Luke Donald to play Ernie Els to defend his title at Accenture Match Play Championship – Golf News
The world number one, Luke Donald, is set to defend his title at the World Golf Championships – Accenture Match Play Championships by playing his opening match against Ernie Els on Wednesday, February 22, 2012.
Currently, neither of the two players is considered favourite for the win as both have been facing slumping performances in the recent months.
Luke Donald, who was seen outclassing his opponents in 2011 and winning several awards, struggled in every event that he has participated in the first quarter of 2012.
On the other hand, Ernie Else is currently looking to placing his name in the top 50 in the Official World Golf Rankings, in order to get a spot in the 2012 Masters Tournament. Currently, he is ranked at 68th.
Both the players finished at a six-over par 78 in the final round of last week’s Northern Trust Open in California.
Donald and Els were listed at 56th and 59th on the leaderboard when the tournament finished on Sunday, February 19, 2012.
There are a total of top 64 players participating in the event according to the OWGR. Els was not a part of the 64 when the list was finalised last week.
However, Phil Mickelson withdrew from the event, as he wanted to spend some time with his family giving away his position to Els in the 2012 edition.
"I am really fortunate to be here," triple major winner Els told reporters at Dove Mountain's Ritz-Carlton Golf Club on Monday.
"Being the last guy in, I have got to play the first seed, Luke Donald, and it is a tough match, like all matches here," he stated.
"It is interesting that I find myself in this position. In the past, it hasn't been quite my favourite event and I've skipped it a couple of times," he added.
Els is currently the lowest-ranked player participating in the event. Moreover, he also has a poor track record in the tournament as he was knocked out five times in his 11 appearances.
"My record is not that great here (in this event) but I really enjoy the golf course we play now (at Dove Mountain)," he said.
He also admitted that he owes Mickelson for making his place in the event and he is now in his debt this week.
Tags: