The Punter / Steven Rawlings / 18 May 2009 / 1

Steve Rawlings got the winner in the US but it was a frustrating affair after backing Zach Johnson many times in the weeks before the Texas Open. Meanwhile the surprise Irish Open champ was a real headscratcher for all those seeking to find the winner at Baltray.

After a lengthy weather delay they eventually managed to complete the third round at the Irish Open late on Saturday evening and it appeared to be a three man race between Irish amateur Shane Lowry, Robert Rock and Johan Edfors.

There'd been a two shot swing on the last hole that resulted in Rock catching Lowry; with the pair two clear of Edfors and six clear of the field. My in-running pick, Levet, had started well enough, eagling the 3rd, but his putting touch deserted him after that.

There was an even longer stoppage over the pond when thunderstorms halted play in Texas and I really should have gone to bed but when play resumed a Zach Johnson charge caught my attention and it was gone 2.00am when he left a birdie putt short on the last for a magical 59.
When darkness halted play he led by three from Goydos and Leonard, but they still had six holes left to play.

Going into the final round of the Irish Open it was hard to see anyone outside the front three winning, especially given how easily the course was playing, but I'm no fan of Rock or indeed Edfors, whose three European Tour wins have all come from way off the pace, and Lowry looked vulnerable for obvious reasons, so I modestly layed the three of them.

Challengers were thin on the ground - there was an early eagle from Nick Dougherty and charges from Marc Warren and Alistair Forsyth but nobody could sustain a challenge and it was ultimately left to Lowry, Rock and Edfors to fight it out. All three went odds on at various stages during the back nine. Edfors hit [1.67] before he lost the plot, Rock [1.47], and when he took a one shot lead to the 17th tee, Lowry hit [1.37].

With the Swede out of it, Rock made a brave birdie and he and Lowry went to the last locked together on -17.

The young Irishman had a three footer to take the title and was matched at the minimum odds but incredibly pushed it by and a play-off was needed.

Lowry eventually won with a par at the third extra hole, after looking out of it at times - Rock was matched as low as [1.31] during the play-off.

Incredibly this wasn't the first instance of an amateur winning this season, Danny Lee's Johnnie Walker success in February had been before he'd turned pro.

Although it was a great story, his petulant club slamming and repeated bad language wouldn't have endeared him to all golf fans. Personally I don't really care how many times he shouted the F-word but I can see why it's not ideal, especially with all the youngsters following their brand new hero.

It's worth mentioning the crowd - to have hung around in that weather all weekend was quite an effort and they created a tremendous atmosphere.They were a highly partisan bunch and there were a few cheers when Rock missed his final putt, which isn't really the done thing but in the circumstances it was understandable.

While all that was going on the third round of the Texas Open was being completed and I was busy trying to lay Zach Johnson. I had hoped to get him layed and then see Leonard pick up a few birdies coming in so that I could lay him too but it didn't work out. I did lay Zach at [2.2] but then backed him back when Leonard bogeyed the 18th.

To cut a long story short, I traded Zach to-and-fro and ended up laying him back at an average of [1.44]. Which was no mean task considering how he struggled, which wasn't an absolute shock after the 60 the day before.

I didn't get to lay Leonard at all or Stephen Ames, my other picks in contention, but I did back Jay Haas as he played the 16th hole at [30.0], as well as James Driscoll at [16.0], once he'd finished his round and posted a target of 15 under par.

Paul Goydos hit [1.5] and looked likely to ruin things for me when he stood on the penultimate tee holding a one shot lead at -16, but two bogeys at his last two holes saw him fall a shot short.

I'd traded well and as a result the play-off between Driscoll and Johnson was a stress-free affair. After looking all at sea for most of the final round Johnson became the cool, composed closer I thought him to be and victory was soon secured with a perfect birdie from about 12 feet.

Maybe I should be feeling better than I do after finally having a winning week and I am pleased, but having backed Zach at much bigger odds recently and not getting a penny out of my Leonard or Ames bets, as they just didn't quite get low enough to lay, I didn't feel euphoric.

As for the European result - a fairy-tale maybe but a shocking result for us poor punters. Having an amateur win in his first ever Tour event at [1000.0] renders all the hours of research pretty much useless.

Two cracking events this week - I'll preview the PGA Championship from Wentworth and the Byron Nelson Championship in the states on Wednesday.

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1. Lily Andrews | 18 May 2009

   I agree with the comments attributed to Mr Lowry. Swearing and golf club slamming is not acceptable.

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