Asian captain Joe Ozaki summed
up the mood of an entire continent
after his team swept to a memorable
10-6 Royal Trophy win over Europe
by describing it as "a dream
come true".
Ozaki admitted his first taste of
captaincy in 2007 was more of a nightmare
as Europe powered to a nine point
victory - but it was his determination
not to suffer a repeat of that agony
which proved the perfect motivation
for him and his players.
Ozaki beamed: "Before I flew
into Thailand, I had a strong intention
in my mind. Asia had lost the first
two matches and I really wanted to
win this time.
"I think all my team members
felt what I was thinking and I think
they realised how I wanted them to
play - aggressively and with great
self-confidence. I could not be more
proud of the way the did that."
There was never any danger of Asia
relaxing the stranglehold they had
exerted by winning both the Foursomes
and Fourballs in emphatic fashion,
to take an imposing 6 1/2 - 1 1/2
lead into Sunday's singles.
That meant they needed just two points
from the eight remaining matches,
and Ozaki felt his team's belief that
the job was as good as done was one
of the main reasons the European team
shaded the final session 4 1/2 - 3
1/2.
He explained: "Everyone knew
that we needed only two points to
win the Royal Trophy and everyone
was watching the leaderboard. It was
a tough situation for everyone to
focus on their own game."
It was even more difficult for the
Asian players not to start celebrating
early as Prayad Marksaeng and Toru
Taniguchi effectively wrapped up those
two points by charging into big leads
on the front
nine in their matches.
Prayad eventually crushed Pablo Larrazabal
5&4, while Taniguchi had the honour
or holing the winning putt as he overwhelmed
Niclas Fasth 7&6 - a record margin
for the Royal Trophy.
European captain Jose Maria Olazabal
conceded: "We went out trying
to get the points on the board early
to try and change then momentum of
the match and we almost achieved that
- almost, but not quite.
"S?ren Hansen almost won the
first match but they tied on 18, then
Paul Lawrie won his match, followed
by Nick Dougherty.
"The only problem today was
that two of the matches were really
down, like five or six holes, and
that was a bit of a problem for everybody.
"But we didn’t have much choice
to be honest: we had to go out there
and try to win as many points as possible
and the guys went out and tried hard.
I want to thank them for doing that.
But it was very difficult to come
back from such a big deficit.
"This is a great event and we
have to learn our lesson from this
week. The Asian team has raised the
bar and we are going to have come
back angrier and more determined if
possible to really beat these guys."
Asia's victory was a personal triumph
for their Captain, whose bubbly personality
has been a joyous feature of the competition.
His players threatened to throw him
into the water if they won, while
he responded by announcing he felt
like dancing as they took the honours
on the first two days.
The all-swimming, all-dancing Asian
captain added: "I'm glad the
players did not throw me in. The water
was too shallow. I was lucky.
"I was upset with the players
for suggesting it, as it was dangerous
to throw me in there ! I didn't think
they would do it, because everyone
just wanted to hug each other and
shake each other's hands.
"I was especially proud of my
players for playing so well in the
doubles, the Foursomes and the Fourballs,
where Europe has always been so strong.
"But our teamwork was great,
and I knew we would win because of
that. I would have been too sad if
we had lost. This win means a lot
to me."
It will also mean a great deal in
terms of putting the Royal Trophy
even more firmly on the golfing map,
and showing that Asian golfers can
compete with the best players in the
world without feeling they have something
to prove.
And they introduced 17 year old Japanese
sensation Ryo Ishikawa to a wider
audience, which guarantees there will
be even more focus on Asian golf over
the coming years.
The Bangkok crowds had even more
to celebrate as Thai golfers Prayad
and Thongchai Jaidee emerged as the
only men to clinch maximum points.
They combined to win their Foursomes
and Fourball matches, and Thongchai
matched Prayad's singles success,
rubbing salt into Paul McGinley's
wounds from his first defeat in six
appearances for Europe by beating
the Irishman 5&4.
Thongchai commented: "We knew
what was going on in the other matches
and we were motivated and it turned
out to be a successful day, one we
will all remember with great fondness.
"I played consistent golf, missed
only two greens today. I played nicely.
It turned out well. I’m happy with
my partnership with Prayad was very
productive and it is especially good
for Asia to win the Royal Trophy.
"I was a member of the two teams
that were beaten in the previous Royal
Trophy matches, so winning this time
is even more special. It is a proud
day for us all."
Singles results. Ishikawa halved
with Hansen; Liang lost to Lawrie
3&2; Wi lost to Dougherty one
down; Prayad beat Larrazabal 5&4;
Tanihara lost to Wilson 3&2; Ho
lost to Edfors 5&4; Taniguchi
beat Fasth 7&6; Thongchai beat
McGinley 5&4.
Match result: Asia 10 Europe 6.
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