ON THE EUROPEAN TO UR
New ERA for Golfsixes as Cascais Hosts for ſ rst Time
2018 GolfSixes winners Paul Dunne and Gavin Moynihan (Team Ireland), and Major Champion Georgia Hall of Team England
he European Tour’s innovative
GolfSixes event will enter a new era
in 2019 when it moves to continental
Europe for the ¿ rst time, with the Municipality
of Cascais and the spectacular Oitavos Dunes
in Portugal set to host GolfSixes Cascais from
June 7-8. The idyllic Portuguese region of
Cascais will play host to the third edition of
an event which has captured the imagination
of the gol¿ ng world with its unique format,
following two hugely successful editions at
the Centurion Club in St Albans, England.
The event will follow the same ground-
breaking format as the 2018 GolfSixes,
with four ‘Wildcard Teams’ – featuring stars
of male and female golf – joining 12 other
two-man teams of European Tour players
representing their home nations. The exciting
two-day tournament will also be played
over a Friday and Saturday for the ¿ rst time.
With the UEFA Nations League Final and
Third-place play-off taking place in Portugal
on Sunday June 9, an exciting weekend
is in store for Portuguese sports fans and
tourists alike. Ireland emerged as GolfSixes
champions last year when Paul Dunne and
Gavin Moynihan overcame a French team
comprising Mike Lorenzo-Vera and Romain
Wattel in the ¿ nal. The young Irish duo lost
just one of their six matches over the two
days of competition.
They dethroned the 2017 champions,
Danish pair Lucas Bjerregaard – who has
since won two titles on the European Tour
– and Thorbjørn Olesen, who 16 months
later put his match-play experience to good
use as part of Thomas Bjørn’s triumphant
European team at The 2018 Ryder Cup.
Keith Pelley, Chief Executive Of¿ cer of the
European Tour, said: “I am thrilled with how
the world of golf has embraced GolfSixes and
this truly is an exciting development as we
take this event to continental Europe for the
¿ rst time.
“I would like to extend my thanks to the
Municipality of Cascais and U.COM for their
vision in bringing GolfSixes to a Portuguese
audience and it is sure to be a fantastic couple
of days in Cascais next June.”
Brilliant Bryson claims maiden win in Dubai
ryson DeChambeau claimed his maiden European Tour title
in style on Sunday, producing a closing 64 to win the 30th
anniversary edition of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic by seven
shots. The World Number Five had set himself the target of securing
his ¿ rst professional overseas win at Emirates Golf Club ahead of the
event, and he duly delivered, carding an eagle, seven birdies and a
single bogey on day four to ¿ nish the week on 24 under par and set a
new tournament record. Last year’s champion Li Haotong, who played
alongside DeChambeau in the ¿ nal round, had held the previous record
after producing a winning score of 23 under in 2018.
Matt Wallace ¿ nished alone in second place on 17 under after
closing his round with back-to-back birdies to sign for a 68. Englishmen
Paul Waring and Ian Poulter, and Spaniards Sergio Garcia and Alvaro
Quiros were another stroke back in a tie for third.
Bryson DeChambeau Quote: “Today I was happy with my game.
I executed a lot of great shots. It was obviously a lot of fun to be able to
¿ nally hoist an international trophy, I’m so happy about that.
“It’s incredibly special. I’ve always dreamed of winning any
Tour event, and to have this many under my belt, I don’t even know
what I have right now. You know, being able to win internationally is
something that I’ve always wanted to do after winning so many times in
the States and to get it at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic is incredible.
It’s literally a dream come true. I couldn’t be more honoured to win
this event.
Sergio Garcia: “A solid week. There’s no doubt, I ¿ nished top
¿ ve, I would say. It was a nice week. Just wish I would have putted
26 G o l f P l u s
FEBRUARY
2019
Bryson DeChambeau
a little bit better in the middle rounds more like I did today on the
¿ rst day. Unfortunately some of the rounds I played best is when I
putted the worst. Overall, it’s another solid week and we keep building
momentum. Just have to keep going the same way.”