Poulter tip Horsfield proves he can cash in

ENGLISHMAN Sam Horsfield is well on his way to living up to mentor Ian Poulter’s bold prediction after finishing second behind South African George Coetzee in the tshwane Open in Pretoria yesterday. Poulter forecast before Christmas that the 21-year-old would quickly make himself at home on the European tour and a runner-up place to follow a recent fourth spot in Australia is certainly an impressive start. Orlando-based Horsfield — the family moved from Manchester when he was young — was playing in the final group on Sunday for the first time and made an understandably nervous start to his round. But he finished with three straight birdies to bank his biggest cheque to date (a sum of around £105,000) and make life easier as he seeks to build on winning the European tour’s Qualifying School last November. Horsfield first met Poulter when he was 14 and the latter’s caddie terry Mundy, a family friend, is now helping to guide his professional career. On the women’s European tour in Australia, there was a maiden victory for England’s Meghan MacLaren at the New South Wales Open. America’s Michelle Wie ended a four-year drought without a title by winning the HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore.