USA History at World Golf Championships

Team USA 2012
6th Place

Team USA 2010
8th Place

Team USA 2009
22nd Place

Team USA 2011
10th Place

Team USA

History

World Golfers Invitational                                                    World Golfers Championship

Individual                                                                               Individual

World Champions                                                                 World Champions

1998 Andrew Francolini-Flight A                                                                   2002 Merrilee Bailey Flight 4

1999 Jo Jo Herlitz- Flight 1

1999 Darryle Dunckle Flight 2                                                     Silver Medalist                                                                                           

1999 Gunner Lofgren Flight 3

1999 Richard Berg- Flight 5                                                                           2002 Patrick Amatucci Flight 3

2000 Scott Reynolds- Flight 3

2001 Darryl Dunckle- Flight 2                                                                       Bronze Medalist

2001 Scott Reynolds- Flight 3

2001 Bill Cliffton-Flight 5                                                                                2011 Robert Neal- Flight 1

2002 Jan Meijer- Flight 3                                                                                2010 Paul Goering- Flight 1

2003 Israek Barnes- Flight 4                                                                         2010 Bill Nitcholas- Flight 2

                                                                                                                              2002 Keith Craver Flight 2

                                                                     

                                                                                                                             5 Person Team Results

Silver Medalist 

                                                                                                                             2002 4th Place 

1998 Gunner Lofgren- Flight B                                                                    2003 No Team

1999 Harold Machen- Flight 2                                                                      2004 No Team

1999 Marty Schultz- Flight 6                                                                         2005 20th Place

2000 Darryl Dunckle- Flight 2                                                                      2006 No Team

2000 Steven Weitz- Flight 4                                                                          2007 No Team

2002 Gunner Lofgren- Flight 3                                                                     2008 15th Place

2002 Ellen OʼBrien- Flight 5                                                                          2009 22nd Place

2003 Rick Barnes- Flight 4                                                                           2010 8th Place

                                                                                                                             2011 10th Place
                                                                                                                             2012 6th Place

Bronze Medalist

                                                                           

1999 Kevin Mcnece- Flight 1

1999 Jan Meijer- Flight 3

1999 Inger Berg- Flight 6

2001 Jim Deas- Flight 1

2001 Paul Little- Flight 3

2001 Roger Smith- Flight 5

2001 Dave Ordner-Flight 7

2002 Larry OʼBrien-Flight 5

2003 Ellen OʼBrian- Flight 5

2011 Bob Neal - Flight 1

Two Person Team

World Champions

1997 Tim Christian, Harold Machen

1997 Kent Berg, Johan Rosen

1998 A. Martinez, L. Carlino

2001 Bill Clifton, Scott Reynolds

2003 Israel Barnes, Rick Barnes

Silver Medalist

2003 Israel Barnes, Rick Barnes

Bronze Medalist

1995 Buddy Whitaker, Jeffrey Cottarn

1996 Peo Linderg, Staffan Kyulenstierna

1997 Tim Christian, Harold Machen

1998 Tim Hyland, Doug Sorrow

2002 Jan Meijer, Randy Breathen

Nigeria Wins the first Sven Tumba Spirit Trophy

Sven Tumba Spirit Trophy 

This new Trophy is a special award in memory of the endearing, loving and kind spirit Sven Tumba brought to the world of golf and the manner in which he grew World Golfers Championship over 17 years. It is based on the manner in which he would love to see the championship grow in years to come. It is not all about winning, but about taking part and making new friends and forging new business opportunities that matters most. 

This trophy is awarded to the team who stood out as having shown the best attitude, complied totally with all organisational requests, gone out of their way to accommodate fellow golfers, been friendly and courteous on the course at all times and generally played the championship with a positive spirit and the right attitude, both amongst themselves and towards others. The team who came to the championship with the intention of having fun, meeting new friends and playing in the right spirit, win or lose. They created presence and authenticity with their exuberance, courtesy and ‘no problem’ approach. 

2011 WGC Spirit Award Winners - Nigeria 

Robert Neal takes 3rd place at the World Championships leading USA to a 10th place finish

U.S. 10th in World Golfers Championship

November 11th, 2011 by James McAfee

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The United States placed 10^th in the 2011 World Golfers Championship on the Durban Country Club, the Prince’s Grant Golf Estate, the Umhlali Country Club and the Zimbali Golf Course in Kwa-Zula Natal, South Africa with a total of 1,210 for the best four scores daily over 72 holes.

Thailand, led by flight 16-20 winner Yutthachai Phaireeron, claimed the title with a 1,161 total, three strokes ahead of China. Other members of the winning team were Deja Klakasikich, Chaiyaport Chorhuat, Tanaseth Sakdiwatjirakul and Chakrit Wanglomklang. Host South Africa took the bronze at 1,184.

 Bob Neal of Arlington, TX led the Americans, posting a net 296 in the 0-5 division to finish third, losing a scorecard playoff on back 9 net for the silver medal. He finished a stroke behind winner Sue Dieners of Germany, who got six more strokes than Neal in the final round. Mark Thomas of Detroit finished fifth in the 5-10 division with a 300 total. Other members of the U.S. team were Eddie Stephens of Wilmette, IL, Ivan Marin of Miami, FL and David Weatherspoon of Arvada, CO.

 U.S. captain Anders Bengtson said, “Of all the events I have been to, this was by far the best run tournament ever. All members of Team USA were thrilled and will have a memory of a lifetime.”

 Members of the U.S. team echoed Bengtson’s feelings about the experience and privilege of representing their country in the international competition and the exchanges with golfers from all over the world.

 “I was so nervous playing for my country,” said Marin. “I was so afraid I would embarass myself. It was a lot of pressure,”

 Stephens added, “South Africa is an amazing place! It was a terrific experience. It was a privilege I will not soon forget.”

 Neal, who easily had the best gross score in the competition playing off 1 and 2 handicaps, noted the four courses were all in good shape and made even more challenging by the windy conditions. “The handicap format seemed to reward bad rounds early and I had my worst round the last day,” he said.

 The other individual world champions were Jurie Jerling of Russia, Rong Kun Yang of China and Vilem Benes of the Czech Republic.

 In the invitational division, Mary Hauk of  Detroit and Bengtson each had 318 totals to place 11^th and 7^th in their respective divisions.

 While there was lots to celebrate in South Africa, there were sad moments, too. Sven Tumba, who started the competition 17 years ago, was missing after dying earlier in October at age 80.

 The World Golfers Championship will return to South Africa for the 18^th annual edition Oct. 27-Nov. 3, 2012.

 Bengtson indicated that the date and site for the 2012 U.S. finals along with more information about the new WG US Tour, a series of events in major markets across the U.S., would be announced soon.

Mark Thomas and Ivan Marin Help Team USA Jump 6 Places On "Moving Day"

Day three, “Moving Day” and Team USA Playing in the WG Championship (5 person team) put them selves in position to take a shot at the title on day four by jumping 6 spots from 17th place to 11th Place.

Team USA in the Invitational ( 2 person team) unfortunately moved the wrong way. Even though they matched their best daily total with a net 157, on moving day if you are not shooting low you are moving backwards and Team USA did just that slipping 7 spots to 15th Place.

The Championship

Mark Thomas

Mark Thomas was day three's superstar by recording a net 64 which is USA’s lowest score of the event and 14 strokes better then his previous low. This has vaulted Mark up the leaderboard in flight 2 eight spots to third place. With one day to go Thomas is only two strokes back of the two day leader Jurie Jerling from South Africa after gaining 11 strokes on day three.

Ivan Marin

If it was not for Mark Thomas, Ivan Marin would have been day three’s superstar. Marin also recorded a much needed round in the 60’s with a net 68. This has put Marin back in contention for a medal by moving 6 spots to 9th Place. Ivan is currently 25 strokes back from the leader Zhen Hao Zhao from China and a championship may be out of reach, but 3rd place is. 

MVP??? USA’s Flight one National Champion Robert Neal continues to impress. Neal shot a gross 73 for a net 71 placing him in 1st place with a four stroke lead over Hennrik Bergqvist of Sweden, Sue Dieners of Germany and Jean Pierre Le Roux of South Africa. But most impressive is his gross score over the field, he currently has a 14 stroke lead over the first three days, and increasing his lead by nine strokes since yesterday. 

The fourth and final score recorded by USA was turned in by Eddie Stephens. Stephens shot a net 75 which is Team USA’s lowest fourth score to date by 9 strokes. This was a must for USA to move up the leaderboad.  “ A team is only as strong as its weakest link” and a net 75 makes for a very strong team. 

USA teams total for day three was 279, which was 27 strokes better then day two and 58 strokes better then day one. This team effort of a daily net average of 69.27 has brought their three day average down to 76.01. With the projected team total of 1170 or a net average of 73.125 is what is needed to Win the Championship, Team USA is still mathematically  in a position to jump 10 spots and win. 

Keys To Victory

David Weatherspoon, David Weatherspoon, David Weatherspoon.......

The bright side to Weatherspoon’s struggles the first three days of the event is that his handicap has been adjusted an additional 14 strokes so on day four, David will be playing with a 35 CH. To compensate for all the different handicap formula’s across the glob the championship has adopted a handicap adjustment policy after each round of the event. (see chart below) Since Davis has a USGA CH of 21 he realistically has the ability to shot a 93 on the final day. If he can pull this off, this will give him a net 58 which  will be a huge bust for the team. Then Team USA will also need Mark Thomas, Eddie Stephens and Ivan Marin to shot to their USGA handicaps as well. If they can accomplish this task they will end up with a total score of 1169 putting Team USA one stroke under the projected winning score.(see projection table)

Can they do it? It all depends if you have a “glass half empty” or a “glass half full” mentality. The USGA probability table states that an individual will shoot their handicap one out of every five times they play? You can also apply these probabilities to a group; one out of five players will shoot their handicap. If you have a “glass half empty” mentality you would argue that 4 players out of 5 team members to shoot their handicap on the same day is probably impossible. If you have a “glass half full” mentality you would argue that these five players will play a total of 30 rounds of golf between the World Championship and the USA National Championship. Which means that there will be 6 rounds where a player will shoot their handicap. Thus far in the previous 25 rounds their have been only two rounds played at handicap, leaving 4 rounds to be played at or below handicap on the final day of the Championship.

Can they do it ? YES

Handicap Adjustment	Chart
Net 83 or higher =	+5 Strokes (max)
81-82	+4 strokes
79-80	+3 strokes
77-78	+2 strokes
75-76	+1 strokes
70-74	no adjustment
68-69	-1 strokes
66-67	-2 strokes
64-65	-3 strokes
62-63	-4 strokes
60-61	-5 strokes
58-59	-6 strokes, etc

Notes on different par:Par 71:
69-73=No Adj. 67-68=-1, 74-75=+1, etc.
Par 73:
71-75=No Adj., 69-70=-1, 76-77 =+1, etc.

WG Championship Team USA														Projection
Name		Day	One		adj	Day	Two		adj	Day	Three		adj	Day	Four
	CH	Gross	Net	Place	CH	Gross	Net	Place	CH	Gross	Net	Place	CH	Gross	Net	Place
Robert Neal (TX)	1	75	74	2	1	75	74	3	2	73	71	1	2	73	72
Mark Thomas (MI)	8	89	81	13	12	90	78	11	15	79	64	3	12	80	68
Eddie Stephens (IL)	13	109	96	24	18	88	70	17	18	93	75	16	19	85	66
Ivan Marin (FL)	17	97	80	5	20	105	95	15	25	93	68	9	24	89	65
David Weatherspoon (CO)	21	113	92	20	26	110	84	22	31	111	80	23	35	93	58
Team	Daily	Total	327	14			306	17			279	11			257
	Total	score	327				633				912				1169
	Daily	ave.	81.75				76.5				69.75				64.25
	Total	ave.	81.75				79.125				76.01				73.06

The Invitational 

Mary Hauk survives day three posting a net 79. I say survive because despite two bad days, Mary is still with in striking distance sipping only 3 spots to 5th place and only is only 7 strokes off the lead from co leaders Inga Doetsch of Germany and Y. Bok Lim from Vietnam. If it was not for her 6 stroke lead on day one she may have not survived the past two days but Mary has a mid to low 80’s in her game and if she can play well on day four she can win. 

Teammate Anders Bengtson may be running out of time. After posting a net 78 on day three Anders slipped to 8th place and 26 strokes off the leader Indur Hirani from India. However if Anders can shoot his to his USDA handicap a record a gross 90 he will finish with a net 63 which may be good enough to medal. 

To view all results go to www.9n9.co.za