MARANA, Ariz. (February 20, 2012) – The brackets for this week's World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship are finalized, with players seeded according to the updated Official World Golf Ranking as of this morning. England's Luke Donald becomes the sixth different No. 1 overall seed in the 14-year history of the Accenture Match Play Championship, and he will face the No. 68-ranked Ernie Els (SAF) in the first round. Joining Donald as No. 1 seeds in their respective brackets are: Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy (No. 2 in the OWGR, will face South Africa's George Coetzee); England's Lee Westwood (No. 3 in the OWGR, will face Belgium's Nicolas Colsaerts); and Germany's Martin Kaymer (No. 4 in the OWGR, will face Australia's Greg Chalmers).
For the first time in event history, three of the four top seeds are current or former World No. 1s: Donald, who has been World No. 1 since May 30, 2011; Westwood, who was World No. 1 for 17 weeks (Oct. 31 2010-Feb. 27, 2011) and five weeks (April 25-May 29, 2011); and Kaymer, who moved to World No. 1 after his runner-up finish at last year's Accenture Match Play Championship and held that spot for eight weeks (Feb. 28-April 24, 2011). Also for the first time, all four top seeds are from outside the United States.
The first World Golf Championships event of the 2012 season returns to The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, Dove Mountain. The 32 first-round matches begin Wednesday, February 22, with Donald looking to defend his title and retain the Walter Hagen Cup.
Now that the brackets have been released, in the event a player withdraws from the Accenture Match Play Championship, the next player on the alternate list takes his place in the bracket. The next three players in the Official World Golf Ranking (as of Feb. 13 when the field was finalized) are: Ryan Moore (USA); Robert Allenby (AUS); Joost Luiten (Holland).
A total of 42 international players are among the Accenture Match Play Championship field of 64, representing 13 countries. There are 24 players under the age of 30 competing in the Accenture Match Play Championship, the most in tournament history, bettering the record of 23 previously set in 2010 and 2011.
Donald, as the No. 1 seed, will be situated in the Bobby Jones Bracket. Donald follows in the footsteps of fellow countryman Westwood, who was the first European player to be seeded No. 1 at the Accenture Match Play Championship in 2011. Donald is fresh off a career year that saw him rise to No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking and earn PGA TOUR and European Tour Player of the Year honors. At last year's event, Donald outlasted Kaymer in the Championship Match to win his first World Golf Championships title and first PGA TOUR win since 2006. It was an impressive week for Donald, as he never trailed in any of his six matches and never even had to play the 18th hole. Over the summer, Donald ascended to No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking then wrapped up the season in style with a victory at the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic, the last official event of the year. He became the first member of the PGA TOUR and European Tour to win the money title on both Tours in the same season.
Donald holds a 16-6 record at the Accenture Match Play Championship in seven starts. His previous best seed to start the event was No. 8 in 2007.
McIlroy, the No. 2 seed overall at this year's event, is the No. 1 seed in the Gary Player bracket. Like Donald, McIlroy is coming off a career year in which he won the U.S. Open, his first major, in record-setting fashion. McIlroy won by eight shots and became the ninth-youngest winner of the U.S. Open and the youngest to win the event since Bobby Jones in 1923. McIlroy finished second in the European Tour's Race to Dubai, behind Donald, thanks to two runner-up finishes and an additional three third-place performances.
McIlroy's Accenture Match Play Championship career record is 5-3 in three previous starts. In 2009, his first appearance, he advanced all the way to the Quarterfinals before being defeated by eventual champion Geoff Ogilvy. In 2010, he was seeded No. 5, his previous best standing at this event.
Playing in the event for the 12th time in his career, Westwood is the No. 1 in the Sam Snead bracket. Westwood will look to advance beyond the second round for the first time in his career. Westwood ended 2011 with a seven-stroke win over Charl Schwartzel at the Thailand Golf Championship, moving him to No. 2 in the Official World Golf Ranking; he finished fifth in the Race to Dubai on the European Tour. He then successfully defended his Nedbank Golf Challenge title in Sun City, South Africa, in December.
Westwood climbed to the top of the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time in his career in November 2010, ending Tiger Woods' five-year reign at the top. Westwood regained the No. 1 position in April 2011 by winning the Asian Tour's Indonesian Masters; one week later in South Korea, he shot three consecutive rounds in the 60s to win the Ballantine's Championship.
Westwood's overall record at the Accenture Match Play Championship is 7-11 in 11 previous appearances. Westwood was the No. 1 seed at the 2011 Accenture Match Play Championship, No. 2 in 2010 and No. 5 in 1999.
Kaymer will play as the No. 1 seed in the Ben Hogan bracket after another successful season in 2011 that included reaching the final in last year's Accenture Match Play Championship. Kaymer's consolation prize for the runner-up finish was a No. 1 spot in the Official World Golf Ranking. The 27-year-old from Germany enters the Accenture Match Play Championship as the latest winner of a World Golf Championships event after a spectacular final-round 63 to capture the HSBC Champions in Shanghai.
Kaymer is playing in the event for the fifth time in his career with a 7-4 record. As the No. 2 seed last year, his road to the finals included wins over Seung-yul Noh, Justin Rose, Hunter Mahan, Miguel A. Jimenez and Bubba Watson.
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