GOLF:FOR THE sake of family values, Rake Snot Ruse Quiros (please no letters from offended Simplex Crossword experts), the wonderfully named franchise owned and keenly managed by Darragh Halpin scored a bumper weekend of points to push Bis a Bis 5 into second place from last week.
It was, of course, four days of personal triumph for Darren Clarke and also for those teams that got wise and more importantly, got on to the big man from Dungannon. Contributing with a belly full of points after finishing five under par in the third Major of the year at Royal St George’s, team, eh . . . let’s just call them Quiros from here on, was just one of those availing of the coming to form of Clarke.
While he may not have been many people’s fancy over four days in the steaming cauldron of a British Open championship, he turned out to be quite majestic in the rain- and wind-lashed fairways on a gale-hit fourth day. Clarke, we can now say, is quite good in a 30 mph wind.
Then again 20 years in the trying and being genetically linked to Royal Portrush and hey, it was bound to happen sometime, especially with that talent. Wasn’t it? Clarke, naturally, contributed the main bulk of points, 608 to be exact, for the current leading teams. Given too the 50 per cent bonus goodies for it being the British Open, those teams with high finishers were well rewarded and those with players that missed the cut, were doubly hurt too.
Northern Ireland’s finest chipped in with Steve Stricker (203 points) and Ye Yang (113 points), with the three of them alone providing team Quiros with a combined 924 points for last week.
But Mary Ryan’s second placed outfit are only slightly behind on the league table with a total of 17,246 points, or, 144 points adrift of the leader. Clarke also drew Mary 608 points but alas she also had missed cut candidates Nick Watney (+5), Matteo Manassero (+5) and Matt Kuchar (+11), who each came in with minus four points for their fantasy team captain, while the venerable South African and former Major winner Retief Goosen, who withdrew from the tournament because of a bad back, contributed zilch.
Bis a Bis 5 milked the Irish dry with US Open champion McIlroy’s additional 46 points from Group 1 coming to more, aside from Clarke, than the rest of the players from the other groups combined.
Paul D’Arcy’s The Banana Stand remain tucked in third place. But those teams from 10th up to fourth place, have all moved up the Order of Merit.
Needless to say Golfer of the People Clarke was present in all of those upwardly mobile teams.
Tournament wins, even for fantasy teams, normally favour sides that perform consistently week in week out. But this time hats off to the team of the week, Michael Fox and kkooks, who harvested a whopping 2,963 points to edge out tomleech2 for the top honours.
Most of kkooks’ players picked up points at Sandwich with Germany’s Martin Kaymer, tipped to do well but failed to run hot when he needed tied 12th, American’s Phil Mickelson (2nd) and compatriot Anthony Kim tied 5th, England’s Simon Dyson and Spain’s Sergio Garcia both tied 9th, Robert Allenby tied 48th, Yang tied 6th and winner Clarke contributing to a bountiful week.
That Lefty Mickleson was also team captain made his contribution of 856 points to kkooks’ weighty tally even greater than that of the Irishman.
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