02volvo golf champions
the already robust middle east segment
of the european tour got stronger with the
addition of the Volvo golf champions in
bahrain, the second stop in the desert swing.
sandwiched between the abu dhabi hsbc
golf championship and the commercial-bank qatar masters before the portion ends
with the omega dubai desert classic, royal
gc, the bahrain venue, has among its many
oddities no bunkers. while that may seem
strange for a desert course surrounded by
sand, pipelines and the occasional working
oil well, officials decided, as the local rules
sheet said, “to avoid the potential for many
needless penalties there are no bunkers on
this course. there are only waste areas.” call
it the reverse whistling straits. (doesn’t
dustin Johnson wish this rule had been in effect at the pga championship.) paul casey,
who won, got a free drop from an oil pipe on
no. 17—how often do you hear that—played
off the hardpan and saved par, edging peter
hanson and miguel angel Jiménez with a six-foot par putt on the last hole. —R.S.
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