Dunne ready to fire a Ryder Cup warning
of one player producing an era of dominance are simply over.
Maybe that’s OK — Justin Rose insisted the game is in a healthy place going forward, with or without Woods.
“I think to have him back is just a bonus,” Rose said.
Last week Sergio Garcia sounded a word of caution.
“Hopefully, he can make it. But that’s a big question mark.”
Woods’ performance at the Hero World Challenge will indicate how far he has come and whether the ingredients are there to compete at a major.
His most famous photograph will never be a police mugshot, of course. There are many choices but perhaps it is the image of a 21-year-old Woods accepting his first Green Jacket from Nick Faldo, hanging loosely off the shoulders of a grinning champion.
He almost certainly won’t hit those heights again, but he has the chance to turn the dial back to golf, and the sport is ready to receive him as gratefully as ever. PAUL DUNNE is hoping for an early birthday present from European Ryder Cup skipper Thomas Bjorn in Hong Kong today.
While a win in the $2 million UBS Hong Kong Open on Sunday would be the perfect way to celebrate his 25th, the Greystones star won’t object if the Dane names him in the 12-man team that will defend the EurAsia Cup at Glenmarie Golf and Country Club in Kuala Lumpur from January 10-12.
Bjorn must add two wildcards to join the leading 10 ‘available’ European players from the final Race to Dubai standings when he reveals his side today.
And, while Dunne (above) was 16th in the final Race to Dubai rankings last Sunday (and the 14th ranked European), the likely unavailability of major winners Justin Rose, Sergio Garcia, Ulsterman Rory McIlroy and Henrik Stenson means he’s a virtual certainty to get the nod for a trip to Malaysia.
The biennial event traditionally gives the European captain a chance to see potential Ryder Cup rookies in matchplay combat. Now 77th in the world, Dunne’s one-stroke win over McIlroy in last month’s British Masters marks him out as a potential debutant at Le Golf National in Paris next year.
“The season has been fantastic. Getting my first win was a big step and gives me a lot of confidence,” said Dunne, who is currently fifth in the European Ryder Cup rankings.
“It has been a year where I have achieved what I wanted and more but still feel there is more in there.”
A second win of the year would mean beating the likes of Race to Dubai winner Tommy Fleetwood and Ryder Cup players Rose, Garcia or Rafa Cabrera Bello.
Irish golf already has two Hong Kong winners in Pádraig Harrington (2004) and McIlroy (2011). And Dunne could not have a better draw as he tees it up with four-time champion Miguel Ángel Jiménez and Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat, joint second with Offaly’s Shane Lowry in Dubai last Sunday.
Dunne has the short game to make hay in Hong Kong.