McGinley makes strong start
Paul McGinley, two wins away from a £1m (€1.47m) bonanza, made the start he was looking for in the HSBC World Match Play semi-finals at Wentworth today.
Up against Angel Cabrera, the Argentinian who beat him to the BMW Championship title on the same course in May, McGinley won the short second with a conceded birdie after his opponent missed the green and could not save his par.
It was the first time the big-hitting South American had been behind all week and it merely added to McGinley’s confidence following thumping wins by seven and six over Thomas Bjorn and then nine and eight over his Ryder Cup team-mate Luke Donald.
But Cabrera was soon back on terms. Both missed the green at the third but, while Cabrera chipped to a foot, the Dubliner was still 40 feet from the flag in three and bogeyed.
The other match was between the last two winners of the US Open and the top two on the current European Order of Merit, with Retief Goosen a firm favourite to beat Michael Campbell.
That was based on the fact that the top seed had not only won his previous two tournaments in China and Germany but had also demolished Kenneth Ferrie eight and seven and then Mark Hensby by a 12 and 11 margin which equalled his own championship record set against Jeff Maggert last year.
Campbell, on the other hand, had been taken to the final green by Geoff Ogilvy on Thursday and to the 17th by another Australian, Steve Elkington, in the quarter-finals – and had been forced to come back from five down in that encounter.
The New Zealander will remember, though, that he took advantage of a dip in form by Goosen in the final round of the US Open at Pinehurst in June. The South African led by three, but shot 81, while Campbell’s 69 gave him his first major title by two from Tiger Woods.
And it was Campbell who drew first blood. After the first three holes had been shared in par figures he was conceded an eagle on the long fourth after Goosen could do no better than a par five.
Campbell was only eight feet away with his four-iron approach.
