World Cup: If, for all the world, it seemed that the weather gods had conspired for a storm from Armageddon to hit the Algarve yesterday, the duo of Stephen Dodds and Bradley Dredge didn't care a whit. For they benefited the most from the abandonment of the World Cup in Vilamoura, with fate handing Wales a second win in the championship, after their first in 1987.
With the World Cup reduced to 54 holes, due to an unmerciful storm that came in off the Atlantic, Wales, who had reached the three-quarter stage on a 27-under-par total of 189, to hold a two-stroke lead over England and Sweden, were deemed champions.
Normally, the event would have been carried on to a Monday finish if, as the policy determines, "conditions and weather permit". However, the forecast was for more bad weather, with no prospect of play again, and so Wales were crowned the champions.
For the Irish pairing of Padraig Harrington and Paul McGinley it was a disappointing World Cup campaign. One that had started with optimism and great expectations finished with their worst performance since 2001, when they finished tied-14th in Japan.
On this occasion, their total of 200, 11 shots behind the winners, left them in tied-12th position, providing them with only the small consolation of cheques for €23,000 apiece.
So Harrington finished a four-week stint on the road that had seen him traverse the globe, going in turn from Spain to the United States, then on to China, and finally Portugal. His only remaining tournament this season is next month's Target World Challenge in California.
Paul McGinley has decided not to undergo the knee surgery initially planned for today. It means he will play as part of the Europe team in the inaugural Royal Cup in Thailand in January, and that his winter break won't be as long as the planned 10 weeks that would have been necessary to recuperate from the surgery.
"No, I am not going to have the surgery done," said McGinley. "I made the decision on Friday night and I have informed the surgeon, and he said, 'That's fine, there is no problem with that'. I'm going to do some different exercises and more rehab.
"The surgeon wasn't pushing me into the operation. He was leaving it up to me," added McGinley, who got a second medical opinion that backed up his surgeon's assessment that the knee surgery wasn't necessary at this time. The Dubliner had similar surgery a year ago, and returned to have his best season as a professional, highlighted by his win in the Volvo Masters.
Generally, though, the Harrington-McGinley partnership, who were playing together in this competition for a ninth successive year, failed to ignite.
If there was to be any solace for them yesterday, it was that "the underdogs", as McGinley described them, emerged triumphant as Dodd and Dredge emulated the feat of Ian Woosnam and David Llewellyn, who won the World Cup in a play-off in Hawaii in 1987.
On Saturday, Wales shot their second fourball round of 61, the highlight being an eagle two on the 315-yard 15th from Dredge, to move into the outright lead. Then, fate handed them the title without the need to hit another shot when what meteorologists determined to be the worst storm of the year hit yesterday.
Dodd, ranked 75th in the world, and Dredge, ranked 82nd, collected the biggest wins of their career, €600,000 each. "It would have been nice to have played 72 holes," agreed Dodd, "but, at the end of the day, a win is a win, whether it's over 54 holes or not."
Dredge, whose only win on the full tour came in the Madeira Island Open in 2003, claimed: "We were ready to go out there and put a good score together and try and finish it off. Unfortunately, the weather didn't allow us to do that. So, we'll take it."
There was a philosophical acceptance of the hand dealt to them by the English duo of David Howell and Luke Donald, who were seeking to defend the title.
"Who knows what would have happened?" wondered Howell. "Two shots behind in foursomes, obviously the swing is there . . . but Wales played fantastic all week." Donald added: "We didn't come here to finish second, but you can't really control the weather. On Saturday, we were not contemplating it being 54 holes. It's disappointing, but that's the way the cookie crumbles sometimes."
Sweden's Annika Sorenstam claimed her 10th title on the LPGA Tour this year with a final round of 69 and a two-shot victory in the ADT Tour Championship today in West Palm Beach, Florida. Sorenstam finished on six under 282 and two shots ahead of fellow-SwedeLiselotte Neumann (70), South Korea's Soo-Yun Kang (68) and American MicheleRedman (68).
