NEW YORK: Tony Dungy of the Indianapolis Colts took a back seat on Monday. The first black coach to win the Super Bowl and one of the most respected figures in the sport, retired.
The 53-year-old had been with the Colts since 2002, having previously spent six seasons as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Visited 23 times, 23 so far today
With an aim to make India a football powerhouse in Asia, German football club Bayern Munich today announced that they will set up a academy in Bengal to nurture talent.
The proposed centre will be known as ‘Bengal Techno Bayern Munich Academy’.
With the place already finalised — Burdwan — the state will get into an agreement with the German club in presence of the legendary star Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who is also the chairman of FC Bayern Munich.
Announcing their plans to help the game in India, Rummenigge, a former World Cupper, said, “We want to develop young players in India. We want the country to become a powerhouse in Asia.
“This will be the first Bayern Munich Academy outside Germany. We will bring young coaches to educate and show how football is being run in Europe.”
Meanwhile, the state government has decided to build two artificial turf with synthetic grass at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan (YBK).
“Plans are afoot to bring in age group tournament and floodlit artificial turf so that football can be played all round the year.”
“There will also be a team of physio and trainers to look after the medical aspect. You never know may be in future we will see a professional from Burdwan playing for Bayern Munich,” the former German striker, who played against Diego Maradona in the 1986 FIFA World Cup, added.
Asked why he chose Bengal as the centre, the 53-year-old said, “We had a series of meetings with the Bengal officials and we were convinced that Bengal is the right place both in terms of quality and logistic point of views.”
He asserted that their motive was not to make money but to promote the sport in a true way.
“Our philosophy in partnership is different from many other clubs in Europe. They are going to China and Japan mainly to make money.”
“We are thinking differently. In 2005, a junior team of Bayern Munich had come here and won the IFA Shield, likewise Oliver Kahn played his swansong match here. These are the proof that we are thinking different.”
“You never know may be in future we will see a professional from Burdwan playing for Bayern Munich.”
Though the details are yet to be worked out the estimated cost of the project would be Rs 23 crore and it would start by next season.
“The agreement will be ready within two days. And we will get to know the exact investments details after that,” Minister in charge of commerce and industries Nirupam Sen said.
Meanwhile, the state government has decided to build two artificial turf with synthetic grass at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan (YBK).
“It is seen that in the monsoon, practice gets affected. There is proposal to build at least two practice grounds with synthetic grass. We have inquired that the estimated cost of building a synthetic turf with artificial grass is about Rs 3.5 crore,” sports minister Subhas Chakraborty said.
So what if the Indian Premier League is backed by the BCCI, the richest cricket governing body; Arjuna Ranatunga, the chairman of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), is very much against it. Reason… A huge revenue loss. Ranatunga is upset by the fact that the national board does not gain any revenue for Sri Lankan players playing in the Twenty20 League.
Therefore, as corrective measures, the SLC has brought about some changes in its modus operandi. Here on, if any organization wishes to sign any sort of contract with any Sri Lankan player, it first has to cross a barrier called ‘the Sri Lankan Cricket Board’. The SLC will be the sole representatives of its players and will be liable to a particular amount of revenue earned from any future contract signed with other organizations. The role of player agents will also be reduced.
“The issue with some of the players is that through their agents they go and sign with certain organisations unknown to us and eventually get into a conflict with SLC,” Ranatunga said. “One thing the players should remember is that they are employees of SLC. Every year, we sign about 40 cricketers from the national and `A` teams. We give them very attractive contracts.” “It is SLC that looks after the players from the junior level and brings them to the level of national cricket by spending a lot of money. The SLC is therefore duty-bound to earn some money from these cricketers rather than allow them to make payments to some agent outside. This way, we will safeguard our cricketers and make use of the money for cricket development.”
“We release these players for one and a half months but SLC does not gain any benefit. This is very unfair. In future, SLC will become the agents for its contracted cricketers and we hope to earn a lot of revenue though that. We are getting some advice from the legal side on how to go about it,” he said.
This change in rules, however, will not overrule the sports ministry’s decision of the Sri Lankan players playing in the IPL 2009 season instead of the England series. Ranatunga had earlier negotiated a series in England next year, which has now been put on hold due to clash of dates with the BCCI-backed League.
“If we get a directive from the minister of sport to release our top cricketers to play in a domestic cricket tournament in India, we have no right to question it,” Ranatunga said.
Ranatunga clearly blamed the IPL for the cancellation of series and said that this has resulted in huge loss of revenue. However, efforts are being made to plan out a possible participation in the Stanford 20/20 quadrangular in 2010, for which, talks are currently under progress with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).
“Because of the IPL, Sri Lanka will be losing a lot of money,” he said. “We won`t be able to play the postponed one-day triangular with India and South Africa slotted for next year. India has postponed that series because of the IPL. Likewise, we will lose USD 2 million on the England tour, money which we can make use for the development of our cricket.
VISWANATHAN ANAND was in no mood to relent after his 10th round loss to Russian Vladimir Kramnik a day before Diwali. The Indian Grandmaster mixed aggression with caution to eke out a draw and retain the World Championship title in the 11th game on Wednesday.
Anand required only half-a-point to clinch the title and win a purse of euro 150,000. He grabbed his chance with both hands the moment Kramnik offered him an opportunity.
The 38-year-old Indian thus moved to 6.5 points and retained the title he won in Mexico last year by topping a field of eight players that also included Kramnik. Kramnik tried to take the game on Wednesday through a maze of complicated moves, as that was the only way to put pressure on the Indian.
However, Anand fought bravely and negated all threats posed by his rival. He neutralised the complications and steered the game to a position from where Kramnik could see no chance of winning and thus decided to concede the match.
This was the third World Championship title for Anand, who had earlier bagged the title in 2000 at Delhi and Tehran by winning the FIDE knock-out tournament, and then regained it last year at Mexico. The title also made the Indian undisputed champion of the game.
He was already the world champion in ‘tournament and knockout formats’ but this ‘match-play’ victory has made him the all-round champion. Anand’s win is all the more significant considering that the chess bodies have unified.
Anand’s dilemma Anand was in a dilemma as to whether he should play it safe and allow his rival go for broke, or go for sharp, complicated lines that served him well in the first half of the match. Anand finally decided to play his usual aggressive game and reached a comfortable position midway through the game.
It became clear the Indian Grandmaster would be able to squeeze out at least a draw unless he made a mistake or Kramnik pulled a rabbit out of his hat. Anand surprised Kramnik by opening with the king pawn, his favourite first move with white that he had steadfastly avoided in this match thus far.
Anand had started by moving a pawn in front of his queen, which he had done rarely before this match and forced a bemused Kramnik into sharp, complicated lines that the Russian failed to handle properly. But on Wednesday, Kramnik was up for a battle and chose the Sicilian Najdorf, one of the sharpest openings and which he has not used many times.
Anand offered a pawn and Kramnik took it and created complications by launching an attack on the Indian Grandmaster’s king. However, Anand won back the pawn, exchanged pieces and traded off the queens to steer the game to a position where black had no choice but to draw.
As Kramnik offered his hand with a shake of his head, the crowd in the hall stood up to applaud Anand.
No sweat — rookie reliever David Price and the rest of the Tampa Bay Rays were ready to finish the job. Big Game James had already lived up to his nickname.
Shields stymied the slumping Philadelphia Phillies’ batters and Price got the final seven outs, pitching the plucky Rays to a 4-2 victory Thursday night that tied the World Series at 1-all.
“I didn’t feel too much pressure,” Shields said. “The guys in the clubhouse were real relaxed before the game.”
After dropping the opener to ace Cole Hamels and the Phillies, the young Rays rebounded from a rare home loss and earned their first World Series win with help from a squeeze play and a checked swing.
Tampa Bay never really got a huge hit, but neither did the Phillies as Jimmy Rollins and crew fell to 1-for-28 with runners in scoring position.
“That might be one of our sloppiest games all year,” manager Charlie Manuel said. “I’m concerned about us hitting with guys on base, because it looks like at times we might be trying a little too hard. But we can fix that.”
The series shifts to Philadelphia for Game 3 on Saturday night, though rain is in the forecast. ALCS MVP Matt Garza is scheduled to pitch for Tampa Bay against 45-year-old Jamie Moyer, making his World Series debut.
“We came in here knowing it’s going to be a tight series,” Rays outfielder B.J. Upton said. “Both clubs are a lot alike.”
Tampa Bay scored on Jason Bartlett’s safety squeeze and built another rally when Rocco Baldelli walked on a checked swing that seemed to confuse players and umpires alike.
Shields threw shutout ball into the sixth, outpitching Brett Myers and working out of trouble just as Hamels did for a 3-2 win Wednesday night.
So, how exactly did a pitcher with 32 major league wins come by that catchy monicker?
“It was kind of a joke at first,” Shields said. “I ended up pitching a couple of good games in the minor leagues and they say my whole organization is calling me ‘Big Game.’ They don’t call me by my first name anymore.”
The 23-year-old Price, called up in September after he was the top pick in last year’s draft, struck out slugger Ryan Howard with two on to end the seventh.
The hard-throwing lefty gave up a pinch-hit homer to Eric Bruntlett in the eighth, then stayed on to close it out against Philadelphia’s big boppers.
Carloz Ruiz led off the ninth with a double, and a pitch from Price appeared to graze Rollins’ jersey. But it was not called a hit batter, and a frustrated Rollins soon popped out.
Ruiz scored when third baseman Evan Longoria booted Jayson Werth’s grounder for an error, but Price fanned Chase Utley and got Howard on a game-ending grounder.
“I was nervous — very,” Price said. “I usually don’t even sweat out there and my hat looks like I went swimming with it.”
Tampa Bay is 5-3 at home in the postseason after going a major league-best 57-24 during the season.
Philadelphia’s lone hit with runners in scoring position was Shane Victorino’s infield single in the fourth, and that didn’t even produce a run.
“I don’t know if we’re pressing,” Victorino said. “Maybe it seems that way. We’re just not getting the job done. We came back, we had the tying run up. We needed to get one.”
Shields usually flourishes at home, where he was 9-2 with a 2.59 ERA during the season. All four of his postseason starts have come at Tropicana Field, including a win over the Chicago White Sox in Tampa Bay’s first playoff game and two tough losses to Boston in the ALCS.
“You feel pretty comfortable when he goes out there under those circumstances,” Rays manager Joe Maddon said. “It’s kind of a misconception. We’re starting to play our first big games now, and he’s pitching the same now as when the big game was trying to prevent somebody else from getting to the playoffs.”
A 14-game winner during the season, Shields was pulled in the sixth after 104 pitches. Dan Wheeler retired Pedro Feliz on an inning-ending grounder with runners at the corners.
Back from two seasons derailed by injuries and mitochondrial disorder, a condition that slows muscle recovery and causes extreme fatigue, Baldelli was involved in a confusing call in the second that helped Tampa Bay make it 3-0.
He checked his swing on a full-count pitch and plate umpire Kerwin Danley immediately raised his right arm as if to call strike three. But then Danley pointed to first base for an appeal, and umpire Fieldin Culbreth signaled safe.
“It was his intention to go to first base for help on a half-swing that he had as ball four,” said Mike Port, Major League Baseball’s vice president for umpiring. “He just gave a confusing mechanic. But he had called it a ball, and it was ruled no half-swing anyway. So it was just that particular mechanic that caused confusion.”
Myers and several Phillies infielders were puzzled, along with Manuel, who took a few steps out of the dugout but didn’t argue long.
“I thought he called the guy out,” Manuel said.
With the bases loaded and two outs, Upton hit an RBI single to right. Werth made a strong throw to cut down Baldelli, who crashed into Ruiz but couldn’t dislodge the ball.
Before the next inning started, Baldelli rested on one knee in right field.
Demoted to the minors in July, Myers gave up two runs in the first after an error by Werth. Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria had RBI groundouts.
Notes:@ Philadelphia’s 0-for-19 skid with runners in scoring position was the second-longest drought to start a World Series since the 1966 Los Angeles Dodgers finished 0-for-22 against Baltimore, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
It’s a book called True Colours but the Indian cricketing fraternity is likely to dub it a pack of lies. Adam Gilchrist, Australia’s vice-captain during the turbulent events of Sydney early this year, has apparently done the unforgivable.
According to a report in the Sydney Morning Herald, he has accused Indian icon Sachin Tendulkar of being a “bad sport” and implied that he lied to protect Harbhajan Singh during the Monkeygate scandal. “Tendulkar, who’d said at the first hearing that he hadn’t been able to hear what Harbhajan had said - and he was a fair way away, up the other end, so I’m certain he was telling the truth - now supported Harbhajan’s version that he hadn’t called Symo a ‘monkey’ but instead a Hindi term of abuse that might sound like ‘monkey’ to Australian ears,” Gilchrist has written.
“The Indians got him off the hook when they, of all people, should have been treating the matter of racial vilification with the utmost seriousness.” SMH also reports that Gilchrist was upset by the final moments of the SCG Test when the celebrating Australians did not shake hands with the waiting Anil Kumble and young Ishant Sharma.
Gilchrist has written: “We went into the Indian changing room and shook hands. Not all their players could be found, which points to another subtle cultural difference.
“In the Australian mentality, we play it hard and are then quick to shake hands and leave it all on the field. Some of our opponents don’t do it that way.
Sachin Tendulkar, for instance, can be hard to find for a changing room handshake after we have beaten India. Harbhajan can also be hard to find.
” “I guess it’s a case of different strokes for different folks. But the criticism of us for not immediately shaking hands with Kumble and Sharma was unfair, and typified a moment when everything we did was wrong,” he wrote in his book.
Gilchrist, who slammed the BCCI for “holding the world to ransom” and both boards for mishandling the issue, would not find many takers for this version of events, given that the dramatic events of that final day of the second Test in Sydney were watched and widely reported. Anyone who saw the Sydney Test would remember the way the Australians celebrated at the end of a viciously fought match, and the sight of a dignified Kumble having an arm around young Ishant on the back as they waited in vain for the Australian team to greet them, before walking away.
Finally, the timing of the serialisation of the to-be-released book, bang in the middle of a high-voltage India-Australia series, is worth noting. Tensions can only increase.
Tom Bradley is Penn State’s head coach-in-waiting. Or maybe he’s not.
Although Joe Paterno might like to, he can’t coach forever. And after 30 years of loyal service and excellent work, Bradley would seem to make an obvious heir apparent to the winningest coach in major college football history.
But if anyone knows the future of Penn State football they’re not saying.
“I don’t worry about that,” the Penn State defensive coordinator said in a recent interview with The Associated Press. “Everybody tries to make a big deal.
“Coach will probably go forever. I like what I do. Everybody says, ‘You have to be a head coach.’ I’ve had such a great experience, great things have happened. The people that I’ve met, I wouldn’t trade for the world.”
Bradley’s Penn State roots go back more than three decades. He went from special teams captain to graduate assistant in 1979 and has been in Happy Valley ever since.
Bradley grew up in Johnstown, a western Pennsylvania mining town, as the second oldest of seven kids (three boys and four girls). His father, Jim, played basketball for Pittsburgh, but like many Irish Catholics the Bradleys’ football allegiances were to Notre Dame.
The Penn State connection started with his older brother, Jim, who played defensive back for Paterno from 1973-74. Tom played defensive back from ‘77-78, and his younger brother, Matt, was a linebacker from ‘79-81.
Tom Bradley was the typical overachiever.
“He wasn’t quite big enough and didn’t have the speed to be a great player,” Paterno said. “He always had leadership qualities.”
The 52-year-old Bradley coaches the way he played, intense, hard-nosed, tough, all the cliches that perfectly fit a guy nicknamed Scrap — as in scrap iron.
During games, he’s in constant motion. His arms are waving and wind-milling as he patrols the sideline. Right before the snap, Bradley sets up like a shortstop, legs spread wide and hands on knees, ready to spring.
“Oh yeah, that’s how he is all week,” Penn State safety Anthony Scirrotto said. “It builds up Monday through Saturday. He starts off calm, as the week gets on you can feel the tension, you feel it getting closer to kickoff, it builds up. He gets everyone excited, he’s a real big key in keeping everybody up-tempo and upbeat.”
He also gets results.
No. 3 Penn State (8-0) ranks eighth in the nation in total defense (263.2 yards), heading into its Big Ten showdown Saturday night against No. 10 Ohio State.
Bradley’s been in charge of the defense since 2000, when longtime coordinator Jerry Sandusky retired. Sandusky was thought to be next in line to the throne at Penn State, too, but Paterno outlasted him.
Paterno is now less than two months away from his 82nd birthday and he gives no hints about when he’ll call it quits. There are, however, signs pointing toward sooner rather than later. He doesn’t have a contract for next season, though both he and university president Graham Spanier have said Paterno could work without one.
In his 43rd season as head coach, Paterno’s been relegated to working from the press box the last three games because of a sore right hip and leg. He uses a golf cart to get around practice and doesn’t come to the locker room at halftime to address the team.
With Paterno away from the sideline, Bradley has taken the lead role among the assistants, dealing with officials and penalties and calling timeouts. He also took the lead when Paterno missed time with a broken leg two years ago.
But Bradley is quick to make this point clear: Paterno is still in charge.
“He’s right there on the headset,” Bradley said. “The only difference is that when he’s on the field and he wants to get you, he’s right there. When he’s in the box and he’s yelling, you can always pretend you didn’t here what he said. ‘Hey coach you’re breaking up.’
“But he is there. It would be better if he was on the field with us.”
Bradley describes Penn State as a family. His own family has gotten smaller. He lost his younger brother, mother and father during a span of about 20 months, starting in 2001. Matt Bradley was 43 when he died of heart failure.
“It was a rough time,” Bradley said.
He’s never married — he’s been dating a woman for about a year and a half — but brushes off the idea that he’s married to his job.
“I figure God has a plan for you,” he said. “Whenever it happens, it happens.”
He talks about how “blessed” he’s been, how lucky he is to work for Paterno.
“Never, ever in front of the players is he critical of you,” Bradley said. “(The assistant coaches) have a lot of autonomy with what we do.”
Bradley said he’s had chances to move on, even talked to Paterno about a couple of opportunities.
“I think you look and then you kind of have to follow your heart,” Bradley said, then quotes a psalm. “Search your own heart with all diligence for out of it flows the issues of your life.”
If Penn State were to pick Bradley as Paterno’s successor, it would be a hit with many in the Penn State family.
“No one knows the Penn State way better than Coach Bradley,” said former Nittany Lions linebacker Paul Posluszny, now with the Buffalo Bills.
Paterno has said he wants his replacement to come from within. And what coach would want to come to Penn State and replace the legend, anyway?
Still, while Bradley is the emotional leader of the Nittany Lions, he’s far more Xs and Os than CEO. There are others on staff who might better fit that mold, such as linebackers coach Ron Vanderlinden, who has head coaching experience.
Then there’s defensive line coach Larry Johnson, whose success recruiting the mid-Atlantic region helped Penn State rebound from three losing seasons from 2000-04.
Then again, maybe Paterno will outlast them all. Who knows?
“It’s not going to define me if I don’t get to be a head coach,” Bradley said. “Sometimes you’re in a pretty good situation.”
Tony Romo’s broken little finger has become a big issue for the struggling Dallas Cowboys. The two-time Pro Bowl quarterback, who wanted to try to play last week despite the broken pinkie on his throwing hand, said Wednesday he now doesn’t expect to play again until at least mid-November.
“I don’t know when I’ll be back,” Romo said. “I think definitely the idea now is to get healthy by that bye week.”
That means Romo would miss at least two more games: Sunday at Tampa Bay and the following week at the rival New York Giants. The Cowboys (4-3), who have lost three of their last four games, then take a week off before returning Nov. 16 at Washington.
After being limited in his only practice last week, Romo was still listed as the backup quarterback Sunday at St. Louis. He even threw some passes before the game.
While the pain was tolerable, Romo couldn’t take direct snaps. And because of the protective splint on his hand, he needed an extra two to three seconds to get a proper grip before making throws.
“I wouldn’t have been able to play at any kind of level that would have helped this football team,” Romo said.
Brad Johnson will start again for Dallas, this time against the Buccaneers, who had him as their starter when they won the Super Bowl six seasons ago.
Coach Wade Phillips said Romo didn’t participate in practice Wednesday. The coach also said Brooks Bollinger, released by Minnesota at the end of training camp and signed the day after the season opener, will be Johnson’s backup this week.
Romo, who started 32 consecutive regular-season games plus two playoff games, was initially expected to miss a month after he got hurt on the first play of overtime in a loss at Arizona on Oct. 12.
But Romo, who said he hadn’t even missed a practice since high school, was throwing some passes three days later and indicated he wanted to try to play. He figured if he could manage the pain, he could play, so trainers tried several different protect wraps for his hand.
“You have to protect the finger enough that you can absorb some kind of hit, but to be able to do that, you mask the ability to throw the football, to grab it, to grip it, and that’s been the problem,” Romo said.
Romo doesn’t even anticipate being able to play in an emergency role this week.
“I could go out there and probably be a below average player and I wouldn’t help this team,” he said. “And I would be risking it.”
So unlike last week, the Cowboys go into this week’s game knowing Romo will actually be out a month and isn’t even an option. That should benefit Johnson and the rest of the offense in preparations.
“Maybe in the back of somebody’s mind they thought (Romo) might come in and save the day,” Phillips said.
“Just knowing that going in helps everybody, just the ability to know,” Romo said. “It will be better for Brad to get all the O-linemen into his cadence and to do different things of that nature.”
Johnson, the 40-year-old backup who made his first start since December 2006, was 6-of-18 for 66 yards and an interception before halftime. He finished 17-of-34 for 234 yards with a late touchdown in the 34-14 loss against the Rams.
Phillips acknowledged Wednesday that had the Cowboys needed another quarterback at St. Louis, Bollinger would have played instead of Romo.
When he first got hurt, Romo wasn’t sure it was even possible to play with the broken finger. He decided to give it a shot after talking to some other quarterbacks, including Brett Favre. But then Romo finally figured out it involved more than bearing the pain.
“As the week progressed I started to gain a little more confidence in feeling that I could actually do it,” Romo said. “Once I couldn’t, it would not have been a smart decision. Any type of dog, a linebacker coming, I would have had to eat the ball every time and try to protect my hand.”
Delhi girl Rani Smita Jain became the only seeded player to fall Monday even as other top seeds advanced on the first day of DSCL women’s tennis national championship at DLTA complex here.
Rani, seeded fifth, squandered a set lead to lose to Tamil Nadu’s P.A. Sindhu Nila
7-6(1), 2-6, 2-6.
Top seed Shalini Sahoo justified her billing with a 6-3, 6-2 win over wildcard Maharashtrian Soniya Dayal while second-seeded local Sweta Solanki handed a 6-2, 6-4 pounding to Sonal Phadke.
Sonal’s younger sibling Sagarika too failed to cross the first hurdle, going down fighting to eighth-seeded Treta Bhattacharya 2-6, 6-3, 4-6.
Third seed Abhilasha Ahuja blanked lucky loser Omlata Rai Kumari 6-2, 6-0, so did fourth seed Anushree Thammanna, who overcame Arushi Sharma 6-4, 6-4.
Spaniard Alvaro Quiros clinched his second European Tour victory when he took the Portugal Masters title on Sunday.
Quiros closed with a four-under 68 for a 19-under-par 269 to win by three strokes from Briton Paul Lawrie, who shot a 67.
Robert Karlsson produced a chequered final round 71 for a share of third place which still gave the Swede a large advanatage in Europe’s order of merit race.
After the weather-affected third round finished early on Sunday morning, Quiros held a one-stroke lead. Although he was briefly caught by Briton Ross Fisher, he was never overtaken.
Two birdies to finish enhanced the 25-year-old Cadiz man’s margin of victory as he followed up his South African Dunhill Champioship maiden win last year to collect the 500,000 euros ($673,500) first prize.
While Karlsson and Fisher both erred down the home stretch, Lawrie, with his best finish since the 2005 Madrid Open where he was also runner-up. He began with a run of four birdies in five holes and the 1999 British Open champion subsequently headed Karlsson, Fisher (71) and last year’s winner Steve Webster of Britain (68) by a stroke when he birdied the last.
Victory for Quiros followed a harrowing year in which he injured his wrist badly following victory in his European Tour debut event.
Powerful driving and some incisive putting in the final round ensured the young Spaniard is back as a force.
“I hit the ball very well for the first three rounds but my putting was amazing in the last round, my best club today. I also had a lot of luck with the putting,” Quiros told reporters.
“It’s great to win again after all the trouble of last year. My main target coming here this week was to try to qualify for the Volvo Masters and now I’ve done much better than that.”
Karlsson, now 297,424 euros ahead of Padraig Harrington on Europe’s moneylist, with just the Volvo Masters to come for them both (first prize 708,330 euros) said his final round had not been up to scratch.
The Swede began the afternoon a stroke adrift of Quiros but nudged close to the Spaniard only after coming back from mistakes on the front nine with birdies on the 13th and 14th.
When he hit his approach into water on the long 17th to bogey, his victory chance went.
“I didn’t play that great today and hit a few indifferent shots,” Karlsson told Reuters. “It was a poorish swing on 17 and that cost me badly.
“But up to then I played well and I’ve got a bit closer to winning the order of merit. There’ll be a lot to play for now at Valderrama (Volvo Masters).”
Lee Westwood is also not out of the order of merit running. The Briton closed with a 4-under 68 to be nine under and take a tie for 16th place, leaving him 466,606 Euro behind Karlsson.
The proposed centre will be known as ‘Bengal Techno Bayern Munich Academy’.