Wales Open
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Newport, Wales, U.K. |
| Established | 2000 |
| Course(s) |
Celtic Manor Resort Twenty-Ten Course |
| Par | 71 |
| Length | 7,352 yards (6,723 m)[1] |
| Tour(s) | European Tour |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Prize fund | £1,800,000 |
| Month played | September |
| Final year | 2014 |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | 260 Robert Karlsson (2006) |
| To par | −22 Scott Strange (2008) |
| Final champion | |
 Joost Luiten | |
The Wales Open was a professional golf tournament on the European Tour. It was founded in 2000 and played annually through 2014. The event was hosted at the Celtic Manor Resort in the city of Newport, South Wales, also the venue for the 2010 Ryder Cup. The tournament was originally played over the resort's Wentwood Hills course, through 2004. While that course was being redeveloped for the Ryder Cup, the Wales Open was played for three years (2005–07) on the Roman Road course, a par-69 venue. Since 2008, the event has been played on the Ryder Cup Twenty-Ten course. The tournament has previously been known as the Saab Wales Open and the Celtic Manor Wales Open due to past sponsorship deals.
ISPS Handa (International Sports Promotion Society) became the title sponsor in 2012 and the prize fund that year was £1.8 million.[2]
Records
In 2006, Sweden's Robert Karlsson broke the European Tour's 36-hole and 54-hole scoring records by shooting 124 for the first two rounds and 189 for the first three. However, as the Roman Road course was a par-69, rare at the professional level, his to-par scores were slightly less remarkable 14-under after two rounds and 18-under after three. Karlsson shot two-over-par for the final round, but still won. In the same year, Phillip Archer posted a score of 60 in the first round, which would have been a 59 but for a missed birdie putt on the 18th green.
Course
The 2013 course layout, at the Twenty-Ten Course of the Celtic Manor Resort[1]
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yards | 465 | 610 | 189 | 461 | 433 | 452 | 213 | 439 | 580 | 3,842 | 210 | 562 | 458 | 189 | 413 | 377 | 477 | 211 | 613 | 3,510 | 7,352 |
| Metres | 425 | 558 | 173 | 422 | 396 | 413 | 195 | 401 | 530 | 3,513 | 192 | 514 | 419 | 173 | 378 | 345 | 436 | 193 | 561 | 3,211 | 6,724 |
| Par | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 36 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 35 | 71 |
Winners
| Year | Winner | Country | Score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up | Purse (€) | Winner's share (€) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ISPS Handa Wales Open | ||||||||
| 2014 | Joost Luiten | Netherlands | 270 | −14 | 1 stroke |  Tommy Fleetwood Shane Lowry | 2,254,680 | 375,780 |
| 2013 | Grégory Bourdy |  France | 276 | −8 | 2 strokes |  Peter Uihlein | 2,101,373 | 348,660 |
| 2012 | Thongchai Jaidee |  Thailand | 278 | −6 | 1 stroke |  Thomas Bjørn Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño Joost Luiten Richard Sterne | 2,229,228 | 372,720 |
| Saab Wales Open | ||||||||
| 2011 | Alexander Norén |  Sweden | 275 | −9 | 2 strokes | Grégory Bourdy Anders Hansen | 2,040,689 | 344,358 |
| Celtic Manor Wales Open | ||||||||
| 2010 | Graeme McDowell |  Northern Ireland | 269 | −15 | 3 strokes |  Rhys Davies | 2,118,254 | 350,940 |
| 2009 | Jeppe Huldahl | Denmark | 275 | −9 | 1 stroke | Niclas Fasth | 2,073,926 | 343,086 |
| 2008 | Scott Strange |  Australia | 262 | −22 | 4 strokes | Robert Karlsson | 2,270,187 | 376,671 |
| 2007 | Richard Sterne | South Africa | 263 | −13 | 1 stroke | Bradley Dredge Søren Kjeldsen Mardan Mamat Mads Vibe-Hastrup | 2,216,194 | 368,812 |
| 2006 | Robert Karlsson | Sweden | 260 | −16 | 3 strokes | Paul Broadhurst | 2,177,968 | 364,352 |
| 2005 | Miguel Ángel Jiménez | Spain | 262 | −14 | 4 strokes | Martin Erlandsson José Manuel Lara | 2,207,900 | 362,568 |
| 2004 | Simon Khan | England | 267 | −21 | Playoff | Paul Casey | 2,274,124 | 375,092 |
| Celtic Manor Resort Wales Open | ||||||||
| 2003 | Ian Poulter | England | 270 | −18 | 3 strokes | Darren Fichardt Jonathan Lomas Jarrod Moseley | 2,112,186 | 347,360 |
| 2002 | Paul Lawrie |  Scotland | 272 | −16 | 5 strokes | John Bickerton | 1,753,869 | 291,432 |
| 2001 | Paul McGinley | Ireland | 138* | −6 | Playoff | Paul Lawrie Daren Lee | 1,228,125 | 201,685 |
| 2000 | Steen Tinning | Denmark | 273 | −15 | 1 stroke | David Howell | 1,213,353 | 199,839 |
* - Tournament was reduced to 36 holes in 2001 due to bad weather.
- Source:[3]
See also
- Wales Seniors Open – a European Seniors Tour event.
- Wales Ladies Championship of Europe – a former event on the Ladies European Tour
References
- 1 2 "Wales Open: venue – Course Info – Card of Course". PGA European Tour. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ↑ "ISPS Handa sponsorship boost for Wales Open". PGA European Tour. 28 November 2011. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ↑ "Wales Open: tournament history". PGA European Tour. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
External links
Coordinates: 51°36′27″N 2°56′00″W / 51.60750°N 2.93333°W