In Sydney, four Australians qualify for spots in British Open  SYDNEY, Australia -- Superb rounds of 66 and 69 sent Ewan Porter flying through the British Open qualifying tournament in his home city on Tuesday, as four players earned spots in the 2007 British Open at Carnoustie in July. The 24-year-old finished the 36-hole International Final Qualifying (IFQ) event at The Lakes on 11 under par for a three-shot win over former World Cup winner Peter Fowler. A total of 52 players teed off in the two-day qualifier.
An opening 74 left Fowler eight off the pace, but the 47-year-old came storming through with a second-round 64. Three more Australians -- Scott Laycock, Ben Bunny and Chris Campbell -- were tied for third, three strokes further back. They went to a playoff for the two remaining spots, with Laycock and Bunny prevailing. Laycock birdied the first playoff hole and Bunny the second to eliminate Campbell. Bunny also qualified last year, but missed the halfway cut at Hoylake. Veteran Australian Craig Parry, who led at Carnoustie in 1999 with seven holes to play and missed the famous playoff won by Paul Lawrie by one shot, finished only tied for 13th on 1 under Tuesday. Porter will not only be playing his first British Open, but will also be making his first trip to Europe. "I'm a bit in shock, actually,'' he said. "It's awesome because the last 12-18 months hasn't been so great for me.'' Another Australian, Terry Pilkadaris, qualified for Carnoustie in South Africa last month along with Doug McGuigan of Scotland, Brazilian Adilson Da Silva and South African Desvonde Botes. Among the other prominent players not qualifying on Tuesday were: Jason Day (+2), James Nitties (+3), Greg Chalmers (+3), Lucas Parsons (+5), Euan Walters (+5) and Nick Flanagan (+5). The next qualifier is in Singapore on March 27-28, then others follow at Sunningdale in England and Oakland Hills, Mich., on July 2. Copyright 2007 PGATOUR.com. All rights reserved. |
PGATOUR.com is part of the Turner Sports and Entertainment Digital Network