Poulter 'in groove' for tilt at US Open
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Ian Poulter proudly moved into the world's top 20 yesterday and in typically confident fashion vowed that this would be the mere start of his rise into the game's elite. "Second in The Players means a lot of ranking points, exactly what I need to kick on for the rest of the year," said the Englishman.
At No 18, the 33-year-old has never been as highly rated. Neither has Poulter deposited such a large cheque. The £680,000 he earned courtesy of his four-stroke defeat at the brilliant hands of Henrik Stenson on Sunday dwarfed the £450,000 he trousered last year for finishing second at The Open. Such is the standing of the Sawgrass spectacular.
With two top-five finishes in two weeks, Poulter is counting down to next month's US Open at Bethpage. "The time cannot go quickly enough," he said. "It's fair to say I'm very, very excited about the upcoming majors."
As has become his way of late, Poulter will skip the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth next week and instead embark on a three-week stint on the PGA Tour, starting with the Byron Nelson Classic in Texas. "My short game has been, as my caddie said, ridiculously good over the last few weeks," said Poulter. "I need to stay in that groove."
His mood is in contrast to that of his best friend and Orlando neighbour, Justin Rose. The Englishman belied his usually calm temperament when breaking in half his putter at the end of The Players. His tie for 22nd meant that he has failed to finish better than 20th in the US this year. From sixth in the world just 16 months ago, Rose is now 36th.
Heading in the other direction is Stenson, up to No 5 after his bogey-less final round off 66. "Pretty incredible," said one Tiger Woods.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments