US Open winner Graeme McDowell will be seeking to add to an already excellent season at the Andalucia Valderrama Masters this week where he will be amongst a strong Irish contingent that includes his Celtic Manor Ryder Cup vice-captains – Paul McGinley and Darren Clarke – along with Damien McGrane, Michael Hoey, Gareth Maybin and the in-form, Peter Lawrie.
Shane Lowry, currently 63rd - and three places outside a spot for The Race to Dubai season finale in December - and will also be looking to bounce back from a disappointing weekend at CASTELLÓ MASTERS Costa Azahar - where he finished a tie for 66th pl;ace..
However it will a Ryder Cup team mate - Martin Kaymer - who heads to Valderrama aiming to steal Tiger Woods’ World Number One crown and continue his strong season – having also won on US soil at Whistling Straits - taking the USPGA Championship.
The 25 year old German currently leads The Race to Dubai by almost €1million and can overtake Woods with a win or tie for second place and become only the second German, following Bernhard Langer, to top the Official World Golf Ranking.
But Graeme McDowell is the man closest to Kaymer and he still harbours hopes of catching the leader before season ends with both players making the same journey to Valderrama from Bermuda having competed in the PGA Grand Slam of Golf last week.
In the field are other Ryder Cup team-mates Ross Fisher, Peter Hanson, Miguel Angel Jiménez and the Molinari brothers, while Sergio Garcia and José Maria Olazábal also continue their respective comebacks.
European Tout record breaker, Matteo Manassero will also be in the field at Valderrama after his victory at the Castello Masters on Sunday.
But Kaymer will be the focus of all the attention as he tries to become the first player to knock Woods off the top of the Official World Golf Ranking since Vijay Singh in June 2005.
Club de Golf Valderrama is synonymous with The European Tour, having hosted 16 editions of the season-ending Volvo Masters between 1988 and 2009 as well as staging The 1997 Ryder Cup, when Seve Ballesteros captained Europe to victory over the United States. The magnificent course has seen some of The European Tour’s greatest moments and is ready to play centre stage once again.
