Profile / Editor / 21 February 2007 / Leave a Comment

Twelve months ago, not much was known about Geoff Ogilvy but, a year on, it is difficult to talk about a major championship without his name soon cropping up in conversation.

The Australian had managed to win his maiden PGA Tour tournament at the 2005 Chrysler Championship but, going into the 2006 World Golf Championships Accenture Match Play, he was ranked 52nd out of the 64 golfers playing and not much was expected of him.

At the end of the week though, Ogilvy had successfully battled through extra holes in his first four matches before defeating Davis Love III in the final to announce himself as a player to be reckoned with on the world stage.

And four months later, the 29-year-old recorded the biggest success of his career when he took full advantage of costly mistakes from experienced stars Colin Montgomerie and Phil Mickelson to win the US Open in only his tenth appearance in a Major.

Ogilvy showed nerves of steel at Winged Foot to chip in for par at the 17th hole before holing a slippery downhill ten-foot putt for par at the last to keep himself in contention, when he looked to have blown his chance of glory.

He had displayed the same tough characteristics at the Accenture Championship and he will be seeking a repeat of that sort of performance when he defends his match play title in Arizona this week, where he is trading at 50 to win and 10.5 to reach the last four.

Ogilvy has taken his time to come to the forefront of the game having first turned professional back in 1998, but now he has made his mark he looks set to stay ranked among the world's best players.

Wirily built, the Australian is still capable of launching a mighty drive when he has to so the length of modern-day courses is not an issue for him.

The world number 11 is also one of the best bunker players on tour and possesses a fine touch around the greens, but it is his tough, uncompromising character that earmarks him as a contender for further Major success in the future.

Ogilvy fought back from four down with four to play to beat Mike Weir in extra time at last year's Accenture Match Play Championship, while his recent record in the Majors shows he is very much a player for the big occasion.

He finished in the top 16 in each Grand Slam event in 2006 while he has shown a special liking for the British Open and US PGA Championships, coming in the top ten in the latter in the last two years.

Backers should also pay particular attention to Ogilvy at next month's Honda Classic, where he has finished in the top ten in three of the six years he has played the event, including last year when he came second behind Luke Donald.

Post a comment

Name:

Email Address:

URL:

Remember personal info?

Comment: