BBC BLOGS - Iain Carter

Archives for December 2010

Monty's men rightly recognised but coach of the year?

Post categories:

Iain Carter | 16:36 UK time, Monday, 20 December 2010

Colin Montgomerie has always shopped at the larger end of the rack but to call him a coach is a bit much. He is no such thing, in any sense of the word.

Europe's Ryder Cup captain must have felt as though he was at his local gym's step class given the times he was asked to climb to the stage at the BBC's Sports Personality of the Year show to celebrate and discuss his team's epic victory at Celtic Manor.

They were a deserving team of the year and in Lee Westwood and Graeme McDowell spawned two contenders for the main prize, which was won by jockey AP McCoy. But awarding Monty the Coach of the Year accolade did not seem appropriate.

In order to see this content you need to have both Javascript enabled and Flash installed. Visit BBC Webwise for full instructions. If you're reading via RSS, you'll need to visit the blog to access this content.

Montgomerie marshaled his team very well and was an excellent captain, while several players, including Westwood, said the Scot provided the blueprint for future skippers.

Read the rest of this entry

Time for men and women to share fairways?

Post categories:

Iain Carter | 11:22 UK time, Monday, 13 December 2010

So the new season is underway. Yes, within a fortnight of this year's European Tour campaign reaching its conclusion in Dubai, the 2011 calendar is already clicking with Pablo Martin's victory in South Africa.

The young Spaniard thus becomes our early leader in the next Race to Dubai.

Thankfully, however, the somewhat ridiculous notion that a new season can start before the old year finishes looks likely to end in 2011 with the European Tour season coming to its climax in mid-December.

It is a sensible move and worth noting that this is how it already works on the Ladies European Tour, which ended its season in Dubai at the weekend - and what a story it produced with Danish Solheim Cup player Iben Tinning claiming a two-shot victory with a birdie on the final hole of her last tournament before retirement.

Read the rest of this entry

Joint award is just reward

Post categories:

Iain Carter | 11:30 UK time, Tuesday, 7 December 2010

The European Tour's prestigious Golfer of the Year title is to be shared for the first time, with the award going jointly to US Open champion Graeme McDowell and PGA winner Martin Kaymer.

Golf does not like fudges but on this occasion the panel of judges made up of representatives of all sections of the golfing media could not separate the two Ryder Cup men, who both claimed debut major crowns in 2010.

Kaymer's US PGA success at Whistling Straits was one of four Tour titles that helped the German win the season-long Race to Dubai.

McDowell claimed three victories and also held his nerve brilliantly to steer Europe home to a single-point win in October's Ryder Cup.

Read the rest of this entry

McDowell's nerve highlights Tiger's continued vulnerability

Post categories:

Iain Carter | 11:58 UK time, Monday, 6 December 2010

Graeme McDowell's fourth victory of the season summed up the golfing year to a tee.

It reminded us of a glorious 12 months for the man from Northern Ireland, not to mention European golf, and denied Tiger Woods victory in what has been a miserable 2010 for the former world number one.
There is no more tenacious a competitor than McDowell at the moment.

Despite creaking over the closing holes after turning a four-shot deficit into a two-shot lead at the Chevron Challenge, he made the putts that counted, both at the end of regulation play and in the sudden death play-off.

His play on the greens boasted the same sure touch evident in October, when he secured the Ryder Cup for Europe, and in June, when he became the continent's first winner of the US Open in 40 years.

Read the rest of this entry

BBC © 2014 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read more.

This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so.