week in week out every year and are genuinely excited by it. How can that attitude be changed? Step forward the aforementioned Rory McIlroy.
This young man who is only 23 is the most exciting player to come into the golfing world since the emergence of Tiger Woods when he won the Masters by 12 shots in 1997. This sort of remarkable play is commonplace to McIlroy and it is an absolute joy to watch. When he brings his A-game to the course, the rest of the players would be as well staying in the car park.
Let me present exhibit A. The month is April 2011 and the annual Masters tournament is taking place in Augusta. Heading in, McIlroy is in fine form and many were tipping him to break his Major duck (including me). For three days, he played flawless golf, giving him a three shot lead going into the final day. However, the mental toughness needed to win a Major title eluded him as he crumbled on the back nine.
Fast forward to the US Open In June at the notoriously tough Congressional course. Nobody I spoke to gave McIlroy any chance of winning. He was still to fragile they said. The pain of the Masters was still far too raw. What happened next was one of the most breathtaking displays of golf I have ever witnessed, right up there with Tiger Woods in the US Open at Pebble Beach in 2000. McIlroy shot four rounds in the 60's and won the tournament by eight shots.
At this years PGA Championship he shot brilliant weekend rounds of 67 and 66 to win his second Major by eight shots. That's the beauty of McIlroy- when he wins, he wins by massive margins.
For a golfer to be truly special though and a worldwide brand, they have to have more about them than just being a very good player. One of McIlroy's key attributes is where he is from, namely Northern Ireland.
For years, the country has been associated with violence and trouble and sadly this week we are still seeing signs of that. However, McIlroy's success is something everyone in the country should be hugely proud of. To put it in context, Northern Ireland has a population of less than 2 million. The United States of America has a population of well over 300 million.
McIlroy is taking on the world and becoming the very best in his discipline. His good friend Graeme McDowell won the US Open in 2010 and that gave McIlroy a taste for it. For all of his family and friends back in the small town of Holywood in Northern Ireland, his triumphs bring endless smiles. Every time he wins a tournament, he is showing off the country in a good light and that is absolutely wonderful.
Most world renowned sporting stars are often seen with a world renowned woman on their arm as well as they travel the world. Think David Beckham with Victoria. Or Lance Armstrong with Sheryl Crow. Rory's ticked this box as well. Days after he won the US Open, he started going out with Caroline Wozniacki, who has been ranked as the World Number One female tennis player. Just about every week speculation is rife as to whether they will get married or not. His name is always being talked about and not just amongst the golf journalists.
A staggering stat showed that after his US Open success 39% of 18-24 year olds in Britain said they were inspired to take up golf because of his success. I'd doubt many golfers could say the same.
And finally his name has become a brand. Just like Seve in the 80's or Tiger in the 2000's, Rory is a name that is instantly recognisable. People don't need to ask what their surname is. That was shown when Rory was running late for his Ryder Cup singles match back in September. Networks were running with "Rory in late dash to Medinah." Could the networks have done that for anyone else on the European team? I don't think so.
McIlroy has the world at his feet with a £156m contract with Nike set to land his way shortly and if you want a modern indicator as to how big a brand he is just take a look at his Twitter follower count. He currently has over 1.4m people following him.
Golf may never appeal to many people but if McIlroy continues with his superb form, he is going to be very hard to ignore just like Tiger was in his prime.
Thursday 6 December 2012
Monday 12 November 2012
Why the Royal And Ancient Must Change It's Policy on Women
Every year at the end of October Britons put their clocks back an hour as the dark nights set in.
Those who are members of the Royal and Ancient, the men who run the game of golf didn't need to bother.
Their clocks are stuck somewhere in the 1950's to put it mildly.
I am of course referring to the R+A's ludicrous decision to still refuse to accept women into their club.
The R+A must change their ways or face being left behind as the game of golf heads into the depths of the 21st century.
To many, this sounds really simple. And in a lot of ways it is blatant sexism of the highest order.
I have no issue with the fact that private clubs are allowed to make their own decision on who they admit as members, just like many other gentlemen clubs and even the Women's Institute do. I hardly have the power to make the R+A change their mind.
However, I have a major problem as a golf fan with clubs such as St Andrews, Muirfield and Royal Troon hosting The Open championship, one of the world's greatest sporting events when they refuse to admit 50% of the world's population into their clubs.
What sort of message does it send out to women who love one of the world's oldest sports that they are not welcome as members at these courses?
And surely it is ridiculous that the R+A can't even extend their traditional invite to the principal of St Andrews University because the principal is currently a woman?
The attitudes are outdated at best and extremely laughable at worst.
And I am speaking as someone who lives in the town of one of these courses- namely Royal Troon.
I cannot wait for The Open to return to my hometown in 2016. The last time it was here in 2004, I was there every day and it was a magnificent week of sporting viewing.
The course is littered with history, having hosted The Open since 1923 and it is of course home to one of the world's greatest holes in the shape of The Postage Stamp.
Royal Troon can point to the fact that they allow women visitors to play the course and they also have the so-called women's course called The Portland across the road.
But if female visitors come over from say America and love the course and want to join? Forget it.
And the same is true for St Andrews which is commonly dubbed the "Home of Golf".
Pressure has been mounting on those at St Andrews with former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Sports Minister Hugh Robertson and outgoing Olympic chairman Lord Moynihan all saying St Andrews should look at what Augusta National did in April and admit women members.
Augusta admitted former US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and business executive Darla Moore this year.
Now this is a club that didn't even admit a black member until 1990 so you get the idea as to how progressive they are as a golf club.
As Gordon Brown put it: "If the golf club in Augusta can admit women, then shouldn't St Andrews? If they can do it in Georgia can we not do it in Scotland".
It's not often I agree with Brown, but he's absolutely bang on the money there. Scotland has always seen itself as a progressive nation, but the three golf courses in Scotland that are due to next stage The Open are all male-only clubs.
It seems that everyone except those at the top of the R+A can see how out of touch their policy is.
How is it right that in 2012 that I can still joke with a girl on Twitter who posted a picture of her at St Andrews Old Course that "I'm surprised they let you in as a woman."?
She should be freely able to join St Andrews just like every other women in the world should be if they wish to do so.
I won't hold my breath for the R+A to make any dramatic changes. Sadly, most of their members are stuck in the dark ages and genuinely see women as second-class citizens.
What a brilliant bit of PR it would be for the Royal and Ancient to come out and admit even a couple of high-profile Scottish female members.
Let's hope in four years time at Royal Troon I will be able to say women are members of the historic club as well as men in my hometown.
As a golf fan, very few decisions could make me prouder.
Those who are members of the Royal and Ancient, the men who run the game of golf didn't need to bother.
Their clocks are stuck somewhere in the 1950's to put it mildly.
I am of course referring to the R+A's ludicrous decision to still refuse to accept women into their club.
The R+A must change their ways or face being left behind as the game of golf heads into the depths of the 21st century.
To many, this sounds really simple. And in a lot of ways it is blatant sexism of the highest order.
I have no issue with the fact that private clubs are allowed to make their own decision on who they admit as members, just like many other gentlemen clubs and even the Women's Institute do. I hardly have the power to make the R+A change their mind.
However, I have a major problem as a golf fan with clubs such as St Andrews, Muirfield and Royal Troon hosting The Open championship, one of the world's greatest sporting events when they refuse to admit 50% of the world's population into their clubs.
What sort of message does it send out to women who love one of the world's oldest sports that they are not welcome as members at these courses?
And surely it is ridiculous that the R+A can't even extend their traditional invite to the principal of St Andrews University because the principal is currently a woman?
The attitudes are outdated at best and extremely laughable at worst.
And I am speaking as someone who lives in the town of one of these courses- namely Royal Troon.
I cannot wait for The Open to return to my hometown in 2016. The last time it was here in 2004, I was there every day and it was a magnificent week of sporting viewing.
The course is littered with history, having hosted The Open since 1923 and it is of course home to one of the world's greatest holes in the shape of The Postage Stamp.
Royal Troon can point to the fact that they allow women visitors to play the course and they also have the so-called women's course called The Portland across the road.
But if female visitors come over from say America and love the course and want to join? Forget it.
And the same is true for St Andrews which is commonly dubbed the "Home of Golf".
Pressure has been mounting on those at St Andrews with former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Sports Minister Hugh Robertson and outgoing Olympic chairman Lord Moynihan all saying St Andrews should look at what Augusta National did in April and admit women members.
Augusta admitted former US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and business executive Darla Moore this year.
Now this is a club that didn't even admit a black member until 1990 so you get the idea as to how progressive they are as a golf club.
As Gordon Brown put it: "If the golf club in Augusta can admit women, then shouldn't St Andrews? If they can do it in Georgia can we not do it in Scotland".
It's not often I agree with Brown, but he's absolutely bang on the money there. Scotland has always seen itself as a progressive nation, but the three golf courses in Scotland that are due to next stage The Open are all male-only clubs.
It seems that everyone except those at the top of the R+A can see how out of touch their policy is.
How is it right that in 2012 that I can still joke with a girl on Twitter who posted a picture of her at St Andrews Old Course that "I'm surprised they let you in as a woman."?
She should be freely able to join St Andrews just like every other women in the world should be if they wish to do so.
I won't hold my breath for the R+A to make any dramatic changes. Sadly, most of their members are stuck in the dark ages and genuinely see women as second-class citizens.
What a brilliant bit of PR it would be for the Royal and Ancient to come out and admit even a couple of high-profile Scottish female members.
Let's hope in four years time at Royal Troon I will be able to say women are members of the historic club as well as men in my hometown.
As a golf fan, very few decisions could make me prouder.
Tuesday 16 October 2012
Andy Murray V Novak Djokovic: A New Rivalry to Savour
Men's tennis has regularly been blessed with great rivalries since the Open Era began in 1969.
Legendary battles often ensued between Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Similar titanic tussles were witnessed between McEnroe and Ivan Lendl throughout the 1980s.
And men's tennis fans have been spoiled in recent times with fantastic matches on a regular basis between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal whilst Novak Djokovic has also come to the fray in the last couple of years.
2012 has seen a new potential rivalry emerge. That of Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic.
This is a head-to-head that should have got fans talking a long time ago. Both Murray and Djokovic are 25 years old, with Murray having been born a week earlier in May 1987.
Whilst Djokovic won his first Grand Slam in 2008 and then had a remarkable 2011 where he won the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open, the Scot seemed destined to never win a Grand Slam.
He lost his first four grand slam finals between 2008 and 2012, before finally breaking his duck at the US Open last month, where he beat Djokovic in five enthralling sets.
It sealed the culmination of a fantastic summer for Murray where he reached the Wimbledon final and then recovered to win Olympic gold four weeks later.
So why is Murray v Djokovic the next big rivalry in men's tennis?
That aforementioned age of 25 is the key thing. Both men are now entering their physical peak as shown by their matches in which they both never seem to show any signs of poor fitness.
Contrast that to the ageing Roger Federer at 31, who despite being World Number One can't continue to live with the power of Djokovic and Murray for much long than the next 18 months you feel.
And what of Rafa Nadal, the other legendary grand slam champion of the last decade? His knees don't seem to be in a good way at all and he hasn't played since a shock second round defeat to Lukas Rosol at Wimbledon in June.
Other players such as David Ferrer, Juan Martin Del Potro and Jo Wilfried Tsonga are either not consistent enough or beset with too many injuries to push to the very top.
The style that Murray and Djokovic play is another key factor to their rivalry which is set to dominate men's tennis.
If you look at their two matches this year in the Grand Slams, firstly in the Australian Open semi-final which Djokovic won in five sets and then the US Open final which Murray won in five sets, the level of movement and combination of attacking and defensive strokes from the both of them is absolutely breathtaking to watch.
Ivan Lendl, Murray's coach has brought a new level of aggression into the World Number Three's game and that is why Murray finally broke his grand-slam duck.
Djokovic and Murray are pretty much unique in the fact they can belt the ball back at each other for close to five hours and still look as though they have just been out for a light jog.
Nadal used to be up to this but it remains to be seen if this latest knee injury will prove too much for him to cope with Djokovic and Murray.
Both players also have complete all-round games, which is necessary to get to the very top in men's tennis these days.
Sure, each of them has weaknesses but both possess killer forehands and backhands, quality serves and an ability to control the game at the net.
When these players are on top form, nobody can touch them right now except each other.
The score in their 16 meetings currently stands at 9-7 to Djokovic. Expect that figure to swing back and forth over the next few years as a Serb and a Scot battle it out for supremacy in the world of men's tennis.
Who would have predicted that a decade ago?
Legendary battles often ensued between Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Similar titanic tussles were witnessed between McEnroe and Ivan Lendl throughout the 1980s.
And men's tennis fans have been spoiled in recent times with fantastic matches on a regular basis between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal whilst Novak Djokovic has also come to the fray in the last couple of years.
2012 has seen a new potential rivalry emerge. That of Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic.
This is a head-to-head that should have got fans talking a long time ago. Both Murray and Djokovic are 25 years old, with Murray having been born a week earlier in May 1987.
Whilst Djokovic won his first Grand Slam in 2008 and then had a remarkable 2011 where he won the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open, the Scot seemed destined to never win a Grand Slam.
He lost his first four grand slam finals between 2008 and 2012, before finally breaking his duck at the US Open last month, where he beat Djokovic in five enthralling sets.
It sealed the culmination of a fantastic summer for Murray where he reached the Wimbledon final and then recovered to win Olympic gold four weeks later.
So why is Murray v Djokovic the next big rivalry in men's tennis?
That aforementioned age of 25 is the key thing. Both men are now entering their physical peak as shown by their matches in which they both never seem to show any signs of poor fitness.
Contrast that to the ageing Roger Federer at 31, who despite being World Number One can't continue to live with the power of Djokovic and Murray for much long than the next 18 months you feel.
And what of Rafa Nadal, the other legendary grand slam champion of the last decade? His knees don't seem to be in a good way at all and he hasn't played since a shock second round defeat to Lukas Rosol at Wimbledon in June.
Other players such as David Ferrer, Juan Martin Del Potro and Jo Wilfried Tsonga are either not consistent enough or beset with too many injuries to push to the very top.
The style that Murray and Djokovic play is another key factor to their rivalry which is set to dominate men's tennis.
If you look at their two matches this year in the Grand Slams, firstly in the Australian Open semi-final which Djokovic won in five sets and then the US Open final which Murray won in five sets, the level of movement and combination of attacking and defensive strokes from the both of them is absolutely breathtaking to watch.
Ivan Lendl, Murray's coach has brought a new level of aggression into the World Number Three's game and that is why Murray finally broke his grand-slam duck.
Djokovic and Murray are pretty much unique in the fact they can belt the ball back at each other for close to five hours and still look as though they have just been out for a light jog.
Nadal used to be up to this but it remains to be seen if this latest knee injury will prove too much for him to cope with Djokovic and Murray.
Both players also have complete all-round games, which is necessary to get to the very top in men's tennis these days.
Sure, each of them has weaknesses but both possess killer forehands and backhands, quality serves and an ability to control the game at the net.
When these players are on top form, nobody can touch them right now except each other.
The score in their 16 meetings currently stands at 9-7 to Djokovic. Expect that figure to swing back and forth over the next few years as a Serb and a Scot battle it out for supremacy in the world of men's tennis.
Who would have predicted that a decade ago?
Wednesday 26 September 2012
Five Reasons Why Europe Will Win the Ryder Cup
With only two days left until the Ryder Cup begins in Chicago, excitement has reached fever pitch amongst golf fans.
The biennial event is always one of the sporting highlights of the year and this contest promises to be another thrilling and close encounter.
Europe are of course the holders after edging out USA 14.5-13.5 in 2010 at Celtic Manor.
Home advantage probably just makes the Americans slight favourites to win the trophy back this weekend, but my gut feeling is that Jose Maria Olazabal's side will be bringing home the trophy on the plane come Monday morning.
Here's the five reasons why.
1) Jose Maria Olazabal will be a Fantastic Captain
The Spaniard competed in seven Ryder Cups winning on four occasions. Perhaps not a record that jumps out as outstanding, but he was one of the most passionate players ever to participate for Team Europe.
He formed a formidable partnership with his fellow countryman and mentor Seve Ballesteros in both the foursomes and fourballs between 1987-1993. In foursomes he only lost one match out of ten.
The spirit of Seve will be evident with his image set to adorn the European players bags over the three days.
Olazabal will use his late friend's memory to inspire his players out on Medinah and that will give the European team an edge over their American counterparts.
2) There are More 'obvious' European Pairings
The key word here is 'obvious'. By that I mean that Jose Maria Olazabal won't have to overly think about who he is going to pair up over the first two days.
The most obvious pairing is the Northern Ireland duo of Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell. They are two great players who will complement each other and are crucially great friends as well.
And what about the four Englishmen in the team in the shape of Ian Poulter, Justin Rose, Luke Donald and Lee Westwood.
As they are listed above, those pairings will be extremely formidable. Poulter will be one of Europe's key men due to his passion and his ability to conjure up constant brilliant shots.
Rose is bang in form having finished second at the Tour Championship and is one of the most under-rated golfers in the last few years.
And what about Donald and Westwood, both who have been ranked World Number One in the world. Donald has never been on the losing side in a Ryder Cup and has tremendous experience of American courses.
And as for Westwood, he must be hot favourite to hit the first shot on Friday for Team Europe. He will be the talisman for Olazabal and his experience and great friendship with Donald will surely deliver points on Friday and Saturday.
3) The Ryder Cup Means More to Team Europe
A bold claim, but one that has been seen so many times over the years no matter where the Ryder Cup has been played.
Picture the scene. A player has a 10ft to go one up with a few holes to play in a fourball match on Saturday evening. It drops, firm in the back of the cup. The player then roars with delight and high fives his playing partner.
I'm convinced that 99% of you are now thinking of a European player making that putt and celebrating on the greens of Medinah.
Europe have won four of the last five Ryder Cups and that is because they come together as a team, while America fall into the trap of playing for themselves.
As the competition intensifies, that attitude could well be prevalent in the American team again.
4) There is Only one Rookie on Team Europe
America may have the home advantage, but their 12 man team features four players that will be playing in their first Ryder Cup.
Now, there's no doubting these players (Webb Simpson, Jason Dufner, Keegan Bradley and Brandt Snedeker) are top golfers, but they know very little about the atmosphere and the pressure that comes with the Ryder Cup.
Contrast the four rookies to Europe's single one Nicolas Colsaerts. Experience cannot be understated at all in a Ryder Cup.
The four afore mentioned American golfers will obviously be backed to the hilt by the home fans but I feel they may well wilt when faced with the likes of Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia and Graeme McDowell who love big crowds and will be pumped up.
5) European Players are Bang In Form
Brandt Snedeker may have walked off with a cool $10m after winning the Fed Ex Cup series on Sunday, but the European players competing this weekend are showing great signs of form as well.
Rory McIlroy has been in blistering form in the last six weeks which started with an eight shot win at the PGA Championship. He followed that up with wins at the Deutsche Bank Championship and the BMW Championship in successive weeks at the start of September to win two events in the Fed Ex Cup series.
Despite a poor 74 on Sunday at the Tour Championship, there is no hotter golfer in the world right now than McIlroy.
Justin Rose finished second at the Tour Championship so will be full of confidence in Medinah having also finished tied third at the PGA Championship.
Outwith McIlroy, Luke Donald is the most consistent player on tour right now and had another top three finish this week. His putting will be key to racking up the points for Europe in Chicago.
And then you have Paul Lawrie who has had a fantastic comeback in 2012 and recently won the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles last in.
Factor in Sergio Garcia's win at the Wyndham Championship in August on the PGA Tour as well as Ryder Cup hero Ian Poulter having three top tens in the Majors this year, then you have a European team bursting to get going.
With all 24 golfers playing in Chicago in the top 35 of the World Rankings, this Ryder Cup could see the greatest golf ever seen in the competition's history.
The three days will be full of fierce contests, fist pumps and magnificent teamwork.
But Olazabal's men will just edge it 14.5-13.5 to keep the trophy.
The biennial event is always one of the sporting highlights of the year and this contest promises to be another thrilling and close encounter.
Europe are of course the holders after edging out USA 14.5-13.5 in 2010 at Celtic Manor.
Home advantage probably just makes the Americans slight favourites to win the trophy back this weekend, but my gut feeling is that Jose Maria Olazabal's side will be bringing home the trophy on the plane come Monday morning.
Here's the five reasons why.
1) Jose Maria Olazabal will be a Fantastic Captain
The Spaniard competed in seven Ryder Cups winning on four occasions. Perhaps not a record that jumps out as outstanding, but he was one of the most passionate players ever to participate for Team Europe.
He formed a formidable partnership with his fellow countryman and mentor Seve Ballesteros in both the foursomes and fourballs between 1987-1993. In foursomes he only lost one match out of ten.
The spirit of Seve will be evident with his image set to adorn the European players bags over the three days.
Olazabal will use his late friend's memory to inspire his players out on Medinah and that will give the European team an edge over their American counterparts.
2) There are More 'obvious' European Pairings
The key word here is 'obvious'. By that I mean that Jose Maria Olazabal won't have to overly think about who he is going to pair up over the first two days.
The most obvious pairing is the Northern Ireland duo of Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell. They are two great players who will complement each other and are crucially great friends as well.
And what about the four Englishmen in the team in the shape of Ian Poulter, Justin Rose, Luke Donald and Lee Westwood.
As they are listed above, those pairings will be extremely formidable. Poulter will be one of Europe's key men due to his passion and his ability to conjure up constant brilliant shots.
Rose is bang in form having finished second at the Tour Championship and is one of the most under-rated golfers in the last few years.
And what about Donald and Westwood, both who have been ranked World Number One in the world. Donald has never been on the losing side in a Ryder Cup and has tremendous experience of American courses.
And as for Westwood, he must be hot favourite to hit the first shot on Friday for Team Europe. He will be the talisman for Olazabal and his experience and great friendship with Donald will surely deliver points on Friday and Saturday.
3) The Ryder Cup Means More to Team Europe
A bold claim, but one that has been seen so many times over the years no matter where the Ryder Cup has been played.
Picture the scene. A player has a 10ft to go one up with a few holes to play in a fourball match on Saturday evening. It drops, firm in the back of the cup. The player then roars with delight and high fives his playing partner.
I'm convinced that 99% of you are now thinking of a European player making that putt and celebrating on the greens of Medinah.
Europe have won four of the last five Ryder Cups and that is because they come together as a team, while America fall into the trap of playing for themselves.
As the competition intensifies, that attitude could well be prevalent in the American team again.
4) There is Only one Rookie on Team Europe
America may have the home advantage, but their 12 man team features four players that will be playing in their first Ryder Cup.
Now, there's no doubting these players (Webb Simpson, Jason Dufner, Keegan Bradley and Brandt Snedeker) are top golfers, but they know very little about the atmosphere and the pressure that comes with the Ryder Cup.
Contrast the four rookies to Europe's single one Nicolas Colsaerts. Experience cannot be understated at all in a Ryder Cup.
The four afore mentioned American golfers will obviously be backed to the hilt by the home fans but I feel they may well wilt when faced with the likes of Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia and Graeme McDowell who love big crowds and will be pumped up.
5) European Players are Bang In Form
Brandt Snedeker may have walked off with a cool $10m after winning the Fed Ex Cup series on Sunday, but the European players competing this weekend are showing great signs of form as well.
Rory McIlroy has been in blistering form in the last six weeks which started with an eight shot win at the PGA Championship. He followed that up with wins at the Deutsche Bank Championship and the BMW Championship in successive weeks at the start of September to win two events in the Fed Ex Cup series.
Despite a poor 74 on Sunday at the Tour Championship, there is no hotter golfer in the world right now than McIlroy.
Justin Rose finished second at the Tour Championship so will be full of confidence in Medinah having also finished tied third at the PGA Championship.
Outwith McIlroy, Luke Donald is the most consistent player on tour right now and had another top three finish this week. His putting will be key to racking up the points for Europe in Chicago.
And then you have Paul Lawrie who has had a fantastic comeback in 2012 and recently won the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles last in.
Factor in Sergio Garcia's win at the Wyndham Championship in August on the PGA Tour as well as Ryder Cup hero Ian Poulter having three top tens in the Majors this year, then you have a European team bursting to get going.
With all 24 golfers playing in Chicago in the top 35 of the World Rankings, this Ryder Cup could see the greatest golf ever seen in the competition's history.
The three days will be full of fierce contests, fist pumps and magnificent teamwork.
But Olazabal's men will just edge it 14.5-13.5 to keep the trophy.
Wednesday 5 September 2012
Sharing the Love: Profiling the US Ryder Cup Team
Yesterday Davis Love III named his four captains picks for the US Ryder Cup team.
The four men lucky enough to get the call were Dustin Johnson, Jim Furyk, Brandt Snedeker and Steve Stricker.
The 12 men making up the American team are a mix of rookies and experienced heads but will it be enough to wrestle the Ryder Cup away from Europe?
Having profiled Jose Maria Olazabal's team last week who are hoping to retain the trophy (http://www.ewansworldofsport.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/a-winning-team-profiling-european-ryder.html), I will now take a look at the American team.
Tiger Woods: The most famous golfer of all time has certainly shown major signs of returning to form in 2012.
He has three wins on the PGA Tour this season (Arnold Palmer, The Memorial and the AT+T National) and finished third at the Deutsche Bank Championship on Monday.
Despite not winning a major this year, he does seem closer than he was the last couple of years finishing in a tie for third at the Open in July.
His Ryder Cup record is very mixed though and he has never seemed to 'feel' the occasion.
But he could well be inspired by the course at Medinah- a place where he won two PGA championships in 1999 and 2006.
Webb Simpson: The US Open champion is one of four rookies in the American team compared to just the one (Nicolas Colsaerts) in the European team.
However, he showed great mettle when winning the US Open in June, shooting a pair of superb 68's over the weekend.
His recent form though has been extremely poor. He missed the cut at the PGA Championship and the first event of the FedEx Cup series before only finishing in a tie for 18th at the Deutsche Bank championship.
Jason Dufner: Another rookie on the US team, but one that is ranked 7th in both the World Rankings and the FedEx cup standings.
He might show little emotion on the course but Dufner loves to win. He has won twice this season on the PGA Tour (Zurich Classic and the Byron Nelson Championship) and during a superb spell around May and June, he also finished in a tie for fourth at the US Open.
The course should suit him and I believe he could be one of the US's top points scorers.
Bubba Watson: This years Masters champion is one of golf's great characters with his huge drives and bubbly personality.
Due to his swing, he can be very wild off the tee and he could be a liability for Love over the three days. He only managed one win from four last time around and his recent form has been poor and infact Watson has only managed two top tens since his win at Augusta.
Keegan Bradley: The winner of last years PGA Championship- on his Major debut nonetheless is my tip to be America's best player.
It may be the 26 year-olds debut in the Ryder Cup but he absolutely thrives on the big occasion.
A fantastic ball striker who will be key in the foursomes in particular, Bradley will come to Medinah in great form.
Last month he won the Bridgestone Invitational before finishing in a tie for third at the PGA Championship.
Expect him to be a regular player over the first two days.
Matt Kuchar: Kuchar is another American player who will be lining up in the foursomes matches due to his great iron play.
He has been in top form this season, most notably in May when he won the Players Championship.
That followed an impressive tied for third at the Masters and he has also had top tens in big events such as The Open and the Bridgestone Invitational.
However, he recently shot a horrendous 82 at the PGA Championship and Love will hope that's long gone from his mind by the time the competition starts in a few weeks.
Zach Johnson: The 2007 Masters champion will be playing in his third Ryder Cup and will be desperate to get a first win in the event.
The course doesn't suit has natural game but Steve Stricker aside, he is the best putter on the American team and he has always seemed to enjoy playing in the Ryder Cup.
Despite not challenging at the top end of any Major this year (his best has been a tie for 9th at The Open), he does have two wins this season so goes into the competition in confident mood.
Phil Mickelson: Much like Martin Kaymer on the European team, it sounds crazy to say someone of 'Lefty's' talents will be a weak link to his side, but he has been in very poor form.
After a tremendous start to the year when he won the AT+T at Pebble Beach and followed that up with a second place at the Northern Trust Open and a tie for third at the Masters, his form went out the window.
His summer slump saw him fail to challenge at the US Open and the PGA Championship as well as missing the cut at The Open.
However, on Monday came a glimmer of hope. Mickelson managed to finish tied fourth at the Deutsche Bank championship shooting four rounds in the 60s.
Love will hope it's that Mickelson that shows up in Chicago.
Steve Stricker: The first of the four picks selected by Davis Love is the oldest player on either side at 45 years old.
His experience was the main reason for his selection as well as the fact he is the only person that can easily partner Tiger Woods.
His putting is also a superb weapon for the US to have and he comes into the event in good form with top seven finishes at the Bridgestone and the PGA Championship last month.
Dustin Johnson: I was so confident that Johnson would get a pick from Love, I considered lumping my life savings on it for a pitiful return.
The Medinah course suits his long driving game down to a tee and it would have been a crazy decision if Love didn't pick him.
A natural talent who is surely due to win a Major soon, he came into form at the perfect time ahead of Love's selections finishing in the top five at both of the opening two events of the FedEX Cup series.
He'll be keen to improve on his record of one win last time out.
Brandt Snedeker: The final rookie on the American side was like Dustin Johnson in timing his run of form to perfection.
He finished second at The Barclays two weeks ago before ending up in a tie for sixth at the Deutsche Bank Championship on Monday.
Snedeker also led The Open at the halfway stage after superb rounds of 66 and 64, before finishing in a tie for third.
Blessed with a wonderful putting stroke, Snedeker deserves his chance at trying to win the Ryder Cup.
Jim Furyk: Completing the US Ryder Cup team is the 2003 US Open champion Furyk.
Perhaps the most controversial of Love's picks, Furyk will need to deliver big time if he isn't to get a slaughtering by the US media.
He has lost a staggering 15 matches out of 27 at the Ryder Cup and this year has blown chances to win the US Open and the Bridgestone Invitational.
Love will hope that Furyk thrives on the criticism and that home advantage can carry him on.
Love's 12 men that have been given the task of winning the Ryder Cup back undoubtedly have world class talent in abundance between them with a great mix of youngsters and experience.
But can the rookies handle the pressure or will they collapse in the heat of Chicago?
It's going to be extremely close as I said last week. Right now I can't even call a winner.
The four men lucky enough to get the call were Dustin Johnson, Jim Furyk, Brandt Snedeker and Steve Stricker.
The 12 men making up the American team are a mix of rookies and experienced heads but will it be enough to wrestle the Ryder Cup away from Europe?
Having profiled Jose Maria Olazabal's team last week who are hoping to retain the trophy (http://www.ewansworldofsport.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/a-winning-team-profiling-european-ryder.html), I will now take a look at the American team.
Tiger Woods: The most famous golfer of all time has certainly shown major signs of returning to form in 2012.
He has three wins on the PGA Tour this season (Arnold Palmer, The Memorial and the AT+T National) and finished third at the Deutsche Bank Championship on Monday.
Despite not winning a major this year, he does seem closer than he was the last couple of years finishing in a tie for third at the Open in July.
His Ryder Cup record is very mixed though and he has never seemed to 'feel' the occasion.
But he could well be inspired by the course at Medinah- a place where he won two PGA championships in 1999 and 2006.
Webb Simpson: The US Open champion is one of four rookies in the American team compared to just the one (Nicolas Colsaerts) in the European team.
However, he showed great mettle when winning the US Open in June, shooting a pair of superb 68's over the weekend.
His recent form though has been extremely poor. He missed the cut at the PGA Championship and the first event of the FedEx Cup series before only finishing in a tie for 18th at the Deutsche Bank championship.
Jason Dufner: Another rookie on the US team, but one that is ranked 7th in both the World Rankings and the FedEx cup standings.
He might show little emotion on the course but Dufner loves to win. He has won twice this season on the PGA Tour (Zurich Classic and the Byron Nelson Championship) and during a superb spell around May and June, he also finished in a tie for fourth at the US Open.
The course should suit him and I believe he could be one of the US's top points scorers.
Bubba Watson: This years Masters champion is one of golf's great characters with his huge drives and bubbly personality.
Due to his swing, he can be very wild off the tee and he could be a liability for Love over the three days. He only managed one win from four last time around and his recent form has been poor and infact Watson has only managed two top tens since his win at Augusta.
Keegan Bradley: The winner of last years PGA Championship- on his Major debut nonetheless is my tip to be America's best player.
It may be the 26 year-olds debut in the Ryder Cup but he absolutely thrives on the big occasion.
A fantastic ball striker who will be key in the foursomes in particular, Bradley will come to Medinah in great form.
Last month he won the Bridgestone Invitational before finishing in a tie for third at the PGA Championship.
Expect him to be a regular player over the first two days.
Matt Kuchar: Kuchar is another American player who will be lining up in the foursomes matches due to his great iron play.
He has been in top form this season, most notably in May when he won the Players Championship.
That followed an impressive tied for third at the Masters and he has also had top tens in big events such as The Open and the Bridgestone Invitational.
However, he recently shot a horrendous 82 at the PGA Championship and Love will hope that's long gone from his mind by the time the competition starts in a few weeks.
Zach Johnson: The 2007 Masters champion will be playing in his third Ryder Cup and will be desperate to get a first win in the event.
The course doesn't suit has natural game but Steve Stricker aside, he is the best putter on the American team and he has always seemed to enjoy playing in the Ryder Cup.
Despite not challenging at the top end of any Major this year (his best has been a tie for 9th at The Open), he does have two wins this season so goes into the competition in confident mood.
Phil Mickelson: Much like Martin Kaymer on the European team, it sounds crazy to say someone of 'Lefty's' talents will be a weak link to his side, but he has been in very poor form.
After a tremendous start to the year when he won the AT+T at Pebble Beach and followed that up with a second place at the Northern Trust Open and a tie for third at the Masters, his form went out the window.
His summer slump saw him fail to challenge at the US Open and the PGA Championship as well as missing the cut at The Open.
However, on Monday came a glimmer of hope. Mickelson managed to finish tied fourth at the Deutsche Bank championship shooting four rounds in the 60s.
Love will hope it's that Mickelson that shows up in Chicago.
Steve Stricker: The first of the four picks selected by Davis Love is the oldest player on either side at 45 years old.
His experience was the main reason for his selection as well as the fact he is the only person that can easily partner Tiger Woods.
His putting is also a superb weapon for the US to have and he comes into the event in good form with top seven finishes at the Bridgestone and the PGA Championship last month.
Dustin Johnson: I was so confident that Johnson would get a pick from Love, I considered lumping my life savings on it for a pitiful return.
The Medinah course suits his long driving game down to a tee and it would have been a crazy decision if Love didn't pick him.
A natural talent who is surely due to win a Major soon, he came into form at the perfect time ahead of Love's selections finishing in the top five at both of the opening two events of the FedEX Cup series.
He'll be keen to improve on his record of one win last time out.
Brandt Snedeker: The final rookie on the American side was like Dustin Johnson in timing his run of form to perfection.
He finished second at The Barclays two weeks ago before ending up in a tie for sixth at the Deutsche Bank Championship on Monday.
Snedeker also led The Open at the halfway stage after superb rounds of 66 and 64, before finishing in a tie for third.
Blessed with a wonderful putting stroke, Snedeker deserves his chance at trying to win the Ryder Cup.
Jim Furyk: Completing the US Ryder Cup team is the 2003 US Open champion Furyk.
Perhaps the most controversial of Love's picks, Furyk will need to deliver big time if he isn't to get a slaughtering by the US media.
He has lost a staggering 15 matches out of 27 at the Ryder Cup and this year has blown chances to win the US Open and the Bridgestone Invitational.
Love will hope that Furyk thrives on the criticism and that home advantage can carry him on.
Love's 12 men that have been given the task of winning the Ryder Cup back undoubtedly have world class talent in abundance between them with a great mix of youngsters and experience.
But can the rookies handle the pressure or will they collapse in the heat of Chicago?
It's going to be extremely close as I said last week. Right now I can't even call a winner.
Monday 27 August 2012
A Winning Team?: Profiling the European Ryder Cup team
With today's announcement that Ian Poulter and Nicolas Colsaerts are to get the two wildcard slots for the European Ryder Cup team, the complete line-up is now known for the side that will take on their American counterparts.
The action is little over a month away from starting on the 28th September in Medinah,Chicago.
Here I'll take a look at those 12 men captain Jose Maria Olazabal will be hoping can keep the Ryder Cup on European soil for another two years.
Rory McIlroy: The only European to currently hold a Major title after winning the PGA championship by an incredible eight shots a fortnight ago.
McIlroy suffered a mid-season wobble when he failed to challenge at either the US Open or The Open, but showed his quality at the PGA.
In my opinion, the Northern Irishman is far and away the best golfer in the world when at the top of his game.
Having performed well at the 2010 Ryder Cup, he will be one of Team Europe's key men.
Graeme McDowell: Expect McDowell or G-Mac as he is affectionately known to be paired up with McIlroy, his fellow countryman over the first two days of competition.
McDowell has been tremendous this year in the Majors, finishing no worse than 12th place across all four, whilst coming so close to winning a second US Open at the Olympic Club in June.
He was of course the man who holed the winning putt at Celtic Manor in 2010. I wonder what price there is on him doing so again?
Ian Poulter: The Englishman will be one of Europe's talismen in Chicago in what will be his fourth Ryder Cup appearance.
His passion for the Ryder Cup holds no bounds and having contributed three points out of a possible four last time out and four out of five in 2008, his record is extremely enviable.
With top ten finishes at both the PGA and The Open, Poulter is bang in form and it would have been ridiculous if he was left out of the side.
Lee Westwood: Current World Number Four Westwood will be the most experienced member of Team Europe in a month's time, with this years event marking his eight straight appearance in the team.
There can be no doubting Westwood's talents despite the fact he's still to win a Major.
He's one of the world's best from tee to green but it's often the putter that lets him down.
He is also badly out of form having missed the cut at the PGA championship but I expect him to revel in his position as Europe's leader on the course.
Paul Lawrie: The oldest member of the European team as well as being the only Scot to make it to Chicago.
Yesterday he won the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles which was a welcome return to form in a season which has seen the 1999 Open champion enjoy a superb comeback.
It might be 13 years since Lawrie last played in the Ryder Cup, but he has been around for too long to late that faze him too much.
He's a real steady influence to have in the dressing room over the weekend.
Luke Donald: The world number two has never lost a Ryder Cup having been victorious in 2004,2006 and 2010.
Donald's remarkable putting will be such an asset to the Europeans and could well dig out a few more points than expected over the three days.
Whilst another Major has passed Donald by this season, he has been in fine form all year and at The Barclays last night finished in a tie for 10th.
He also finished in the top five at The Open as well as winning the Transitions championship in March and finishing sixth at the Players Championship.
A partnership with fellow Englishman Westwood could and should prove very fruitful.
Justin Rose: The Englishman is the most under-rated golfer in the world. For someone ranked eighth in the world and somebody who has performed well most weeks this season, he doesn't get enough praise.
A superb win at the World Golf Championship Cadillac event in March has been followed up with top 10s at the Masters and the PGA championship.
He also has top 10s at the Bridgestone Invitational, the BMW Championship and French Open to speak of, leaving him second in the European Tour's Race To Dubai.
Rose formed a superb partnership with Poulter two years ago and is widely expected to do so again.
Sergio Garcia: What a delight it is to see the Spaniard make the team. Whilst his presence was a brilliant inspiration to Europe in 2010, it should have been as a player, not as a vice-captain.
The way he won in America last week was superb to watch and he followed it up last night with a tied third finish at the Barclays.
He will be absolutely fired up to play by his countryman Olazabal and I fancy him to be Team Europe's top point scorer over the weekend.
His likeability is so wide-ranging that he could form a successful partnership with any other team member.
Francesco Molinari: The Italian is one of the best ball-strikers in the game, something which will come in handy on the lengthy Medinah course.
He might not be able to call on his brother Eduardo for support this time, but the Italian will be perfectly fine if his 2012 form is anything to go by.
He is coming into form nicely with a sixth place finish at Gleneagles this week, which followed up second place finishes at the French and Scottish Opens in July.
He might be used more sparingly by Olazabal compared to others but there can be no doubting his passion will be to the fore when he is called upon.
Peter Hanson: If Rose is the most under-rated golfer in the world then Hanson isn't far behind him.
The Swede has been magnificent this season and after helping the Europeans to victory last time out, he will be chomping at the bit to do so again.
He led the Masters going into the final round in April, before finishing a creditable third, which followed up previous top fives at the Cadillac championship and the Qatar Masters.
Most recently he finished seventh at the PGA Championship which once again showed Hanson is more than capable of dealing with American courses.
Martin Kaymer: Europe's weakest player and he gets that 'award' by quite some distance.
It is utterly remarkable to think that the German can now be viewed as a poor player having held the World Number One ranking for eight weeks during 2011.
In 2010, he was one of Europe's key players going into the Ryder Cup having just won his first major title at the PGA Championship.
Now there is talk of him only being played in the singles given how bad his form is.
He had a reasonable start to 2012 with top 15 finishes in Qatar and Dubai but since then he has only mustered one top ten finish which was way back in April at Malaysia.
Kaymer has been nowhere near to challenging at any of the Majors and most recently shot two dismal rounds of 79 in missing the cut at the PGA Championship.
A real worry for Jose Maria Olazabal ahead of the 28th September.
Nicolas Colsaerts: The only rookie on the European Ryder Cup team also makes history by becoming the first Belgian golfer to represent Europe in the event.
Getting the nod ahead of Padraig Harrington, Colsaerts selection will inevitably come under scrutiny.
So why has he been chosen? Well his ball striking is absolutely fantastic and whenever I've seen him recently he looks absolutely fearless.
He also just happened to win the Volvo Matchplay Championship in May, which is quite a handy thing to be good at in the Ryder Cup.
With a top ten finish at the Open under his belt as well as finishing tied 7th last week at the Wyndham Championship, the Belgian is more than worthy of his pick.
The twelve men that have made it onto Team Europe represent a very strong line-up indeed.
But with America boasting a host of top stars themselves who are keen to get the trophy back, all of the dozen players will need to be at their very best over the Atlantic.
I can hardly wait.
The action is little over a month away from starting on the 28th September in Medinah,Chicago.
Here I'll take a look at those 12 men captain Jose Maria Olazabal will be hoping can keep the Ryder Cup on European soil for another two years.
Rory McIlroy: The only European to currently hold a Major title after winning the PGA championship by an incredible eight shots a fortnight ago.
McIlroy suffered a mid-season wobble when he failed to challenge at either the US Open or The Open, but showed his quality at the PGA.
In my opinion, the Northern Irishman is far and away the best golfer in the world when at the top of his game.
Having performed well at the 2010 Ryder Cup, he will be one of Team Europe's key men.
Graeme McDowell: Expect McDowell or G-Mac as he is affectionately known to be paired up with McIlroy, his fellow countryman over the first two days of competition.
McDowell has been tremendous this year in the Majors, finishing no worse than 12th place across all four, whilst coming so close to winning a second US Open at the Olympic Club in June.
He was of course the man who holed the winning putt at Celtic Manor in 2010. I wonder what price there is on him doing so again?
Ian Poulter: The Englishman will be one of Europe's talismen in Chicago in what will be his fourth Ryder Cup appearance.
His passion for the Ryder Cup holds no bounds and having contributed three points out of a possible four last time out and four out of five in 2008, his record is extremely enviable.
With top ten finishes at both the PGA and The Open, Poulter is bang in form and it would have been ridiculous if he was left out of the side.
Lee Westwood: Current World Number Four Westwood will be the most experienced member of Team Europe in a month's time, with this years event marking his eight straight appearance in the team.
There can be no doubting Westwood's talents despite the fact he's still to win a Major.
He's one of the world's best from tee to green but it's often the putter that lets him down.
He is also badly out of form having missed the cut at the PGA championship but I expect him to revel in his position as Europe's leader on the course.
Paul Lawrie: The oldest member of the European team as well as being the only Scot to make it to Chicago.
Yesterday he won the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles which was a welcome return to form in a season which has seen the 1999 Open champion enjoy a superb comeback.
It might be 13 years since Lawrie last played in the Ryder Cup, but he has been around for too long to late that faze him too much.
He's a real steady influence to have in the dressing room over the weekend.
Luke Donald: The world number two has never lost a Ryder Cup having been victorious in 2004,2006 and 2010.
Donald's remarkable putting will be such an asset to the Europeans and could well dig out a few more points than expected over the three days.
Whilst another Major has passed Donald by this season, he has been in fine form all year and at The Barclays last night finished in a tie for 10th.
He also finished in the top five at The Open as well as winning the Transitions championship in March and finishing sixth at the Players Championship.
A partnership with fellow Englishman Westwood could and should prove very fruitful.
Justin Rose: The Englishman is the most under-rated golfer in the world. For someone ranked eighth in the world and somebody who has performed well most weeks this season, he doesn't get enough praise.
A superb win at the World Golf Championship Cadillac event in March has been followed up with top 10s at the Masters and the PGA championship.
He also has top 10s at the Bridgestone Invitational, the BMW Championship and French Open to speak of, leaving him second in the European Tour's Race To Dubai.
Rose formed a superb partnership with Poulter two years ago and is widely expected to do so again.
Sergio Garcia: What a delight it is to see the Spaniard make the team. Whilst his presence was a brilliant inspiration to Europe in 2010, it should have been as a player, not as a vice-captain.
The way he won in America last week was superb to watch and he followed it up last night with a tied third finish at the Barclays.
He will be absolutely fired up to play by his countryman Olazabal and I fancy him to be Team Europe's top point scorer over the weekend.
His likeability is so wide-ranging that he could form a successful partnership with any other team member.
Francesco Molinari: The Italian is one of the best ball-strikers in the game, something which will come in handy on the lengthy Medinah course.
He might not be able to call on his brother Eduardo for support this time, but the Italian will be perfectly fine if his 2012 form is anything to go by.
He is coming into form nicely with a sixth place finish at Gleneagles this week, which followed up second place finishes at the French and Scottish Opens in July.
He might be used more sparingly by Olazabal compared to others but there can be no doubting his passion will be to the fore when he is called upon.
Peter Hanson: If Rose is the most under-rated golfer in the world then Hanson isn't far behind him.
The Swede has been magnificent this season and after helping the Europeans to victory last time out, he will be chomping at the bit to do so again.
He led the Masters going into the final round in April, before finishing a creditable third, which followed up previous top fives at the Cadillac championship and the Qatar Masters.
Most recently he finished seventh at the PGA Championship which once again showed Hanson is more than capable of dealing with American courses.
Martin Kaymer: Europe's weakest player and he gets that 'award' by quite some distance.
It is utterly remarkable to think that the German can now be viewed as a poor player having held the World Number One ranking for eight weeks during 2011.
In 2010, he was one of Europe's key players going into the Ryder Cup having just won his first major title at the PGA Championship.
Now there is talk of him only being played in the singles given how bad his form is.
He had a reasonable start to 2012 with top 15 finishes in Qatar and Dubai but since then he has only mustered one top ten finish which was way back in April at Malaysia.
Kaymer has been nowhere near to challenging at any of the Majors and most recently shot two dismal rounds of 79 in missing the cut at the PGA Championship.
A real worry for Jose Maria Olazabal ahead of the 28th September.
Nicolas Colsaerts: The only rookie on the European Ryder Cup team also makes history by becoming the first Belgian golfer to represent Europe in the event.
Getting the nod ahead of Padraig Harrington, Colsaerts selection will inevitably come under scrutiny.
So why has he been chosen? Well his ball striking is absolutely fantastic and whenever I've seen him recently he looks absolutely fearless.
He also just happened to win the Volvo Matchplay Championship in May, which is quite a handy thing to be good at in the Ryder Cup.
With a top ten finish at the Open under his belt as well as finishing tied 7th last week at the Wyndham Championship, the Belgian is more than worthy of his pick.
The twelve men that have made it onto Team Europe represent a very strong line-up indeed.
But with America boasting a host of top stars themselves who are keen to get the trophy back, all of the dozen players will need to be at their very best over the Atlantic.
I can hardly wait.
Monday 13 August 2012
A Triumph Beyond Belief: My Favourite London 2012 Moments
With the London Olympics coming to a spectacular end last night, this blog is going to take a look back at my favourite moments of London 2012.
On the final day of competition, Samantha Murray completed the Team GB medal tally with a silver in the modern pentathlon.
That second place took Team GB's overall number of medals won to an astonishing 65- a mammoth eighteen ahead of the medal target ahead of the games.
Of course, this Olympics hasn't all been about Team GB. There have been endless World Records broken and I have watched numerous sports I wouldn't even have given an afterthought to outwith the Olympics.
Those two statements above are what the Olympics are all about. Athletes striving for greatness by pushing themselves to the absolute limit whilst thrilling us couch-potato's at the same time.
With that in mind, I present to you my top five moments of London 2012, in reverse order.
5: David Rudisha Breaks 800m World Record- 09/08/12
Although it would be fair to say that Usain Bolt's exploits on Thursday night in the same stadium overshadowed Rudisha's remarkable run, the Kenyan's world record breaking performance has every right to be in this top five.
By running a time of 1:40:91, he blew away the field to such an extent that everyone else in the field either ran a new personal best or seasonal best.
Britain's Andrew Osagie may have finished last in a time of 1:43:77 but he shouldn't be disheartened with his efforts.
His time would have won the 800m gold in the last three Olympic games- but noone had sent that memo to Rudisha.
From the word go, he treated the race like a sprint which was absolutely incredible to watch.
The 24 year-old never let up at one point in the race and to finally see someone go under 1:41 for 800m was breathtaking to watch.
The great thing is that Rudisha promises to get even better.
4: Jessica Ennis Wins The Heptathlon- 04/08/12
It says something about how good London 2012 was when Ennis's magnificent win in the Heptathlon only comes fourth in my list.
That doesn't take any of the shine off her achievement though and especially the manner in which she got the gold.
Ennis was the Team GB poster girl before the games began. The pressure on her to deliver was absolutely enormous.
But she dealt with it beautifully. From her incredible start in the 100m hurdles when she set a new heptathlon record to the finale when she won the 800m on a 'Super Saturday' for Team GB, Ennis was a joy to watch.
Ennis strove to do her best in each event and her performances in the long jump and javelin, in which she has notoriously struggled in the past were excellent.
Ennis's performance will be remembered for a long time.
3: Usain Bolt cements his legendary status- 05/08/12-11/08-12
When Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt burst on the scene at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, I was blown away.
His world record performances in the 100 and 200m races to winning gold in both were mesmerising to watch. A new charismatic superstar had been born.
However, like many others I was concerned about Bolt before the games. Yohan Blake, his training partner had been beating him in trials and he didn't seem to be fully fit.
I shouldn't have worried. From he moment he jogged to 9.87 in the 100m semi-final, there was an air of inevitability about it.
That didn't make it any less thrilling to watch though. The 100m final was billed as the fastest ever. How appropriate then that Bolt should run a time of 9.63- breaking his own Olympic record in the process.
The 200m was billed as "Bolt V Blake Round 2". And once again Usain shut up his critics. He even had time to slowdown and still record a time of 19.32 to complete a historic back-to back wins in the 100 and 200m.
But he wasn't finished there. On Saturday as part of the Jamaican 4x100m team, he ensured a new world record of 36.84 was set as he ran the last leg in an astonishing 8.8 seconds.
This Olympics ensured that Usain Bolt is a legend and it really is a privilege to watch him race.
2. Sir Chris Hoy Becomes Britain's Greatest Ever Olympian- 07/08/12
Just missing out on the top spot, is the incredible achievements by Sir Chris Hoy in the velodrome.
It's almost become second nature that the Scot will win gold after gold at the Olympic games.
And in front of his home crowd he didn't disappoint.
On 7 August, he won the men's Keirin to overtake Sir Steve Redgrave as Britain's most successful Olympian ever, a record that many thought would never be beaten.
Hoy's speed, strength and determination are marvellous to watch. He never gives up in any race, which is a quality that I love to see in any athlete in any sport.
I found myself once again yelling at the television screaming him over the line. He has that passion to bring out similar levels of passion in viewers such as myself.
Hoy's achievements over the last four Olympic games are remarkable.
Here's hoping he can crown his career in style at Glasgow 2014.
1. Mo Farah does the long-distance double- 04/08/12+11/08/12
Everyone do the Mo-Bot. My favourite moment of London 2012 simply has to be Mo Farah's incredible double gold in the 10,000m and 5,000m on successive Saturday nights in the Olympic stadium.
Farah's tactics in both races were absolutely spot on.
Often in the Olympics I find these long-distance races extremely boring until the closing stages but Farah changed all that.
His first gold in the 10,000m was show of brilliant endurance and remarkable intelligence.
By going to Africa to study his rivals training regimes, he was able to time his attacks to perfection and his reaction when crossing the line just endeared me to him even more with his fantastic Mo-bot celebration.
A week later he was at it again. And the 5,000m gold that he won was even more enthralling.
Personally I only watched the race on Sunday morning having been out on Saturday night.
Despite knowing Farah won I found myself jumping off my couch screaming him onto victory. It was that good to watch.
The atmosphere sounded electric and I felt so proud as I'm sure everyone inside that stadium did too when Farah crossed the line for an amazing double win.
His charisma, his physical feat of endurance and all round likeability make Mo Farah my moment of London 2012.
Overall I rate London as the best Olympic games of my lifetime. With Team GB surpassing all expectations, there was so many home successes to enjoy. Coupled with global stars such as Usain Bolt and David Rudisha, London 2012 saw athletes bring their A game to the games.
Rio 2016 sure has a lot to live up to. I can't wait.
On the final day of competition, Samantha Murray completed the Team GB medal tally with a silver in the modern pentathlon.
That second place took Team GB's overall number of medals won to an astonishing 65- a mammoth eighteen ahead of the medal target ahead of the games.
Of course, this Olympics hasn't all been about Team GB. There have been endless World Records broken and I have watched numerous sports I wouldn't even have given an afterthought to outwith the Olympics.
Those two statements above are what the Olympics are all about. Athletes striving for greatness by pushing themselves to the absolute limit whilst thrilling us couch-potato's at the same time.
With that in mind, I present to you my top five moments of London 2012, in reverse order.
5: David Rudisha Breaks 800m World Record- 09/08/12
Although it would be fair to say that Usain Bolt's exploits on Thursday night in the same stadium overshadowed Rudisha's remarkable run, the Kenyan's world record breaking performance has every right to be in this top five.
By running a time of 1:40:91, he blew away the field to such an extent that everyone else in the field either ran a new personal best or seasonal best.
Britain's Andrew Osagie may have finished last in a time of 1:43:77 but he shouldn't be disheartened with his efforts.
His time would have won the 800m gold in the last three Olympic games- but noone had sent that memo to Rudisha.
From the word go, he treated the race like a sprint which was absolutely incredible to watch.
The 24 year-old never let up at one point in the race and to finally see someone go under 1:41 for 800m was breathtaking to watch.
The great thing is that Rudisha promises to get even better.
4: Jessica Ennis Wins The Heptathlon- 04/08/12
It says something about how good London 2012 was when Ennis's magnificent win in the Heptathlon only comes fourth in my list.
That doesn't take any of the shine off her achievement though and especially the manner in which she got the gold.
Ennis was the Team GB poster girl before the games began. The pressure on her to deliver was absolutely enormous.
But she dealt with it beautifully. From her incredible start in the 100m hurdles when she set a new heptathlon record to the finale when she won the 800m on a 'Super Saturday' for Team GB, Ennis was a joy to watch.
Ennis strove to do her best in each event and her performances in the long jump and javelin, in which she has notoriously struggled in the past were excellent.
Ennis's performance will be remembered for a long time.
3: Usain Bolt cements his legendary status- 05/08/12-11/08-12
When Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt burst on the scene at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, I was blown away.
His world record performances in the 100 and 200m races to winning gold in both were mesmerising to watch. A new charismatic superstar had been born.
However, like many others I was concerned about Bolt before the games. Yohan Blake, his training partner had been beating him in trials and he didn't seem to be fully fit.
I shouldn't have worried. From he moment he jogged to 9.87 in the 100m semi-final, there was an air of inevitability about it.
That didn't make it any less thrilling to watch though. The 100m final was billed as the fastest ever. How appropriate then that Bolt should run a time of 9.63- breaking his own Olympic record in the process.
The 200m was billed as "Bolt V Blake Round 2". And once again Usain shut up his critics. He even had time to slowdown and still record a time of 19.32 to complete a historic back-to back wins in the 100 and 200m.
But he wasn't finished there. On Saturday as part of the Jamaican 4x100m team, he ensured a new world record of 36.84 was set as he ran the last leg in an astonishing 8.8 seconds.
This Olympics ensured that Usain Bolt is a legend and it really is a privilege to watch him race.
2. Sir Chris Hoy Becomes Britain's Greatest Ever Olympian- 07/08/12
Just missing out on the top spot, is the incredible achievements by Sir Chris Hoy in the velodrome.
It's almost become second nature that the Scot will win gold after gold at the Olympic games.
And in front of his home crowd he didn't disappoint.
On 7 August, he won the men's Keirin to overtake Sir Steve Redgrave as Britain's most successful Olympian ever, a record that many thought would never be beaten.
Hoy's speed, strength and determination are marvellous to watch. He never gives up in any race, which is a quality that I love to see in any athlete in any sport.
I found myself once again yelling at the television screaming him over the line. He has that passion to bring out similar levels of passion in viewers such as myself.
Hoy's achievements over the last four Olympic games are remarkable.
Here's hoping he can crown his career in style at Glasgow 2014.
1. Mo Farah does the long-distance double- 04/08/12+11/08/12
Everyone do the Mo-Bot. My favourite moment of London 2012 simply has to be Mo Farah's incredible double gold in the 10,000m and 5,000m on successive Saturday nights in the Olympic stadium.
Farah's tactics in both races were absolutely spot on.
Often in the Olympics I find these long-distance races extremely boring until the closing stages but Farah changed all that.
His first gold in the 10,000m was show of brilliant endurance and remarkable intelligence.
By going to Africa to study his rivals training regimes, he was able to time his attacks to perfection and his reaction when crossing the line just endeared me to him even more with his fantastic Mo-bot celebration.
A week later he was at it again. And the 5,000m gold that he won was even more enthralling.
Personally I only watched the race on Sunday morning having been out on Saturday night.
Despite knowing Farah won I found myself jumping off my couch screaming him onto victory. It was that good to watch.
The atmosphere sounded electric and I felt so proud as I'm sure everyone inside that stadium did too when Farah crossed the line for an amazing double win.
His charisma, his physical feat of endurance and all round likeability make Mo Farah my moment of London 2012.
Overall I rate London as the best Olympic games of my lifetime. With Team GB surpassing all expectations, there was so many home successes to enjoy. Coupled with global stars such as Usain Bolt and David Rudisha, London 2012 saw athletes bring their A game to the games.
Rio 2016 sure has a lot to live up to. I can't wait.
Sunday 22 July 2012
Els Rolls Back The Years: How Ernie Won a Second Open
What a remarkable finish to The Open Championship.
For a long time it looked as though Australian Adam Scott was cruising to the 2012 edition of golf's longest running major and with it his maiden major championship.
However an almighty collapse in the final few holes let popular South African Ernie Els in to steal the claret jug from Scott.
Whilst the headlines will inevitably be about Scott's choke which was utterly remarkable, nothing should be taken away from Els's second Open victory and his fourth major victory overall.
Els began the day six shots behind Scott and went out in a disappointing two over par 34.
An immediate birdie on the 10th hole gave Els the impetus to kick on and when he holed a superb putt on the 18th to finish on -7, suddenly the pressure was on Scott.
And he choked big time. The Australian had led by four shots with four holes to play but bogeyed them all, including a missed 10 footer at the last to hand victory to Els.
Comparisons were instantly made with the epic collapses of Jean Van De Velde in The Open at Carnoustie in 1999 or Scott's childhood hero Greg Norman's meltdown at The Masters in 1996.
However, only Scott will know where and how it all went wrong. He undoubtedly has the talent to win Majors but it will take him a long time to get over this loss.
Let's focus on Ernie Els now though. You would be hard pushed to find a more popular man amongst the golfing public.
His speech at the end showed what a classy guy the 42 year old multiple major winner is.
Els's first thoughts were for his buddy Adam Scott. How many other golfers would have done that?
He also paid tribute to Nelson Mandela and the work he has done for South Africa over the last two decades. The man known as 'The Big Easy' has certainly done his fare share as well.
As for his golf on the course, his back nine was simply flawless. With the wind picking up and the pressure mounting, Els held his nerve to shoot an incredible 32 coming home.
It had been ten years since Els had won The Open in a play-off at Muirfield, but on the closing stretch this Sunday he had the look of a man who believed it was his time again.
He did require some help from Scott but he put in a lot of the groundwork himself.
Els showed their is life in the old dog yet and I wouldn't bet against him adding to his four Major titles.
Once again Open Sunday provided a bundle of dramatic viewing as it so often does.
Bring on Muirfield in 2013.
For a long time it looked as though Australian Adam Scott was cruising to the 2012 edition of golf's longest running major and with it his maiden major championship.
However an almighty collapse in the final few holes let popular South African Ernie Els in to steal the claret jug from Scott.
Whilst the headlines will inevitably be about Scott's choke which was utterly remarkable, nothing should be taken away from Els's second Open victory and his fourth major victory overall.
Els began the day six shots behind Scott and went out in a disappointing two over par 34.
An immediate birdie on the 10th hole gave Els the impetus to kick on and when he holed a superb putt on the 18th to finish on -7, suddenly the pressure was on Scott.
And he choked big time. The Australian had led by four shots with four holes to play but bogeyed them all, including a missed 10 footer at the last to hand victory to Els.
Comparisons were instantly made with the epic collapses of Jean Van De Velde in The Open at Carnoustie in 1999 or Scott's childhood hero Greg Norman's meltdown at The Masters in 1996.
However, only Scott will know where and how it all went wrong. He undoubtedly has the talent to win Majors but it will take him a long time to get over this loss.
Let's focus on Ernie Els now though. You would be hard pushed to find a more popular man amongst the golfing public.
His speech at the end showed what a classy guy the 42 year old multiple major winner is.
Els's first thoughts were for his buddy Adam Scott. How many other golfers would have done that?
He also paid tribute to Nelson Mandela and the work he has done for South Africa over the last two decades. The man known as 'The Big Easy' has certainly done his fare share as well.
As for his golf on the course, his back nine was simply flawless. With the wind picking up and the pressure mounting, Els held his nerve to shoot an incredible 32 coming home.
It had been ten years since Els had won The Open in a play-off at Muirfield, but on the closing stretch this Sunday he had the look of a man who believed it was his time again.
He did require some help from Scott but he put in a lot of the groundwork himself.
Els showed their is life in the old dog yet and I wouldn't bet against him adding to his four Major titles.
Once again Open Sunday provided a bundle of dramatic viewing as it so often does.
Bring on Muirfield in 2013.
Wednesday 11 July 2012
The Perfect Warm-Up For The Open?: A Preview of the Scottish Open
Last year Castle Stuart links golf course near Inverness staged the Scottish Open for the first time after it had been staged at Loch Lomond since 1996.
It was heralded as a bright new start for the Scottish Open, since Castle Stuart is a true links course designed to help the world's greatest golfers fine tune their game before heading to play The Open the following week.
However, the event was marred by dreadful weather with landslides couple with heavy ruin ruining the course and reducing the event to 54 holes.
The course was also criticised by many for being too easy with current World Number One Luke Donald shooting a 19 under par total for the three rounds with many other low scores being shot in the Moray Firth.
I have even had many local club golfers tell me that due to the wide fairways and generous pin positions they didn't find it an overly taxing golf course to play.
Despite all that many of the worlds top golfers including Donald, Phil Mickelson, Padraig Harrington and Ernie Els are all heading to Scotland to take part.
They obviously feel it is the best way to make sure their golfing game is inch perfect before The Open starts in two weeks at Royal Lytham and St Annes.
It is clearly a better test for them than the parkways of Loch Lomond. Whilst Loch Lomond was a fantastic venue to visit for spectators, there was always a feeling it simply wasn't the right challenge for the world's best before they tried to win the Claret Jug.
Conditions this week surely can't be worse than last year at Castle Stuart so first and foremost golf fans will be able to get a better picture of how good a course it is.
And of course it is a fine golf course. They didn't pick Castle Stuart out of thin air and Aberdeen Asset Management wouldn't be sponsoring some middle of the road tournament.
With the Irish Open being played in Portrush a fortnight ago, most of the best golfers in the game will have had some fantastic links golf experience so close to The Open.
Castle Stuart might not have lit the golfing world up last year, but the Scottish Open is still an absolute jewel in the crown of the European Tour and the four days near Inverness should provide thrilling golfing action.
As for those to watch, here's my select five:
Luke Donald: The defending champion and World number one. He might have dipped slightly recently but his short game is tremendous and anyone putts as well as he can is always going to contend in most tournaments.
Paul Lawrie: With a Scotsman not winning the event since 1999, the pressure is always on the home golfers, but Lawrie surely has to be in with a chance. He has been in great form this season, enjoying a great comeback as he strolls through his 40s. Always a good links player, Lawrie could finally end the wait for a Scottish winner.
Francesco Molinari: The Italian is my tip to win this week despite having not played the course before. He finished in the top ten at Portrush before ending up in second place at the French Open last week. His game should be suited to the course and with his great form going into it, he is a major contender at Castle Stuart.
Padraig Harrington: A twice Open winner in fine form, the Irishman ticks all the boxes to have a great week at Castle Stuart. Harrington simply thrives in links golf, which can't be said of many golfers these days. But perhaps save your money for him at Royal Lytham the following week.
Stephen Gallacher: Another Scotsman who has had a fine season with two runner up finishes, Gallacher is also a fan of links golf. He always enjoys playing on home soil and with his ball striking exemplary at his best he could creep under the radar.
It might be one of these golfers, but knowing the nature of golf at the moment(and my tips!) it probably won't be.
It was heralded as a bright new start for the Scottish Open, since Castle Stuart is a true links course designed to help the world's greatest golfers fine tune their game before heading to play The Open the following week.
However, the event was marred by dreadful weather with landslides couple with heavy ruin ruining the course and reducing the event to 54 holes.
The course was also criticised by many for being too easy with current World Number One Luke Donald shooting a 19 under par total for the three rounds with many other low scores being shot in the Moray Firth.
I have even had many local club golfers tell me that due to the wide fairways and generous pin positions they didn't find it an overly taxing golf course to play.
Despite all that many of the worlds top golfers including Donald, Phil Mickelson, Padraig Harrington and Ernie Els are all heading to Scotland to take part.
They obviously feel it is the best way to make sure their golfing game is inch perfect before The Open starts in two weeks at Royal Lytham and St Annes.
It is clearly a better test for them than the parkways of Loch Lomond. Whilst Loch Lomond was a fantastic venue to visit for spectators, there was always a feeling it simply wasn't the right challenge for the world's best before they tried to win the Claret Jug.
Conditions this week surely can't be worse than last year at Castle Stuart so first and foremost golf fans will be able to get a better picture of how good a course it is.
And of course it is a fine golf course. They didn't pick Castle Stuart out of thin air and Aberdeen Asset Management wouldn't be sponsoring some middle of the road tournament.
With the Irish Open being played in Portrush a fortnight ago, most of the best golfers in the game will have had some fantastic links golf experience so close to The Open.
Castle Stuart might not have lit the golfing world up last year, but the Scottish Open is still an absolute jewel in the crown of the European Tour and the four days near Inverness should provide thrilling golfing action.
As for those to watch, here's my select five:
Luke Donald: The defending champion and World number one. He might have dipped slightly recently but his short game is tremendous and anyone putts as well as he can is always going to contend in most tournaments.
Paul Lawrie: With a Scotsman not winning the event since 1999, the pressure is always on the home golfers, but Lawrie surely has to be in with a chance. He has been in great form this season, enjoying a great comeback as he strolls through his 40s. Always a good links player, Lawrie could finally end the wait for a Scottish winner.
Francesco Molinari: The Italian is my tip to win this week despite having not played the course before. He finished in the top ten at Portrush before ending up in second place at the French Open last week. His game should be suited to the course and with his great form going into it, he is a major contender at Castle Stuart.
Padraig Harrington: A twice Open winner in fine form, the Irishman ticks all the boxes to have a great week at Castle Stuart. Harrington simply thrives in links golf, which can't be said of many golfers these days. But perhaps save your money for him at Royal Lytham the following week.
Stephen Gallacher: Another Scotsman who has had a fine season with two runner up finishes, Gallacher is also a fan of links golf. He always enjoys playing on home soil and with his ball striking exemplary at his best he could creep under the radar.
It might be one of these golfers, but knowing the nature of golf at the moment(and my tips!) it probably won't be.
Sunday 8 July 2012
I Share Your Pain Andy Murray
The wait goes on then.
Andy Murray's defeat to Roger Federer in today's Wimbledon final means that Fred Perry is still the last British man to win a Grand slam all the way back in 1936.
As someone who has followed Murray since he burst on the tennis world as an eighteen year old in 2005, this defeat was the hardest loss to take.
It was heartbreaking to see the Scot breakdown on court after his defeat to the Swiss maestro.
Like many others I couldn't help but share in Murray's tears whilst watching at home.
Murray knew this was a real chance to finally become a Grand Slam champion. And he knows he won't get many better chances.
However, it should be made clear that Murray played absolutely superb and was beaten by the greatest man to ever pick up a tennis racket.
Murray should feel absolutely no shame in that.
In yesterdays blog (http://www.ewansworldofsport.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/legend-v-pretender.html) I tipped Murray to break his Grand Slam duck and beat the six times Wimbledon champion in five sets.
It wasn't to be though as Federer showed his class and experience were well and truly back.
For a while it all looked so good for Murray. He came out the blocks firing and instantly broke his opponent's serve.
Whilst Federer came back strongly, Murray dug deep and broke Federer superbly in the ninth game of the set before going on to take the opening set.
I was ecstatic at this point. In three Grand Slam finals to date Murray had never won a set.
Now he had got over that hurdle at least and as the second set began Murray was well on top.
He had his chances to really take control but Federer showed his quality to save numerous break points.
However when he broke Murray in the 12th game of the set to ultimately take it, it came out of nowhere.
Like the 15,000 fans inside Centre Court, I was completely stunned. A couple of points and suddenly it was a level game.
If there is one person you don't want to hand an opportunity to in a Grand Slam final, then it's Roger Federer.
As the third set began, Murray looked out of sorts and was thankful for the half-hour rain break.
The Swiss man though is the greatest ever indoor player and after the delay looked even more menacing as his ball-striking was out of this world.
Murray just had no answers despite fighting till the very end.
There were a couple of opportunities early in the fourth set but Murray just couldn't make them.
And that's the difference between winning a Grand Slam and not winning one unfortunately.
But let's not hear any allegations of Murray being a 'bottler' today. He was beaten by the better player on the day.
A player that has now won a record equalling seven Wimbledon titles and an incredible 17 Grand Slams in total.
Murray may feel right now that he will never have a greater chance of winning a slam due to Rafa Nadal's early exit and the fact he was facing the supposedly ageing Federer in the final rather than Novak Djokovic.
Federer though proved in his 24th slam final that class truly is permanent and with his trophy, he also returns to the world number one spot.
A remarkable achievement for someone who many had written off including myself.
In 2012, Murray has shown huge signs of improvement under the watchful eye of new coach Ivan Lendl.
Lendl, an eight time Grand Slam champion has instilled a new level of focus in the Scot and has certainly made him more confident in believing he can beat Djokovic, Federer and Nadal in the slams.
Yes, he might not have got over the line yet but his coach Lendl didn't in his first four slam finals.
The brilliant Croatian Goran Ivanisevic took 48 slams to finally win one. Murray has only played 27.
And I believe the Scot will certainly win a slam one day. Maybe.
Andy Murray's defeat to Roger Federer in today's Wimbledon final means that Fred Perry is still the last British man to win a Grand slam all the way back in 1936.
As someone who has followed Murray since he burst on the tennis world as an eighteen year old in 2005, this defeat was the hardest loss to take.
It was heartbreaking to see the Scot breakdown on court after his defeat to the Swiss maestro.
Like many others I couldn't help but share in Murray's tears whilst watching at home.
Murray knew this was a real chance to finally become a Grand Slam champion. And he knows he won't get many better chances.
However, it should be made clear that Murray played absolutely superb and was beaten by the greatest man to ever pick up a tennis racket.
Murray should feel absolutely no shame in that.
In yesterdays blog (http://www.ewansworldofsport.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/legend-v-pretender.html) I tipped Murray to break his Grand Slam duck and beat the six times Wimbledon champion in five sets.
It wasn't to be though as Federer showed his class and experience were well and truly back.
For a while it all looked so good for Murray. He came out the blocks firing and instantly broke his opponent's serve.
Whilst Federer came back strongly, Murray dug deep and broke Federer superbly in the ninth game of the set before going on to take the opening set.
I was ecstatic at this point. In three Grand Slam finals to date Murray had never won a set.
Now he had got over that hurdle at least and as the second set began Murray was well on top.
He had his chances to really take control but Federer showed his quality to save numerous break points.
However when he broke Murray in the 12th game of the set to ultimately take it, it came out of nowhere.
Like the 15,000 fans inside Centre Court, I was completely stunned. A couple of points and suddenly it was a level game.
If there is one person you don't want to hand an opportunity to in a Grand Slam final, then it's Roger Federer.
As the third set began, Murray looked out of sorts and was thankful for the half-hour rain break.
The Swiss man though is the greatest ever indoor player and after the delay looked even more menacing as his ball-striking was out of this world.
Murray just had no answers despite fighting till the very end.
There were a couple of opportunities early in the fourth set but Murray just couldn't make them.
And that's the difference between winning a Grand Slam and not winning one unfortunately.
But let's not hear any allegations of Murray being a 'bottler' today. He was beaten by the better player on the day.
A player that has now won a record equalling seven Wimbledon titles and an incredible 17 Grand Slams in total.
Murray may feel right now that he will never have a greater chance of winning a slam due to Rafa Nadal's early exit and the fact he was facing the supposedly ageing Federer in the final rather than Novak Djokovic.
Federer though proved in his 24th slam final that class truly is permanent and with his trophy, he also returns to the world number one spot.
A remarkable achievement for someone who many had written off including myself.
In 2012, Murray has shown huge signs of improvement under the watchful eye of new coach Ivan Lendl.
Lendl, an eight time Grand Slam champion has instilled a new level of focus in the Scot and has certainly made him more confident in believing he can beat Djokovic, Federer and Nadal in the slams.
Yes, he might not have got over the line yet but his coach Lendl didn't in his first four slam finals.
The brilliant Croatian Goran Ivanisevic took 48 slams to finally win one. Murray has only played 27.
And I believe the Scot will certainly win a slam one day. Maybe.
Saturday 7 July 2012
The Legend V The Pretender
Tomorrow Andy Murray will become the first British male tennis player to step out on Centre Court in a Wimbledon final since 1938.
He will follow in the footsteps of Bunny Austin who was defeated in that final by American Don Budge 74 years ago.
If he wins, Murray will become the first British man to win the title since Fred Perry completed a hat-trick of wins in 1936.
But standing in his way is arguably the greatest man to ever pick up a tennis racket in the shape of Roger Federer.
The legend from Switzerland is bidding for a record-equalling seventh Wimbledon title to match Pete Sampras, whilst Murray of course is desperate to land that elusive first grand slam title at the 27th time of asking.
So who's going to triumph come Sunday evening at SW19? A case can certainly be put forward for both men.
Federer simply has to be the favourite due to his unbelievable grand slam record having collected a record 16 majors, whilst Murray has lost the three major finals he has been in including two defeats to Federer at the 2008 US Open and the 2010 Australian Open.
At times in this tournament Federer has looked vulnerable, particularly in the third round when he was two sets down against Julian Benneteau but also in the following round when Belgian Xavier Malisse took a set off him and was leading 2-0 in the fourth set, before the Swiss stepped it up a gear.
However, yesterday Federer was simply sublime against the reigning Wimbledon champion and World number one Novak Djokovic.
He had been comprehensively beaten by the Serb in the French Open semi finals a month ago when he looked out of sorts but on Centre Court yesterday the true form of Federer was out on show.
It might have taken him four sets to win the semi-final but the Swiss man always seemed in control. His serve was simply superb and the backhand passing winners were constant.
The performance was the best I had seen Federer at the latter stages of a slam for a couple of years and he looks ready for a seventh Wimbledon crown having fallen at the quarter final stage in the last two years.
Does that mean I'm ruling Murray out of tomorrow's final? Not at all.
I've seen a different side to the Scot's game since he started working with the legendary eight-time Grand Slam winner Ivan Lendl at the start of this year.
He was very unfortunate to lose in the Australian Open semi finals to Djokovic in an epic semi-final lasting almost five hours weeks after Lendl was brought on board.
Lendl has certainly brought a new controlled focus to Murray's game. He doesn't show his emotions as much on the court as he used to.
His second serve, forever a weakness in Murray's game has been a lot stronger throughout this years Wimbledon whilst some of his winners on both his forehand and backhand have beggared belief at times.
But to win tomorrow Murray must remain focused and be aggressive. As someone who has watched Murray since he burst through in 2005, he has been far too cautious in his finals and has displayed an extremely fragile mental attitude.
The Andy Murray of 2012 is different though. He seems more in control. He knows he won't get too many better chances than this. He showed that in spades against David Ferrer and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarter and semi finals respectively.
The pressure of course will be tremendous. There are rumours that the Queen and David Cameron might be there watching as well as the millions of fans back home with their televisions.
Murray is very unfairly tagged a bottler by many who simply don't know enough about tennis.
Let's hope that he completes a historic victory tomorrow to deny them the chance to come out the woodwork.
And I think he will do it. In five gruelling sets.
He will follow in the footsteps of Bunny Austin who was defeated in that final by American Don Budge 74 years ago.
If he wins, Murray will become the first British man to win the title since Fred Perry completed a hat-trick of wins in 1936.
But standing in his way is arguably the greatest man to ever pick up a tennis racket in the shape of Roger Federer.
The legend from Switzerland is bidding for a record-equalling seventh Wimbledon title to match Pete Sampras, whilst Murray of course is desperate to land that elusive first grand slam title at the 27th time of asking.
So who's going to triumph come Sunday evening at SW19? A case can certainly be put forward for both men.
Federer simply has to be the favourite due to his unbelievable grand slam record having collected a record 16 majors, whilst Murray has lost the three major finals he has been in including two defeats to Federer at the 2008 US Open and the 2010 Australian Open.
At times in this tournament Federer has looked vulnerable, particularly in the third round when he was two sets down against Julian Benneteau but also in the following round when Belgian Xavier Malisse took a set off him and was leading 2-0 in the fourth set, before the Swiss stepped it up a gear.
However, yesterday Federer was simply sublime against the reigning Wimbledon champion and World number one Novak Djokovic.
He had been comprehensively beaten by the Serb in the French Open semi finals a month ago when he looked out of sorts but on Centre Court yesterday the true form of Federer was out on show.
It might have taken him four sets to win the semi-final but the Swiss man always seemed in control. His serve was simply superb and the backhand passing winners were constant.
The performance was the best I had seen Federer at the latter stages of a slam for a couple of years and he looks ready for a seventh Wimbledon crown having fallen at the quarter final stage in the last two years.
Does that mean I'm ruling Murray out of tomorrow's final? Not at all.
I've seen a different side to the Scot's game since he started working with the legendary eight-time Grand Slam winner Ivan Lendl at the start of this year.
He was very unfortunate to lose in the Australian Open semi finals to Djokovic in an epic semi-final lasting almost five hours weeks after Lendl was brought on board.
Lendl has certainly brought a new controlled focus to Murray's game. He doesn't show his emotions as much on the court as he used to.
His second serve, forever a weakness in Murray's game has been a lot stronger throughout this years Wimbledon whilst some of his winners on both his forehand and backhand have beggared belief at times.
But to win tomorrow Murray must remain focused and be aggressive. As someone who has watched Murray since he burst through in 2005, he has been far too cautious in his finals and has displayed an extremely fragile mental attitude.
The Andy Murray of 2012 is different though. He seems more in control. He knows he won't get too many better chances than this. He showed that in spades against David Ferrer and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarter and semi finals respectively.
The pressure of course will be tremendous. There are rumours that the Queen and David Cameron might be there watching as well as the millions of fans back home with their televisions.
Murray is very unfairly tagged a bottler by many who simply don't know enough about tennis.
Let's hope that he completes a historic victory tomorrow to deny them the chance to come out the woodwork.
And I think he will do it. In five gruelling sets.
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