DISPERSION

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Golf beats ‘power walking’ hands down when it comes to improving your health

Golf is often described as ‘a good walk spoiled’ – although never by Mark Twain – but playing 18 holes on foot may have the edge on a ramble through the countryside when it comes to health benefits, according to the latest scientific research.

A study has found that the sport is better for you than Nordic walking, which uses upper body power and walking poles to provide extra exertion. Researchers at the University of Eastern Finland analysed data for 16 men and nine women who were golfers, healthy and aged 65 and over. The team looked at three aerobic exercises – an 18-hole round of golf, 3.7 miles of Nordic walking, and a 3.7-mile regular walk – and measured the effects on blood pressure, blood glucose and blood lipids (such as cholesterol).

The results, which are published in the BMJ’s Open Sport & Exercise Medicine, showed that all three types of aerobic exercise improved cardiovascular health in older adults, including by lowering blood pressure. However, the study suggested it was golf that seemed to have the biggest effect on blood fats and the metabolism of glucose, which keeps blood sugar levels stable.

The researchers concluded: “Despite the lower exercise intensity of golf, the longer duration and higher energy expenditure appeared to have a more positive effect on lipid profile and glucose metabolism compared with Nordic walking and walking.”

Arrow’s on target at Mid Kent!

Kent golfer Ian Arrows was the toast of the clubhouse at Mid Kent Golf Club last month after bagging two hole-in-ones in the same round.

Living up to his surname, Arrow, who plays off a 14 handicap, found the bullseye at the club’s fourth and ninth holes in what statisticians have calculated to be a 67 million-to-one occurrence.

The first ace was at the 166-yard, par-3 4th to which he hit a 5-iron to the front of the green, before watching the ball run round left to right and drop in. Just 30 minutes later, Ian followed that up with an 8-iron from 145 yards, which again landed on the front of the green before drifting left and unerringly finding its way to the bottom of the cup.

Celebrations for the second ace were delayed, however, as it was only when 68-year-old Ian and his playing partners, Danny Underwood and George French, looked in the cup that they discovered that it had actually gone in.

Ian, who had already achieved two aces at the Gravesend-based club, said: “As I was stood on the 9th tee, George said ‘Come on then Arrows… let’s have another one. I jokingly replied ‘OK, I’ll see what I can do’. Anyway, I hit it well again, but it was going about two metres to the right and I said ‘OK, well that’s the second hole-in-one done with’ and just walked back towards my bag. At which point Danny started shouting ‘Arrows! Arrows! ARROWS!’ He then said ‘It’s gone down the hole, Ian. It’s gone down’. At that point I was convinced it had gone through the green. The green does slope from right to left, but I thought it had to have been travelling too fast to break quickly enough. George and Danny kept saying it had gone in and then I eventually looked in the hole… and they were right. It was insane.”

Sadly, Ian’s two aces failed to help him win the Saturday Swindle, with the rest of his card yielding four blobs and only two pars, resulting in a 30-point haul for the round.

St Andrews smooths over Old Course ‘Patiogate’ debacle

A right old ‘hoo-hah’ broke out at the Home of Golf last month when it was revealed that the Swilcan Bridge, an iconic feature of the 18th hole of the Old Course at St Andrews for over 600 years, had, according to some observers, been ‘desecrated’ with the construction of a new concreted area on the tee side of the bridge. According to the St Andrews Links Trust, which manages the Old Course, the circular stone paved area – which was likened to a patio extension by some commentators on social media – was installed as a way of protecting the entrance to the bridge from excessive wear and tear caused by the thousands of golfers and visitors to the course that area, commentator and former Ryder Cup player Brown tweeted: ‘The Swilcan Bridge – now serving food. A table for Fore please’, while six-time major champion Faldo asked: “If you’ve travelled halfway around the world for your bucket list round at St Andrews, would you rather leave with a bit of historic dirt on your shoes or a few cement mix scraps?”

After initially issuing a statement that the stone paving was the ‘only viable alternative’ to having to constantly replace the turf or use synthetic grass to repair worn areas in front of the bridge, the Trust eventually backed down in the wake of a stream of negative comments, saying: “We have taken on feedback from many partners and stakeholders, as well as the golfing public, and we would like to thank everyone who has been in touch for their contribution to the issue. We believe we are unable to create a look which is in keeping its iconic setting and have taken the decision to remove it.”

The diggers moved in the following day and returfed the area to return it to its original state. The statement from the St Andrews Links Trust, which emphasised that no work had taken place on the bridge itself, added: “The all four Home Nations.

Feedback from 2022 indicates that GolfSixes League is more popular than ever among young juniors new to the game. Thanks to backing from the Home Nations and PGA professional coaches there was a 47% increase in affiliated membership across the 542 participating clubs in England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.

After a strong year in 2021 despite the issues of Covid-19, the easy-to-learn six-hole team format, where beginner golfers play in a league with other local golf clubs, was expanded last year with 6,992 youngsters taking part across 93 local leagues (25.5% of the players were girls).

GolfSixes is expanding in 2023, with plans in place to support more than 750 golf clubs