England’s Paul Casey gave a performance of style and substance to move within one game of emulating Ernie Els and winning the HSBC World Match Play Championship on his debut at Wentworth Club. Casey defeated his Ryder Cup team mate, Colin Montgomerie, by 6 and 5 in the semi-finals to set up a 36 hole showdown with American Shaun Micheel over the West Course.
The 29 year old from nearby Weybridge was never behind against the 1999 champion and the writing was on the all for Montgomerie when he went in for lunch five down, despite a winning birdie at the 18th. Casey maintained his vice-like grip on the contest in the afternoon and an eagle on the 12th ensured there would be no miraculous recovery from his 43 year old opponent.
Micheel, meanwhile, aims to plant the Stars and Stripes in European soil prior to next week’s Ryder Cup thanks to his hard-earned one hole victory over European Ryder Cup rookie Robert Karlsson in the other semi-final.
Casey now has a number of targets within his sights. Victory in the final would carry him past David Howell, at the top of The European Tour Order of Merit, dislodging the Englishman who had filled that role since the opening week of the 2007 season. The £1,000,000 first prize would be the largest of Casey’s career by a long, long way while any opportunity to follow in the footsteps of Els – who triumphed on his first appearance in 1994 – would be something to treasure.
However, first things first. Casey knows he must complete the job before thinking about The Ryder Cup or anything else on the horizon. He said: “There is still a lot to play for – this event, the American Express, the Dunhill Links and the Volvo Masters. It would be nice if I had a lead going into these events.
“It would be great if I went on and won. It would be the biggest win of my career. It shows me that what I’ve been working on in my game is paying off, and I’ve been trying desperately to chase Luke (Donald) and David (Howell) because they really moved up a level. They are my friends and in the same age group and they are the guys I’ve got to chase.
“I’ve been working hard at it, so hopefully this is a sign that I’m getting nearer to their level” he added, admitting he felt like a contestant in “Who Wants to be a Millionaire?”
He joked: “I’ve never had the opportunity to play for this much money before. Where else can we win a million pounds – unless we get on to ‘Millionaire’? Since I can’t answer these questions, this is the best opportunity I’ve got.”
Montgomerie acknowledged that he didn’t play well enough to beat Casey and said: “I didn’t get any breaks, but that’s like a football manager complaining that four goals were offside when you lose six-nil! He played well and deserved their victory and best of luck to him in the final.”
In the other semi-final, there was only ever one hole between the combatants until the second in the afternoon when the American went two up. Karlsson promptly won the fourth and sixth to level the tie but Micheel went ahead for the decisive time at the 15th hole. Karlsson had an opportunity to level at the last after Micheel visited a greenside bunker, but he pulled his approach into the trap and was unable to get up and down, eventually conceding with Micheel enjoying the luxury of two putts from four feet.
Now Micheel is getting ready to be swamped by British voices over the 36 hole final. He said with a smile: “I figure I am a little bit of an underdog again. I don’t know if there will be anybody out there rooting for me except Tony (caddie) and my wife, Stephanie!
“However I’m excited to be here and excited to have this opportunity to play a great player in Paul., who is obviously playing extremely well judging by his victories. I am going to have to pick up the pace tomorrow compared to what I did today if I’m going to contend.”
Karlsson, the first round conqueror of World Number Two, Jim Furyk, was frustrated to miss out on a final confrontation with Casey, but happy with his debut in the event. He conceded: “The game could have been a little better today, but it’s great to have had a couple of matches under my belt. It’s a form of play we don’t use very often, so it’s good to get the practice before The Ryder Cup. I will just take it easy and rest up tomorrow before flying to Ireland on Monday.”
