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China in deep water at World Cup
(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-11-28 09:12 DONGGUAN, Guangdong province: China's assault on the Omega World Cup took a battering Thursday as local heroes Liang Wenchong and Zhang Lianwei fired into a water trap on the last hole for a double bogey to card a three-under-par 69 in the opening fourball session, leaving them seven shots behind pacesetter Germany at Mission Hills Golf Club.
Zhang and Liang made costly mistakes for an unhappy ending to their day's play. Zhang, a five-time winner on the Asian Tour, drove into the water on what is rated as the toughest hole on all of Mission Hills' world-record 12 courses, while Liang followed suit with his wayward approach. "It was an unbelievable mistake by the both of us. There are three days to go. We're not too worried. I'm confident we can come back in the foursomes tomorrow. We should be able to improve on our score. But to see Germany finish on 10-under in the wind is amazing. It's a nice score," said Zhang. Asia's collective challenge at the World Cup endured a frustrating start with swirling winds blowing most of the teams off course in the first round. Japan's Ryuji Imada and Toru Taniguchi emerged as the leading team from the region after a six-under 66. Indian duo Jyoti Randhawa and Jeev Milkha Singh, who secured the Asian Tour's Order of Merit title this season, combined for a 67 to finish joint 12th with the Philippines, represented by Angelo Que and Mars Pucay. "It was tough to swallow. I think we could have done better than that. We'll take it as we're not badly placed," said Singh, winner of three tournaments in Asia, Japan and Europe this year. Chinese Taipei's Lin Wen-tang, winner of last week's UBS Hong Kong Open, and veteran Lu Wen-teh carded a 68, which was matched by South Korea's Bae Sang-moon and Kim Kyung-tae. Alex Cejka hailed partner Martin Kaymer after Germany powered into a one-shot lead with a hard-won 62. Kaymer fired six birdies and an eagle while Cejka contributed two birdies to edge Australia's Richard Green and Brendan Jones by a stroke. The United States team of Brandt Snedeker and Ben Curtis dovetailed their way to a 64, which was matched by playing partners Canada, represented by Wes Heffernan and Graham Delaet, and Spanish duo Miguel Angel Jimenez and Pablo Larrazabal. Defending champion Scotland, with Colin Montgomerie and Alastair Forsyth in the team, were four shots back on 68. Cejka, playing in his ninth World Cup, paid tribute to the 23-year-old Kaymer, who is rated as one of the rising stars in world golf. "He played really solid golf. He made a lot of birdies, an eagle, and I just tried to contribute a couple of times," said Cejka, who is recovering from an injury-hit season. "We are delighted to be here. So far, leading, I think it's a great start for Germany." Kaymer won twice this year to rise to 26th in the world rankings and was thrilled at his first chance of challenging for a World Cup title. Germany won the tournament two years ago courtesy of Bernhard Langer and Marcel Siem. China Daily |
