Golf World Cup: Matt Kuchar and Gary Woodland land USA’s 24th World Cup as Irish pair slump

THE United States won the Golf World Cup after a final round of 67 was enough for Matt Kuchar and Gary Woodland to capture the title by two strokes from Germany and England.

Starting the foursomes two behind overnight leaders Ireland, Kuchar and Woodland carded six birdies and a bogey at the Mission Hills Resort on Hainan Island to finish 24 under par and lift the trophy for a 24th time.

England enjoyed a strong finish to the tournament as Ian Poulter and Justin Rose returned a 63 that featured an eagle, eight birdies and a bogey to end 22 under, tied for second with Germany, who posted a 69.

Irish duo Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell, meanwhile, could only produce an even-par 72 as they missed out on the last day for the second consecutive time after finishing runners-up to Italy in 2009, their score of 21 under par leaving them in a tie for fourth with Scotland, Netherlands and Australia.

One off the pace at the halfway stage, Stephen Gallacher and Martin Laird saw their title hopes dented by a 69 in Saturday’s fourball session. They bounced back with a closing 66 that included eight birdies, with Laird holing out from a greenside bunker at the last for the second time in the event.

After ending America’s 11-year wait for the title following Tiger Woods’ and David Duval’s victory in 2000, Kuchar said: “When I was selected to represent the United States in the World Cup, I also got to choose my partner, and I knew it was going to be a great honour to come here to play for the United States, and I thought that if I picked the right partner, I’d have a real shot at winning the title.

“I chose Gary Woodland, thinking that he would team up well with me, we would have the best shot of winning this title, and he played fantastic this week.”

Woodland added: “We played phenomenal, especially today. It’s a tough format, and both of us picked each other up when the other one got into trouble. I don’t know what we shot today, but we got off to a hot start early, played solid on the back and really we were not in trouble in the back at all. It was a good day.”

Birdies at the first and second set the Americans on their way as they assumed the lead on the front nine and, after picking up further shots at the sixth and seventh, Kuchar and Woodland had established a strong position by the turn.

Ireland, by contrast, began poorly with a bogey at the first and although McIlroy and McDowell recovered with two birdies, another dropped shot at the sixth again set them back.

However, a birdie at the 10th allied to a bogey at the 11th for the Americans saw the two tied at the top. That was as good as it got for Ireland, though, as Kuchar and Woodland went on to sink crucial birdies at the 12th and 13th that eventually proved enough for them to triumph.

McDowell and McIlroy, on the other hand, faded as bogeys at the 12th and 15th followed and a birdie at the 16th was only good enough for them to finish fourth.