World Match Play Championship 2014: Graeme McDowell makes rare slip while Stephen Gallacher loses 10th match in row

Defending champion Graeme McDowell has suffered just his third defeat in the Volvo World Match Play Championship, while Ryder Cup team-mate Stephen Gallacher’s singles losing streak reached double figures.

McDowell has a superb record in this event, having reached the quarter-finals on his debut in 2011, the final in 2012 and won the title last year, while his victory over Alexander Levy in the opening group match on Wednesday made for an overall record of 15 wins from 17 matches.

However, the former US Open champion found Mikko Ilonen in brilliant form at The London Club, the Finn carding seven birdies to hold off a determined McDowell fightback and secure a 2&1 win, his first victory in the event. He now joins McDowell on two points in the Larson group.

“I’m disappointed to lose today but Mikko was incredibly solid,” McDowell said. “I felt like I played the best golf the first five holes but he putted better and that was the difference.”

Gallacher managed six birdies of his own against Pablo Larrazabal, but saw the Spaniard hole a pitch from 30 yards on the 18th to snatch an unlikely victory. That made it 10 consecutive singles defeats across six different match-play competitions for the Scot.

“I was five under today and have played two guys that haven’t had any bogeys,” said Gallacher, who lost to Ireland’s Shane Lowry in his opening group match and cannot qualify for tomorrow’s quarter-finals even if he beats Victor Dubuisson on Friday.

“It’s not a jinx. What happened at the last is typical match-play golf as he’s won it with a birdie without having been on the fairway. I had a chance to shut the door on him a bit but I hit a poor second shot.

“In fairness to Pablo, he holed two good par putts at the ninth and 10th to stay one down before he birdied four of the last six holes. I’m gutted to have lost the match like that, but that’s match-play golf.”

Larrazabal’s win was his first singles success at the sixth attempt. “It looked terrible all the way,” he admitted of his progress up the 18th, where he went from a bunker to thick rough and more rough short of the green. “But the ball was sitting great. I thought I had the chance to put it close and to make five but it went in. Happy days.”

With Joost Luiten claiming his second win of the week against Levy, all four in the Larson group can still qualify for the quarter-finals. Luiten and McDowell play each other on Friday, with Levy taking on Ilonen.

The day’s best golf came from Sweden’s Henrik Stenson, who recovered from three down after four and was eight under for his last nine holes in beating Francesco Molinari 2&1, ensuring the Italian cannot reach the last eight.

Stenson tops the Palmer group with three points, ahead of George Coetzee and Thongchai Jaidee on two. Stenson takes on Jaidee today. Coetzee plays Molinari.

All four players in the McCormack Group have two points after Jamie Donaldson beat Jonas Blixt 3&2 and Patrick Reed defeated Paul Casey 2&1, with Ryder Cup rivals Donaldson and Reed facing each other today and Casey taking on Blixt.

London Club: Second day scores

First round:

V Dubuisson (Fr) bt S Lowry (Ire) 3&2

S Gallacher (Scot) lost to P Larrazabal (Sp) 1 down

G McDowell (NI) lost to M Ilonen (Fin) 2 & 1

J Luiten (Neth) bt A Levy (Fr) 4&3

H Stenson (Swe) bt F Molinari (It) 2&1

T Jaidee (Thai) lost to G Coetzee (SA) 2&1

J Donaldson (Wal) bt J Blixt (Swe) 3&2

P Reed (US) bt P Casey (Eng) 2&1