Ferguson looks to Woods for inspiration at home of famous World Cup comeback
SCOTLAND’S Ewen Ferguson will look to take inspiration from Tiger Woods as he bids to claim a third DP World Tour title in the ISPS Handa Championship.
Woods was involved in an incredible finish to the 2001 World Cup which took place at this week’s venue of Taiheiyo Golf Club in Gotemba, which sits in the foothills of Mount Fuji.
The 15-time major winner and partner David Duval were five shots off the lead with just four holes to play, but birdied the 15th, 16th and 17th before Woods chipped in for an eagle on the last to get into a four-way play-off.
Woods and Duval were eliminated on the first extra hole as South Africa’s Ernie Els and Retief Goosen went on to lift the title, but Ferguson has been watching highlights of the exciting climax to get ready for his return to action after three weeks off.
“I always look back at highlights from previous tournaments at the venue,” said Ferguson, whose previous wins both came in 2022, including the ISPS Handa World Invitational in Northern Ireland.
“I watched the highlights from 2001 with Tiger and Duval. We were watching Tiger’s chip in on the 72nd hole in 2001, which was cool.
“There’s been a few changes since then but, I’m buzzing to get going. I’ve been out on the course a few times and it plays amazing. The greens are so pure, it’s a tree-lined destination, can’t beat it. I’m enjoying it.
“I have not played for three weeks so may be a bit rusty, but a few holes in you start to find your feet. Anything can happen in any week in golf. I’ve been playing consistent [this season], hopefully I can get myself up there and into contention this week, and if not a bit more often in future. My golf has been good, just a couple of shots here and there would push it to the next level.”
Ferguson has missed just one cut in nine events this season and finished tied 47th on his last start in the Hero Indian Open, an event won by Japan’s Keita Nakajima. Nakajima currently leads the DP World Tour’s Asian Swing rankings, with the top three after next week’s Volvo China Open earning places in May’s US PGA Championship at Valhalla.
Meanwhile, Euan Walker is looking to build on his strong performance at last week’s Abu Dhabi Challenge as he prepares to tee it up at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club in the UAE Challenge, the second of back-to-back Challenge Tour events in the UAE. The Scot fired a course record-tying final round of 10 under par to finish in a tie for fourth at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting and Golf Club – his best result of the season so far.
The 28-year-old is looking to carry on that momentum with another strong performance at Saadiyat Beach.
“To get a result like that at this stage in the season is great”, he said. “I’ve had a couple of results in the top 20 this season, but there’s a big difference between that and finishing in the top five.
“It gives me confidence going into this week. I know that my game is good and that I’m playing well.
“I think if I can consistently execute, have good control of the golf ball, and not make any major mistakes, then I can have success.”
Walker, who currently sits 23rd in the season-long Road to Mallorca Rankings, puts his low-scoring final round at Al Ain down to his accuracy off the tee, a factor he hopes to carry forward into this week.
“I drove the ball beautifully on Sunday, which put me in position to make a good score”, he said. “I was on every fairway and it’s not often you do that.
“Saadiyat Beach is a long course, but it’s relatively generous off the tee. I think the bigger hitters have an opportunity to be aggressive with the driver and significantly shorten the course. I’m not one of the longer hitters so I’m not going to have that opportunity, but the key for me will still be to keep the driver in the fairway.”
Walker is already a winner on the Challenge Tour – having won the 2022 British Challenge – and the Scot is targeting a return to the winner’s circle this year alongside a top 20 finish in the Rankings and promotion to the DP World Tour.
“Last week shows I’ve got the ability to shoot scores low enough to win”, he said. “I’m good enough to get over the line and I’ll be trying my best every week to make it happen.
“It would mean a lot to make it to the DP World Tour. When you’re a junior you dream of playing there one day, so promotion would be a dream come true”.
Walker is part of a strong field at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club which includes DP World Tour winners Alvaro Quiros, Alexander Levy and Chris Wood as well as Road to Mallorca Number One Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen. Round one gets under way at 6:30am local time, with Walker teeing off at 7:40am alongside Levy and last week’s Abu Dhabi Challenge winner Garrick Porteous.