Five things we learned from the world of golf over the weekend
Tuesday 3 November 2015 11:54, UK
From youngsters cleaning up to the old guard struggling, and another twist in the Ian Poulter saga, here's a look at five things we learned over the weekend in the world of golf.
Youngsters dominant
The first three events of the new PGA Tour season have produced three first-time champions, and Smylie Kaufman is the oldest of them so far... at 23 years of age!
Kaufman is just over nine months older than Frys.com Open winner Emiliano Grillo, while Sunday's CIMB Classic champion Justin Thomas will not turn 23 until April next year.
On the European Tour, "veteran" 25-year-old Victor Dubuisson claimed his second Turkish Airlines Open crown amid emotional scenes at the first of the Race to Dubai Final Series events.
So it was entirely appropriate that the aptly-named Sei Young Kim should round off the list of weekend winners, clinching her third victory of the year at the Blue Bay LPGA in China.
Golf - it's a sport for youngsters!
Dubuisson disillusioned
Talking of Dubuisson, part of the reason for his emotional outpouring after he holed the winning putt in Turkey was down to him looking forward to playing in this week's WGC-HSBC Champions in Shanghai.
However, the win was not enough for the Ryder Cup star to be eligible for the final World Golf Championship event of the year, despite it being part of the Race to Dubai Final Series.
Plans are now in place for widespread changes to the end-of-season schedule on the European Tour, with reports emerging that the Shanghai showpiece and the BMW Masters will be removed from the finale.
"I discovered half an hour ago that I was not playing next week," Dubuisson said on Sunday. "When I holed my putt, I was under the presumption to play next week. That's one of the reasons why I was so happy, that I could play the four events, but apparently the rules have changed.
"When you win a big event like this one, go back to top 50 in the world, top 10 in the Race to Dubai, it's not normal that I cannot play next week."
Scott getting left behind?
While golf's young guns were dominating the headlines over the weekend, established major-winning pro Adam Scott provided an interesting focal point among the "old guard".
The former Masters champion, wary of the imminent changes to the laws regarding anchored putting, reverted to a traditional-length flat stick for the CIMB Classic in Malaysia.
A sparkling final-round 63 saw the Aussie finish just a stroke behind Thomas, but Scott is fully aware he will need to up his game in 2016 to avoid trailing in the wake of the raft of young players at the top of the game.
"Even at 35, unfortunately you feel like your time's numbered a little bit," said Scott, who is eight years older than current world No 1 and compatriot Jason Day.
"And that's the way it's going, the world's moving fast now, so I've got to make the most of the next few years. It's motivating for sure. I want to get up there and play and show them that the old dog's still got something."
Rory fears for Tiger
Tiger Woods continues to make more headlines off the course than on it, and it emerged on Saturday that the 14-time major champion had been forced to undergo a follow-up procedure to the "successful" back operation he had in September.
Woods, who turns 40 on December 30, has not set a timeline for his return to competitive action, although there are fears he could be unable to play until the middle of 2016 at the earliest.
When, and if, he returns, it is likely that the man who spent 683 weeks as the world's No 1 ranked golfer could have slipped outside of the top 500.
Even Rory McIlroy cast doubt on Tiger's prospects of regaining former glories after his third back surgery in 19 months.
"I think any time you touch your back, it's tough," McIlroy said. "I guess that's his third back surgery in a year and a half. Like someone once said, the best way to avoid your fifth back surgery is to avoid the first one. He has that mindset to overcome things and he's done that before, so I wouldn't put it past him. But I think it's a long road ahead."
Poulter in for Shanghai
The trials and tribulations of Ian Poulter's frantic dash to Hong Kong were well documented, but it now transpires that he did not need to go through all of the hassle.
Poulter fell out of the world's top 50 the previous week, ruling him out of the WGC-HSBC Champions and forcing him to plead for an entry into the UBS Hong Kong Open in order for him to play the required 13 European Tour events this season to retain his card.
He was added to the field after Sky Sports commentator and former PGA champion Rich Beem generously handed over his tournament invite, and Poulter made a bright start before fatigue caught up with him.
But Poulter, who won the last of his 12 European Tour titles in Shanghai in 2012, was then added to the field for the final WGC event of the year when Brandt Snedeker announced he would not be making the journey.
All of which prompted Beem to tweet: "Holy cow, all that mess last week and you still got in next week? Too funny!! Calling Vegas now to place a bet on you!!"
