Aug 11—13, 2023

Graeme finished with a another solid T20 at the international series at Close House on the Asian tour.

On Day 1, the Northern Irishman combined three birdies with three bogeys in Newcastle to shoot a level-par-71 and sit in a tie for 40th place, five shots off the lead. Friday was his best day, shooting a two-under 69 which included 6 birdies with 4 bogeys which bumped him up the leaderboard and into the top 20. On Moving Day, Graeme was 3 over par after 13 holes, he then showed his determination to birdy three of the last 5 holes. The round included a near hole-in-one on the par-3 18th which had him T13 going into the final day. G-Mac got off to a birdy start on Sunday before dropping shots on the 2nd and 10th, he birdied the 16 and was disappointed to bogey the last for final round 72.

Speaking at the beginning of the week Graeme said “Close House is a great venue and obviously nice to come to the North East of England and to a part of the World where we don’t play much golf.  I think it’s great to see the Asian Tour coming to new destinations. It’s great for the game, it’s great for the business of the game and every tour in the world’s doing it now so definitely important to follow suit.”

About the Event

The inaugural International Series England marked an historic first for the Asian Tour as the first sanctioned event on UK shores. Returning in 2023, the US$2m event will be contested at the prestigious Close House, Newcastle, over the Scott Macpherson-designed Lee Westwood Colt Course.

Marking the fifth of 10 events making up The International Series 2023 schedule, numerous world class golfers are confirmed to take on the ‘Toon’ alongside stars of the Asian Tour, including the former World No. 1 and eight-time Asian Tour winner Lee Westwood after whom the course is named.

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Aug 11—13, 2023

Graeme finished in 12th place at Bedminster.

Graeme opened his account on Day with a score of 1 over. It was a steady round with a birdie on 9(his 16th) and dropped shots on the 3rd(his 9th) and the 12th(his 18th). On Day 2 Graeme got off to a great start, 3 under after 8 holes. He then made a double bogey on the 13th(his 9th) but cancelled that out with birdies on the 15th/16(his 11th/12th). He then had another double bogey on the 17th(his 13th) but birdied the next hole to be 2 up with 4 to play. Dropped shots on the 2nd and 4th(his 13th/18th) put Graeme on even for the day.

Graeme saved his best round for Sunday shooting 1 under for the day. He started with a run of bogeys on the 18th(his 3rd) and 1st hole (his 4th). After a birdie followed by bogey on the 4th/5th (his 7th/8th), Graeme showed his steel with 3 birdies and no dropped shots coming home.  It was particularly satisfying rolling in a birdie on 15th(his 18th) to finish the week on even.

Graeme has played some solid golf the last few events with lots of positives in his game. Bedminster is his highest finish for a while as Graeme keeps working hard and enjoying his game.

Result, 12th place with rounds of +1 (72), E(71), -1(70) for a score of E

Team CLEEKS GC (+3) Finished in 9th place : Team CLEEKS GC (-23) Finished in 7th place : Tot -12, Graeme McDowell +1, E, -1 Tot E, Richard Bland +2,-1,-1, Tot E, Bernd Wiesberger -2, +2, +3, Tot +3, Martin Kaymer +11,+2, +4, Tot +17

About BEDMINSTER

Trump National Golf Club Bedminster has featured several times in the top 100 American courses since it opened in 2004.

Its beautifully manicured 7,500 yards offer a superb variety of holes. Some cross open fields, others are tree-lined, and several have lakes waiting to punish the wayward shot. Look out for the big island-type green at the sixth hole.

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Aug 04—06, 2023

Graeme got off to a flying start at Greenbrier with a score of 5 under after 11 holes, his short game play and putting was on fire. It was a frustrating end to the day with dropped shots on 16 and 17 which put G-Mac on -2.

Again on Day 2 Graeme was 2 under after 5 holes. He fell back in the middle order to be on even after 14 holes. He then finished strongly with birdies on the 5th (his 16th for the day) and also the 7 (his 18th) which matched his opening round of -2 (68)

His final round was similar to Day 1, off to a brilliant shooting 5 birdies after 9 holes and going well. He dropped a shot on the 3rd (his 13th for the day) but bounced back with a birdie on the next hole. He had a double bogey on the 6th (his 16th for the day) but steadied the ship with pars on the final 2 holes to be back in the clubhouse with a -3 for the day, -7 for the week

Result, 29 with rounds of -2 (68), -2(68), -3(67) for a score of -7

Team CLEEKS GC (-36) Finished in 7th place : Team CLEEKS GC (-23) Finished in 7th place : Richard Bland -4,-7,-5, Tot -16, Bernd Wiesberger -4, -3, -5, Tot -12, Graeme McDowell -2, -2, -3 Tot -7, Martin Kaymer +3,-3, -1, Tot -1

About GREENBRIER

LIV Golf writes new chapter at an historic venue

Golf’s newest innovation meets one of its most storied and traditional courses as the LIV Golf League moves on to The Greenbrier.

You name them, they played here. Over more than 100 years, golf’s greatest have visited this wonderful corner of West Virginia.

Now present-day stars including Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Cameron Smith and Bubba Watson will be competing to add their names to the roll of honor at The Old White, which opened for play in 1914.

The Greenbrier has been restored since it took a battering from local floods in 2016 – and every care has been taken to retain the character of this historic course.

With its tree-lined fairways and small, well-protected greens, this is a track to test the game and the character of every player – which makes it an ideal venue for the LIV Golf League.

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Jul 07 – 09, 2023

After a disappointing opening day score of +4, Graeme bounced back in style on Saturday with a low round of 6 under. Graeme turned it on with his 2nd round, after 6 holes he was 5 under including eagle on the par 5, 18th (his 4th hole for the day). This bounced him up from bottom of the leaderboard to mid-field going into Sunday. On his final round Graeme shot a solid 2 under which placed him in 29th place to end the week. His week included some great long putts which had Graeme smiling and the crowd cheering.

Result, 29 with rounds of +4 (75), -6(65), -2(69) for a score of -4

Team CLEEKS GC (-23) Finished in 6th place : Richard Bland -3,-1,-5, Tot -9, Graeme McDowell +4, -6, -2, Tot -4, Bernd Wiesberger +1, +1, -4, Tot -2, Martin Kaymer E, -3, +5, Tot +2

Round 2 – 6 under 65

CENTURION CLUB
Opened in 2013, Centurion has quickly established itself as an elite venue, hosting many top competitions including women’s European Tour events. And “demanding” was the word used by Charl Schwartzel to describe Centurion upon his win.

Golfers must be particularly accurate off the tee here when the course is playing to its full 7,100-yard length. It’s a track that has been superbly designed, mixing pine forests with rolling countryside, and presents a tough test even for the best in the world.

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Jun 30 – Jul 02

It was a tough week at Valderrama for Graeme and his Team, Cleeks GC. Graeme ended the week in 39th place with Cleeks GC in 12th. Day 1 was his best round and early on he was in the Top 5. Round 2 was a struggle which left Graeme having to dig in on Sunday. After dropped shots on the first couple of holes on Sunday, he battled on and showed character with no dropped shots on the back nine.

Result, 46 with rounds of E (71), +5(76), +3(74) for a score of +8

Team CLEEKS GC (-19) Finished in 12th place : Richard Bland +3, Bernd Wiesberger +6, Martin Kaymer +7, Graeme McDowell +8

REAL CLUB VALDERRAMA
Valderrama, located in Andalucia in southern Spain, is loved by top golfers and fans of the game alike. The pros enjoy the beautifully presented course, which is long, technical and extremely testing. Spectators appreciate the stunning scenery and the chance to see many of the world’s best players up close.

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May 26 – 28, 2023

Graeme put in a solid performance at the Trump National Golf Club Washington DC to finish in 19th position. Graeme opened with an even Par 72 followed by a 2 under 70 on Saturday, he closed out with a 71 on Sunday.

Result, 19 with rounds of E (72), -2(70), -1(71) for a score of -3

Team CLEEKS GC (-19) Finished in 7th place : -5, -2, -3, -10

TRUMP NATIONAL GOLF CLUB WASHINGTON DC

The Championship course at the Trump National Golf Club Washington DC measures nearly 7,700 yards. Apart from its sheer length, the main challenge here is keeping your ball dry.

There are water hazards on many of the holes at a course that is located next to the Potomac River. It promises to present a fantastic test to the stars of the LIV Golf League!

COURSE PAR – 72

YARDAGE – 7,472

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