Hoping to be on top of world but Scots sitting last after poor start
“Black Friday” came a day early for Scottish golf as Russell Knox and Duncan Stewart found themselves sitting last of the 28 teams after a nightmare start to the ISPS Handa World Cup of Golf in Australia.
The duo mustered a solitary birdie – at the opening hole – as they slumped to a six-over-par 78 at Kingston Heath, where Spanish pair Rafa Cabrera Bello and Jon Rahm birdied the last hole to lead on three under.
Bidding to repeat the 2007 success of Colin Montgomerie and Marc Warren, the Scots dropped five shots in the last seven holes as Knox’s decision to pick Stewart, his former college team-mate, ahead of more experienced players, came under immediate scrutinty.
According to Keir Mcnicoll, who is caddying for Stewart, however, some bad lack contributed to a disappointing day in the company of Irish duo Shane Lowry and Graeme Mcdowell. “It seems a bit harsh,” said Mcnicoll, writing in his blog for Gullane Pro Shop, where he works for Alasdair Good, of the Scottish score. “Although Russell and Duncan will be the first to admit they didn’t play their best, the conditions were very tricky and they definitely didn’t get many breaks out there.
“I know landing in divots and being plugged in bunkers is part of the game but sometimes you just need things to go your way when you’re not playing your best. But that’s golf….”
In a testing wind, Spanish duo Cabrera Bello and Rahm carded an eagle and two birdies in a three-under-par 69 to claim a one-shot lead over France (Victor Dubuisson and Romain Langasque), China (Ashun Wu and Haotong Li) and the United States (Rickie Fowler and Jimmy Walker).
“It’s been a fun day,” admitted Cabrera Bello, who was unbeaten on his Ryder Cup debut at Hazeltine, after holing a birdie putt at the last. “We played well. It was tough and tricky with the wind but Jon played great, I rolled some putts and hit some good shots as well. It’s a score we’re proud of and also a score we deserve.”
Rahm, who was world amateur No 1 before turning professional earlier this year, added: “It wasn’t so much about hitting great shots; it was about avoiding mistakes and we did that perfectly.”
Dubuisson and Langasque fired four birdies and two bogeys, as did Ryder Cup-winning American pair Walker
0 Duncan Stewart hits an approach during the first round of the ISPS Handa World Cup in Melbourne and Fowler, while Wu and Li posted five birdies and three bogeys.
England, represented by Chris Wood and Andy Sullivan, were a shot further back on one under along with the Italian pair of Francesco Molinari and Matteo Manassero, with Lowry and Mcdowell level par alongside Sweden and Denmark.