Matteo Manassero is in Malaysia, in the running for the title in Kuala Lumpur, conquered in 2011 at the age of just 17; Tiger Woods is in Orlando as the defending champion at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and to take down a new record, that of the eighth title in the same tournament. In short, world golf is taking different paths this week, but all of them are very interesting.
Il European tour is in Asia for the Maybank Malaysian Open at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club, where more than 150 players battle it out for a €2,750 million prize pool. In the front row is Matteo Manassero, 20 years old on April 14th and six kilos less to take for a walk. “I did a lot of running and training – says the Italian champion on the European Tour website – and now I'm looking for muscle strengthening. Since I've lost weight the feeling on the swing is a little different and sometimes I move my hips too fast, but it's nice because I feel better and I can produce more speed, which is what I'm working on”. Matteo's goal is to stretch out a bit, to be more competitive on the American tour as well, where the fields are endless and the drive dominates the scene. On the other hand, golf is becoming more and more athletic and Matteo's nice belly was more suitable for a fifty-year-old on the sunset boulevard than for a teenager about to conquer the world, admiring him in this "new-look" will be fun and interesting .
There are several candidates for the podium in Malaysia, first of all the number three in the world Luke Donald, who makes his debut in Kuala Lumpur; South African Charl Schwartzw and Irish Padraig Harrington follow. Edoardo Molinari is also on the pitch, hoping to see him return to the levels of play his fans were accustomed to a few years ago.
From the other side of the world the Pga Tour is still in Florida, for the last tournament in this US nation: the Arnold Palmer Invitational. The star is once again Tiger Woods who arrives in Orlando on the wings of his victory in Miami two weeks ago and his new love with ski champion Lindsey Vonn. The love story, unofficial for months, became official a few days ago when Tiger decided to announce him on his website, complete with photos in various poses with the beautiful 28-year-old American. The champion seems to find in his relationship with the opposite sex the necessary drive to win in golf too and this bodes well for his sporting season and for this week's tournament. Hoping, of course, that the idyll will last at least until December. It seems that in Miami the snow queen accompanied Tiger, sleeping on his yacht and in fact he, cared for in this way, immediately won. In Orlando, at the Bay Hill Club & Lodge, Woods arrives as defending champion and from this tournament, last year, his ascent to success began. If he wins again this week it is his eighth title in the same PGA Tour race, a record held only by Sam Snead, yet another barrier broken for the tiger.
Competing for the podium are the great protagonists of recent golf seasons. First, among others, Brandt Snedeker, number one in the Fedex standings ahead of Woods, finally on track after five weeks off, due to a muscle problem in his ribs. In the background, but always "dangerous" Keegan Bradley that many commentators believe is ready for a new and important victory. Follow Justin Rose, Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia, Webb Simpson, Ernie Els, Graeme McDowell, Lee Westwood who returns to Orlando after five years and for the first time since living in Florida. In short, the elite of world golf are once again competing, with one exception. Shines for the absence of him the number one in the world Rory McIlory who, since he reached the top, sipping the appearances of him. This week however, staying at home will play for the throne: if Tiger wins the scepter it will return to his hands and it won't be so easy to take it away from him. After a series of disappointing appearances Rory wants to work on his swing again, in order to be ready for the Masters, the competition that everyone is waiting for and that everyone dreams of winning, the first Major of the year, the most coveted after the British Open . However, playing little is never a good premise, we'll see if Rory will be able to deny this statistic.
The tournament that begins today is a charity one, but it brings many points for the FedExCup standings and puts $6,2 million into the pot. The weather doesn't bode well, but the important thing is that the greens don't flood and that the players can still take the field, then wind and rain will only make the challenge more interesting.
For Italian viewers this week they are spoiled for choice, on satellite in the early morning it is possible to follow Malaysia, while in the evening they move on to the American tournament.
