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Donaldson secures Ryder Cup spot with Czech win

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Jamie Donaldson locked up a spot on his first European Ryder Cup team Sunday with a two-shot victory at the Czech Masters.

A late entry into the event, Donaldson shot a final-round 68 to overtake third-round leader Bradley Dredge and capture his first European Tour title of the season and third of his career.

Good timing too, for Donaldson needed a top-7 finish this week to guarantee himself a spot in next month’s trip to Gleneagles.

“It was a lot on the line; I knew I had to play well,” he said. “This week I played really well, and it all came together.”

Donaldson’s victory leaves Graeme McDowell in the ninth spot heading into the final week of qualifying. The Italian Open (European Tour) and Deutsche Bank Championship (PGA Tour) are the last opportunities for Ryder Cup hopefuls to play their way into the team, though the latter event awards more world-ranking points and thus will create more volatility.

McDowell has already said that he’ll skip the event in Boston to be with his wife as the couple expects their first child. Luke Donald and Ian Poulter both missed the 36-hole cut at the playoff-opening Barclays, while Lee Westwood needed to finish T-49 or better to advance to the second playoff event. (He was tied for 68th while playing his fourth round.) Other players vying for a spot include Stephen Gallacher – the Scotsman who finished T-7 in Prague – and 50-year-old Miguel Angel Jimenez.

Donaldson left little to chance, finishing at 14-under 274, two clear of Dredge, to win for the third time in as many years.

“It’s so difficult to get onto the team, with everybody playing so well,” he said. “I played as well as I can play for 18 months, and a couple of low events and you just rocket down. It’s great to play so well and do enough to get on the team.”

With Donaldson now safe, European captain Paul McGinley will make his third wild-card picks during a nationally televised announcement on Tuesday, Sept. 2. 

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You Oughta Know: The Barclays

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Jim Furyk and Jason Day have a one-stroke lead after 54 holes of The Barclays. Here’s what You Oughta Know going into the final round at Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus, N.J.

• Furyk is really good through 54 holes, but 72? Not so much. This is his eighth 54-hole lead since the beginning of 2012, the most of anyone in that span. He has not converted any of them.

• Furyk is seeking his first win since the 2010 Tour Championship.

• Co-leader Day can thank his putter for his position; he leads the field in strokes gained putting this week, and was 13 for 13 on putts inside 10 feet in the third round.

• Hunter Mahan, one stroke back, has shot eight consecutive rounds of par or better, dating back to the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational final round.

• Mahan’s stroke average in August, 68.20, is a significant improvement over his average in June-July, 71.56.

• Kevin Chappell is seeking his first PGA Tour win, but the odds don’t favor him. Camilo Villegas (2008 BMW Championship) is the only player to make a playoff event his first PGA Tour win.

• Hot: Morgan Hoffman is 15 for 16 on putts inside 15 feet this week.

• Not: Rory McIlroy has made just one of 13 putts between 10 and 20 feet this week. In winning the PGA Championship, he was eight for 22 at that distance.

• Not a great omen for Furyk or Day: Both previous Barclays winners at Ridgewood trailed entering the final round. Vijay Singh in 2008 and Matt Kuchar in 2010 would go on to win in a playoff.

Information compiled by Golf Channel Senior Researcher Justin Ray.

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