Lee Westwood has three major events to look forward to next April. Between
the US Masters at Augusta National from April 5-8 and his 28th birthday on
April 24th, he is due to become a father for the first time.
His wife Laurae, sister of fellow European Ryder Cup player Andrew Coltart,
is expected to have the baby around the middle of the month, and a statement
from Westwood's management company, ISM, says: "Lee's tournament schedule
will be changed to enable him to attend the birth."
The timing means that Westwood could face a similar dilemma at Augusta
National to that of Phil Mickelson during the 1999 US Open at Pinehurst. The
left-handed American was set to pull out at any stage of the tournament, in
which he eventually finished second to the late Payne Stewart, if his wife
Amy went into labour with their first child.
As it happened she gave birth the day after the tournament ended, but if
Stewart had not holed a winning 15-foot putt on the final green to take the
title by a stroke, he would have won anyway by default because Mickelson
would have withdrawn from the 18-hole playoff.
