The cut 2014 08 09

Top tips to improve your golf

KEYS TO

SHORT GAME SUCCESS – SOLID BASICS

– GOOD PREPARATION – CONSISTENT STRIKE

S PLU

WEDGE PLAY HOW TO CONTROL DISTANCE, DIRECTION & BALL FLIGHT

BUNKERS CLOSE YOUR CLUBFACE HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR

BALANCE

RYDER CUP PREVIEW

GOING FOR

TEAM USA captain Tom Watson – “I want my country to win!”

Endorsed by

SPOTLIGHT ON

KIWI GOLFERS PLAYING ABROAD

THE QUEST FOR

PERFECTIONISM – WILL IT HELP OR HARM YOUR GAME?

AMAZING GOLF HOLIDAY DESTINATIONS

FLORIDA CARIBBEAN LANGKAWI

AUG/SEPT 2014 $9.90INCL GST

WorldMags.net

The SLDR Irons are engineered beautifully with cutting-edge technology.

The Speed Pocket united with new ThruSlot technology gives you consistently longer distance in a classic shape.

INTRODUCING

www.taylormadegolf.co.nz

Š 2014 Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

THIS IS D.N.A. FEEL ADVANCED

FootJoy.co.nz/DNA ©2014 ACUSHNET COMPANY. CUSTOMER SERVICE: 1800 600 535

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

SNUGFIT TONGUE Advanced design envelops the top of the foot.

3D FOAMCOLLAR™ Moulds to provide a precise fit.

NITROTHIN™ TPU OUTSOLE Streamlined design & enhanced stability.

FTF™ FIT-BED Fine Tuned Foam for optimum comfort & support.

CHROMOSKIN™ LEATHER Engineered for lightweight performance & feel.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

FIND THE BALL THAT FITS YOUR GAME. PRO - OVER 105 MPH

AMATEUR- UNDER 105 MPH

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

MICRO CART

SUN MOUNTAIN MICRO CART

The Speed Cart is one of the most revolutionary products in golf. It changed how golfers transport their bags around the course. With the Micro Cart, we offer you another push cart option. There are distinct advantages to the MicroCart design. Its small folded footprint and its light weight make the cart easy to get in and out of your vehicle. Due to the patented four-wheel design, the cart has a low centre of gravity which results in superior stability on the course.

FEATURES: sĂŚ#ARTĂŚ3PECS ĂŚ&OLDEDĂŚ$IMENSIONS ĂŚ vĂŚ8ĂŚ vĂŚ8ĂŚ vĂŚ 7EIGHT ĂŚ ĂŚLBS ĂŚ sĂŚTHEĂŚCARTĂŚFOLDSĂŚANDĂŚUNFOLDSĂŚINĂŚTWOĂŚEASYĂŚMOTIONSĂŚ sĂŚTHEĂŚHANDLEĂŚISĂŚADJUSTABLEĂŚ sĂŚTHEĂŚNEWĂŚSTORAGEĂŚPOUCHĂŚISĂŚINCLUDEDĂŚWITHĂŚEVERYĂŚCARTĂŚ sĂŚTHEĂŚACCESSORIESĂŚPANELĂŚISĂŚLOADEDĂŚWITHĂŚFEATURES ĂŚPADDEDĂŚ valuables tray, ball marker, scorecard holder, drink holder, plus pencil, tee and ball holders sĂŚTHEĂŚSMARTĂŚBRACKETSĂŚAREĂŚADJUSTABLEĂŚTOĂŚ secure your bag without straps sĂŚTHEĂŚSOLID FOAMĂŚTIRESĂŚROLLĂŚEASILYĂŚANDĂŚ require no maintenance #OLOURS ĂŚ"LACK ĂŚ3ILVER ĂŚ2EDĂŚ ĂŚ"LUEĂŚ

F o r

s t o c k i s t s

pWorldMags.net l e a s e s e e w w w . b w g o l f . c o . n z

WorldMags.net

Starwood Hotels & SHERATON FIJI RESORT SHERATON DENARAU VILLAS THE WESTIN DENARAU ISLAND RESORT & SPA FIJI

GOLF FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY

Take advantage of our fantastic 18 hole golf course during your stay at Sheraton Fiji Resort, Sheraton Denarau Villas or The Westin Denarau Island Resort & Spa, Fiji.

From FJ$432 per night plus tax and enjoy (Minimum 2 nights stay required and subject to availability) >

Overnight accommodation in an Ocean Breeze Room (other room types available)

>

Breakfast daily for 2 adults and 2 children (under 12 years)

>

1 round of golf for 2 people with shared cart at Denarau Golf & Racquet Club for EVERY 2 consecutive days stayed

>

1 round of mini golf for 2 adults and 2 children at Denarau Mini Golf for EVERY 2 consecutive days stayed

For bookings, visit www.sheraton.com/fijioffers ~ www.sheraton.com/denarauvillasoffers ~ ww.westin.com/fijioffers Price does not include 20% Govt taxes. Minimum stay of 2 consecutive nights required. Subject to Availability. 1 round of golf & 1 round of mini golf for every 2 consecutive days stayed. Full prepayment required at time of reservation. Non-refundable, non-amendable. A limited number of rooms may be available at these rates. Blackout dates and other restrictions may apply. Blackout dates: 26 June to 31 August 2014, 19 Septmeber to 11 October 2014, 19 December 2014 to 11 January 2015. Offer not applicable to groups. Not to be combined with other offers or WorldMags.net promotions and subject to change. Not responsible for omissions or typographical errors. Void where prohibited by law.

WorldMags.net

Resorts, Fiji

SUPER HOT OPENING OFFER Sheraton Resort & Spa, Tokoriki Island, Fiji is set on a beautiful tropical island in the idyllic Mamanuca group where the pristine surroundings are complemented with world-class accommodation and amenities. Our friendly Fijian Sheraton service will make any getaway truly unforgettable.

Help us celebrate! Book our Super Hot opening offer now and enjoy: > Overnight accommodation > Daily breakfast > Complimentary in-room WiďŹ > Double StarpointsÂŽ

From FJ$435 plus 20% tax per night (NZ$335.00 tax inclusive) Must book before 30th September 2014, for stays up to 18th December 2014.

Email: sheraton.tokoriki@sheraton.com

WorldMags.net

EDITORIAL

BY HEATHER KIDD

WorldMags.net

COOL

KO I n his column this issue, Steve Williams makes a good point. Which is that Lydia Ko is making golf cool.

New Zealand’s best known caddy quite rightly points out that the Lydia phenomenon can only be a good thing for golf in this country and that hopefully her successes will encourage more young people to take up the sport.

There can’t be too many 17 year olds who’ve earned more than $1 million in the months January-July this year through their own efforts, and although money isn’t everything there’s no doubt that all the hours, days and years of practice are, in Lydia’s case at least, reaping financial rewards few of her peers can hope to match following more orthodox career paths.

The highest-earning female golfer of all time is Sweden’s Annika Sorenstam. Now retired, Sorenstam amassed a $40 million fortune from golf, $22m of that in actual prize money. Which puts her on a par with the likes of Lee Westwood, Adam Scott, Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia, Padraig Harrington and Lee Trevino.

During her playing career, Sorenstam won more than 90 tournaments. And although she retired in 2008 at the age of 38 she hasn’t slowed down. These days she is actively involved in golf course design, and has her own golf academy, a clothing line, perfume and wine.

When Lydia’s earnings hit the million-dollar mark much was made of the fact she’d reached that milestone at a younger age than the previous youngest female teen golf millionaire, American Lexi Thompson.

The seemingly unstoppable force of golf prodigies was highlighted earlier this year with the appearance at the Women’s US Open of 11-year-old Lucy Li. And while most of us looked on, incredulous at the way the child could hit a golf ball, what some of her fellow competitors felt was envy.

Korea’s Na Yeon Choi, who at 26 is a hardy veteran compared to Li, was quoted saying: “When I watched Lucy she didn’t really care whether she had bogey or double bogey or triple bogey.” She added wistfully, “I just want to go back to when I was a rookie... these days I think I’m kind of like scared to lose when I play.”

Former world No 1 Yani Tseng echoed Choi’s

10 thecut

comments: “When you play with them, you feel like they’re so enjoying everything they do out there. I want to get back to that.”

She mentioned Lydia too, saying: “When I watch Ko play I feel like the same as when I played on my rookie year when I was winning the tournament, when I was world No 1. But now I don’t feel like I’m enjoying it as much as back then.”

Lydia’s profile post on the New Zealand Golf website contains the following piece of advice for aspiring golfers: Have fun but at the same time don’t forget to remember your goals and dreams.

It’s encouraging to see that three-quarters of the way through her first year as a professional golfer Lydia is living up to her own expectations. Although her days of skipping down the fairways are long gone, she comes across as a young lady who is embracing the world and all it offers rather than carrying it on her shoulders. For her sake, long may that feeling last.

There’s lots of great reading in this issue, including expert instruction, New Zealand player profiles and a comprehensive preview on one of the biggest golf events of 2014, the Ryder Cup, to be played at Gleneagles at the end of September.

Good golfing

Heather Kidd Editor, The Cut

WorldMags.net

Lydia Ko imitates a ‘selfie’ as she poses with the trophy after winning the 2014 Marathon Classic.

WorldMags.net

NEW

TRUE DISTANCE. TRUE FEEL.

NXT TOUR FAR&TRUE

EXCEPTIONAL DISTANCE AND EVEN SOFTER FEEL. ®

®

The new NXT Tour and softer feeling NXT Tour S provide exceptional distance and commanding scoring performance. Now, both models have been improved with a softer compression core and cover so golfers will experience even better feel. To enjoy the far and true

Join Team Titleist ANZ at titleist.com.au

performance of the new NXT Tour or NXT Tour S, visit your local golf shop.

WorldMags.net

©2014 Acushnet Company.

CONTENTSWorldMags.net

TUITION 88 TOM LONG – Use a basketball to improve your balance 90 ROBERT ROOKES – Get out of bunkers better by closing your clubface 92 JAY CARTER – Wedge work

94 BRYCE HAMER – Strong is good.

How hamstrings help stabilise the golf swing 96 MATT RICHARDSON – Perfectionism. Is striving to be perfect good for your game?

HOW TO DEVELOP A p 82

TOUR-GRADE SHORT GAME 12 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

Fueled by patented Turbulator Technology and a new face material, the G30 adjustable driver is PING’s longest, most forgiving driver ever. In wind tunnel testing, crown turbulators are proven to reduce aerodynamic drag and increase clubhead speed. The T9S titanium face is thinner for higher ball speeds, and it’s lighter to keep the CG low and back for optimal launch and spin. The low/back CG – a proven PING innovation – also increases MOI for unmatched consistency. With 5 loft settings and high-balance-point shaft technology, the G30 is the fastest way to longer, more accurate drives. Visit a PING Fitting Specialist or ping.com. You’ll be better for it. ®

5 loft adjustments

Sports Network Ltd 0508 776 786

©2014 PING P.O. BOX 82000 PHOENIX, AZ 85071

New T9S face material

WorldMags.net

58 WorldMags.net

34

EDITOR

HEATHER KIDD heather.kidd@fairfaxmedia.co.nz mob 021 607 487 DEPUTY EDITOR

BOB HOWITT bob.howitt@fairfaxmedia.co.nz ddi 09 634 9890 ADVERTISING MANAGER

JO GRAHAM joharvey@xtra.co.nz ph 021 498 434 DESIGNER

110

124

REGULAR COLUMNS

NEW ZEALAND FOCUS

10 EDITOR’S COMMENT

60 GRAND DESIGNS Progress at Manukau

16 LETTERS

64 WHAT’S HAPPENING AT THE HILLS?

18 FROM THE FAIRWAYS

66 KIWI GOLFERS PAYING TO PLAY

32 CHIP SHOT – Brendan Telfer

68 PLAYER PROFILE – CATHRYN BRISTOW

100 RULES – Graeme Scott 138 BATTY ABOUT GOLF – Doug Batty

70 NEW ZEALAND NEWS – National and regional

FEATURES

EQUIPMENT

28 CLUB SPOTLIGHT Mornington Golf Club

102 THE MAKING OF MIZUNO CLUBS Take a tour of the Mizuno factory

30 ON THE TEE WITH Sir Russell Coutts

108 WET WEATHER GEAR TIPS

DAVID PENNY COMMERCIAL MANAGER

DUNCAN BROUGH EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

KATE COUGHLAN photographs GETTY IMAGES prepress/printing PMP distribution NETLINK DISTRIBUTION publisher FAIRFAX MEDIA

SUBSCRIPTIONS

0800 CUT SUB – 0800 288 782 subs@thecut.co.nz PO Box 37349 Parnell, Auckland, New Zealand 317 New North Road, Kingsland, Auckland 1021 phone 09 909 6800 info@thecut.co.nz

48 US OPEN REVIEW

110 EQUIPMENT NEWS The latest golf gear to hit the market

50 IN THE BAG & QUICKFIRE 15 US Open winner Martin Kaymer

DESTINATIONS

52 OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP REVIEW

112 MARVELLOUS MALAYSIA

54 USPGA PREVIEW

118 INSIDE THE WORLD’S BEST GOLF RESORT

56 RICOH WOMEN’S BRITISH OPEN REVIEW

124 FLORIDA – FUN IN THE SUN

58 ANZ GOLF WORLD INTERVIEW

130 CHRISTCHURCH IS WORTH A VISIT

Check out our website: www.thecut.co.nz 14 thecut

NORTHERN REGION MANAGER

EDITORIAL OFFICES

34 ELEMENTARY FOR WATSON Can American legend Tom Watson captain the US to Ryder Cup success this year?

42 RYDER CUP PREVIEW We look at the management teams for Team USA and Europe, and check out Gleneagles, the venue for this year’s contest

JK FRITH DESIGN jkfrith@vodafone.co.nz

WorldMags.net

This magazine is subject to the New Zealand Press Council. Complaints to be first directed to gallery@fairfax.co.nz with ‘Press Council complaint’ in the subject line. If unsatisfied, the complaint may be referred to the Press Council, PO Box 10879, The Terrace, Wellington 6143 or by email at: info@presscouncil.org.nz.

For further details and online complaints go to www.presscouncil.org.nz ©The Cut 2008. The CUT magazine is published bi-monthly. The publisher assumes no responsibility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts, art, photographs or transparencies. Contributors should enclose return postage. Contents may not be reprinted or otherwise reproduced in any format whatsoever without written permission from The Cut. The Cut or any person involved accepts no responsibility or any form of liability for contents including advertising, editorial opinions or advice.

AUDIT 6848 TOTAL NET CIRCULATION 30 OCT 13 TO 31 DEC 13

2015 GRAND FLORIDA WorldMags.net USA GOLF TOUR 30th April – 15th May 2015

Join Kim & Denise from PaR nz Golfing Holidays in the crowd on the 17th at TPC Sawgrass to watch THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP on our ‘Top 10 Bucket List’ tour of Florida…

• Play TPC Sawgrass host course of THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP • Attend THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP at TPC Sawgrass • Play Bay Hill, home of Arnold Palmer’s MasterCard Invitational • Play Doral Blue Monster home of the WGC Cadillac Championship • Play PGA National home of The PGA Honda Classic • Play Tiburon host course of Greg Norman’s Shark Shootout • Play Old Corkscrew famed course of Jack Nicklaus • Play Disney’s Magnolia course host of The Children’s Miracle Network Hospital Classic

• Play The World Golf Village King & Bear • Play The World Golf Village Slammer & Squire • Play Turnberry Isles Soffer Course • Visit The World Golf Hall of Fame • Visit The Kennedy Space Centre or Disney World • Visit the Florida Everglades in airboats AND BEWARE THE GATORS!

Our tour is limited to 32 places so don’t delay.

Contact Kim (kim@parnz.co.nz) or Denise (denise@parnz.co.nz) for a full package.

PaR n.z. drives

WorldMags.net

LETTERS

WorldMags.net

WRAPS FOR THE RUAPEHU

H

i, I’m new to The Cut and am finding lots to read. Catching up on your April/ May edition, I found a couple of things to help out with. The Waimarino golf course, located near Mt Ruapehu, is also rated so men can play the yellows if they wish – which means Pegasus is not alone. And the Chateau Tongariro has a nine-hole course in the middle of the Tongariro National Park, which is a World Heritage area. By all means travel to the South Island, and in your magazine Norfolk Island looked lovely and I don’t blame anyone for wanting to go there, but for people who are time poor I want to get the word out that all your golfing needs can be met in the Ruapehu District.

Lucy Conway, email

Left and right

Play fair I was shocked when, during the recent British Women’s Open, a New Zealand TV announcer spoke about Lydia Ko’s second round as being “disastrous”. The announcer was obviously referring to the fact that Lydia had slipped from a share of 10th after her first round to be tied 34th. By the end of the fourth day Lydia was 29th and while it wasn’t a win or top 10 placing it was, in my opinion, still a good tournament for her. The fact remains, Lydia has yet to miss a cut in a professional tournament and she performs well every time she plays. She is simply the best thing to happen to golf in New Zealand for many years. I wish the media would get real and give her credit for what she is achieving – even when she doesn’t win. No golfer is going to win or be in contention every time they step on a golf course. The media should not be so quick to use a word like “disastrous” when talking about Lydia Ko. It really doesn’t apply.

C Cameron (16), Wellington

16 thecut

I enjoy the new and improved format of your magazine. As a long-time golfer and a lefthander it is not unusual to walk into a golf shop and find very little in the way of left-handed clubs. To read the article on Bubba Watson winning this year’s Masters and, knowing that he is a fellow leftie, I turned the page in your June/ July magazine to see what he has in his bag... and I think he may struggle a little bit with the righthanded clubs shown. Is it as hard for you to find left-handed clubs to photograph as it is for me to find them in the shops?

Neil Macdonald, Ashburton We work closely with golf club manufacturers to ensure the clubs we showcase on our In the Bag page are as accurate as possible. It’s not always possible to show the exact clubs individual players use. And yes, given that the majority of golfers are right-handed, it is indeed easier for us to source photographs of right-handed clubs. - Editor

All writers of letters published receive a sleeve of TaylorMade golf balls.

One to watch During our Queen’s Birthday weekend tournament this year 17-year-old Brydie Hodge shot her lowest score to date. Her 66 is the best gross score ever recorded by a female in our club’s 103-year history. Brydie dropped one shot but had five birdies and an eagle at the 18th for her six under. Brydie has already played for New Zealand and is currently being scouted by Ricky Ponting on behalf of an American University.

Alan Kearns, president Levin Golf Club

WorldMags.net

Write to The Cut, PO Box 6341, Auckland 1036 or email us at gallery@fairfaxmedia.co.nz Letters under 250 words are preferred. Writers must provide their postal address (not for publication). The editor reserves the right to edit or abridge letters published.

THE ROYAL TRAIL TO THE 2015 WorldMags.net OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP! Saturday 4th July – Tuesday 21st July 2015

LONDON TO ENGL AND’S GOLF COAST, AND TURNBERRY RGH U B IN D ONTO E PEN & THE 2015 O IP – H S CHAMPION S! U IN COME JO

Royal Lytham and St Annes Kim & Denise from PaR nz Golfing Holidays are privileged and excited to offer you this unique opportunity to gain private access to play some of England’s iconic and Royal golf courses, We play 7 English courses en route to Scotland where we play 3 more courses and attend The 2015 Open Championship, that returns to the home of golf, St Andrews. Tee times at these English courses are rare for a group but we have secured all for a fantastic tour that starts with Royal St Georges in South East England and finishes in Edinburgh, with Gleneagles a Ryder Cup host.

– join us, Denise & Kim Take A Look At This Line Up….

• Royal St Georges in Sandwich • Princes Golf Club in Sandwich • The Wentworth Club in Surrey • Sunningdale Golf Club in Berkshire • Royal Lytham & St Annes in Lancashire • Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport • Royal Liverpool in Hoylake • Prestwick Golf Club in South Ayrshire • Turnberry’s Championship Ailsa Course in Turnberry • Gleneagles – PGA Championship Course –in Perthshire

Tower Bridge, London

Package includes Saturday & Sunday entry tickets to The 2015 Open Championship with lounge access and seating on the 18th green, St Andrews!

There is a full 5 Star+ PLUS tour package available for a maximum of 30 golfers with non-golfing packages also on offer. Interest in this tour is expected to be high so please contact us now and book early – denise@parnz.co.nz or kim@parnz.co.nz.

PaR n.z. drives

WorldMags.net

FROM THE WorldMags.net FAIRWAYS

5000 M

“I’VE GOT

CLUBS IN MY RESTAURANT” ROBERTO LANTSOGHT TALKS ABOUT HIS WORLD RECORD COLLECTION OF GOLF CLUBS

18 thecut

y father, who is also called Roberto, began collecting golf clubs in the early 1990s after a friend gave him a set.

He began to trawl the local markets for old clubs, and would buy more and more every Saturday and Sunday. Pretty soon the collection was over the 1000 club mark.

At this point, he decided to begin displaying them from the roof of our restaurant in Fuengirola, Spain. It was an instant hit with customers and soon golfers from all over the

WorldMags.net

GO L N WorldMags.net UTSF CE L THEEBR AT OBS GA M ING E S S E ’S IVE S

World Records, and the resulting publicity has made us even more popular with golfers. A lot of our customers are touring parties from Britain or Scandinavia, but we’ve also served the likes of Lee Westwood, Jarmo Sandelin and Per-Ulrik Johansson. Add in some footballers, actors and a bunch of celebrities, and there is rarely a dull moment at Casa Roberto!

When there is some down time, I like to take some of the clubs out for a knock about. As well as running the restaurant, I’m also a professional golfer, so I like to see how the old-fashioned blades and small-headed woods play. The answer is they don’t fly as far as modern clubs but they feel much more lively. Nowadays every club is very similar and really forgiving, so it’s great fun to experiment with clubs that feel completely different and punish off-centre hits.

Everyone who comes into the restaurant says they can’t believe there is any more space for clubs, but I can assure you that there is, so would love anyone who comes to Fuengirola to donate their old woods or irons. I can’t promise them pride of place – that belongs to the clubs signed by professionals – but I can promise that we’ll add to our record by hanging them somewhere.

world were coming in to hand in their unwanted clubs, eat dinner and take a look at our unique ceiling display.

One of these customers reckoned we might have the biggest golf club collection in the world, so we contacted Guinness, who sent someone down to count them all.

It took them a while, but in the end they worked out that we had more than 3400 clubs hanging from the ceiling and more than 5000 clubs in total, which meant we did indeed have the largest collection in the world.

It was a great honour to be in the Guinness Copyright Today’s Golfer

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

COURSE LANGUAGE

“I’m finding myself. That’s probably how I would describe it. I’m having a lot more time on my own right now; a lot more time to think. With Holly and Caroline [successive girlfriends] it’s sort of the first time in nine years I haven’t been in a relationship; that I’ve actually been on my own. So, I’ve got a lot more free time which has meant a lot more head space.

I’m sort of rediscovering who I am, on my own. I want to be the best at what I do. There might be other things down the line, like family or business, but right now it’s purely golf.”

A reflective Rory McIlroy after breaking off his engagement to tennis star Caroline Wozniacki

“I’ve found my passion again for golf.

Not that it ever dwindled, but it’s what I think about when I get up in the morning, and when I go to bed. I just want to be the best golfer I can be.”

After his Open victory, Rory admits his golfing mojo is back

“It’s hard to be disappointed about it because it was such a great week. And with the way I had been playing in the majors, there was some pressure to play well this week. But with how comfortable I’ve been… it doesn’t feel like a big stage, it feels like I should be here. There’s plenty more to come. I’ll take 15 under in a lot of majors and sit there and wait in the clubhouse.”

Rickie Fowler after his T2nd finish at the Open Championship

“Everybody looks at you as [finishing] second and they want to make it a negative. Not at all. I felt like I played well. I felt like I did almost everything I could and there was a better player here. It’s as simple as that.”

An upbeat Sergio Garcia puts a positive spin on finishing second at the Open

“I got a little bit dizzy out there. At one point, and I can’t recall when, Dawie [van der Walt] and I looked at each other and I said: ‘Is anybody going to win?’.”

Kiwi Steve Alker after completing the equal longest playoff in PGA Tour history, 11 holes, to win the Cleveland Open

“You have to be very calculated and careful about what you say and when you say it. At the end of the day, with 140 characters we are creating our own headlines every time we tweet something. Good, bad or indifferent, it’s out in the public domain and it’s as if we told it to someone in the media. It’s electronically reported for the rest of our lives, so you’ve got to be very careful.”

Graeme McDowell talks about tweeting

20 thecut

MILLION DOLLAR

Y B A B G

ood form has translated into a healthy bank account for Lydia Ko and with her recent win at the LPGA event, the Marathon Classic, the 17-year-old is now officially a millionaire.

Lydia becomes the youngest player to top $1 million in career earnings on the LPGA Tour. She achieved the milestone at almost 18 months younger than American Lexi Thompson, previously the youngest million-dollar earner.

Lydia has been in sensational form since turning pro.

In her rookie year she has to date made the cut in all 15 tournaments she has played in. Including her two LPGA

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

PLAYERS ONLY.

“After my first win in San Francisco, you get a Rolex for winning, for being a first time winner on the tour. I decided to get my dad that watch. It’s kind of cool to be able to present it to my dad, a nice Rolex watch which I probably wouldn’t buy. It’s such a precious and very expensive watch.

Just being able to look at it, it’s a piece of artwork, and to be able to give that to my dad… I’m very grateful for the opportunity.”

NZ’S PERFECT MERINO & CASHMERE GOLFING SOCK.

FOR HER

Reinforced heel

Arch Support

Extra fine toe seam

FOR HIM

Lydia Ko

Tour wins, she has had seven top-10 finishes, six of those also top-five placings.

When asked what would happen to her winner’s cheque of $US210,000,Lydia laughingly replied, “I’ll probably see that going into my mom’s account.”

LYDIA’S LPGA RESULTS

(as of July 31) T7 Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic T3 ISPS Honda Women’s Australian Open T19 Honda LPGA Thailand 15 HSBC Women’s Championship T2 JTBC Founders Cup T61 Kia Classic T29 Kraft Nabisco Championship T32 LPGA Lotte Championship 1 Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic T48 Kingsmill LPGA Classic T4 Manulife Financial LPGA Classic T15 US Women’s Open T2 Walmart NW Arkansas Championship T29 Ricoh Women’s British Open 1 Marathon Classic

Reinforced toe Cushioned sole

Perfect Socks are the ultimate in comfort and softness.

Made in New Zealand. See website for stockists. www.perfectsocks.co.nz

Proud Suppliers to

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

21

WorldMags.net PLAY NINE

WIE WORDS

“Oh my God, I can’t believe this is happening. Life is just so ironic. Without your downs, without the hardships, I don’t think you appreciate the ups as much as you do. I think the fact that I struggled so much, the fact that I kind of went through a hard period of my life, the fact that this trophy is right next to me, it means so much more to me than it ever would have when I was 15.” … on her maiden major victory

“If I were to offer Lydia and Charley [Hull] one piece of wisdom, it’s that they find a way to be happy even during the down times. We all have ups and downs, and it’s important to realise that our downs are better than the average person’s ups. There are so many people who don’t have homes or struggle to put food on the table.” … putting life, and golf, in perspective

“People on the internet have become so negative, but what if people went out of their way to be positive? I think the power of random positive comments can really change someone’s day. When was the last time you said something nice to someone, just because? The internet has become so nasty, and my heart breaks for kids in school who endure cyberbullying. I was bullied during middle school, and it felt horrible. I can’t fathom how much worse it has gotten via social media.” … on social media

T

he United States Golf Association (USGA), together with American Express, has launched a ‘Play 9’ programme to demonstrate how nine-hole rounds can help more golfers enjoy the game in less time.

The USGA employed the services of Rickie Fowler to spread the message, the 25-year-old saying, “I don’t always have enough time to play a full round between practice and spending time with friends and family. I’m happy to join the USGA and American Express on ‘Play 9’ to encourage golfers to play a nine-hole round, especially if that’s what’s going to get them out onto the golf course to play more often.”

The programme is part of the USGA’s drive to make golf more accessible to a wider audience.

“During our extensive conversations with golfers, we’ve learned that they feel challenged by the time it takes to play,” said Mike Davis, executive director of the USGA. “By creating awareness of the nine-hole round, and the many ways that one can enjoy the game in less time, we hope this creative programme featuring one of the game’s more dynamic and progressive players will energize and remind golfers how they can fit the game into their days.”

Industry research indicates there is growing interest in this format of play. According to the National Golf Foundation, more than 4000 of America’s courses (27 per cent) are nine-hole facilities. In addition, nine-hole rounds can be played at most 18-hole public facilities. However, just 24 per cent of total rounds played last year, among those surveyed, were nine-hole rounds.

A separate study conducted in 2013 by Sports & Leisure Research Group for the USGA found that 33 per cent of core golfers (those who play eight to 24 rounds annually) and 38 per cent of casual golfers (those who play seven rounds or fewer) would play more nine-hole rounds if the format were “more strongly encouraged”.

PENILE ROUGH!

A

Facebook posting led to a chef at the Trump International Golf Links at Menie Park Lodge in Balmedie, near Aberdeen in Scotland, losing his job.

Staff at the golf resort baked a penis-shaped shortbread and posted it on chef Scott Mcmillan’s Facebook page with the message ‘For Scott’.

And even though Mcmillan was on a day off when the bake took place, he was quickly dismissed from his post.

According to management, the behaviour of the kitchen staff was “not the Trump way” and Mcmillan and two other chefs were fired.

An aggrieved Mcmillan told media, “I wasn’t there and had absolutely nothing to do with it. It was the guys having a laugh, something that’s happened in every kitchen I’ve ever worked in. Sacking people who have worked hard for the company over something as petty as this is pretty rough.”

But a spokesperson for Trump said: “We make no apology for terminating the contracts of a number of individuals for gross misconduct on our property. We offer a world-class service and customers in our hotel, restaurant and golf complex are our number one priority.

“We will not tolerate unprofessionalism of any kind and so we took immediate action to protect the interests of our business and guests.”

In other words chefs, tough biscuit.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

PRICE

PULLING POWER

T

hree time major champion Nick Price is headed to Fiji in August to contest the inaugural Fiji International.

Price will add his star power to the field which includes national hero Vijay Singh.

The Zimbabwean, who will tee it up at the Natadola Bay Championship Golf Course on August 14-17, said, “I am looking forward to competing in the Fiji International. I hear the Natadola Bay course is well designed by Vijay and will provide a fitting challenge.

“I have also heard a lot about the beauty of Fiji and the hospitality of its people so while I will be aiming to compete on the course I also look forward to exploring the island.”

The announcement of Price competing in the Fiji International is a win for the tournament with Brian Thorburn, CEO of the PGA of Australia, saying, “It is an honour to have Nick Price compete in the inaugural Fiji International. He is an icon of the game around the world.

“To have a player of his calibre lining up will help ensure the tournament’s success but will also provide sports fans in Fiji the opportunity to see another legend of the game in action.”

Price has enjoyed a stellar playing career which includes winning two PGA Championships (1992 and 1994), the Open Championship (1994), being ranked the World No 1 for 44 weeks and being inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Along with his 47 other international professional victories, Price has most recently used his experience and knowledge to captain the International team in the 2013 Presidents Cup and will again lead the team in 2015.

Already a champion on the PGA Tour of Australasia, having won the South Australian Open (1989) and Air New Zealand/Shell Open (1992), this will be Price’s first time competing in a OneAsia event.

India’s top ranked player Anirban Lahiri and Australia’s Brendan Jones have also confirmed their places in the Fiji tournament.

MAJOR DATES

T

he R&A has announced that Royal Birkdale will host the Open Championship in 2017 and Carnoustie will host the Championship in 2018.

Royal Birkdale will host the Open for the 10th time in 2017. Ireland’s Padraig Harrington won by four shots from Ian Poulter the last time the Championship was played there in 2008. Mark O’Meara emerged victorious from a playoff with Brian Watts in 1998 and Ian Baker-Finch enjoyed a two-shot victory over fellow Australian Mike Harwood in 1991. Another Australian, Peter Thomson, won the Open when it was first staged at Royal Birkdale in 1954, and again in 1965, and he was joined by Arnold Palmer (1961), Lee Trevino (1971) and Johnny Miller (1976) as winners in the north-west.

When the Open is played in 2018 it will be the eighth occasion on which Carnoustie has hosted what is the only major not played on US soil, and the first since Harrington lifted the Claret Jug there in 2007 after defeating Sergio Garcia in a playoff.

In 1999, Scotland’s Paul Lawrie triumphed after a playoff with Justin Leonard and Jean Van de Velde. Ben Hogan famously won the Open at Carnoustie in 1953 on the only occasion he played in the Championship and the other winners at the Angus links are Tommy Armour (1931), Henry Cotton (1937) and Gary Player (1968).

The Open Championship will be played at Royal Birkdale July 20-23, 2017 and at Carnoustie July 19-22, 2018.

COURSE CLOSURES

A

ccording to international press reports, Chinese authorities have closed five golf courses since March, with three having been dug up and two others converted to other uses, the move an attempt to show that the government is serious about its 2004 ban on the construction of new golf courses in China.

Despite the ban, the number of golf courses in China has tripled to more than 600, with developers or local officials getting round the consent process by calling their projects something else – such as a tourist resort or a sports training facility – when filing their building applications.

An authority on golf in China, Dan Washburn, who is managing editor of the Asia Society and the author of a book entitled ‘The Forbidden Game: Golf and the Chinese Dream’, said of the course closures: “It’s hard to say what sparks these dustups. Maybe someone pissed off the wrong person, maybe local protests started getting too much attention, or maybe there were indeed violations that were too big to ignore.

“More golf courses are getting built in China than anywhere else in the world. And I don’t see that changing anytime soon.”

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

23

STEVE SAYSWorldMags.net

STEVE WILLIAMS Caddy to Adam Scott

The Steve Williams Foundation kiwicaddy.com

24 thecut

LYDIA’S

MAKING GOLF COOL

L

ast year there was a lot of debate about whether or not Lydia Ko should turn pro and it came as no surprise when, last October, she announced that she was in fact going to do just that. Indeed, the only thing about her announcement that did surprise me was that it didn’t happen earlier in the year. It might be a cliché but you’ve got to make hay while the sun shines. Of course there is her education to consider but quite frankly she can go back to school or on to university in the future. Right now she’s playing as well as any female golfer in the world – her No 2 world ranking is testament to that – and I don’t think there’s any doubt that she turned pro at exactly the right time. For her.

Lydia’s in an incredible story. I don’t think people who don’t play golf realise quite what she has accomplished. She is simply outstanding and I take my hat off to her and what she has achieved.

The only person I can think of who is comparable to her is Michelle Wie. Looking back, all the expectations that were placed on Michelle when she turned pro and how long it has taken for her to live up to them – winning this year’s US Women’s Open – is astounding. I watched her play up close a couple of times in the early days of her pro career and I remember thinking she had the ability to win any tournament she played in. She was amazing. She has incredible brute strength for a woman and can hit the ball a long way. Unfortunately though, from those early days her career went downhill and it’s taken a long time for her to regain good form.

In hindsight I think it will be agreed that Michelle playing with the men was a mistake. There was no need for it. It doesn’t matter how good a female golfer is she is never going to compete with the men.

That’s a fact. I guess Michelle playing alongside the men was all a marketing ploy but it backfired badly.

Men’s and women’s golf are two different games and they don’t mix.

A lot is made of Lydia’s relative youth but there’s a great saying that goes ‘the golf ball doesn’t know how old the person hitting it is’. It was Peter Thomson who told me that. And at the time he was 50 years old and playing some of the best golf of his life. The same applies to the golf club, it doesn’t know how old the person is holding onto it.

Youth shouldn’t be seen as a disadvantage. If you put a good programme in place and you have the right people supporting you, as Lydia seems to have, it just shows what can be accomplished.

Although I’ve yet to see Lydia play in person, I’ve talked to people who have and they say she seems to have no weaknesses. And while they also say she’s got no outstanding strengths she’s a very good all-round player with a great attitude and massive motivation.

What Lydia is achieving is fantastic, especially for golf in New Zealand. I know that our junior girl golf numbers are poor and I think Lydia’s going to do a wonderful thing for golf here. She’s making golf cool. And on top of that she comes across as such a grounded teenager. It’s a winning combination.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

Do you know your

Swing DNA? the “What's correct shaft for me? ”

It's the most common question we get asked.

The Mizuno Shaft Optimizer has revolutionised the way we fit golf clubs.

Come and find out your swing D.N.A.

THE MIZUNO SHAFT OPTIMIZER IS AVAILABLE AT: The Golf House, Takapuna Golf Shop, JK’s World of Golf, Pakuranga Golf Club, Golf Centre, North Shore Golf Club, Waitemata Golf Club, Auckland Golf Club, Pukekohe Golf Club, Peninsula Golf Club, Full Swing Golf, Remuera Golf Club, Grange Golf Club, Pro Drive Range Hamilton,Mount Maunganui Golf Club, Rotorua Golf Club, Taranaki Golf Centre, Sharpies Golf Wellington, Hastings Golf Club, Wellington Golf Centre, Nelson Golf Club, Sharpies Golf Christchurch, Riccarton Park Driving Range, Frankton Driving Range Queenstown, Sharpies Golf Dunedin

www.mizuno.com WorldMags.net

SPORTS NETWORK LTD 0508 776 786

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

: MORNINGTON GC CLUB SPOTLIGHT WorldMags.net

EMBRACING THE COMMUNITY D FOR A CLUB THAT WAS NEARLY DOWN AND OUT, THE MORNINGTON GOLF CLUB IS BEGINNING TO PROSPER AGAIN, HAVING REINVENTED ITSELF BY EMBRACING A WIDER COMMUNITY STORY Kevin Norquay

raped across the south Wellington hills, Mornington golf course is an integral part of the capital’s green belt, its green and rolling slopes a refuge from the stresses of modern life.

After 98 years providing a test for golfers with its steep fairways and blind tee shots, the course fondly known as the ‘goat track’ is facing a stern test itself.

After tending the public course for years, in 2012 the Wellington City Council started asking stern financial questions of the amenity situated on the fringes of the central city. Dramatic changes to the course were proposed due to declining revenue and the cost of maintenance.

“Most of that was out of our control, but some of it wasn’t,” club president Ray Tuffin reports in a DVD that tells the tale of Mornington’s bid to get off life support and back into a lively existence.

Two years ago, there was a real prospect of the course being cut to nine holes, or worse, closed altogether.

“The big challenge was to increase the membership,

SINCE THE DAYS OF WORLD WAR 1, MORNINGTON HAS BEEN AN URBAN HAVEN FOR MORE THAN JUST GOLFERS. WALKERS, RUNNERS, PETS AND PICNICKING FAMILIES TOOK ADVANTAGE OF ITS SANCTUARY

28 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net to increase revenue and for the club to find a way to partner with the council over the course maintenance,” says Tuffin.

Since the days of World War 1, Mornington has been an urban haven for more than just golfers.

Walkers, runners, pets and picnicking families took advantage of its sanctuary.

As the city grew around it and the main route south to Island Bay grew more and more busy, the city’s only publicly owned course was failing. It faced falling revenue and casual players sneaking on without paying green fees. Membership fell to 80, with no women and no juniors among the ranks.

Ratepayers were subsidising the course on councilowned town belt land to the tune of nearly $200,000 a year, a figure that doubled in the decade to 2012.

A council-installed machine for automated green fees simply made financial matters worse from 2007. It was difficult to use, only accepted credit cards, and would stop working in cold weather.

It meant more and more people started sneaking on for a hit without paying, $1700 being collected on one weekend from the public who had not used the payment machine.

Drastic surgery was required if Mornington was to survive.

The solution was found right next door, in the shape of the Berhampore Bowling Club, which was also battling; in fact, it was down to nine members.

The course is a mere five-minute drive south of Wellington’s city centre.

In 2012, the clubs merged with the bowls clubrooms as HQ. “At the time our clubhouse was small and uninviting and had no outside recreational area,” says Tuffin.

And so Mornington became much more than a golf club.

It would be better named Mornington Golf Bowls Bocce and Community Club, as it offers a multitude of sporting and social options.

“We wanted to rebuild the club and we looked at the club as a business, and one way to grow a business is to increase your customer base. To do that, you have to add new products,” says Tuffin.

“We have added new sports – lawn bowls, indoor bowls, special Olympic Bocce, special Olympic golf and First Tee, a youth values golf programme for local schools.

“By adding new products we have added new members.”

The First Tee coaching programme has hooked in a new generation of golfers, initially starting with 85 children from Berhampore Primary School.

While children are introduced to golf, about threequarters of their training is about the game’s values, such as respect, honesty and confidence.

Mornington Golf Club is now a centre for community activities. It has run holiday programmes and a parents club, and holds community and corporate functions.

“The club is open to the community and it’s a place where you can actually take your partner, your wife or husband and your children,” says Tuffin.

“It’s a place where you can relax and there are plenty of opportunities to engage in a range of sports, or you can just enjoy a meal or refreshment.”

More than $50,000 has been poured into the club over the past two years, with an estimated four times that much in volunteer labour contributed.

“I am the proudest man alive,” says Tuffin, “to be the president of this club with such a hard working committee and loyal and committed members who turn up day after day to help the running of the club. When we have working bees, we get thirty to forty people turning up. It’s pretty amazing.”

Mornington’s primary objective is to remain an accessible and affordable club for the people, with an investment in its community, a role it’s fulfilled for nearly 100 years.

With the vision of Tuffin and his dedicated clubmates, let’s hope it is set for 100 more.

Disclaimer: In the 1980s, Kevin Norquay lived in Berhampore and occasionally snuck on to the course without paying.

He apologises for contributing to the club’s woes.

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

29

ON THE TEEWorldMags.net WITH SIR RUSSELL COUTTS

INTERVIEW Geoff Moffett

WHEN HE ISN’T WINNING THE AMERICA’S CUP (WHICH HE’S DONE FIVE TIMES, TWICE EACH WITH TEAM NEW ZEALAND AND TEAM USA AND ONCE WITH SWITZERLAND) RUSSELL COUTTS IS A PASSIONATE, IF OCCASIONAL, GOLFER. HAVING SET UP HOME AGAIN IN NEW ZEALAND – HE HAS PROPERTIES IN AUCKLAND AND QUEENSTOWN – HE HOPES HIS FUTURE WILL ALLOW MORE TIME FOR GOLF You were brought up in Dunedin and quickly got into top-class youth sailing. Did you also play golf when you were young?

We lived near Chisholm Park and even though I was pretty active in sailing I used to play golf there most days after school, starting when I was about 11. I remember Greg Turner being talked about at that time in the Otago Boys High School team.

I loved golf and got down to about a 10 or 11 handicap using pretty average clubs. To this day, Chisholm Park remains one of my favourite courses.

Did your golf interest decline as your sailing career progressed?

Not at all. I’ve always been passionate about golf but I’m only now finding time to start up again. It’s a pity the body’s not a bit more flexible; that’s the problem nowadays.

Do you regard golf as pure relaxation after yacht racing?

What’s the strongest part of your game?

It used to be putting but I’ve had to resort to the long putter because I got the yips.

When you were living in San Francisco during your time as chief executive of Oracle did you get to play some of the great courses there?

Yes, I love the San Francisco club. It’s a Tillinghast design, with really quirky greens, and it is such fun, the sort of course you play where you remember every single hole. I’ve also played the Cal Club (California Golf Club) in San Francisco, an old style course. You don’t see greens built like that anymore. Outside San Francisco, Pine Valley is great and I love Shinnecock Hills, which is tough but good fun. Pebble Beach is magnificent.

You played at Augusta National last year.

How was that?

Absolutely. It’s just a great sport to play with your friends. In sailing we’re so competitive, so it’s good to just get out on the golf course and relax. We certainly try to beat each other but we also have a lot of fun.

I’ve played a lot of good golf courses and Augusta is fantastic for the experience, even the par-3 course. I played Augusta with Brad Butterworth and unfortunately he beat me by one shot over two rounds. It didn’t ruin the moment but it certainly would have been better the other way round!

What’s your handicap?

What are your favourite New Zealand courses?

Around 12 or 13. I’m as rough as anything!

Paraparaumu Beach is still my favourite. It’s tough but anyone can play it. You can play that course along the ground which is one of its great features. There are lots of subtle putts and you’ve got to be in position off the tee. If you’re not it may cost you a shot but at least you can still find your ball. Courses that are too penal and where you end up looking for golf balls are no fun. I really like Cape Kidnappers, although the day I played there was no wind. But I can imagine what it would be like if it was windy. I love Arrowtown, too… a great little track, just a fun course to play.

How would you describe yourself as a golfer?

One thing I will say is I don’t get upset with my game. I’ve played with individuals who become upset when, frankly, they shouldn’t. They’re never going to be great golfers, so they should just enjoy the game. Whether I’m having a good game or, more usually, a bad game, I just enjoy it.

30 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

You love golf so much you built your own golf course in Queenstown.

Tell us about it.

Yes, my friend Greg Turner came up one day and said, “You know, a chipping green over there would be really good” and it sort of developed from there. I’ve ended up with nine holes. My kids love to play as well. The good thing about having my own course is that I don’t have to book a tee time!

Describe your most memorable shot.

I managed a hole-in-one at Monterey Peninsula, on the ocean course, after hitting a 4-iron on the par-3.

Are there any common attributes linking golfers and sailors?

There are some similarities mentally. Playing golf, you sometimes wonder what went wrong, where you hit what you think was a good shot and wonder why it didn’t work out. Like in sailing, you’re doing your best and for whatever reason it doesn’t work out and then it’s quite difficult to stay mentally in tune. But you have to because eventually your moment will arrive.

There’s a booking at Augusta National with your name on it. Who would your playing partners be?

David Feherty. I love his golf show and his humour and he’d have great stories to tell. I’d want Tiger Woods involved and would also love to have Rory McIlroy playing, especially with Tiger there. If there was room for another, it would be a big hitter like Bubba Watson or Dustin Johnson.

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

31

CHIPSHOT

WorldMags.net OF THE

M BRENDAN TELFER Broadcaster and co-host of the new weekly TV show Kordia Golf Focus

32 thecut

artin Kaymer’s win at Pinehurst in June might have been a red-letter day for the softly spoken German, now owner of two major titles, but it was a sad day for golf fans as it was the last time, at a US Open anyway, we’ll hear the quirky commentary tones of Johnny Miller, main NBC analyst since 1995.

From 2015, Fox Sports will telecast the Open, NBC having effectively been dumped in favour of a complete newcomer to golf. But thankfully those wacky Millerisms that have made him so popular (and unpredictable) won’t be entirely lost from the airwaves. ‘Pop fades’, ‘trap draws’ and ‘chunk and run shots’ will still be heard as part of the NBC golfing lexicon next year because the network will continue to cover regular tour events with Miller on board… but they and Miller won’t be at the US Open.

So it’s goodbye to NBC and hello to Fox. However, is the sumptuously staid world of golf ready for the ‘dirty digger’ aka Rupert Murdoch? Like him or hate him, Murdoch, via the means of his moneyed-up Fox Television Network, is about to move in on professional golf. On his arm could be fellow Aussie golfer-cumentrepreneur Greg Norman. Yep, two ‘dirty diggers’ for the price of one! What has golf done to deserve that?

Depending on your tastes, the Murdoch/Norman partnership will be seen either as a dynamic duo ready to give golf a real shake, rattle and roll in the hope of increasing its popularity while generating enormous wealth for the code, or they’ll be seen as a toxic combo leading to tabloid type coverage of golf, potentially harmful to many of the game’s long-anchored traditions.

Fox Television recently signed a 12-year $US1.1 billion deal with the United States Golf Association (USGA).

That’s a cool $US93 million a year flowing into the coffers of the amateur game.

Curiously, for the $1.1 billion Fox is forking out, it doesn’t appear to be getting much, just the rights to televise one event each year from the USPGA Tour, the US Open, plus it will present the US Women’s Open, the Senior Open and leading amateur events inside the US. With all due respect to dear old Rupe, not all these events are ratings gangbusters.

As always with Murdoch, power and politics, along with cold hard cash, appear very much at work within the confines of this deal. First, the USGA appears motivated by a desire to claw back the mana it has surrendered to the Masters of late. Augusta is in most golfers’ minds the leading American, if not the world’s,

AYS

foremost golf championship. This is a painful blow to the USGA, who are not just the governing body of amateur golf in the US, but along with its British cousin, the R&A at St Andrews, have worldwide governance and responsibility for the rules of golf both amateur and professional.

Now, armed with Murdoch’s money, the USGA is about to fight back and the first victim in this war of the fairways is NBC, sent packing along with Miller, whose role at Fox, from all reports, will be taken by Norman.

All this looks like a good deal for the USGA. But what are Murdoch’s motives here? For some years Murdoch has quietly eyed golf but hasn’t been able to force his way inside the USPGA Tour door, the barbarian being effectively kept at the gate by the old boys’ network.

However, as many newspaper owners have learnt to their peril over the years, it’s not a good idea to spurn the digger too often because he usually gets his way, regardless of the cost. This is where his mooted partnership with Norman gets interesting because Norman, some years back (in collaboration with Fox) came up with a proposal to radically re-shape the golfing landscape. He wanted golf to follow the tennis model and instal a world tour. Not surprisingly, the golfing establishment gave The Shark the flip, something I suspect still riles with Norman.

So now we have two hard-nosed Aussie tycoons teaming up and they have a foot in the back door of the lucrative American PGA Tour. Insiders claim it won’t be long before Murdoch is out headhunting again and it’s a good bet he’ll be heading to that quiet, anonymous Georgia city called Augusta. Sudden death could soon take on a whole new meaning in the corporate world of American golf.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

PT4

PLATINUM II

LR3

VS4 VT3

GolfBuddy LR3

GolfBuddy continues to expand its line by introducing its first Laser rangefinder. Our laser rangefinder is a compact device at just 175 grams featuring Pin Mode and Scan Mode, made to use with ease. When using the Pin Mode, the GolfBuddy Laser will locate the nearest object for quick and precise distances.

Unlike most of our competitors, Golf Buddy’s Scan Mode is used with just one click

GolfBuddy Platinum II

The GolfBuddy Platinum features 40,000 course storage capability, target customization technology, statistics analysis module, and a digital scorecard all packed in a water and shock resistant case.

The GolfBuddy is a full feature rangefinder, making it the most powerful GPS device on the market today.

GolfBuddy PT4

Most Advanced Handheld GPS With an enlarged 4-inch high resolution LCD and slim body design, the PT4 Is the ultimate rangefinder that offers the finest golf GPS experience.

The capacitive touch screen improves control with a new and more responsive interface. Preloaded with an industry leading 37,000+ global courses and replaceable battery, the GolfBuddy PT4 continues to innovate in the handheld category.

GolfBuddy VS4

Introducing the newest addition to the GolfBuddy Voice line, the VS4. The VS4 is a simple distance measuring device. With one press of a button, you can hear the distance to the front/centre/back of the green. The versatile VS4 can be used to clip on your cap or belt. Use the optional accessories to wear it on your wrist.

GolfBuddy VT3

The new GolfBuddy VT3 comes equipped with an enhanced set of features including a touch screen to easily navigate through the menus, a perfectly integrated wristband to increase the wearing comfort and a large display to provide you all the information in one sight.

WE HAVE THE LARGEST RANGE AVAILABLE ON THE MARKET WorldMags.net DISTRIBUTED IN NZ BY LINKZ MARKETING PH: 09 813 6460

FAX: 09 813 6470

FEATURE

WorldMags.net

ELEMENTARY FOR

DEAR WATSON TOM WATSON IS THE ONLY LIVING US RYDER CUP CAPTAIN TO HAVE BEATEN EUROPE ON HOME SOIL. HE TELLS BRIAN VINER HOW HE’S PLANNING TO REPEAT THAT FEAT AT GLENEAGLES

T

om Watson remembers the first time he was cheered for missing a putt. He was 28 years old, three times a major champion, and nothing remotely like that had ever happened to him before. In those days, nobody made makeable putts like Watson, and when they missed he was used either to sympathetic groans or stunned silences, not lusty hooting and hollering.

But this was the 1977 Ryder Cup at Royal Lytham & St Annes, and while the contest was nowhere near as fiercely partisan as it is now, and indeed was still a mismatch between the United States and Great Britain & Ireland, Watson’s missed putt, which handed the hole to the opposition, was a cause for crowd celebration.

“It was the 11th hole in the fourballs, Hubert Green and me against Tommy Horton and Brian Barnes,” he recalls. “We were 6-up at the time, so I took it with a grain of salt, but it was certainly the first time that it had ever happened to me, and the first time I realised what this thing meant to people. If

Watson celebrates with his 1993 team at The Belfry.

34 thecut

we have rookies in our team then I will make it clear to them what they can expect in that regard.”

The captain of the 2014 American Ryder Cup team does not think his enormous popularity with the golfing public in Scotland – where he won four of his five Open Championships and in 2009 at Turnberry so nearly and dramatically added another – will have the slightest effect on the way a predominantly European crowd behaves at Gleneagles in September. “I’m under no illusions,” he says, smiling. So Watson expects galleries at least as lively as at Celtic Manor in 2010, but what can we expect from Watson?

Lanny Wadkins – part of the 1993 team which Watson captained, the last American team to win on foreign soil – is clear about his strengths.

“He doesn’t go out there to have fun,” says Wadkins. “He goes out there to kick butt and get the job done.”

The appointment of a man who will be 65 when the Ryder Cup gets underway has been described as a last roll of the dice by the PGA of America, as they contemplate just two wins from the last nine matches.

This might be construed as something of an insult to a fellow of Watson’s stature in the game, but undoubtedly the appointment, 20 years after his last captaincy, smacks of a need to shake things up. Had the Americans won at Medinah in 2012 then it’s a dime to a dollar, as they say over there, they would simply have appointed one of the men next in line, such as David Toms – the hot favourite before Watson was unveiled – or Mark Calcavecchia.

Instead, they have chosen a captain who knows how to lead a US Ryder Cup team to victory on British soil (at The Belfry in 1993), and there are not many of those around!

Indeed, short of naming the 84-year-old Jack Burke (who led a victorious team at Muirfield in 1973) or the 90-year-old Dow Finsterwald (who won that Lytham match in 1977) Watson was their only choice.

Watson, of course, commands vast respect on both sides of the Atlantic; and he is relishing the opportunity. “It was

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

Watson hopes to hold the Ryder Cup in victory on September 28, 2014.

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

35

WorldMags.net

somewhat of a surprise to be asked,” he admits. “But I really welcomed it. It really gave me a spark. I always wanted to be the captain again.”

Will he approach the job differently this time? He smiles. “Oh, I’m pretty much the same person I was in 1993,” he says. “I have just the same attitude that I had then, which is that I badly want to win.

But, at the end of the day, I’m not the man who goes out there and does it. I’m just a stage manager, as I was the last time. My job is to make it as easy as possible for the players to take the stage and act their parts.”

In 1993, with Bernard Gallacher as his opposite number, Watson managed the stage with aplomb, although the US team were behind by a point going into the final-day singles. It might offer a hint as to how he will do things this September, or it might not, but Watson sent out his 12 players that Sunday with two formidable street-fighters in Paul Azinger and Lanny Wadkins at the back. They both secured halves, against Nick Faldo and Sam Torrance, but in any case the US turnaround was by then complete, after Payne Stewart, Davis Love, Jim Gallagher, Ray Floyd and Tom Kite in the middle of the order had won five consecutive matches. The Americans eventually prevailed 15-13.

Watson’s singles strategy had worked.

“But I claim no credit for it,” he says. “The players did it, not me.

Sure, there was a strategy. I’d always made it clear to the team I’d play the best players available to win the event. But we got a few good breaks at the end and ended up squeaking by.”

Watson insists he will captain by consensus at Gleneagles, and that his assistants will play a full part not only in deciding the pairings, but also in helping him to choose his three wild-card picks.

His first vice-captain selection was Andy North, of whom Watson says, “Andy was at the Presidents Cup [at Muirfield Village last October, won by the US team against the international team for the fifth time in succession] walking with a few of the matches.

He works for ESPN, walks with the final group at all the major championships ESPN does. He’s around the players, knows the players better than I do, so he’ll be very instrumental in a lot of the decision-making, including the captain’s picks.”

36 thecut

ABOVE: Watson and European skipper Paul McGinley pose with the cup. RIGHT: Not a bad Ryder Cup pairing; lining up a putt with Jack Nicklaus at Walton Heath in 1981. BELOW: Lunch with McGinley and Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond.

Watson has already had those picks reduced from four to three, and wishes he could have gone further. “It wouldn’t be a bad idea to go to no picks. If I could, that’s the direction I would go. Because then they [the 12 spots] become something really worth playing hard for. I played under that format as a player. If you finished 13th you missed out; and I did, in 1985. I finished 13th and I was not on the team, and that mattered a great deal to me. It came down to the last hole (in the USPGA) at Cherry Hills. I drove into a divot, and that basically caused me to make a bogey. If I’d made par I’d have been on the Ryder Cup team, it was that close.”

If all 12 players qualified automatically, of course, it would remove one of Watson’s more onerous responsibilities; to decide who to pick, and who to leave out. Not that he wants to change

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net THE THREE BEST

AMERICAN CAPTAINS… 1. Paul Azinger 2008 Azinger’s ‘pod’ system, which divided his players into groups of four in a strategy borrowed from the Navy Seals was genius. It turned Zinger’s men into a feared fighting force.

2. Tom Watson 1993 Only three men alive have captained a US team to victory on foreign soil. And Watson is the only one of the three who did it against Europe rather than the weaker Great Britain & Ireland team.

3. Dave Stockton 1991 Stockton was aggressive and hugely patriotic as he whipped the home crowd into a frenzy. He was also bright enough to see Wadkins and Irwin were born to play foursomes together.

AND THE THREE WORST...

1. Corey Pavin 2010 Pavin forgot to introduce Stewart Cink at the opening ceremony; and was awkward and uninspiring.

Oh, and he selected waterproofs and bags which weren’t actually waterproof.

2. Hal Sutton 2004 There were very few people on earth who thought that pairing Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson was a good idea. Unfortunately, Sutton was one of them – and he did it twice!

“WE’RE TIRED OF LOSING. I’M TIRED OF LOSING. THE RYDER CUP IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT GOLF EVENTS. I WANT US TO WIN. IT’S BEEN A PAINFUL COUPLE OF DECADES” the selection procedure to give himself an easier ride, but at the same time he is finding out with every day that passes how much bigger the job has become than when he did it last.

“In some regards, it’s no different,” he says. “There’s still a gala event, still an opening and closing ceremony and a match. But what has changed is what I’m doing now, for example, talking to you, all that has happened much earlier this time.

“It was the same working through the process of getting the clothing arranged, the gifts for people, all those mundane issues that I like to have my hand in. We have the rooms already lined up at Gleneagles. But the PGA of America carry the ball on this.

They’re my go-to experts, and I rely on them very heavily.”

Most of the decisions, however, rest with Captain Watson. And

3. Tom Kite 1997 While Seve was driving around Valderrama like a maniac urging his troops to victory, Kite took a back seat, was noticeable by his absence, and was ultimately outmanoeuvred.

one of them is the colour and design of the outfits. Any clues? “Well, you can bet there’s going to be some red, white and blue in there.”

Raw patriotism has always been a factor in the Ryder Cup, of course, but in the Americans that has been compounded by burning indignation. Seven defeats in nine, and indeed 11 in 16 (if we include the 1989 tie that kept the cup in European hands) is a catastrophic record for a golfing nation that prior to 1985 had lost only once, with one tie, in 50 years.

Does Watson have any theories as to why the Europeans have been so dominant in recent times, even over American teams that on paper looked significantly stronger?

“They’ve played better, that’s the bottom line. I don’t mean to be trite, but that’s what it amounts to.”

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

37

WorldMags.net

WATSON’S STELLAR CAREER BORN: September 4, 1949 TURNED PROFESSIONAL: 1971 YEARS PLAYED: 1977, 1981, 1983 and 1989 TOTAL MATCHES: 15 CAREER RECORD: (W-H-L) 10-1-4 SINGLES: (W-H-L) 2-0-2 FOURSOMES: (W-H-L) 4-1-1 FOURBALLS: (W-H-L) 4-0-1 TOTAL POINTS WON: 10½ TOTAL POINTS WON %: 70 TEAM USA CAPTAIN: 1993 (Team USA def Team Europe 15-13 at The Belfry).

MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIPS (8): Masters 1977; US Open 1982; Open Championships 1975, 1977, 1980, 1982 and 1983

But surely it amounts to more than that. A greater desire on the part of Team Europe, perhaps?

“That could be it. But the desire from our players right now is as great as it’s ever been. Judging by what I heard from the players at the Presidents Cup it is very strongly on their minds. We’re all tired of it. I don’t like to lose. The Ryder Cup is one of the most important golf events in the world, and I want my country to win.

It’s been very painful over the last couple of decades.”

The fervent hope on the other side of the Atlantic is that Paul McGinley and his team can prolong that pain in Perthshire come September 28, and it could be that the Scottish weather will be their 13th man. Not that the European players on the PGA Tour get to play much in the cold and the damp, but they are still a sight better acquainted with ‘dreich’ conditions than the Americans.

On the other hand, Watson himself is unarguably one of the greatest wet-weather players the game has known, another reason why he is a sensible choice to lead in Scotland.

It’s hard to imagine the five-times Open champion leading a team wearing leaky waterproofs, as Corey Pavin did in 2010 at Celtic Manor, causing a frantic visit to the merchandise tent. “Yes, that was sad,” says Watson, although one suspects he’s being diplomatic.

At any rate, ‘sad’ wasn’t the word selected by even the most fervent fans of Team USA. Of course, if it does rain at Gleneagles, like it did in Wales, the

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

LEFT: Bubba Watson unleashes a drive during the last Ryder Cup. ABOVE LEFT: Tom Watson wins The Open at Carnoustie in 1980. ABOVE RIGHT: Bubba and US team captain Corey Pavin face the press after the Medinah defeat. BELOW LEFT: The smiles say it all after the US team victory at The Belfry in 1993. BELOW RIGHT: Ian Poulter celebrates at Medinah.

captain can’t inject his own relish for wet-weather golf into his players. But he can, and will, pass on tips for dealing with it.

“I hope I can help them, although not all of them would need it.

Steve Stricker, for example, is from Madison, Wisconsin. He’s used to bad weather. But whatever it’s like, four days of practice will give us time to adjust to it.”

And moving on from Celtic Manor to Medinah last time out, what of the scenes on the first tee when Bubba Watson whipped

It might be, of course, that even Bubba and Poulter will struggle to get a mainly Scottish crowd to behave as if they were at Ibrox or Parkhead, or Phoenix, such is the respect for golf in the game’s homeland.

And Captain Watson cherishes that respect, not to curry favour with his 2014 hosts, but just because he does.

“I love Scotland, I really do,” he says. “I’ve said it a thousand times, but golf is part of the fabric of the country. It was only a few

“OUR DESIRE IS AS GREAT AS IT’S EVER BEEN. JUDGING BY WHAT I HEARD FROM THE PLAYERS AT THE PRESIDENTS CUP, WINNING THIS RYDER CUP IS VERY STRONGLY ON THEIR MINDS” the crowd into a cacophonous frenzy, then hit his ball at the height of the racket, only to be matched by Ian Poulter.

Did Watson, the traditionalist, watch with a smile on his face, or a frown? Again, he is diplomatic. “It seems like there is a transition going on right now in golf, in the way the crowd reacts and the way the players expect them to react.”

Would he have been able to tee off in such a din?

“Well, I’ve played the 16th hole at Phoenix (in the Phoenix Open, where students from nearby Arizona State University create a raucous party atmosphere), so I know I can.”

Copyright Golf World

months ago that I learnt about how they are giving all nine year olds a chance to have golf lessons through the school system. I think that’s remarkable. What a wonderful thing.”

And while he’s dishing out praise, what, finally, of his opposite number, the popular Irishman McGinley, who is a Ryder Cup captain for the first time?

“I have already had a few private meetings with Paul and we’re singing from the same song sheet in terms of how we want the event to go. I have tremendous respect for Paul. He’s a class act.”

Which makes two of them.

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

39

WorldMags.net

WONDEROF

THE

WATSON T

his year’s US Ryder Cup captain might be 65 years old and in the twilight of his career but it would be a mistake to underestimate his ability as a team leader, especially with the biennial battle for golfing supremacy being played on UK soil. With five Open Championship titles to his name it is obvious that Watson has nothing to fear about the contest being played at Gleneagles, in fact he is certain to be relishing the prospect.

It’s part of golf lore that Watson is an eight-time major champion but did you know that he…

Lives on a farm on the outskirts of Kansas, the city of his birth Attended Stanford University before turning pro Graduated from Stanford in 1971 with a degree in psychology Was nicknamed ‘Huckleberry Dillinger’ early in his career by media who thought his “innocent-looking freckled face didn’t match his killer instinct on the course” Won a total of 39 PGA Tour events Was named PGA Player of the Year six times, 1977–1980, 1982 and 1984 Is a three-time winner (1977, 1978, 1979) of the Vardon Trophy for having the lowest scoring average Withdrew from the 1979 US Ryder Cup team due to the imminent birth of one of his children Is a long-standing columnist having written for the magazine Golf Digest since the mid 1970s Has written and co-authored several books on golf Was named Golfer of the Decade for the 1980s Received the US Golf Association’s prestigious Bob Jones Award for distinguished sportsmanship in 1987 Was elected to the PGA World Golf Hall of Fame in 1988 Is renowned for his on-course honesty. In 1991 he called a penalty stroke on himself for slightly moving a ball that was in deep rough although no one else saw the incident Began his involvement with golf course design in the 1990s Was made an honorary member of the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews in 1999 Had hip replacement surgery in 2008 Has a lifetime membership of the European Tour Is renowned as one of the most complete golfers, especially due to his competitiveness no matter his age

40 thecut

WORDS OF A WINNER ‘‘A LOT OF GUYS WHO HAVE NEVER CHOKED HAVE NEVER BEEN IN THE POSITION TO DO SO’’

‘‘IF YOU WANT TO INCREASE YOUR SUCCESS RATE, DOUBLE YOUR FAILURE RATE’’ ‘‘I LEARNED HOW TO WIN BY LOSING AND NOT LIKING IT’’ ‘‘NO OTHER GAME COMBINES THE WONDER OF NATURE WITH THE DISCIPLINE OF SPORT IN SUCH CAREFULLY PLANNED WAYS. A GREAT GOLF COURSE BOTH FREES AND CHALLENGES A GOLFER’S MIND’’

‘‘I DO BELIEVE THAT, IN CERTAIN INSTANCES, PLAYERS CAN BE CORRUPTED BY THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THEY MAKE. I THINK TOO MUCH MONEY CORRUPTS THE DESIRE AND FOR SOME PLAYERS IT’S ABOUT HOW MUCH MONEY THEY MAKE RATHER THAN JUST TRYING TO BE THE BEST PLAYER THEY CAN’’ WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net THE

NEXT

G E N E R AT I O N

IN

PUSH

CART TECHNOLOGY

All new for 2014 is the amazing Clicgear Model 8.0.

We had been asked by our customers for many years to design a four wheel cart that was simply the best. After two long years of engineering, design, patents, and constant refinement, we have delivered. The Model 8.0 with our patented 4XFOLD™ folding design is packed with features and new innovations. We know you’ll love it.

43cm

38cm

68cm

The RovicRV1C cart has all the great features and quality of the Clicgear line, in remarkably light and compact package. Simple open and close design makes for easy set up and collapse. While there are accessories designed specifically for the RV1C’s unique frame, this cart is also compatible with a vast majority of Clicgear’s full accessory line.

WorldMags.net

Distributed in NZ by Linkz Marketing

Ph: 09 813 6460

Fax: 09 813 6470

RYDER CUPWorldMags.net

US

DESPERATE RECALLS OLD TOM STORY Bob Howitt

T

he United States is turning to the past in a desperate bid to win back the Ryder Cup which has spent most of the past decade in Europe’s possession.

The trio of individuals in whom the PGA has invested its faith for the event starting at Gleneagles on September 23 are 64-year-old Tom Watson, 72-year-old Ray Floyd and 63-year-old Andy North.

It is like the New Zealand Rugby Union whistling up Colin Meads to prepare the All Blacks for the next World Cup campaign. Except that the All Blacks have been winning everything for several years now and don’t need a ‘golden oldie’ injection, whereas the United States Ryder Cup team certainly needs to try something different.

Europe has dominated the United States in recent times, winning seven of the last nine contests, including that amazing Ian Poulter-inspired comeback at the Medinah Country Club in 2012.

The PGA’s new president Ted Bishop had only been in the role one month when he made the surprise announcement that Watson would prepare the United States for the contest that focuses the golf world’s attention every second year.

Watson has impeccable credentials. Not only does he claim a

42 thecut

sackful of major and USPGA titles, his personal Ryder Cup record of 10 wins, one half and four losses is right up with the best, and he also captained the US to victory in 1993.

Watson, Floyd and North were all serious, no-nonsense golfers who relied on accuracy off the tee but also possessed great short games.

They will be backing their collective experiences to motivate the modern brigade of players to bring the trophy back home from Scotland.

They are each old enough to be the grandfather of 21-yearold Jordan Spieth, who will almost certainly qualify for selection.

Phil Mickelson, though, who has remarkably participated in the last nine cup contests, at 44 would be well aware of the achievements of the three team leaders.

Europe meanwhile features a strong Gaelic influence, with Irishmen Paul McGinley and Des McGrath and Scot Sam Torrance preparing the team for the Gleneagles challenge.

Ten weeks out from the contest each team had four players ranked among the world’s top 10 (the other two being Australians Adam Scott and Jason Day). The four Americans include Tiger Woods, who, of course, is battling form and fitness.

His race to regain both is going to be one of the fascinations in the countdown to the Battle of Gleneagles!

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

>IV]I\] /WTN 8IKSIOM VQOP\ XIKSIOM

<PM <MZZIKM[ *W]\QY]M )XIZ\UMV\[ Evaluated well above the Erakor Lagoon the Terraces is Port Vilaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s newest contemporary boutique apartment resort.

The resort features a ďŹ&#x201A;oodlit tennis court, gymnasium and private swimming pools in addition to the main resort pool.

â&#x20AC;˘

Return economy class airfare from Auckland on Air Vanuatu

â&#x20AC;˘

Return airport transfers in Vanuatu

â&#x20AC;˘

7 nights accommodation at The Terraces Boutique Apartments

â&#x20AC;˘

Tropical Breakfast Daily

â&#x20AC;˘

Free WiďŹ at The Terraces Boutique Apartments

â&#x20AC;˘

4 rounds of Golf at Port Vila Golf & Country Club & use of motorised golf cart

INCLUDES: A COMPLIMENTARY 50 MINUTE MASSAGE PER PERSON (MAX 2 PER ROOM) FREE PORT VILA INTRO TOUR PER PERSON Travel 21 July-22 September, 13 October-16 December 2014 Book by 31 August 2014

<MZZIKM ;\]LQW

!

8WZ\ >QTI /WTN +W]V\Za +T]J JWI[\[ KPITTMVOQVO PWTM[ NZIUML Ja \ZWXQKIT NWTQIOM LW\\ML _Q\P [\ZI\MOQKITTa XTIKML J]VSMZ[ IVL [UITT OZMMV[ \M[\QVO \PM [SQTT[ WN ITT \PI\ XTIa Q\ )N\MZ OWTN \PM KT]JPW][M Wâ&#x20AC;ŤŮşâ&#x20AC;ŹMZ[ ITT \PM NIKQTQ\QM[ aW] M`XMK\ IVL aW] KIV ZMTI` WV \PM _QLM JITKWVa W^MZTWWSQVO 5MTM *Ia

per person double share

7VM *MLZWWU <MZZIKM )XIZ\UMV\

!!

per person twin share

<_W *MLZWWU <MZZIKM )XIZ\UMV\

!!

per person quad share

CONDITIONS: Prices are in NZ Dollars per person based on two or four adults per room type as speciďŹ ed. Sales until 31 August 2014.

Air taxes are included however are subject to change. All offers subject to availability, capacity control and currency ďŹ&#x201A;uctuations.

Note the Terrace Studio have 1 x King Beds only. Travel Agent service fees may apply.

Phone (09) 524 9922 or 0800 80 2929 bill@experiencegolf.co.nz WorldMags.net www.experiencegolf.com

WorldMags.net

MANAGEMENT TEAMS

OOZE TALENT

I

t won’t be just the European and United States teams that will be bristling with talent when the Ryder Cup commences at Gleneagles in Scotland on September 23. The two management teams are also stacked with some of golf’s greatest achievers.

The United States team is captained by one of the true legends of the game, Tom Watson, who has Andy North and Ray Floyd as his lieutenants.

Europe’s captain is Paul McGinley and his vice-captains are Sam Torrance of Scotland and Des Smyth of Ireland.

North, who has known Watson since 1967, won

two US Opens, in 1978 and 1985, and 12 other tournaments and was a member of the 1985 Ryder Cup team.

In 1998, he was inducted into the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame.

Since 1993, he has served as a golf analyst for ESPN. “I’ve been lucky enough to cover Ryder Cups for ESPN and they have got me emotional. It’s going to be a great experience being personally involved this time.”

Watson, who is still hugely competitive on the US Champions Tour, was one of the finest strikers of a golf ball and in his hey-day ranked alongside such icons as Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Gary Player.

He won eight major championships, including five British Opens, the first in 1975, and 39 USPGA Tour titles.

Although he attended Stanford University, he later said: “Four years there didn’t prepare me for the business world. I made the decision that my only talent was golf.”

In 2011 at the age of 61 he became the oldest player to win a major title on the Champions Tour, taking out the Senior PGA Championship. He now becomes the oldest Ryder Cup captain.

When Watson named North as his first vice-captain he said: “Andy knows what it takes to close the deal and that’s what we need on the Ryder Cup team – players who can close the deal.”

HOW THE LAST 10 RYDER CUPS HAVE ENDED

Floyd is a four times major winner who has competed in eight Ryder Cup contests. He was the team captain in 1989.

In 1993, Watson chose him as one of his captain’s selections, making him the oldest Ryder Cup competitor at the age of 51. Floyd recorded a 3-1 record that year, the US winning 15-13 at The Belfry.

From Fort Bragg in North Carolina, Floyd turned pro in 1961 and won 22 USPGA Tour tournaments, including the 1969 and 1982 USPGA Championships, the 1966 US Open and the 1986 Masters.

He was also a Ryder Cup vice-captain in 2008, part of a team that won.

McGinley becomes the first Irishman to captain the European Ryder Cup team. He sunk the 10ft birdie putt in 2002 at The Belfry that gave

2006 at K Club, Kildare, IRELAND Europe won 18½-9½

1993 at The Belfry, ENGLAND US won 15-13

1999 at The Country Club, MASSACHUSETTS US won 14½-13½

2008 at Valhalla GC, KENTUCKY US won 16½-11½

1995 at Oak Hill CC, NEW YORK Europe won 14½-13½

2002 at The Belfry, ENGLAND Europe won 15½-12½

2010 at Celtic Manor, WALES Europe won 14½-13½

1997 at Valderrama GC, SPAIN Europe won 14½-13½

2004 at Oakland Hills CC, MICHIGAN Europe won 18½-9½

2012 at Medinah CC, ILLINOIS Europe won 14½-13½

WorldMags.net

The European team celebrate with the Ryder Cup after Europe defeated the US at the 39th Ryder Cup, 2012

WorldMags.net him victory over Jim Furyk and clinched the trophy for Europe.

McGinley achieved four victories on the European Tour after winning the 1989 Irish Amateur Championship.

In partnership with Padraig Harrington, he won the World Cup of Golf for Ireland in 1997 and made consecutive victorious Ryder Cup appearances in 2002, 2004 and 2006.

In 2006, he magnanimously offered a handshake and conceded a 20ft putt for a half to JJ Henry on the final day because he feared his opponent had been put off by a streaker running across the green.

In Ryder Cups, he was a vice-captain to Colin Montgomerie in 2010 and to Jose Maria Olazabal in 2012.

Golf is in the family, his wife Alison competed on the Ladies European Tour and represented England.

Torrance claims a most remarkable record. He played in eight consecutive Ryder Cups from 1981 to 1995, memorably holing the winning putt at The Belfry in 1985, one of three winning teams he was part of.

Seventeen years later McGinley sank the winning putt as Torrance’s tears flowed as the victorious team captain.

When asked what the Ryder Cup means to him, Torrance replied, “Everything – everyone knows how much the Ryder Cup has meant to me over my career.”

Torrance, whose late father Bob was a highly regarded golf instructor, holds the record for most European Tour appearances (706).

Smyth represented Europe in the 1979 and 1981 events and was vice-captain to Ian Woosnam at The K Club in 2006 when Europe won 18½-9½.

He competed on the European Tour for more than 25 years, winning eight tournaments and becoming the oldest winner in 2001 when he won the Madeira Island Open aged 48 (a record recently bettered by Spain’s Miguel Angel Jimenez).

As a senior, Smyth has won on both the US Champions and European Seniors Tours.

LEADING CONTENDERS FOR

RYDER CUP ACTION AS AT JULY 28 EUROPE 1 Rory McIlroy 2 Victor Dubuisson 3 Jamie Donaldson 4 Henrik Stenson 5 Sergio Garcia 6 Justin Rose 7 Martin Kaymer 8 Luke Donald 9 Thomas Bjorn 10 Stephen Gallacher 11 Graeme McDowell 12 Ian Poulter 13 Miguel Angel Jimenez 14 Joost Luiten 15 Francesco Molinari

WorldMags.net

UNITED STATES 1 Bubba Watson 2 Jimmy Walker 3 Rickie Fowler 4 Jim Furyk 5 Dustin Johnson 6 Jordon Spieth 7 Matt Kuchar 8 Jason Dufner 9 Zach Johnson 10 Patrick Reed 11 Phil Mickelson 12 Brendon Todd 13 Chris Kirk 14 Ryan Moore 15 Webb Simpson

improve your golf

45

WorldMags.net GOLDEN BEAR’S CREATION

A MIGHTY CHALLENGE

SCOTLAND IS ABUZZ AS IT PREPARES TO HOST THE RYDER CUP FOR ONLY THE SECOND TIME IN ITS HISTORY. THE VENUE IS THE HISTORIC TOWNSHIP OF GLENEAGLES

T

he PGA Centenary Course at Gleneagles, where the United States and Europe will battle it out on Scottish soil for the first time in more than 40 years, was created by Jack Nicklaus in the early 1990s.

The other courses at Gleneagles are the King’s Course, which was opened in 1919, and the Queen’s Course.

Nicklaus described the territory he was asked to develop as “the finest parcel of land in the world I have ever been given to work with”.

It was certainly a challenge even for the Golden Bear. It had to be a great course, being set in the heart of Scotland, the country that gave the world golf.

The tees are graded in five stages – 6815yds (6231m) from the white tees down to 5322yds (4866m) from the red.

A feature is the feast of views of the spectacular countryside in which Gleneagles is set. The rugged Grampions come into view from holes 3, 4 and 5 while in the background one can see Ben Vorlich and the mountains above the Trossachs.

Gleneagles is situated in the Auchterarder, Perthshire, 67km north of Edinburgh.

Gleneagles as a golf retreat materialised after Donald Matheson chose to create the Gleneagles Hotel (which opened in 1924) in an era of grand hotels.

So impressed with the countryside was Matheson he conjured up the vision of a large country house hotel in the style of a palace which would offer golf for leisure.

46 thecut

He engaged James Braid, a golfing great, to design and create the King’s and Queen’s Courses in the grounds of the hotel.

Braid had won five Open Championships from 1901 to 1910 before turning to golf course design.

The King’s and Queen’s courses were created out of a wilderness using manual labour. Picks and shovels and horses and carts were utilised with such effect the courses were ready before the hotel and became playable from around 1918.

Though not aside the sea, the courses resemble the older links courses of Scotland, being built on sand and gravel.

The result is an idyllic golfing landscape where many of the fairways and greens are isolated from neighbouring holes by the gravel ridges, giving the feeling of a private course.

Nicklaus created the Monarch’s course more than 70 years later. It was renamed the PGA Centenary Course in 2001 to celebrate the centenary year of the Professional Golfers Association and was chosen as the venue for Ryder Cup 2014.

Footnote: The only other occasion the Ryder Cup, which dates from 1927, has been staged in Scotland was at Muirfield in 1973.

LOOKING AHEAD

The venues for the next two Ryder Cup contests are: 2016 Hazeltine National GC, Minnesota, US 2018 Le Golf National, Paris, France

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

AUCKLAND

HAMILTON

TAURANGA

WELLINGTON

09 415 9642 North Shore Golf Club 51 Appleby Rd, Albany Auckland

07 834 2000 Beetham Park, Ulster Street Hamilton

07 578 8465 Tauranga Golf Club Racecourse Reserve 1295 Cameron Rd Tauranga

04 473 2446 194 Thorndon Quay, Wellington

WorldMags.net

US OPEN

WorldMags.net

KAYMER DOES A TIGER AT PINEHURST I

t was American golfer Bo van Pelt, who finished a humble 63rd in the 114th US Open, who came up with the sweetest line after Martin Kaymer had donkey-licked the field at Pinehurst.

“Tiger Woods 2000 is here,” he said. “He just looks like Martin Kaymer.”

Woods won the 2000 event by 15 shots. Kaymer won this year’s championship by eight shots, equalling Rory McIlroy’s effort in 2011.

All three – Woods, McIlroy and Kaymer – led wire to wire, the only three occasions this has happened in the past 40 years.

Many pundits lamented Woods’ absence from this year’s championship but although Kaymer’s commanding performance sucked the competitiveness out of the event, the 29-year-old was a worthy substitute.

A few weeks earlier he had won the Players Championship wire to wire and once again the world’s leading players were obliged to follow in his wake.

He owned the event after opening with a pair of 65s, coasting through the weekend with scores of 71 and 69 that never allowed any player to come closer than four shots.

He extends Europe’s great strike rate at the US Open. Since Woods last won the event in 2008, four of the six champions have been European – Graeme McDowell, Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose and now Kaymer.

Kaymer was 12 when Woods won his first major. He is now one of only four players – Woods, Phil Mickelson and Adam Scott are the others – to claim a major, the Players and a WGC Championship event.

48 thecut

Kaymer’s is an inspirational story, of how he rebuilt his game after becoming world No 1 in 2010.

Like Nick Faldo before him, he knew he had to remodel his swing to make himself capable of winning more majors.

His caddy Craig Connelly describes how incredibly hard he worked. “He spends hours on the range when he’s away from tournament play, back in Phoenix and when he’s with his coach Gunter Kessler in Germany.

“His hands can be in some state – they can bleed.”

Kaymer was at a low ebb and struggling in 2013 because he still had the bad shot going left, which he hates. He would often be on the practice range for six and seven hours at a time, hitting the same shot, going through the same drill.

“It’s a little boring,” he confessed, “but you know long term it will become something good.”

And something good it sure has become. Kaymer’s victories at TPC Sawgrass and Pinehurst netted him $US3.4 million and promoted him to No 11 in the world (from 39 at the end of 2013).

Eight shots adrift of the champion, Erik Compton and Rickie Fowler shared second prize, with five players, Jason Day, Keegan Bradley, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and Henrik Stenson, sharing fourth place.

World No 1 Adam Scott finished tied ninth, with McIlroy tied 23rd and Mickelson tied 28th.

New Zealand’s solitary representative Steve Alker struggled with the course, as many did, missing the cut after a pair of 76s.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

COMPTON

DEFIES THE ODDS US OPEN LEADERBOARD 1 T2 T2 T4 T4 T4 T4 T4 T9 T9 T9 T12 T12 T12 T12 T12

Martin Kaymer Erik Compton Rickie Fowler Jason Day Keegan Bradley Brooks Koepka Dustin Johnson Henrik Stenson Adam Scott Jimmy Walker Brandt Snedeker Jim Furyk Marcel Siem Kevin Na Justin Rose Matt Kuchar Missed cut STEVE ALKER

65 65 72 69 72 68 67 72 70 70 67 72 73 68 72 68 69 69 76 67 70 68 72 71 69 69 70 73 69 69 70 73 73 67 73 69 70 72 71 69 69 68 72 73 73 70 73 67 70 71 72 70 68 69 73 73 72 69 70 72 69 70 71 73

271 279 279 281 281 281 281 281 282 282 282 283 283 283 283 283

$1,620,000 $789,330 $789,330 $326,310 $326,310 $326,310 $326,310 $326,310 $230,900 $230,900 $230,900 $156,679 $156,679 $156,679 $156,679 $156,679

Because of Martin Kaymer’s dominating performance, the 114th US Open lacked drama, certainly competitive drama.

Drama instead was supplied by Erik Compton, who is on his third heart, the 34-year-old having undergone his first transplant when he was 12 and his second one at 28.

He finished tied second with Rickie Fowler and got as close as anyone to Kaymer, closing to four strokes during the final round.

“I just finished second at the US Open,” declared a delighted Compton. “I don’t think anyone would have thought I could do that, not even myself.

“For me, to be here and achieve this is just as good a feeling as winning.”

Compton, who has an American father and a Danish mother and who was born with viral cardiomyopathy, was competing in only his second major, having missed the cut at the 2010 US Open.

Having competed successfully on the Canadian and Nationwide Tours, Compton’s appearances on the PGA Tour were restricted to invitations until he secured his card in 2012.

Before his heroic effort at Pinehurst, his best finish in a PGA event was T13 at the John Deere Classic last year.

After pocketing $US781,330, he’s now guaranteed a start in next year’s Masters and US Open championships.

Compton tweeted after the Open: “Pinehurst fans, I have never felt so much energy. Thank you, thank you, thank you for the support. It kept me going.”

76 76

Personalised Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast Golf Tours ‘The hardest thing you will have to do is walk off the plane’

www.golfoz.com.au

info@golfoz.com.au Tel: +61 7 55758500 WorldMags.net

improve your golf

49

IN THE BAGWorldMags.net Martin Kaymer was born on December 28 1984

QUICKFIRE 15

MARTIN KAYMER

1 2 3 4 5

He was born in Dusseldorf, West Germany Kaymer is 1.84m (6ft) tall

Kaymer’s father, Horst, is a former corporate executive. His mother Rina died of cancer in 2008 Kaymer refuses to have any sponsor’s name on the front of his golf bag. Instead his bag is decorated with a sunflower, his mother’s favourite flower Kaymer has a brother Philip who is two years his senior

6 7

Both brothers played golf. In 2005, Martin and Philip played the first stage of European Tour Q School.

Martin finished first, Philip last.

Philip is now a lawyer

Playing on the European Player Development Tour in 2006, Kaymer shot a second-round 59 during the Habsburg Classic

8

Kaymer was the first German to win the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year Award (2007)

9 10

He was the winner of the European Tour’s Race to Dubai in 2010 and the European Tour’s Golfer of the Year in 2010 Kaymer became the second German to win a major (after Bernhard Langer) at the 2010 PGA Championship played at Whistling Straits

11

In 2009 Kaymer was injured in a go-kart accident and forced out of golf for two months

12 13

Kaymer sank the vital putt to beat Steve Stricker and guarantee victory for Europe at the 2012 Ryder Cup at Medinah To date, Kaymer has won almost $8 million playing the PGA Tour

14 15

Kaymer resides in the US, in Scottsdale, Arizona

TaylorMade SLDR 460, 9.5˚ Driver (Graphite Design Tour AD DI-6 X Shaft) TaylorMade TP xFT (54, 58˚) Wedges (No longer available)

TaylorMade Lethal Ball

TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC Irons (3-PW)

TaylorMade SLDR 3-Wood, 14˚

50 thecut

WorldMags.net

Ping Karsten Anser 2 Putter

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

THE OPEN WorldMags.net CHAMPIONSHIP

EVERYTHING’S ‘ROSIE’ FOR MCILROY

W

hile his father was doing handstands at winning £100,000 from a bet he’d placed almost a decade earlier, it was his mother Rory McIlroy dedicated his Open Championship triumph to at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club.

Declaring his parents the greatest people in the world, McIlroy beckoned his mother Rosie on to the 18th green following his two-stroke victory over Sergio Garcia and Rickie Fowler and gave her a massive hug.

“It was so great so see her at the back of the eighteenth,” said McIlroy. “It meant a lot to me. I was trying not to cry because she was bawling her eyes out.

“The support of my parents has been incredible. I can’t speak highly enough of them – they’re the best people in the world.”

McIlroy became the first European to win a third different major and joined two of the legends of the game, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, as the only players to claim three majors by the age of 25.

On this occasion, Woods was 23 shots behind the Northern Irish prodigy who confessed that he never dreamed of being at this point of his career so quickly. “The Open was the one you really wanted growing up,” he said.

McIlroy was made to work for his title by Garcia and Fowler but real champions can withstand real pressure, and McIlroy did.

He can now complete a grand slam of majors at next year’s Masters.

After hugging his mother, McIlroy embraced Garcia, who in his 64th attempt to claim his first major fully extended him, trimming a seemingly invincible seven-shot advantage early in the day to two after eagling the 10th.

McIlroy kept his cool and regained the ascendancy when Garcia bogeyed the 15th.

52 thecut

Not even the bunkers at Hoylake could hold back the unstoppable force that was Rory McIlroy.

There was a moment of anxiety at the 18th when his approach shot found a bunker. But he only needed a six and when he splashed out to 12ft, he was home.

Not even a spectator who heckled him for most of the final round could deny McIlroy the victory. McIlroy put up with the poor sportsmanship for 15 holes but when the man coughed during his downswing on the 16th tee, enough was enough.

After McIlroy identified the offender, he was ejected by marshals and handed over to the police.

“He was giving me grief all day,” said McIlroy.

“I sort of put with it for fifteen holes and then he deliberately coughed on my downswing at sixteen. I still hit a good drive but I heard it halfway down, and I knew who it was.

So I turned around and got him chucked out, thankfully.”

McIlroy set up the victory

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net ‘WILL YA TAKE

A BET ON MY SON?’ Back in 2004, Gerry McIlroy was so convinced his son was going to become a golfing superstar, he placed a bet with Ladbrokes that within 10 years young Rory would win the Open Championship.

Ladbrokes, always happy to take optimistic parents’ money off them, offered him odds of 500 to 1. Gerry, then working as a bartender at the Holywood Golf Club, said he’d have £200 worth of that.

It resulted in a payout of epic proportions for McIlroy Snr on July 20 when the prodigal son Rory tapped in his final putt to secure the 2014 championship by two strokes.

Ladbrokes willingly – if not too gladly – handed across a cheque for £100,000, which they conceded was the most expensive Open Championship for them since Tiger Woods’ hey-day in 2006.

Ladbrokes’ representative Jessica Bridge said, “Although we’re facing heavy losses, we can’t help but admire the foresight of Rory’s dad.”

She said it was not the first time a parent had taken Ladbrokes to the cleaners. Motor racing star Lewis Hamilton’s parents bet on him winning a grand prix when he was just nine.

While McIlroy Snr’s punt was extremely optimistic, he always knew son Rory was something exceptional.

As a child he featured on an Ulster television chat show, chipping golf balls into a washing machine..

McIlroy Snr’s windfall pales somewhat beside the €1,223,450 winner’s cheque that went to Rory, who now leads the European Tour’s Race to Dubai standings.

with fabulous rounds of 66 on each of the first two days and thereafter was in cruise mode.

Garcia, who completed his round in 66, and Fowler, who was equally impressive with a 67, finished tied second, two strokes clear of the evergreen Jim Furyk, with world No 1 Adam Scott and fellow Aussie Marc Leishman a stroke further back.

Twenty-three shots behind McIlroy came Woods, who finished an embarrassing 69th, with US Open champion Martin Kaymer faring even worse. He was 70th!

LUCK OF THE DRAW AGAINST SCOTT

THE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP LEADERBOARD 1 T2 T2 4 T5 T5 T7 T7 T9 T9 T9 ALSO T23 T23 69 70

Rory McIlroy Sergio Garcia Rickie Fowler Jim Furyk Adam Scott Marc Leishman Charl Schwartzel Edoardo Molinari Shane Lowry Graeme McDowell Victor Dubuisson

66 66 68 71 68 70 69 66 69 69 68 67 68 71 71 65 68 73 69 66 69 72 70 65 71 67 72 67 68 73 68 68 68 75 70 65 74 69 68 67 74 66 68 70

271 273 273 275 276 276 277 277 278 278 278

€1,223,450 €577,217 €577,217 €351,350 €264,140 €264,140 €193,556 €193,556 €141,376 €141,376 €141,376

Phil Mickelson Justin Rose Tiger Woods Martin Kaymer

74 70 71 68 72 70 69 72 69 77 73 75 73 72 72 79

283 283 294 296

€57,931 €57,931 €15,685 €15,560

WorldMags.net

World No 1 Adam Scott wasn’t beating himself up for failing to win the Open Championship.

After all, he had the worst of the weather conditions at Royal Liverpool.

Wind wasn’t a huge factor but it did challenge players on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning, and that’s when Scott was in action.

He was the only player with that schedule to finish in the top eight, and only two made it into the top 25, Scott finishing tied fifth with fellow Australian Marc Leishman.

“It made it hard to challenge after Rory played those two beautiful rounds,” said Scott. “It’s just the way it goes. Hopefully, I’ll be on the good side again sometime. That’s how it is in golf.”

improve your golf

53

PREVIEW: USPGA CHAMPIONSHIP WorldMags.net

NOW FOR THE FINAL AND RICHEST OF THE MAJORS INCREDIBLE PRIVILEGES AWAIT THE WINNER OF GOLF’S FOURTH MAJOR, THE USPGA CHAMPIONSHIP, WHICH IS COMING UP TO ITS CENTENARY

W

hoever takes out the USPGA Championship, being played at Valhalla Golf Club, Kentucky, August 7 to 10, will feel like they’ve won the national lottery.

That’s because the championship, which with a purse of $US10 million is the most lucrative of the four majors, lavishes special privileges upon the winner.

He will receive an automatic invite to the other three majors for the next five years (if he’s not already qualified) and can take his place in the PGA Championship field for life!

But wait, there’s more. The winner also receives membership of the USPGA and European Tours for five years.

And all that’s in addition to taking home the first prize of $1.5 million.

Last year’s winner Jason Dufner says that the greatest thing about his success – his first in a major – was the platform it gave him, which will provide great motivation for this year’s celebrated field.

Dufner followed in the footsteps of such great achievers as Phil Mickelson, successful at Baltusrol GC in 2005, Tiger Woods, who claimed back-to-back

54 thecut

successes in 2006 and 2007, and Rory McIlroy, who outgunned the field at Kiawah Island in 2012.

The USPGA Championship is nearing its centenary. It was in 1916 that the Professional Golf Association of America was formed in New York City, leading to the first PGA Championship in October that year, held at Siwanoy CC, Eastchester.

The winner Jim Barnes won $500 and a diamond studded medal. The 2012 winner Rory McIlroy won $1.44 million!

The USPGA Championship was initially a matchplay event and as such it was not uncommon for the finalists to play more than 200 holes in seven days.

After the 1957 event lost money, it was decided to convert it to a strokeplay tournament.

In the early 1960s it was scheduled for the week following the British Open, making it impossible for golfers to play both events, but from 1965 it was switched to August, a move made permanent in 1969.

The event is primarily played in the eastern half of the United States.

It is the only major which does not explicitly invite leading amateurs to compete. The only way they can qualify is by winning one of the other majors, with the PGA reserving a large number of places for club professionals.

So who are the leading contenders for USPGA glory in 2014?

Martin Kaymer is a standout after his wire to wire victories at the Players Championship and the US Open. If he can reproduce that form he’ll be challenging for a third title in rapid succession.

And, of course, he won this event in 2010.

Jimmy Walker is the only player to achieve top-10 finishes in the Masters, the Players Championship and the US Open this year.

Those excellent results following on from his victories at the Sony Open in Hawaii and the AT&T Pebble Beach National have him atop the FedEx Cup standings.

Rickie Fowler finished fifth in the Masters, third in the US Open and tied second at the Open Championship. He hasn’t won a major yet but Valhalla GC could be where he breaks through.

Enjoying a strong year is Spain’s Sergio Garcia, one of a select band of players to be stuck with the moniker ‘one of the best players to have never won a major’. Aged 34, he looks to be finally maturing into a player capable of claiming a major title.

Rory McIlroy claimed the PGA Championship in 2012 and he’s in hot form after his impressive win, and third major victory, at Royal Liverpool last month.

World No 1 Adam Scott has been thereabouts without snaring a biggie this year. Tied 14th in the Masters, tied ninth at the US Open and tied fifth at the Open Championship, he is another player who has the game to win.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net WE’RE CALLED EVERYTHING RV FOR A REASON. We were previously called TrailLite Caravan & Motorhome Centre, but what a mouthful. Now we’re Everything RV, because as New Zealand’s largest, privately owned motorhome and caravan dealer, we have the widest selection of NZ and UK motorhomes & caravans in the one location.

FROM

FROM

FROM

$159,000

$128,000

$62,990

AUTO-SLEEPERS

TRAILLITE ROADCRAFT

BAILEY UNICORN

FROM

FROM

FROM

$194,604

$41,990

$222,794

TRAILLITE 900 SERIES

BAILEY ORION

TRAILLITE 700 SERIES

FROM

FROM

FROM

$171,965

$57,739

$184,306

TRAILLITE 500 SERIES

LEISURELINE

TRAILLITE 400 SERIES

With leading brands like TrailLite, Roadcraft, Auto-Sleepers, Bailey and Leisureline, you can 22

compare the best options right here. We trade in quality vehicles too, so have a great range

DRURY NORTH

1

of second hand motorhomes and caravans. Our service centre provides exceptional peace of mind motoring and our daily factory tours show off our TrailLite manufacturing process.

See Everything RV for Motorhome & Caravan Sales, Service & the best Warranties.

0800 872 455 77 PAERATA ROAD, PUKEKOHE WWW.EVERYTHINGRV.CO.NZ

WorldMags.net

ERV PUKEKOHE

BOMBAY

REVIEW: WOMEN’S BRITISH OPEN WorldMags.net

MIGHTY MO STORY Bob Howitt

DEFIES THE ODDS

T

hey dubbed her Mighty Mo after she pulled off the most unlikeliest of victories in the Ricoh Women’s British Open. And Mo Martin was referring to herself as Cinderella after taking out this prestigious major championship in brutal, windy conditions.

The 31-year-old American was virtually anonymous going into the event at the Royal Birkdale Golf Club for not only had she never won on the LPGA Tour, in three years she had managed only one top-10 finish and was ranked 99th in the world.

While many of her fellow competitors, including New Zealand’s Lydia Ko, will have less than fond memories of Royal Birkdale, Martin admitted that from the moment she saw the course she fell in love with it. She led the field after 36 holes after firing a pair of 69s but then predictably dropped into a tie for seventh after a battling 77.

What wasn’t predictable however was how she would contend with the buffeting wind on the final day, a gale that would destroy so many of the leading contenders’ hopes.

Victory was achieved in the most sensational of circumstances.

Playing more than an hour ahead of leaders Suzann Pettersen, Shanshan Feng and Inbee Park, Martin slammed a 3-wood into the green on the par-5 18th that struck the flagstick, coming to rest about 5ft from the hole.

Holing the putt provided her first eagle of the year. If that’s not perfect timing, nothing is.

The leaders weren’t able to match her heroics at the last, leaving Mighty Mo victor by one shot and the only player to finish under par.

“It’s unbelievable, a dream come true,” she said after receiving the winner’s trophy.

She paid tribute to her grandfather, who died last year aged 102, who had become her guiding light after her father died when she was 19.

“Right up till he turned one hundred, he used to turn up and support me. He was a great inspiration.”

The challenging course and the wind took their toll on many of the leading contenders in the final round. World No 1 Stacy Lewis finished with a 78 and Inbee Park a 77 while Ko, who started with three bogeys, returned an 80, one of the worst scores of her career. She hit only seven fairways and drove just seven greens in regulation and struggled to stay clear of Royal Birkdale’s horror bunkers.

Ko finished in a tie for 29th at nine over par, which yielded a cheque for $US22,977.

That was a lot better than Michelle Wie, who failed to qualify, as did New Zealand’s only other starter Cathryn Bristow.

From the look on her face, no one was more surprised by the win than Mo Martin herself.

56 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net Play a round with a difference at

Terrace Downs AND ENTER THE

LONG-RUNNING TOURNAMENT!

Play a round of golf at Terrace Downs before October 31, and your group of four will be entered into this fun new Double-Perrier tournament sponsored by TaylorMade.

The long-running tournament will be open for entries with any round played on the course from August to October; there are no specific days of play, so play on any day that suits you! The teams with the best Double-Perrier scores at the end of the time period will be the winners - and in each winning team, all players get a prize - First Prize is four brand-new TaylorMade drivers! Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

no extra cost, and no limit to entries per team - just pay your green fees and subscribe to our newsletter to enter.

Come and enjoy an unforgettable round of golf and be in to win these fabulous TaylorMade prizes! To book your round of golf and enter the tournament, or if you have any questions about this new style of competition, contact the Terrace Downs Pro Shop today.

TERMS & CONDITIONS: Entry is available with payment of a full green fee each in a team of four. Entry is not available for those playing as part of an accommodation package, or playing with any voucher. Entry is open to all golfers paying a green fee between August 1 and October 31. Players must hand in a completed and signed score card, and a completed entry form, to enter. The teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s score will be the average Double Perrier score of the team. Every member of the winning teams wins a prize.

WorldMags.net (03) 318 6943 | 0800 GOLF RESORT | golf@terracedowns.co.nz | www.terracedowns.co.nz

ANZ GOLF WorldMags.net SHOW INTERVIEW

58 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

A YEAR OF

EMOTIONAL EXTREMES AUSTRALIAN JASON DAY, WHO IS STILL SEARCHING FOR THAT FIRST MAJOR TRIUMPH, HAS EXPERIENCED AN INCREDIBLY EMOTIONAL YEAR WITH EXTREME HIGHS AND TRAGIC LOWS. HE EXPLAINS WHERE HIS LIFE AND HIS GAME ARE AT You must have experienced the full range of emotions over the past 12 months, with two famous golf victories, family tragedy in the Philippines and a thumb injury that sidelined you for three months.

Yes, you never know what life is going to throw at you. After the Philippines typhoon tragedy (where eight family members including his grandmother died), it was great that my mother and sister were at Royal Melbourne when Adam Scott and I won the World Cup for Australia.

You also won the individual title at the World Cup. That must have been especially satisfying.

With all that had been going on in my life, yes, it was. I hadn’t won a tournament in three years, since the Byron Nelson Championship in 2010, although there had been a few significant top-five finishes, so it made for an emotional week.

And then came that amazing Accenture World Matchplay final which extended to the 23rd hole before you beat Victor Dubuisson. How do you remember that?

It was quite surreal at the time. I was 2 up with two to play but bogeyed the last, which meant we went to sudden death. His recovery strokes out of the cactus at the first two playoff holes were miraculous. I couldn’t believe what was going on. How many miracles can one player conjure up! That Dubuisson, he’s got a lot of guts; we’re going to see a lot more of him.

Have you watched that matchplay final yet?

I don’t watch myself. I don’t know what it is but for some reason I feel uncomfortable, so I’ve never watched myself playing golf on TV.

So after those great successes, it must have been frustrating to damage your thumb and miss three months of competition.

Yes, it was, although the preparation and work I’d put in paid off when I did return and I managed a nice finish (tied fourth) at the US Open.

How does a professional golfer manage with a damaged thumb?

It’s a frustrating injury. It was in a cast for a couple of weeks after the Masters to immobilise the joint and stimulate healing.

Unfortunately, around that time I also suffered bronchitis, so all I could do was rest up. It was a tough time but I had to put the thumb front and centre till it healed.

With another top-five finish at the US Open – your third in that event – how close do you feel you are to winning a major?

I feel like my game is ready to win. I’ve just got to keep putting myself in contention and hopefully, in time, it will happen. I’m trying not to put too much pressure on myself and stress about it. I just think that as long as I do the little things right and keep working hard, eventually it will pay off.

Do you think there is any part of your game you need to strengthen that would help you win a major?

I think more experience, especially under the pump, will eventually bring its rewards. There’s no one part of my game that’s bothering me. I just think showing up and preparing the best I can will hopefully see things fall my way. There’s nothing more I can do than just try and be the best I can.

Oliver Goss from Australia was the low amateur at the Masters. He is obviously a star in the making and will probably move across to the PGA Tour next year. What advice would you give a young international player joining the tour?

I don’t think Oliver needs much advice because obviously he’s got a good game, with enough potential to be a major winner one day. He hits the ball well and has a good short game. It all depends on how he matures over the next few years and how he adapts to the courses he’ll be playing on.

It seems you’ve embraced social media and Twitter this year. How are you enjoying it?

Let’s just say I’m slowly embracing it because most of my tweets are re-tweets. I rarely tweet anything myself. I’m enjoying it because it allows me to talk to my fans and to put up pictures of my wife and son, which is pretty cool. It’s a neat thing. I’m not tech-savvy, but hopefully over the years I’ll get better.

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

59

FEATURE

60 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

GRAND DESIGNS STORY Ben Whittacker-Cook

WE HEAD BACK TO MANUKAU GOLF CLUB FOR A LESSON IN THE COMPLEXITIES AND INTRICACIES OF GOLF COURSE DESIGN WITH COURSE CONSULTANT PHIL TATAURANGI

R

ewind to the October/November 2013 issue of The Cut and it is official – the Manukau Golf Club is on the move and heading to a new 60.1 hectare (148.4 acre) site on the Alfriston-Ardmore Road, eight kilometres from its current location.

Next time we pay a visit to Manukau it is June 2014 and the scene that greets us is typical of many golf clubs in New Zealand. The winter sunshine struggles to crack the advancing rain clouds, members hastily pull on their waterproofs before they head out to play, and the clubhouse cat is searching for a warm place to settle for the day.

However, looks can be deceptive, and a short drive to the new site paints a different picture as work progresses at a phenomenal rate.

Huge amounts of topsoil are being deposited on the soon-to-be 16th fairway while water features are dug out and filled and greens mown on the all-new 17th.

The new club is scheduled to open in September 2016 and while it’s all change at Manukau, club manager Stewart Halligan’s vision remains the same.

“If we merely build a new golf course and club down the road and change nothing, we won’t go bust quite as quickly, but we will go bust, so we need to look at how we change that model,” he says.

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

61

WorldMags.net

“We could have the most sensational golf course in the whole of New Zealand, with stunning practice facilities, cafe, bar and all that sort of stuff. Everyone will want to play it, but it’s got to have affordability; we need to generate some enthusiasm around the wider community and people.”

Part of that innovative thinking is borne out in the new course design and layout painstakingly created by the club management, course designer Brett Thomson

and course consultant Phil Tataurangi.

Long before the ceremonial first shot is played at the grand unveiling of any new or reimagined golf course, behind the scenes there will have been years of designs and redesigns, ecological question marks answered and engineering headaches overcome.

Site analysis, master planning, financial feasibility studies and council planning department liaison perhaps haven’t weighed too heavily on Tiger Woods as he puts the finishing touches to his first designed course at Cabo San Lucas in west Mexico. But at

WorldMags.net

Manukau, as well as offering something new and exciting on the New Zealand golf scene, this is a huge engineering story. The club is bringing in approximately 220,000 cubic metres of material to create the course.

As the site is relatively flat, rolling topography from a drainage standpoint, the need to create some movement in the land is imperative so surface water can go somewhere… just one of the many physical and technical challenges needing to be conquered.

From a golfing perspective, former PGA Tour golf pro Tataurangi is more than qualified to design a competitive and enjoyable field of play.

“The philosophy that Brett (Thomson) and I have is that golf is more fun off the short grass,” he says. “We wanted to create quite generous playing areas from the outset, particularly on the first and ninth holes. The first fairway landing zone is 125 metres wide, so the idea is that off the first hole it’s a bit of a free swing. The landing zone on the second hole is about 75 metres wide, so there’s some generous playing. Obviously, on some other holes, the fairways aren’t as generous.”

The high level of thought and creativity that has gone into the design of the new course is fascinating, from establishing how the sun’s daily path could affect the site and playing conditions, to visualising how to route the course to best capture the most aesthetically pleasing points.

“Once we had that in place then we could figure out how to build a golf course around it,” says Tataurangi. “Then we needed to figure out a routing of the golf course that would work in the site’s distinctive ‘L’ shape.”

WorldMags.net There are nine 5-hole, 4-hole and 3-hole options along multiple loops, meaning that members can either play their usual 18 or nine hole golf or a shorter version should they wish.

The team at Manukau has even provided scope to alter the hole numbers at any given time. For example, the course is flexible enough to start on the 15th and go in a different direction and come back in several different ways.

“The last thing we want is for people to get bored playing their own golf course, or to get to a stage where they know the course and its personality inside out,” says Tataurangi.

“We like to think the personality of the course will change from time to time, and we’ve designed it with that in mind. Over the 52 weeks of the year the club can change the routing and offer golfers something different.”

From a club standpoint, the overall aim is to create a course that is playable. On the best of days, when golfers play above their skill level and under their handicap, they will have every opportunity to excel.

It will be a windy site, by the nature of its Ardmore Airport location, but the designers see that as a feature of the course and something that adds to its uniqueness.

“We’re definitely looking to create the new, rather than changing the old,” says Tataurangi, “which will in turn create a new atmosphere at the club.

“What we want to be able to do is to create something people will have pride in and something that they will want to look after. It needs to have a prevailing atmosphere of great pride.”

PHILOSOPHY IN PRACTICE

N

ew Zealand is going through a purple patch in terms of golf course design with a plethora of new and exciting projects enfolding the North and South Island, while Kiwi designers are making strides around the world.

As the owner of the Kura Golf Course Design company, Kristine Kerr’s work has taken her to China’s majestic Purple Mountain and the tropical palm plantations of Borneo.

Closer to home, she has helped transform some of New Zealand’s most important courses, remodelling the historic Waitangi Golf Club and building the all-new parkland style Pegasus Golf and Sports Club in Canterbury, venue for the 2010 and 2012 NZ Women’s Golf Open.

Kerr’s design philosophy centres on environmental stewardship, and a respect for the traditions and the future of the game of golf.

Designing a golf course is like putting together a complex jigsaw puzzle, and from the outset Kerr is guided by the shape of the site and its contouring.

From a playing perspective, the idea is to create holes that tempt and reward while offering individuality by variations in length, direction, hazard and strategy.

“The layout of the first hole is all about offering a gentle start, to get the players away and on the course. As you’re designing, you obviously know what you did on the previous hole, and what features and challenges were laid there, so it’s all about working forward and offering a unique playing experience,” she says.

Although Kerr has worked all around the world, she recognises that New Zealand has many natural advantages when it comes to laying out a possible golf course.

“Often the aim is to help the environment by incorporating nature as much as possible, creating natural habitats such as wetlands for New Zealand’s native birds and fish, for example.

It should be part of the overall experience.”

Indeed, Kura even has an in-house Golf Environment Organisation (GEO) Sustainability associate who reviews not just the course environment and ecology but the entire operation for both existing and new courses to become GEO accredited.

Kerr is currently working in association with Faldo Design on the design and construction of a new 18-hole tournament course at the Whisper Creek Golf Resort, Christchurch.

As a finalist in the Canterbury V5 Economic Initiative, it has been recognised for its environmentally driven design.

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

63

FEATURE

WorldMags.net

PHOTO: Simon Devitt STORY: Bob Howitt

EXCITING CHANGES AHEAD AT

V

enture to The Hills, Arrowtown, for the next New Zealand Golf Open in March and observe that two of the opening holes have been significantly altered.

Return in 2016 and be prepared to be wowed by something Sir Michael Hill fell in love with at Augusta – a nine-hole par-3 course.

The par-3 competition annually staged at Augusta National on the eve of the Masters has become a classic in its own right. It certainly won over Sir Michael who confessed to The Hills’ director of golf Craig Palmer upon his return that “they shouldn’t have shown me that”.

“Michael loves a project, as you know,” says Palmer, “and he’s keen to create a par-3 course on the spectacular piece of land away to the left of the 18th tee.

“It’s not an immediate project but something that when developed would be a marvellous asset for club members and for visitors to The Hills.”

In years to come at The Hills, it could be that the par-3 competition becomes as significant an event ahead of the New Zealand Open as it is at Augusta.

Meanwhile, holes two and three are being reshaped ahead of the 2015 national tournament. A large bunker is being created down the left-hand side of the second hole, where until now a vast expanse of tussock has made golfers wary.

“Players haven’t been using their drivers on two,” says Palmer, “because they were concerned at finishing up in the tussock, making their approach shots awfully challenging. But they will be able to play out of the bunker and that should encourage more adventurous play off the tee. They’ll be tempted to hit their drives further.”

A couple of fancy bunkers are also being introduced on the par-3 third hole, again at the expense of an amount of tussock.

“Until now, it’s been a bit of a nothing tee shot at three,” says

64 thecut

Steve Jones celebrates with Larry Mize after holing a putt during the par 3 contest prior to the Masters this year.

Palmer. “It’s clear what you have to do, but with strategic bunkering it will become a greater challenge. We want players to think more when they step on to the tee.”

Two other holes that are earmarked for change are six and 16, but they probably won’t be altered before the next New Zealand Open.

The changes at two and three relate to comments made by players after last year’s Open.

“We listen to what the players say,” says Palmer. “It’s important to assess their feedback. What they also told us was they just love coming to our venue. Queenstown itself has enormous appeal as well as the course.”

Arrowtown has enjoyed its third mild winter in succession, as a consequence of which the course is in excellent shape. Surprisingly, there has even been a degree of growth in the fairway grass, which, Palmer says, augurs brilliantly for the season ahead.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net “PLAYERS HAVEN’T BEEN USING THEIR DRIVERS ON TWO BECAUSE THEY WERE CONCERNED AT FINISHING UP IN THE TUSSOCK, MAKING THEIR APPROACH SHOTS AWFULLY CHALLENGING. BUT THEY WILL BE ABLE TO PLAY OUT OF THE BUNKER AND THAT SHOULD ENCOURAGE MORE ADVENTUROUS PLAY OFF THE TEE”

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

65

FEATURE

WorldMags.net

PUTTING MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS

I

STORY Peter Thornton

PROFESSIONAL GOLF IS ABOUT SCORING WELL ENOUGH TO EARN A CHEQUE. THE EUROPRO TOUR OFFERS PRIZE MONEY BUT THERE’S A CATCH – YOU’VE GOT TO PAY TO ENTER! A COUPLE OF KIWIS ARE PLAYING THE RISK AND REWARD GAME

66 thecut

Harry Bateman WorldMags.net

t is said that life as a professional golfer is a gamble; well, the EuroPro Tour takes that concept a step further, being a pay-forplay tour where every week the golfers have to front up with £279 (NZ$545) just to compete.

The EuroPro Tour begins with a two-stage qualifying school involving around 240 players, most of them competitors from the previous season plus fresh qualifiers.

The tour comprises 16 events staged in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The top 80 (of 165) make a 36-hole cut for an 18-hole shootout for the cash on the final day of each event.

Every tournament carries a £40,000 prize fund where the payment is top-heavy, with the winner taking home £10,000, 25 per cent of the purse.

At the Tour Championship, £15,000 goes to the winner.

Two Kiwi golfers, Harry Bateman, 23, and James Hamilton, 25, are back to Europe this year to roll the dice on the tour for a second time.

Their goal? To achieve a European Tour card.

They say the pay-for-play nature of the tour can make life pretty tense at times.

“It’s enjoyable as long as you’re playing well,” says Bateman. “When you start not playing well, it’s not that much fun. You see your money disappearing and it can become pretty stressful.”

Says Hamilton: “It is tough, much more stressful than I thought it would be. There are weeks when you are struggling that you don’t want to play. You wonder whether you should put the money up.

“You start thinking, ‘Should I be entering this week? Am I playing well enough?’ You have to assess where you’re at. It is a bit of a gamble.”

Hamilton, who is from the Bay of Plenty, admits that he doesn’t even cover expenses with a top 50 finish after making the cut.

“You are probably only turning a profit if you finish among the top ten. Of course, if you win an event you are set up for the rest of the year and that can lead to qualifying for the Challenge Tour.”

Because of the nature of the tour, costs are an ongoing concern for both players, who are at the start of their professional careers. They both have family and friends in the UK and make the most of these contacts in order to minimise costs.

Bateman logged his travel last year, which revealed that he spent 280 hours in his car driving to and from all the events.

“You get over that side of things,” he says.

“But if you are playing well, it’s all worth it.”

However, Bateman wasn’t playing well at the start of last season – he missed the

WorldMags.net first four cuts – but he turned things around in spectacular fashion by claiming his first win as a professional in the 888poker.com Buildbase Open.

The Royal Wellington golfer carded a three-under par 69 in the final round at the Frilford Heath Golf Club in Oxfordshire to win by one stroke from Scott Campbell and claim the £10,000 winner’s prize.

Bateman had begun the day two strokes behind overnight leader Tom Wilde. Of his breakthrough win, he says: “I was surprisingly calm playing the final round. I thought I would be a lot more nervous.”

Bateman said the key to his performance was consistent ball-striking and a red-hot putter that “holed everything I looked at”.

He finished 11th on the EuroPro Order of Merit with £12,334 ($24,133) from 13 events, some £4000 ($7826) shy of claiming one of the top five spots to advance to the Challenge Tour.

Meanwhile, Hamilton, who struggled for form, took inspiration from Bateman’s win.

“I didn’t even really know Harry before heading to the UK. We met at the first stage qualifier.

“Harry’s turnaround illustrates the nature of the tour. He missed four or five cuts in a row and was really struggling but then turned everything around by winning.”

Hamilton’s best result was a tie for 40th but he reckons that experience put him in good stead to come home and win on the Charles Tour for the first time.

He delivered a dream finish at the John Jones Steel Harewood Open in Christchurch, birdieing the 17th and eagling the last to defeat his former mentor, Bay of Plenty pro Josh Geary.

“Being on the EuroPro Tour left me in a better mindset. My attitude was that it isn’t as hard back in New Zealand after being on such a tough tour. If you make a cut on the EuroPro Tour you have played really well. In New Zealand things felt easier, and the win at Harewood just happened.

“I hadn’t experienced that on a professional level before because I had never really been in contention for a title, but the EuroPro experience helped harden me up.”

The tour isn’t all hard work. Away from the golf course the Kiwis make the most of what is on tap… literally.

“Every little village we go to has a pub,” says Bateman. “That’s England. No matter how small the town there’s a pub in it. It is a big part of the culture. It’s good fun.”

Adds Hamilton: “We’ll have a beer after a round, but no one gets carried away. The golf is competitive and there isn’t as much camaraderie as on other tours because the

James Hamilton

EUROPRO’S ORIGINS The EuroPro Tour was created in 2002 by merging two development tours, the EuroPro Tour and the PGA MasterCard Tour.

The purpose of the tour is to provide young professional golfers with a platform from which to launch a tournament career.

The top five finishers on the EuroPro Order of Merit secure a tour card for Europe’s second tier golf tour, the Challenge Tour, and also a place at the Stage Two Q School for the European Tour.

In 2014, the PGA EuroPro Tour has events scheduled at such notable courses as The Belfry (Brabazon Ryder Cup Course), The Carrick on Loch Lomond, The Oxfordshire and Prince’s.

WorldMags.net

stakes are higher when you are paying to enter each event.

“You still have good fun but it is more serious because everyone is taking a gamble.

We are all trying to position ourselves so we can play golf for a living.”

The immediate goal for the Kiwi duo is the qualification period in August. If at that time they are in the top 10 on the Order of Merit they earn a start in two Challenge Tour events.

Bateman and Hamilton are following in the footsteps of some well-known Kiwis who have tried their luck on the EuroPro Tour, notably James Gill, Dale Clarke, Todd Nicholson, Elliot Boult, Steve Alker, Gareth Paddison and Mahal Pearce.

Bateman and Hamilton believe the tour can provide a step to bigger and better things.

“It is a valuable pathway to the European Tour,” says Bateman. “It’s doable. I came eleventh last year and really only had a couple of good weeks. If I can manage greater consistency this year and achieve a couple of wins I will be on my way.”

Hamilton says he doesn’t know if his game is at a standard where he can be competing every week on the European Tour.

“But I’d like to think I would be competitive on the Challenge Tour. The EuroPro Tour is giving me the conditioning I need to advance to that next level.”

improve your golf

67

INTERVIEW:WorldMags.net CATHRYN BRISTOW

LET’S GO AGAIN! INTERVIEW Peter Thornton

68 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net CATHRYN BRISTOW HAS PLENTY TO PROVE THIS YEAR AFTER A ROOKIE SEASON ON THE LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR WHICH THE 29-YEAR-OLD FROM NORTH HARBOUR DESCRIBES AS “HORRIBLE”

The Olympics are coming up in 2016. Lydia is almost certain to qualify and take another Kiwi with her. Is it something you’ve thought about?

A

Yeah, that’s the big thing. But I also want to be more consistent.

This last year I was up and down, all over the show. You need to be playing well consistently. I need to focus on my weaknesses and try to make them my strengths.

fter missing the cut in 10 of 12 tournaments, Bristow surrendered her card, pocketing only $6600, leaving her 139th on the Order of Merit. But she showed great character at the Lalla Aicha Tour Q School in Marrakech, Morocco, finishing T15 in the five-round tournament where the top 31 players receive playing rights to the LET. We caught up with the down-to-earth Kiwi when she was back in New Zealand

Yeah, I would love to be there. It’s certainly a goal to try and be there with Lydia but it’s still two years away. For me, it’s more about building towards that, thinking about what I have to do with my game, until the eligibility cuts off. I need to climb to a higher level and improve my ranking… that kind of thing. The Olympics are in the back of my mind as a long-term goal but right now I need to work on playing well in Europe and retaining my card.

Retaining your card is your top priority?

What is it like on the European Tour? Is the tour social? How competitive is it? What is the dynamic like?

It’s a great tour and very competitive on the course. You know everyone’s out there trying to win. But away from the course, because everyone is travelling and not many are in their own country week to week, it’s social. You’ll have dinner with a group of

Obviously you didn’t experience the year you were hoping for in 2013. What did you learn from the LET experience?

To be very, very patient. I also learned that I really do love playing golf. With the type of year I had I could have packed it in and said “this is not for me”, but I still found myself enjoying what I was doing. That was a real positive and it provided motivation coming into this year. It made me appreciate that when you are playing well you should make the most of it because you never know what’s going to happen.

To get your card back with so much pressure on was a great effort. You must have taken confidence from that?

It rolled through into this year, into the NZ Open and on to tournaments in Australia, including some Pro-Am events. The momentum gained from Q School really helped to kick-start the year for me. Q School is a weird tournament because it’s all or nothing. Finish in the top 30 or you have to go and find a job.

You can’t put too much pressure on yourself during the actual tournament but I know that once it was completed and I had secured my card I was immensely relieved and really excited. I think it is mostly relief you feel. It obviously gave me a lot of confidence and I’ve been playing well and will hopefully continue to play well throughout the year.

You know what Lydia Ko has achieved this year.

What do you identify in her game you would like to emulate?

If I could play like she’s playing at the moment that would be brilliant. It’s pretty inspiring stuff. I don’t think any golfer, male or female, has ever managed what she’s doing. She’s kind of in uncharted territory. It’s pretty exciting that she’s representing New Zealand. I would love to be out on the LPGA Tour as well but the European Tour is a fantastic experience anyway. Seeing Lydia out there performing gives you extra motivation. It’s like ‘right, get off your butt, get out there and practise and work towards achieving, the way Lydia is’.

the girls. Once away from the course everyone likes to relax and have a good time. We travel to some pretty amazing places so you’ve got to make the most of where you are, not just sit in your hotel room and go from there to the golf course and back. It’s not like that at all. Well, not for me anyway. You need to balance out the golf and the social scene.

A lot of golfers talk about peaking in their early 30s. Do you think your experiences as a golfer over the past 10 years are going to benefit you in the next phase of your career?

Absolutely. You learn so much from putting yourself into situations.

You might not even realise you’re learning from it until you find yourself in the same situation again when you may do things differently. All that experience is definitely making me smarter in how I approach the game, even smarter in how I practise. I am focusing on what I need to work on versus what I’m good at. I’m more short-term goal orientated than long-term. I figure if you take the short-term approach, the long term will look after itself.

You have won on the ALPG Tour, you’ve won on the LPGA Futures Tour. You must take confidence from the fact that when you are playing well you can beat quality fields?

Yeah, exactly. The thing I’ve found with golf is that even when you observe the best players they can play patchy golf, but when they’re on fire you know no one can beat them. And that’s what you’re looking to emulate. You’re striving for consistency but also that week when everything comes together for you. I know that when I do that, I can win. I can be competitive. I’ve played with many of the top-ranked women golfers and I’ve learned that there’s not a lot of difference between the very best and where I’m at right now.

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

69

NEW ZEALAND NEWS WorldMags.net

1 2

1) Ger Guiry’s winning entry captures the magnificence of New Plymouth Golf Club’s renowned Pohutakawas. 2) New Plymouth GC’s 14th hole. 3) The green at Westown Golf Club’s 15th, aptly named ‘The Wrecker’. 4) Kaitake Golf Club is on the coast south of New Plymouth. 5) Ocean views at the Waitara Golf Club. 6) Mt Taranaki as seen from the Westown GC. 7) An historic building at the Te Ngutu golf course.

3

4

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net PROUDLY BROUGHT TO YOU BY

5

SNAP HAPPY

I 6 7

n order to try something new yet industry related, the Taranaki Golf Course Superintendents Association decided to run a photograph competition for its members. The aim was to encourage greenkeepers to look beyond their usual scope of work while out on the course.

Being lucky enough to be working in the most wonderful environments, at times when not many others are about, allows for an opportunity to experience Mother Nature at her best. And being able to capture these moments is something the association was keen to encourage.

Association members were invited to each submit three images of their course and recently retired chief photographer for Taranaki Newspapers, Rob Tucker, agreed to judge the entries.

The winning entry was announced at the association’s AGM, where Tucker gave an entertaining lecture on some of the highlights of his lengthy career as well as explaining the finer points of photography, using the images submitted for the contest to explain what he was talking about.

From Tucker, members were able to get feedback on the images they captured and matters of equipment, timing, light and shade, composition, natural features and the use of Photoshop were also discussed.

Many of the photographs on display had captured a moment but under the critical eye of Tucker it was apparent that all images could have been improved in some way. As keepers of greens it was not expected that those present will become professional photographers; however, it is hoped that the expert tips passed on will result in some improvements next time the greenkeepers take their cameras on the course.

Some of the interesting images included the capturing of the wonderful land forms of the Waitara golf links and the historic buildings of Te Ngutu Golf Club.

Special mention went to Dominic Squatriti from Kaitake Golf Club for his humorous approach to photographing his course and for looking beyond the image and including subliminal ideas.

Steve Hodson was commended on the use of natural features such as the majestic Mt Taranaki which is a focal point at Westown golf course along with his photography of the foliage around the course.

Ger Guiry took out the first prize for the way he was able to capture the vibrancy of the New Plymouth golf course’s famed Pohutakawa trees in full bloom. Tucker said the image of the contouring par-3 12th hole was enhanced by the early morning shadows and good use of light further emphasised the natural features of the land.

At the AGM, special thanks was made to The Cut for their support and for their contribution of the first prize, a year’s subscription to the magazine. - Taranaki GC Superintendents Assn

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

71

WorldMags.net NEW ZEALAND NEWS IS PROUDLY BROUGHT TO YOU BY

NZ TEAMS NAMED New Zealand Golf has announced the teams to contest the 29th Eisenhower World Teams Championship and the Espirito Santo World Teams Championship in Japan in September.

Joshua Munn (Manawatu), Tae Koh (Manukau) and Vaughan McCall (Gore) will represent New Zealand at the Eisenhower event.

The Eisenhower is a biennial world amateur team golf championship. It is a strokeplay event where the best two scores from three players count toward the team’s score for each round.

The championship will be held at the Oshitate Course and Iriyama Course of the Karurizawa Golf Club September 11 – 14.

The women representing New Zealand at the Espirito Santo tournament are Julianne Alvarez (Manor Park), Munchin Keh (Titirangi) and Zoe-Beth Brake (Whakatane). All three players are experienced when it comes to playing at international level and are in good form heading into the event.

The Espirito Santo is also a biennial world amateur team golf championship. It is a strokeplay event where the best two scores from three players count toward the team’s score for each round.

It takes place a week prior to the Eisenhower Championship and will be played on the same courses.

LONG ON BOARD The PGA of Australia has announced the appointment of accomplished tournament professional Michael Long to its board of directors.

Effective immediately, Long replaces Craig Parry, who stepped down after serving on the PGA board for the past four years.

New Zealander Long has been a much respected member of the PGA Tour of Australasia since 1990. Now residing in Western Australia, Long continues to support the PGA Tour of Australasia as both a competitor and a representative on the tournament players council. He is also the general manager of Hillview golf course, a 27-hole facility located in the Perth foothills.

“I’m looking forward to this new chapter,” said Long. “I’ve had some great opportunities afforded to me over the years and hopefully as part of the board I can give a little back and contribute to a positive future for both PGA members and the wider industry.”

72 thecut

NEW COURSE IN TOWN

G

us and Sarah Lourie have gone against the national tide and have built a new golf course from scratch.

It is a nine-holer, the Orlando Country Club, situated on the outskirts of Palmerston North five minutes from the CBD. It was officially opened by Prime Minister John Key on July 3.

Already it is known for its four water features, as in lakes, or for golfers, water hazards, even on the driving range in front of the lake house.

The golf course though is only part of the complex. Orlando is a function and corporate events centre with a big emphasis on weddings. The golf course and driving range have been established primarily for the corporate market and a limited number of general public memberships are being sold at about $550. Casual golfers are welcome, at $27 for registered players and $30 for non-affiliated, unless the complex has been booked for a major function.

Former farmers, the Louries are experienced wedding and function hosts.

Six years ago they bought 17 hectares of a former rehab dairy farm near Palmerston North and three years after that work began on transforming flat farmland into a rolling landscape.

Golf course architect Tommy Cushnahan was employed to design the course and to shape the ground. He rolled up his sleeves, boarded a bulldozer and set about landscaping, a job which was done in the dry parts over two years.

The Louries’ son Henry did the irrigation, drainage and digging work. All of the proposed lakes had to be dug out so they could be fed by a combination of groundwater drainage from adjacent farms and irrigation.

Orlando has the appearance of a

links course. The owners wanted it to be panoramic, hence the absence of trees allowing views to the Ruahine Ranges and even Mt Ruapehu.

Orlando is one of the few high-end courses which doesn’t have bunkers. At only 1500m, it has a par of 30 and the best score so far has been two under par. There are six par-3s, from 100m to 165m in length, and three par-4s, from 186m to 352m.

The extensive No 1 tee adjacent to the Orlando lake house must be one of the biggest in New Zealand. That is so it can double as a marquee lawn for major events.

The lake house includes a cafe for golfers and the public.

It is maintenance friendly for greenkeeper Daniel Lampp, who was formerly on the greens staff at Royal Melbourne and can ramp up the green speeds.

The course is grassed with wall-to-wall colonial browntop and red fescue, droughttolerant grasses. Four tonnes of grass seed, or 250kg per hectare, was used on the property, 2.5km of irrigation and 3km of drainage laid.

The ninth, also the signature hole, has a green built right on the lake edge and with a bridge connecting it to the cafe.

The course is almost fairer for the average golfer whereas for the low handicapper the water comes into play more often.

The full length (300m) soon-to-be-covered driving range in front of the lake house extends along the front veranda. The range balls float thanks to being 3g lighter than normal, but still fly true down the centre of the course.

A chipping green across the main lake also tempts players to be precise or be wet.

The word ‘Orlando’ is mown into the rough to be visible to aircraft leaving and arriving at the nearby Palmerston North Airport.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net NEW APPOINTMENT New Zealand Golf has a new commercial manager, Nick Rowland. He was previously the sports organisations and partnerships manager at the NZ Racing Board in Wellington. During his time in that position he gained a wide range of experience in shaping and leading the strategic and commercial direction of the TAB while also building a wide network of relationships across the sporting and commercial sector. He has extensive experience in the sports, entertainment and retail industry.

NZ CHINESE OPEN The Ray White NZ Chinese Open will be held at Akarana Golf Club, Auckland, on November 13. The tournament will have a 12.30 shotgun start and the star prize is a car for a hole-in-one. For more information, go to www.golf007.co.nz, email golf007nz@gmail.com or phone Simon 021 02021021

SAD LOSS It is with great sadness that we record the death of Jim Clelland in June. The 71-yearold died at his home in Taupo after a short illness.

Clelland was a well-known and popular figure in New Zealand golfing circles. He was a passionate and skilled golfer, he played off scratch, and his working life included stints at both the Taupo and Turangi golf clubs as their club pro. He was perhaps best known for his involvement with the NZPGA where he served as national events manager. He was variously on the NZPGA board, its treasurer and tournament organiser.

Readers of The Cut will recall a feature article that appeared in one of our 2008 magazines, detailing the horrific accident he suffered at his home the previous year when he fell from a deck. His life-threatening injuries included a shattered lower leg. Eight months after the accident he made the decision to have the leg amputated and within three months of surgery he was back out on the golf course.

His was an inspirational story.

Clelland is survived by his wife Helen, a daughter Belinda and son Andrew.

74 thecut

l a v i t s e F

OF GOLF

L

ast year’s inaugural Nelson Festival of Golf was a great success, with golfers flocking to one of New Zealand’s sunniest spots from all over the country – literally.

Head professional at the Nelson Golf Club and owner of Total Golf Ltd Glyn Delany said last year’s tournament involved participants from Whangarei to Dunedin, with a good contingent from Auckland too.

This year’s event takes place from Monday October 20 to Friday October 24. It is a fourround golf tournament, with rounds played at Nelson Golf Club on the Monday and Friday, at Motueka on the Tuesday and Greenacres on the Thursday. This year Wednesday is a rest day, the idea being that visitors to the region can use it as an opportunity to visit local attractions or, if they wish, to simply enjoy their surroundings while putting their feet up.

Of last year’s tournament, Delany says it went “better than expected” and with three months until this year’s event the field of 128 is already over half full.

“Last year we had great prizes, including a car on offer every day for a hole-in-one – which no one won – and although we don’t have cars this year we do have another great prize table.”

This year’s top prizes include spa pools (from 4 Seasons Home & Leisure) and, on the final day, Delany is putting up $5000 worth of golf gear from Total Golf.

Other local businesses which have come on board as sponsors are Waimea Family Estate Wines, TaylorMade Golf, and each day four lucky competitors will win vouchers from either Lone Star Restaurant, The Vic’s

Brew Bar or the Speight’s Ale House.

Getting to the courses should present no problems for competitors, even those from out of town. Greenacres is a 15-minute drive from the Nelson Golf Club and Motueka an easy 40-minute drive away.

Delany says all three courses present very different golf experiences for players.

“Nelson is a true links and it is a championship course. We held the New Zealand Amateur Championship here in April.

Greenacres is a mix of links and tree-lined and Motueka is parkland. In spring, which is when our event is held, it is a beautiful place to be.”

The event is for individual and team stableford scores. A 9am shotgun start each day will allow competitors to start and finish around the same time and a daily prize-giving will follow play. Although each day follows the same format there will be extras such as putting competitions, raffles and lucky draws.

Golf lessons will also be available plus Total Golf is running a golf expo during the week which will give golfers an opportunity to try out some of the great gear from their sponsors TaylorMade and other top brands.

A sit-down dinner, held at the Nelson Golf Club, will round off the tournament.

The tournament entry fee is $225 and includes four rounds of golf, a ticket to the prize-giving dinner and a golf gift upon registration. Entry is restricted to members of golf clubs and the maximum handicaps are 30 for men and 36 for women.

The Nelson Festival of Golf coincides with Nelson’s annual Arts Festival.

For more information about the golf tournament, go to www.nelsongolf.co.nz/ festivalofgolf or phone 03 548 5029.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net NEW ZEALAND NEWS IS PROUDLY BROUGHT TO YOU BY

TERRACE DOWNS ON THE UP

T

MILLBROOK GOES HIGH TECH

M

illbrook Resort has invested in a state-of-the-art GPS system for its brand new fleet of golf carts. Each of the resort’s 50 Yamaha carts is now fitted with a slick white Samsung Golf Pilot unit which is mounted to the front windscreen and links to the main computer dashboard in the resort’s pro shop.

The significant venture makes the resort the first club in the country to use such technology.

The cloud-based Golf Pilot system, created by GPS Systems International, uses Samsung TAB devices and employs cuttingedge technology to enhance players’ golf game while also providing some nifty safety features for management.

Once players set off for their round the Golf Pilot system kicks into action and starts tracking the cart’s location through the resort. It enables players to see where they are on the course, highlights course no-go areas, shows pro tips on how best to play the hole, and players can measure the distance to any point of interest including bunkers and the pin on the green.

Back at the pro shop the interactive and real-time map shows management where each of the carts is at any given time, meaning they can move slow players on and even call players back if they’re unlikely to finish before dark.

To ensure players stay on track while on the course an audible warning sounds whenever a cart approaches an area where it’s not allowed to go such as greens or

a nature area. Course overview maps highlight course play areas to prevent players inadvertently losing their way.

The innovative service makes a game of golf at the resort even more interactive and engaging. Other unique features include live local weather and radar maps, two-way communication and messaging between the cart and pro shop – ideal for providing information and assistance, severe weather warning updates and answering player’s questions or responding to an on-course emergency.

Millbrook Resort head golf professional Allan McKay said his favourite Golf Pilot feature as a player was the interactive ‘cross hair’ target. “This is so accurate. It’s interactive so you can drag it to your golf ball and see what the layup distance is to any target you choose and what the distance is from there to the green. It’s gold.

“Golf Pilot is a priceless asset and yet another unique feature of playing at Millbrook.”

WorldMags.net

he rejuvenation of the Terrace Downs High Country Resort and its golf course and associated facilities continues.

Under previous management, the golf course had suffered due to lack of funds but thankfully those days appear to be long gone and new owner Hiroshi Hasegawa has been investing in new infrastructure. The transformation is ongoing and after just a few months the golf course is much improved.

Head greenkeeper Craig Middleton and his team are working wonders. New machinery includes a coring machine, sand spreader, turf cutter and a big mower, plus a digger to assist with the ongoing fixing of the irrigation system.

Terrace Downs manager Koji Kawamata says, “It will take about three years to repair the whole course. The new digger will help with many projects including fixing the bunkers.”

The bunkers now contain top-quality sand and are good to play out of. They are however being monitored closely for the affects the wind is having on them and the options of reshaping or removal are being considered.

The attractive staking and roping around hole 16 has been replicated fronting the tee block of the par-3 10th. New ball washers and tee signs showing hole details are due to be erected soon.

Another planned addition is Smart-Fit System matching windproof flag poles and cups.

The local ecology has been boosted with the help of Fish & Game NZ. Forty rainbow trout have been released into the large pond fronting the fourth green. The trout vary in size up to 13lb but visitors to the course are reminded that they are not fair game! Golfers and visitors are welcome to get fish food from reception if they want to indulge in a little fish feeding.

Four more new golf carts, complete with rear rain shields, have been added to the fleet, which now numbers 44 carts.

Other improvements include the purchase of several new sets of premium Titleist club sets for hire. The pro shop also carries a more extensive and superior quality range of clothing, golf gear and gifts.

Terrace Downs is once again riding high as a premium golfing and recreational experience.

And there’s more to come yet.

WorldMags.net NEW ZEALAND NEWS IS PROUDLY BROUGHT TO YOU BY

St Clair Golf Club

DOUBLE-EAGLE LEAVES GOLFER SPEECHLESS Poverty Bay-East Coast representative Andrew Higham added one of the ultimate golfing achievements to his resume in a matchplay round in Gisborne on July 19. The 27-year-old sank a 3-iron on the first hole of a suddendeath playoff for a double-eagle 2.

Higham, a member of country course Te Puia Springs, north of Gisborne, and Poverty Bay Golf Club, had just missed a short putt for victory in a Willock Cup handicap clash against Nick Richardson.

He responded by smashing his drive down the centre of the 466-metre first fairway, then flying a 3-iron into the heart of the green.

His ball rolled up to the hole and disappeared.

Higham wasn’t sure whether it was in until he checked the hole.

“I didn’t know what to think,” the painter said. “I was speechless.”

There are no definite odds for a double-eagle. Estimates range from 1 million to 1 to 5 million to 1. It’s a rarity that far supersedes a hole-inone for which the club golfer odds are about 13,000 to 1.

Higham is yet to get a holein-one himself in a career that continues to fill with highlights.

As well as having represented his province up to interprovincial level, Higham has won two of the region’s most coveted matchplay crowns – the East Coast Open at Te Puia Springs and the King of the Coast at Tolaga Bay. He also has multiple senior club championship titles. He has won the past three at Poverty Bay and holds seven at Te Puia, where he learned to play the game. Last year he made it three consecutive years in which he won the senior crowns at both courses.

Other memorable moments of a career dating back to his early teens include making eagle twice on the No 1 stroke hole at Tolaga Bay – the fifth– on his way to winning the 2012 King of the Coast.

- By Chris Tawea, Gisborne Herald PHOTO: Paul Rickard/Gisborne Herald

76 thecut

Otago Golf Club

Chisholm Park Golf Club

UNIQUE CHALLENGE

T

he inaugural ‘Play Four in Dunedin’ tournament, scheduled to take place this October 27-31, will challenge all aspects of the game of golf. For the first time Dunedin’s four quality championship courses will host a 72-hole event open to all golfers.

The five-day event will include a rest day on the Thursday allowing time for participants to take in Dunedin’s many delights.

The tournament will consist of parallel competitions, both an individual stableford and a four-person team stableford where the best three scores per team each day count.

Individual entrants will be placed in a team so no one will miss out.

There is a gross completion for senior (lower handicap) golfers. The maximum playing field will be 300.

The four venues are Otago (Balmacewen), St Clair, Chisholm Park and Taieri Lakes. Each course offers a unique golfing experience. All four are enjoyable to play as none is over long or penal but all reward good golf.

A big plus for this event is all venues are in the one city making travel to each course convenient.

The tournament coincides with Labour Weekend and organisers hope entrants will make a holiday of it and as well as playing golf take time to explore the Otago region.

There is a vast array of things to do and places to go, including the Taieri Gorge railway journey, the Discovery World Tropical Forest Butterfly experience (Otago Museum), the stunning new Otago Settlers Museum, Monarch harbour cruises, the Royal Albatross colony, the Orokonui Eco Sanctuary, Dunedin’s historic railway station, which also houses the NZ Sports Hall Of Fame, Larnach Castle, Olveston historic home, the Chinese Garden, the Saturday Farmers Market, Forsyth Barr Stadium tours, Speights Brewery tours, Cadbury World tours, the heritage town of Port Chalmers and, of course, a walk up Baldwin Street, the world’s steepest street.

The entry fee of $250 includes the grand prize-giving dinner on Friday evening. Register or enter at www.golfdunedin.co.nz.

WorldMags.net

Taieri Lakes Golf Club

WorldMags.net

DESIGNED FOR THE PROS. BUILT FOR ANY SWING SPEED. FROM THE #1 DRIVER ON TOUR COMES THE SLDR S. A FAMILY OF DRIVERS, FAIRWAY WOODS AND RESCUE CLUBS FEATURING OUR BEST TECHNOLOGIES. ALL CREATED FOR ONE THING: DISTANCE, NO MATTER HOW FAST YOU SWING.

© 2014 Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc. #1 Driver in Golf claim based on combined 2013 wins and usage on the PGA, European, Japan Golf, Web.com, Champions and LPGA Tours, as reported by the Darrell Survey Co. and Sports Marketing Surveys, Ltd.

LEARN MORE AT TAYLORMADEGOLF.CO.NZ

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

HERTZ

– IMPROVING YOUR DRIVE

W

ith the second highest number of golf courses per capita in the world, it’s no surprise that New Zealand is home to world-class golf courses and attracts enthusiasts from all around the globe. In addition to dramatic scenery and awe-inspiring landscapes, you’re never more than a 45-minute drive from a golf course.

Hertz understands that choosing the right vehicle is essential for ensuring a smooth and comfortable golf trip. With over 40 locations nationwide including all major airports and towns, renting with Hertz is a fast and convenient way to help get you on the road and to your next round.

Easy accessibility sets New Zealand apart from other countries.

With a variety of terrain to provide challenging and unique golf courses, it’s possible to drive from alpine areas to idyllic beachside locations within a few hours. The North Island is renowned for sweeping coastlines and rolling hills and is home to the worldfamous golf course Kauri Cliffs. Touring the golf courses of the South Island will take you on a driving adventure around snowtopped peaks and rugged coastlines, from Jack’s Point situated on the shores of Lake Wakatipu to the stunning mountain scenery surrounding The Hills Golf Club.

Wherever the game takes you, experience the superb handling and the thrill of a four-wheel drive while travelling along the winding, open roads between courses. For self-drive tours, the 12-seater passenger vans allow large groups to enjoy the freedom of the road and the flexibility of travelling at their own pace.

78 thecut

HERTZ CAR HIRE TIPS BOOK EARLY Prices can increase during peak season, we advise book in advance and enjoy savings.

PLAN Car rental is charged in blocks of 24 hours. Aim to return your hire car at the same time that you collected it and you won’t be charged for an additional day.

PROVIDE FLIGHT DETAILS If you’re collecting your hire car at the airport include your flight details on the booking and we can be sure to stay open to meet you.

INCLUDE A GPS If your golfing trip takes you around unfamiliar territory, consider booking the NeverLost and ensure you’re travelling in the most efficient way. The GPS unit identifies exactly where you are at any time, and shows and tells you how to get wherever you want to go.

HERTZ MOBILE & WI-FI Enjoy the freedom of being able to connect anywhere! Hertz Mobile Wi-Fi will have you zooming through the web with ease.

Simon Roche, a casual golfer from Wellington, said that comfort and quality are the most important factors for him when renting a car. “During the New Zealand Open, a few friends and I went on a seven-day golf tour and chose to rent with Hertz because of their modern and well-sized fleet range. The station wagon we hired comfortably fit four grown men, our golf bags and luggage – it made the trip so easy, we’ll definitely rent with Hertz again.”

To complement New Zealand Golf’s objectives to promote the game, Hertz is now the official car rental supplier and sponsor for New Zealand Golf. The partnership means members can enjoy an exclusive 10 per cent discount on the Hertz daily rental rate globally throughout the year. Tournament organisers throughout New Zealand can also organise discounted rental rates for their players.

When you choose a Hertz rental you can be assured you will receive a well-maintained vehicle, world-class service and exceptional value. For additional benefits, sign up for Gold Plus Rewards and enjoy a faster pick-up and drop-off car rental experience – leaving you more time to practise your swing. For more information visit www.hertz.co.nz

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

MONDAY 20TH–FRIDAY 24TH OCTOBER 2014

PLAY THE NELSON REGION’S BEAUTIFUL GOLF COURSES Nelson Golf Club (Host Club to the 2014 NZ Amateur Championship) Greenacres Golf Club, Best Island, Richmond Motueka Golf Club, Motueka

Y NOVEZLETS PRI Y EVER DAY

Hole in One prizes available every day for that elusive Ace in the Hole

MA PRIZJEOR HOLE S FOR A ONE IN

Entry Details $225 to include 4 rounds of golf and a golf gift on Registration. Final day 2 course dinner.

Fabulous tournament prizes with a value of over $10,000. Individual and Team Stableford prizes.

Entry is restricted to members of golf clubs and maximum handicaps are 30 for men and 36 for ladies.

Entry forms from Nelson Golf Club PHONE 03-548-5029 EMAIL nelson@golf.co.nz

For more information visit www.nelsongolf.co.nz/festivalofgolf WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

Now available from you Golf Professional or Golf Retail Outlet www.sureshotgps.com WorldMags.net

TUITION: SHORT GAME WorldMags.net

82 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

HOW TO DEVELOP A

TOUR GRADE SHORT GAME SOLID BASICS, GOOD PREPARATION AND A CONSISTENT STRIKE ARE THE THREE KEYS TO SAVING YOUR SCORE AROUND THE GREENS

I

’m often asked how tour pros control the ball so consistently around the greens. There are two answers. The first is that they practise. A lot. The second secret is not quite so obvious.

They are highly skilled at delivering the clubface to the ball with dynamic or ‘true’ loft.

In simple terms, that means they present the same amount of loft at impact every single time. Once you know how the ball will react off the clubface, distance control becomes a whole lot easier to master. Most amateurs, on the other hand, struggle to strike the ball the same way twice. Sometimes a chip will come off low and fast; other times it’ll float into the air and stop quickly. If that’s the case with you, the short game can easily become something of a lottery. In this article, we’ll look at some of the key techniques and hopefully load the odds back in your favour.

WorldMags.net

DAMIAN TAYLOR European Tour Coach

improve your golf

83

WorldMags.net

CHIPPING SET-UP

SET BALL POSITION JUST BEHIND YOUR STERNUM On short-range shots, the low point of your swing will always be directly below your sternum. Forget what you’ve heard about hitting this shot with the ball played

way back in your stance or with your feet really close together; the only thing that matters here is that you strike the ball with a very slight descending blow. To ensure

that you have the ball in the correct position, hang a club from your chest. This will give you a visual reference that you can use to groove the correct set-up.

CHIPPING TECHNIQUE

KEEP YOUR ARMS AND BODY CONNECTED Once you’ve grooved a consistent set-up, the secret to good chipping is connecting your arms and body during the swing. And the real secret is to keep your body turning.

84 thecut

If your body stops rotating, your hands and arms take over. When that happens, you can hit any number of bad shots. I’m not saying you need to take all of the wrist action out

of your action. On the contrary, a little ‘give’ in the hands is crucial for your touch. But make sure your body turns back and through and that your arms remain connected.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

PRACTICE EXERCISE

PLACE A GLOVE UNDER YOUR LEFT ARM TO FEEL CONNECTION A great way to experience the sense of connection that you need between your upper body and your arms is to hit some practice chips with a glove underneath your left arm. Your goal here is to keep the glove in place into your followthrough. If you can achieve that, then you know your arms and body are working in sync. If you drop the glove in your follow-through, you have too much independent hand and arm action in your technique.

“IT’S IMPORTANT FOR YOUR ARMS TO STAY CONNECTED TO YOUR BODY. IF THEY DON’T, YOUR HANDS TAKE OVER AND YOU CAN HIT ANY NUMBER OF BAD SHOTS”

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

85

WorldMags.net CHIPPING TECHNIQUE

HOW TO READ YOUR CHIPS LIKE A TOUR PLAYER The next time you watch a tournament on TV, take a look at how much time the pros spend studying their chip shots around the green. Why? Because they know the ball

will break in exactly the same way that it will with a putt once it starts rolling. How many times have you hit what you thought was a perfect chip only to find that it curved away

1

VIEW THE SHOT BEFORE YOU REACH YOUR BALL

3

CHECK THE SLOPE AROUND THE HOLE

You have a lot of time in between hitting your approach shot and reaching your ball. Use that time to check out the shot – the lie of the land, whether it’s uphill or downhill etc. There’s more information to be gleaned from further out than when you’re standing on top of your ball.

While your playing partners are reading their putts, quickly check out the slope around the hole. You’re going to need to use the break to feed the ball down to the hole, so make sure you get an accurate perspective of how much you will need to allow for.

86 thecut

from the hole at the end and finished six or seven feet away? Not bad technique, just poor preparation and a lack of forethought.

Let me show you how to put that right.

2

ASSESS YOUR LIE

4

NO SECOND-GUESSING, COMMIT TO THE SHOT

Most amateurs make their chipping club selection decisions purely on the distance to the hole. The first thing all good players do, however, is check the lie of the ball. The quality of your lie will determine what club you can use and how you play the shot.

Once you’ve completed your read, the final step is to fully commit to it. I see so many amateurs simply chip the ball straight at the hole every time. Trust me, there’s nothing better in golf than planning a shot, committing to it and then pulling it off successfully.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net PITCHING TECHNIQUE

MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR WEDGES Like chipping, most pitching problems stem from inconsistent ball striking. To compound things, you also have to master a wide range of distances – from 30 to 100 yards. The good news is that the basics of ball position and set-up are exactly the same for pitching as they are for chipping with the exception of a slightly wider stance as the swing

gets longer. The secret is knowing how far you hit each of your wedges with different swing lengths.

I usually carry four wedges, which gives me 12 different yardages when I use the three key swing checkpoints below. But even if you only carry three wedges, you can still cover nine different pitching yardages using this method.

PITCHING YARDAGE 1

PITCHING YARDAGE 2

PITCHING YARDAGE 3

Backswing: Right hip Follow-through: Left abs

Backswing: Right abs Follow-through: Left chest

Backswing: Right shoulder Follow-through: Full finish

QUICK TIP

CREATE A PITCHING YARDAGE BOOK Remembering all of your pitching yardages can be quite challenging. To make it easier, spend some time on the range figuring out how far you hit each wedge with your three backswings and then write down your numbers. You may find there’s an overlap in some of your distances. It’s helpful to know that there’s more than one way to play a shot.

Copyright Golf World

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

87

PRO TIP

WorldMags.net PHOTOGRAPHS: Des Frith

BETTER BALANCE U sing a basketball to perform the following practice drill will help you increase stability and balance throughout your golf swing. It will also enable you to create more torque on the backswing and, for the downswing, ensure that your first body movement is the correct one. I suggest using a 6 or 7 iron to do this drill.

TOM LONG Director of golf and resident head PGA golf professional at the Kinloch Club, Taupo. www.tengrandmentality.com

First, place a basketball between 1tension, your knees, then apply just enough using your inner thigh muscles, to hold the ball in place. A common fault amateurs make is ‘swaying’ onto their right leg on the backswing (you may have heard of this referred to as slalom or Elvis legs). This swaying action narrows the gap between the knees resulting in too much weight loading onto the outside of the right leg during the backswing. Retaining the basketball between your knees on the backswing ensures that you retain the width between them. As you rotate your hips on the backswing you should feel a weight shift to the right but, importantly, this should load onto the inside of the right leg. This will place you in a far

88 thecut

more stable and balanced position to begin your downswing. Elimination of the swaying motion will help you to create more torque on your backswing, ie the upper body coiling against the lower body. move begins the downswing?

2if youWhat There are many theories. One is that have coiled or loaded correctly on your backswing the downswing will unwind under its own natural forces.

Although I don’t altogether disagree with this, I believe that by purposefully initiating the downswing with a small lateral bump/squat of the left hip, you create an initial downforce through your feet that will lead to a more powerful and consistent impact position. The objective

of the drill on the downswing is to drop the basketball as soon as the movement has begun (see above). Start your downswing with a subtle but firm bump/ squat of the left hip (indicated by the red arrow). This squat movement will increase the width between your knees because initially your right knee/leg will stay where it is, with the left knee moving in the direction of the target. This separation causes the ball to drop. This action creates lag, which is a critical component of your downswing. Lag allows you to fire the right side of your body correctly (on the lower part of the downswing) into the correct impact position. impact, the natural momentum 3After will take you to a full finish position.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

>ƵdžƵƌLJ &ŝǀĞ ^ƚĂƌ ĐĐŽŵŵŽĚĂƟŽŶ͘ ǁĂƌĚ tŝŶŶŝŶŐ &ŽŽĚ Θ tŝŶĞ͘ hŶƌŝǀĂůůĞĚ >ĂŬĞƐŝĚĞ sŝĞǁƐ͘

dŚŝƐ ŝƐ ^ŽƉŚŝƐƟĐĂƟŽŶ͘ dŚŝƐ ŝƐ dŚĞ ZĞĞƐ ,ŽƚĞů YƵĞĞŶƐƚŽǁŶ͘

The Rees Hotel Queenstown, 377 Frankton Road, Queenstown, New Zealand.

P: +64 3 450 1100 e: reservations@therees.co.nz www.therees.co.nz

WorldMags.net

PRO TIP

WorldMags.net

CLOSE IT DOWN PHOTOGRAPHS: Des Frith

ROBERT ROOKES Robert Rookes is a AAA PGA professional based in the Bay Of Plenty.

To contact Robert, phone 027 2499 092

HAVING TROUBLE GETTING YOUR BALL OUT OF A BUNKER? BY SIMPLY CLOSING THE CLUBFACE YOU CAN GET YOUR BALL OUT OF A PLUGGED OR DEEP LIE FROM THE SAND 90 thecut

WorldMags.net

H

WorldMags.net

ave you ever noticed how well the top golfers hit their bunker shots? Unlike the average club golfer, professionals don’t seem to often be bothered by either the fairway bunker or the sandy traps that guard a lot of greens. And although, undoubtedly, the pro golfer spends a lot more time practising than the weekend warrior, there is no reason why amateur golfers can’t properly execute their bunker shots. Getting out of a bunker successfully isn’t rocket science, indeed it all comes down to the angle of the clubface. But remember, practice makes perfect. Spend time working on this shot before you employ it during a round. Knowing that you have the ability to carry out this shot successfully will increase your confidence out on the course.

NB: Closing the clubface works when the sand is either soft or compacted.

D MI ON’ SS T IT !

Endorsed by...

23-24 August 2014, North Shore Events Centre, Takapuna, Auckland 10am - 4pm Daily

“Finally the highest participation sport in NZ has its own expo!”

There is something for everyone from Juniors to Seniors. Everything indoors under one-roof, for the dedicated or social golfer.

Golf Tours and Travel Coaching and Techniques Clubs and Resorts

OPEN CLUBFACE An open clubface gives the club more bounce. This creates a skimming effect which will, in most cases with a ball in a plugged lie, result in a thin shot firing into the face of the bunker or across to the far side of the green, or beyond.

Simulators and Golf Technology

SHOW ONLY SPECIALS!

Latest Gadgets to help your Game

Latest Golf Equipment

Apparel and Accessories

Meet Professionals Have-A-Go and More...

FREE Tips and Demos from the experts on Stage. Practice your swing at the driving net / technical area, or short game with a putter on the “Large” Tiger Turf Putting Green.

Love Golf... Spring is just around the corner, don’t miss New Zealand’s Only Golf Show!

CLOSED CLUBFACE By closing the clubface we remove the bounce and allow the club to dig into the sand. If your ball is in a plugged lie, close the clubface, aim 3 to 4 inches behind the ball and throw the club into the sand as deeply as you can, thus allowing the sand to force the ball out. It’s important you put some force into your stroke to ensure that the ball comes out of the sand.

It will come out with no spin so it will run on when it lands on terra firma.

DAILY ENTRY PRICES Adult $12.00 Senior $10.00 Children FREE with a paying Adult or Senior. FREE PARKING. Door Sales or Pre-Purchase Online via Eventfinda.

www.nzgolfshow.co.nz

WorldMags.net

For more info: Ph: (09) 415 8311

PRO TIP

WorldMags.net

WEDGE WORK PHOTOGRAPH: Des Frith

TO HIT GOOD WEDGE SHOTS, MANY FACTORS COME INTO PLAY. THE MOST IMPORTANT OF THESE IS THE ABILITY TO CONTROL DISTANCE, DIRECTION AND THE FLIGHT OF THE BALL

D JAY CARTER Tauranga Golf Club pro. jaycarter@ golffusion.co.nz

92 thecut

istance control is a crucial part of golf.

Many players use the visual of a clock face – 9 o’clock (backswing), 6 o’clock (impact), 3 o’clock (through-swing) – to help them ‘see’ their swing. While it is a good method, in my opinion it can also be limiting if used in isolation.

Direction is not usually the main issue when it comes to wedge play. What is likely to be more problematic is a player’s inability to control distance. It pays to remember that

clubhead speed is not the only factor influencing how far the ball will travel and herein lies the issue I have with the clock face method: if you are focused solely on swinging the club a certain distance, or from point to point, you can get too ‘armsy’ with your swing and forget about also using your body at the same time. This can lead to inconsistent strikes and ball flight, making it hard to be a consistent wedge player.

The best wedge players in the world are able to control their body speed in order for them to create consistent impact pressure. They possess the ability to control loft through sound technique, which usually involves arms and body connecting in such a way that the body pivot is controlling arm speed and also the position of the face of the club, which leads to good and consistent ball flight.

The best way to measure your consistency is to book a session on a launch monitor such as TrackMan with your local PGA professional and work out a plan between both of you on how you can improve your wedge play.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

NORWEGIAN HAMSTRING CURL PHYSIO TIPWorldMags.net This exercise is a great way to strengthen your hamstrings and to develop the feel of them working in the golf set-up position. However, I must advise caution when doing this exercise. Please be diligent with your technique and how hard you work at it initially as muscle soreness and loads to any joints (with previous issues) can be excessive.

STRONG IS GOOD

PREVIOUSLY, WE HAVE DISCUSSED THE IMPORTANCE OF STRENGTH IN THE GLUTEAL MUSCLES. ALTHOUGH THESE MUSCLES SHOULD HAVE THE DOMINANT ROLE THEY NEED TO BE ASSISTED BY THE HAMSTRINGS

M

ost people have an idea of where their hamstring muscles are, indeed, many of us have probably “done a hammy” while sprinting to score a try (remember those days?) or chasing our kids. Maybe you even got out of the school parent sack race by using the “I’ve got a bit of a twinge in my hammy” excuse. The hamstrings are a group of muscles beginning from the area of the pelvis you sit on, the ischial tuberosity, then run down the back of the thigh to insert in the areas each side and to the back of the knee.

The hamstrings in effect work in an opposite role to your quadriceps situated at the front of the thigh, and help out your buttock muscles. Their main role is in movement such as running but they do help in stabilising you in the golf swing.

When you are in your golf set-up position

your hamstrings are assisting you to hold the position. If they are strong enough, along with the other key muscles they will enable you to maintain good golf posture throughout your swing.

Although you are unlikely to injure your hamstring muscle group playing golf, good strength in them means you are less likely to suffer a hamstring injury when playing other sports or participating in physical activities.

A good friend of mine has recently undergone surgery to reattach his hamstring. Although golf was not responsible for the injury, it does mean that my mate’s golf is going to be curtailed for a considerable length of time.

START-UP Your ankles must be held down. This can be done using a golf cart (as pictured here), a suitable low table at home, or with someone assisting you. Assume a high kneeling position then progress to your golf set-up position, going through your set-up cues and checklist as per your pre-shot routine. The more you lean forward, maintaining the golf posture, the more your hamstrings will be working.

Be careful not to overdo this as only a small forward movement can result in a huge change in ‘load’ to the hamstrings.

ROTATION

BRYCE HAMER NZ Golf physiotherapy service provider, Bay Physiotherapy Centre & Golf Fusion, Tauranga

PHOTOGRAPHS: Des Frith

94 thecut

From the set-up position you can add in some rotation, such as in your takeaway and followthrough, while maintaining your golf posture.

Again, take care with the amount of load you are asking the hamstrings to do. You do not want your muscles to get sore or to risk injury.

Begin with three rotations of five seconds each. Make progressions by leaning slightly further forward or increasing the time.

FALL FORWARD

Your escape from the exercise is to fall forward onto your hands. Land softly and maintain your spinal posture throughout. If you do not have the strength to achieve the soft landing or have any wrist or arm issues, due care needs to be taken so as not to risk injury.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

FEATURE

WorldMags.net

THE PERFECT

PROBLEM STORY Matt Richardson

IN OUR PREVIOUS ISSUE, WE DISCUSSED HOW RECENT RESEARCH HAS REVEALED THAT IF YOU POSSESS CERTAIN ASPECTS OF PERFECTIONISM YOU ARE A MORE LIKELY CONTENDER FOR THE YIPS THAN CAREFREE INDIVIDUALS. WHICH RAISES AN IMPORTANT QUESTION: IS PERFECTIONISM A BAD THING FOR GOLFERS?

I

n many ways, perfectionism appears to be a necessary trait if your goal is to be a great player because it seems elite competitors only ever reach the top after thousands of hours of rigorous, goaldirected practice.

Who on earth is going to put in that time and effort if they don’t have a strong desire to get their swing just right? So there must be ‘good’ perfectionism and ‘bad’ perfectionism. Right?

First, let’s establish what the essential ingredients of perfectionism are. There’s a fair consensus among researchers that there are two broad dimensions to it – perfectionistic striving and perfectionistic concerns.

Perfectionistic striving relates to high personal standards and working in an organised way towards achieving them.

Perfectionistic concerns relate to self-criticism where mistakes are not tolerated and doubt enters the scene.

The other distinction identified in the research is self-oriented perfectionism (a self-imposed push towards perfection) versus socially prescribed perfectionism (being pressured towards excellence by others, eg parents with their own high standards, criticism and/or desperation for success).

Back to the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ perfectionism bit. The theory goes that high perfectionistic striving with low self-criticism is ‘good’ while high perfectionistic striving with high self-criticism is ‘bad’. A number of studies have proven this. Which, of course, is one of those research conclusions that seems so obvious you wonder why they undertook the study at all; however, sometimes common sense turns out to be wrong, and it’s worth checking these things out.

Socially prescribed perfectionism is almost always ‘bad’ and it can lead to all sorts of performance and mental health issues.

Self-oriented perfectionism on its own does not seem to be clearly ‘good’ or ‘bad’ – it’s probably how you do

96 thecut

it – but it’s certainly better than being pressured into it by someone else.

If you are self-critical, you will probably need to ask yourself if anyone else will criticise you if you play badly or if you think anyone will be disappointed. You may have unwittingly absorbed their values or you may simply feel pressured by them. It’s probably best to have a chat with those concerned about that, if you are able to.

They may not be helping if they can’t stomach the odd setback.

Obviously, this George W Bush-style splitting of perfectionism into good and evil is highly simplistic.

Personality is a complex thing and everyone’s different.

The truth appears to be that striving is only good when there is minimal criticism, and even then it’s only good for most people. Even if you only have the ‘good’ parts of perfectionism you may be equally well off not being a perfectionist at all.

Similarly, self-criticism can’t be universally bad for everyone. It may be that some people can self-flagellate and still play great golf. From afar, Tiger Woods appeared to scold himself pretty harshly even at his peak and it didn’t seem to do him too much harm.

We can only say that research has shown that for the majority of people self-criticism is associated with competitive anxiety and fear of failure. And in a game where it’s crucial to have self-belief, these things are not something to foster.

So what should you do if you identify you’re one of those people who has a pop at themselves after any shot not hit flush?

Well, first of all, there is a small chance you’re one of the few people who benefits from self-criticism or at least is not harmed by it.

How do you know if you’re one of those people? It’s hard to tell. If you are a golfer who plays better when angry at yourself (a player who regularly follows a double bogey with

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

FROM AFAR, TIGER WOODS APPEARED TO SCOLD HIMSELF PRETTY HARSHLY EVEN AT HIS PEAK AND IT DIDN’T SEEM TO DO HIM TOO MUCH HARM WorldMags.net

improve your golf

97

WorldMags.net

a birdie), probably you shouldn’t drop the self-berating.

But most players will fall apart and lose confidence after bad shots and angry responses. I’m certain more of you fall into this category. Some people will be unhealthy perfectionists and not be able to see it in themselves. After all, not accepting flaws can be part of a perfectionist’s make-up.

So here’s a little exercise for you. Straight after your next ‘average’ round of golf, write down all your tee shots (or approach shots or short game shots) and retrospectively score your satisfaction with them out of 10.

Assuming around 14 tee shots a round (excluding par-3s), ignore the worst six and the best five, and think about your emotional gut feeling to those middle three, the ones which best represent your true ability. If you see things as they truly are, you should have a fairly neutral emotional response, eg thinking to yourself ‘that’s okay, not bad’ or something along those lines.

If you are pleased with those shots, you should perhaps think about achieving higher standards because you probably don’t have enough of the ‘good’ perfectionism. However, if your typical internal dialogue immediately afterwards contained words that I cannot print in this august publication, perhaps you might benefit from some psychological ‘work’ on yourself.

By undertaking this exercise at all you have started down that path… appreciating that emotional reactions and actual reality are two completely different things.

By the way, if you scored 0, 1, 9, or 10, you’ve definitely got a big problem; because you see things in black and white, and there’s a good chance you have the yips already.

If you’re at the stage where you’ve done a bit of soulsearching, realised you demonstrate unhealthy perfectionism (ie self-criticism), you may need to acknowledge that it’s not simple to get rid of. Probably, it was programmed into you long ago and it is therefore unrealistic to expect it to go away. It is part of who you are.

Realistically, you should be aiming to manage the perfectionistic feelings that bubble up from within rather than insisting on eliminating them (which, ironically, is probably an overly black and

98 thecut

white perfectionistic aim to have anyway).

I’ve heard of people with a ‘five-metre rule’. They allow themselves to display anger until they have walked five metres from where they hit the unsatisfactory shot; then they have to let it go. I guess that’s okay. At least, it might limit the self-criticism. But as a psychologist, I would want to aim higher than that.

Psychological change always comes via a change of perspective – thinking about something completely differently or seeing a different side to it. The five-metre rule retains the same personal response but just limits it a bit.

In the vein of perspective change, let’s use our imagination to think about self-criticism from a different standpoint. Those angry words you say to yourself after an imperfect shot – what would you think if you had a coach or a caddy and every time you hit a poor shot that person shouted those exact same words at you in the same tone of voice? You’d probably sack them on the spot or punch them on the nose because they’d be destroying your self-belief.

So why berate yourself, because it’s probably having a similar effect. Instead, consider what you would want a caddy or coach to say to you after a bad shot. Can you say that to yourself instead as soon as you feel any self-criticism bubbling up?

For me, the response that will do the best job – for most people – is based on mindfulness.

To recap from my previous articles, mindfulness is a state of mind where you simply observe what is going on around you and within you without trying to do anything about it, without judging it as good or bad, and without trying to analyse whether it’s true or not. This represents an excellent state of mind for the highly instinctual game that is golf.

In the case of a serial self-criticiser, when those swear words pop into your head, the ‘mindful’ way to go would be to adopt a different perspective, one which simply notes the swear words, acknowledging that they are just thoughts that popped into your head, put there by some brain chemicals, that don’t necessarily mean anything important and therefore do not require too much of your attention.

Mindfulness teachers say “hold it lightly”. That selfcondemning programme in your head is still there but you are no longer taking it too seriously and you are managing it much better.

Matt Richardson is a clinical psychologist who practises at the ISIS Rehabilitation Centre, Dunedin

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

MAKE THE MOST OF THE MOMENT on the Sunshine Coast

The Sunshine Coast is a hub for golf lovers, and no matter whether you are a beginner or professional, you will be spoilt for choice with over 20 courses to choose from. Perfect your game under blue skies on a choice of large greens, wide fairways and challenging holes for both low and high handicappers.

PEREGIAN SPRINGS GOLF CLUB

TWIN WATERS GOLF CLUB

Peregian

Twin Waters Social Club offer. Bring your group to Twin Waters Golf Club Green Fees, Shared Cart Hire, burger & fries and group prize pack.

Play 18 Holes with a shared cart including range balls prior to play $69 per person.

$69 PP WITH CART

SOCIAL CLUB OFFER - FROM $80 PP 07 5457 2444

07 5471 5471

www.peregianspringsgolfclub.com.au

twinwatersgolfclub.com.au

Does not apply to a Saturday and is valid until October 30th 2014.

Applies Tuesday, Thursday and Sundays only.

PELICAN WATERS GOLF CLUB

NOOSA SPRINGS GOLF & SPA RESORT

Caloundra 20% off full green fee rate, includes motorised cart. Normally $95.

Noosa Unlimited Golf Getaway. 2 - 4 nights accommodation. Unlimited daily golf inc motorised cart. Buffet breakfast daily.

20% OFF FULL GREEN RATE - $75 PP

UNLIMITED GOLF GETAWAY FROM $170 PP

07 5437 5002

www.pelicangolf.com.au

07 5440 3333

Valid 7 days until 24th December 2014.

Not valid with any other offer.

Excludes peak periods.

PALMER COOLUM RESORT Yaroomba 2 for 1 on standard Green Fees.

Includes one motorised cart.

2 FOR 1 GREEN FEES

www.noosasprings.com.au

For more information about holidays on the Sunshine Coast visit www.visitsunshinecoast.com.au/moments

07 5446 1234

www.palmercoolumresort.com.au *Two for One off standard green fees. Conditions Apply.

Call to confirm details. Offer applicable to rack rate.

WorldMags.net

RULES

WorldMags.net

TRICKY SITUATIONS

GRAEME SCOTT PGA of Australia Tournament Operations Manager Graeme is happy to answer your rules questions.

Please email queries to gallery@ fairfaxmedia.co.nz

I

have two rules questions. First, as I understand the rules, a wire fence protecting a teeing area from a fairway means you would get relief from the fence for swing and stance only, not direction. However, what if some protecting fences have climbers growing among them, and some of the climber extends a metre plus? Are you entitled to relief from the protecting fence only or from the outside of the climber? Sometimes the climber does not extend to the full length of the protecting fence.

My second question: playing with mates, two against two, and playing the last hole, a par-5, three of us get onto the green in three with my partner pulling his third into bushes. I go to help search for my partner’s ball, find it and he takes a drop. I then go to the green, identify my ball and duly putt out. However, upon leaving the 18th and adding up the card, the opposing team then tell me they marked my ball and moved it to another position on the green. They realised this as the opposition was looking for his marker and realised what he had done. He then advised that I would need to go back onto the 18th and make my putt from the marker.

This is while the group behind us was on the green.

I have received conflicting opinions about this scenario and I am not sure what rule applies to the situation. Graeme, can you please help?

John Hayes, email

A

John presents us with two interesting rules situations. Protective fences close to teeing grounds are not uncommon, particularly on courses that are built on a relatively compact area of land and see some tees pushed back as far as possible and at times close to other fairways to provide the maximum playing length. As the fences are constructed of artificial material they are defined as immovable obstructions under the rules. The fact that the fence has a natural object, namely a climber or a hedge, growing through it, does not change the status of the fence and does not automatically make the natural object part of the obstruction.

At times you may find other such situations on a course whereby the player must deem their ball unplayable because they have interference from a natural object and not from an obstruction nearby.

In the case where a course has staked trees through the green but no Local Rule providing relief from the trees the player may obtain relief from the stake if it interferes, but not from the actual tree if there is no interference by the stake itself.

However, if the fence and climbers that John mentions are having a significant impact on the integrity of the game and how it should be played, there are several options available to the committee.

First, the committee may introduce a Local Rule whereby a specified dropping zone may be provided

100 thecut

for both interference and intervention (line of play to the hole) from the fence (Decision 33-8/18). As an additional option to those already available, a player may drop a ball without penalty in the specified dropping zone.

Secondly, the immediate area surrounding the fence may be included as part of the obstruction. This can be done by ‘tying’ the area into the obstruction with a white paint line or a similar style of marking. By doing this the obstruction is extended and, when the relief options are applied, this may result in the player having the ability to play a stroke without being additionally penalised.

Taking it to the other extreme, if a hedge or the like has completely overgrown a fence or screen, the committee may consider making the artificial objects an integral part of the course, thus removing any free relief options from scenarios that arise.

The second scenario is a little complicated based on the information provided and may actually provide a good example of why the Rules of Golf do not allow strokeplay and matchplay to be combined.

John mentions playing two against two, uses the term ‘partners’ but then also says that they were adding up the card at the end of the game. This provides connotations of both match and strokeplay, and hence my confusion.

Depending on the form of game the group was actually playing on the day, a match or a side game during a stroke round, the outcome is a little different and that may be why John has received differing opinions as to what should have transpired.

In either situation, my opinion would be that John proceeded correctly as he was unaware his ball had been moved to the side by his opponents or, if it was strokeplay, his fellow competitor. In simple terms, if a player or his caddy are unaware that an outside agency or, in the case of matchplay, their opponent, has moved their ball at rest and they subsequently play the ball from its new position, there is no penalty for the player concerned.

However, if this was indeed a match, John’s opponent was not authorised to mark and lift his ball and the penalty for moving the ball is one stroke and, in normal circumstances, the ball must be replaced. Given the nature of this situation, I believe that, if it was a match, the player who moved John’s ball should be penalised one stroke but with no further penalty to either side.

While this may indeed have been a match and John’s reference to adding up the card may have some other meaning, I believe this is a good example of why the rules do not allow matchplay and strokeplay to be combined. In some situations that penalty for an infringement of the rules is quite different and makes it impossible to play the form of the game as it was intended. You can, of course have a strokeplay ‘match’, such as the old format of the Dunhill Cup, whereby the result of the match is determined by the lowest score for the stroke round.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

SPORTS NETWORK LTD 0508 776 786

WorldMags.net www.mizuno.com

WorldMags.net

FEATURE

WHERE TECHNOLOGY 2014 MARKS THE 81ST YEAR MIZUNO HAS BEEN BUILDING GOLF CLUBS. DUNCAN LENNARD VISITS JAPAN TO MEET A BRAND WITH A CHERISHED PAST, A CHANGING PRESENT AND A CHALLENGING FUTURE ©

PHOTOS Aotani Takeru

102 thecut

S

ome 15 miles from Hiroshima, nestled among mountain ranges used by the US Air Force to reflect the 1945 atomic blast, lies an isolated foundry.

Invisible from the road and accessed via a nondescript side lane, it would be almost impossible to find unless you knew where you were going. Despite the presence of a large fleet of skips, each laden with metal billets, and the distant thump of heavy machinery, you would be hard pressed to know what goes on here. Only a blue Mizuno banner, draped incongruously across one of the buildings, gives the game away.

This is the home of Chuo Industries Ltd, forgers of some of the best golfing metal money can buy. The Mizuno MP29s and MP14s Tiger Woods used as

WorldMags.net

an amateur were born here. So were the MP64s Luke Donald favours. At its peak, the company can churn out 6000 heads a day, each one given the grain flow forging treatment that has helped make Mizuno’s irons respected worldwide.

Chuo Industries are not part of Mizuno itself, but a business partner. They also make car parts for Toyota and Mazda, as well as Japan’s phenomenal 200mph bullet trains. Opened in 1938, the plant is old enough to have survived the A-Bomb, restarting production within eight months.

Some 25 years later, the firm signed a deal to forge irons exclusively for Mizuno. It’s still in place today.

The deal reveals much about the culture of Mizuno. The Chuo foundry is some 200 miles west of the brand’s Osaka HQ. Today it is a silky 90-minute bullet train ride away,

WorldMags.net

MEETS TRADITION where the ticket collector bows to you and station announcements are delivered in honeyed female tones that make Joanna Lumley sound like Ray Winstone. Four decades ago, the travel and logistics were rather more complex; but after Mizuno had witnessed the quality in the Chuo forgings, nothing else mattered.

What Mizuno saw in the Chuo operation was a rare feel for how to convert a lump of metal into something supremely functional. By the end of the 20th century, this feel had been enhanced by the foundry’s insight that the structure of steel, like wood, has a grain – and that, used properly, this grain could imbue a golf club with heightened performance.

“In each rod there is a natural grain to the steel,” confirms Tamio Hirasaki of Chuo Industries. “The grain acts as lines

of structural integrity. If we can orient and preserve these lines throughout our forging process, we can ensure every clubhead we produce will offer enhanced consistency and feel.”

Chuo’s forging process, detailed overleaf, treats the steel with a rare mixture of reverence and brutality.

But the result is always the same – a clubhead, emerging from a single block of steel, fashioned to let its package of design technologies do their jobs.

RIGHT: The soft teardrop of the MP-T4 wedge – forged in Hiroshima.

“Technology, R&D, these are our passions,” says Shinya Matsushita, director of Mizuno’s golf division. “Our company has grown through creating the best products in the market – and this will remain our priority.”

TECHNOLOGY AND TRADITION Mizuno was born in 1906, at the tail end of the Meiji Restoration – a political and cultural realignment commonly credited with modernising Japan. In some ways, Mizuno exemplifies the spirit of the Restoration. One of its stated goals was to blend “western advancements” with traditional, “eastern” values: in founding Mizuno’s sporting goods business

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

103

WorldMags.net on that most western of pursuits – baseball – Rihachi and Rizo Mizuno did just that.

Modern sports were still in their infancy in Japan, and the brand didn’t consider making golf clubs for 15 years. “In 1921 Rihachi made a thorough investigation into the golf markets of the US and Europe,” says Matsushita. “He discovered almost half the sales in the sports industry were from golf production. He believed golf would become popular in Japan too.”

Consequently, Mizuno became the first Japanese distributor of Wilson in Japan. “But Rihachi quickly grasped the need of R&D specialised for Japanese consumers,” adds Matsushita. “This was when he began club development within Mizuno.”

Mizuno’s first clubs, named Star Line, emerged in 1933. Built to accommodate the height and power of the Japanese player, they reveal an attention to custom fitting that has never waned.

So began eight decades of fascination with golf club design and technology – a heritage proudly displayed in the foyer of Mizuno’s Osaka headquarters. Here you will find a work of art in the form of a 1936 All Nippon 2-iron, its sabre-like sole sculpted into the most graceful curve imaginable. Nine dots are crammed onto its minuscule sweetspot; 10 groove lines mark the heel. Almost every item charts the march of technology: a 1983 Vanguard LX, complete with golf’s first carbon-graphite head; its updated model, three years later, with zirconia added; or the 1990 Pro Ti 110, the world’s first pure titanium club. A further museum at the brand’s assembly and customising wing, Mizuno Technics, some 80 miles north-east of Osaka, houses more treasures, hewn from everything from hickory to graphite to gold.

MARKET FORCES Thanks in no small part to its iron forgings, Mizuno began to dominate the world’s tours.

In Europe, from 1995 to 2004, more sets of Mizuno irons were used than any other brand.

In America, Mizuno irons finished top of four PGA Tour categories in 1997. The following year they were the most played clubs on both the US and European Tours.

It seemed the natural culmination of a process that began in 1977, when Seve Ballesteros signed a 10-year contract with the company and the brand’s irons were first inducted into America’s Hall of Fame.

Golfers of a certain age will remember the likes of Ballesteros, Nick Faldo, Ian Woosnam and Sandy Lyle leading a host of top-name Mizuno-sponsored players during the ’80s and ’90s wielding the legendary TP-9 irons.

Today, however, the landscape is rather different. While it is estimated that 80 per cent of current tour professionals used Mizuno before sponsorship deals drew

104 thecut

EACH BILLET IS PUMMELLED BY A HUGE PNEUMATIC PRESS, CAPABLE OF PACKING 1000 TONS OF FORCE

ABOVE: The six-metre rods are made of 1025E Pure Select steel, named for the 0.25% of carbon added to give the steel the right blend of hardness and malleability. ABOVE RIGHT: The metal is heated to 1200°C before it receives the first of two forgings. TOP RIGHT: Clubheads are checked rigorously throughout their creation, both at the Chuo forging plant and then at Mizuno Technics, the brand’s club refinement, assembly and custom-fit facility. them to other brands – and despite the fact Donald and Stacy Lewis are prominent Mizuno players – the brand’s presence today is undeniably not what it was at the turn of the century.

Despite those sponsorships, Mizuno has rarely shown the same appetite for marketing that it has for R&D. The more tour endorsement moved from genuine brand affinity to a megabucks numbers game, the less Mizuno wanted to be a part of it. Tellingly, Donald and Lewis are both committed Mizunophiles.

Even away from the tour, the brand’s marketing shuns hype. Product launches are accompanied not by gaudy images and gauche performance claims, but by earnest

design themes, honestly expressed. Sincere?

Certainly. Old-fashioned? Possibly. The fact remains that where other companies holler to get your attention, Mizuno tends to clear its throat. Mizuno’s quality has never been in dispute but, as Matsushita concedes, how far quality takes you in today’s promotionsaturated marketplace is open to question.

“It’s fair to say we haven’t been loud enough in marketing. Louder brands have been selling more and taking our share, even in Japan, where foreign brands have been marketed strongly since the ’90s.

“The trick for us moving forward will be to market our company and products in a way that remains true to the ethos of the brand, increases market share, and allows

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

THE MAKING OF A MIZUNO PART 1 FORGING AT THE CHUO FOUNDRY

1

The six-metre steel rods are fed through a machine, where a laser chops them into 10in lengths, usually called billets. The entire head will be created from this one piece.

2

3

The billet is placed on a forging mould where it is pummelled four times by a huge pneumatic press, capable of packing 1000 tons of force.

4

5

6

Each billet is heated to 1200ºC, before being stretched and bent to the angle that will roughly form the head and hosel. The process ensures that the grain is preserved.

us to continue to invest in our key values of R&D, technology and innovation. And of course, we have some plans in place for how this will be done.”

ADDING THE PERSONAL TOUCH If the slender south-west-to-north-east sweep of Japan itself somewhat resembles a golf club, Osaka would be on the hosel. An economic maelstrom built on its history as a rice-trading centre, its population swells by a third during the daytime as more than a million commuters head for work. And on one of its busiest streets, rubbing bricks and mortar with fashionable multi-national chains, is the Mizuno Store.

Although impressive in its scale and range of equipment, the store is perhaps more notable for the new face of Mizuno it is presenting. For high up above the streets, on the store’s seventh floor, is a darkened indoor golf school. Six golfers are swinging lustily, if not always successfully, into elaborate course simulators: two coaches are on hand to monitor their progress, aided by cameras that record their swings from faceon and down the line, and replay them, with a five-second delay, in slow motion.

Meanwhile, on the floor below, there is an expansive and sophisticated customfitting area. “We do 60-70 fittings a month,” says Kazuo Iwasa, a licensed Mizuno fitter. “In

Each clubhead is reheated back to red hot and placed into a second mold and squeezed to create the ideal golf club shape. The clubhead is trimmed a second time.

WorldMags.net

After this first of two forgings, a machine called a cookie cutter trims off the excess metal, known as the flash.

Each head is shot-blasted clean before being stamped with the appropriate Mizuno markings, and minutely inspected. Finally, the head is forged, and ready for grinding.

improve your golf

105

WorldMags.net

A robot picks up each head and buffs it with increasingly fine grades of cloth Japan we are known to be a fitting brand, so even other brands send people to us.”

Iwasa must take a two-day customfit test every year, including written and practical exams. There is a hierarchy to be climbed, with the very best achieving Master Fitter status.

As the European Tour’s mobile workshop attests, Mizuno has a history for customising equipment for the tour pro. But the brand believes it has found a marketing lever for itself by taking the value inherent in optimising equipment, and bestowing it on all. The Store’s golf school and fitting centre blend to do just that.

And the company’s commitment to custom fit has been intensified on a global scale. “We feel now that just bringing good stuff to golfers is not enough,” says Matsushita. “Good products alone will not sell. So we need to concentrate more on individuals, bring out customised product, so that when a golfer buys from Mizuno, they know they are getting their perfect clubs.

If I could picture what will be the biggest change at Mizuno over the next 10 years, it would be this.”

QUALITY CONTROL Mizuno’s obsession with quality and quality control goes some way to explaining why, despite the brand’s global reach, its identity remains resolutely Japanese. That is echoed in its sales. Mizuno writes 50 per cent of

106 thecut

ABOVE: Forged irons may be polished by machine, but Mizuno still believes in the authority of the craftsman. Clubs needing loft or lie adjustments are positioned on absorbent silver rubber.

TOP RIGHT: Once in position, Mizuno master fitters including Luke Donald’s clubfitter Tomo Ito, are happy to use the ancient ways to make the necessary adjustments. ABOVE RIGHT: Mizuno forge four heads per year for each of Luke Donald’s wedges. its golf business within Japan. Although the country’s golfing population of nine million is about a third the size of America’s, it does three times as much business here.

While some R&D is carried out at the brand’s Atlanta-based American HQ, most is still done in Osaka. Forging is of course carried out in Hiroshima; but the third, vital part of Mizuno’s operation is the impressive Mizuno Technics facility, based in the Mizuno brothers’ home town of Yoro. The centre for club refinement, assembly and customising, Mizuno Technics is where the brand’s values of technology, quality and individualism align. More than 100 people work here. Thirty finish the forged heads arriving from Chuo – a process that involves everything from grinding to painting – in any

WorldMags.net

combination of 11 colours (see panel). Forty more are on the assembly line, matching heads with shafts and grips, and generally prepping clubs for dispatch. The factory builds 2000 clubs every day.

Clubs built at Yoro are for the Japanese and Korean markets – but the company has set up similar custom assembly operations in its global territories. For the UK that is in Cumbernauld, 15 miles north-east of Glasgow, where a 12-strong assembly line turns around custom orders in three to five days. Though branching out in Scotland, the plant is still rooted in Japan.

“All parts that go out to Scotland are ordered from Mizuno Technics,” says Takashi Ito, president and CEO of Mizuno Technics.

“We oversee assembly overseas, visiting each

WorldMags.net

THE MAKING OF A MIZUNO PART 2 FINAL PREP AT MIZUNO TECHNICS

factory regularly to make sure they are doing the right thing. Their staff also comes here to get trained.”

Mizuno believe its way forward will be through this blend of high quality and custom fit. How the strategy will affect Mizuno’s fortunes remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: the decision to host the 2020 Olympic Games, complete with golf, in Tokyo, will give the company a massive shot in the arm – if one can use that idiom in the context of the Olympics.

Since its inception, Mizuno has been heavily involved in the Games. Back in 1948, the company donated bamboo poles for the pole vault in London’s Games, despite the fact Japan weren’t allowed to compete.

And last year, Mizuno’s CEO and Rihachi’s grandson, Masato Mizuno, resigned his position and salary to head up Tokyo’s recently successful 2020 bid.

“Mizuno has always been about getting people enthused through sport,” Matsushita says. “Our company was founded on the wave of enthusiasm for sport created by the first modern Olympics, in 1896; it is great to think that, 124 years later, the company is still around and able to contribute to the event that sparked its creation.”

Sports Network Ltd has been the exclusive Mizuno distributor in New Zealand for 25 years. For more information, ph 09 479 8632 or email james@sportsnetwork.co.nz Copyright Golf World

1

When heads arrive, a hole is drilled for the shaft. The heads are then given just a rough grinding as they are yet to be adjusted for loft and lie, which can scratch them.

2

3

The clubhead is given the After Barrel Process – basically a treatment of the club by hundreds of thousands of small, angular stones in water. The process takes two hours.

4

5

6

The clubhead is now polished, the only machine-based part of the process. A robot picks up each head and buffs it with increasingly fine grades of buffing cloth.

WorldMags.net

An engineer carries out a loft/lie check. He places the head in a vice and bends the hosel with a tool. A computer monitors his work. The iron is adjusted to 0.25 of a degree.

The head, now smooth and clean in matt silver, has its face milled, and then any custom-engraving is added before the grooves are etched in by laser.

The heads are plated and painted.

The finished head is shafted and gripped. Lofts and lies are given a second check. Finally the clubs are boxed, ready for dispatch.

improve your golf

107

TOUR PRO WorldMags.net INSIGHT

5

STEPS TO BETTER WET WEATHER GOLF WHY TAKING CARE OF YOUR EQUIPMENT IS CRUCIAL IN HELPING YOU PLAY YOUR BEST IN WET WEATHER. BY DAVID LYNN, EUROPEAN TOUR PROFESSIONAL

A quality rainsuit won’t just keep you dry; it can save you shots in difficult conditions.

3CLUB UP ON EACH SHOT

You probably never considered this, but surface water creates extra resistance at impact and reduces your clubhead speed through the ball. What’s more, a soft surface will limit the amount of roll you can expect once your ball hits the fairway or green. Combine these factors and you can see why you need to take at least one extra club on every full shot.

UP OR DOWN WITH LAYERS 1WARM

You should choose the best set of waterproofs you can find, because you’ll appreciate how they can protect you time after time and give you the chance to perform well. A multi-layer system helps you avoid sweating underneath the protective layer of the garment. A waterproof cap or hat is also important, plus rain gloves that will help you grip the clubs.

2SPEED UP YOUR ROUTINE

It may sound obvious but one of the keys to staying dry is limiting the amount of time you spend away from the protection of your umbrella.

Be decisive and make your shotmaking decisions before you walk to the ball. It’s also a good idea to speed up your routine a little to reduce exposure to the elements.

108 thecut

EXTRA CARE OF YOUR CLUBS DURING THE ROUND 4TAKE

When your hands get wet and cold it’s tempting to try to get the clubs back in your bag as quickly as possible. But that’s not a smart move. After each shot take the time to wipe down your grips and keep them as dry as possible.

OFF YOUR EQUIPMENT AFTERWARDS 5DRY

Once the round is over, spend time drying off your gear so it stays in good order for the next game. There’s nothing worse than getting your clubs out of the car a week later and finding that your grips are still moist. With waterproofs, that may only mean shaking off excess water, but it could be a good idea to wash and tumble-dry them later.

WorldMags.net

Copyright Golf World

WorldMags.net

BRING GOLF HOME

MAINTENANCE FREE, SYNTHETIC TURF GOLF GREENS Arthur Parkin

Phone 09 524 9906¬s¬Mobile 027 505 7004 Email arthur@tigergolfandlawn.co.nz

SEE US AT THE NZ GOLF SHOW 23-24TH AUGUST, 2014 NORTH SHORE EVENTS CENTRE

WorldMags.net

EQUIPMENTWorldMags.net NEWS

WATCH OUT! G

armin, the global leader in satellite navigation, now has the Approach S6 touchscreen watch equipped with all-new golf watch technology.

The Approach S6 boasts first-of-itskind swing metrics and training tools right on a golfer’s wrist. SwingTempo, TempoTrainer and SwingStrength can be used to improve golfers’ swing consistency and synchronisation.

The S6 is the first golf watch to offer full CourseView maps with GreenView, Touch Targeting and PinPointer on a high-res colour touchscreen. CourseView allows golfers to preview hole details like doglegs, traps, water hazards and green shapes while on the course or even in the clubhouse.

In addition to CourseView, the Approach S6 also has GreenView, which shows golfers the layout of the green as well as nearby bunkers and water hazards so users can use the touchscreen to drag and drop the pin to the day’s location, giving them the most accurate yardages. The Approach S6 even has PinPointer, which offers blind shot assistance by providing an arrow pointing directly to the green. With this feature, golfers know exactly where to line up their shot, no matter if they are in the woods or deep in a bunker.

Like other Garmin golf devices, the Approach S6 comes preloaded with more than 30,000 international courses with no additional subscriptions or fees.

The Approach S6 is the slimmest, lightest golf watch from Garmin. It has 10 hours of battery life in full GPS mode or 14 weeks in watch mode. The Approach S6 is also equipped with Smart Notification technology. When paired with an iPhone 4S or later,

PUT YOUR BEST FOOT FORWARD With 95 per cent of the golf game spent walking, it is worth investing in a pair of shoes that don’t compromise on comfort. For its newest season of footwear, Skechers has introduced GO Golf.

Skechers, the third largest athletic shoe company in the US, recently added Matt Kuchar to its performance division and the seven-time PGA Tour champion is happily wearing the new Skechers GO Golf line.

110 thecut

golfers can receive text, email and missed call alerts on the watch. Android compatibility is expected this summer.

The Approach S6 also doubles as an electronic scorecard to save, review, and share scorecards and stats. Sync the Approach S6 to Garmin Connect or Garmin Connect Mobile and golfers will be able to upload, analyse and share their scorecards, as well as other data like fairways hit, greens in regulation, shot distance and number of putts. They can even analyse course data and see hole-by-hole details to understand their own trends and tendencies to improve their game.

The Approach S6 was available from July and its RRP is $549. The Approach S6 will be available at all leading golf shops.

For more information visit garmin.co.nz

“Whether competing or practising, I’m on my feet for hours, so the comfort and performance of my shoes is a critical factor in my success,” said Kuchar.

“In trying out the GO Golf line, I was really pleased both with the shoe and with the Skechers performance division team. Their attention to detail and expertise in performance footwear is impressive.”

Of the GO Golf range, the zero-drop design provides a low, neutral position giving a more balanced foundation for every swing. Fully waterproof, Skechers GO Golf’s ensure traction control and a solid grip on the turf.

Skechers GO Golf shoes for men and women are available at selected retailers, including Rebel Sport and Skechers Concept, St Lukes, Auckland.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

FEET FIRST

EZg[ZXi HdX`h lVh hiVgiZY ^c '%&& Wn H]Zgg^aa H^Wjc! V a^[Z"adc\ \da[Zg l]d gZegZhZciZY CO ^c &.*.# H^Wjc lVh [gjhigViZY Vi cdi WZ^c\ VWaZ id Wjn woollen golf socks that would withstand the rigours of playing 18 holes and keeping her feet comfortable so she decided to make her own.

H^Wjc [djcY l]Vi h]Z Xdch^YZgh id WZ i]Z eZg[ZXi nVgc! l]^X] ^h V b^m of 70 per cent merino wool and 30 per cent cashmere. This provides all the beneďŹ ts of a natural ďŹ bre which wicks away the moisture from the foot. The cashmere means the sock is super-soft and, most importantly, comfortable to wear.

The design of the socks includes a ďŹ ne toe seam, arch support, cushioned sole and reinforced heel and toe.

These New Zealand made socks for men and women are available in golf clubs all over the country.

For more information and stockists go to www.perfectsocks.co.nz

To play Muriwai is to play golf as nature INTENDED A True Links Course situated approximately 40 minutes from Auckland City on the ruggedly beautiful West Coast &ULLĂŚFACILITIESĂŚAVAILABLEĂŚINCLUDING sĂŚELECTRICĂŚCARTS sĂŚHIREĂŚCLUBS sĂŚPULLĂŚTRUNDLERS sĂŚCATERINGĂŚANDĂŚBARĂŚSERVICEĂŚ ĂŚDAYS -EMBERSHIPSĂŚAVAILABLE Group, company and casual GOLFERSĂŚWELCOME

INSPIRING CONFIDENCE

E

xpertly crafted by legendary club designer Roger Cleveland and inspired by the major-winning performance of the Mack Daddy 2 wedges, Callawayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new Mack Daddy 2 Tour Grind wedges feature a tour-validated shape to deliver more precision, greater spin and pinpoint control.

These premium forged wedges are made from 1020 carbon steel for an ultra-soft feel and feature a straighter leading edge that creates better turf interaction through the ground.

The higher toe is a favourite of tour players, creating a shape that inspires the conďŹ dence you need to go after delicate shots. The forged Mack Daddy 2 groove pattern offers 39 per cent larger grooves for 25 per cent more spin out of the rough, while the increased surface roughness of the face provides added spin and control.

The wedges are available in two ďŹ nish options: Â&#x2122; 8]gdbZ Ă&#x2019;c^h] [dg V g^X]! bjiZY add` i]Vi gZYjXZh \aVgZ Â&#x2122; HaViZ Ă&#x2019;c^h] ^h egZ"dm^Y^oZY [dg V idjg egZ[ZggZY distinctive, non-glare look over time Lofts available: 52°, 54°, 56°, 58° and 60° RRP: $209 each The clubs were available in New Zealand from late July.

For more information go to www.callawaygolf.com

Call 0800 Muriwai #OAST ĂŚ2OADĂŚ-URIWAIĂŚsĂŚ0HONEĂŚ ĂŚ ĂŚ ĂŚ ĂŚĂŚ &AXĂŚ ĂŚ ĂŚ ĂŚ ĂŚsĂŚEMAIL ĂŚMURIWAISHOP GOLF CO NZ

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

111

DESTINATION WorldMags.net

The Ernie Els designed Teluk Datai course

112 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

ELS’ ISLAND GEM MALAYSIA’S ISLAND OF LANGKAWI IS EMERGING AS A BUDDING TOURIST DESTINATION FOR GOLFERS. WE CHECK OUT THE REGION’S SUDDEN RISE STORY Brendon Egan

O

ne hour’s flight from the hustle and bustle of Kuala Lumpur you’ll find Langkawi, Malaysia’s hidden gem.

The island, which is situated 30km off the mainland coast of north-western Malaysia, has grown as a tourist haven since 1987 when it was granted tax-free status.

With its spectacular beaches, tropical rainforest, captivating wildlife and relaxed pace of life, it’s easy to see how this popular holiday spot, with a resident population of just under 65,000, attracts not just Malaysian visitors but tourists from all over. And in recent years golf has developed into another of Langkawi’s most desirable attractions.

Langkawi is home to three courses, which vary in difficulty, but all offer stunning views.

The redesign of The Els Club Teluk Datai has catapulted it into the top echelon of courses in south-east Asia.

Designed by four-times major champion Ernie Els from South Africa, the par-72 course, which stretches 6181m off the championship tees has been

operating only since April for limited preview play.

Thirty minutes drive away is the par-72, 6228m, Gunung Raya Golf Resort, which opened its first nine holes in 1988. The back nine holes were completed two years later.

Gunung Raya, situated at the foothills of Celebration Mountain, was designed by American golf architect Max Wexler. It sprawls across 300 acres of former rubber plantation land.

Langkawi is also home to the 99 East Golf Club, which was established in 2012, with the opening nine holes – par-36, 3360m – being open for play. It is located on the oceanfront between Pantai Cenang and Kuah Town, the first few holes playing uphill to the highest point, providing epic views of the island.

Troon Golf general manager Ken Kosak, whose company manages the state-of-the-art Els Club, expects to see more New Zealand and Australian golfers visiting Langkawi’s courses in the future.

He says they are important markets for Tourism Malaysia and with the addition to the Langkawi golf scene of The Els Club, there has already been interest from both countries.

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

113

WorldMags.net Few courses in the world rival The Els Club for its fabulous scenery, which puts the golfer at one with nature. In fact, as we zip around the opening couple of holes in our GPS-equipped buggy, it feels like we have arrived at Jurassic Park. Dusky leaf monkeys dart across the fairways and one even chases our cart when we stop to take a photo of his family. Monitor lizards, eagles and hornbill birds can also be spotted in the nearby trees.

“There are only a handful of golf courses in the world that provide this kind of wildlife,” says Kosak.

The course meanders its way through a million-year-old rainforest, cascading down to the waters of the Anaman Sea. It is also overlooked by the marbled limestone peaks of the Mat Cincan mountain range.

There are five seafront holes at The Els Resort – numbers 5, 7, 9, 16 and 17 – with ocean views towards the south Thailand coast.

“We wanted to provide an environment that we like to call ‘casual sophistication’,” says Kosak, “which is relaxed yet where quality and service are top notch. Ernie and his design team provided a real tribute to nature and there is nothing manufactured about this golf course.”

Els had a huge input into the course. The ‘Big Easy’ returns with his family each year for some much-needed relaxation away from the professional tour.

The most surprising feature of Els’ design is that there are no bunkers. Els felt the course was challenging enough with the jungle and numerous streams and creeks which bisect many of the holes.

Another determining factor was the 3000mm of annual rainfall the location receives.

“Imagine what the bunkers would look like and the condition they would be in,” says Kosak. “There’s nothing worse than standing in water in the bunkers or having them washed out on a regular basis.”

He rates the par-5 520m seventh, known as Teluk Datai, as the signature hole. The double dogleg plays its way down to the Andaman Sea, where the green is nestled along the seafront. It takes three really good shots to reach the green and achieve par.

The Els Club features a refurbished clubhouse, now a two-storey building in which the Hornbill Cafe can accommodate 75 people, an ideal retreat for members and guests to unwind. It overlooks the championship golf course.

Other facilities include a practice hole, six target greens and a 50m x 40m grassed tee, as well as the latest X1 pro-swing analysis training system.

Gunung Raya’s administration and business development manager Khor Pei Ling says their ambition was to develop a course that would challenge low handicap players but also offer something for the weekend warrior.

114 thecut

“We mainly cater for hotel guests on the island and, importantly, we want to let them enjoy the surroundings. We wanted a resort course that is scenic and that most recreational golfers would enjoy.”

Kosak says The Els Club’s core audience is the 12+ handicap player wanting to have fun and enjoyment in a magical, natural environment.

Pei Ling does not see the emergence of The Els Club having a detrimental effect on Gunung Raya, which hosts 1700 rounds per month; indeed, he believes it is likely to have a positive spin-off effect.

“We strongly believe that having more golf courses on the island is actually benefitting tourism to Langkawi overall. We know golfers enjoy playing different courses at a single destination.”

Gunung Raya’s first major renovation came in 2006 when a new clubhouse was built. A practice green and driving range are available, as well as a pro shop, showers and locker rooms and buggy hire.

With long fairways, jungle shrubs, plenty of sand traps and some testing water hazards across the back nine, a par can quickly become a bogey at Gunung Raya.

Langkawi enjoys a balmy climate nearly all year round and is therefore the perfect place to escape New Zealand’s winter blues.

Pei Ling says Gunung Raya has hosted a mixture of international and local tournaments over the past five years. In April this year it staged a Professional Golf of Malaysia (PGM) Tour event, the Langkawi Championship, with a first prize of $NZ15,343.

Gunung Raya and The Els Club combined in early June to stage six qualifying rounds of the world amateur inter-team

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

LEFT & OPPOSITE PAGE: The philosophy of the Gunung Raya management is that it must be a course able to be enjoyed by all level of golfers.

ABOVE, RIGHT & BELOW: The redesigned Teluk Datai course has helped put Langakawi on the map when it comes to golf holiday destinations.

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

115

WorldMags.net championship, an event that culminates in a grand final in the Malaysian state of Malacca from November 18 to 20.

The tax-free status of the island also offers appeal, with food and drink relatively cheap and bargains available at the local shopping malls and markets.

After a hard-fought round on the golf course there are a multitude of activities for both couples and families to focus on.

The cable car ride, which opened in 2003 and is 709m above sea level, affords an incredible view of Langkawi. On a clear day, you will be able to snap stunning photographs of the rainforest and hills below.

The mangrove tour (three hours) represents excellent value and lets you get up and close with the Macaque monkeys in their natural habitat.

You can also take in a fish farm that features stingrays, giant gropers, sea bass, horse shoe crabs and archer fish. Also on offer is a bat cave.

Other not-to-be-missed sights can be found at Crocodile Adventureland – only 12km from The Els Club.

Underwater World is an ideal destination for a tropical downpour day. Malaysia’s largest aquarium houses more than 200 different species of marine and freshwater fish, including harbour seals, rockhopper penguins, sharks, giant rays and the enormous Amazonian arapaima, the world’s biggest freshwater fish.

A trip to Langkawi would not be complete without a visit to Dataran Lang (Eagle Square) where you will find a 12m high sculpture of an eagle geared for takeoff. The eagle is the symbol of Langkawi, its name translating to ‘island of the reddish brown eagle’.

Eagles on the golf course or off it, Langkawi has it all.

KIWI RATES LANGKAWI Auckland’s Francis Chai rates The Els Club at the top of his list for pure golfing experiences, Chai having travelled extensively around the world playing golf in locations as diverse as the United States, Europe, Singapore, Fiji, Australia, New Caledonia and Malaysia. He’s even tackled the famous Old Course at St Andrews in Scotland but claims his two rounds at The Els Club were just as memorable.

Chai, who is a member at the Formosa Country Club, visited Langkawi in June as the captain of a four-man New Zealand team competing in the preliminary round of the world amateur inter-team championship. His side also included JS Khor and Vivien Chin from Pakuranga and Yogi Thomas from North Shore.

The opening two rounds were staged at Gunung Raya before the action switched to The Els Club.

Chai, who plays off a 13 handicap, said he was blown away by the stunning scenery at The Els Club and the course’s beautifully maintained fairways and greens.

“I’ve played St Andrews in Scotland and most courses in Malaysia but The Els course would be my top pick,” he said.

“The feeling of playing the course at The Els is just so awesome.”

He said the rain forest surrounding the fairways helped provide shade from the sapping 35deg C temperatures.

Despite there being no bunkers on the championship course, Chai said it was still extremely tough.

“It doesn’t need bunkers. There are a lot of streams and rocks – it’s not that easy.”

Chai was also impressed with the Gunung Raya course, which is a test for both scratch and amateur players, with plenty of unforgiving water hazards and sand traps.

He said there was an alluring quality to both The Els Club and Gunung Raya. “The way the courses are presented you feel like you really want to play them. You feel very welcome.”

The writer travelled to Langkawi courtesy of Tourism Malaysia and Malaysia Airlines.

116 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

FOR OUR BEST PRICES: visit www.mags4gifts.co.nz/special/fathersday or call 0800 113 466 and quote Father’s Day TERMS & CONDITIONS: Special Father’s Day subscription pricing is available from 13 August until 15 September 2014. Standard subscription pricing will resume from 16 September 2014

WorldMags.net

DESTINATION WorldMags.net

Caribbean

CLASSIC STORY Tony Smart

WHEN A GOLF RESORT CLAIMS THE TITLE OF WORLD’S BEST FOR THE SEVENTH CONSECUTIVE YEAR, IT’S GOT TO BE PRETTY SPECIAL. OUR WRITER WENT TO CHECK IT OUT

I

t’s official, Casa de Campo in the Dominican Republic is the world’s best golf resort. This magnificent resort, which boasts three tremendous Pete Dyedesigned golf courses among its many luxury facilities, has, for the seventh year running, been voted the World’s Leading Golf Resort in the prestigious World Travel Awards.

That’s quite a success rate, and there is no doubt that this beautiful place located on the south-eastern corner of the Caribbean island deserves the awards.

The golf on offer is superb, starting with the legendary Teeth of the Dog course which hugs the Caribbean coastline and has seven holes that play over or right beside the crystal clear waters of the Caribbean Sea. These holes, according to Dye, were “created by God”.

The 7478yd (6837m) off the back tees, par-72 course opened in 1971 but was completely renovated by Dye in 2005 to meet the demands of modern golf equipment. The renovation was a stunning success and the Teeth of the Dog was ranked 46th best course in the world last year by US Golf Magazine.

The layout has a lot of strategic fairway and greenside bunkering plus some trademark Dye waste bunkers. There’s even one, the par-3, 201yd (183m) 13th, where the green is an island completely surrounded by sand.

Avenues of trees, including many palms, line most fairways and the greens are firm, fast and undulating. And then there are those spectacular seven holes “created by God” which begin at the par-3 fifth, continue through 6, 7 and 8 before an interlude until the course returns to the Caribbean at 15, 16 and 17.

118 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

119

WorldMags.net On these seven holes the ocean is one vast water hazard that adds to their stunning beauty. On the par-4s you don’t have to play over the Caribbean, just beside it, but on all the par-3s your tee shot needs to carry almost entirely over water to make the safety of the green.

These are breathtaking holes, truly God-created golf.

It’s a great golf course and the variety of tees that shorten the course right down to 5914yds (5407m) from the whites for the shorter hitters means that golfers of all skill levels can play and enjoy it.

Some four years after opening Teeth of the Dog, Dye created his second course at Casa de Campo, the Dye Links, a 7003yd (6403m) par-71 inland links that also provides spectacular views of the ocean and the resort.

This is the ‘friendliest’ of the three courses, a regular resort course where the fairways are surrounded by residential villas. Sand, in the form of fairway, greenside and waste bunkers, is the main hazard here although two man-made lakes offer a significant problem on five holes on the back nine.

As with all three courses, the fairways and greens are in great condition, enhancing the enjoyment of your round and giving golfers no excuse for bad shots.

The resort had to wait almost 30 years before it got its third course, Dye Fore, in 2003 and here the designer added a third nine holes, Dye Fore Lakes, in 2011.

The main 18 holes, consisting of the Dye Fore Marina and Dye Fore Chavon nines for a par 72, can stretch to

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

7714yds (7053m) from the back tees though it can play as short as 6070yds (5550m) from the whites. This 18 comprises vast sweeping fairways that plunge down into valleys from the tee before rising up to elevated greens on many of the holes.

As the names suggest, the Marina nine offers spectacular views of the resort’s marina in the distance whilst the Chavon nine plays along cliffs 100ft or more above the wide and majestic Chavon River that feeds down to the Caribbean.

Nature is in all its glory here and many peregrine falcons hover overhead, wheeling around whilst they hunt for breakfast.

Complementing these superb 63 holes of golf, the resort features a Jim McLean Golf School, created by the man who is consistently ranked among the top five golf teachers in the world.

McLean visits Casa de Campo at least once a year to provide lessons, and the rest of the time excellent teaching staff are available, headed by director of instruction Eric Lillibridge. So if your golf swing is ruining your holiday you can always get it checked over by the best in the business.

However, golf isn’t the only sport this wonderful resort has to offer. Casa de Campo’s theme is ‘The Sporting Life’ and the complex also boasts world-class equestrian/polo, shooting, tennis and water sport facilities.

The equestrian centre is internationally renowned for the quality of its four polo fields and during the November-July polo season up to 400 horses can be stabled here at any one time.

There are also excellent show-jumping facilities and the centre can provide horses for trail riding as well as donkey polo for children.

The 245-acre shooting centre presents more than 200 shooting stations for trap, skeet and sporting clays, including one

of the largest towers in the world, and it is the largest shooting centre in the southern hemisphere.

The La Terraza tennis centre, with its 13 fast-dry Har-Tru courts (10 of them floodlit) and more than 25 USPTR certified teaching professionals has been dubbed the Wimbledon of the Caribbean due to it having staged an international tennis tournament for more than 30 years, the Casa de Campo Cup, which attracts 250 entrants from 14 countries.

Naturally enough, as befits a resort located on the Caribbean, water sports play a big part in ‘The Sporting Life’ at Casa de Campo. Deep sea fishers can chase wahoo, tuna, kingfish, sailfish, marlin and barracuda in the ocean or go freshwater fishing on the Chavon River; kayaking can be enjoyed at sea or on the river; there’s snorkelling off the resort’s private Minitas Beach or on an excursion to one of several offshore islands; and you can sail on hobie cats or on larger vessels available from the Casa de Campo Marina. You can also take sailing lessons from the qualified professionals of the Scuola della Vela, Italy.

If all this exercise leaves your muscles feeling weary there are some great masseuses at the Casa de Campo Spa offering a wide range of treatments to soothe away those aches and pains; you can indulge in anything from aromatherapy to reiki and reflexology.

The spa also has a private water sanctuary with steam room, sauna and two hot-cold plunge pools, and a serene meditation garden.

One more wonderful experience available on the Casa de Campo’s 7000 acres is Altos de Chavon, a replica of a 16th

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

121

WorldMags.net

century Mediterranean village located high above the Chavon River. Created as a cultural centre for the Dominican people this architectural masterpiece is packed with quaint shops, boutiques, art galleries, fine restaurants, museums and the Altos de Chavon School of Design.

Working artists can be observed in the cobbled streets while the museums include an archeological museum and the Amber World Museum.

The village was opened in 1982 with much fanfare, and with Frank Sinatra as the star performer. The open-air amphitheatre is the centrepiece of Altos de Chavon and over the years musicians such as Sting, Gloria Estefan, Shakira, Julio Iglesias and Placido Domingo have all performed here.

Rounding out this magnificent resort is the luxurious accommodation and a wide variety of restaurants. You can dine on succulent seafood or Spanish cuisine at La Casita restaurant at the marina, or opt for Italian and Chinese restaurants.

Mediterranean and international cuisine is available at the Lago Grill and La Cana by Il Circo restaurants in the main hotel area.

With all it has to offer guests it’s not surprising that Casa de Campo has been a favoured resort for the global elite for more than 40 years. Hollywood stars, sports professionals, heads of state, financial wizards and top entertainers have all made this Caribbean paradise one of their regular holiday stops.

Without a doubt, Casa de Campo is the Caribbean’s most complete resort, possibly the most complete resort in the world… and with golf to Dye for!

122 thecut

CASA DE CAMPO PO Box 140, La Romana, Dominican Republic PHONE (001) 809 523 3333 WEBSITE www.casadecampo.com.do COURSES All lengths from gold tees (Teeth of the Dog 6491m; Dye Links 6403m; Dye Fore 6355m) HOW TO GET THERE Flights to Punta Cana Airport, Dominican Republic from New Zealand available with American Airlines, Mix and Match Airlines, Lan Airlines, Qantas Airways, Continental and United. Casa de Campo is a 45min drive from the airport.

LANGUAGE Spanish, though English is widely understood CURRENCY The peso is the national currency of the Dominican Republic (NZ$1 = 35.80 pesos). In tourist zones and resorts, American dollars are accepted.

BEST TIME TO VISIT The Dominican Republic has a tropical climate with temperatures averaging around 80°F. Best months to visit are March to June. The hot season with high humidity runs from July to September.

THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC This beautiful Caribbean island is a great golf destination with, outside of Casa de Campo, a further 20 18-hole courses, including four more designed by Pete Dye, three by his son PB Dye, three by Robert Trent Jones Sr, two Jack Nicklaus Signature courses, and others by Gary Player, Nick Faldo, Tom Fazio and Nick Price. The island also offers great snorkelling/diving, miles of beautiful beaches, stunning mountain scenery and colonial architecture. The standard of accommodation is great if you book four or five star resorts/hotels though cheaper options are available. If you have spare time, try whale watching or sightseeing, or watch an original cigar roller at work. There’s always plenty of nightlife, especially in the resorts.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

Tuesday 8.30PM Sky Sport 4

Wednesday 9:30PM Sky Sport 1 Thursday 11:10PM TV3

Join Brendan Telfer & Phil Tataurangi as

ANZ Golf World visits the world’s most

they provide viewers with weekly highlights

exclusive golfing destinations and brings

and in-depth analysis of the world’s greatest

the biggest golfing personalities into your

golf tournaments, featuring the best from the

living room. Plus Mark Leishman &

US PGA Tour, European Tour, Champions Tour,

Laura McGoldrick swing by your local

LPGA and New Zealand’s professional

club to uncover hidden gems and

and amateur events.

New Zealand’s rising talent.

WorldMags.net

DESTINATION WorldMags.net

FUN IN THE SUN

GREAT COURSES AND INTRIGUING OFF-COURSE ACTIVITIES MAKE FLORIDA A FANTASTIC GOLF HOLIDAY DESTINATION

S

igns proclaiming ‘Beware the gators’ are a thrilling part of playing golf in Florida. But a golf holiday to Florida can offer so much more. The Sunshine State attracts huge numbers of golf-mad Americans and international golfers alike because there are year-round opportunities to play some of the best courses in the US. Off the course, the choices of what to do are also endless with theme parks, aeronautics, world-renowned restaurants, top hotels and spas, chic communities, ecological zones and 2170kms of white-sand beaches. Little wonder Florida has four beaches in the US Top 10.

124 thecut

Attracting 95 million tourists annually, Florida ranks alongside Rome and Paris as one of the world’s most popular travel destinations.

Florida is a golfer’s paradise with over 1250 courses to play – more than any other state in the US. There is an array of spectacular courses designed by legends of the game: Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Pete Dye, Tom Watson, Greg Norman, Robert Trent Jones and Gary Player, to name a few. Florida courses host PGA, Champions and LPGA tournaments annually on the Florida Swing.

The PGA and LPGA make their home at Ponte Vedra Beach in northeast Florida.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

The Slammer & Squire beside the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Just down the road at St Augustine, where the Spanish first settled the US in 1513, is the World Golf Hall of Fame and the spectacular, custom-built World Golf Village. You can find the lockers of Australians Kel Nagle, Greg Norman, Peter Thomson, Walter Travis, Karrie Webb and Kiwi Sir Bob Charles in the Hall of Fame, and the museum houses a priceless collection of golf memorabilia of inducted golfing greats and historic records from the game itself. It is a must-visit for any golfer.

In the World Golf Village are two, one-of-a-kind golf courses. The King & Bear is the only golf course in the world designed by Palmer

and Nicklaus in collaboration. The other, The Slammer & Squire, is named in honour of golfing greats Sam ‘the Slammer’ Snead and Gene ‘the Squire’ Sarazen, who were consulted throughout the design process.

While many courses in Florida are open to the green fee paying public, access to playing the best courses does require skilful networking. Many courses are exclusively private and others have hotel partnerships that are ‘stay and play’ only.

The best courses in Florida include TPC Sawgrass Stadium course, in north-east Florida, which is the host course of the so-called

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

125

WorldMags.net

TOP: The 16th hole at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club & Lodge.

ABOVE: Trump National Dorel Blue Monster sixth hole.

BELOW: The World Golf Village course The King & Bear.

126 thecut

‘fifth major’, the Players Championship. The 17th hole, a par-3 island green, is one of the most recognised and notorious holes in golf. The other top course is Seminole in Palm Beach, a classic-style course built in the 1920s by Donald Ross. Seminole was a favourite of resident Ben Hogan in his warm-up for the Masters.

Golf had its beginnings in Florida near Palm Beach in 1896 with the building of The Breakers Ocean Course by railway tycoon and father of Florida tourism, Henry Flagler. On the same coast, Jupiter Island is the latest hot spot for pro golfers and where you might run into Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Luke Donald, Lee Westwood or Ernie Els at the local supermarket. Jack Nicklaus started the exodus to Florida’s south-east coast 40 years ago and others followed, including Greg Norman, with most building eight-figure-sum homes.

US President Barack Obama holidayed on Jupiter Island last year and played a round with Tiger.

Golfers are drawn to the Miami region for its superb beaches and nightlife. Arguably, the best course in Miami is the Doral Blue Monster course with its extremely challenging 18th hole mastered by winner of The Doral Open in 2004, Craig Parry. Donald Trump purchased Doral in 2012 and completed a major renovation of the hotel and some of its five courses.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

Bring some new colours to your club

New Tees for the Tee To celebrate the launch of our new store, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got LOVE Golf gear at below par prices.

www.lovegolf.co.nz

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

TOP RIGHT: The eighth at the Nicklaus Old Corkscrew. ABOVE: Murray Bros Caddyshack restaurant is located off the Walk of Champions, in the heart of World Golf Village. BELOW: PGA Tour Stop, an enormous retail centre featuring the major brands in golf equipment, apparel and more, is located around the Walk of Champions at World Golf Village. BOTTOM: A small part of the Bob Hope exhibit at the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Others include The PGA National with its famous â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Bear Trapâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and home to The Honda Classic.

The best course around Orlando is Bay Hill, where Arnold Palmer lives and plays. The course is host to the Bay Hill MasterCard Invitational. Other favourites include the Grand Cypress, Disney courses and the Greg Norman-designed Championsgate courses. Further inland to central Florida are the two new Streamsong Red and Blue courses, which are being rated by golf players as being similar to Barnbougle in Tasmania.

The stretch of beach from Daytona to Jacksonville on the north-east coast boasts numerous golf resorts with great access to the Atlantic Ocean, including Amelia Island. For a more relaxing Florida experience, the Tampa and Naples coastal areas are emerging golf destinations. GolfAdvisor recently included the Nicklaus Old Corkscrew golf course in Naples in its Top 10 and the Tiburon Black Course is the most famous in that area as it hosts the Greg Norman Shark Shootout.

Yes, for golfers, Florida is certainly worth the journey from Australia and New Zealand.

FLORIDA GOLFER FACT FILE BEST TIME TO TRAVEL: Year round s !VERAGE TEMPERATURES n °# WINTER AND n °C SUMMER s 0EAK SUMMER *ULY !UGUST HOTTEST WITH HIGH CHANCE OF TROPICAL RAIN s (URRICANE SEASON *UNE TO .OVEMBER MAJOR INTERNATIONAL AIRPORTS: &LIGHTS FROM .EW :EALAND 7ITH CODE SHARE PARTNERS

!IR .EW :EALAND mIES TO &LORIDA VIA ,OS !NGELES OR 3AN &RANCISCO THROUGH $ALLAS (OUSTON OR !TLANTA (AWAIIAN !IR mIES VIA (ONOLULU AND ,OS !NGELES OR 3AN &RANCISCO MAIN GOLF REGIONS: /RLANDO 0ALM "EACH &ORT ,AUDERDALE *ACKSONVILLE -IAMI .APLES AND 4AMPA MAJOR PGA EVENTS IN THE FLORIDA SWING: s &%"25!29 4HE (ONDA #LASSIC AT 0'! .ATIONAL 0ALM "EACH 'ARDENS s -!2#( 7'# #ADILLAC #HAMPIONSHIP AT 4RUMP .ATIONAL $ORAL "LUE -ONSTER $ORAL 6ALSPAR #HAMPIONSHIP AT )NNISBROOK 2ESORT 0ALM (ARBOUR !RNOLD 0ALMER )NVITATIONAL AT "AY (ILL '# ,ODGE

/RLANDO s -!9 4HE 0LAYERS #HAMPIONSHIP AT 40# 3AWGRASS 3TADIUM #OURSE 0ONTE 6EDRA "EACH s $%#%-"%2 &RANKLIN 4EMPLETON 3HOOTOUT AT 4IBURON '# .APLES

128 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net www.radiolivesport.com

BRINGING YOU MUCH MORE THAN THE SCORE

BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS Ian Smith | Nathan Rarere | Monty Betham

WEEKDAYS 6AM - 9AM

BRENDAN TELFER LIVE Brendan Telfer

WEEKDAYS 9AM - 10AM

FAR NORTH 92.4FM | BAY OF ISLANDS 94.4FM | WHANGAREI 92.4FM | CENTRAL NORTHLAND 92.4FM | AUCKLAND 1476AM TAURANGA 873AM | WAIKATO 954AM | EASTERN BAY OF PLENTY 96.1FM | ROTORUA 1548AM | GISBORNE 1485AM TAUPO 91.2FM | TARANAKI 91.2FM | HAWKES BAY 549AM | WANGANUI 828AM MANAWATU 828AM | KAPTI COAST 93.5FM WAIRARAPA 91.1FM | WELLINGTON 711AM | NELSON 990AM | WESTPORT 93.3FM | GREYMOUTH 89.1FM/93.9FM HOKITIKA 89.1FM | CHRISTCHURCH 1260AM | ASBURTON 1071AM | TIMARU 1242AM | QUEENSTOWN 93.6FM | WANAKA 106.8FM CENTRAL OTAGO 104.7FM | OAMARU 89.6FM | DUNEDIN 1206AM | SOUTHLAND 1224AM

WorldMags.net

/ LiveSPORTradio @ LiveSPORTradio

DESTINATION WorldMags.net

AFTER THE

HAVOC MES THE

G N I L A E H

CO

ns att Riche STORY M

130 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

C

FEBRUARY 2011 WAS CATASTROPHIC FOR GOLF CLUBS IN CHRISTCHURCH WITH THE EARTHQUAKE CAUSING MASSIVE DAMAGE. HOWEVER, THERE IS GOOD NEWS, TIME IS HEALING THE WOUNDS, AND OUR MAN IN CHRISTCHURCH IS HAPPY TO REPORT THAT THE GARDEN CITY IS ONCE AGAIN A GOLF HOLIDAY DESTINATION WELL WORTH CONSIDERING

hristchurch once had a little par-3 golf course called Ascot. Truth be told it wasn’t much. If you had a good arm you could reach the green on a couple of the holes with a throw.

It was council owned and at weekends you could easily take five hours for a round if you found yourself behind a particularly slow group.

But the greens were always good, the tees usually flat and it was the perfect taster course… a course where you tried out golf to see if you liked it, where a 174m par-3 was considered a long hole and where you used your not-so-good balls when you had to play over water.

It probably attracted more casual women players than any other course in the city.

Ascot may have been considered a bit of a joke by serious golfers, but it delivered what few other courses do – a low-stress place for punters to give the sport a crack.

It’s gone now, the land and facilities, which included Christchurch’s best driving range, both deemed irreparable.

‘Munted’ was an overused word in Christchurch three years ago when the February 22 earthquake hit, but it aptly describes what happened to Ascot.

The course was on the eastern side of the city, next to a swamp. It now resembles that swamp with a few oddly placed poplars and the usual lolly scramble of trees the only clues a golf course ever existed there.

Every course in Christchurch was affected, one way or another, by the thousands of quakes that rocked Canterbury.

Ascot is the only one that closed for good, though others went close and some have had to reinvent themselves to avoid facing a similar fate.

February 22 and the major aftershocks on June 13 and December 22 that year were all bad for the city, and while it seems almost heartless to talk about damage to golf courses and clubs when 185 lost their lives, they were hugely affected.

At the time, it seemed trivial compared to the Cathedral breaking apart, QEII (the home of the 1974 Commonwealth Games) having a red sticker planted on it like some illegally modified boy racer’s pride and joy, AMI Stadium sitting in the city as useless as the golf club you left in your car boot and the city losing its only Olympic length pool and all-weather athletics track.

But it did affect the city; well, the golfing part of the city and its population, anyway. Ascot was closed, Waimairi Beach was ruined, the Christchurch club lost its long-standing clubhouse, liquefaction and the resulting silt meant courses suddenly had far more hazards and club managers were left scouring their R&A rule books to see if there was a post-earthquake section.

There wasn’t.

Some courses had holes closed and some had to construct temporary greens while plenty had more undulations than before.

The biggest impact was on playing numbers. Christchurch, especially the east, lost a huge number of golfers who either moved west or departed Christchurch all together.

The golf clubs, already strained by an over-supply/underdemand issue that no one (pre-quake) seemed to know how to fix, were even less in demand.

Most of the courses still up and running were damaged to some degree and even those golfers still resident in Christchurch played less golf.

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

131

WorldMags.net

ABOVE: Installing the new wastewater pump station. LEFT: The below ground work on the new wastewater pump station. BELOW: Fulton Hogan, as part of SCIRT, are installing a large wastewater pressure main through Ascot Reserve, situated on the site of the former golf course.

PUMP STATION AT ASCOT Prior to being closed due to earthquake damage, the Ascort golf course and driving range, situated on land leased from the city council, was popular with Christchurch residents.

Post quake, it became necessary for the council to relocate a damaged sewage pumping station from its location adjacent to the Avon River and a decision was made to build it on part of the golf course, which had also been damaged by the quake.

The pump station includes two buildings, a pump building and a generator building.

The original intention was to retain the course, to keep its par rating and to minimise the impact to the course layout. However, despite initial optimisim that the course could be repaired, ultimately the decision was made to close it.

132 thecut

Fewer people took up the sport over the next couple of years.

Not having Ascot wasn’t the sole reason for that. Christchurch folk, generally speaking, took up fewer hobbies, opting to spend more time with their families. Five hours golfing, with the cell phone switched off, didn’t seem as justifiable as it once was.

The golfing landscape in Christchurch was changing already, but the quakes accelerated that change. Those with half a clue realised the best way to beat the supply and demand issue was to make themselves stand out. The quakes exacerbated the problem but also worked as a catalyst for many clubs.

For too long, Christchurch clubs – and those in the surrounding areas – had buried their heads in the bunkers, assuming, wrongly and naively, things would automatically get better.

They expected New Zealand Golf or Canterbury Golf would wave a magic wand and make golf sexy again, somehow replacing PlayStation controllers and iPads with pitching wedges and irons.

Both organisations were well intentioned, but it was the quake which kicked clubs into gear.

Waimairi Beach was the worst hit course in the city. It could easily have gone the same way as Ascot. Smashed in February, hammered in June and dealt a near fatal blow in December, 2011 was a year to forget for the seaside course.

The old back nine was left a mucky mess, covered in silt and unplayable, and the clubhouse was unusable. Many of the (eastern city) members were homeless or forced to live in damaged houses and faced joining the western/northern migrations. Waimairi Beach was in serious trouble.

Once a booming club with more than 800 members, it had been brought to its knees. But it fought hard to stay afloat. Insurance money and reserves from previous land selling were used, while members were looked after with reduced subs and handy reciprocal rights deals.

As quickly as possible, nine holes were opened and though the nine changed often as different parts of the course were worked on, members and green fee players supported the 82-year-old course.

“We knew that was important,” recently retired secretary-manager John Herdman says. “We needed the course open, in some capacity at least. It was the least we could do for our members who had been so good to us and to whom we obviously wanted to offer golf.”

Then the master stroke. Instead of rebuilding the same old course, they did what few clubs in Christchurch had done – they thought outside the box. Waimairi saw an opportunity and seized it.

“We were lucky,” says Herdman. “While big parts of the course were damaged, our tees and greens were largely okay, so we had something to work with.”

WorldMags.net

THE 12TH HOLE AT WorldMags.net WAIMAIRI BEACH GOLF CLUB

October 2012

January 2013 Present day

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

133

WorldMags.net

ABOVE: The picturesque 18th green at Russley Golf Club.

RIGHT: The new clubhouse at Waimairi. BELOW: Sir Bob Charles addresses members at Waimairi’s official opening.

Waimairi Beach employed Christchurch-based course designer Kristine Kerr of Kura Golf Course Design, the same woman who shaped the New Zealand Women’s Open course at Pegasus and who is now working alongside Sir Nick Faldo to create yet another new Christchurch course, Whisper Creek.

What Kerr came up with was a point of difference – a links style course open to the elements and fitting of a piece of land close to the Pacific Ocean.

It is short – the par-72 course is only 5119m off the white tees – but it’s got teeth. It requires clever golf and forethought.

Grip it and rip it will only work for the most accurate of golfers at Waimairi Beach.

Some have complained it’s too short, some reckon it’s now a pitch and putt golf course, but it’s different. And in a city with 28 golf courses, all within a 30-minute drive of each other – 17 within the city limits – that’s crucial.

The club still took an initial hit and dropped to 520 members, but they’re now bucking the trend and have clawed back up to 550.

They have a new clubhouse, so members no longer have to sit in a converted container to swap war stories, and green fee numbers are good as people come to try something different.

At least Waimairi Beach survived in a temporary clubhouse; the Christchurch club didn’t have that luxury.

The second oldest golf club in New Zealand, which hosted the 1990 Eisenhower Trophy, lost its clubhouse on February 22,

134 thecut

and it’s still not open. If things go to plan – and they often don’t in Christchurch these days – members can expect to do their postround bragging indoors in spring next year.

The club has been unable to host functions or corporate tournaments because of a lack of facilities. There is still a room available for a quiet lemonade but the lack of the original, spectacular facilities which were devastated meant the South Island’s only Charles Tour event had to be sacrificed.

Unable to host corporates and benefit financially from the Pro-Am day that helps pay for the event, the tournament could not continue at Christchurch and was picked up by Harewood.

While one object of significance with the Charles name on it was lost, another was saved… just.

In the hours after the February quake, Christchurch’s staff were sent home to be with their families. As the last remaining people surveyed what they already knew was going to be a costly and long rebuild, they realised the clubs used by Sir Bob Charles to win the 1963 Open Championship remained inside.

With talk of city officials banning people from dangerous buildings, the clubs were quickly salvaged before any such ban was invoked.

“It might have been a bit risky,” a club spokesperson said soon after the event, “but it was worth it. They’re an important part of New Zealand sporting history. They’re priceless.”

From June 2011, four months after the big quake, to June this year, nearly 1000 golfers have exited the game in the region or just stopped playing.

Canterbury Golf general manager Grant Lewis said the 7.8 per cent drop, from 12,601 members to 11,618, wasn’t solely a membership problem.

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net “Casual play also took a hit, but I believe this has rebounded faster,” he says.

“Things have gradually improved. Membership data shows the rate of decline has slowed. Hopefully, we will see member-ships increase in the next few years.

“Casual play seems to be reasonably buoyant and on the up and, certainly, most retailers are doing better now than a couple of years ago.”

Lydia Ko’s success and the coverage that’s brought with it and Sky Television’s recent increase in golf programming have also helped, Lewis says.

Clubs are also more proactive. It took an earthquake and a drop in the already low playing numbers to manage it, but even the slowest-reacting clubs are now on the membership hunt, seeking to lure green fee players. There are more membership packages and specials being offered while a number of clubs have introduced transitional memberships for those moving from the cheaper junior ranks to senior ranks, because that is often when a lot of players leave the game.

Harewood and Russley sold land, using a portion of the proceeds to upgrade and redesign; Templeton flirted with an offer of selling to Fulton Hogan, which offered to build them an undulating golf course in a city of flat ones; Clearwater designed a ‘30-30’ par-60 course designed to speed the game up and offer something different; and Windsor completely rebranded itself and is now called Bottle Lake, a name better describing where in the city it sits.

Treading water wasn’t working and still isn’t for those who continue to indulge in it. The courses facing a more prosperous future are the ones fighting for survival.

It’s not just the earth moving that’s plagued golf clubs in Canterbury, though. Last September severe storms played havoc with many courses west of the city, those that had fared the best during the quakes. Thousands upon thousands of trees were knocked over, again forcing courses to play temporary holes, miss out others or temporarily close all together.

It was all hands on deck to help clear up the mess, especially for the country courses on the edge of the city; the ones whose volunteer base are their lifeblood.

One thing the quakes have brought to the forefront in Christchurch is the fact the city won’t be beaten. Quakes didn’t do it and nor would a bit of wind. Golf in the city, like the city itself, will go on.

The sport is smarter here now. There are still issues, and certainly too many clubs, but at least most have pulled their heads out of the bunkers and are confronting issues head on.

There’s still no Ascot. What remains is something golfers can drive past and brag about where they nearly made a hole-in-one or where they broke 70 for the only time in their life.

More importantly, the little course that lies in ruins is a constant reminder of what could have happened to far more of Christchurch’s golf courses.

Matt Richens is golf writer for The Press, Christchurch

WorldMags.net

Clearwater has designed a par-60 course.

Hamilton

WorldMags.net

enewsletter SPECIAL GOLFERS PA C K A G E

$85

Sign up at

www.thecut.co.nz/signup to get the latest golf news and tuition tips delivered straight to your inbox.

per person per night incl GST (share twin basis)

Includes accommodation and a round of golf

0800 426 453 www.angleseamotel.co.nz 36 Liverpool Street, Hamilton

2015 CANADIAN ROCKIES GOLF TOUR Friday 12th June – Tuesday 30th June 2015 This is a special invitation from Kim & Denise, to join us on our 11th Canadian Rockies Golf Tour in 2015.

The courses – 11 in total – are a selection of championship fairways that are recognised as some of the best Canada has to offer. Check this out.... ĕſ 11th exciting Canadian Rockies Golf Tour, with our highly rated tour programme and itinerary for 2015 ĕſ 11 selected championship Canadian golf greats including Blue Devil, Banff Springs, Copper Point, Eagle Ranch, Greywolf, Predator Ridge – the Ridge and Predator courses, Chateau Whistler, Nicklaus North, Furry Creek and Mayfair Lakes ĕſ Luxury accommodation throughout including the 5 star Fairmont Hotel group in Calgary, Banff, Whistler, and Vancouver and the highly acclaimed luxurious Predator Ridge Golf Resort & Spa ĕſ Breakfast daily ĕſ 11th Hosted Welcome dinner, Lunch at Fairmont Lake Louise, Mid way cocktail evenings at Predator Ridge and

Predator Ridge in Whistler, Winery tour and lunch in Kelowna and Farewell dinner in Vancouver ĕſ Air conditioned coach transport ĕſ Extensive tour pack including tour shirt and jumper ĕſ Partners & non/golfers options available

Always a sell out – strictly limited to 30 golfers only!

Give us a call 09 486 1077 or email denise@parnz.co.nz | www.parnz.co.nz 136 thecut

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

To play Muriwai

is to play golf as nature intended.

A True Links Course situated approximately 40 minutes from Auckland City on the ruggedly beautiful West Coast

Full facilities available including: sĂŚELECTRICĂŚCARTSĂŚĂŚsĂŚPULLĂŚTRUNDLERS sĂŚHIREĂŚCLUBSĂŚĂŚsĂŚCATERINGĂŚANDĂŚBARĂŚSERVICEĂŚ ĂŚDAYS

Memberships available.

Group, company and casual golfers welcome.

ECCO WOMENâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S NEW BIOM SHOE â&#x20AC;&#x201C; IN STORE NOW! Call 0800 Muriwai Coast, Road Muriwai Ph +64 9 411 8454 Fax +64 9 411 7123 email: muriwaishop@golf.co.nz

95 Tongariro Street (Next to the Bendon Outlet Store), Taupo Ph: 07 376 9422 t TBMFT!JOQMBZHPMG DP O[ t Skype: JOQMBZHPMGBOEMFJTVSFXFBS

www.inplaygolf.co.nz

Royal India

Golf G lf Tour

and Palace on Wheels

By Popular Demand &TDPSUFE CZ 4VLIJ BOE +PBOOB (JMM

%BZT OJHIUT (PMGFST

QFS QFSTPO TIBSF UXJO "JSGBSFT BEEJUJPOBM

Special Features: 4UBZ JO TUBS IPUFMT XJUI EBJMZ CSFBLGBTU BOE EJOOFS IBMG CPBSE

3PZBM +PVSOFZ CZ 1BMBDF PO 8IFFMT -VYVSZ 5SBJO GVMM CPBSE

SPVOET PG HPMG

$PNNFODJOH JO ,PMLBUB PO .BSDI

6OJRVF *OEJBO &YQFSJFODF GPS OPO HPMGFST "JS DPOEJUJPOFE EFMVYF DPBDIFT /PO (PMGFST DPTU PO BQQMJDBUJPO TJOHMF TVQQMFNFOU BWBJMBCMF MBOE POMZ ÂźJHIU UP *OEJB BEEJUJPOBM

&YDFMMFOU WBMVF GPS NPOFZ

$ISJTUDIVSDI

'PS GVMM CPPLJOH EFUBJMT BOE CSPDIVSF QMFBTF DPOUBDU DISJTUDIVSDI!XPSMEUSBWFMMFST DP O[ PS 1IPOF 8PSME 5SBWFMMFST $ISJTUDIVSDI $JUZ -FWFM 8BJSBLFJ 3PBE )BSFXPPE $ISJTUDIVSDI 5FM XXX XPSMEUSBWFMMFSTDISJTUDIVSDI DP O[ 5&3.4 "/% $0/%*5*0/4 1SJDFT BSF TVCKFDU UP DVSSFODZ ÂźVDUVBUJPO BOE JT CBTFE PO UXP QFPQMF TIBSJOH B SPPN 5IF QSJDF JODMVEFT SFUVSO BJSGBSFT GSPN $ISJTUDI VSDI UP )BXBJÂłJ SFUVSO BJSQPSU USBOTGFST OJHIUT BDDPNNPEBUJPO BOE UXP SPVOET PG HPMG 5SBWFM *OTVSBODF JT BMTP OPU JODMVEFE 1BZNFOU JT UP CF NBEF CZ DBTI DIFRVF &'5104 EJSFDU EFCJU ÂŽ QBZNFOU WJB B DSFEJU DBSE XJMM JODVS BO BEEJUJPOBM GFF 'PS GVMM UFSNT BOE DPOEJUJPOT DPOUBDU B 8PSME 5SBWFMMFST $POTVMUBOU

WorldMags.net

improve your golf

137

BATTY ABOUT GOLF WorldMags.net

EARLY AND LATE BLOOMERS

F

or the avid golfer, undoubtedly one of the perks of living in US is the Golf Channel, a cable station dedicated to golf 24/7.

Scattered among tournament coverage and the instructional shows is an in-depth interview programme hosted by David Feherty. A couple of weeks ago he talked to Tom Lehman about his life and career. For those of you who don’t know his story, Lehman was for a long time the very definition of a journeyman pro. After a brief stint on tour in 1983 he toiled away for the better part of a decade on minor tours all over the globe, struggling to make ends meet.

Then something clicked. Come the mid-1990s, Lehman not only returned to the PGA Tour, he became its dominant player. In 1996 he won the Open Championship and was the No 1 ranked golfer in the world.

In stark contrast, as I watched the show relating Lehman’s story another player was getting his hands on the Claret Jug. The antithesis of a journeyman, Rory McIlroy was only 17 when he burst onto the global scene with a great run at the 2007 Open Championship. Now, aged 25, he’s won three majors.

Rory’s struggles with the game amount to an iffy six months brought about after he changed (for mega millions) every club in his bag. Which is somewhat of a high-class problem.

Perhaps even more impressively, that same week Lydia Ko was busy closing out her fourth win on the LPGA Tour. It’s crazy to me that she’s as good as she is considering she hasn’t yet turned 18. You can’t even say she has endured a slump once, back in that tournament where she missed the cut... because that hasn’t happened yet. She seemingly refuses to take even a single weekend off work.

Golfing lore is littered with both late bloomers and prodigies. Of all the precocious child stars, Tiger Woods stands out. He was a machine in nappies, learning how to deal with the pressure of cameras early on as he showcased his skills on the Mike Douglas television show at the ripe old age of two. His junior career consisted of basically winning everything he entered. When he got to the PGA Tour it was more of the same.

Of guys who peaked late in their career, possibly the most famous is Ben Hogan. As a youngster he wasn’t

138 thecut

Worth the wait – late bloomers Ben Hogan and Michelle Wie. even the best kid at his course and when he finally did turn pro he couldn’t gain any traction on tour, quitting multiple times as he went broke. But luckily for the golf world he was as determined as he was a notorious perfectionist. When he finally finished his masterpiece, what is often considered the greatest golf swing of all time, he would use it at age 40 to go on and dominate the game.

So, is the brash, unflappable confidence of youth preferable to an experienced, wise old head for the game, or vice versa? Are you more likely to be a great pro if you were a great youngster? Or when the competition gets really deep is it an advantage to have never taken winning for granted, instead being a fringe player who has had to continually work hard at each level for every bit of success? Will the next player to dominate the PGA Tour like Tiger did in 2000 be a McIlroy-like thoroughbred or a current no-name mini tour player who miraculously figures out his game as Hogan once did?

I have the utmost respect for both types of player, and as a fan of brilliance no matter what package it comes in, this year has been fun watching the reemergence of one player in particular. For someone who is only 24, Michelle Wie has seemingly had three careers already. She’s been the chosen one, an example (or so some would have you believe) of over-hyped mediocrity and, lastly, the complete package, a player finally delivering on the promise of her vast potential. I was so stoked for her when she won the US Open. I guess she proves you can be both a prodigy and a late bloomer.

The truth is, golf will always have players who develop at different rates. Sometimes it comes down to opportunities or lack thereof afforded a youngster, other times it’s down to the particular personality of a player.

I strongly believe that, at the end of the day, talent is talent. It’s about more than just physical skills – tenacity and perseverance are all part of the equation – you can’t hold it back. If it doesn’t show itself off early, it will eventually. It always seems to find a way.

WorldMags.net

DOUG BATTY New Zealand US-based golf professional, US Open qualifier 2009

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net

WorldMags.net