Golf Digest India - July 2017

RNI NO. HARENG/2016/66983 JULY 2017 `150

VOLUME 2 | ISSUE 3

THINK YOUNG | PLAY HARD

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Contents 07/17

ArgentinA l AustrAliA l Chile l ChinA l CzeCh republiC l FinlAnd l FrAnCe l hong Kong l IndIa l indonesiA l irelAnd KoreA l MAlAysiA l MexiCo l Middle eAst l portugAl l russiA l south AFriCA l spAin l sweden l tAiwAn l thAilAnd l usA

British Open Preview

FAMILY SPECIAL

88

48 Jason Day: The Basics I’m Teaching My Son

The New Sergio At 37, there are changes in his life and his golf.

78

Henrik Stenson presented with the Seve Ballesteros Award

79

Fitness Tips Building strong and stable shoulders

80

The Referee’s View Interpreting the drop rule for vulnerable bunkers

84

Thai Warriors Set For Green Domination

by jaime diaz 94

Back to Birkdale!

What you need to know about this year’s venue

96

Wise Guy: Pete Cowen 10 secrets to better golf

by Europe’s top coach.

51 Keeping Up With The Mickelsons 56 Just For Fun 58 Love Struck

with guy yocom

62 $igns of the time$

India Digest 20

36

24

Newsmakers Update on Indian golfers around the world Inside The Ropes Cricket legend’s great grandson Julian Suri sizzles on the fairways

by Rohit bhaRdwaj

27

Junior Golf

30

Club Round-Up Updates from courses across India

32

PGA of America endorses India Learn Golf Week

34 36

Business Of Golf Industry updates Bharat Patel’s customfitting session at TaylorMade’s Kingdom

by Rohit bhaRdwaj

24

42

Lifestyle Flaunt Updates on new launches of luxury products & travel

117 18 Holes with Tata Hitachi

MD Sandeep Singh

by chuah choo chiang 85

A Bright Future Ahead! by josh buRack

Features 98

Blackout Putting How I seem to make everything. by joRdan spieth

102 Swing Sequence:

Brooks Koepka Hit the power fade

104 Butch Harmon

One small change for better chip shots

105 David Leadbetter

Make more curling putts

106 Jack Nicklaus

Strategy for tough openers

107 Decisions

What kind of golf tantrum should you throw?

108 The Core

The LPGA’s Belen Mozo on a proper warm-up.

by Ron kaspRiske

109 Undercover Tour Pro

117 14 golf digest india | july 2017

70

Vibrant New York to witness golf spectacle

72

Brilliant Brooks captures maiden Major at US Open

74

Web.com Tour Adds Two New Events in 2018

Cheaters are hard to catch, but we know who they are. with max adleR

Cover photograph by Walter Iooss Jr.

Editor’s Letter

OUR CONTRIBUTORS

Dear Readers,

O

ne of the many wonderful aspects of golf is that it is a great family activity.

Yet not enough families in India have embraced it fully. Golf teaches kids values like integrity, patience, respect for others and emotional control. Invaluable lessons they will carry for life. Parents and grandparents can enjoy a game with youngsters. Husbands and wives can travel playing golf all over the world. Golf is truly a unique family bonding experience. Hence this month, we bring you the Family Special. Our stories on World No. 2 Jason Day with his son Dash and of the Phil Mickelson family are truly revealing and inspiring. Please do set aside time to read them in entirety.

Jack Nicklaus

Write to me at rishi@teamgolfdigest.com or on Twitter @RishiNarain_

India Learn Golf Week planned in late September simultaneously at clubs across India could be a great opportunity for you to introduce your family, friends, business associates or work colleagues to the game. Read about it here and how the PGA of America is lending expertise to this new initiative of the Golf Industry Association supported by the Indian Golf Union and other institutions governing the game in India.

More top quality instruction by our champions and legendary panel of writers awaits you.

Keep the feedback coming and enjoy the game despite the rainy weather.

Happy Reading!

TEAM GOLF DIGEST INDIA Editor & Publisher Rishi Narain Assistant Art Director Guneet Singh Oberoi Subscriptions Sakshi Naharia/ Monika Chhabra subscribe@teamgolfdigest.com Phone: +91-9999868051

Tom Watson

Watson is an eighttime Major champion, with five British Open titles to his credit, who defied age by becoming the oldest professional golfer at 60 years to lead the second and third rounds of the 2009 British Open. He topped the World Rankings from 1978 to 1982.

Butch Harmon

Rishi Narain

Managing Editor Rohit Bhardwaj

Popularly known as The ‘Golden Bear’, Nicklaus is widely regarded as the greatest golfer of all time. He won a record 18 Majors during his playing career and is regarded as the ultimate thinker and strategist on the golf course. He lies third on the all-time winner list on the PGA Tour behind Sam Snead and Tiger Woods with 73 titles.

Marketing & Advertising Nikhil Narain nikhil@teamgolfdigest.com +91-9999990364 Bharath Arvind bharath@teamgolfdigest.com Srijan Yadav srijan@teamgolfdigest.com +91-9416252880

Published and Printed by Rishi Narain on behalf of Rishi Narain Golf Management Private Limited and Printed at Thomson Press India Limited, 18-35 Mile Stone, Delhi-Mathura Road, Faridabad-121 007, Haryana and published from 501, Sushant Tower, Sector-56, Gurgaon-122 011, Haryana. Editor: Rishi Narain. Contains material reprinted by permission from Golf Digest® and Golf World®.

Golf Digest India is a monthly publication of Rishi Narain Golf Management Private Limited.

16 golf digest india | july 2017

GOLF DIGEST INTERNATIONAL EDITIONS AND EDITORS-IN-CHIEF GD ArGentinA Hernán SimÓ, Jorge R. Arias AustrAliAn GD Brad Clifton GD Chile Rodrigo Soto GD ChinA Echo Ma GD CzeCh republiC Robin Drahonovsky GD FinlAnD Sami Markkanen GD FrAnCe Henry Trouillet GD honG KonG Echo Ma GD inDonesiA Irwan Hermawan GD irelAnD Linton Walsh GD KoreA Eun Jeong “EJ” Sohn GD MAlAysiA Patrick Ho GD MexiCo Rafa Quiroz GD MiDDle eAst Robbie Greenfield GD portuGAl João Morais Leitão GD russiA Fedor Gogolev GD south AFriCA Stuart McLean GD spAin Óscar Maqueda GD sweDen Oskar Åsgård GD tAiwAn Jennifer Wei GD thAilAnD Chumphol Na Takuathung GD usA Jerry Tarde

Harmon is best known for having been Tiger Woods’ golf coach during the prime of his career from 1993 to 2004. He has also worked with other Major champions such as Ernie Els, Stewart Cink, Greg Norman, Davis Love III, Fred Couples and Justin Leonard. Has topped many lists as the No. 1 rated golf instructor in the world.

David Leadbetter

Leadbetter, is without doubt the most celebrated golf instructor in history. His books, videos and DVD’s have sold in the millions worldwide. He came to wide notice in the 1980s when he rebuilt the swing of Nick Faldo, who then went on to win six Major championships. Apart from Faldo his students included Greg Norman (1997) and Ernie Els (1990–2008). Leadbetter changed golf instruction for all future generations from guesswork to science.

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THINK YOUNG | PLAY HARD

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Newsmakers

PLAYERS IN THE NEWS Lahiri scripts best-ever PGA Tour finish I ndia’s Anirban Lahiri posted his best result on the US PGA Tour when he finished tied second along with Rickie Fowler in The Memorial tournament. Lahiri ended at 10-under par for the week at Muirfield Village, more than four hours before Jason Dufner clinched the title.

With this result Lahiri jumped 25 spots to be placed 65th in the Official World Golf Ranking, five spots outside the top 60 for exemptions into the US Open.

Not in the field for the FedEx St. Jude Classic, Lahiri will make his next start at the Travelers Championship, after the year’s second Major.

“There’s so many things you can push for,” he said.

“You can push for the U.S. Open. I haven’t played a Major or a WGC yet this year. Like I said, I beat myself up a little bit because I played 10 consecutive Majors and now I’m not in any major yet. I should get into (PGA), hopefully. But that kind of plays on your mind.

You feel like you’re going backwards.

“So just have to gather yourself and go back to what you’ve been doing. … So I’m just doing that. Just going to focus on my golf, be good to myself, and let the results take care of themselves.”

Lahiri did make it clear that he is intent on making it back to this year’s Presidents Cup. He jumped from 22nd to the 15th spot in the Presidents Cup rankings to boost his chances of inclusion in captain Nick Price’s team.

He represented India as part of the International team for the first time in 2015, but his week came to a sour end when he missed a 4-foot putt on the 18th hole to lose his singles match to Chris Kirk.

Had that putt gone down and all else stayed the same, the US and the Internationals would have tied, 15-15.

Prize Money won

$765,600 (` 4.9 crore)

BEST INDIAN FINISHES ON PGA TOUR W - Arjun Atwal, 2010 Wyndham Championship T-2 - Anirban Lahiri, 2017 Memorial T-2 - Atwal, 2005 BellSouth Classic T-3 - Lahiri, 2016 CIMB Classic T-3 - Atwal, 2010 McGladrey Classic T-4 - Atwal, 2006 Buick Invitational 4 - Jeev Milkha Singh, 2009 WGC-CA Championship T-5 - Lahiri, 2015 PGA Championship (Major) T-6 - Lahiri, 2016 DEAN & DELUCA Invitational T-9 - Jeev, 2008 PGA Championship (Major) T-9 - Jeev (2010 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship)

20 golf digest india | july 2017

“Obviously, I want to be on the Presidents Cup team,” he said.

“There’s no way I wouldn’t want to be on [captain Nick Price’s] team. I have unfinished business.

I’ve said that before. I would like nothing better than to go out there and get points.”

— Anirban Lahiri

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Newsmakers

Chopra, Rai earn US Open berths after topping Qualifier

T

our veteran Daniel Chopra of Sweden is set to make his third appearance in the year’s second Major after he claimed a three-shot victory at the US Open Sectional Qualifying held at the Canoe Brook Country Club in New Jersey.

After carding a four-under 66 at the par-70 South course in the morning, Chopra fired eight birdies against a bogey to sign for a seven-under 65 at the par-72 North course, topping the leaderboard with a winning total of 11-under 131.

Chopra, a former two-time PGA Tour winner and a one-time winner on the Asian Tour, will lead four other players, who all finished inside top-five at the Canoe Brook Country Club, to the 117th US Open which will be held at the Erin Hills from June 15 to 18.

“I felt really good about my game coming in here, and I felt like it would be a good opportunity if I played well and kept my head on my shoulders. If I played solid golf, I would have a great

chance,” said Chopra, who is born to a Swedish mother and Indian father.

Meanwhile, Englishman of Indian descent Aaron Rai carried his magnificent recent form to Walton Heath Golf Club to earn medalist honors in US Open sectional qualifying and secure his Major championship debut at Erin Hills next month.

The Wolverhampton native, who has won two events on the European Challenge Tour this season, made an incredible late run, with five birdies and an eagle in his final nine holes of the 36-hole qualifier to card a second-round, 8-under 64 and come in at 14-under 130.

Li Haotong of China, meanwhile, will also make his US Open debut at Erin Hills after he matched Rai’s 64 in Round 2 to place second with a 13-under total.

Meanwhile, Shiv Kapur and Jeev Milkha Singh failed to qualify for the prestigious tournament. Shiv carded 70 at Walton Heath’s Old Course while Jeev posted 75 at the New Course to rule themselves out of qualifying.

Aaron, Daniel miss cut at Erin Hills India’s hopes Daniel Chopra and Aaron Rai succumbed before the alien conditions at Erin Hills Golf Club to miss the cut at the 117th US Open. Chopra, Swede of Indian descent, carded 5-over 77 in the first round and 8-over 80 in Round 2 to rule himself out of the prize money stage of the season’s second Major. Rai, Englishman born to an Indian mother, began well shooting one-over 73 in the first round but could not carry the momentum in the next round to post 8-over 80 and bow out of the $12 million tournament.

Rashid ends T-6 at Queen's Cup

Delhi golfer Rashid Khan showed glimpses of resurgence of form with a tied 6th finish in the $500,000 Queens Cup at the par-71 Santiburi Samui Country Club, Koh Samui. Rashid began strongly, carding 6-under 65 in the opening round followed by consecutive 70s in the next three rounds to end with an overall tally of 9-under 275.

The 26-year-old picked up a cool $14,383 (approx. Rs 9.27 lakh) for his effort.

Other Indian results:

T-15 - Rahil Gangjee (69-71-70-70), SSP Chawrasia (67-68-72-73); T-31 - Chiragh Kumar (72-72-69-70); T-42 - Sujjan Singh (71-72-69-74); T-48 - Jeev Milkha Singh (70-72-80-66), Shiv Kapur (70-72-72-74).

22 golf digest india | july 2017

Sharmila fails to capitalise on LPGA opportunity Former national champion Sharmila Nicollet failed to capitalise on a brilliant opportunity to shine in an LPGA (Ladies Professional Golfers Association of America) tournament after earning a direct entry via a Twitter fan poll.

Sharmila had defeated the likes of Scotland’s Carly Booth, Golf Channel TV presenter Blaire O’Neal and Susana Benevides of Bolivia to get a spot in the into the $1.5 million ShopRite LPGA Classic.

Sharmila carded 5-over 76 on Day 1 and a 7-over 78 on Day 2 to rule herself out of the prize money round. Two-time Ladies European Tour winner Aditi Ashok too failed to make the cut with a 36-hole total of 7-over 149.

Women’s Tour to resume after 3-month break

Indian women golfers will be raring to go when the Hero Women’s Professional Golf Tour resumes after a three-month break at the Eagleton Golf Resort, Bengaluru, from July 4 to 7.

The 7th leg of the WGAI Tour is likely to witness some interesting battles between the top 4 on the Order of Merit – Amandeep Drall, Gaurika Bishnoi, Vani Kapoor and Saaniya Sharma among others. Neha Tripathi and veteran Smriti Mehra would also be hoping to give some stiff competition to their rivals.

Inside The Ropes with Julian Suri

Exclusive

Cricket legend’s great grandson sizzles on the fairways 24 golf digest india | july 2017

Inside The Ropes with Julian Suri Julian Suri is the great grandson of Indian cricket legend Buchi Babu Nayudu, who is considered the father of Tamil Nadu cricket

Julian (background) along with mother Lorena (l-r), brother Devin and father Jagan Suri during a holiday

ROHIT BHARDWAJ rohit@teamgolfdigest.com

J

ulian Suri, a US citizen born to a Mexican mother Lorena and Indian father Jagan Suri, is making waves at the world stage with consistent performances on the European Challenge Tour.

Julian recently clinched his maiden professional title at the D+D Real Czech Challenge preceded by a second place finish in Open de Portugal. At the time of going into print, Julian was leading the Road to Oman rankings followed by a tied third result in the Swiss Challenge.

Interestingly, the passion for sport runs in his blood. Julian is the great grandson of cricket legend Modavarapu Venkatamahipati Buchi Babu Nayudu (1868-1908), who is considered as the father of Tamil Nadu cricket. Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) conducts one of the longest running inter-state invitational tournaments in his name.

Buchi Babu’s t hree sons — Venkataramanujulu, Baliah and C Ramaswami — carried on the cricket legacy. The subsequent generations followed suit and now Julian Suri, great grandson of Baliah, is beginning to make a mark on putting surfaces in Europe.

The 26-year-old feels his prowess in golf has a lot to do with the family’s sporting lineage. “When I was young, I would hear tales from my father on the exploits and impact my great grandfathers and uncles have made for sports in India. It is quite surreal to be belonging to a family that’s so respected,” Julian told Golf Digest India from Europe.

Julian and his brother Devin both train under Daniel Carraher, who is credited for fuelling a turnaround in their respective games. Devin is currently the second highest ranked amateur in the state of Florida.

Julian, a Tiger Woods and Michael Jorda n fa n, is cu r rent ly ra n ked 2 43rd in t he Off icia l World Golf

Rankings. Julian spoke about his plans to break into world’s top-100 by end of 2017 and his ultimate aim to win Majors in an exclusive chat. Excerpts from an interview:

GDI: Cricket and tennis runs in your blood but what inspired you to take up golf?

JS: My dad and grandfather were pretty instrumental in starting me in golf and tennis when I was young, and growing up in the US, cricket was a bit of a tough sell!

The biggest thing that steered my dad and I towards golf, and later my brother as well, was Tiger Woods exploding onto the professional golf scene and having such a significant impact on kids like me, who were interested in other sports, but soon gravitated toward golf. He made it so exciting to watch, and try to emulate the things he did on the golf course.

GDI: At what age did you pick up a club? How difficult/easy was the decision to turn pro?

JS: First picked up a club at the age of five, and started playing local tournaments in New York when I was six years old. The decision itself wasn’t that hard for me to make, because I knew for a long time that’s what I wanted to do. I would say around the time I was 15 or 16 years old was when I really knew that this is what I wanted to do with my career. I think that’s when I really started to try to become the best version of myself.

GDI: What is it that you most like about golf?

JS: While I really enjoy watching team sports, I would say I was always drawn so much more to individual sports like golf because there is no way to hide from a situation on the course, whether its positive or negative the heat is all on me.

This motivates to work as hard as I do, and the clearest way to assess the quality of your efforts is by competing, and not relying on anybody else when you’re in your arena, on the course.

GDI: Being an American citizen what prompted you to explore the golfing circuit in Europe? Any particular reason behind it?

JS: I have always thought highly of the idea of travelling around the world doing what I love, and this decision has really provided me with the ability to do that.

In addition I had a couple of friends who I had played golf with for a long time that had some success in Europe. They always talked about how much they enjoyed it, and it seemed like a great opportunity to learn how to do things on my own. Also, I saw the qualifying process as an easier route to climb up the world rankings. july 2017 | golf digest india

25

Inside The Ropes with Julian Suri GDI: You have already scripted a breakthrough win on the European Challenge Tour and come close to winning a couple of times on the higher rung European Tour. What is your ultimate target in golf?

JS: My ultimate target is to be at the top of the world golf rankings and win Majors. I feel the ceiling for my game is at that level, and so everyday I try to push myself to get a little bit better. Even after I win, I try to remind myself of how much further there is to go to reach my goals.

Julian with the d+d real czech challenge trophy, his first ever professional title

GDI: Have you visited India or your grandfather’s place in Chennai ever?

JS: I have visited India twice, once when I was 12, and once in 2013 to play the Hero Indian Open after I first turned pro.

However the only places I have been are New Delhi and Bengaluru, so I haven’t been to Chennai but definitely something I hope to do in the near future!

GDI: Does being part of a family with a huge sporting legacy add any extra pressure upon you to perform? What do you do to keep yourself calm and composed during tournaments?

JS: No it doesn’t add any pressure, because I don’t play golf to fulfill some external legacy. I do it because I enjoy competing in the sport that I love. Of course some of the reason why I appreciate sports and competition would come from my upbringing and family background, but I wouldn’t say it adds anything to when I play in tournaments. I pretty much have my blinders on, almost like a tunnel vision when I play, so not much else is going on to me.

To keep myself calm, I keep telling myself that pressure is a privilege, and that pressure can either make diamonds or burst pipes. I’ve always felt that if I channel those competitive vibes into executing, I focus much better on the task at hand, and it pushes me to actually play better. I enjoy those situations, and the reason I practice and train as hard as I do, is to be able to excel and trust myself in high stakes situations.

GDI: What are your goals for the season and which tournaments are you going to play in the next couple of months?

JS: I guess longer term goals would be to finish No. 1 in the Challenge Tour Road to Oman rankings, but honestly in the short term, its to win every time I play in a tournament. Because I know when I go in events with this mindset, it continues to push me to strive to become the best I can be, not just beat other players. I’m planning to play out the rest of the Challenge Tour schedule this year, and play in any European Tour events I get into, with the year long goal of getting into the top 100 of the Official World Golf Rankings. But none of that happens without executing on weekly, daily, and even hole by hole or shot by shot basis.

26 golf digest india | july 2017

CLUBS IN THE GOLF BAG Irons – Nike Vapor 4-PW Driver –Taylor made M1 460 9.5 Putter –Scotty Cameron Newport prototype Wedge –Titlest Vokey wedges , 52, 58, 62 Woods –Taylor Made M2 16.5

Julian’s favourites Golf course in India Only played one that I can remember!

Which is Delhi Golf Club, so I’ll go with that Golf course around the world Cypress Point

Essentials in your travel bag Foam roller for stretching, headphones, cell phone, passport, sneakers Mid-round power snack Peanut butter and jelly sandwich

Movie The Lion King

Mentors/Idols Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant, my parents

Actor Vince Vaughn

Sport apart from golf basketball

Actress Eva Mendes

Holiday destination Cannes

Music Hip Hop; especially Drake, L’il Wayne and Kendrick Lamar

Secret desire To learn new languages

Drink Gatorade Food Chipotle burrito Images: European Tour/Getty Images, Instagram - @juliansuri

Junior Golf

Indian Kids Excel At Tournament Of Champions In Orlando

I

n another example of a stellar performance by Indian J u n i o r s i n t e r n a t i o n a l l y, 15-year-old Saurav Rathi of Ludhiana finished a credible 2nd in the International Junior Golf Association’s (IJGA) Tournament of Champions in Orlando, one of the largest junior golf tournaments in the USA. Accompanying Saurav were 16-year-old Shagun Narain from Delhi and 14-year-old Digraj Singh Gill from Ludhiana, who finished 14th and 16th respectively to round up India’s brilliant performance at the Tournament of Champions in May at the Bishop Gates Golf Academy in Florida.

Saurav, Digraj and Shagun qualified by winning their categories at the Albatross Junior Tour ’s DLF-IJGA National Qualifier held at DLF Golf & Country Club, Gurgaon.

For Boys, the winner’s in Category A and B qualified and for the girls, the winner of Category A was headed to Orlando, Florida.

Following their success, the kids travelled to the International Junior Golf Academy at Hilton Head, South Carolina where they had the opportunity to train with the IJGA Director of Instruction Jonathan Yarwood. In addition to being a British PGA Master Professional, he has trained a US Open Winner, 2 US Amateur Winners, 2 US Girls’ winners, 3 AJGA Players of the Year. He was also voted by Golf Digest as one of the “Top 20 Teachers under 40”.

IJGA Director of Instruction, Jonathan Yarwood shares tips with the kids

Saurabh Rathi with his runner-up medal

Kids train at the the International Junior Golf Academy in Hilton Head, South Carolina

L-R: Shagun Narain, Saurav Rathi and Digraj Singh Gill

Digraj Singh Gill

Saurav Rathi

Shagun Narain

Age – 15 years Hometown – Ludhiana Class 11th, Ryan International School Achievements – Winner of Category A in IJGA qualifier at DLF for Tournament of Champions

Age - 14 Hometown - Gurgaon Class 11th.

Yadhuvanshi Shiksha Niketan Achievement – Winner of 30 junior events

Age -16 Hometwon – Delhi Class 12, Army Public School, Shankar Vihar Achievements – Winner of multiple junior events and playing on the IGU amateur circuit

july 2017 | golf digest india

27

Junior Golf

Delhi Golf Club hosts Jr Training Programme The iconic Delhi Golf Club organised the Junior Training Programme from May 15 to June 24 comprising of four camps conducted by ‘A’ & ‘B’ category coaches.

In all 200 kids participated in the four camps conducted separately

by Arjuna awardee Nonita Lall Qureshi, Vikram Sethi, Anjali Chopra and Jasjit Singh.

In it’s 31st year, the Junior Training Programme is something every child looks forward to during their summer vacation.

Vikram Sethi, an ‘A’ category teaching professional from the Professional Golf Teachers Association of America (PGTAA), conducted the first camp from May 15 to June 24.

Vikram was the national coach of the Indian team that won a silver medal at the Doha Asian Games in 2006.

The second camp was conducted by experienced coach Nonita Lall Qureshi, which concluded on June 3.

Being a six-time national champion, Nonita also shared her experiences with the kids throughout the programme.

The third camp was conducted by Anjali Chopra from June 4 to 13. Anjali, a ‘B’ category coach, has been teaching at the Delhi GC since the last 10 years.

Many competitions were conducted i.e. putting, chipping, pitching, and bunker play with the winners & runner-ups being presented trophies.

Coach Vikram Sethi observes a kid trying to make a putt

Well-known coach Nonita Lall Qureshi offers tips to the kids

Anjali Chopra, a ‘B’ category coach, teaches a kid the basics of putting

Kids celebrate with their trophies and certificates after completion of the Junior Training Programme

28 golf digest india | july 2017

Junior Golf The Tarun Sardesai Golf Academy (TSGA) is India’s first fully residential golf training facility with education to boot. The players can come in for various residential programs, including one, which encompasses education as well from Class 8 to 12 in association with Excel Shop – world renowned hybrid system of e-learning and teacher support.

The academy is located in Zion Hills Golf County in Kolar, a villa community with world-class golf facilities. The facility includes a 12000 square foot bent grass putting green, a beautiful short game area and a 9-hole golf course as well.

Apar t from access to technologies like the SAM Putt Lab, Flightscope, Focusband, and SAM Balance lab, every player will have a team of experts in golf coaching, club fitting, sports psychology, yoga, physical fitness, orthotics, performance analytics and life skills.

Tarun’s system of training has churned out top players in the past like Aditi Ashok, Trishul Chinappa, Sharmila Nicollet and Viraj Madappa.

For more details on how to get enrolled please visit www.tsgolf.in

TSGA offers fully residential golf training facility for Class 8 kids

Children practice at the Tarun Sardesai Golf Academy at Zion Hills in Bengaluru

Yuvraj, Lakhmehar shine at Milkha Junior Golf

15-year-olds Yuvraj Singh and Lakhmehar Pardesi shone bright in their respective categories in the Milkha Junior Golf Championship, the final leg of the Ultimate Golf Junior Tour supported by Milkha Charitable Trust, organized at the Chandigarh Golf Club recently.

Named after the legendary Indian athlete ‘Flying Sikh’ Milkha Singh, the tournament was played over two days in 19 different categories – 10 for boys and 9 for girls. The winners of the various age categories also earned a berth in the US Kids World & Teen World Championship at Pinehurst, North Carolina, USA. Two-time Asia No. 1 Jeev Milkha interacted with the kids and shared his views upon growing the game in the country. Jeev also offered to sponsor return air-tickets to USA for 4 winners of the event.

The final day of the event concluded with the prize distribution and a magic show by PGTI professional Siddharth Semwal.

Final Results: GIRLS

BOYS 6 years

Onkar Singh

7 years

Mahika Garg

7 years

Kartik Singh

8 years

Prarthana Khanna

8 years

Arman Gawde

9 years

Vibhi Chadha

9 years

Nimit Walia

10 years

Sinjini Mukherjee

10 years

Ribhav Verma

11 years

Hazel Chauhan

11 years

Saurav Das

12 years

Fizza Ali

12 years

Jai Bahl

13 years

Kaayna Mahajan

13 years

Aditya Sood

14 years

Heena Kang

14 years

Jaanish Jeev Singh

15-18 years

Lakhmehar Pardesi

15-18 years

Yuvraj Singh

july 2017 | golf digest india

29

Across The Country

CLUB ROUND-UP To share news on your club or updates from across the country, please email rohit@teamgolfdigest.com Empowering Women

Women’s Golf Day in Bengaluru Prestige Golfshire earned the unique distinction to be one of only two courses in India to proudly host the Women’s Golf Day on Tuesday, 6th June. This golf carnival of sorts saw participation from ladies not only from Bengaluru but also Mysore, THE TOURNAMENT WAS Hyderabad and Chennai.

Post golf, the ladies were treated HOSTED AT AROUND to some of the country’s finest 70 0 LO C AT I O N S wines and some signature dishes.

Sponsors included Grover Wines, IN 46 COUNTRIES Shangri La Hotel Bengaluru, AROUND THE WORLD Maui Jim Sunglasses, Sly Granny and Mizuno. Karishma Grover TO CELEBRATE AND (MD Grover Wines) and Andy PROMOTE WOMEN Stockinger (GM Golfshire) gave GOLFERS MAKING THIS away the luck draw prizes in a fun filled and entertaining afternoon.

A TRULY GLOBAL EVENT.

Qualifiers for India-SA Return Test

Prestige Golfshire to host All India Senior & Mid-Am Golf Championship Participants at the 6th JK Golf Association tournament at the RSGC in Srinagar in May

From the Valley

RSGC stages 6th JK Golf Association meet The Royal Springs Golf Course (RSGC) in Srinagar hosted the 6th edition of the JK Golf Association tournament in May. The event saw participation from around 130 golfers from Delhi and Jammu & Kashmir. The event was played between the Pine Team and Chinar Team. Pine Team led by DP Singh was declared the winner with 34 points and Chinar Team led by Pranav Kohli finished runner- up with 28 points. In the individual category, Abrar Khawaja and Idrees

Gundroo were declared winner by highest margin while the nearest to pin winner was Inder Bhattacharya.

Longest Drive winner was Arshad Guroo while the winner of Straight Drive award was Azhar Majeed.

Minister for PWD, Govt of J&K Naeem Akthar was chief guest on the occasion. Akhtar pledged full support to JK Golf Association for the development of golf in the state.

The 7th JKGA Golf Tournament will be played at Pahalgam.

Bengaluru’s top course Prestige Golfshire is scheduled to host the All India Senior & Mid-Amateur Golf Championship from June 26 to 30. Conducted by the Indian Golf Union (IGU), the tournament will serve as the qualifier for the IndiaSouth Africa return Test at Leopard Creek in September.

After a long time the Asian Games gold medal winning quartet of ‘Bunny’ Lakshman Singh, Rajiv Mohta, Amit Luthra and Rishi Narain will be seen competing together in the event. They will also be joined by India’s 1983 Cricket World Cup winning captain and legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev. A total of 8 golfers will be selected from the tournament – 4 each from Senior (Age – 50 & above) and Mid-Amateur (30 to 49 years) categories.

The tournament will also serve as the first stage qualification for Asia-Pacific Senior Championship to be held from October 18 to 20 at Royal Adelaide Golf Club in Australia. Top-15 finishers of 55-plus age group will be called for another round of selection in September to pick the golfers for Australia.

Daredevils get a rub of the greens at ITC Classic

L-R: Piramal Group’s Director (Strategic Business) Harinder Sikka, Ashok Kumar, cricket legend Kapil Dev, Shreyas Iyer, Ben Hilfenhaus, Carlos Brathwaite and Karun Nair

30 golf digest india | july 2017

Across The Country Welcome Initiative

Kalhaar Blues & Greens gives boost to caddies

Kalhaar Blues & Greens in Ahmedabad gave huge boost to caddies by hosting the Caddie Golf League supported by Brijesh Patel and Siddharth Naik last month. A total of 78 caddies took part in the event with 30 qualifying for the finals.

The finalists were selected from qualifying rounds held earlier at the Kensville Golf & Country Club, Gulmohar Golf & Country Club and Kalhaar courses.

After a close competition, Ghanshyam Patel of Kalhaar Blues & Greens emerged as the winner and bagged the cash prize of Rs 50,000. Patel plans to fulfil his dream of owning a house with the prize money he won.

Golf Digest View

The first runner-up of the event was Satish K. Rathva of Gulmohar Golf & Country Club and the second runner-up was Mukesh Hadvani of Kalhaar Blues & Greens.

Caddies are the backbone of any golfer. They not only guide them about the course conditions but also help pros to keep themselves calm during pressure situations. Initiatives like these should be encouraged by every club across India to boost the confidence of caddies and to enrich the lives of these humble souls

Other prizes Straightest Drive - Ajit P. Patel (Kensville) Closest to the Pin - Prahlad Patel (Kalhaar) Best Chipping shot - Rashik Patel (Kalhaar)

Participants for the 6th Caddie Golf League line up before the start of the tournament at the Kalhaar Blues & Greens in Ahmedabad

Spreading Camaraderie

Biradar wins second leg of Prestige Masters Series

A cold and chilly morning greeted golfers as they arrived to participate in the second leg of the Prestige Masters Series played at Golfshire in Bengaluru.

The event saw participation of golfers not only from Bengaluru but also Pune, Mumbai, Mysore, Hyderabad and New Delhi. The wind picked up mid round and the going suddenly became tough. It was Sangamesh Biradar who had a dream round of golf to emerge as the winner with 37 points. He won a trip for two to Cape Town, South Africa. He was followed

by Dinesh Chennakeshava and Deepak CS in second and third place. Dinesh came in second with a better back nine score. Hitendra from The Bold Look Of Kohler and Kulin from Group Aryan gave away the prizes to the winners in a glittering award ceremony.

The next leg is scheduled for Saturday July 8. Send in your entries at www.golfshire.com.

Sangamesh Biradar (C) won the second leg of the Prestige Masters Series in Bengaluru

july 2017 | golf digest india

31

Growing The Game

PGA of America endorses India Learn Golf Week

T

he Professional Golfers Association (PGA) of America has endorsed the (Indian) G olf Industr y Association’s first-of-its-kind initiative to introduce over 20,000 new golfers to the game in one week. “India Learn Golf Week” is scheduled from September 25 to October 1 2017 across the country. The PGA of America is the USA’s apex coaching body with a membership of 28,000 club professionals working to promote the game in the country.

India Learn Golf Week was launched during the 6th Annual India Golf Expo in Gurgaon with golf ’s governing bodies – the Indian Golf Union (IGU), Women’s Golf Association of India (WGAI), Golf Industry Association (GIA), Golf Course Superintendents & Managers Association of India (GCS&MAI) and National Golf Academy of India (NGAI) – identifying the need to grow the sport at the grassrooots level in order to grow the number of players and boost the entire golf eco system.

The first step in this direction will begin with approximately 40 clubs across the country dedicating a week to this initiative in pursuit of producing the next 100,000 golfers.

Keeping in mind that just one introductory lesson is not enough to sustain a newcomer’s interest, the PGA of America has shared its 5-lesson ‘Get Golf Ready’ programme which can be offered to everyone who participates in India Learn Golf Week if they choose to pursue the game further.

Get Golf Ready is designed to teach the basics needed to play golf in just five lessons.

PGA and LPGA professionals have pooled their learnings over decades to create “Get Golf Ready” and demonstrate that there are lots of ways to play by combining fun, friends and fitness.

Each of the five sessions will focus on the various golf skills used while playing. In addition to learning the basics, students will be guided onto the golf course to put their skills into action in a casual, friendly setting.

A club member can enrol his family or friends for this programme and at public courses one can register directly 32 golf digest india | july 2017

supported by

Growing The Game

1 2 3 4 5

PGA OF AMERICA’s GET GOLF READY – 5 LESSONS l Warm up, stretching and wellness tips l The best ways to hold the club and get ready before you take a swing l Getting the ball close to the hole — chipping, pitching and other shots from short distances l Caring for the course

Lesson

l Getting comfortable with the full swing l Using your irons to get the ball in the air and onto the green l Learning the ‘lingo’, like fairway & rough, tee box & green, divot & bunker, and more l Having more fun using ‘It’s Okay’ as the way to play

Lesson

l Swinging your driver and other ‘big’ clubs to hit the long shots l Starting your play from the correct tee markers — use TEE IT FORWARD to have more fun l Helpful shortcuts to save time while you play

Lesson

l Linking all that you’ve learned to play a few holes l Tips for playing in groups, on teams and other fun ways to play

Lesson

l Getting you more comfortable on the course and where to drive the cart l Review of the rules and keeping score l More opportunities for you to come back and play golf

Lesson

With India Learn Golf Week scheduled for 25th September to 1st October, golfers and aspiring players across the country will soon start receiving registration information to encourage family members, friends and business associates or work colleagues to register and get their first taste of golf. Although it is expected that every student who participates may not enroll for further classes, they will all understand and appreciate the game better. Each participant will then share their understanding of the game with many friends and associates and appreciation for the game will spread. Read more about it on indialearngolfweek.com. july 2017 | golf digest india

33

Business of Golf

Indian golf tour operators attend Vietnam convention Four top golf tour operators from India made their presence felt at the 6th Asia Golf Tourism Convention (AGTC) held at the Danang Golf Coast in Vietnam from May 7 to 13.

My Golf Tours, winner of the Best Golf Tour Operator Award at the recently concluded India Golf Expo, represented by Arun Iyer and Shyam Vador along with Chitaranjan Bakshi of PASH India, Rohit Walter of FCM Incoming India and Gajendra Singh Panwar & Kunal Singh of Tee Traveller attended the convention, which saw participation from over 600 delegates.

A record 220 golf tour operators from 36 countries attended the meeting. Established in 2012, by IAGTO The Global Golf Tourism Oranisation, AGTC is a threeday members-only event designed to give golf tour operators around the world the opportunity to meet with golf courses, resorts, receptive operators, airlines, tourist boards from golf destinations across entire Asia Pacific region.

The Indian supplier team had over 150 meetings with various tour operators. They were delighted by the keen interest shown by tour operators from China, Europe, Korea, Japan & Australia in promoting golf vacations in India.

AGTC 2018 will take place in the Philippine capital of Manila from April 22 to 25. It will showcase Filipino golf destinations including Manila, Tagaytay, Clark & Boracay Island.

Tour operators from various parts of Asia were delighted with the response at AGTC in Vietnam

Golf & eyewear combine at this unique store Envee Optics and Trinity Golf, the owners of the TaylorMade franchise in India, have launched a unique store in Gurgaon that combines golf equipment and accessories with high-end eyewear.

The store, which is located at first floor of Ambience Mall in Gurgaon, will be providing amateur as well as professional golfers with TaylorMade & Adidas Golf’s latest set of clubs besides accessories like balls, gloves, shoes, apparel, caps, duffel bags, divot repair tools, arm sleeves, umbrellas and ball markers etc.

In addition to that a golfer will have the option to choose sunglasses from a plethora of premium sporting brands like Oakley, Gucci, Cazal, Prada, Versace, Burberry, Ray Ban and Mui Mui as part of eyewear shop Envee under the same roof.

Ateet Gaur, Managing Director, Trinity Golf India, told Golf Digest India that the company plans to open more such stores in cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Chandigarh.

Speaking about the association, Vishal Bakshi, Director (Envee Optics), stated: “The new store of Envee Optics and TaylorMade in Gurgaon is a one-of-its-kind in India where luxury eyewear and golf is retailed together. With the most luxurious environment, the customer will not only be able to buy golfing products and accessories but also the most sporty, trendy and latest eyewear”.

34 golf digest india | july 2017

Business of Golf

Wentworth’s West Course Shines After Ernie Els Design Renovation

E

Ernie Els has expressed pride and pleasure in the new-look West Course at Wentworth, an Ernie Els Designled renovation that staged the BMW PGA Championship last month.

For Els there is a real sense of professional and personal fulfilment in bringing to a close the renovation of an historic course that has long held a special place in his heart.

After negotiating the design with some impressive golf, Els said: “It looks incredible. This is basically our original design vision come to fruition and it’s a moment of great satisfaction for me and for the rest of the team.

I can’t tell you how happy it makes me feel to see the course looking the way it does here this week and to hear the positive feedback from the players and also from the club’s members.

That really means a lot to us.

“Obviously a key focus of the renovation was improving the putting surfaces and the recent significant investment by the club’s owners, Reignwood Group, has allowed us to create arguably the purest, most consistent putting surfaces in the country.

“In addition, we undertook a further review of the bunkers on

“In addition, we undertook a further review of the bunkers on the golf course. As a result, all bunkers have been redesigned and reconstructed, with 29 bunkers removed from play. We believe this helps more closely realign the course with Harry Colt’s original vision and, in fact, many of the bunkers are very much in the Colt style now.”

— Ernie Els the golf course. As a result, all bunkers have been redesigned and reconstructed, with 29 bunkers removed from play. We believe this helps more closely

realign the course with Harry Colt’s original vision and, in fact, many of the bunkers are very much in the Colt style now.”

Stephen Gib s on, Chief

Executive of Wentworth Club, was full of praise. He said: “This is my 10th year at Wentworth and I have never seen the course looking so magnificent.”

Els had visited India in 2008 for European Tour’s EmaarMGF Indian Masters which was played at the historic Delhi Golf Club. Els had finished tied 6th with a four day tally of 3-under 285 to pocket US $66,200 as prize money.

Greg Norman firm to bring revolutionary technology into golf Greg Norman Design and Verizon Ventures have announced a strategic partnership to invest in PlaySight to aid in the company’s global expansion and introduce the technology into golf and new sports verticals.

Earlier this year, Norman and Verizon pledged to join forces to bring innovative and disruptive technology to the golf industry and their joint investment into PlaySight speaks to the evolution of that broader plan.

Selected in 2017 by Fast Company as one of the ’10 Most Innovative Companies in Sport’, PlaySight leverages both multi-angle video and proprietary analytics to improve on-field performance and connect the next generation of athletes.

Through a system of cameras, the company’s lauded SmartCourt platform tracks every shot through graphics and video providing professional, collegiate and amateur

athletes and their coaches with personalised, detailed statistics that have never before been available.

The company has already achieved a dominant position in the tennis marketplace with its technology powering the leading federations, academies, 40 NCAA Division 1 schools, and clubs, including the USTA’s new National Campus and high performance facility in Lake Nona, Florida.

In addition to tennis, PlaySight is working with top teams across several other sports, including 2015 NBA Champion Golden State Warriors.

“We are pleased to have completed the first initiative in our partnership with Greg Norman,” said David Famolari, Director at Verizon Ventures.

“PlaySight brings advanced spor ts technology, previously only available at the pro

To share news related to golf business, please email rohit@teamgolfdigest.com

level, to recreational athletes… As we see the sports industry leverage technology to improve the participation experience, PlaySight’s SmartCourt platform is a testament to this as it enables athletes to train smarter for a reasonable cost. We look forward to working with Greg Norman to continue to bring innovative and disruptive technology to the sports industry.” july 2017 | golf digest india

35

Business of Golf

Custom Club Fitting At It’s Best

Mumbai golfer Bharat Patel at TaylorMade’s ‘Kingdom’ in California

Former Procter & Gamble chairman Bharat Patel was amazed by the custom-fitting experience in Carlsbad

BY ROHIT BHARDWAJ | rohit@teamgolfdigest.com

T

he Kingdom, TaylorMade’s Once-ina-lifetime top-of-the-line clubfitting center at Carlsbad in California was visited by former Procter & Gamble chairman Bharat Patel, an avid golfer having won a lot of corporate tournaments. Needless to say, it blew him away.

“Custom fitting has dramatically changed. Too much of technology has been added in the past decade. A friend of mine from Mumbai helped me get connected with TaylorMade guys in Carlsbad and that’s how this happened. This was my third fitting session ever,” Patel told Golf Digest India from Mumbai.

Until 2005, the Kingdom was reserved for only select Tour professionals. But now any amateur, working with a TaylorMade teaching pro, can get access to the facility by paying US $250 for a

36 golf digest india | july 2017

two-hour session instead of the $5,500 walk in fee!

One can also buy a set of customized irons and get the fee for the fitting session waived off.

“With the latest M4 set of clubs I can now hit 5 to 10 yards longer. The Taylormade professionals helped me reduce the spin on the ball from 4500 to 2500. I used to hit it very high, and they corrected that as well. They also corrected my putter and killed my slice. The facility was like ‘Kingdom of Dreams’ for me,” the 73-year-old added.

The session begins with a warm-up where you get to hit a few balls. Then you are brought inside a technology room where they put probes on your prominent joints – shoulder, elbow, knees, foot and ankle. You are asked to hit balls using different clubs and they accordingly assess your swing, spin on the ball, attack angle, loft, muscle flex etc on huge monitors.

Any amateur, working with a TaylorMade teaching pro, can get access to the facility by paying US $250 for a two-hour session.

Business of Golf

A teaching pro applying probes to Bharat Patel for assessment

“They helped me reduce the spin on the ball from 4500 to 2500. I used to hit very high, they corrected that as well. They also corrected my putter and killed my slice.

With the latest M4 set of clubs I can now hit 5 to 10 yards longer. The facility was like ‘Kingdom of Dreams’ for me,” Patel told Golf Digest India from Mumbai.

Bharat hit balls with different clubs and shafts to get his slice and spin corrected

Ateet Gaur, Country Head, TaylorMade India feels every amateur golfer should visit the premium custom-fitting facility for an experience of a lifetime.

“The Kingdom at Taylormade is a golfer ’s paradise and a lifetime experience for one who visits. It just gives you the right touch to improve your game to excellence. It is a facility equipped with world class technology to give the complete fitting to a golfer and suffice all his needs,” says Gaur.

The electronic monitor demonstrates Bharat’s biomechanics

The different shafts and iron heads help a golfer get the right equipment as per his weight and swing movement

july 2017 | golf digest india

37

Advertorial

Simply Amazing!

One of the world’s leading tourism destinations, Thailand is a land of secrets & surprises for everyone to discover & enjoy

Advertorial

Top 10 reasons why Visitors who love challenging, adventurous outdoor activities will find much to satisfy their desires here, and if golf is high on your list, then it is definitely for you, because the kingdom is renowned as Asia’s most popular golfing destination. Golf has been played in Thailand for almost a century with games recorded at the Royal Bangkok Sports Club as early as 1905. Over the years, Thailand has greeted millions of tourists to experience the beautiful scenery as well as welcomed golfers around the world to tee-off and swing on the superb course nationwide.

Thailand is a great place to visit and play golf

1

Value for mon ey: Thailand provides

tremendous value in all areas that really matter to visiting golfers. From wide range of hotel accommodation and golf, to shopping in local market or high-class departmental stores. This sort of value, this saving, can often enable the upgrade from a short trip to a weeklong adventure.

2

The Weather: In the cool season, from November to February, the Thai climate is without any peers. Light breeze, constant sunshine, great conditions to play golf. Even in the summer months the ‘green’ season, when it gets a bit warmer, the golfing conditions are perfectly acceptable.

3

The Courses: The golf itself is the main reason

golf enthusiast travel to a premier golf destination, and with layouts designed by Jack Nicklaus, Robert Trent Jones II, Nick Faldo, Pete Dye, & Greg Norman, you will not be disappointed in Thailand.

4

The Locations: Even a golf course architect will

tell you that ultimately it’s the landscape that makes a golf course attractive, challenging & memorable.

Thailand is a beautiful country that offers an amazing spectrum of physical environments.

5 6 7

The Infrastructure: Many 1st time visitors

are surprised to find that Thailand has created for itself & its guest a thoroughly modern, 1st world travel infrastructure.

The Caddies: A unique & truly memorable part of playing golf in Thailand. Predominantly female Thai caddie provide a level service that will stun many 1st .

The Accommodation: No matter where you are staying in Thailand, you can find accommodation to meet your budget. From stunning 5-star hotels to modest Thai-bungalows, Thailand is truly set up to cater to the broadest possible tourist market.

8

The People & Attractions: The Thai

people are known to be some of the friendliest in the world. Always with a smile on their faces (it’s not called the “Land of Smiles’’ for nothing). From visiting amazing temple and shrines to poking around local night market & street stalls selling everything imaginable. The list is endless, and people make it all warm & welcoming.

9 10

The Food: Because the tourist infrastructure is so well established, a wide selection of international restaurant are available for those who prefer a bit of something to remind them of home Visitors enjoy a round of golf at the Black Mountain Golf Club in Hua Hin

The Culture & Customs: Thailand has developed a unique, wholly organic identity that is truly distinct from any other country in Asia.

It’s been estimated that 900,000 Thais play the game, it’s another reason there are so many good golf courses here.

Thais really love their golf. They have their own golfing societies, their own golfing heroes, their own après golf habits, their own on-course fashions & off-course cuisine. july 2017 | golf digest india

39

Advertorial

Top Golf Courses in

Thailand

Black Mountain Golf Club, Hua Hin: The Black Mountain Golf Club in Hua Hin is an

18 hole golf course designed by Phil Ryan and opened in 2007. The course boasts not only a natural layout with many creeks on the course, however there have been many new trees planted especially around the holes. The Black Mountain Golf Club course provides many challenging shots for both the amateur and professional alike. There are bunkers very strategically located on the course and is to date the only golf course in Thailand to have seashore paspalum grass on the fairways.

Banyan Resort, Hua Hin: The Banyan course was featured in the Top 1000 in the World by Rolex. Opened in 2008, Banyan Golf Club, Hua Hin, Thailand offers golfers a world-class golf experience and dining facilities to be enjoyed by every player and visitor. The unique contemporary Thai style designed clubhouse features luxurious changing rooms, exclusive club suite accommodation, Mulligan’s Pub and Terrace Restaurant all is perfectly complimented by 5-star service a memorable experience for everyone to enjoy.

Alpine Golf & Sports Club: One of the

most technically difficult and visually stunning courses in Thailand, the Alpine Golf and Sports Club will be forever remembered as the site of Tiger Woods’ Johnnie Walker PGA Tour victory in 2000. The course is impeccably maintained with rolling fairways and a series of water and sand hazards to avoid. The name Alpine is a reference to the hilly landscape, and while ‘alpine’ is a little exaggerated, the changes in altitude are unique to the typically flat landscape in the Bangkok area.

Ayodhya Links, Ayutthaya: Ayodhya

is not an actual links. There’s no sand underneath and no sea next door. What it does have, however is an inspired design and a remarkable set of greens.

Conceived and routed by Aussie legend Peter Thomson and his partner Ross Perrett, the design was completed by co-founder and Chairman Pitak Intrawityanunt in 2007.

Red Mountain, Phuket: Generally considered the most challenging and visually spectacular course in Phuket, Red Mountain is a mustplay for any golfer worth their salt. Set within a former tin mine, the natural landscape with varying elevations and landforms is a true joy to play on, and the course architecture is generally very impressive.

Navatanee Golf Club, Bangkok:

About an hour northwest of the capital, Navatanee is located near Siam Park City and is one of Bangkok’s best courses. It’s got a rich history, built in 1973 in order to host the 23rd World Cup of Golf in 1975. While it’s not far from the city, the idyllic surroundings are the perfect escape and give off a country club vibe.

It’s a relatively exclusive club, proud of its heritage and mature design.

40 golf digest india | july 2017

Advertorial

Chiangmai Highlands Golf & Spa Resort, Chiang Mai: Set amongst the highlands with incredibly

clear air and gorgeous scenery, you’d be forgiven for forgetting that you’re still in Thailand at the Chiang Mai Highlands. This is an 18 hole championship golf course that’s routinely lauded as one of the best to play in Thailand. Set amongst the highlands with incredibly clear air and gorgeous scenery, you’d be forgiven for forgetting that you’re still in Thailand at the Chiang Mai Highlands.

Santiburi Country Club, Chiang Rai: Staying

up North, we head to Chiang Rai and to Santiburi, home to another 18 hole championship golf course. The layout here is enjoyably challenging; the first nine holes set over relatively flat terrain with plenty of water hazards, and the final nine very hilly with aquatic features only on the final two. Santiburi is known for being one of the best conditioned courses in the country, and also benefits from the glorious natural scenery of nearby Chiang Rai.

Amata Spring Country Club, Chonburi:

Amata Spring is another exclusive private club that plays host to very high profile golfing events, and was voted as the best course on the Asia Tour for four consecutive years. It can be found around halfway between Bangkok and Pattaya.It’s a fast course with generous fairways and lots of aquatic hazards — including two large lakes. Bunkers feature at every hole too while the famous island green at the 17th hole is inspired. Just generally, the layout is truly excellent and it can be very challenging — especially when there’s a breeze on the air.

Siam Country Club, Chonburi: Very nearby the

popular city of Pattaya, Siam Country Club was the first privately owned golf course in Thailand, built in 1970, before being renovated by Schmidt Curley in 2007. There are now two 18-hole layouts at the club — the Old Course and the Plantation — both of which are well regarded, although the older course is the favourite.

The Old Course has wide and contoured greens with a multitude of landforms to wrestle with, including over 100 sand traps and plenty of trees. It’s has been home of the LPGA in Thailand since 2007.

Golfing Schedule in Thailand EVENT NAME Lady Golf Challenge 2017 Thailand LPGA Masters 2017

2017 Golfasian Golf Ryder Cup: Europe vs. Rest of the World

DATE

LOCATION

17 August 2017

Alpine Golf Club

21-23 September 2017

Panya Indra Golf Club, Bangkok

1 & 3 November 2017

Pattaya, Thailand

Flaunt Lifestyle

To share news on your products or updates on new launches, please email rohit@teamgolfdigest.com

FASHION

DJOKOVIC IS NEW LACOSTE AMBASSADOR

French apparel brand Lacoste have appointed multiple Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic as their style ambassador. Lacoste has developed for Novak Djokovic an eponymous clothing line to be worn on the court. The Novak Djokovic collection is a line of performance products that fuse functionality with style. This wardrobe is available in exclusive Lacoste boutiques and shopping malls, May 2017 onwards.

42 golf digest india | july 2017

Lifestyle

ELECTRONICS

SAMSUNG REDEFINES VIEWING WITH THE LAUNCH OF QLED TV

Keeping in mind that there has been a discernable shift in consumer preference from 32 inches and below to 40 inches and above screen size, Samsung Electronics unveiled its premium line-up of QLED TVs in Chennai. Samsung also showcased its innovative TV, The Frame, redefining the future of home entertainment.

With this, India’s No. 1 TV brand will further consolidate its leadership in the market. Currently, Samsung claims to have a 48% market share in the premium segment and expects it to grow to 60% by the end of this year.

QLED TVs come with four global first innovations. They achieve 100% Colour Volume, the HDR 2000 functionality brings out hidden details, an Invisible Connection keeps your living room clutter free and One Remote Control offers an intuitive experience. Along with these, the No Gap Wallmount and the optional easel-like Studio Stand light up the aesthetics of your home.

QLED TVs will be launched in three series, Q9, Q8 and Q7, in 55 inches (138 cm), 65 inches (163 cm), 75 inches (189 cm) and 88 inches (223 cm), starting May 2017. QLED TVs will be priced at Rs 3,14,900 onwards.

QLED TV, POWERED BY SAMSUNG’S QUANTUM DOT TECHNOLOGY, PROVIDES TRUE-TO-LIFE IMAGES THAT NO OTHER TV CAN MATCH. IT EMPOWERS YOU TO THINK ABOUT THE TELEVISION IN A NEW WAY, BRINGING ART AND ENTERTAINMENT INTO NEW PARTS OF YOUR HOME. THE QLED TV IS AS BEAUTIFUL WHEN TURNED OFF AS IT IS WHEN IT’S ON AND WILL HELP US GROW THE DEMAND FOR PREMIUM TVs AS WELL AS OUR MARKET SHARE IN INDIA EVEN FURTHER” Rajeev Bhutani, Vice-President, Consumer Electronics Business, Samsung India

AUTOMOBILE

LIVE FEARLESSS WITH ISUZU MU-X

Isuzu Motors India launched the much-awaited ISUZU ‘mu-X’ premium full-size 7-seater SUV in India recently. The mu-X is powered by a 3.0 litre ISUZU engine and provides a maximum power output of 130 kW (177 PS). It provides a maximum torque of 380 Nm that is designed with a significant flat torque curve. The All Muscle – All Heart SUV’s high tensile steel body with tailor-welded blanks and crumple zones with anti-intrusion bars make it a protective cocoon, keeping the occupants safe from the dangers on the road.

Price (ex-showroom Delhi): mu-X 4x2 variant: Rs, 23,99,999 mu-X 4x4 variant: Rs. 25,99,000

july 2017 | golf digest india

43

Lifestyle

VICTORINOX LAUNCHES NEW COLLECTION ALOX POCKET KNIFE

Victorinox is releasing limited runs of its most reliable and popular pocket knife models for the third time – the scales of the Classic, Cadet and Pioneer come in an exclusive Alox olive green for the Alox Limited Edition 2017. Each new edition will only be available for one year – with the relevant year engraved on the back of the pocket knife.

Price - Rs 3,560

I.N.O.X PROFESSIONAL DIVER WATCH

Each step on the I.N.O.X. path offers fresh proof that endurance is the ticket to achievement. Adding a metal bracelet to the I.N.O.X. Professional Diver presents the latest waterproof evidence. Ingenious construction and carefully considered aesthetics join forces to enable distinctive quality and functionality.

Price - Rs 41,900

AVOLVE 3.0 LUGGAGE BAG

Avolve 3.0 is a new range of state of the art travel gear showcasing impeccable functionality and quality. Designed to take travelers further, these fully-framed cases are available in six sizes in both black and blue. The new Avolve 3.0 from Victorinox combines hard side polycarbonate with soft nylon to create a lightweight and ultrastrong luggage. The premium 55mm Hinomoto wheels provide a 360-degree maneuverability to ensure a smooth roll.

Price - Rs 19,960 onwards

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44 golf digest india | july 2017

Lifestyle

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july 2017 | golf digest india

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Lifestyle

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46 golf digest india | july 2017

FAMILY SPECIAL elcome to the Family Issue.

This is my son, Dash Day, who is 3½. He loves to hit balls. We’re not at the big course just yet, but I’m looking forward to all the rounds we’ll play together. Golf Digest asked me to share what we’ve been working on.

Mainly, I just try to keep it fun, but there are certain things I do that might help you teach your rug rat.

No matter what ages you have at home, you’ll find useful information on equipment and trips, plus stories from the tour and more in the coming pages. Although rounds with friends are special, there’s nothing quite like golf when it’s blood on blood.

— with max adler

INSIDE

48 JASON DAY: THE BASICS I’M TEACHING MY SON 51 KEEPING UP WITH THE MICKELSONS 56 JUST FOR FUN 58 LOVE STRUCK 62 $IGNS OF THE TIME$

HOW TO GET YOUR LITTLE ONE STARTED IN GOLF BY JASON DAY july 2017 | golf digest india

47

Family Special

DESIRE

D

my only swing thought: hit down on the ball to make it pop up.

I WAS KIND OF PUSHED INTO GOLF . . . MY RULE IS, DASH HAS TO ASK ME TO GO TO THE RANGE. attaboy, dash. you’re really swinging well!

eh, the face feels a hair shut at the top. can you take a look from behind?

48 golf digest india | july 2017

ash was a year old when he learned to walk, and that’s right about the time he got his first plastic golf club. He’d storm around swinging it one-handed. Six months later he began gripping the club with two hands, but apart, like he was holding a hockey stick. I figured it was correct enough that his right hand was on the bottom and just let him have at it. Before he turned 2, my friends at TaylorMade sent a cut-down JetSpeed driver. In these photographs Dash has his new M1 driver. Amazing.

I was kind of pushed into golf as a kid, so I vowed never to do that with my son. My rule is, Dash has to ask me to go to the range. Our family travels to most tournaments in our RV, and our “home” is almost always parked on or near a golf course. So the game is very present in his world. Dash will grab his driver and say, “Hit balls, hit balls.” He really likes it, and watching his face light up when he connects with one brings me great joy.

My coach and caddie, Colin Swatton, took me from a 12-year-old to where I am today. If Dash ever decides to pursue golf seriously, I’ll put Col in charge. I’d be too technical a teacher for a junior.

For now, I just do my best to make it fun. If that ever stops being enough and Dash wants to play golf to win, that desire will have to come from within. Not from me.

Family Special

PATIENCE if dash ever wants to play to win, that desire will have to come from within.

N

o matter how much patience you have, when you become a parent, you find more.

It’s a good thing to have a lot of—in life and in golf. When Dash and I go to the range, I think we both build this quality in ourselves. To even tee a ball is a delicate motor skill at his age, and so to steady his hand he must really focus and not get unnerved by failure. Me, I’ll be kneeling there, feeding balls and encouragement—not gushing positive feedback, but enough to let him know he’s doing a good job—all while watching that split grip. Once his hands began to migrate closer together, it took more than a month for them to finally touch. A couple times I did try physically moving his hands and explaining why, but what really worked was Dash watching me hit balls.

He understood it on his time.

That’s golf.

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july 2017 | golf digest india

49

Family Special

FUNDAMENTALS

D

ash has a nice, natural swing.

His tendency is to hood the clubface at address, then kind of chop down on it. He has learned that striking down on a ball makes it pop up. To him, airborne means success, so that’s what he does. The technique helps him crush his iron—he has only one— and even with the driver he sometimes nips it off the deck. When we tee the ball, occasionally I’ll square his clubface and ask him to swing up at it more. But my main goal is to keep the time interesting. We don’t just see how far Dash can hit the ball.

I point out targets he can aim for, like a net or a pole. Not only does this energize him, swinging with a purpose is a good mind-set to establish.

KID DRILLS

G

olf’s in Dash’s blood, I figure, so I mostly try not to get in the way. I just want to see his instincts come out. One drill we do is, I’ll tee up four or five balls for him to hit in rapid-fire succession. Dash won’t pause on either side of his swing—he goes promptly from one follow-through into another backswing—which is actually a great drill for anyone to build rhythm. The other drill: I slowly roll balls to him from the side. He’ll hit them before they stop moving, not always so cleanly, but I think this develops good hand-eye coordination.

what kind of beverage cart doesn’t carry goldfish?

TANTRUMS

T

he threshold for frustration and boredom is pretty low in children. Dash still takes naps, so if we get caught at the range in a wrong part of that cycle, or without snacks and water, the situation can turn to a full meltdown real quick. If he’s dragging, I never ask if he wants to leave. I always ask if he’d rather go work on another part of his game instead. So if we’re on the range, we go to the putting green, or vice versa. If he doesn’t want to do any of it, we load in the car right then and it’s wheels up, even if that means returning a full bucket to the shop.

The range near our house also has a miniature-golf course. I’ve found a game of putt-putt is the best move to start our day together.

50 golf digest india | july 2017

Family Special

m y s h ot ● t i n a m i c k e l s o n -to pac i o ● 4 6 ● s a n d i eg o ● t i m m i c k e l s o n ● 3 8 ● s c ot ts da l e

Keeping Up With The Mickelsons OH, BROTHER: IF YOU THINK YOU’VE HEARD THE BEST TALES ABOUT PHIL MICKELSON, LISTEN TO HIS BROTHER AND SISTER REMINISCE WITH GUY YOCOM tina: When Phil and I were little and Tim was just starting to walk, Mom

would head out at night to her monthly PTA meeting. While she was gone, Dad would build an obstacle course around the house. You know those tall, flexible poles with flags on them people put on the backs of their bicycles? Dad put them up all over the place. He’d lay them across the arms of couches and chairs for us to jump over, dive under and go around. There was a chin-up bar. Dad would time us, and I had the edge because I was in gymnastics and was more agile than Phil. He’d get so frustrated. Just when he figured out a way to get under the pole quicker and get close to beating me, I’d have Dad change the rules. “Have us do more pull-ups, Dad,” I’d say, and Phil would fall behind. We all learned to look for an edge, and there was never any handicapping to accommodate our ages. Nothing was low net. We were a low-gross family. july 2017 | golf digest india

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Family Special

tina mickelson: “department-store photo, 1974. phil is 3, i’m 5, and the smiles earned us a trip to disneyland.”

52 golf digest india | july 2017

Family Special memory of Phil is of being on a houseboat our family rented on Shasta Lake for a week each summer. We had a Jet Ski, and our dad would set up an obstacle course. He used empty oil cans, weighted down, as buoys.

He’d time us. I was 6, Tina and Phil were in their teens, and needless to say, I didn’t win much. Everything was a competition.

●●●

tim: Phil is seven years older

than me, so when we played football indoors, he’d level the playing field—a little. He had to play on his knees, and I got to run. He had to tackle me, and I just had to two-hand touch him. He’d hike the ball to himself, and just when I’d go

tina: You know that memory game on the computer, where you try to uncover two identical symbols? My son, Lucas, is 4, and he’s good at it. Last night, Phil challenged Lucas to a game, and, concentrating furiously, barely wins. They play again, and Phil barely wins again. Phil is punching the air like he does when he makes a big putt. He’s going, “Yeah!”

Lucas says, “Come on, Uncle Phil, one more game.” And Phil says, “Lucas, I think you need to go practice on some easier competition for a while because you’re just not ready for me.”

He was joking. A little. ●●●

tim: It was just an unwritten

rule that Phil was never going to let me win at anything. As

so up in my head after he said that, I limped in with a 66. You might wonder why he’d do that to me. You might say it was an awful thing to do. I’m cool with it. It was brotherly love in a way only brothers can understand. ●●●

tim: During a recent family

ski trip, these kids are coming up to Phil during the day and saying, “You’re Phil, right?

You’re going down tonight!”

And Phil is answering them with, “Yeah? Bring it.” Turns out that the night before, Phil had snuck down to this area of the resort where these kids are playing dodgeball. And he gets into the game with them.

I couldn’t get over the picture of this 45-year-old man mixing it up with a bunch of 10-year-

2

1

to touch him, he’d toss the ball in the air and claim the touch didn’t count because the ball was airborne. He did a lot of stuff like that. He always won.

But back to the houseboat. One afternoon it was so hot outside we stayed in the boat. Phil had taught me how to play poker— for money—and all I had was a small bucket full of pennies.

I left to use the bathroom, and when I came back, Phil dealt me a straight flush, king-high.

I ran to my room, got the bucket and dumped the whole thing into the pot. Phil calls the bet and reveals he’s got a royal flush. Imagine that. He took every penny. Much later, he admitted he’d stacked the deck when I left the room. He bought me a lot of dinners to make up for it. But he never did give me my pennies back.

I got older, the tide turned in my favor. When we play tennis, I receive no greater joy than dropping a shot just over the net so Phil has to charge in to get it, then watching him run back to the baseline to retrieve the lob that follows. The strategy, of course, is to tire him out and take advantage of the age difference. It works, and it’s very satisfying. Phil has an edge on me in golf and throwing a football—he’s got a great arm.

That’s about it. ●●●

tim: I was playing with Phil

one day at what is now Grand Del Mar here in San Diego.

Through 12 holes, I was nine under par and threatening the course record of 64—which was held by Phil [the record is now 62]. I had an easy par 4 and a reachable par 5 ahead of me, so it’s looking good. Phil says to me, “You do know you’re nine under, right? You do realize this is the round of your life?” I was

●●●

tim: He’s 80 years old, and he’s

telling me I need to keep the nose of the ball down better.

Like I had an NFL career ahead of me. Our dad, who used to be a flight instructor, never stops coaching. He’s always looking for a more optimal way to do things. A lot of that rubbed off on Phil, I think.

●●●

tim: It’s no secret that Phil loves

Ping-Pong. It became a passion for him somewhere around the early 2000s, when it became a big deal in the Ryder Cup team room. Phil quietly wanted to become very good. So for Christmas one year I hired a former U.S. Table Tennis Junior

3

tina mickelson:

Champion, Dr. Michael Lardon, to give Phil lessons. I also got Phil an excellent paddle, one sticky enough to help him control spin. Phil practiced like crazy, and he improved, especially at masking his serve.

But it’s not quite to where he can beat me. We’ll play best of seven, and Phil will win the first two games. Then I catch on to his serve and win the next four.

It’s tough on Phil.

“1. tim’s first christmas, 1977. phil and i both wanted to hold him. 2. phil lets tim “drive” at cottonwood golf club in el cajon, 1980. 3. optimist junior world, mission bay golf course in san diego, about 1982.

olds, bombing them with the ball and getting bombed in return. But that’s Phil. ●●●

ing the ball correctly. He’s giving him a lesson.”

tina: Three days ago, we’re on the beach during a family staycation. Phil and Tim are throwing a Nerf football. Dad is close by, watching, and the rest of us are sitting a good distance away. Suddenly we watch our dad interrupt the game. He takes the ball from Tim. I ask our mom, “What’s Dad doing?”

And she says, “Can’t you see?

He doesn’t think Tim is throw-

●●●

tina: My dad put golf clubs in our hands the moment we could walk. I got my first club when I was 18 months old, before Phil was born. Phil got his first club when he was 16 months old. He played lefthanded from the get-go, and I remember my parents expressing concern that it was going to be very hard to find quality left-handed clubs as Phil got older. So my dad made a right-handed club for Phil to sort of tempt him, but Phil

july 2017 | golf digest india

53

photographs courtesy of Mickelson faMily

tim: My most vivid early

Family Special quickly turned it over and swung left-handed with it.

They gave up on the idea of changing him over. Good call. ●●●

tim: The amount of practice Phil

put in as a kid was unreal. It was just constant. Dad built this little practice green in our back yard, and Phil would go to the front yard and hit over the house and aim for the green. He had me shout out where the ball landed.

“Ten feet to the left of the hole,” I’d yell, and then, “Five feet to the right, and short.” What’s incredible—and only I saw this— was what Phil could do when he got dialed in. After he adjusted, he started actually holing shots.

I thought he was magic.

●●●

tim: Another thing I’ve seen

the other guys Phil loves to play for money in practice rounds, here’s a tip: If you’re ahead on the bets, don’t let Phil know it. If he asks where the match stands, just shrug like you don’t know, or tell him he’s ahead.

Chances are, he’s not following that closely. But if you let him know you’re winning, especially with a couple of holes left, you’ve got a problem because he’ll pour it on at the end and beat you. ●●●

tina: One Thanksgiving we were having people over. Our mom told Phil to stay close, that he was going to be needed to help out. Well, Phil disappeared. He paid the next-doorneighbor kid to drive him to the course so he could play. Mom

up to this gorgeous Mexican girl and told her, “Usted tiene un hermoso culo.” She slapped me across the face. When I told Phil what had happened, he started laughing, tears down his face.

When he was finally able to talk he said, “Usted tiene un hermoso culo means, ‘You have a beautiful butt.’ ” ●●●

tina: When I was in college at San Diego, I was a little sister for a fraternity. I became good friends with one of the guys in the frat and referred to him as “my big brother.” He was a great guy. One day I was with Phil and referred to “Gaston, my big brother.” Phil said, very seriously, “He is not your brother.

I’m your brother.” I gulped and said, “OK. Got it.” Phil is very

4

5

ence intimidated them, which bummed everyone out because everybody roots for each other.

I didn’t pass, either, though I did later. One guy said, “I can’t believe you’d do that to us.”

Fast-forward 15 years later.

I was reaching out to a client to get a deal for a company I was representing. I recognized his name as someone I’d played in a PAT with but didn’t realize it was that PAT. At the end of my pitch, he said, “Oh, yeah, I was in your group that day in Palm Springs.” We didn’t get the deal. ●●●

tim: I think everyone in our

family would choose the 2004 Masters as Phil’s coolest victory.

It was his first major, and it got the monkey off his back. But what made it more terrific was that it happened four months after our grandfather, Alfred Santos, passed away. All of us, Phil included, believe that Nunu [his family nickname] had a hand in that.

●●●

Phil do is make two balls collide in mid-air. We were on the practice range at Stardust [now Riverwalk] in San Diego while Phil was in college. He faded one ball, quickly hooked another while the first one was still in the air, and they collided. It took him 15 minutes to do it, but I saw it. I defy anyone else to do that. I know that for 30 years I’ve tried to do it, and I haven’t really come close. ●●●

tina: Phil thrives on pressure.

He experiences it differently than most people. He’s told me that when the pressure is on, things fall into focus. He sees the lines better. Things slow down, and there are only great outcomes. Only great athletes are like that. ●●●

tim: To Keegan Bradley, Rickie

Fowler, Dustin Johnson and

and Dad went looking for him, found him, and on the way home gave him the business.

There was going to be a punishment for this. When our parents put a foot down, that usually was the end of the discussion.

But this time, Phil rebelled a little. He told my mom, “Every day I don’t practice is a day the other guys are getting better.

If I’m going to be great, I need to practice.” Phil got that from Ben Hogan, I think. ●●●

tim: When I was in eighth grade,

I had a huge crush on a ninthgrade girl who had moved here from Tijuana. She was bilingual, and I figured if I could say something nice to her in Spanish, it would impress her. Phil knew some Spanish, and I didn’t, so I asked him for a nice phrase to say to her. “Tell her, ‘Usted tiene un hermoso culo,’ ” he said.

“It means, ‘You are very beautiful.’ ” I spent a weekend perfecting the phrase and then walked

54 golf digest india | july 2017

tina mickelson: 4. Tim, Tina and Phil at Phil’s wedding rehearsal dinner 5. tim and phil at mccormick ranch in scottsdale, 1989.”

territorial about his family. ●●●

tina: Because we’re family, it’s easy to overlook Phil’s power to influence. When I was going through the PGA program in 1993, I had to pass the 36hole Playing Ability Test—the dreaded PAT. It was at Palm Springs in July, and I asked Phil and Tim to stop by and give me some support. They played Bighorn in the morning, and late in the second round, here they come, barreling onto the course in a cart. Three guys in my group were trying to pass the PAT, too, and they promptly fell apart and failed. Phil’s pres-

tina: Two weeks before the 2004 Masters, I had a dream.

My grandfather and I are at the Masters. We’re standing by the 18th green, and Phil has a putt to win. It’s crazy that no one else is around, but you know how crazy dreams are.

I tell Nunu, “I want him to make this putt so bad. Oh, I hope he makes it.” And my grandfather says, “He’ll make it even if I have to go down and kick that ball into the hole.” Phil makes the putt, and there’s this huge eruption of crowd noise, even though there are no people there. I jump and turn to my grandfather, but he’s vanished, and the dream ends. It was so powerful I began telling people about it. One friend in particular was going to Las Vegas on business. I told her to put a bet down on Phil. On Sunday of that Masters, as Phil came to the 18th hole, our family was ushered down in front to watch. The hole was on the front-left part of the green, and we were standing back-right—exactly where Nunu and I were standing in the dream. Phil’s approach stopped in exactly the same place behind the hole, as in the dream.

As Phil got set to putt, I leaned over to Amy and said, “He’s making this.” A few seconds later, it was a dream come true. tim: Until that Masters, my

Family Special favorite was when Phil won the 1991 Tucson Open as an amateur. I was in eighth grade, and when I went to school on Monday, a bunch of my friends told me they saw me on TV. I was like, “Yep, that was me.”

I felt like a star. ●●●

tina: When Phil came home from his first British Open, in 1991, he gave me ball markers from each of the courses in the rotation. I’m sure he’s forgotten he did that, but it remains the piece of Phil memorabilia that has the most meaning to me. I use those ball markers for every round, including tournaments, scrambles and rounds by myself. I like to think of my family, and those ball markers make me think of Phil.

tina: In a career as long and successful as Phil’s, there also are going to be disappointments. I think the one at Winged Foot [2006 U.S. Open] was the hardest for him. He isn’t one to dwell on setbacks, but that one stayed with him awhile. Wanting to help put it to rest, I thought of throwing a party. I was going to have a piñata made of the Winged Foot logo, and I was thinking we could all bash the piñata, and with it, that memory. But

tim: Some more brotherly love,

Phil style. When I was starting to become a decent player, I’d be standing over an iron, and from the cart Phil would say, “I know where you’re going to miss this shot. I’m going to write it down. Let’s see if I’m right.” Which immediately makes me think, What does Phil see that I don’t? Am I too afraid of that bunker on the right? He doesn’t think I’m going to hit it in the deep rough left of the green, does he? I’d hit the

●●●

tim: Phil gets on these kicks.

Black holes. The stock market.

Magic. Dinosaurs. The Kennedy assassination. He sucks every possible bit of information he can from them. Then, as quickly as it started, the kick leaves. The magic kick was the most intense. Phil’s card tricks and sleight of hand dominated many a family get-together. The downside is that card tricks get a little tedious after 30 minutes or so. The upside was that it always gave us something to get him for Christmas.

●●●

tim: Late in 2014, I decided to

give Phil a try as my assistant coach at Arizona State. He loves ASU and is very loyal.

I thought it was a great idea on a number of counts, not the least of which was his power to help me recruit. I thought a phone call to a recruit from Phil Mickelson would be pretty convincing. So it was not a publicity stunt. Well, during his stint, he called three recruits, kids I really wanted. None of the three chose Arizona State.

In January 2015, Phil resigned, joking that I’d fired him. I didn’t fire him, but the truth is, if he hadn’t resigned I would have had to fire him. He wasn’t getting the job done.

●●●

tim: For all the funny stories I tell about Phil, I want the world to know I love him and that if you’re ever near him, you’ll end up loving him, too.

He’s generous, loyal, good to his family and cool beyond belief. I read sometimes that Phil couldn’t possibly be that nice in real life, that what he does is a put-on, that nobody can be that wonderful. But to those of us who know him, he’s as genuine as they come.

●●●

tina: Phil is known for being generous with locker-room attendants and service people in general. Less well-known is his knack for sensing when a person can use a little help. A while back, our mom heard through a friend of a friend that a waitress at a local restaurant was in trouble with her rent. Phil, not knowing anything about it, showed up at that restaurant.

He left a tip that day that made a huge difference to that woman. He left without knowing the impact he had made, and he still doesn’t know it today.

He does gestures like that on pretty much a daily basis. Not wild philanthropy, but displays of thoughtfulness that make me proud to have him as a brother.

shot, and when I missed, Phil would uncover the prediction.

Amazingly, he was right 100 percent of the time. Then one day I caught him writing down LEFT on the scorecard and RIGHT on the plate under the scorecard. Wherever I missed, that’s the part he’d uncover.

●●●

the maker of the piñatas didn’t get the concept, and the idea fell apart. Which is just as well.

It was better to let the Winged Foot episode slowly fade away. ●●●

tina: My brother has a remarkable capacity to put negative experiences behind him. Not just in golf, but personal things.

Many people, when there’s a dispute, they’ll forgive, but not everyone forgets. Phil, he honestly forgets. If you have a disagreement with Phil, there’s a 100-percent chance that after it subsides, the next time he sees you it will literally be like nothing ever happened.

father’s day, 1993. tough team to beat!

tina: At the beginning of our family get-together this past weekend, Phil was bothered that my kids, Lucas and Gabriella, didn’t pounce on him immediately. They’re just little, 4 and 3 years old, and were a little shy at the outset because they don’t see him every day.

Phil’s insecurity about that was beautiful to watch. He poured everything he had into making them love him. His beloved San Diego Chargers were on TV, but there was Phil, playing the memory game with them and making himself irresistible. Granted, the Chargers were getting smoked, but at the end of the day, all Phil really cares about is loving and being loved by the people close to him. july 2017 | golf digest india

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Family Special

56 golf digest india | july 2017

Just For Fun

Family Special

NICK PRICE AND SON GREG GO LOW-KEY IN FATHER/SON CHALLENGE BY GUY YOCOM

A

At home on break at the end of 1994, Nick Price handed a cut-down driver to his 3-year-old son, Greg, dropped a few balls on the ground and waited for the magic to happen. Magic happened, all right: a disappearing act from Greg.

“He dropped the club, picked up his cup of Goldfish snacks and ran straight to the range picker,” says Nick, a three-time major champion and captain of the past two International Presidents Cup teams. “He loved to be driven around in that thing. Even then, golf was a little slow for Greg. He liked action.”

So it went with Greg, a committed surfer, wakeboarder, kite-boarder and water-skier who at 24 only recently emerged as a typical millennial golfer. A senior at Florida Atlantic University with an unofficial handicap in the low-double-digit range, Photograph by Walter Iooss Jr.

he plays fast and not always seriously. He likes golf primarily as a way to spend time with friends. One of his pals: Greg Norman Jr., whom Greg Price met when they were kids at the day care provided by the PGA Tour.

Even with a membership at the superb McArthur Golf Club near the family home in Hobe Sound, Fla., it doesn’t take much for Greg to shrug off golf in favor of the ocean.

“Until two years ago, I hardly played at all,” he says. “I chipped tennis balls around our back yard so the dog could chase them, but that’s it. But one day we were down at Blowing Rocks [Preserve], and there were no waves. No waves means no surfing. So we went and played golf.

Fun game, but I’ll never be anywhere near as good as my dad.

He’s got some serious prowess.”

At the PNC Father/Son Challenge (Dec. 10-13 at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club in Orlando), many sons display games reminiscent of their fathers’. Steve Irwin, son of Hale, has played in a U.S. Open. Dru Love, a junior at Alabama, pounds it past Davis. Daniel Trevino, Tucker Wadkins, Tom Strange and

many others are high-level amateurs. Greg Price, meanwhile, is keeping it real, with golf more on the periphery of his life than at the center. It’s an approach his father understands and accepts.

“Golf is such an individual game, and there are a lot of ways to enjoy it,” says Nick, 58. “You don’t want to push golf on young people in a restrictive way. When Greg told me he’d been playing with friends, I didn’t know whether to help him or just let him do his own thing.”

The Prices were working to improve on their last-place finishes in the Father/Son the past two years. They share dinners with friends—Nick and Greg share a love of thick steaks— and, like every other father-son team, try to narrow the generation gap.

“The world is so different than when I was growing up,” Nick says. “What’s interesting is, my hair was longer when I was Greg’s age than his is.

He’s pushing for Team Price— one of our caddies and the two of us—to show up this year wearing beards. I hate to break the news to Greg, but that isn’t going to happen.”

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Family Special

struck

▶ main squeeze antwon lovett and jenni berg were among the readers who found love t h r o u g h g o l f.

THE GOLF COURSE IS A WONDERFUL ARENA FOR LOVE TO SPARK ALL YOU NEED ARE YOUR CLUBS AND AN OPEN ♥

BY JOHN BARTON

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IN

♥

P.G. Wodehouse’s short story “The Clicking of Cuthbert,” the protagonist meets Adeline Smethurst of the Wood Hills Literary and Debating Society—a rival organization to the local golf club—and is instantly smitten. This has a salutary effect on Cuthbert’s golf: “Twenty minutes after he had met Adeline, he did the short eleventh in one.” ♥ But love has two edges. There is no rose without thorns. In another Wodehouse story, the “Oldest Member” warns that love is something that golfers should always treat with great suspicion. “I am not saying that love is a bad thing,” he advises, “only that it is an unknown quantity. I have known cases where marriage improved a man’s game, and other cases where it seemed to put him right off his stroke. There seems to be no fixed rule. But what I do say is that a golfer should be cautious.”

Being cautious in love is like laying up when you know you can make the carry.

And sometimes it’s not a matter of choice.

If you’re the ball, love can be the clubface, launching you from your resting place in a perfect arc down a fairway you never knew existed. We heard that story many times when we solicited tales of love on the links from our readers last year: ♥ Playing golf with her son one day, Jo Meyer of Morro Bay, Calif., hit a low hook that bounced off a cartpath and into the back of the leg of a very tall man. She unintentionally hit into his group three more times.

“After the round,” she says, “I took my son inside for a milkshake. The giant was in the grillroom. My cheeks flushed, and I tried to slide in and order without him noticing me.”

But notice he did. He picked up the tab. Four years later, they were married.

in a cart and told him to hop in. He drove him out to the snack bar at the turn and told him to get whatever he wanted. Driving back to the clubhouse, the caddiemaster wanted to know what Baechle thought of “the new snack-bar girl.” Baechle suggested that she seemed “nice.”

Baechle recalls: “He turned and looked at me, and with his finger pointing, he said, ‘She’s damn nice, Baech. That’s the kind of girl you want to marry someday.’ ” Jim and Sue have been married for 28 years.

“People fall in love when they’re ready,” says love anthropologist Dr. Helen Fisher, whose TED Talks on the subject have been viewed by millions. “You also tend to fall in love with someone of the same socioeconomic background, same levels of intelligence and education, same basic values and social goals, and same general level of good looks. And on the golf course, you’re going to find that. You’re going to find someone who shares your interest in golf, and who prob-

‘YOU CAN FALL IN LOVE IN A MINUTE. . . .

YOUR BALL LANDS NEXT TO HER GOLF BALL, YOU LAUGH ABOUT IT AND—BOOM!—YOU’RE OFF TO THE RACES.’ ♥ Jim Crounse of Oro Valley, Ariz., hoped to fulfill a lifelong dream of playing the Old Course at St. Andrews. A miscommunication, however, meant that he and his buddy missed their 7 a.m. tee time. His travel agent instructed him to go to the clubhouse and ask for Patsy, the manager. “Out came this lovely blonde Scottish woman,” Crounse says, “with an adorable accent. She said that she was terribly sorry, that they’d get us out to play . . . and could she buy us breakfast to make up for the error.”

Jim and Patsy have been married for 11 years. ♥ Jim Baechle of Nashville was a teenage caddie in a Detroit suburb. One day he won a Chick Evans caddie scholarship to Michigan State, and the caddiemaster approached him

ably has a similar lifestyle and background as you.”

Golf thus acts as a filter as effective as any matching algorithm on a dating site. (Fisher is chief scientific advisor to Match.com.)

But according to Fisher, Cupid’s arrow flies so straight and true in golf for a more fundamental reason than our culture: our biology.

Fisher has identified four broad personality styles of thinking and behaving, loosely based on inherited patterns of neurotransmitter expression in the brain:

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Family Special

▶ f o r e p l ay berg used golf to test her c o m p at i b i l i t y w i t h l o v e t t, a n d t h e t w o

♥ explorers (predominantly dopamineexpressive): risk-taking, novelty-seeking, spontaneous, impatient, curious, creative, mentally flexible, high-energy and actionoriented people. ♥ builders (serotonin): conventional, traditional, cautious, measured, orderly, meticulous, they follow the rules, like schedules, respect authority, are calm people, with a high degree of self-control and are skilled in building social networks. ♥ directors (testosterone): direct, decisive, analytical, logical, strategic, toughminded, bold and competitive. ♥ negotiators (estrogen): Imaginative, intuitive, nurturing, agreeable, emotional, idealistic and altruistic.

“We’re not just one of these systems; we express all four of them, but to differing degrees,” Fisher says. (You can join the 14 million people who have taken the test online and see where you stand on each of the four scales at TheAnatomyofLove.com.)

Says Fisher: “My hypothesis is that the kind of people who are attracted to golf are very expressive of the serotonin system— the Builders. These people tend to like the slow, measured pace of golf, the rules, the traditions and the social aspects. But also testosterone—I’d expect golfers generally to score highly on the Directors scale. It’s a very competitive game.” (Fisher is not a golfer: “I’m more of an Explorer type,” she says, “and Explorers tend to prefer tennis.”)

Fisher’s human taxonomy sheds light on the age-old question of whether opposites attract. Although that tends to be true for Directors and Negotiators—they date each other—Builders stick together. Their calm, stoic, conservative nature means they like people who are like them, which is why a foursome of regular golfers can endure for decades, often outliving the participants’ marriages.

Says Fisher: “I studied 80,000 people, and the high-serotonin type of human being, the Builder, tends to be consistently drawn to people like themselves.”

One problem with golf as an avenue to love, however, is that it is crowded with

60 golf digest india | july 2017

men—76 percent of American golfers are male. That’s great news for women seeking men, but not so great for men seeking women. (Estimates vary, but roughly 90 to 95 percent of Americans are heterosexual.)

Fisher remains positive: “Those female golfers are Builders, too, and will tend to have strong social networks of conservative Builder girlfriends to introduce to the golfers that they meet on the links. Female golfers will tend to be highly attracted to male golfers—and bring with them a pool of other women who are also likely to be attracted to traditional golfers.”

But what of the warning in the “Oldest Member”? Love—especially love at first sight—can go disastrously wrong. “The heart was made to be broken,” according to Oscar Wilde.

“Romantic love is a drive,” Fisher says. “It happens way down in the basal ganglia, right next to brain regions that orchestrate thirst and hunger. It lies like a sleeping cat, and it can be awakened any time, at any age. You can be scared in a minute, or angry or sad.

And you can fall in love in a minute. It’s an animal attraction. You can trigger that brain circuitry in an instant. Your golf ball lands next to her golf ball, you laugh about it and— boom!—you’re off to the races.”

Beyond external attributes, humans are inordinately attuned to another person’s internal landscapes, their psychology, and how it might mesh with their own. We all have attachment tendencies, learned in childhood that influence who we are drawn to, patterns that reoccur, for better or for worse—Freud called this “repetition compulsion.”

A controlling narcissist, for instance, might be drawn to a compliant peoplepleaser—and vice versa—resulting in a rela-

c l i c k e d i n s ta n t ly.

tionship that can continue for years until the latter comes to realize that the codependent dynamic is unhealthy, which might explain some divorces on tour.

“We all make mistakes,” Fisher says.

“There’s a part of the brain, in the ventrolmedial prefrontal cortex, whose job is to be skeptical—in charge of what scientists call ‘negativity bias.’ This is the part that always says, Oh, no, this isn’t going to work. And when you begin to fall in love, activity in that brain region actually goes down.”

Neuroscientific proof that love is indeed blind. If it weren’t, our species would have died out eons ago.

Someone looking for a partner to “complete” them, or take away their loneliness or struggle, comes with a metaphorical redflashing warning light. We’ve all got baggage—are you looking for love, or a caddie?

By contrast, when someone is just being some version of their healthy self—apologizing to the group ahead for hitting into them, say, or greeting the new person behind the counter in the snack shack without wanting anything from them but a 7Up—the stoplights all turn green.

Writes James Hollis in “The Eden Project”: “If I am expecting the other to be the good parent and take care of me, then I have not grown up. If I am expecting the other to spare me the rigor and terror of living my own journey, then I have abdicated from the chief task and most worthy reason for my incarnation on this earth.”

The only game you can play is your own.

Still, most people don’t want to make the journey alone. Whether you’re looking for a playing partner for an afternoon or a lifetime, on the golf course there is always some kind of love in the air.

“Golf is a wonderful arena for love to spark,” Fisher says. “If you want to fall in love, get out there and play.” ▶▶▶

Family Special

TA L ES OF L♥V E READERS SHARE THEIR STORIES co urting my future father-in-l aw

I

n 1970, I went to meet the parents of my new girlfriend. I drove up in a 1964 VW camper bus wearing a black-seal fur coat and hair down to my shoulders. Her father met me at the door and wasn’t impressed. A few days later, he forbid his daughter to see me and even threw her out of the house when she refused. A few weeks later, when he realized she was going to continue seeing me, he let her move back home. After a strained year, I decided to try to get in his good graces. He was a golfer, so I took six lessons at the local driving range and started playing golf, and he invited me to join his Tuesday night golf league. He eventually saw past his prejudice and accepted me and loved me. He passed away a few years ago, but I married his daughter in 1975. Today we have three children, two grandchildren and still play in that same golf league. craig wl odyka Hampton, N.H.

love springs from tragedy

M

y best friend died at age 37. He was involved in a car accident when he was 31 (one month after we took a golf trip together to Doral) and never recovered. He was a volunteer for Big Brothers Big Sisters of America. In his memory, I started a golf tournament to benefit the

organization. After contacting my local Philadelphia chapter, I met with a beautiful young woman who ran the fundraiser outings. We eventually went on a date. I knew after two weeks that I wanted to marry her. We ran that tournament for 10 years, have been married for 16 and have two sons. Golf allowed me to transform something horrible into something good and positive. g r e g o ry m . m c p e a k Oreland, Pa.

golf as my “boyfriend test”

Y

ou can learn the answers to many questions about a person on the golf course. How will he deal with frustration of his game or mine? Will he cheat? Is he lazy?

Will he gloat too much? Will his ego be OK if I hit a better shot?

Is he encouraging? Will he try to “teach me” too much? Can we stand each other for 18 holes? Will we have fun? Seven years ago I met Antwon. I was playing golf on a simulator at a local pub on a cold night in February. Once the snow melted we were able to play

a real round. Not only did he pass the “boyfriend test,” I fell in love pretty quickly. Of course, it isn’t perfect; we once went three holes without speaking, but the lessons we learn on the course strengthen our relationship. Golf brought us together, and it keeps us together. jenni berg Pocatello, Idaho

we met at the ball machine

O

n Labor Day 2003, I was meeting two of my girlfriends for golf.

I went early to hit a bucket of balls. I apparently didn’t get the bucket lined up correctly under the ball dispenser, so as the balls started coming out, some missed the bucket and bounced away. I heard a voice from behind me say: “It works better when you center the bucket under the spout.”

I turned around and saw a man dressed in black golf clothes smiling at me. He helped retrieve the errant balls. I thanked him, and I thought that was that. I saw him again at the first tee. He was playing with the group in front of us. On the 15th, I almost hit him with an errant second shot as he was standing near the 16th tee.

When I went to retrieve my ball, he proposed meeting at the 19th hole for a drink. We did, and 14 years later we remain committed partners, on and off the course. m a ry d e yo u n g Seattle

making o ut on the fo urth hole

M

y wife, Janie, and I have been married 48 years. I met her in 1966 in a little town in the Napa Valley called Calistoga. I was working at a little nine-hole course at the Fair Grounds called Mount Saint Helena Golf Course.

I got $1.50 an hour and all the golf I could play. We went out on our first date, and she found out what an avid golfer I was. She had played a little with her dad, and he taught her well. She asked if she could play with me sometime.

Of course I said yes. This was not

the golf I was used to playing. We would walk and talk and hit the ball. The fourth hole ran along the Napa River, and we would park our carts and walk down to the bank and take our golf shoes off, put our feet in the water and make out. Then we would go back up and finish the round. We did this a lot, right up to the time when I proposed one year later.

She had reeled me in, and I am very lucky she did. b a r ry pa r k e r San Diego

a marriage of golf and ro ck ’n’ roll

I

t started with a bribe. “If you can keep up with me on the course, I’ll take you to Hawaii for Christmas,” said my boyfriend of two years, legendary record executive Al Coury.

“You’re on,” I said, but not sure I could meet the challenge.

Al adored the game and looked for any opportunity to play.

I had eight months to learn.

I took lessons, hit what seemed like thousands of balls on the range and even played with strangers to improve my speed.

Al was delighted and took me to Hawaii. That began 30 years of romance on the golf course. In 1987, David Geffen hired Al to help run his record company.

Al agreed on one condition: In his contract it stated that Al got Fridays off to play golf. To my amazement, I grew to love the game and the social life that accompanied it. At our club we were known for the only bet we ever made with each other: We played for sex. So when one of us lost, we both always won. In 2009, Al began showing signs of Alzheimer’s. That ended our playing, and he passed away in 2013. I always will be grateful to my dear husband of 25 years, Al Coury, the man who bribed his willing girlfriend to learn the game but ended up giving his wife a gift for life. t i n a n i c h o l s c o u ry Oxnard, Calif.

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$IGNS OF T

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Family Special

THE TIME$ ▶

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN KIDS GETTING AUTOGRAPHS AND PROFESSIONAL CHASERS DOING THE SAME THING? BILLIONS OF BUCKS

by c u r t s a m p s o n

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ON Family Special

silent in the cool blue morning, as patient and motionless as birds waiting for worms.

On the other side of the fence, two dozen of the world’s greatest golfers chipped, pitched and putted.

“What do you think of those guys with the bags?” I asked various of the world’s greatest.

“What do you think of what Jordan said?”

A month before, at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Spieth had gone to the ropes to meet the people, especially the kids, as he usually does after a practice round. It didn’t go well. He was still a little steamed during his post-round presser.

Q “I know you sign a lot of autographs, but coming off 18 today some guys ragged on you pretty hard for not signing . . . and it got a little testy?”

A “Yeah . . . these guys that just have bags of stuff to benefit from other people’s success when they didn’t do anything themselves.

Go get a job instead of trying to make money off of the stuff that we have been able to do. . . . They frustrate us. And so I turned around and they, one of them, dropped an f-bomb in front of three kids, so I felt the need to turn around and tell them that wasn’t right.

And a couple of them were saying, ‘You’re not Tiger Woods; don’t act like you’re Tiger.’ . . . Normally I let Michael [Greller, his caddie] get into it with them. . . . Scums. . . . It just bothered me.” (Added Spieth later in the week: “I shouldn’t have used that word, but I was a bit frustrated.”)

“Some of the players are really proud of Jordan for standing up like that,” said Keegan Bradley.

“I couldn’t agree with him more,” said Cody Gribble.

“They can be intimidating,” said Geoff Ogilvy. “They tend to be pushy. It’s pretty full-on. You see a man’s arm coming at you from between kids. Although I didn’t mind signing about a thousand Golf World covers after I won the U.S. Open.”

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DEPENDING ON WHO’S TALKING, THE ANNUAL WORLDWIDE COLLECTIBLES MARKET COULD BE APPROACHING $400 BILLION.

Henrik Stenson evinced the minority, laissez-faire attitude about the autograph pros: “I’m providing for them, too. So I keep on signing.”

We found only one other player who agreed with Henrik, and that was the infinitely patient and recently deceased Palmer.

“Someone would hand him 10 of something, and he’d sign all 10,” says Alastair Johnston, Palmer’s longtime agent, with a sigh and a laugh. “I’d ask him why. He’d say, ‘Well, these guys have to make a living, too.’” a r n o l d pa l m e r s i g n e d a n e s t i m at e d t h r e e m i l l i o n autographs in his career.

The autograph scene on tour presents a dilemma with many confusing aspects: The players are quite aware that willingness to put one’s name on things over and over again is the very definition of good-guy-ness. Arnie would, until the cows came home: great guy. (Ditto Phil, Rickie and, yes, Jordan.)

During their competitive years, Hogan and Woods most often couldn’t be bothered.

But Ben and Tiger didn’t have to autograph your program; no one has to. The tour does not compel players to sign, nor are tour events required to provide a place for them to do so. A golf star can just walk on by, or sign for kids only. When Brooks Koepka did exactly that, and an adult collector kvetched, “Why not mine?” Koepka replied, “Because I’m not making your money today.”

But the kids-only policy isn’t that simple, for some teens and tweens are also in it for the money and offer their signed flags online as

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a big screen inside a big tent at Bay Hill, at the first Arnold Palmer Invitational since the great man’s death, MasterCard debuted its new commercial. One topical vignette in the ad portrayed Ian Poulter and Graeme McDowell wading into a crowd of excited kids holding up pens. poulter We’re gonna sign everything. mcdowell Arnie would. poulter Arnie definitely would. mcdowell Yes, he would. ▶ Damn right he would. Palmer’s forbearance and endurance with autograph seekers was among the many qualities that made him golf’s de facto patriarch and PR MVP. This same day they unveiled another tribute in the plaza near the first tee, a 13-foot statue of The King apparently hitting a pull-hook. A metal Arnold signing programs with perfect penmanship wouldn’t have been as dramatic a pose, but it would have been just as true to his legend. ▶ Sixty steps from the sculpture of the patron saint of autographs, a cadre of professional signature seekers huddled by the white picket fence bordering the putting green. There were eight of them, each clutching a clear plastic shopping bag stuffed with . . . stuff. How they dress is their other tell—more L.L. Bean than J.Lindeberg—but this group of mostly middle-age men effected at least a muny-course look: golf shirts with the tails out, khaki-colored cargo shorts and sensibly priced athletic shoes. They stood still and

Family Special

fast—probably faster—than any adult. And though there are occasional unseemly battles, such as the war by the shore at Pebble, every ardent collector agrees that golfers are the best of all athletes: the most affable, the most willing and the easiest to get to, especially when compared to baseball players.

“Manny Ramirez,” one Orlando bagman said.

We looked to Annika Sorenstam for some clarity. She sat at a table beneath the bronze Arnie and affixed her name to this and that.

Her policy, she says, is to sign anything— even a competing brand of golf ball, even before a tournament round. But only one per customer, please: After the autograph pros got theirs, she quietly told an assistant to make sure they didn’t get back in the queue for another.

transcendental graPhics/getty images

A

inside the scrum

man and his two daughters stood nearby, sneaking peeps at Annika.

On vacation from Portsmouth, N.H., visiting his dad, said Travis Nadeau.

This year at Bay Hill, and regularly at the Dell Technologies Championship outside Boston, the adorable and golf-smitten Nadeau kids collect autographs for their girl caves back home; a ball signed by Danny Lee is a prized possession. “He wrote, ‘To my best friend’ on it, said Teagan, 8.

What about the grown men competing for Danny Lee’s attention—any problems with them?

“They follow us,” said Delaney, 10. “Then they move in front of us.” Travis shook his head sadly.

Ignoring the rules of personal space and taking turns. Shoving. Using outdoor voices in golf’s churchy setting. Inducing children to get signatures for them, making it impossible not to be reminded of Fagin and Oliver Twist; and now, profanely insulting one of the most popular sportsmen in the world.

But decorum ruled when AP went to the ropes, and “Please” and “Thank you” filled the air, in part because The King signed everything for anyone. An estimated three million autographs in his lifetime. Legibly: big A, big P, and the 10 attached little letters were even and distinct; it’s no surprise or coincidence that Sam Saunders, Arnie’s grandson, has the clearest signature on tour. At home in Latrobe, Pa., Palmer dutifully autographed items by the truckload, and returned to senders on his own dime. It cost him a fortune.

Palmer was dogmatic on the subject. As Peter Jacobsen recalled, Arnie would put down his glass of Ketel One on the rocks, twist of lemon, and instruct his young

ben hogan relaxes before t h e s ta r t o f t h e 1954 masters.

the days before there were autographs by dan jenkins

W

hen did so many urchins, scamps and rascals start turning up in the galleries of golf tournaments?

That’s one question. Another is, when did they start clawing and begging for an autograph from any person who bore the slightest resemblance to a touring pro?

I distinctly remember a time when I was the only urchin, scamp or rascal in the galleries. It began when I was 11 years old and was taken by golf-nut relatives to Colonial Country Club and let loose on the 1941 U.S. Open, where I got mad that Craig Wood won instead of Ben Hogan or Byron Nelson, the hometowners.

But I didn’t consider myself an urchin, scamp or rascal.

I’d been playing golf since I was 8 and had learned that the game was a civilized, dignified sport. If anybody had hollered “You da man!” or “Get in the hole!” he’d have been arrested for disturbing the peace.

My education continued as follows: As a 14-year-old, I was taken to Lakewood Country Club in Dallas to watch Byron Nelson win the Texas Victory Open.

As a 15-year-old, I took myself to Dallas Country Club in 1945 to watch Sam Snead win the Dallas Open.

Again in ’45, I went the entire 72 holes in Fort Worth, watching Byron win the Glen Garden Open, his 18th victory in that fanciful year.

Then in 1946, as a grownup 16-year-old with a car, I watched Hogan win twice.

First at the inaugural Colonial National Invitation in May, and again in September at the Dallas Invitational at Brook Hollow Golf Club.

I roll those credits for a couple of reasons.

It’s to say that in all of my exposure to tournament golf I never once saw an urchin, scamp, rascal or teenager on the course, including me, plead for a golf ball from a pro. And second, I never once saw an adult ask a competitor for an autograph.

It just wasn’t done back then. At least not in my neck of the woods.

Applause from the crowds was reserved for a very good golf shot. Most of the fans were recreational golfers and obviously more knowledgeable about the game than many in today’s throngs.

Also, there were no

standing ovations for players you’ve never heard of simply because they walked up on a green.

“Come on Brendan, you can do it!”

Who? What changed this peaceful world?

The usual suspects, is my guess. Hogan, to begin with.

The game had needed a larger-than-life figure since Bobby Jones retired. Then TV. Followed by Arnold Palmer. The combination of TV and Arnold Palmer. Jack Nicklaus. The dynasty of Jack Nicklaus. More media attention to the majors.

Especially the Masters.

Growth of new courses—a country club for every income level.

Advances in equipment.

Corporate sponsors and the incredible explosion of prize money. And, yes, a guy named Tiger Woods.

Full disclosure: In my teens, after watching all that tournament golf, I did have fleeting thoughts of trying to become a touring pro, but I quickly realized it required more practice than it did funfilled gambling with friends and thieves, plus my game didn’t travel well.

So I changed my major.

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Family Special

‘IT’LL BE THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK, AND I’LL THINK, WHY AREN’T THESE KIDS IN SCHOOL?’ friend to always be nice. Don’t scribble your name, for God’s sake. Sign a golf ball if they want (which is a pain; try it). Don’t come off the 18th green mad; people don’t care if you just shot 60 or 80. And don’t disrespect the guy who is obviously going to sell your autograph.

W

big business, as in billions

hat has changed, we suppose, is that they made only one Arnold Palmer, and there is an increasing demand for things signed by golfers, and such items appreciate. Depending on who’s talking, the annual worldwide collectibles market could be approaching $400 billion, and the subset of autographed sports things, from football helmets to baseball bats to golf balls, is between $1 billion and $2 billion.“Now is the time to invest in Jordan Spieth memorabilia, the youngest player ever to dawn [sic] the Green Jacket,” asserts Sports Memorabilia (sportsmemorabilia.com), although Tiger actually had an earlier dawn.

SM lists a 2015 Masters flag, signed by the champion in a cramped scrawl, at $1,463.99; the same item with “Jordan” written above “Spieth,” in a spacious hand: $4,363.99. Legibility is crucial to value.

The time had come to stand among the foot soldiers. Autograph chasers, as they are known in the biz, lack a collective noun: a desperation, perhaps? A scribble? For interminable minutes we observed Danny Willett’s wristy chipping style. When finally he made to leave the scene, one of us called out.

“Danny, will you sign?”

He would. Two handfuls of amateur collectors had joined the group. During an orderly, wordless interaction, the high-strung

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Englishman hurriedly scratched black ink on 10 yellow nylon rectangles and on two tournament programs. His John Hancock consists of a giant D above a vertical chop that resembles a pictograph of a picket fence.

Though prices fluctuate, we found a Masters flag signed by the 2016 champion for as little as $100 on eBay. From the actual sale price, deduct the cost of the cloth—about $25— eBay’s 10-percent commission, shipping, the price of a ticket, clear plastic bags and cargo shorts, and no one was getting rich on Danny.

I introduced myself and my mission to the group. “Is that how this is done—eBay?” Silence. They regarded me balefully, with weapons-grade stink eye.

“Is there enough money in this for you to travel from one tour stop to another?”

Silence. The desperation looked like eight untipped waitresses.

Then, from the tall one, “No comment.”

“No comment? Really? Is it because you fear a negative story? Well, the negative story is already out there. Maybe you can help me tell a positive . . . ” “No comment.”

Then they all turned their backs, a full Amish shun, impressively synchronized.

A little later, they moved en masse to the other side of the green, and they didn’t appear to enjoy my company there, either.

They seemed like a team—and they probably were. Tampa-based dealer Charles Poulos, a still-occasional chaser, explained the usual MO: groups of two to five or larger will travel in the same van and stay in the same inexpensive hotel room. They pool expenses but not income. Their bags are filled with consigned flags, hats, trading cards and photographs waiting for the Midas touch of a golfer’s pen.

‘THE BEST STUFF E.G. FRED COUPLES SIGNED MASTERS PIN FLAG— IS OFFERED TO THE BIG HITTER IN THE BUSINESS, GREEN JACKET AUCTIONS.’

“I’ll get on a collectors’ website and ask, for example, ‘Who’s going to [the PGA Tour Champions event in] Branson?’” says Poulos, whose full-time job is in IT. “Someone will say, ‘I am. What do you need? What will you pay?’ And if I trust him, I’ll send a guy—usually, two guys—20 or 30 items. I expect to get half or a third of what I want.

It’s an incredibly tough life for those who do it full-time. They don’t make a lot. It’s discouraging when I see some guys bring their kids out [to secure autographs]. It’ll be the middle of the week, and I’ll think, Why aren’t these kids in school?”

Poulos, who is essentially a middleman, sells to five other dealers, one of whom is in the United Kingdom. The best stuff—for example, not just a run-of-themill Fred Couples-signed Masters pin flag, but one on which Freddie was induced to write “’92,” the year he won—is offered to the big hitter in the business, Green Jacket Auctions.

Green Jacket co-founder Bab Zafian, whose expertise is autograph authentication, wishes first of all to emphasize that chasers are the salt of the earth, hard-working Americans who rise at 5 and go to work.

“Would Jordan Spieth go up to a janitor and insult him?” Zafian says. “Don’t look down on anyone. It’s a job, like anything else.”

But it’s not a job like anything else, and Zafian acknowledges that society sometimes breaks down by the yellow rope. He has been out there himself, many times. “When they’re pushing kids out of the way, I’ll say so everyone can hear, ‘Come on, let the kid in there!’ I’m not being fake. Once Jack Nicklaus saw my courtesy and made a point of signing for me.”

Compared to Poulos, Zafian offers a relatively rosy opinion regarding chaser income: “You’ll see a guy who looks homeless, someone you want to hand a dollar to; that guy could be making $100,000 a year. Even if they get only $10 per autograph, if they get 50 or 75 a day . . . ” The group I watched for three days weren’t getting anything close to that.

Writers are chasers, too, of course, of stories—so here’s a defense of my brothers the Orlando Eight weren’t willing to provide.

They fill a need. When they’re not rude, they’re polite. They’re determined. They are, as advertised, early risers. And they are organized; Vaughn Taylor has won three times on tour, but he’s no household name, so he was surprised when a collector recently asked for signatures on four Vaughn Taylor photographs beautifully printed on heavy stock.

If Vaughn wins the U.S. Open, or something, they’ll be worth something.

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On the PGA Tour

VIBRANT NEW YORK TO WITNESS GOLF SPECTACLE

Kevin Chappell thits to the 13th green during the final round of 2013 The Barclays at Liberty National Golf Club in New Jersey

I

t is as if avenues from all corners of the globe run through New York City when August warmth gives way to September comfort, and when you are there in the middle of it all, the esteemed author Tom Wolfe’s words resonate: “One belongs to New York instantly. One belongs to it as much in five minutes as in five years.”

The city in late summer is a kaleidoscope of human activity. Different looks, different spirits, different sounds, and from Hong Kong Dragon Boat Races to the India Day parade to the Filipino Expo to the Feast of San Gennaro, the city is vibrant.

70 golf digest india | july 2017

Want to celebrate heritages? The Irish, the Brazilians, the Germans, the Latinos and so many more will dance in a city that never sleeps, accompanied by music, be it blues, classical, pop or jazz.

It’s a big city, “no place epitomizes the American experience,” said former mayor Michael Bloomberg, “and the American spirit more than New York City.”

Which is why this cultural and entertainment mecca can always find additional table settings for guests, even during a wildly busy August and September. Case in point: Not one, but two PGA Tour spectacles will

NEW YORK IN LATE SUMMER IS A KALEIDOSCOPE OF HUMAN ACTIVITY. DIFFERENT LOOKS, DIFFERENT SPIRITS AND FROM HONG KONG DRAGON BOAT RACES TO THE INDIA DAY PARADE TO THE FILIPINO EXPO TO THE FEAST OF SAN GENNARO, THE CITY IS VIBRANT.

On the PGA Tour

THE NORTHERN TRUST WILL KICK OFF THE FEDEXCUP PLAYOFFS AUG. 24-27 AT THE GLEN OAKS CLUB ON LONG ISLAND. THEN FROM SEPT. 28 TO OCT. 1, THE BIENNIAL PRESIDENTS CUP WILL BE STAGED AT THE LIBERTY NATIONAL GOLF CLUB, NEW JERSEY

use New York City as a brilliant backdrop at this vibrant time of year.

The Northern Trust will kick off the FedExCup playoffs Aug. 24-27 at the Glen Oaks Club in Old Westbury on Long Island.

Then from Sept. 28 to Oct. 1 at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, N.J., the 12th staging of the biennial Presidents Cup will command the world’s golf spotlight.

Yes, the same Liberty National that Padraig Harrington once called “phenomenal” and Jordan Spieth hailed as “incredible.” You can seemingly reach out and touch the Statue of Liberty from

the 18th green, but on a wider screen, the overall trip for these two tournaments will be a seamless fit – the PGA Tour and its massively rich international traveling show taking the stage in a cultural showcase city.

“Really what we’re trying to do is celebrate everything that is New York City,” said PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan.

The FedExCup Playoffs have started in the New York City area every year since its 2007 debut, though this will be the first time at Glen Oaks, a pristine layout that will be a new adventure for the huge majority of PGA Tour members.

There will, however, be something familiar at Glen Oaks – the likely makeup of the leaderboard being a confluence of international flags that is the rule week in and week out on the PGA Tour. Against a backdrop of flavorful New York ethnicity, the PGA Tour and The Northern Trust will fit right in. Last year, at Bethpage State Park’s Black Course, an American (Patrick Reed) won, finishing just ahead of an Argentine (Emiliano Grillo), two Aussies (Jason Day and Adam Scott) and a Northern Irishman (Rory McIlroy).

Great flavor, per usual, but as an added boost to the PGA Tour, the Presidents Cup will set up shop a few weeks after The Northern Trust, right there in the shadows of Manhattan and one of our nation’s most endearing landmarks.

“Liberty National is such a special venue.

I think we’ve all seen that with The Barclays, now The Northern Trust,” said Monahan, referencing playoff tournaments there in 2009 and 2013.

“It will be exciting to be that close to the Statue of Liberty and to Liberty Park. We’re going to have events at Ellis Island. Our players will be taking a boat eight minutes from their hotel across to the venue itself.

We’re really trying to drive an international crowd to support the International Team and to celebrate what’s so unique about the Presidents Cup.” With 85 international members from 22 countries, the PGA Tour is a veritable traveling United Nations. So how cool will it be to set up one week in a town (Old Westbury) that was very near to the first United Nations quarters Then move five weeks later to Liberty National, which is less than

five miles from where the UN has been for decades?

Certainly, in a city that will be staging summer parties to celebrate nearly every ethnic group, the Presidents Cup will feel comfortable. Aussies and South Africans were abundant for the International team in 2015, and likely will be again in 2017.

But the recent winner of The PLAYERS Championship is a young man from South Korea (Si Woo Kim), and his countryman, Byeong Hun An, has been a steady force high on the Official World Golf Ranking.

One of the leading players in the world is from Japan (Hideki Matsuyama), and few possess the aggressive flair of a flashy Argentine (Grillo). Meanwhile, and young Canadians (Adam Hadwin and MacKenzie Hughes) have emerged as two of the PGA Tour’s rising talents.

In other words, captain Nick Price has reason to be excited about the trip to Liberty National, his confidence buoyed by the riveting effort two years ago when the Internationals lost by just one point.

“We’ve got some really strong young players,” said Price, who will serve as International captain for a third time, “so, it will be interesting.”

When it’s New York City in the summer, interesting is one word bandied about. But exciting and bustling are two others that will accompany The Northern Trust and The Presidents Cup. Given that PGA Tour members are huge sports fans, they’ll have options galore during their visits to New York.

A rejuvenated Yankees team figures to be in baseball pennant pursuit, and ditto the Mets. In fact, the Yankees will be home the weekend of The Northern Trust and the entire week of the Presidents Cup. What may generate even more interest is another sports franchise making a rebound – the great Roger Federer. With many PGA TOUR stars avid tennis fans (Sergio Garcia, Matt Kuchar, Adam Scott and Rory McIlroy come to mind), they’ll have an easy commute from Glen Oaks to Arthur Ashe Stadium, where tennis’ US Open will get under way Aug. 28, the day after the final round of The Northern Trust.

Federer at age 35 won the Australian Open earlier in 2017, his 18th major championship win,and he is already pointing toward return to the winner’s circle at the U.S. Open. The chance to be witness to part of that is something PGA Tour players would enjoy.

Fortunately, New York can accommodate.

Like nowhere else. july 2017 | golf digest india

71

On the PGA Tour

Brilliant Brooks captures maiden Major

E

rin, Wisconsin: For three days, it was a US Open that was hardly recognisable.

Birdies were everywhere. The world’s top-three players were nowhere.

Fairways were wider than farmland. Greens were softer than Wisconsin cheese. Players smiled and shot low. Then they smiled some more and went even lower.

It was as if this ballyhooed “ultimate test in golf” had morphed into a feel-good pro-am, complete with scoring records everywhere.

Of course, even when Sunday’s final round at Erin Hills arrived with brisk wind we didn’t get the sort of complexion we expect of a US Open. That was of little concern to Brooks Koepka. The powerfully built and long-hitting American didn’t just put his hands around the 117th US Open trophy; he put a crushing headlock on it with a performance that left his chasers choking on his dust.

At a vintage “smash-ball” golf tournament mandated by Erin Hills’ silly wide fairways and launching-pad tee boxes, one of the game’s purest “smash-ball” experts won with a finalround, 5-under 67 to win by four over Brian Harman and Hideki Matsuyama, who posed the day’s best round, 66.

Koepka’s 272 total translated into 16-under, which tied a US Open record for lowest score to par. (Rory McIlroy did it first, in 2011.)

“It’s definitely a special moment,” said Koepka, who arrived at his fifth US Open ranked 22nd in the world and left as the No. 10 player. “To do it here (at Erin Hills) where I played the US Amateur (in 2011) is special.”

Anti-climactic, this 117th edition of the US Open? Maybe, but to the 27-year-old from West Palm Beach, Florida, his second PGA Tour win and first in a Major championship was delivered with an emphatic exclamation point – and it came in sync with the largest prize, US $2.16 million, in golf.

Hardly should Koepka’s win be a surprise, not given his impressive skill set that starts with a ferocious power on par with his good friend, Dustin Johnson. But given that 12 players were within five of Harman’s lead at the start of the fourth round, it’s at least mildly stunning that it failed to produce a combative finish or that Koepka ran away.

Then again, it’s easy to understand how it RECENT FIRST-TIME MAJOR WINNERS 2015 PGA Championship – Jason Day (AUS) 2016 The Masters – Danny Willet (ENG) 2016 US Open – Dustin Johnson (USA) 2016 British Open – Henrik Stenson (SWE) 2016 PGA Championship – Jimmy Walker (USA) 2017 The Masters – Sergio Garcia (ESP) 2017 US Open – Brooks Koepka (USA)

72 golf digest india | july 2017

Brooks Koepka won the US Open by 4 strokes

“I WAS WAY MORE CONFIDENT THIS WEEK THAN I’VE EVER BEEN... IT’S FOR ALL THE HOURS THAT YOU PUT IN AND THINGS LIKE THAT. YOU LOOK BACK A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO TO BE ON THE CHALLENGE TOUR, FOUR GUYS DRIVING AROUND IN A LITTLE MINI CAR, FOUR GOLF BAGS PACKED IN THERE, TO BE THE US OPEN CHAMP IS PRETTY COOL. — BROOKS KOEPKA, 2017 US OPEN CHAAMPION all fell into Koepka’s hands so easily. Numbers don’t lie. Of the top-six names on the leaderboard through 54 holes, only Koepka broke par.

While Matsuyama, the dynamic 25-yearold from Japan, was the only competitor to put a chase into Koepka down the stretch, it was too little, too late. Starting a whopping six behind Harman (and five behind Koepka), Matsuyama seemed an afterthought until he blitzed the back nine in 32 to seize the clubhouse-lead at 12-under.

Dazzling stuff from Matsuyama, one of only three international names in the top 15 in the most American of US Opens. (England’s Tommy Fleetwood closed with 72, good for 11-under and a fourth-place finish, while South Korea’s Si Woo Kim, who just a few weeks ago won THE PLAYERS Championship, shot a Sunday 75 and shared 13th). But Matsuyama’s dramatics proved fruitless, thanks to Koepka’s own finishing touch.

“I couldn’t help but see the scoreboards.

There’s one on every hole,” said the champion.

WITH THE WIN l Becomes the seventh straight first-time Major winner (a run stretching back to Jason Day at the 2015 US PGA Championship) l Wins his first Major in his 15th career Major appearance l Becomes the 58th American winner of the US Open in 117 editions of the event l At 16-under par, ties Rory McIlroy (2011) as the lowest 72hole winning score in the history of the US Open l His four-shot winning margin is the biggest in the US Open since Martin Kaymer’s eightshot victory at Pinehurst in 2014 l His 67 on Sunday was the lowest final round by a US Open winner since Tiger Woods in 2000 at Pebble Beach l Moved to 10th place in the Official World Golf Ranking l Wins in his fifth appearance at the US Open, beating a previous best finish of tied fourth in 2014 at Pinehurst PRIZE MONEY WON US$ 2.16 million (Rs 13.9 crore)

On the PGA Tour

TOUR SNIPPETS

A MAJOR WITHOUT WOODS, MICKELSON With Phil Mickelson’s withdrawal from the US Open and Tiger Woods’ continued battle with injuries, which left him on the sideline, the tournament held at Erin Hills in Wisconsin became the first Major championship since the 1994 Masters Tournament that didn’t feature either Phil Mickelson or Tiger Woods.

Woods has missed several Majors since 2008, as he’s dealt with physical issues with his knee and back. Woods missed the Masters in 2014 and again this year. He didn’t play in the 2011 and 2014 US Opens, while also missing The Open Championship in those same years. He didn’t play in The Open Championship and PGA Championship in 2008, either. wMickelson has played in 98 Major championships in his career, and between the 1994 US Open and this year’s Masters, Mickelson had played in 91 of 92 Majors,

ALFA ROMEO BECOMES PRESIDENTS CUP GLOBAL PARTNER The PGA Tour recently announced that Italian automotive brand Alfa Romeo has become the third global partner of the Presidents Cup, joining Citi and Rolex. Alfa Romeo will be prominently represented when the biennial competition resumes the week of September 26-October 1 at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, New Jersey. The partnership will showcase Alfa Romeo’s series of new-model launches, including the all-new Alfa Romeo Stelvio, which will mark its arrival in the US this year, and the all-new Alfa Romeo Giulia. Also featured as part of the Alfa Romeo line-up will be the Alfa Romeo 4C Coupe and 4C Spider.

“We are very excited to welcome such an iconic global brand as a new global partner of the Presidents Cup,” said Charlie Zink, chairman of the Presidents Cup. “Alfa Romeo’s reputation for excellence, innovation and its distinguished history in auto racing make it an ideal fit for a premier international team event featuring the best golfers in the world. Alfa Romeo is seeing increasing presence on a global stage and we couldn’t be more thrilled that they have selected the Presidents Cup as a premier partner in the positioning and evolution of their momentous brand.”

only missing the 2009 Open Championship during that period. Woods is second all time, with 15 Major championships won, including three US Open victories (2000, 2005 and 2006). Mickelson has won five Majors in his career — a US Open title, the one Major that has eluded him.

GOLF EXTENDED THROUGH 2024 OLYMPIC GAMES

Golf, which made its return to the Summer Olympics in 2016 with a successful competition won by England’s Justin Rose and South Korea’s Inbee Park, was guaranteed at least two opportunities to hold a competition. Now, a third is assured.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board on June 9 approved that all 28 sports from the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, will return in 2024.

In 2016, golf once again became an official Olympic sport, the first time since 1904.

Golf was already on the 2020 program of sports for the Tokyo Games in Japan, but questions remained about the viability of the sport beyond 2020 — especially considering the numerous withdrawal from the competition of top players on the men’s side.

In September, the IOC Executive Board will select cities to host the 2024 and 2028 Summer Games.

In a statement from the International Golf Federation, the IGF stated it “is gratified to learn of the IOC Executive Board’s decision recommending all 28 sports on the programme for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games will remain on the programme in 2024. We look forward to learning the outcome of the final vote at the IOC Session in September. We were always confident that golf would deliver exciting men’s and women’s competitions in Rio de Janeiro and even at that, it exceeded our expectations. Now, we are excited to build upon the success from last year as we prepare for the 2020 Games in Tokyo and, hopefully, beyond.” july 2017 | golf digest india

73

On the PGA Tour

Web.com Tour Adds Two New Events in 2018 North Mississippi Classic & Savannah Golf Championship To Be Played In New Season

Country Club of Oxford

T

he North Mississippi Classic, which will be played at the Country Club of Oxford, will be held the week of April 16-22, while the Savannah Golf Championship in Savannah, Ga., will be played three weeks earlier. Both tournaments will feature 156-player fields and $550,000 purses. The Savannah event is guaranteed for five years, while the Mississippi deal is for three years.

Web.com Tour President Dan Glod spoke about the addition of the tournaments, knowing the Web.com Tour has a rich history in both Mississippi and Georgia.

“We are excited to bring the North Mississippi Classic to Oxford as we continue to grow the Web.com Tour with new events in strong markets,” said Glod. “This community has demonstrated a passion for golf. We are confident this partnership will allow us to engage fans, volunteers and local businesses as we look to cement our roots in North Mississippi and increase our charitable impact.”

Speaking about the new event in Savannah, Glod added, “We believe in this market. This is a vibrant city that has a strong passion and history with the game of golf, and we look forward to working with the community and local businesses to grow this tournament on and off the course.”

The North Mississippi Classic will be the third PGA Tour-sanctioned event to be held in Mississippi after Sanderson Farms Championship and the Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic on PGA Tour Champions.

Georgia already hosts two PGA Tour tournaments—the Masters (Augusta) and the Tour Championship (Atlanta) and the PGA Tour Champions’ Mitsubishi Electric Classic

74 golf digest india | july 2017

Savannah Golf Club in Georgia (Duluth). Mississippi and Georgia are among the five states to host an annual tournament on all three Tours, with California, Florida and North Carolina the others.

The event will be managed by Century Club Charities, an organization that manages the Sanderson Farms Championship.

Since 1994, the group has donated more than $14 million to charity, thanks to the PGA Tour tournament.

“Century Club Charities looks forward to

“WE BELIEVE IN THIS MARKET. IT HAS A STRONG PASSION AND HISTORY WITH THE GAME OF GOLF, AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH THE COMMUNITY AND LOCAL BUSINESSES TO GROW THIS TOURNAMENT...”

— WEB.COM TOUR PRESIDENT DAN GLOD

hosting another great professional tournament, which will allow us to again showcase Mississippi hospitality to some of the best golfers in the world – all while raising much needed money for a variety of deserving charities,” said Hubbard.

The Web.com Tour returns to Mississippi after a successful 10-year run with the Gulf Coast Mississippi Classic from 1990 through 2000 (tournament was not played in 1998). The event, which was contested in Gulfport, Miss., produced an impressive list of winners, including Major champions Tom Lehman (1991) and Jim Furyk (1993).

The Country Club of Oxford is a 2006 Jim Fazio design that sits just minutes south of the city on some of the most undulating terrain in the region. The 7,000-yard course is one of the home courses of the University of Mississippi golf teams, which annually produce some of the top players in the Southeastern Conference, including recent NCAA Individual champion Braden Thornberry.

The Landings Club, located just 20 minutes from historic downtown Savannah, is a 4,500-acre private community with over 8,500 residents and six golf courses, with all six courses designated as Audubon Cooperative Sanctuaries by Audubon International. Deer Creek was originally built by Tom Fazio in 1991, with the famed architect returning in 2009 to modernize the course via an expansive restoration.

With 50 available PGA Tour cards for the following season (since 2013), the Web.com Tour is The Path to the PGA Tour. Twentyfive Tour cards are reserved for the leading money winners at the end of the 22-event Regular Season.

© 2017 PGATOUR, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PLAYER APPEARANCE SUBJECT TO CHANGE.

FOR PRIDE. FOR TEAM. FOR THE CUP. TICKETS AT PRESIDENTSCUP.COM LIMITED AVAILABILITY. SEPT 26 - OCT 1 | JERSEY CITY, NJ

On the European Tour

TOUR SNIPPETS

Spain’s Allvaro Quiros with the Rocco Forte Open trophy

Quiros back in winners’ circle in Sicily

Alvaro Quiros defeated Zander Lombard in a play-off to cap a stunning return to form and win his seventh European Tour title at The Rocco Forte Open - Verdura, Sicily.

The Spaniard’s last win came in 2011 and he had dropped to 703rd in the Official World Golf Ranking and lost his playing privileges since, deciding to focus on the Challenge Tour in 2017.

A brilliant week in Italy, however, means he is now back on the European Tour and will move into the top 250 in the world after a par on the second trip back up the last handed him victory.

STUNNING FINISH GIVES NOREN WENTWORTH GLORY

Hideki Matsuyama of Japan

Matsuyama announced for Dubai Duty Free Irish Open Hideki Matsuyama will make his first appearance at a regular European Tour tournament when the Japanese superstar tees it up at the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open hosted by the Rory Foundation from July 6-9.

The 25-year-old has become one of the hottest properties in the game thanks to his scintillating form since May of last year which has yielded three victories on the US PGA Tour, including at the WGC-HSBC Champions in Shanghai, and two runner-up finishes.

The Dubai Duty Free Irish Open, the third Rolex Series event of the 2017 Race to Dubai, will feature a record $7 million prize fund when it takes places at Portstewart Golf Club for the first time this year.

Matsuyama’s maiden appearance at the island of Ireland’s national championship - alongside a plethora of the game’s biggest names such as McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Justin Rose, Tyrrell Hatton, Danny Willett and many more - provides another significant boost to what is already expected to be the biggest in the tournament’s long history.

76 golf digest india | july 2017

MATSUYAMA HAS BECOME ONE OF THE HOTTEST PROPERTIES IN THE GAME THANKS TO HIS SCINTILLATING FORM SINCE MAY OF LAST YEAR WHICH HAS YIELDED THREE VICTORIES ON THE US PGA TOUR, INCLUDING AT THE WGC-HSBC CHAMPIONS

Alex Noren won the first ever Rolex Series event as a stunning closing 62 handed him a 2-shot victory at the BMW PGA Championship.

The Swede entered Sunday seven shots off the lead but eight birdies in his first 16 holes had him in a tie for top spot before he produced one of the great moments on Wentworth Club’s famous 18th.

He put his second shot to 6 feet to send the bumper crowd into raptures and the resulting eagle putt handed him a 2-shot lead and piled the pressure on the chasing pack.

After three days of glorious sunshine on the revamped West Course, heavy rain began to fall as the final groups made the turn and nobody could stop Noren claiming an ultimately convincing ninth European Tour victory.

Italy’s Francesco Molinari had a birdie-birdie finish to emerge as the closest challenger, with Open champion Henrik Stenson, Belgian Nicolas Colsaerts and Japanese Hideto Tanihara finishing at 8-under.

Sweden’s Alex Noren celebrates his BMW PGA Championship victory

On the European Tour Sergio Garcia celebrates his US Masters win

PARATORE HOLDS NERVE TO WIN MAIDEN TITLE IN SWEDEN

Garcia named Hilton European Tour Golfer of the Month for April

Sergio Garcia has been named as the Hilton European Tour Golfer of the Month for his Masters Tournament heroics, having overcome Justin Rose in a play-off at Augusta National to claim his maiden Major title.

The Spanish sensation was a hugely popular winner as he earned the coveted Green Jacket, becoming just the third player from his home country to do so – following Seve Ballesteros (1980 and 1984) and José María Olazábal (1994 and 1999).

Fittingly, Garcia’s triumph came on the day that his idol Ballesteros would have turned 60, adding another dimension of sentiment to an already emotion-tinged day as the 37-year-old banished the demons of previous missed opportunities at golf’s big four.

Garcia will receive 50,000 Hilton Honours points after winning the Hilton European Tour Golfer of the Month award for February and with it, and an upgrade to Hilton Honours Diamond Elite status.

“I AM HONOURED TO BE NAMED AS THE HILTON EUROPEAN TOUR GOLFER OF THE MONTH. IT HAS BEEN SUCH A MEMORABLE TIME OF MY LIFE SINCE THE MASTERS VICTORY AND HOPEFULLY I CAN REPEAT IT MANY TIMES OVER.” — SERGIO GARCIA

Renato Paratore won his first European Tour title as he held off the challenge of Chris Wood and Matthew Fitzpatrick to claim the Nordea Masters at Barsebäck Golf and Country Club.

The Italian entered the final day a shot behind Wood and showed real guts to save par on the last three holes and sign for a 70 and an 11-under par total, leaving the Englishman needing a par up the last to set up a play-off.

With the 20-year-old looking on from the clubhouse, Wood hit a ragged tee-shot into the trees and recorded a bogey as Paratore became the youngest winner on Tour since countryman and GolfSixes partner Matteo Manassero won the BMW PGA Championship in 2013.

Paratore was part of a triumphant European Team that lifted the Sir Michael Bonallack Trophy in 2014 at the Karnataka Golf Association course in Bengaluru.

CHINA TOUR ANNOUNCES NEW STRUCTURE The new 2017 China Tour season, the burgeoning tour’s fourth campaign, teed off last month at St Andrews Henan Open.

A total of 133 players from over 16 different countries were vying for the prize purse of RMB1.35million (approximately US$200,000).

The official press conference of the St Andrews Henan Open took place at the host venue on Wednesday morning, with officials announcing the tournament schedule for the year as well as other Tour-related matters.

That included what the organization had set out to accomplish at the beginning, the China Tour will continue to provide a professional, fair and impartial platform for all budding golfers in the region.

Officials present at the press conference included Wang Liwei, Vice-President of the China Golf Association, Pang Zheng, Director of the European Tour’s China office Simon Leach, Fan Zhiqiang, as well as the Order of Merit champion Zhang Huilin and three-time

champion Josh Geary of New Zealand.

“We hope this developed platform will provide a base for the players to grow their game and propel into the world stage. The China Tour enjoyed a face lift in 2017 and this shows how determined our government wants to reform the Sports industry in China,” said Wang.

European Tour Director for China Simon

Leach thanked the CGA for inviting him to the press conference. “The European Tour has always maintained a good partnership with the CGA and I hope the partnership will continue to grow in the long term,” said Leach. “I believe China will be the core of professional golf in the future.”

july 2017 | golf digest india

77

On the European Tour

Henrik Stenson presented with the Seve Ballesteros Award

H

enrik Stenson was officially presented with the recently renamed Seve Ballesteros Award during the Championship Reception at this year’s first Rolex Series event on the European Tour – the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth Club.

Javier Ballesteros, Seve’s eldest child, along with European Tour Chief Executive Keith Pelley presented the Swede with the award, which is voted for by every European Tour Member at the end of a season and now carries the name of the legendary Spaniard.

Stenson was the overwhelming winner of the 2016 vote by his fellow professionals at the end of a season which saw him claim his first Major title in The Open Championship at Royal Troon, as well as winning the Race to Dubai for the second time in four seasons.

“It’s very special to receive an award that is voted from your peers and your colleagues, and to have it named The Seve Ballesteros Award from here on, I think that is something very special because he was an inspiration to anyone who played the game of golf, especially us Europeans,” said Stenson.

“I’ve met Javier before and I think the

Henrik Stenson (C) receives his prize from European Tour CEO Keith Pelley (R)

THE PLATE ALSO HAS NAMES OF ALL PREVIOUS WINNERS OF THE PLAYERS’ PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD INSCRIBED ON IT, THOSE BEING: PADRAIG HARRINGTON (2008), LEE WESTWOOD (2009), MARTIN KAYMER (2010), RORY MCILROY (2011, 2014 AND 2015), LUKE DONALD (2012), AND STENSON IN 2013.

Ballesteros family knows how much everyone here at the European Tour appreciated what Seve did for European golf.”

The Seve Ballesteros Award – a glittering silver and gold circular plate 46cm in diameter – has the names of all the European Tour members who have won Major Championships, starting with Seve’s own Open triumph at Royal Lytham & St Annes in 1979, inscribed around the central image which is of his famous fist-pumping celebrations on the 18th green of the Old Course at St Andrews after his Open win there in 1984.

Sam Torrance awarded Honorary Life Membership of the European Tour

S

am Torrance has been recognised for his record-breaking European Tour career and Ryder Cup heroics by becoming the latest addition to the exclusive group of Honorary Life Members of the European Tour.

Torrance’s significant contribution to all aspects of the Tour and Ryder Cup was recognised during the Championship Re c e p t i o n f o r t h e B M W Championship when he was presented with the accolade by European Tour Chairman David Williams.

Torrance said: “It’s fantastic. It’s been my whole life. I should really be honouring the European Tour for giving me such an arena to play golf. What a life. It has been so rewarding – the people I’ve met, the places, I’ve been. What a journey.

“The Ryder Cup captaincy was definitely the highlight of my career but I’ve many memo-

ries. I won the Australian PGA in 1980, which to this day is still my biggest win. I played with Seve the last two rounds. Seve finished second, Greg Norman finished third. I beat the pair of them and when I came off the last green, Seve said, “hey Sam, you’re very tough to beat”.

“For someone as legendary as that to say that to me, it gave me so much confidence. Up to that point I’d only won twice and hadn’t played in The Ryder Cup yet. I went on to win a few and play in a few Ryder Cups and a lot was down to that great man.”

David Williams said: “Sam has had the most extraordinary golf career and the most extraordinary life. In 29 years, the European Tour has only awarded the Honorary Life Membership to 52 players such is the prestige of it. It is truly a roll call of golfing honour and such a privilege to present this award to him.”

Having turned professional

78 golf digest india | july 2017

IT IS TORRANCE’S RYDER CUP CAREER FOR WHICH HE IS MOST REVERED, PLAYING IN 8 SUCCESSIVE CONTESTS BETWEEN 1981 & 1995 AND BEING ON THE WINNING SIDE ON 3 OCCASIONS in 1970, Torrance made his official European Tour debut in the Tour’s first event two years later, the Spanish Open at Pals in Girona in April 1972. In total the

63-year-old Scot went on to play 706 events which, to this day, remains a European Tour record.

In total he won 21 times on Tour between 1976 and 1998.

On the European Tour

FITNESS

BUILDING STRONG AND STABLE SHOULDERS

The shoulders are often an overlooked area of the body in golfer’s training. However they play a major part in the golf swing and are a very commonly injured area of the body in golfers. There are a huge number of exercises that can help to develop strength and stability of the shoulders and reduce your risk of many types of injuries. This week we will look at one particular exercise called the ‘alternate arm plank push up’.

How it benefits your body

The shoulder girdle is an extremely complex area of the body, that includes the shoulder joint, scapula, collar bone and all of the attachments of these areas to each other and the thorax at the front and back of the body. It is extremely mobile enabling a large range of movement that aids us in performing activities such as the golf swing. However it gains this mobility at the sacrifice of stability. The stability of the shoulder girdle is aided hugely by a large number of muscles and the way that these muscles work together during movements of the arm/shoulder. Getting strong and stable in the shoulders will help you in performing many different sports and

general day to day life whilst helping to prevent many common injuries.

How it benefits your golf game

Each shoulder has to work in very different ways during the golf swing but both require huge amounts of mobility & needs stability and strength in order to do these completed movements quickly and safely. This exercise helps to develop these qualities whilst at the same time works the trunk/core and the shoulder girdle also has to work hard to resist and control rotational forces during the single arm push up and drop down.

Position 1

Position 3

Position 2

Position 4

HOW TO DO AN ‘ALTERNATE ARM PLANK PUSH UP’ 1 2 3

For beginners the start position can be a kneeling plank, resting on the knees and the forearms. Once you have mastered the exercise from the kneeling plank (or are already at a level to try it straight away) move into the full plank position on forearms and toes (as shown in the photo).

To make it easier try starting with your feet further apart.

Make sure you keep a neutral strong spine and hip position throughout this exercise (avoid sagging of the hips towards the floor).

To begin the exercise start by placing one palm on the floor and push up through that arm until straight and then place the other palm on the floor and straighten the second arm. Then with the first arm drop back down onto the forearm and then do the same with the second arm.

4

Repeat between 5-10 times for each set for 4 sets.

Remember to swap which side goes first each time on each set to alternate the effort on each side.

Text: Nigel Tilley, Rob Hillman European Tour Performance Institute & Physio Unit july 2017 | golf digest india

79

On the European Tour

Interpreting the drop rule for vulnerable bunkers

T

he West Course at Wentworth Club, the venue for the recent BMW PGA Championship had recently undergone a complete revamp with several changes including the removal of several bunkers and the rebuilding of almost all others.

As with many things these days, evolution of new bunker lining materials were used to maximise drainage whilst preventing stones rising through the sand.

With some perfect weather conditions leading up to the Championship, the firm fast conditions which were wanted by many came to pass, but perhaps a slight side effect was the propensity for balls entering some of these redeveloped bunkers to stay exactly where they landed in the sand and giving the players the chance for showing their skills of extricating their golf balls from an embedded lie.

During the first round and whilst challenging the top of the leaderboard, Branden Grace from South Africa found himself in just one of those lies in the lip of the bunker on the 13th hole. Only the top third of the ball lay above the surface of the sand and with the challenge of having to carry another bunker before reaching the putting surface, the commentators were suggesting that he was in great danger of double-bogeying the hole and coming off the leaderboard.

THE REFEREE’S VIEW John Paramor

THE REFEREE CORRECTLY INFORMED BRANDEN THAT HE WAS STANDING ON AN IMMOVABLE OBSTRUCTION AND HE COULD DROP HIS BALL WITHIN ONE CLUB-LENGTH OF THE NEAREST POINT OF RELIEF.

Jumeirah to host yearend event until 2020

J

umeirah Golf Estates has extended its position as host venue of the prestigious season-ending DP World Tour Championship, Dubai, further strengthening its long standing relationship with the European Tour until 2020.

News of the extension coincides with DP World’s commitment as title sponsor to the tournament, also until 2020, with the top 60 European Tour players set to tee it up at Jumeriah Golf Estates for the ninth time this year from November 16-19.

The Earth course at Jumeirah Golf Estates, a member of the European Tour Properties network and branded as a European Tour Destination, has been the permanent home of the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai for the last eight years and is a fitting finale for the concluding Rolex Series event of the season with a prize purse of US$8million.

Past champions include Lee Westwood (2009), Robert Karlsson (2010), Alvaro Quiros (2011), Rory McIlroy (2012 & 2015), Henrik Stenson (2013 & 2014) and defending champion Matthew Fitzpatrick.

Speaking about the association Keith Pelley, Chief Executive of the European Tour, said: “Jumeirah Golf Estates is a world class golfing facility and this new commitment will help us further develop a tournament fitting not only for the final Rolex Series event of the season, but also the climax of the Race to Dubai.”

80 golf digest india | july 2017

It was clear he would need a sure and firm stance in order to give the shot the necessary force to get it to the hole and he set about doing just that. The right foot was stable and he then started to wriggle his left foot into position. It was during this process that he lifted his foot, looked closely at what he had uncovered and requested the presence of a Rules Official.

He had exposed the rubberised lining compound and as this was where his left foot was going to be placed, claiming that he may have interference with something that would allow him to move his ball.

The Referee correctly informed him that he was standing on an immovable obstruction and he could drop his ball within one club-length of the nearest point of relief.

The player then asked if he could take his previous foot prints in the sand.

The Referee said yes but agreed later that the raking of those footprints could well have been on his line of play and, on reflection, should not have allowed the raking.

The commentators thought that Branden had been very lucky, but in those circumstances, he was given the correct drop.

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On the Asian Tour

Asian Tour launches Panasonic Swing T

promotion of Asian he Asian Tour golf.” has announced Asian Tour CEO the launch of Josh Burack was the Panasonic Swing delighted to welcome comprising of five Panasonic Corporation tournaments with on board its stable of Panasonic Corporation.

Tour Partners.

Under this new “On behalf of our taland exciting initiative, ented players, I would Panasonic Corporation like to express our will also become the fullest appreciation to Asian Tour’s Official Panasonic Corporation Consumer Electronics, for its great support which reinforces its towards the Asian Tour. support for profesPanasonic is a world sional golf across the leading company, so region. we are honoured to The Panasonic have them come on Swing kicked off with board as one of our the Thailand Open, Tour Partners…,” said which made a welcome Burack. return onto the Asian “Through the Tour schedule, at the Thai golfer Rattanon Wannasrichan clinched the first event of the Panasonic Open Swing Panasonic Swing, we Thai Country Club.

Series - Thailand Open - last month in front of his home supporters are also delighted to Panasonic announce the top local player in each of the Corporation, which is a long-standing four legs in Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia worldwide Olympic Games partner, has and India will gain exemptions into the fisupported professional golf at the highest nale in Japan. This is a wonderful incentive level in Asia through its title sponsorship and motivation for our domestic golfers to of the Panasonic Open India since 2011 and fight for the opportunity to compete in the Panasonic Open Japan, which was launched Panasonic Open Japan every April, which in 2016 and concluded its second edition two will be the Swing finale.” months back.

Indian stalwart Jeev Milkha Singh sang Panasonic Corporation Advertising his praises for Panasonic. He said: “I think Department Groupwide Brand this is a fantastic initiative by Panasonic and Communications Division GM, Tetsurou a great boost for golf in Asia. I would like to Maruyama, said: “Our desire is spreading the PANASONIC CORPORATION thank Panasonic for their massive support passion and emotion throughout the world for golf in Asia, especially on the Asian Tour. via sports. And by doing that, we would “Having these 5 tournaments and a bolike to realize the better life and the better nus pool, I think we can’t be more grateful society. Such desire leads to the Olympic “We are pleased to introduce the new than we already are to Panasonic. I am sure Partnership for more than 25 years, holding programme named Panasonic Swing, this will also add a lot of flavor and excitemany corporate sports clubs and sponsoring hand in hand with the Asian Tour, which ment to the five events,” Jeev said. sports events. is filled with our desire to contribute to the

“WE ARE PLEASED TO INTRODUCE THE NEW PROGRAMME NAMED PANASONIC SWING, HAND IN HAND WITH THE ASIAN TOUR, WHICH IS FILLED WITH OUR DESIRE TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE PROMOTION OF ASIAN GOLF.” — TETSUROU MARUYAMA,

KEY DETAILS: • The Panasonic Swing will feature five tournaments – 2017 Thailand Open (May 18-21), 2017 Panasonic Open India (November 2-5), one Asian Tour sanctioned event in Malaysia and Indonesia in 2017 and 2018 Panasonic Open Japan; • The Panasonic Swing ranking will be based on an aggregate points ranking earned by players at the five tournaments; • The top-three finishers in the Panasonic Swing final ranking, which culminates with the 2018 Panasonic Open Japan, will earn US$70,000, US$50,000 and US$30,000 respectively via a bonus pool reward scheme; • The winner of the Panasonic Swing will gain an exemption into one designated European Tour tournament in 2018; • The top local finisher at the designated legs in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and India will qualify for the Panasonic Swing finale in Japan.

82 golf digest india | july 2017

Points will be awarded as follows: POS

2017 SWING EVENTS

PANASONIC OPEN JAPAN 2018

1.

1800

2700

2.

1100

1650

3.

630

945

4.

500

750

5.

410

615

6.

330

495

7.

286

429

8.

246

369

9.

214

321

10.

192

288

On the Asian Tour

Jazz Janewattananond enjoys the moment after winning the Basundhara Bangladesh Open

MY WINNING REFLECTION

BY JAZZ JANEWATTANANOND

A

f t e r t h e 2 0 1 6 s e a s o n , Ja z z Janewattananond faced uncertainty when he lost his Asian Tour card. But when the moment presented itself, the young Thai seized the moment and cruised to a stylish victory at the Bashundhara Bangladesh Open.

In this latest segment of My Winning Reflection, Jazz reflects on a difficult 2016 season and how he bounced back and claimed his maiden Asian Tour title.

I have been waiting for this win for so long. I started playing on the Asian Tour when I was an amateur at 14 so it’s just a huge relief that I managed to get the job done.

I lost my Tour card for the first time in my career last season and I didn’t make the mark at Qualifying School too so you can imagine how much this victory means to me because now I have a winner’s exemption and a trophy to show for it.

A lot of things were going through my

head walking down the 18th hole. I was just chatting with my caddy and we were talking about how to celebrate but we didn’t do anything as planned in the end. It was kind of funny.

in contention, you need to handle the pressure and those setbacks helped me.

I had a four-shot lead heading into the final 18 holes and honestly I didn’t get much sleep last night. I didn’t feel comfortable before the final round. I think this is the longest 18 holes that I’ve played in my life!

I’m just happy I finished it and had my parents with me to celebrate my victory.

I played on a similar course like this at the Delhi Golf Club in India last December. I had a good start to the week but suffered a meltdown on the last day. I got a huge crowd following me that week too. I guess that experience has helped me. I didn’t feel as nervous when the local crowd followed Sididikur.

You can’t be nervous when you are leading into the final round. Siddikur, the home favourite, had the home course advantage so I just did my best. I was just hoping for a solid round. I am very happy I shot a four-underpar 67. It was really a solid round. Everything was good and I made peace with pressure.

I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS WIN FOR SO LONG. I STARTED PLAYING ON THE ASIAN TOUR WHEN I WAS AN AMATEUR AT 14... I LOST MY TOUR CARD FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY CAREER LAST SEASON AND I DIDN’T MAKE THE MARK AT QUALIFYING SCHOOL TOO SO YOU CAN IMAGINE HOW MUCH THIS VICTORY MEANS TO ME” I have been in the lead before but not able to get the job done. I am glad I finally did it because the last time I was in contention in India, I shot a seven-over on the last day. I also lost in the play-off in an ADT event in Thailand last December too.

I accepted all my defeats. I wasn’t disappointed because I know my chance will come and it did in Bangladesh. When you are

july 2017 | golf digest india

83

On the Asian Tour

Thai Warriors Set For Green Domination

BY CHUAH CHOO CHIANG

Phachara Khongwatmai

Danthai Boonma

Jazz Janewattananond

Rattanon Wannasrichan

sia’s reservoir of golfing talent continues to grow deeper with the exciting emergence of new and young rising stars.

At a time when iconic Asian Tour legends such as K.J. Choi, Jeev Milkha Singh, Thongchai Jaidee and Y.E. Yang, are tipping the opposite end of the golfing scale by hitting past their mid-40s age mark, a bunch of fearless young guns have since emerged to ensure more exciting days ahead for Asian golf.

The latest spark to hit the Asian Tour scene in a big way is Rattanon Wannasrichan, a 22-year-old who claimed a stunning start-to-finish victory at the Thailand Open, which made a welcome return onto the Asian Tour Schedule following an eight-year lapse.

Baby-faced Rattanon upstaged a top field at the Thai Country Club which included reigning Asian Tour No. 1 Scott Hend and 2013 Order of Merit champion Kiradech Aphibarnrat to secure his career breakthrough.

His rise isn’t quite a total surprise. As an amateur, Rattanon showed glimpses of his potential by winning the Southeast Asian Games ‘double’ when he bagged the individual and team gold medals in 2011.

He turned professional soon

after in the following year, and cut his teeth on the domestic Thai circuit and Asian Development Tour in which he won the 2015 Taifong Open against several of Chinese Taipei’s leading stars including Lu Wei-chih and Chan Shih-chang.

Rattanon’s learning curve maintained its positive trend when he finished 60th on the Order of Merit, thanks to top-10s in the Shinhan Donghae Open in Korea and Venetian Macao Open to earn the last and final full Tour card for 2017.

Two top-five finishes in Bangladesh and Chinese Taipei early this season provided the prelude to his Thai Open triumph in which he raced to a glorious home win with his 21-under-par 263 aggregate after opening with a flying 62.

He averaged only 24 putts per round that week.

“I have waited five years for this win. I am really proud of myself. I finally proved that I

can do it,” said Rattanon. “I’m no longer afraid of anyone after the win. I’m feeling confident.”

He joined fellow youngsters Jazz Janewattananond, 21, Danthai Boonma, also 21, and 23-year- old Natipong Sritong in the exclusive Asian Tour champions club which prompted experienced Indian Shiv Kapur, who finished second to Rattanon, to marvel at the rise of the Thai kids.

“There’s just a big bunch of young kids coming up from Thailand and India especially,” said the double Asian Tour winner. In addition, 18-year-old Phachara Khongwatmai was ranked an impressive third on the Asian Tour’s Order of Merit at the time of writing following two runner-up finishes in the SMBC Singapore Open, which featured Adam Scott and Sergio Garcia, and the ISPS HANDA World Super 6 Perth.

Aw ay f r o m T h a i l a n d , Chikkaranggapa S. and

Shubhankar Sharma, both in their early 20s, are only a couple of promising prospects tipped to carry India’s flag on the international front over the next decade or so. Former Asian Tour No. 1 Anirban Lahiri, who turned 30 at the end of June, is now at the prime of his career and plying his trade full time on the PGA Tour which is bound to make him a better golfer.

Young blood continue to flow in the veins of Korea’s Jeunghun Wang, who is already a threetime European Tour champion and he’s still only 21! Filipino hopes will rest squarely on the shoulders of 22-year-old Miguel Tabuena, who has won once on the Asian Tour.

Long-hitting Gavin Green, 23, is Malaysia’s new hope, with two runner-up finishes in India and Chinese Taipei this season pushing him into the top-five of the Order of Merit.

Of course, Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama remains as the region’s shining light. At 25, he has already won four times on the PGA Tour, including this season’s Phoenix Open.

With five top-10s in the Majors, Matsuyama will certainly drive the inspiration for the likes of Rattanon and company to shoot for the stars.

A

THE LATEST SPARK TO HIT THE ASIAN TOUR SCENE IN A BIG WAY IS RATTANON WANNASRICHAN, A 22-YEAR-OLD WHO WON THE THAILAND OPEN. HE JOINED FELLOW YOUNGSTERS JAZZ JANEWATTANANOND, 21, DANTHAI BOONMA, ALSO 21, AND 23-YEAR-OLD NATIPONG SRITONG IN THE EXCLUSIVE ASIAN TOUR CHAMPIONS CLUB

84 golf digest india | july 2017

(The writer is Director, Communications at Asian Tour) Images: Asian Tour

On the Asian Tour

A Bright Future Ahead!

BY JOSH BURACK The 2017 season has been very eventful so far!

There have been many exciting developments behind the scenes on the Tour and the front lines in our tournaments.

In my last column, we welcomed Panasonic as a new Tour Partner and launched the Panasonic Swing at the Thailand Open. The tournament was won by 21-year old Thai Rattanon Wannasrichan who clinched his National Open with a cool-headed final round 67 to finish 21-under-par for the tournament and win by two shots.

Rattanon fended off a gallant effort by India’s Shiv Kapur who hit 10 birdies in a final round charge of 63.

Then the following week, another talented Thai - Sutijet Kooratanapisan wrote a slice of history when he shot the first ever 59 on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) at the Singha Phuket Open.

No player has ever shot a 59 on either the ADT or on the Asian Tour, so it was apt that we’ve nicknamed Sutijet – “Mr. 59”. It wasn’t an easy feat but hopefully we see more of our members shooting low numbers in future tournaments!

By the time you are reading this, the Queen’s Cup would have concluded. The prestigious event returned on our schedule for the ninth edition with a record prize purse of US$500,000!

In March, we announced our return into China through a Strategic Partnership with the China Golf Association (CGA) and I’m pleased to inform the readers that we are close to staging an Asian Tour tournament in the country. We are getting excited to return to China and this good news can’t come soon enough to make 2017 even better!

During the middle of May, I

NO PLAYER HAS EVER SHOT A 59 ON EITHER THE ADT OR ON THE ASIAN TOUR, SO IT WAS APT THAT WE’VE NICKNAMED SUTIJET – “MR. 59”. IT WASN’T AN EASY FEAT BUT HOPEFULLY WE SEE MORE OF OUR MEMBERS SHOOTING LOW NUMBERS IN FUTURE TOURNAMENTS! had the opportunity to attend the BMW PGA Championship in Wentworth where we conducted a series of productive meetings with the European Tour and Sunshine Tour. You can expect us to make another tournament announcement soon.

Jeff Kimble recently joined us as our new Commercial Director. Working in tandem with our strategic alliance partners at the European Tour, we are in the midst of re-shaping our commercial program with the ambition to attract more sponsors to further expand the Asian Tour and ADT schedules.

Asian golf has huge potential to attract new partners who share our goal to grow the game across the region.

Following all of the recent developments, there is a lot of positive energy on the Asian Tour. I’m proud to be working together with a such an enthusiastic and passionate team, as we constantly strive to best serve the players. We are now gearing up for the back-half of the season. I’m proud to say that nearly every week from August to December is filled with tournaments!

These are very exciting times for the Asian Tour and we greatly appreciate your on-going support.

(The writer is Asian Tour CEO)

DURING THE MIDDLE OF MAY, I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO ATTEND THE BMW PGA CHAMPIONSHIP IN WENTWORTH WHERE WE CONDUCTED A SERIES OF PRODUCTIVE MEETINGS WITH THE EUROPEAN TOUR AND SUNSHINE TOUR.

Thailand’s Sutijet Kooratanapisan shot the first-ever 59 on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) at the Singha Phuket Open

july 2017 | golf digest india

85

On the Asian Tour

On The Web

86 golf digest india | july 2017

This section showcases the social media initiatives undertaken by the Asian Tour to connect with the young and urban golf aficionados

Images: Asian Tour

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AT TITU D E

TE NACIT Y .

TR I U M P H

#whereitsAT

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THE NEWSERGIO

the open • 2017

gutter credit tk

AT 37, THERE ARE CHANGES IN HIS LIFE AND HIS GOLF by jaime diaz

Photograph by First Lastname

gutter credit tk

Photograph by First Lastname

month 2017 Photograph

by J.D. Cuban 89 | golfdigest.com

‘E

volved ’ is not a word that had been associated with Sergio Garcia, but it was just such a golfer who won the Masters. After rallying in regulation before defeating Justin Rose in sudden death, the Spaniard was asked what he was more proud of, the character he’d demonstrated or his actual shots—which just happened to be the best of his life. ▶ “Definitely the character,” Garcia said with quick conviction. Of course, after months of coming to a belated understanding of how one can cause the other, the green jacket he was wearing offered the final proof.

90 golf digest india | july 2017

And now, with the heart of the golf season upon us, the question remains: Was Augusta an isolated sweet spot in time that will go down as the biggest achievement of a remarkable career, or something deeper and fundamental enough to make him a historic player?

If it’s the former, Garcia will fall under that intriguing and rare category of supremely gifted player whose lone masterpiece only intensified the prolonged tease of all his flawed majors. Someone like the embattled Tom Weiskopf, whose tour de force at Troon in 1973 contrasted cruelly with 11 other top-fives in majors, including five seconds. At the moment, Garcia has 12 other top-fives in majors, including four runnerup finishes (see chart).

But if it’s the latter, Garcia will fulfill the destiny that seemed clear even before he scissor-kicked up the hill of Medinah’s 16th fairway at his first runner-up finish, the 1999 PGA Championship. Says sport psychologist Bob Rotella: “If Sergio’s actually learned how to put things behind him and just play, and it wasn’t just a one-week thing, he’s going to win a lot of tournaments.” Instructor David Leadbetter, who still remembers how the sound of the skinny 15-year-old’s shots

Briton #008 we wish had won the Open Championship.

Garcia: Dom Furore (leFt), J.D. cuban (above) • DaviD boWie: michael ochs archives/Getty imaGes • cl aret JuG: DaviD cannon/allsport/Getty imaGes

caught his attention, says, “Now I would expect him to win two or three more majors.”

Historically, only two players in the modern era have ever compiled multiple majors after capturing the first at 37 or later: Angel Cabrera, who won the first of two at that age, and Mark O’Meara, who won two in 1998 at 41. Ben Hogan, who won nine majors, got his first at 34. Phil Mickelson, winner of five, was 33 when he broke through. Vijay Singh, Nick Price and Padraig Harrington, winners of three, were all 35.

Then again, in seemingly every way except for playing in pro events for more than two decades, Garcia is a young 37. No injuries, still nimbly athletic enough to play high-level tennis (including hit-arounds with good friend Rafael Nadal) and soccer (occasionally joining practices with the third-division hometown team CF Borriol, of which he is president). “If I stay healthy,” he says, “I think I can probably play at a good level for another 10 years.”

The increased maturity he demonstrated at the Masters notwithstanding, Garcia also remains a big kid—fond of children, pets like his Pomeranian puppy, Bear, and pranking his friends. Being, as his fiancee, Angela Akins, refers to him, “a goofball.”

“He has a very boyish streak to him,” says Luke Donald, who has been Garcia’s frequent partner in the Ryder Cup, in which Garcia—with a record of 18-9-5—needs only four more points to become the biennial matches’ all-time leader.

“He’s always cracking jokes that you would crack when you were maybe 12 years old,” Donald says. “At the Ryder Cup, he’ll be jumping up on the bed at 6 a.m. and yelling, ‘It’s Ryder Cup week! It’s Ryder Cup week!’

But it’s a quality that draws you to him as well.” Adds longtime European Tour impresario Chubby Chandler: “There’s something about Sergio—a playful energy—that will always stay 19.”

But that was Garcia’s age when he cried in his mother’s arms after shooting 89 in the opening round of the 1999 Open Championship at Carnoustie. Later that year at the World Match Play at Wentworth, Garcia threw his shoe in anger, and then kicked it when his manager retrieved it. By the time Garcia had spit in a cup on a Doral green in 2007, his image had been tainted by sour-grape remarks about his nemesis, Tiger Woods. Spanish journalists would sometimes privately corrupt the nickname of El Niño to “Muy Niño.” (Loose translation: Very much a little boy.)

“Growing up as this childhood prodigy, everything was sort of given to him, and some of that shaped the way he was,” says Donald, who remembers a dinner in 2010 in which Garcia spoke of quitting golf. “And when things didn’t go his way, then he kind of got a

s o m e c l o s e s h av e s

open championship

Sergio Garcia has 23 top-10 finishes in 74 major championships:

finish

year / site

*2 T-2 T-5 T-5 T-5

2007 2014 2005 2006 2016

Carnoustie Royal Liverpool St. Andrews Royal Liverpool Royal Troon

T-6 T-8 T-9 T-9

2015 2002 2001 2011

St. Andrews Muirfield Royal Lytham Royal St. George’s

T-10

2003 Royal St. George’s

masters finish

year / site

1

2017 Augusta National

T-4 8 T-8

2004 Augusta National 2002 Augusta National 2013 Augusta National

u.s. open

*lost pl ayoff to padraig harrington

finish

year / site

pga championship

T-3

2005 Pinehurst No. 2

finish

year / site

4 T-5 T-7

2002 Bethpage Black 2016 Oakmont 2011 Congressional

2 T-2

1999 Medinah No. 3 2008 Oakland Hills

T-10

2009 Bethpage Black

T-3 T-10

2006 Medinah No. 3 2002 Hazeltine National

july 2017 | golf digest india

91

‘MY DAUGHTER TOLD ME, “DAD, YOU CANNOT BE THAT GUY THAT YOU ARE. HE’S NOT READY FOR YOU. DON’T BE TELLING HIM ALL THIS STUFF THAT YOU’VE TOLD US ALL OF OUR LIVES. IT’S LIABLE TO SCARE HIM OFF.” ’ — m a r t y a k i n s / f u t u r e fat h e r - i n - l aw

little bit in his own way. He seemed to feel he was the victim a lot. And was slightly childish at certain times. In a way, his ability made him slower to mature.”

The narrative tended to obscure Garcia’s transcendent talent. Introduced to golf at 3 by his father, Victor, a club pro, Sergio at 15 became the youngest to win the European Amateur. Less than two years later, he won a pro event, the Catalonian Open. In terms of hitting one pure shot after another, Garcia was even more a prodigy than Woods.

“We met for the first time in 1990,” says Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano. “It was a Spanish 10-and-under, only nine holes. I remember he showed up playing golf in a bathing suit, and I think he beat the field by nine shots. He was already playing a different game. As a ball-striker, he is second to none.”

Jose Manuel Lara, a two-time European Tour winner, recalls an exhibition in which Garcia, then 15, played with Seve Ballesteros, Jose Maria Olazabal and Miguel Angel Jimenez. “It was very obvious that he already hit the ball better than the other three,” Lara says. “They knew it, and so did Sergio.”

The gift endures. “The mechanics of Sergio’s downswing are more like Ben Hogan’s than anyone I’ve ever seen,” says former instructor Pete Cowen. “The way he uses his shoulders to apply downward pressure on the ball is what the term compression is all about.”

Keith Sbarbaro of TaylorMade’s tour operation says Garcia “hits everything so good, so naturally, he’s the easiest guy to fit in equipment that I’ve ever worked with. Every year, I just send the new stuff to Spain—driver, woods, irons, even putter and ball—and almost always he puts everything in play.”

On a staff that now includes Dustin Johnson, Jason Day, Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm (not to mention Woods), Sbarbaro says Garcia “is the best when it comes to flushing the ball. It comes out of the middle of the club every time. Anyone on this range will tell you that, especially the young guys. They’ll play with him for the first time and make the same comment: ‘That’s as flush as it gets.’ ” When Ben Crenshaw hosted Garcia and his father at Austin Golf Club the week before this year’s Masters, he got one of his prescient “feelings” about Sergio putting on a green jacket. “Honestly, it was the best ball-

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striking I have ever seen,” said Crenshaw, whose frame of reference and powers of observation are exceeded by few. “The contact, the ball flight, the control, the accuracy, shot after shot, it was so impressive. I mean eerily close to perfect golf.”

Garcia being able to access that gift when it mattered most is what made the Masters poignant and satisfying. Upon seeing fellow players after the victory, Garcia often got a bear hug. McIlroy and Danny Willett admitted being brought to tears by Garcia’s final putt. Says Soren Kjeldsen, who has a professional but not close relationship with Garcia: “It surprised me that I got emotional.

But when you play this game, you know how long the journey can be. And Sergio has been through a lot. He really deserved it.”

W

MORE MAJORS?

ill there be a new Garcia? It will be apparent if Garcia adds to his Hall of Fame-quality career victory totals of 10 on the PGA Tour and 13 on the European Tour. But the measure for him—as it was when he lugged the mantel of Best Player Who Hasn’t Won a Major all the way to 0-73—will continue to be the four Grand Slam events.

Even when he hadn’t won one, they are the events for which Garcia’s game is suited.

The driver is his best club, his combination of length and accuracy placing him among the perennial leaders in strokes gained. “Sergio does what only the straightest drivers do: He returns the shaft plane to the same place it was at address,” Sbarbaro says. “Most tours pros are slightly above the plane. It’s why Phil has never been a straight driver. But Sergio has the talent and the strength to stay low and on top of the ball.”

Garcia’s putter has been his worst club for more than a decade, but it probably hurts him least at majors, where pars have more value. “Sergio as a kid was one of the greatest putters you’ve ever seen,” Fernandez-Castano says. “But by the time he was 17, I was reading interviews where he said his weakest club

was the putter. I believe he talked himself into being a bad putter and lost confidence.

Sometimes the guys who hit the ball closest but don’t see the reward can get negative.”

Cowen, who worked with Garcia on his short game in 2010, found him “a bit fragile” on and around the green. “I suggested he switch to The Claw about five years ago.

He said never; never will do it. But when he could tell himself it was his idea, he made the switch on his own. He’s got a stubborn streak, but that right hand is definitely quieter.”

At this year’s Honda Classic, Sbarbaro suggested Garcia try the same mallet currently used with great success by Day, Johnson and Rahm. Garcia resisted but changed his mind a few weeks later and put it in the bag at the WGC-Match Play, where he lost to Rahm in the third round in his last event before Augusta. At the Masters, he wasn’t brilliant, but he holed out efficiently from short range, and it was just good enough.

Given Augusta’s greens and the occasion, the Masters was a huge step up in Garcia’s three-year progression from bad to mediocre to decent putter.

B

A CHANGE OF HEART

ut for all those strengths in the physical game, where Garcia was singularly ill-suited for winning majors was in his attitude. Lee Trevino’s old maxim, “The good Lord doesn’t give anyone everything,” holds up. With Sergio, the missing piece seemed to be his heart.

Some of it was the discouragement of being flung headlong into the propellers of Tiger’s prolonged prime, a feeling felt by a whole generation of otherwise ambitious players. “My childhood dreams were kind of crushed,” says Adam Scott, “because Tiger was far and above anyone else’s capabilities for a long time.”

But no player, taking into account ability, temperament and expectation, felt the sting as much as Garcia. “It held me back a little bit, there’s no doubt,” he says. “But Tiger was that good. I can think that if he had not been there, I would have won more, but probably Arnold and Gary and Tom Watson could have said the same thing about Jack Nicklaus.”

Perhaps with Woods off the stage, it became more possible for Garcia to realize that most of his problems were self-imposed.

Camilo Villegas, who used to room with Garcia in their early days on tour, said that in down times he would remind his friend, “You’re good, you’re talented, so have a better attitude about this or that and go from there.” Adds Villegas: “Once Sergio accepted all that and said, ‘You know, the hell with it; I don’t care what people think, or what the media says, I’m going to appreciate and be happy,’ he started to make progress.”

As Garcia reflected Sunday night at the Masters, in the few seconds he stayed in a reprise of Crenshaw’s 1995 victory crouch after the winning putt dropped, among his closed-eyed thoughts were “Some of the moments I’ve had here at Augusta that maybe I haven’t enjoyed as much, and how stupid I really was trying to fight against something that you can’t fight.”

T

A NEW FAMILY’S INFLUENCE

he catalyst for such a crucial acknowledgement has been Akins, 31.

The couple met in the fall of 2015 while Akins was at Golf Channel. A former high school basketball star and scholarship golfer at TCU and the University of Texas in her hometown of Austin, she understands competition and the right way to encourage Garcia, which she showed at Augusta while giving him a low five after he missed a 10foot birdie putt to win on the 72nd hole.

“Instead of saying ‘Oh, what a shame; unlucky,’ ” Garcia said, effecting a whiny voice, “she was strong, saying, ‘C’mon, you got this; keep at it. You’re gonna do it.’ It was really nice to see that positivity.”

It’s what flows in torrents from Angela’s father, Marty Akins, a former All-America quarterback at Texas in the early ’70s who became a trial lawyer. In his uncompromising belief in what it takes to be the best, bolstered by a loquaciousness that in college earned him the nickname Jaws, Akins has fed his future son-in-law a steady diet that could be characterized as a parody of the American sports ethic. Except that for Garcia, who over the years has too often and infamously blamed fate and other dark forces for losses, it has been a remedial corrective.

“What I told Angela and my other kids is that if you think you’re good and you think you’re the best and you believe you’re good and believe you’re the best, then you’ll be the best,” Marty says. “That’s how my dad [legendary Texas high school coach Ray Akins, grandfather of NFL quarterback Drew Brees] taught me. I tried to do the same thing with Sergio. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t either send him a text or call him. And tell him that he’s the greatest golfer in the world. That nobody can beat him. And that he’s the best of the best. I keep telling him that every time I see him and every time I talk to him.”

Well, not the first time Marty met Garcia, in March 2016, when Angela brought Garcia to Austin to meet her parents. “No,” Marty says, “because my daughter told me, ‘Dad, you cannot be that guy that you are. He’s not ready for you. Don’t be telling him all this stuff that you’ve told us all of our lives. It’s liable to scare him off.’ So I waited a couple of months.”

Garcia has been charmed and awed by Marty, who has become his tutor in recreational bow target shooting on the Akins’ 1,500-acre ranch.

“Marty is an amazing guy, and he has his way that I can work into my way,” Garcia says. “With the mental stuff, I’ve always done it myself, no sport psychologists, and it’s worked OK. But there were a couple of things here and there that I could have been better at, and friends and family helped me see things by getting through my hard head.

Some weeks my head is going to be calmer and better than others, because we know the ups and downs in this game.”

He remembers the despair that led him to say, after a third-round 75 at the 2012 Masters, “I’m not good enough . . .

I don’t have the thing that I need to have.”

In the time he has known Angela, Garcia has adjusted his self-talk to a blend of Akinsesque optimism and Zen-like acceptance, both accentuating the positive. It was on display at last year’s U.S. Open at Oakmont.

After getting within one stroke of the lead with five holes left before making three bogeys on his way to finishing T-5, Garcia was surprisingly upbeat.

“Obviously, there’s a lot of nerves, but I really enjoyed it,” he said. “I think that I handled it quite well, and unfortunately, came up a little bit short. But I’m still happy with the week.”

Then during the Sunday singles at the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine, Garcia engaged with Phil Mickelson in an incredible match that produced 19 birdies. All even on the final hole, Mickelson made a 25-footer for birdie, and for a brief instant, Garcia, who had a 10-footer that he had expected to be for the win, dropped his head. But in a dramatic reversal from his career pattern, he gutted in the do-or-die putt.

“This is what I live for,” Garcia said. “I love these moments.” Watching on television at home in Spain, Lara said that when the putt dropped, he knew Garcia had become a different golfer. “I don’t think he would have made that putt two years ago,” Lara says. “I believe that was a big moment.”

Four months later, Garcia put on a ballstriking clinic in Dubai, cruising to victory even though he was pressed in the last group

by Henrik Stenson. Something had happened to Garcia, suddenly strong, no longer fragile mentally.

It would all play out on Masters Sunday.

Though at first overcome with emotion, he accepted the victory humbly.

It is Garcia’s new MO. When Woods recently signed with TaylorMade, Garcia rose above past recriminations and tweeted a welcome. After the Masters, Woods offered his own tweet of congratulations.

A few days later, Harrington told an interviewer about his frosty relationship with Garcia, saying that Sergio had been a “sore loser” after Harrington narrowly clipped him at the 2007 Open Championship and the 2008 PGA. But when the two met at McIlroy’s wedding in late April, Harrington praised Garcia for taking the high road and making what could have been an awkward situation “very easy.”

“He was like trying to apologize for something he said,” Garcia said, “and I was like, ‘It’s fine. It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t bother me at all. I respect you. You respect me.

We’re fine.’ You know, he’s a nice guy. I think I’m a nice guy, and we can get along fine.”

Later, McIlroy would show a photo of Garcia puckering his lips while standing next to Harrington.

Garcia is also connecting with American fans in a way he hasn’t since his teenage debut. When he made a hole-in-one on the iconic 17th hole during the Players Championship, a chant of “Sergio! Sergio!” was started by autograph seekers—many of them young fans—after the round. It was noteworthy because a stricter policy at the Players to remove fans who yell out derogatory or illtimed comments was implemented in part because of the way Garcia had been targeted in a playoff loss to Rickie Fowler in 2015.

Part of the subtext was a widely publicized dispute between Garcia and Woods during the third round of the tournament in 2013.

Woods would go on to win the tournament, and Garcia, amid audible comments, rinsed balls on the 17th and 18th holes in the final round. The crowd policy is now unofficially referred to as “the Sergio rule,” so to see the opposite response from the TPC gallery was telling.

Now in such a serene personal place, perhaps Garcia is primed to capitalize quickly off the Masters. Perhaps even repeat O’Meara’s feat by getting another major—or even two—this year at the remaining venues of Erin Hills, Royal Birkdale and Quail Hollow.

“I’m excited to put myself in that situation again and see if some of those things that helped me win at Augusta, hopefully will help me win later in the year,” he says.

“I can see now that life is just little learning processes. And lately, I’m just trying to learn as much as I can.”

As the man evolves, so, too, does the golfer. july 2017 | golf digest india

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BACK TO BIR ▶ Royal Birkdale gets its 10th Open Championship July 20-23, nine years after 500-to-1 shot Greg Norman, then 53, held a one-stroke lead with nine to play before a 77 opened the way for Padraig Harrington’s second of three major championships.

Harrington’s final-round 69 was one of only 21 rounds in the 60s all week, versus 39 rounds in the 80s, including an 89 by John Daly.

A decade earlier, Daly needed a bogey at the par-4 18th to make the cut in the ’98 Open but took five swings to escape a fairway bunker and made a 10. Beware, everybody.

TELEVISION (ALL TIMES EASTERN)

July 20 1:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Golf Channel July 21 1:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Golf Channel July 22 4:30-7 a.m., Golf Channel; 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., NBC July 23 4-7 a.m., Golf Channel; 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. NBC

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Briton #169 we’d like to see win the Open Championship.

KDALE! t h e p a r - 4 e i g h t h h o l e f e a t u r e s r o ya l

b i r k d a l e ’ s s i g n at u r e d u n e s w i t h t h e a r t deco clubhouse in the background.

pa s t c h a m p i o n s at b i r k d a l e s o u t h p o r t, e n g l a n d 2008 1998 1991 1983 1976 1971 1965 1961 1954

Padraig Harrington Mark O’Meara Ian Baker-Finch Tom Watson Johnny Miller Lee Trevino Peter Thomson Arnold Palmer Peter Thomson

283 280 * 272 275 279 278 285 284 283

* w o n fo ur- h o l e pl ayo f f w i t h bri a n wat ts by t w o sh ots

r o ya l b i r k d a l e hole

yards

par

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

448 422 451 199 346 499 177 458 416

4 4 4 3 4 4 3 4 4

out

3,416

34

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

402 436 183 499 200 542 438 567 473

4 4 3 4 3 5 4 5 4

in

3,740

36

total

7,156

70

COURSE: DAVID CANNON/GETTY IMAGES • JOhN ClEESE: UNITED NEwS/POPPERfOTO/GETTY IMAGES • ClARET JUG: DAVID CANNON/AllSPORT/GETTY IMAGES

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gutter credit tk

‘ANGER IS THE MOST UNNECESSARY CAUSE OF BAD SHOTS, AND THE EASIEST TO ADDRESS.’ Photograph by First Lastname

wise guy 10 secrets to better golf by europe’s top coach, pete cowen interviewed by guy yocom

movement is a huge cause of inconsistency. Any command from your brain to your arms and hands can’t be obeyed if it’s not transferring correctly through the shoulders.

8

struggling with pitching

4

the most common cause

of slicing: overturning the shoulders. If they turn beyond what you’re reasonably capable of doing, the muscles don’t accommodate the swinging of your arms. Everything gets out of sync and the arms swing down on a poor path, usually one that’s excessively out-to-in.

So what’s the correct shoulder turn? One where you keep the right shoulder low; the upper part of the right arm pointing down at all times. Turn until you feel resistance, and then simply unturn the other way.

5

1

the best drill in golf is

is a textbook-perfect grip

hitting balls with your feet together. It helps your balance enormously, and balance is the key to power, consistency and practically everything else. As you swing, think of maintaining a vertical line through three parts of your body: (1) The knobby bone at the top of your spine. (2) A point just behind and below your belly button. (3) The center point between your feet.

2

i’m not a fan of perfectly

square alignment for the average player because it takes a perfect shot to hit it where you’re aiming. I’d advise most amateurs to align their feet a little left with their irons, as it favors hitting down on the ball.

With the driver, they should align their feet a bit to the right, with the clubface aimed at the target. This will promote swinging from the inside, and hitting the ball “on the up.”

Briton #007 we’d like to see win the Open Championship.

gutter credit tk

sean connery: sunset Boulevard/corBis/Getty imaGes • cl aret juG: david cannon/Getty imaGes

the cornerstone of a great swing? Not necessarily. I’ve seen players with perfect grips who can’t find the planet.

It’s all about matching the grip to your imperfect swing. The purpose of the grip is to hold onto the club, not manipulate it.

Photograph by First Lastname

3

i liken the golf swing

to a car. Your body is the engine. The arms, hands and the club are the steering wheel.

Your brain is the driver and provides the fuel. When we start hitting poor shots, more often than not the problem is the car’s transmission, which is the shoulders. Poor shoulder Photograph by Sebastian Nevols

6

if a chap in a pub were to

ask how to add 10 yards to his drives, my first suggestion would be to start from 10 yards behind the ball, then run up and hit it. Seriously, though, I think there are two things any golfer can do: (1) Get your hands higher on the backswing to widen your arc. (2) Make your swing longer so you have more distance to accumulate speed.

7

off tight lies? Stop trying to drive the ball forward. Don’t try to force the clubhead into the ball with your hands, and never lean the shaft forward through impact. Simply turn your shoulders a little going back, then allow the club to fall into the ball and into a small followthrough. Also be sure to turn the clubface down and into the ball through impact. Feel like you’re “collecting” the ball naturally, rather than forcing the issue.

9

in the years padraig

Harrington was winning majors—which he might win more of yet—I never saw him get angry over a bad shot. Even to this day, instead of getting mad, he gets curious. Within a millisecond of a bad shot, he turns his attention to the next shot. As he’s walking, you might see him puzzling over the swing that got him in trouble. But it’s in a curious, constructive way, not an angry one. Anger is the most unnecessary cause of bad shots, and the easiest to address.

10

want to hook a child or novice adult on golf forever?

Get a putter grip, one that is flat on top. Slip it onto a 9-iron.

Tee a ball low, then tell them to keep the flat part of that grip facing them throughout the swing. They’ll be astonished— and so will you—by how well this works. It ingrains a fantastic motion and practically guarantees solid contact. After I tried this with a struggling student some years ago, she had putter grips installed on all her clubs. Someone sniffed to me, “But the grips aren’t legal.”

I replied, “It’s either this, or she quits. Which do you prefer?”

there’s no such thing

as muscle memory. Muscles don’t remember anything. Still, it all starts by structuring your muscles properly and repeating the correct motions. That way, the memory of the motion is transferred much more readily.

Based in Rotherham, England, Pete Cowen has worked with several of the game’s top players including Sergio Garcia, Henrik Stenson, Lee Westwood, Darren Clarke and Louis Oosthuizen.

july 2017 | golf digest india

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black gutter credit tk

get ready to start making everything by jordan spieth

Photographs by Walter Iooss Jr.

Photograph by First Lastname

▶ Drop three putts in a row over 20 feet, and what can anyone say?

Other than maybe you had a strong feeling each was going in, probably not much. But I recently hit upon a term that, at least, begins to describe what I feel when I’m putting great: blackout. ▶ When I’m in “blackout,” I have zero thoughts about my setup or stroke. I’m not even thinking about speed. There’s no challenge in my stance, no body parts pushing for position. I just step in and I’m immediately comfortable. All I see is the arc of a putt with enhanced clarity. Say, the gentle swoop of a 12-footer that breaks a foot. The blur of the ball’s path and that path alone burns in my mind—nothing else. My stroke is simply a reaction to make that path come alive, to come to be, with the roll of the ball. ▶ Now all that might sound goofy. It’s a hard thing to explain. What I can state clearly is, I’m not always in blackout, as much as I wish I were. And as effortless as I might make it out to be, it takes work and preparation to get in that mode. I make no guarantees, but I can show you how I’ve been able to get there. Maybe you can, too.

—with max adler

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putting

out

Photograph by First Lastname

july 2017 | golf digest india

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the read ▶ When I read a putt, it’s anything but blackout. I’m paying sharp attention. It’s a three-step process: First, I look from behind the ball to determine the line.

Second, I walk along the low side of the putt to gauge the speed because it’s easier to see the slope. Third, I walk behind the cup, where I can then judge the line from another perspective.

When I’m confident about my read—I know where I want to start the putt and what kind of speed I want to put on the ball—I step in. I always walk in from behind square to the line, holding the face of my putter in my left hand lightly like I am on page 50. It’s my habit. Stepping in the same way every time, whatever it is you do, is the one thing you can have total control over if you bother to make the effort.

PUTTS PER GREEN IN REGULATION

2014

1.717 2nd

▶ It’s no secret that a lot of caddies on the PGA Tour are pretty good golfers. I love getting them involved in our games when I can. My caddie, Michael Greller, is about a 6- or 7-handicap, which is solid considering he hardly ever plays when we’re on the road; and he’s busy with his young family when he’s home.

Say it’s a Tuesday or Wednesday practice round, and our group has a friendly wager, we’ll play that if a player misses a birdie putt, his caddie gets to try the same putt.

So if I miss and Michael makes, that counts as a birdie for our team. It’s a fun role reversal and, of course, we split the winnings.

2015

1.699 1st

2016

1.710 1st

2017

1.717 5th source: shotlink

100 golf digest india | july 2017

Photograph by First Lastname

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caddie redemption

the routine ▶ First and foremost, what matters is where the putter is aimed. Without near-perfect aim, I don’t think anyone could slip into blackout, even by accident.

I set the putter down first with my right hand only. As I aim the face and look at my line, my feet settle into position. This is a point worth stressing: My body accommodates the putter’s position, never the other way around. Then I put my left hand on, beneath my right, to take a cross-handed grip. Everything should feel balanced, my weight distributed evenly in my feet and my shoulders level. I might take a couple of practice strokes, or I might not. What I always do is a little forward press—rocking the handle just slightly toward the target—to start my stroke. That press is my trigger, my cue, to let the darkness take over.

greller and spieth: scott halleran/getty images • Under armoUr shirt, pants, hat, shoes

the roll ▶ When I walk around a practice green on the PGA Tour, I can usually tell right away who’s putting great. You can see everything in the finish. Guys who are putting awesome accelerate through the ball, so the putterhead and the lead shoulder finish low and forward. Even on soft, short putts, an assertive stroke is immediately recognizable. On the other hand, guys who are just hoping to make putts tend to let the putterhead and front shoulder rise after impact. It’s like you can see them backing up to watch, curious about where the ball goes. A strong, low finish with the putterhead isn’t something I think about during my stroke; it’s just a universal tendency I’ve noticed among the best. As I said earlier, I don’t think about anything when I’m in blackout. It’s a place where you suddenly arrive after a lot of gradual preparation. Though sometimes none at all. month 2017 | golfdigest.com

101

Play Your Best Swing Sequence ecognizing a common theme among most of the top players in golf today doesn’t take a Ph.D. Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Jason Day are all hyper-athletic and launch the ball off the tee without any fear. Based on that, our prediction is that Brooks Koepka is next in line for stardom.

The huge-hitting Floridian won his first PGA Tour title in 2015 and made his first

R

Brooks Koepka Who says fades are weak? Swing like this, and you’ll blast it, too

Photographs by Dom Furore

Ryder Cup team last year. Now he’s poised for more hardware. “The way the modern game is played and given his attitude—nothing fazes him—Brooks has what it takes to win a major,” says Claude Harmon III, who has worked with Koepka since 2012. “He’s become a really good driver of the ball, and he’s added more shots. His putting has improved a lot, too.

It’s a complete game.”

Koepka has geared his swing to produce a “pull cut,” his coach says. It’s a shot that starts left but gently curves back toward the target.

And with clubhead speed reaching 128 miles per hour, Koepka routinely carries it 300plus yards. “He hits a very heavy ball, like a boxer who throws hard punches,” Harmon says. “It’s a great swing to copy.” Though your mileage may vary. — Matthew rudy

MOVIN’ ON UP

FRONT AND CENTER

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

A 320-yard tee shot starts with a two-inch adjustment.

Koepka struggles when his ball position drifts back a touch. “When it’s forward like it is here, Brooks feels like he can really rotate through the ball,” says Claude Harmon III, Koepka’s swing coach.

“If it drifts back in his stance, it messes with his swing path.”

A big key for Koepka is making sure the club stays in front of his body on the backswing and downswing. That means Koepka doesn’t pull the clubhead inside on the way back. And on the downswing, the clubhead stays outside his hands, so “he can swing free and really use his athleticism,” Harmon says.

“My swing thought has always been the same—don’t overswing,” Koepka says. “I want to feel like I’m going back three-quarters instead of a full turn, and really firing from there.”

Harmon says the thought helps Koepka keep width to his swing and prompts him to make an aggressive turn through the ball.

▶ GOING FOR THE GREEN

▶ AVERAGE DRIVING DISTANCE

71.9%

49.3%

74.7%

308.1 YDS

289.7 YDS

315.2 YDS

Brooks Koepka (2nd)

Tour average

Bubba Watson (1st)

Brooks Koepka (5th)

Tour average

Dustin Johnson (1st)

nike shirt, pants, belt, shoes, hat

source: shotlink

THE MATCH GAME

SWEET AND LOW

TURN, TURN, TURN

PRO-FILE

Koepka’s ability to drive it long and straight under pressure comes from an ideal mixture of swing elements that square the club at impact, Harmon says: “His clubface is a little shut.

So if he rotates his body and releases the club, he can go after the ball as hard as he wants, and it’s going to go pretty straight.”

Want to get a better release through impact? Borrow one of Koepka’s favorite sensations. “He tries to feel the handle being low at impact, and his chest more open,” Harmon says. “If the handle is higher, it’s harder to release the club,” which means the clubface won’t be in position to hit his reliable cut.

Look at Koepka’s follow-through.

There’s great body rotation. “You don’t see too much separation between his left arm and body right after impact,” Harmon says.

“If that arm moves away too much, it means his chest stopped turning.”

When the chest stops, it’s really difficult to control the shot shape and find the fairway.

brooks koepka 27 / 6-0 / 185 pounds West Palm Beach driver TaylorMade M2 ball Titleist Pro V1x

july 2017 | golf digest india

103

Play Your Best Do This, Not That by Butch Harmon

Briton #001 we’d like to have seen win the Open Championship.

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how to add feel

No-Chunk Chipping Stand closer to simplify your swing

hipping isn’t complicated, but a lot of golfers make it so. One issue I see is that they stand too far from the ball, like they’re hitting an iron shot (above, right). From there, the club swings around the body on a circular arc—good for the full swing but bad for chipping. That bigger motion makes you slow the club down before impact for fear of hitting the ball too far. You wind up chunking it.

To simplify things, get closer to the ball with the shaft more vertical. Feel like the clubhead is up on its toe (above, left). This sets up a straighter swing path, with the clubface always look-

104 golf digest india | july 2017

C

ing down the line you want to hit the ball, not rotating open and closed. Plus, the swing will be shorter, so less can go wrong.

Try this routine: First, step in with your back foot, directly across from the ball and about 10 inches from it. Then, aim the clubface at your target. Finally, step in with your front foot— that’ll help settle your weight forward, where it needs to be throughout the swing. Make sure the shaft is leaning a bit toward the target, and then it’s just a simple brush back and through.

Butch Harmon is a Golf Digest Teaching Professional.

I use my putting grip when chipping because it gives me better feel—and little chips are serious feel shots. It also gets me in a putting mind-set, feeling more “over the ball” and zoned in on a target. All you’re trying to do is get the ball over the grass in front of you and let it run out. Why land it on the green instead of the fringe? The bounce is more predictable.

Photographs by Dom Furore

Winston ChurChill: PoPPerfoto/Getty imaGes • Cl aret juG: DaviD Cannon/Getty imaGes

Y

Step by Step by David Leadbetter Play Your Best

Briton #268 we’d like to have seen win the Open Championship.

Breaking Bad How to curl in more of the tough putts he biggest problem amateurs have with breaking putts is that they really don’t practice them all that much. Even golfers who roll a few before they go out to play usually stick to straight-and-flat scenarios. Rarely will you have a putt of any considerable length that doesn’t break at least a ball or two—and usually a lot more. If you’re struggling to hole these, or at least get the ball close enough for tap-ins, use these four steps to improve your putting stats.

T

David Leadbetter operates 34 golf academies worldwide.

1. DOUBLE UP

2. STRAIGHTEN UP

3. CHANGE UP

4. TOUGHEN UP

▶ Experienced golfers talk about missing on the “pro” side of the hole, meaning they overestimated the amount of break on a putt. Amateurs rarely miss on the pro side because they underestimate the amount of curve. Try doubling the amount you think the putt will break.

▶ A handy way to deal with breaking putts is to treat them like you’ve got a straight putt.

You can do that by setting up to the apex of the break like it’s the hole. Then putt straight at the apex. Gravity will take care of the curve toward the cup.

▶ The slope that determines the break also determines whether the ball will slow down or speed up once it reaches that area of the green. That means you have to hit the putt harder or softer than if it were a flat trip to the hole. Be sure to factor that change of speed into your read.

▶ The putts that give right-handers the most trouble are the ones that break left to right—like a slice. Those are the ones you should be practicing as much as you can.

Try them uphill and downhill.

If you’re holing these, you’ll be a lot more confident with bigbreaking putts on the course.

Photograph by J.D. Cuban

illustrations: todd detwiler • claret jug: david cannon/getty images charlie chaplin: witzel/hulton archive/getty images

0717-GD-PLAY01-01-Leadbetter.tif

Play Your Best Strategy by Jack Nicklaus

“Better to make a mistake with your second shot than your first.”

Gate Crashing Avoid stumbling out of the blocks TOO TIGHT A SQUEEZE Want to try to fit your tee shot into this narrow area? I’ll assume you were absolutely striping your driver on the range 10 minutes ago. Because righthanders will probably be trying to hit a draw to follow the shape of the fairway— and left-handers a fade—a lot of misses here go left (out-of-bounds on the right also plays a role). The thick grass on the left can be as bad as the bunker. Chop it out, and now you’ve got 200 yards for your third shot.

A LESS COSTLY MISTAKE

ou won’t find many opening holes that are overly difficult at the golf courses I design. I like to see golfers get off to a decent start. I sure never liked it when I ruined my day on the first hole.

Plenty of time for that later in the round!

Of course, there are a lot of excellent courses that waste no time challenging your game. This summer, the Open Championship returns to Royal Birkdale where the 448-yard first is one of the all-time tough opening holes. I’ve seen many pros make double bogey there, and worse.

On the first—and to some degree all the early holes—everyone has a slightly greater

Y

106 golf digest india | july 2017

On an opening hole like this, a long par 4 with serious trouble on both sides, it makes a lot of sense to play to the fattest part of the fairway. I usually hit 3-wood here, which guaranteed my ball would stay short of the pot bunker on the inside of the dogleg. Because the fairway bunkers on links courses in the United Kingdom are such severe penalties, you absolutely have to play away from them.

It’s a different mentality than how we play in the States. When your decision-making rests totally on where the bunkers are, this is golf in its purest form.

chance of making a poor swing. There are nerves, and you’re simply not yet in the rhythm of the round. That’s why I always began conservatively.

When you’re starting on a difficult par 4—and No. 1 at Birkdale is a classic example—the bulk of the trouble is often in play on the drive. If you’re going to make one swing that’s less than perfect, it’s better to do it on the second shot. Do whatever you can to put the tee ball in the fairway, and then you’ll be off and running. —with max adler

on the road to recovery

▶ A memorably terrible start was at the 1970 Dow Jones Invitational, played at Upper Montclair Country Club in Clifton, N.J. I opened with three bogeys, and on the fourth hole, I found myself against a tree and hitting the shot left-handed (above).

Somehow, I blitzed the rest of the course and shot 65. It feels great to come back from early mistakes, but I prefer a smart start with less stress.

Illustration by Chris O’Riley

Jack Nickl aus MuseuM

TAKE THE STRESS OUT OF IT

If you’re conservative with the tee shot, this approach is going to be a little longer.

The probability your second shot finishes in one of these bunkers is considerable. That’s OK. Being greenside in two isn’t bad; you can still get up and down for par or make an easy bogey. That’s better than making your mistake on the drive, where you could end up with a long-range third. Then it’s a real fight to avoid double.

Decisions The Golf Life

WHAT KIND OF GOLF TANTRUM SHOULD YOU THROW? are you playing with the head pro/ your boss/ a member of the clergy?

fastballs into the woods

n

n

are you playing good golf balls?

y

keep it to yourself

y

were you playing for money?

n

y

a lot of money?

y

not particularly

n

driver helicopter toss

do you like your driver?

y

do you like your golf bag?

y

n

back over clubs with car

profanitylaced tirade

not at all

n

is there water nearby?

n bag kick

did you deserve to lose?

y driver into the lake

y

cry

Illustration by Rami Niemi

The Golf Life Core

Briton #202 we’d like to see win the Open Championship.

Prime the Engine The LPGA’s Belen Mozo shows you how to warm up before playing

1

2 To see Belen demonstrate a ton of great exercises, go to: video .golfdigest .com/genres /fitness.

1 overhead squats ▶ To prep several key muscle groups, mostly

on the backside of your body—ones needed to make an effective swing—hold a golf club over your head, and squat as low as you can until your arms begin to drift forward. Stop and hold the squatted pose for a second or two, and then stand up. Repeat eight to 10 times, trying to improve your range of motion as you go.

108 golf digest india | july 2017

2 resisted lateral walk

3 shoulder circles

▶ Warming up the muscles of the hips and thighs,

▶ Your shoulder and upper-back muscles are important for generating power and swinging on-plane. They also help you safely decelerate the club at the end of your swing. To get them ready, grab a stretch band and extend it across your back as shown. Make small circular motions in each direction with your arms extended for 30 to 60 seconds. —ron kaspriske

particularly in a golf posture, is key to a synchronized swing. And training laterally helps prep the body for proper weight shift. Place a small resistance band across your legs as shown. Take lateral steps in each direction, making sure the band stays somewhat taut throughout the entire exercise. Do 10 to 20 steps in each direction.

Photographs by Walter Iooss Jr.

Beckham: VcG Via Getty imaGes • cl aret juG: DaViD cannon/Getty imaGes

3

Mr. X

The Golf Life

‘There are maybe 20 guys who deliberately fudge their mark within a half-inch.’

Undercover Tour Pro Cheaters are hard to catch, but we know who they are ’ve played in only one Masters, and this year I watched from home. Half my life I spend at golf tournaments, so usually the last thing I want to do is tune in, but the limited commercials and the beauty of that place get me. The world was excited about all the stars on the Sunday leader board—Serge, Rosey, Scotty, Rickie and Jordan—but I was pulling for Charley Hoffman. He’s a friend, and I think it’s a more amazing story whenever a journeyman wins.

Earlier in the week, I remember nearly spitting out my drink when I read what Phil Mickelson said in his press conference.

His quote was, “I know a number of guys on tour that are loose with how they mark the ball and have not been called on it.

I mean, they’ll move the ball two, three inches in front of their

I

Illustration by Doug Chayka

mark, and this is an intentional way to get it out of any type of impression and so forth, and I think that kind of stuff needs to stop.”

Now, if there’s anyone prone to hyperbole, it’s Phil. The truth is, there’s exactly one guy who is known to mis-mark his ball by two or three inches. Ask any player about cheating, and they’ll all tell you the same name. I was paired with this notorious individual recently, and I witnessed it. Using his hand to obscure the distance behind the ball, he picks up his coin so fast that you almost can’t be certain of what you’ve just seen. But when you see it enough times, it becomes pretty obvious. What’s more, this was just after the anchor ban, and he was using a long putter.

He wears baggy shirts, but I could tell that he was anchoring. After the round, we got into a heated debate in the scoring trailer when I refused to sign his card. He claimed that if the end of his grip touched his chest, it was accidental. The way the rule is written, it’s all about intent, and an official signed his card.

This dude knows he’s a cheater, and he knows that everyone knows he’s a cheater.

No one wants to be paired with him or play practice rounds with him. Often you see him dining alone.

Back to what Phil said. I’d say there are maybe 20 guys who deliberately fudge their mark within a half-inch. It’s hard to be definitive because the guys who do it are very good at it. Besides, I’m busy reading my putt. Even if you’re paying close attention, it’s difficult to call someone out when the area of contention is the width of a penny. You can tell an official to watch a guy, but only in the majors do we have an official with every group.

We’re a gossipy bunch out here. But the reality is, players often aren’t ostracized because the stories might circulate only within small groups of friends.

Just the other day, a buddy told me one from a recent weather delay. The horn sounds, and my buddy and another guy elect to finish the hole. The third player, whose ball is in a gnarly divot hole in the fairway, chooses to stop. The next morning, when they resume the round, my buddy is waiting by the green and says to his caddie, “No way this mother------ puts the ball back where it was.” Sure enough, the shot comes sizzling into the green and spins back 10 feet—which is impossible from a divot. The guy goes on to finish well that weekend and rakes in a bunch of money and FedEx Cup points that should’ve gone to someone else.

Should my buddy have said something, to protect the field? Maybe, but nothing would’ve happened. These guys know who they are. Karma will come around.

—with max adler

july 2017 | golf digest india

109

Play Your Best Best Young Teachers

Impact Training 4 lessons—from chip shots to fairway woods—for making solid contact

CHIPPING

There’s nothing fancy about chipping; in fact, the swing is so short that the setup in large part determines whether you strike the ball flush. Start in a narrow stance with the ball centered and your front foot pulled back a few inches and flared open. Then set your weight on that front foot

PITCHING

When golfers get a little nervous over pitch shots, the body tends to freeze and the hands take over the swing. The result is usually poor contact, but even if you catch it solid, who knows how far it’s going. You need a better plan than that. At address, with the ball about middle in your stance,

110 golf digest india | july 2017

and lean the shaft toward the target (above, left).

With your body now pre-set for impact, make a simple arm swing going back, keeping your weight forward, then turn your body to the target as you swing down and through the ball. ▶ drill Here’s a great way to practice chipping; I call it the Flamingo Drill because of the funny

put a little more pressure in your front foot and try to keep your hands and arms nice and soft.

As you swing back, allow only your torso to turn (above, left). But as you swing down, rotate everything together toward the target. ▶ drill Grab two extra clubs and set up a practice station for pitching. Place one club behind the ball

stance (above). Take your normal setup, then drop your back foot behind you and stand so it’s up on its toes. This puts your weight forward and will help you hit slightly down on the ball, which is the real key to being a good chipper.

—jason guss hawk hollow golf properties, bath, mich.

on an extension of the target line and a second club perpendicular and between your feet at address (above). The point where the clubs would intersect is where the ball would be. Practice striking that spot to groove your pitch swing.

—trillium rose woodmont country club, rockville, md.

wa n t q u i c k r e s u lts ? Sign up for 12 Days to Better Golf, our new online game-improvement program. For the price of a bucket of range balls you’ll get 36 video lessons sent to your inbox. Presented by Golf Digest’s Best Young Teachers, including the four featured below, the program follows a developmental curriculum, so you can organize your practice and get better faster. Go to golfdigest.com/go/12days.

IRON PLAY

Crisp contact on iron shots is like striking a match, with the club being the matchstick and the ground being the matchbox. To “strike the match” at impact you need the clubhead to hit down on the ball first, then contact the ground.

A proper lower body pivot motion allows you to

FAIRWAY WOODS

For most golfers, fairway woods are the toughest clubs to hit. First off, bag your 3-wood and get a club with a little more loft. Then it’s a matter of making a descending strike, not trying to lift it off the turf as so many players do. Position the ball a couple inches inside your front heel, and start

days to better golf

do that. Focus on pushing off your front leg as you swing to the top (above, left) and driving your back leg forward as you swing down. This lower body motion will promote good weight shift and rotation, delivering the club on a downward strike. ▶ drill When you learn to take a proper divot, you’re learning to make solid contact. Lay two

tees pointing toward the target as if they frame an imaginary ball at address. Using a middle iron, take some practice swings between the tees and eventually hit balls (above), trying to get your divot mark to start even with the tees.

the club back smoothly, keeping your left arm extended. From the top of the swing, shift your weight to your left foot and hit down and through (above, left). A little divot or brush mark in the turf after impact means you got it right. ▶ drill To check that you’re not trying to help the ball up, take this test: Lay two tees on the ground

pointing away from you, one where you’d play the ball and another four inches closer to the target.

Make swings and try to clip both tees, then replace the back tee with a ball (above) and try to make solid contact and also hit the forward tee.

—brian schorsten colonial country club, fort worth

—renee trudeau o’higgins biltmore hotel, coral gables, fla.

Photographs by Dom Furore

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18 holes with Sandeep Singh

“Jaypee Greens, DLF, KGA are my favourite courses” Having spent more than 32 years across automotive, tractor and construction equipment industries, Sandeep Singh, Managing Director of Tata Hitachi, aims to guide the company through the next phase of economic growth. Sandeep had successful stints with Toyota (Dy. MD & Chief Operating Officer) and JCB India (Executive Vice President, Sales & Marketing) prior to joining Tata Hitachi.

Being an avid golfer, he likes to spend his weekends on the course along with friends. In an email interview, Sandeep wrote about his most memorable golfing experience and much more…

1

What is your home club?

Karnataka Golf Association, Bengaluru

When did you start playing

2 golf?

In the year 1996

What do you love about the

3 game?

Spending time with friends and golf

Who have you played the

4 most golf with?

With my friends in Bangalore & Bangkok

How about your dream

5 fourball?

Not dreamt of yet

Favourite golf course in

6 India and abroad

Jaypee Greens in Noida; DLF in Gurgaon; KGA and Golfshire in Bengaluru; Amata Spring in Bangkok

How often do you get to

7 play?

Once a week

8 Your thoughts on doing business on the golf course?

Do not encourage business talk – only networking

Name your favourite male 9 and female golfers

My close friends Praveen Sood and Prabha Pai

10 Describe your most

memorable golfing experience

Do you use any golf apps on

Your lowest handicap?

11 your phone? Any gadgets to

13

Member of Revolution Golf; Hole 9 on my Mobile App

14 you drive the ball?

improve your game?

12

Amata Spring Country Club at Bangkok

117 golf digest india | july 2017

Your current handicap?

22

Favourite dish on your home

16 course?

18

On an average how long do

Tee shot of 220-240 Yards

Your favourite holiday

15 destination?

Scotland

South Indian – Idli & dosa

17

Mid-round power snack?

Digestive biscuit & filter coffee

18

Favourite 19th hole drink?

Beer with peanut masala

Total Number of pages (including cover pages) is 120 Monthly Magazine, RNI N0. HARENG/2016/66983

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