Luke Donald aims to topple US domination on PGA Tour

Luke Donald hopes to stop the run of US dominance when he defends his Tampa Bay Championship crown in Florida.

All 11 tournaments played so far on the PGA Tour in 2013 have been won by American players – a contrast to last year when Donald’s victory in this event followed on from victories by Rory McIlroy at the Honda Classic and Justin Rose in the WGC-Cadillac Championship.

Donald could only finish a lowly joint 43rd in the 65-man field at Doral last week, but the 35-year-old hopes memories of last year’s win at Innisbrook, when his triumph in a four-man play-off took him back to number one in the world, can kick-start his season.

“I’ve always enjoyed this golf course, I think it’s a good golf course for me,” world number three Donald told local radio station 620 WDAE.

“I’m certainly looking forward to getting back there. Winning there last year got me back to world number one and it’s a great event.

“It’s a shot-maker’s course, you just have to look at some of the previous winners like KJ Choi and Carl Pettersson who like to shape it both ways. You have to think your way around the course and it’s one of the classic courses that we play.”

The Copperhead course at Innisbrook, whose tough final three holes are known as the “Snake Pit” and are ranked the fourth hardest closing stretch on tour, is usually popular with the players, but came under criticism last year.

In trying to toughen up some areas of the course it was felt the changes went too far, particularly with the front pin placement on the 18th, where Donald won the four-man play-off with a birdie.

“Donald got a little lucky on his approach,” course superintendent Ryan Stewart said. “It just stopped dead. Those greens are tough enough as it is.

“There was too much movement on the greens. Trying to read putts, there was just an unbelievable amount of movement.”

After last year’s event, a Tour architect was called out to soften the most severe undulations and now they’re back to something close to their previous state.