BMW International Open

FixdePitchmark

Come on Paul McGinley !

Great return to form this season. I guess he is injury free ?

Nuri Sahin

Interesting story to come from yesterday..

BMW International: Jose Manuel Lara kicked out after caddie hides 15th club in bushes

JOSE MANUEL LARA was kicked out of the BMW International Open – after playing partner Damien McGrane grassed up the Spanish player’s caddie.
In Thursday’s opening round in Cologne Mathias Vinson was caught trying to hide an illegal 15th club in bushes.

An investigation followed and yesterday the European Tour confirmed Lara had been disqualified while his Argentine caddie had been banned indefinitely.

The incident took place on the second tee of the Gut Lacenhof course when Irishman McGrane, last to tee off at the hole, thought it strange when Vinson, with Lara’s bag on his shoulder, ducked into thick bushes.

While Lara and the third member of the group, Sweden’s Peter Hedblom, strode off down the fairway, McGrane began to quiz Vinson, not believing the visit to the bushes was a ‘call of nature’.

He said: “I said to Jose Manuel’s caddy ‘What the hell are you doing?’ Straight away he knew he had done something silly.

“The thing is that if you go into thick bushes to go to the toilet you don’t take the golf bag with you, so I thought that something strange was happening.

“Unfortunately it turned out to be true. I would prefer it hadn’t happened but I said to Peter I had a duty to the tournament to explain to Jose Manuel what I had seen.”

Lara was in shock when McGrane brought the matter to his attention, before the Spaniard sought out chief referee, John Paramor.

McGrane believed Lara would be hit with a four-stroke penalty but it wasn’t until Thursday night he learned of his disqualification.

He added: “I said to Jose Manuel if he had a great week and won the tournament there would be this big black X opposite his name and I said to Jose you can’t have that.

“Had he missed the cut you could say ‘well, who cares. No big deal’. Jose Manuel was then very quiet after that and never spoke to his caddie. He took it on the chin.”

Paramor said: “A ruling was sought over what was the penalty for carrying an extra club and he was given two shots for the first hole and two for the second.”

However, on the 18th a referee was summoned to the recording area where the full story was told.

After speaking to colleagues on the referees panel Paramor ruled that it was a serious incident and warranted disqualification.

He added: “We interviewed the player and are perfectly satisfied that he had no knowledge of what was going on.

“It was clearly the caddie doing what he felt at the time was the right thing but was clearly the wrong thing. He’s kind of been asked not to come back and that’s how the matter’s been resolved.”

Incidentally Paramor was the tour referee at the time of a similar incident involving Ian Woosnam at The Open in 2001.

The Welsh player was tied for the lead on the second hole of his fourth round at Royal Lytham when he was informed by his caddie, Miles Byrne, that a spare driver had been left in the bag.

Woosnam was given a two-shot penalty, costing him any chance of a first Open title.

McGrane put Thursday’s incident behind him to post a second-round 66 and get back to two-under par but he trails Joel Sjoholm by nine shots.
The Swede grabbed a pair of eagles in a round of 66 to lead the field by two at 11-under.

Nuri Sahin

See there's already a thread on it

abff

77 for McGinley unfortunately. They didn't show much of his round. He had an early birdie and then just missed another birdie putt a couple of holes later and missed the short one back. Finished with two bogeys including a lip out on the 18th.

Hopefully, he'll have a much better day tomorrow.

bigtimecharlie

-3 after 5 today, finishing in the top 10 might be the best he can hope for.

abff

Great round by McGinley today - 6 under. Currently in a tie for 4th at 10 under, but not likely to be this high at the finish unless the weather takes a real turn for the worse.

bigtimecharlie

McGinley will surly be worth a bet for a place next week.

Aidric

Ah Jaysus, nobody wants this title. Willett misses from 4ft at the second playoff hole.

abff

Joint 3rd for McGinley, prize money of €103,333 and up to 46th place in the Race to Dubai.