| Lara edges Austrian Open play-off • Spaniard sees off Englishman David Lynn in play-off• Overnight leader Danny Willett has to settle with thirdSpain's José Manuel Lara won his second European Tour title and saved his tour card after getting the better of England's David Lynn in a play-off at the Austrian Open.Lara had missed nine successive cuts before finishing fourth at last week's KLM Open, and the confidence he gained from that performance carried him to victory in Atzenbrugg today.The 33-year-old from Valencia surged up the leaderboard from eighth place overnight after recording 10 birdies and two bogeys in his eight-under-par round of 64. That meant he finished tied on a 17-under 271 for the tournament with Lynn, who carded 68, as the pair overtook the overnight leader, Danny Willett, who finished with three successive bogeys.The leading pair both returned to the 18th tee to decide the victor, and Lynn put himself in trouble on the par-four hole by finding the rough on the right, behind a grass bank and almost in a bunker. From there he could only trundle the ball halfway to the green.Lara's tee shot was not perfect, finding light rough on the left, but he was able to find the putting surface with his second shot. Lynn pitched his third shot to around 15 feet, but Lara then putted to four feet.The pressure was on the 37-year-old Englishman and he failed to hole his testing putt, allowing Lara to step forward and find the heart of the hole to take victory with a par.Willett, the 22-year-old from Yorkshire, had to settle for a share of third place on 14 under par, alongside Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell and Alexander Noren of Sweden.Lara won his only previous European Tour title outside of Europe, prevailing at the Hong Kong Open in November 2006. He had plenty of reason to be satisfied, not least the cheque for 125,000 euros (£104,000) which was his reward.He came into the tournament at a lowly 130th in the Race to Dubai, and was in danger of having to go to the qualifying school to earn his card for next season. His victory has solved that problem though, guaranteeing him a place on the tour for 2011.Golfguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Marc Buoniconti paralyzed on the field, but not in life Marc Buoniconti never sits in his dreams. He runs at top speed instead. Or he plays football. Or makes love. rssfeeds.usatoday.com |
Thomas scores on Wales Test debut • Dual code international Gareth Thomas scores on Wales debut• Coach Iestyn Harris says performance 'says a lot for progress'Gareth Thomas scored a try with his second touch as a dual code international but his Wales rugby league debut ended in a surprise 13-6 defeat by Italy in Wrexham tonight.The former Wales and Lions rugby union captain, who was making his first appearance since suffering a groin injury more than two months ago, slid over for the game's first try. He was substituted after half an hour, in order to ensure his fitness for the first game of Wales's Alitalia European Cup campaign, against Scotland in Glasgow on Sunday.The Wales coach, Iestyn Harris, treated the game as a development exercise by resting many of his senior players. A determined and enterprising Italy team pulled level at half-time through a Christophe Caligari try that was converted by Josh Mantellato. Ben Falcone surged over in the 61st minute and Ben Stewart kicked a late drop goal to secure a significant win for the Italians."The crazy thing is I never thought I would pull on the Wales shirt again when I retired from international rugby union," said Thomas. "So to be given this opportunity was so special, especially in a team when you're surrounded by a lot of kids at various stages of their development and were so proud to wear the Wales badge."Harris said: "I think it says a lot for the progress we're making in Wales that we could take on an Italy side with a lot of experience in Australia with nine or 10 kids of under 19.Lee Briers, the experienced Warrington half-back who won the Lance Todd Trophy as man of the match in the Wolves' Challenge Cup final victory over Leeds, will take over the captaincy in Scotland, when Wales begin their bid to qualify for a crack at England in next autumn's Four Nations series.Gareth ThomasWales rugby league teamRugby leagueAndy Wilsonguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Yao Ming pleases home fans as Rockets halt Nets in Beijing Yao Ming played only 19 minutes while easing back from foot surgery, scoring nine points and delighting his home fans while helping the Houston ... rssfeeds.usatoday.com |
Back home, Lewis could pitch Texas to World Series By STEPHEN HAWKINS 2010-10-22T16:41:02ZARLINGTON, Texas (AP) -- Colby Lewis went to Japan expecting to finish his career there. Then after two seasons in the Far East, his original team offered him a chance to come back home and pitch.... hosted.ap.org |