Golf:Graeme McDowell is well used to being "beaten up" by Rory McIlroy in practice, but now they are going to meet for real for the very first time in the last 16 of the Volvo World Match Play Championship in Spain on Saturday morning.
McDowell topped his group at Finca Cortesin today when he followed up his win over Open champion Louis Oosthuizen with a last green victory against Venezuela’s Jhonattan Vegas.
His Ryder Cup partner McIlroy would have avoided him - at least for the time being - if he had defeated Nicolas Colsaerts and topped his section.
But by losing 3&2 to the Belgian the 22-year-old, who blew The Masters with an 80 last month, goes instantly into a clash with McDowell, who on Sunday shot 79 to crash from first to 33rd in the Players Championship.
They are ranked fifth and sixth in the world, but McDowell, the higher of the two, said: “He beats the crap out of me every time we play together.
“But this is the Northern Ireland match play championship and I’m hoping it’s going to be different. It’s the Volvo World Match Play and the pressure is on. I am sure he will expect to beat me, but it will be a great game and I am excited about it.
“He is a fabulous player, so talented. This course is all about driving the ball and he is pretty good at that. It’s hard to play against a close friend, but you’ve got to leave your friendship on the sidelines.
“I stopped playing him because he’s too good. I’m more of an observer and he just tends to beat me up.”
McIlroy says McDowell is "not going to give me anything - it’s going to be a really tough match." He added: “I’ll just try and treat it like I’m playing anyone else. I’m here to try to win a tournament and I need to get through him - that’s the number one thing on my mind.”
There is another all-Ryder Cup clash for a place in the quarter-finals — world number one Lee Westwood against Ian Poulter, who won the Tucson version of the World Match Play title last year.
Westwood was in dazzling form for the second day running, seven under par in beating Australian Aaron Baddeley 4&3.
“I’ve carried on from where I left off in Indonesia and Korea,” said the Worksop golfer, who is now seeking his third successive victory. I will try to keep that going, but match play is different — you can play well and lose.”
Poulter has shown that under the tournament’s new format it is also possible to come through the group without winning. He halved with Scot Paul Lawrie just as he had with Italian Francesco Molinari, but progressed because Molinari then ended the hopes of 1999 Open champion Lawrie.
Luke Donald and Martin Kaymer, both of whom could take the number one spot off Westwood this weekend, had their second victories.
Donald, who beat the German in the final in Arizona three months ago, overcame defending champion Ross Fisher 3&1, but Fisher also went through after an astonishing win over lone American Ryan Moore earlier in the day.
Moore went four up on the outward half and was still three ahead with four to play, but Fisher won them all.
Donald next plays Swede Johan Edfors and Fisher is up against Masters champion Charl Schwartzel.
Kaymer, meanwhile, has so far defeated Koreans YE Yang and Noh Seung-yul. He might have had to face Paul Casey next, but the world number nine was the highest seed to go out after losing to Alvaro Quiros and then Soren Kjeldsen.
The format might need looking at again. In five of the eight groups it was known who was going through before they played their second games.
“It’s a little strange when you approach a match and you know you don’t have to win it to still progress,” said Donald.
There was, however, the first three-man play-off in the history of an event which until two years ago had always been staged at Wentworth.
That was because Schwartzel, Edfors and Miguel Angel Jimenez all won one game and lost one. Jimenez went out when he bogeyed the first extra hole and Schwartzel topped the group when Edfors bogeyed the next.
Results/Matches
Pool Stage - Morning Session (Friday)
Ian Poulter halved with Paul Lawrie
Miguel Angel Jiménez lost to Johan Edfors 2 and 1
Alvaro Quiros defeated Søren Kjeldsen 5 and 4
Retief Goosen lost to Nicolas Colsaerts 1 hole
Louis Oosthuizen lost to Jhonattan Vegas 1 hole
YE Yang lost to Seung-yul Noh 2 and 1
Ryan Moore lost to Ross Fisher 1 hole
Anders Hansen lost to Aaron Baddeley 1 hole
Pool Stage - Afternoon Session (Friday)
Francesco Molinari defeated Paul Lawrie 3 and 2
Charl Schwartzel defeated Johan Edfors 5 and 4
Paul Casey lost to Soren Kjeldsen 1 hole
Rory McIlroy lost to Nicolas Colsaerts 3 and 2
Graeme McDowell defeated Jhonattan Vegas 1 hole
Martin Kaymer defeated Seung-yul Noh 2 and 1
Luke Donald defeated Ross Fisher 3 and 1
Lee Westwood defeated Aaron Baddeley (Aus) 4 and 3
Yesterday Results (Thursday)
(H) Francesco Molinari halved with Ian Poulter
(G) Charl Schwartzel lost to Miguel Angel Jimenez 6 and 5
(F) Paul Casey lost to Alvaro Quiros 3 and 1
(E) Rory McIlroydefeated Retief Goosen 1 hole
(D) Graeme McDowelldefeated Louis Oosthuizen 3 and 1
(C) Martin Kaymer defeated YE Yang 2 and 1
(B) Luke Donald defeated Ryan Moore 4 and 3
(A) Lee Westwood defeated Anders Hansen 6 and 5
