Showing posts with label spell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spell. Show all posts

September 3, 2012

Timeform Notebook: Brook to end his Barren spell

Having slipped in the weights after a few below-par efforts, Barren Brook shaped as if he is capable of capitalising on the chance he has been given by the assessor...

Despite an undoubted lull in the quality of racing on the domestic front, the Timeform Notebook returns to highlight three horses that may be worth following...

Past editions of the Timeform Notebook have predominately focussed on the weekend action, but it would be remiss of us to omit a potential winner simply because he was seen operating on a relatively low-key weekday card. The first horse to gain our attention was seen powering home to secure a second-placed finish on the sodden Ripon turf last Tuesday. Having slipped in the weights after a few below-par efforts, Barren Brook shaped as if he is capable of capitalising on the chance he has been given by the assessor, finishing strongly in the closing stages despite possibly finding the surface softer than ideal. Given his shrewd connections, it is well worth keeping an eye on Barren Brook in the market wherever he turns up next.

Arguably the best racing last week came from Sandown, with the Godolphin filly Falls Of Lora surely catching the attention of many observers, looking to be an unlucky loser in the Group 3 race for fillies and mares. However, her stablemate, Irish History, is also interesting, having shaped better than the bare result would imply. Slowly away, Irish History was dropped out in last place early on but travelled well and made up ground stylishly before her effort flattened out inside the final furlong, eventually finishing sixth. On first impression, it looked as if she was simply given too much to do and, having performed well in Group 1 contests, it would be a surprise were Mahmood Al Zarooni's filly incapable of gaining pattern-level success in the near future.

Hard-luck stories at Chester are not uncommon and another horse to join the list of losers who probably should have won is the Alan Bailey-trained Strictly Silver. Not ideally drawn, the grey colt could be observed travelling powerfully in the pack but, crucially, was forced slightly wide as they entered the straight and narrowly failed to overhaul Verse Of Love. Still unexposed and progressive, there is a strong feeling that Strictly Silver will not have to wait long to gain compensation for this unfortunate defeat.

Runners Debrief
Having waxed lyrical about the speed Rex Imperator possesses, it was rather disconcerting to see him off the bridle so far out at Bath on Saturday, putting up what could be termed as a rather laboured effort. Considering his best form has come on quicker ground, the soft underfoot conditions he encountered at Bath can certainly be deemed a contributory factor to the rather lacklustre run, and it is far too early to write him off.

It could be a busy week for our Notebook horses, with no less than four of our eye-catchers holding engagements. John Dunlop's string are in notably better form now than when Alnawiyah made a most promising debut, and the daughter of Dalakhani looks to hold strong claims of getting off the mark at the second time of asking at Lingfield on Wednesday. Golden Causeway was a bitter disappointment at Newmarket last time, having shaped so well on debut, and it will be interesting to see whether she takes up either of her entries this week.

Gospel Choir, who was a late withdrawal from the Melrose Stakes at York, could potentially line up against a host of progressive three-year-old handicappers at Ascot on Saturday. Although Sir Michael Stoute does have other options for the race, connections had mooted Saturday's contest as a potential target for their lightly-raced improver and he is bound to have his supporters at Ascot.

Victorious on his handicap bow, a 4lb rise in the weights should not unduly inconvenience Luca Cumani's unexposed three-year-old Semeen, who will surely hold strong claims should he be confirmed for the 0-70 handicap at Brighton on Friday.

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July 14, 2012

Open Championship: Will Lytham spell an end to Lee's major hopes going West?

"So while the golfing gods can also be cruel, Westwood is the first to point out that there’s more joy than struggle in the eternal labour of the game he loves."

Romilly Evans asks if Lee Westwood can finally get over the major line in the Open at Royal Lytham...


The philosopher Albert Camus always believed that anticipation was the purest form of pleasure. Better than the memory, better than the deed. In that, while the good things that actually happen to you often disappoint, those that never come to pass become engraved upon your heart with a bittersweet sadness.

Camus even argued that Sisyphus, Greek antiquity's poster boy for a bad day at the office, took satisfaction from his eternal punishment of pushing a boulder up a mountain, only for it to tumble back to the bottom as it reached the peak. The gods of Olympus had intended for Sisyphus to endure eternal frustration. Camus countered that there was joy to be found in this seemingly pointless struggle.

If Camus was right, Lee Westwood must be having the time of his life. After all, The Worksop Wonder has been rolling his boulder up the mountainside of major golf for longer than English golf fans care to remember. A total of 57 majors and counting to be exact. Every time he posts his name near the top of the Sunday leaderboard, down it falls. The near-misses have stacked up like planes approaching Heathrow, with eight top 10 finishes in the last 12 Majors. Westwood simply appears incapable of landing one safely.

Along the way, Westwood has become world number one, a prolific worldwide winner, multi-millionaire, contented family man, even an Officer of the Order of the British Empire. So while the golfing gods can also be cruel, Westwood is the first to point out that there's more joy than struggle in the eternal labour of the game he loves.

Of course, the mountain of public expectation grows ever steeper with the passing years. Especially at Westy's home Open next week, where the crowds will flock to see if their man can finally end his hoodoo in an event no Englishman has won since Nick Faldo triumphed at Muirfield in 1992. However, Westwood's form ahead of the Open suggests they can dare to dream once more.

The 39-year-old has contended wherever he has roamed this season, notching five top-10 finishes in eight events on the PGA Tour and five top-10s in 10 European Tour starts, punctuated by a recent victory at the Nordea Masters. He also reclaimed his Indonesian Masters crown.

As for the all-important majors, it's been a perennial refrain: third at The Masters, then a tie for 10th at the US Open, which looked altogether more promising until he bizarrely lost a ball up a tree in the final round. Even Westwood admitted to suffering from a severe case of the here-we-go-agains.

But as the Open returns to Royal Lytham this year, there is perhaps more reason for him to fend off the mental demons. And not just because this classic Lancashire links doesn't have any trees. Rather, when the Open last visited this corner of Lancashire in 2001, another nearly man of peerless precision with his woods and irons walked off with the Claret Jug. David Duval was that player and the similarities between the two golfers are stark: forever gifted, forever thwarted. Maybe Westwood's time is finally at hand around a course which should reward his accuracy and ball-striking.

Fears over last week's injury scare at the French Open (where he slipped walking over to the first tee) have proven to be unfounded - "the leg is perfectly fine, my fitness guy said I could play again this week if I really wanted to." Which means the only missing link is his old caddie, Billy Foster, who sadly hasn't recovered from his own leg injury to be on the bag this week. That said, the affable Foster will still be at Lytham to cheer on his great friend and despite the mixed emotions, none will be pulling harder.

If Westwood does manage to shake the monkey off his back (and Betfair players make him second favourite at 18.017/1 to back), he may be left feeling as Duval did in the wake of his milestone win. "I just thought it would feel sweeter than this," Double D opined to his caddie soon afterwards.

So maybe Camus was right about the human condition. There can be no joy without the struggle. Still, after all the years of frustration, Westwood's legion of supporters won't mind one bit if they see their man home. The Englishman who went up a hill but came down a mountain a major champion.

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