St Andrews Magazine Edition 03

EDITION

03

St Andrews M A G A Z I N E

PREVIEW

GOLF. LIFESTYLE. MORE.

DEDICATED TO IAN WALKER 1953-2018

Contents St Andrews GOLF

2021 Open to be played in St Andrews – 21 2023 Walker Cup to be played in St Andrews – 33 Myerscough and R&A collaborate on research – 42 James Tait wins Dubai opener in LDWS – 45 Caddie Corner – 53 St Andrews Season Preview – 61

Your G A M E PGA Show – 85 Yoga for your game and you – 97

FAB

St Andrews

St Andrews Fashion Festival – 109 The Beauty of New Year – 117

St Andrews V I S I T St Andrews

TASTE

Where we want to eat in 2018 – 123

ELAGA – 132 Theatre – 134 Cinema – 136 THE PLATINUM LIST – 144

St Andrews New Year, New Home – 170 Beast from the East – 180

Contents

LIFE

From Silver, to Gold, to Green? Can Justin Rose add a Green Jacket to a US Open and Olympic Gold Medal at Augusta? – 225

Slam Dunk? Is 2018 the time when Rory McIlroy completes the Career Grand Slam and joins the legendary names of the sport? – 230

Band of Brothers. America’s Famous Five set to sizzle – 234

65 years since Hogan’s historic treble – 242

Masters Memories – The Masters begins on the 10th tee on Sunday – 250

TV Guide – 267

News – 190 Florida – 207 50 years of Rolex and Golf – 238 Countdown to the Ryder Cup – 290

Contents

GOLF.

LIFESTYLE.

MORE.

Contributors John BOYNE John is a St Andrews Links caddie, owner of Caddie Golf Tours and is a regular contributor to St Andrews Magazine. His knowledge of the Old Course and the St Andrews golfing scene is a great insight for readers.

Aileen

WALLACE–EDGAR Aileen is the owner of Vintage Beauty Box in St Andrews and is St Andrews Magazine’s Beauty expert. Aileen is an enthusiastic golfer.

Tracy SMITH Tracy is the owner of Interiors by Tracy Smith in Cupar and is St Andrews Magazine’s property interior expert.

Sarah MCLAUGHLIN Sarah is the owner and lead instructor at Hot House Yoga, in St Andrews. She also teaches Yoga at venues in the St Andrews area including local golf clubs and sports clubs. Sarah provides St Andrews Magazine readers with tips on how to stay fit, flexible and focused with the help of Yoga.

A New Year always begins with optimism and anticipation of a successful year, and 2018 is no different in St Andrews. On the golf course we have The Senior Open Championship presented by ROLEX and the Junior Open Championship coming to the home of golf this summer. In addition to these events we of course have the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in October, with a full programme of leading amateur and club events throughout the season.

Matt

HOOPER

Away from the links St Andrews is a hub for culture, fashion, theatre and music and the town has a number of festivals and celebrations over the course of this year. StAnza – Scotland’s International Poetry Festival, STAFF – St Andrews Fashion Festival and St Andrews Photographic Festival are just three of such events, in addition to the many student-run events.

On Saturday April 7 ELAGA makes its debut at Craigtoun Park. The student-run Music Festival has attracted several popular names and is a sell-out.

Matt Hooper

Edition 03 of St Andrews Magazine looks ahead to a packed year on and off the course in St Andrews and showcases the restaurants to dine at in 2018.

Aileen Wallace-Edgar provides beauty tips for the new year, and Tracy Smith shares her thoughts on decorating a new house.

Design and production

For your game we visit the PGA Show and Sarah McLaughlin of Hot House Yoga shares her tips for a new you in the new year.

Editor

Matt Hooper Publisher Matt Hooper Director

The Platinum List makes its debut this year with the very best of St Andrews across golf, lifestyle and more. In an historic year for golf in St Andrews we look ahead to the key dates in the calendar including many which celebrate the 175th anniversary of the St Andrews Golf Club.

In The World of Golf we round up all the news from the early weeks of the season, guide you through the Florida Swing and begin our countdown to the 2018 Ryder Cup. This edition also previews Golf’s First Major, The Masters.

Matt Hooper ©St Andrews Magazine Ltd. 2018

This publication may not be reproduced in part or whole without the expressed written permission of St Andrews Magazine Ltd.

Image credits For golfers, the last six months have been spent anticipating the first week in April. Sure, there have been many great tournaments in the time since August, but none come close to the incomparable Masters.

Nothing compares to the mystique of this unique golf club and course, a course which is only seen for one week of the year by the watching world unlike most other championship venues.

Nothing compares to the incredible atmosphere of the tournament, especially on Sunday when the title is on the line. The roars of the patrons reverberate through the pines.

Nothing compares to the memories created year after year by The Masters. Legends of the game, iconic shots and dramatic twists and turns on almost every hole of the second nine.

Nothing compares to the leaderboard at The Masters. This is the tournament which sees all of the world’s best peak, and more often than not win.

ALL IMAGES MATT HOOPER/ST ANDREWS MAGAZINE WITH EXCEPTION OF: ROLEX page 19, 24, 25, 27, 32, 234, 238, 239, 278, 279, 280, 281, 282, 283, 284, 285, 286, 287, 288, 289, 290, 291 FLICKR page 33, 207, 222, 223, 224, 225, 264, 265, 266, 267, 275.

276, 292, 293, 294, 295, 302, 303, 304, 305 USGA page 204, 205, 272, 273 DAIMLER MEDIA page 268, 269, 270, 271 IGF page 203, 226, 227, 300, 301 AJ PHOTOGRAPHY page 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 107, 108, 163, 164 R&A page 79 PGA OF AMERICA page 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97 THE ADAMSON page 152, 153, 154, 155

Nothing compares to the Par 3 contest, an informal, fun event which serves as the final part of the build-up to the tournament.

LOVE.GOLF page 190, 191

And this year, nothing compares to the anticipation, for this Masters. JOHNSON, THOMAS, SPIETH, FOWLER, MCILROY, WATSON, GARCIA, ROSE and a returning TIGER WOODS.

PUBLIC DOMAIN page 242, 243, 249

Only time will tell if they put on a show without comparison.

The Masters. Golf’s First Major. Nothing comes close.

JOHN BOYNE page 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61

VISIT ORLANDO page 220, 221 DISCOVER THE PALM BEACHES page 208, 209, 210, 211, 212, 213 VISIT TAMPA BAY page 216, 217 INNISBROOK RESORT page 214, 215 ADDITIONAL IMAGES ARE CREDITED TO THE PHOTOGRAPHER OR AGENCY ON THE IMAGE

Advertising enquiries Matt Hooper standrewsmagazine@gmail.com Mailing address: St Andrews Magazine Ltd. Chestney House, 149 Market Street, St Andrews, Fife Scotland KY16 9PF

St Andrews G O L F

St Andrews last hosted The Open in 2015

R&A confirms 2021 return for The Open to St Andrews Home of Golf to stage the 150th edition of Golf’s most historic and international championship

History will be made once again at the home of golf in 2021 when The 150th Open is played at St Andrews from 11-18 July.

Andrews and we are excited to be marking the occasion of the 150th Championship at the home of golf in 2021.

Marking a true celebration of golf’s original championship and its historic ties to St Andrews, the occasion will be the 30th time that The Open has been played over the world-renowned Old Course where many of the greatest names in the history of golf have lifted the famous Claret Jug and been crowned Champion Golfer of the Year.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, said, “As the world’s oldest and most prestigious professional golf championship, The Open is synonymous with both St Andrews and Scotland and I’m delighted St Andrews will welcome its 150th staging in 2021.

Golf’s most international major championship was last played in St Andrews in 2015 when Zach Johnson defied difficult weather conditions to defeat Marc Leishman and 2010 Champion Golfer of the Year Louis Oosthuizen in a fourhole play-off and land his second major title.

Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A, said, “The Open holds a very special place in the hearts of golf and sports fans around the world. The Championship enjoys a historic and celebrated relationship with the Old Course in St

“The Open is without doubt one of the biggest events held in Scotland on a regular basis, drawing huge spectator attendance from outwith the country and providing a global media and broadcast platform to promote our outstanding golfing assets to future visitors.

“Through VisitScotland, we continue to support The Open and we will work with The R&A to deliver a Championship in 2021 befitting of its historical significance.”

Euan Loudon, Chief Executive of St Andrews Links Trust, said, “There can be no more fitting celebration of the rich heritage of the Home of Golf and its

relationship with the world’s oldest major championship than as host of The 150th Open.

“It is always special when The Open returns to the Old Course and I am sure that excitement, both here in St Andrews and around the world, will build in anticipation of this special occasion.

“Almost every great champion in the game has played on our famous Links and we look forward to welcoming the next generation of golfing greats for The 150th Open.” The Old Course first hosted The Open in 1873 when the 13th Championship was played over an 18-hole course for the first time and was won by Tom Kidd.

Since then, the historic links has witnessed some of golf’s most notable players go on to become Champion Golfer of the Year including JH Taylor, James Braid, Bobby Jones, Peter Thomson, Bobby Locke, Jack Nicklaus, Seve Ballesteros, Sir Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods.

The 150th Open will be played from 11-18 July 2021.

“St Andrews has produced a revered group of outstanding Champion Golfers since The Open was first played on the Old Course in 1873.

Once again we look forward to seeing the greatest players take on the challenge of the world’s most iconic links course in their pursuit of the Claret Jug.” Martin Slumbers, R&A

The R&A/Alan Richardson

It was no secret that the 150th Open Championship was going to be staged at the home of golf, but February’s announcement confirmed that the Old Course would be the stage for golf’s greatest championship for a record 30th time.

The Old Course has seen legends of the game claim the Claret Jug over the last century and a half, and in three years from now we could have the most competitive, and most international edition ever seen at the home of golf.

In the era post Tiger Woods dominance, the elite level of professional golf has seen numerous talented youngsters emerge as stars. In 2021 the likes of Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Brooks Koepka, Rickie Fowler, Rory McIlroy and Jason Day will be at their peak.

Day, Spieth, Johnson, Koepka and McIlroy all have shown good form on the Old Course, and will be the leading contenders heading into what will be the most anticipated Open of all-time.

Aside from the major stars of the world game, by 2021 the rising stars from the East may well be a force to be reckoned with, China’s Li Haotong has already shown links pedigree by shooting 64 on the final day at Birkdale to record a top five finish in 2017 Open.

The 22-year-old will be in his mid twenties by the time he tees it up on the Old Course, and with two European Tour titles under his belt already, he could be a genuine challenger for the title.

Shubhankar Sharma has exploded onto the world stage this year with wins in Joburg Open and the Maybank Championship. The 21year-old turned professional at the age of 16 and already has 8 professional wins to his credit.

The Indian led through 54-holes of the WGCMexico Championship at Chapultepec Golf Club in Mexico City.

2021 could also be the last hurrah for the likes of Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Lee Westwood and Darren Clarke in terms of

competing for the Claret Jug. With the emergence of Connor Syme, St Andrews could have a genuine contender for the title come 2021.

Syme turned professional last autumn, and his performance in the Dunhill showed he can produce around the Old Course, In 2021 it will be a century since Jock Hutchison won The Open, the naturalized American, born in St Andrews, won the 1921 championship on the Old Course.

The Old Course is the venue of legendary champions with Jones, Nicklaus, Seve, Woods and Faldo among the incredible roll of honour from The Open played at the Old Course.

In 2015 Zach Johnson defeated 2010 Champion Louis Oosthuizen and Marc Leishman in a playoff of a weather-delayed championship.

Oosthuizen won by 8 in 2010 and Tiger Woods won by 8 and 5 in the 2005 and 2000 championships.

We cannot wait for 2021!

The 2015 Open in St Andrews was badly affected by the weather, but it can be said it was a successful one for the town.

The cancellation of Saturday’s play saw record sales of alcohol across the bars and restaurants of the town, and the newly formed Business Improvement District (BID St Andrews) were able to put in place services such as the Land Train.

Re-entry to the championship for the spectators was granted by the R&A at the last minute and proved to be highly successful.

However, with the policy being ended this year at Carnoustie there has to be concerns about the impact upon the town.

The University of St Andrews held the ‘Open for All’ event at Lower College Green, and many businesses put on special offers and some extended opening hours, However, there was still some apathy towards the event from some local businesses, perceiving The Open as more of an inconvenience than anything else.

There was also, from some, an attitude of taking it for granted that the increased visitors numbers to the town will help their businesses during that week.

Open Champions on the Old Course:

With the BID now in place for over three years there must be greater engagement with local businesses and organisations ahead of the 2021 Open.

It must begin now.

With three years to go, St Andrews must be preparing to make the 2021 Open the biggest ever, not just on the course.

This announcement should be the catalyst for re-engaging youngsters with the game of golf. A programme relating to golf and The Open should be put into all our local schools to engage with, educate and inspire our youngsters.

BID St Andrews should also lead a host town organisation for The 2021 Open, and engage with all local businesses, large and small.

2015

Zach Johnson

2010

Louis Oosthuizen

2005

Tiger Woods

2000

Tiger Woods

1995

John Daly

1990

Nick Faldo

1984

Seve Ballesteros

1978

Jack Nicklaus

1970

Jack Nicklaus

1964

Tony Lema

1960

Kel Nagle

1957

Bobby Locke

1955

Peter Thomson

1946

Sam Snead

1939

Dick Burton

1933

Denny Shute

1927

Bobby Jones

1921

Jock Hutchison

1910

James Braid

1905

James Braid

1900

JH Taylor

1895

JH Taylor

1891

Hugh Kirkaldy

1888

Jack Burns

1885

Bob Martin

1882

Bob Ferguson

1879

Jamie Anderson

1876

Bob Martin

1873

Tom Kidd

Future venues for The Open: 2018 Carnoustie Golf Links 2019 Royal Portrush Dunluce Links 2020 Royal St George’s 2021 Old Course, St Andrews

THE 49TH WALKER CUP TO BE PLAYED AT ST ANDREWS IN 2023

A historic milestone in the rich heritage of the Walker Cup will be reached at the Home of Golf in 2023 when the international match between Great Britain and Ireland and the United States is played at St Andrews.

The occasion will mark exactly 101 years since the biennial encounter was first contested at the National Golf Links of America in 1922 and will be the ninth time that the Walker Cup has been played at St Andrews; more than any other venue in its history.

The Walker Cup was last played over the world renowned Old Course in 1975 when the United States team, which included future major champions Jerry Pate, Craig Stadler and Curtis Strange, defeated GB&I 15½ 8½. GB&I won the Walker Cup matches played in 1938 and 1971 at St Andrews.

Duncan Weir, Executive Director – Golf Development at The R&A, said, “The Walker Cup is the pinnacle of men’s amateur golf in Great Britain and Ireland and the United States with many of the game’s greatest players including Bobby Jones and Sir

Michael Bonallack having featured in memorable matches played over the Old Course at St Andrews.

“We are excited to be bringing the Walker Cup back to the Home of Golf for the first time in nearly 50 years and look forward to watching some of the world’s most talented amateur golfers contest the match over the famous Old Course in 2023.”

Euan Loudon, Chief Executive of St Andrews Links Trust, said, “We are delighted to see the Walker Cup return to our calendar of prestigious events at the Old Course. After a near 50-year absence we hope it will produce a memorable contest and reinforce the stature of amateur golf in Great Britain and Ireland.

“I am sure many talented golfers on both sides of the Atlantic, some of whom may just be at the beginning of their golfing journeys, will be inspired by the prospect of competing in amateur golf’s premier match at the Home of Golf.”

The match in 2023 will be the 49th playing of the Walker Cup and, of

the 46 matches played to date, the United States has won 36 matches, GB&I nine matches, with one match tied.

The 2019 Walker Cup will be played on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 September at Royal Liverpool, the venue for the first ever match between teams from Great Britain and Ireland and the United States in 1921 which would become the Walker Cup one year later.

Seminole Golf Club in Florida will host the Walker Cup for the first time in its history in May 2021 while the 50th Walker Cup will be contested at Cypress Point in California in 2025.

Future venues for The Walker Cup: 2019

Royal Liverpool Golf Club

2021

Seminole Golf Club

2023

Old Course, St Andrews

2025

Cypress Point Golf Club

FAIRMONT ST ANDREWS STAGES GOLF EVENT FOR INTERNATIONAL

WOMEN‘S DAY 2018

MARCH 8

As part of raising awareness in equality for women, Fairmont St Andrews are delighted to host their first International Women’s Day event on Thursday 8th March 2018.

To help grow the game of golf for women, Fairmont St Andrews are offering a complimentary golf lesson with our PGA professionals or 9 holes of golf. Whether you are an experienced player, or never held a golf club before, this is the perfect way to improve your swing or play on a championship golf course.

For experienced players (those who hold a handicap), 9 holes starts at 3.00pm on the championship Torrance Course For beginners, join our PGA Professionals on the Grass-range at 4.30pm for an hour group lesson At 5.30pm we will be taking a group photo of all those who have joined the event, so make sure you stick around!

How to get involved…

Come to Fairmont St Andrews golf course and help raise awareness! If you don’t want to take part, then help support and cheer on the other ladies!

We are excited to see you all there! Spaces are limited, so to sign up for this complimentary event please email: Robert.Johnson@Fairmont.com or call the pro shop on 01334 837023

NEW RESEARCH OUTLINES POTENTIAL TO GROW WOMEN’S, GIRLS’ AND FAMILY GOLF

A significant growth opportunity exists for golf if it can attract more women, girls and families into playing the sport more often according to a new research report published by The R&A.

Many countries are seeing a fall in the number of both males and females playing golf and the research report analyses the factors which affect whole family participation in the sport, including women and girls, and details a number of useful practical recommendations for national golf bodies and golf clubs to help them encourage more women and girls to play.

The R&A commissioned the International Institute for Golf Education, based at the University Centre Myerscough, to carry out the research which brings together the findings of existing academic and industry research with the individual views of a wide-ranging group of golf experts.

The key themes identified in the report, which was produced by Dr John Fry and Philip Hall, include: The importance of establishing the optimum environment for family participation by being aware of the make-up of the modern family

A direct link between equality in sports participation and wider measures of gender equality such as women in influential decisionmaking positions in golf That parents are the chief factor underpinning families’ likelihood to play golf and that their motivations for their children taking part include having fun, improving health and developing friendships The increasing desire for golf to provide opportunities for socialising and to be adaptable and flexible given the time and cost constraints placed on the modern family The need for the sport to evolve to meet the demands of contemporary society and for clubs to encourage memorable events for their customers, as that memory itself or the ‘experience’, is increasingly replacing the ‘product’ of playing golf The research reflects The R&A’s continued drive to encourage more women, girls and families to play golf more regularly, working with its affiliates around the world to enhance golf’s appeal.

Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A, said, “The research demonstrates there is a tremendous opportunity for golf to grow its

participation numbers and generate more income if it can attract more women, girls and families into playing the sport.

“We know that more work needs to be done to achieve this outcome at a time when there are concerns about declining participation levels and this report provides useful actions and guidance for our affiliates and clubs that can lead to tangible, positive outcomes for golf.”

Dr John Fry, added, “The report brings together for the first time in one place the key academic and industry research articles conducted on family sports participation.

“The process involved searching scientific databases containing more than one million citations, peer-reviewed research papers and selecting the most appropriate evidence based studies that can help underpin strategies to increase participation in golf.

“The research is supplemented with case studies of best practice, analysis from a number of industry experts and offers a series of practical actions which golf clubs can adopt.”

Myerscough College is the leading institution for Golf and Land-based studies in the UK

DUBAI DELIGHT FOR TERRIFIC

TAIT

ST ANDREWS’ JAMES TAIT CHANNELS THE ENERGY OF ICONIC GREAT

UNCLE FREDDIE TO CLAIM FIRST LONG DRIVE WORLD SERIES WIN

It has been a long 97 years since the last Major Championship win by a St Andrean.

Jock Hutchison was born in St Andrews in 1884 and moved to the United States, becoming a naturalized citizen in 1920. Hutchison won the PGA Championship that year, and then in 1921 he won The Open on the Old Course, defeating Roger Wethered in a 36-hole playoff.

This win, by virtue of his naturalized citizenship, made him the first American to win The Open. To this day he remains the most recent golfer from St Andrews to win a Major title.

Prior to Hutchison the golfing successes on the major stage came far more frequently for St Andreans, with the likes of Herd, Auchterlonie, Foulis, Kirkaldy and Morris among many winning multiple Major titles.

Some of the greatest golfers of this bygone era of golf never turned professional, and one of those was Fredrick Guthrie Tait. Tait, better known as Freddie, was born in Edinburgh but as a member of the

Royal and Ancient Golf Club would make St Andrews his home. Tait was an extremely talented golfer at a very young age. Born in 1870, Freddie won The Amateur Championship at the age of 26 and again at the age of 28. He won his first significant title at the age of 23 and would win over 30 tournaments over the next 6 years. Tait sadly died serving the British Army in the Second Boer War in 1900, and he was taken far too soon.

Tait was an extraordinary talent and recorded 5 top ten finishes in 8 Open Championship appearances. He narrowly lost out on winning the 1897 Open at Hoylake, finishing three shots behind Harold Hilton.

Fast-forward 120 years and at a time when golf needs a boost, needs an exciting initiative to help it grow again, it is a Tait which is once again thrilling the watching masses, but in a slightly different manner.

FG Tait was a prodigiously long hitter of the golf ball, even recording a drive of

over 250 yards back in the 1890’s. His great nephew James is taking long ball hitting to a different level though, as a competitor in the Long Drive World Series (LDWS).

James Tait, 28, won the first event of the 2018 Long Drive World Series, in Dubai in February, recording a drive of 401 yards on his way to a stunning first victory.

The Long Drive World Series is the premier tour in the world for Long Drive athletes. The series grew out of the Long Drive World Championship, which is staged in Oklahoma each September.

Far from being a sideshow in the game of golf, a hit and giggle, this is serious stuff and the competitors are world-class athletes.

They compete at an elite level and train every bit as hard and are every bit as dedicated as any of the great golfers in the world.

Joe Miller of England has won the World Long Drive Championship twice and won the inaugural season of the LDWS.

Golf has always had informal competitions between the longest hitters in the game, and the PGA Championship holds an annual long-drive contest between the competitors on the Wednesday of the championship week.

In 1976 the first official World Long Drive Championship took place, with Evan Williams winning with a drive of 319 yards. Over forty years later and the winning yardage is far in excess of 400 yards. The World Long Drive Championship is the Major of Long Drive golf; however, these fine athletes needed a stage to hone and showcase their skills on a more regular basis.

Enter the LDWS. The Long Drive World Series launched in 2017 with three events, in London, Portugal and Dubai. At the end of 2018 the management announced a major expansion for its second season, moving to a schedule which includes 10 events in 10 countries across 5 continents.

The tour has 12 full-time members, and each event invites one local

and has spaces for 3 qualifiers, expanding the starting field to 16 players.

Following his victory James spoke to St Andrews Magazine: 1. Your family has a tremendous golfing heritage; did you feel the weight of expectation to pursue a career within golf as a golfer from an early age? Not at all. As a

kid obviously growing up St Andrews there's not much to do apart from play sport and everyone my age at the time was playing golf so it was a natural avenue to take.

Growing up I had some success as a junior including the St

Andrews junior/juvenile club champion and 250th R&A junior gold medal winner. My experience out in America playing mini tour golf was great but I struggled with the transition from links golf and didn't do well at all so it was back to drawing board.

2. When did it dawn on you that you would have to pursue a different career within golf other than as a professional on the tours? It didn't. I came

back from America and moved to London and got myself job selling house. Wasn't until a year and half, two years later that I picked up a club again when American golf held a long drive tournament.

3. Have you always been blessed to hit the ball a long way? Yes I

think so. From a young age all I wanted to do was hit past people.

4. What were your first impressions of long driving contests, and how quickly did you think you could contend to win them? I

Thought it was different and fun.

Nothing like trying to smash a golf ball as far as you can. But i didn't realise I could compete with the best until I did my first tournament at

American golf and compared my numbers to the best. I started to realise I could keep up with the big boys in the Long Drive World Series event in Windsor last year when I put out Tim Burke first round.

7. What were you feeling when you competed in your first LDWS event? Just hit

5. Have you always been a gym junkie?

played in Windsor at the Royal Berkshire polo club last year

I've always loved the gym and mainly focus on power lifting. You don't need to be huge for long drive you just need to be strong and fast

6. As a Long Drive athlete, has your practice time increased or decreased in comparison to when you competed in the regular form of the game? It's a difficult

one to say but I'd say it's decreased as I'm not practicing on the course. It's a a lot repetition and hours spent on the range, technical work and in the gym

the ball as hard as possible. I Just wanted to qualify that was my main goal and I did.

8. When did you first play in the LDWS? First

9. What were your results prior to 2018?

Ldws quarter finalist in Windsor and semifinalist t-3 in ldws Portugal

10. Did you feel confident coming into Dubai this year? I felt

good been working hard over the last 4-5 months with my coach and out in the hours over the winter but wasn't expecting to win,just wanted to have a good tournament. I shocked myself.

LDWS DUBAI 2018

11. Talk about Dubai and what it was like before each round and what was going through your head in the times you had to watch and wait for the other athletes to drive?

Each round I went up first which I prefer, and all swing thoughts went out the window and all I was trying to do was hit the ball as hard as possible. The only time I got nervous was watching because I wasn't in control and I know at any point anyone can hit the drive of their career.

12. What was going through your head and what were you feeling immediately after your successful drive?

Thank god that went straight and very very happy

13. The LDWS gets very limited coverage on television right now, do you think it would be good for the gam e of golf more widely for the LDWS to get more exposure? I wouldn't

say limited we've got 10 tournaments all around the globe this year and all will be televised on sky sports and many other television networks across the globe. So this year the exposure is huge.

14. With your St Andrews background and connections, could you envisage a future leg of the LDWS being staged in St Andrews? It's not

crazy, I'd love one to be held at the home of golf. They held a Long Drive European Tour event at the Fairmont a few years back. Nothing's impossible

15. What have you been doing since your win and what are your goals for the rest of 2018? Took a couple

days off and now back in to the swing of things as Mexico is

just around the corner. Goals for the year are to get a few more wins and have a good first World Championship finish.

James says his longterm goal is TO BE THE BEST, and while that is a long process, his win in the first event of the season sets him up for a shot at the World Series title.

In addition to the LDWS, the World Long Drive Championship is a major target for the St Andrews man.

The WLDC launched in 1976 and has been the premier showcase for the biggest hitters in world golf ever since.

The UK’s Joe Miller has won the title twice, in 2010 and 2016, and James’s victory over Miller in Dubai shows the possibilities for the newest star of the Long Drive World Series.

St Andrews may be approaching 100 years without a Major champion, but Tait can step up to be the biggest golfing star from this part of the world in a very long time.

2018 LDWS SCHEDULE 2 MARCH

MEXICO

3 APRIL

SOUTH AFRICA

4 MAY

UNITED STATES

5 JUNE

UK

6 JULY

SWEDEN

7 AUGUST

RUSSIA

8 SEPTEMBER

PORTUGAL

9 OCTOBER

CHINA

10 NOVEMBER

TURKEY

CADDIE

CORNER

A NEW YEAR ON THE LINKS

By John Boyne

2018 has arrived and I prepare for my 17th year of caddying on the St Andrews Links, having started way back in 2002 extraordinary where the time goes…...

My caddie season usually begins in March when my name, amongst another 15 or so, will be added to the current ‘winter list’ of the tough dozen who have been working, when requested, through the hard winter months of December, January and February.

I managed to finish the 2017 season at the end of November at 12st 6lbs, my alleged fighting weight, and now in late January I have managed to rise to 12st 13lbs or it could realistically be 13 stone!

Even though I have been playing regular golf during the last couple of months and going for a stroll every now and then it has not been enough to stop adding on a few extra pounds from the indulgences of the festive season.

As fun as that was, it is time to push myself a wee bit more, get out, exercise and walk the target of 10,000 steps a day, roughly 5 miles...though perhaps getting close to this will do.

Obviously, there is less golf traffic out on the links which means the St Andrews greenkeepers have the opportunity to make repairs to the courses after enduring a hard season.

A few alterations, which tend to be a little controversial amongst local St Andrews golfers, are also made during these months and during my alleged exercise drive I have taken a few photographs of the changes made for the new 2018 season as I stride across the links.

As you walk around the St Andrews Links the obvious repairs are to the fairway divots taken by the golfers during the 230,000 rounds that are played over all 7 courses and the bunkers being reriveted during the winter months. It is surely the only time you allow yourself a wee smile when landing in bunker and a ‘free drop’ can be taken, bliss indeed.

The new year will finally see the opening of the new toilet, adjacent to the 15th tees on the New Course and Jubilee Course and will surely be thanked by many St Andrews and visiting golfers especially now that the removal of gorse bushes continues apace.

The alterations continue on the New Course with the construction of manmade ‘dunes’ alongside the par 4 15th fairway.

This has always been a troublesome golf hole and the introduction of these mounds done the left side have certainly helped create a defined fairway, removing the view of the local practice area to the left.

But it is no easier with the demands of a challenging drive and approach to the green remaining for the golfer.

The main Old Course change for 2018 is to the par 3 8th tee. The back tee has been enveloped in a horseshoe shaped surrounding dune since I have been here and to now see the wee hill removed and the tee pushed back, from 175 to 190 yards for the professional tee, completely alters what was a demanding little par 3 golf hole that, if I may suggest, is now inappropriately named ‘Short’.

Having golfed through the loop on the Old Course we now come upon the reworking to the par 4 12th competition tee, Heathery, where the greenkeepers have ever so slightly altered the positioning and the contouring at the front of the tee directly behind the 11th green.

This is one of my favourite spots on the Old Course with the beauty and everchanging Eden Estuary to be enjoyed.

The continuation of gorse removal continues across all the golf courses altering the look of the St Andrews Links but I see no need to mourn its loss as they seem to have a habit of resurrection within 5 or so years.

Over the last couple of winters in a few areas of the links where large areas of gorse have been removed the greenkeepers have been in with serious digging equipment getting deep down to pull out the gorse roots, and have produced some expansive sand areas adding eco diversity to the links or perhaps just a lot of annoying sand to the golfer whose ball has to be extricated from them.

Once again the St Andrews Links has much to look forward to with excited visitors here to golf the legendary courses and exceptional golfers in the annual competitions dotted throughout the year: St Rule Trophy, Links Trophy, Eden Trophy, Boys’ Trophy, Junior Ladies Open, Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and, for the first time on the Old Course, The British Seniors Open.

We have a grand year of golf to look forward too and I am delighted, as always, to be involved caddying and guiding many of our golfers across all our wonderful courses...Fore!

St Andrews SEASON PREVIEW

AS ST ANDREWS PREPARES TO WELCOME A RECORD NUMBER OF VISITORS TO ITS WORLD-FAMOUS LINKS AND MAKES HISTORY ONCE MORE WITH A FIRST SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP, WE LOOK AHEAD TO THE KEY DATES IN THE GOLFING CALENDAR. R&A FOUNDATION SCHOLARS’ TOURNAMENT

1-3 APRIL

FATHER AND SON TOURNAMENT

14-19 APRIL

ST RULE TROPHY

2-3 JUNE

ST ANDREWS LINKS TROPHY

8-10 JUNE

ROTARY INTERNATIONAL GOLF TOURNAMENT

10-14 JUNE

BOYD QUAICH

3-5 JULY

FG TAIT MEMORIAL MEDAL FINAL

6 JULY

JUNIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

14-18 JULY

SENIOR OPEN PRESENTED BY ROLEX

22-29 JULY

ST ANDREWS BOYS’ OPEN

6-9 AUGUST

ST ANDREWS JUNIOR LADIES’ OPEN

6-9 AUGUST

STRATHTYRUM TOURNAMENT

13-16 AUGUST

EDEN TOURNAMENT

13-17 AUGUST

THE TOWN v THE R&A

15 SEPTEMBER

ALFRED DUNHILL LINKS CHAMPIONSHIP

1-8 OCTOBER

OVER THE COMING PAGES WE LOOK AHEAD TO A GLORIOUS YEAR OF GOLF IN ST ANDREWS, INCLUDING ST ANDREWS GOLF CLUB’S 175th ANNIVERSARY AND THE KEY DATES FOR EACH CLUB.

NEW GOLF CLUB ST ANDREWS

WINTER MEETING 10 March

SPRING MEETING 5 May

CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP 27 May to 1 June

SUMMER MEETING 16 June

AUTUMN MEETING 18 August

MEDAL 2, 6 January 2018

MEDAL 1, 4 January 2018

Gross Nett

Gross Nett 1

Brett Murray

73

68

1

Calum Bisset

78

70

2

Graeme Bannerman

80

69

2

Steven Kerr

77

71

3

Gareth Li

81

71

3

Gareth Li

82

72

4

Andrew Killean

76

71

4

Callum F Graham

80

72

5

Ben Hutton

78

72

5

William McCartney

76

72

6

Alistair Nicol

84

73

6

Michael Clark

80

73

7

Graham Clelland

82

74

7

Gavin Thomson

80

74

8

Gordon Bannerman

84

75

8

Alisdair Wood

86

75

9

Michael De Vries

75

76

9

Greg Dunsmore

85

75

10

Robert Malcolm

84

76

10

Gordon Bannerman

85

76

MEDAL 4, 15 February 2018

MEDAL 3, 11 February 2018

Gross Nett

Gross Nett 1

William McCartney

75

71

1

Stuart Waiton

85

73

2

David Forfar

76

71

2

Conny Sandin

89

77

3

David Morrison

78

73

3

Ian S Kerr

85

78

4

Alistair Nicol

84

73

4

Andrew Killean

83

78

5

Robert Malcolm

83

74

5

Alan Whitelock Jr

84

78

6

Angus Graham

83

74

6

Andrew White

85

78

7

John Torrie

86

74

7

Tang Sinclair

86

79

8

Ramsay Smith

88

76

8

Stuart Scorgie

87

80

9

Ben Hutton

81

76

9

Raymond Simpson

87

81

10

Kenneth Hodge

86

76

10

Iain Napier

94

82

th 175

Anniversary

ST ANDREWS GOLF CLUB CELEBRATES ITS 175th ANNIVERSARY In 2018 St Andrews Golf Club will celebrate an historic milestone, 175 years since the club was founded by local golf enthusiasts for golfing and social enjoyment. The club has a membership which over the years has been a who’s who of the sport and is known locally as the club for the blue-collar worker, professional and tradesman. St Andrews Golf Club counts Jack Nicklaus and Paul Lawrie among a distinguished list of honorary members.

St Andrews Magazine will be covering select events from the St Andrews Golf Club’s year of celebration, beginning with April’s Lindsay Shield, and we will have features on the iconic men who have helped to add to the incredible history of this club.

Edition 04

Lindsay Shield, Allan Robertson

Edition 05

Honorary Members, extraordinary members

Edition 06

Major Champions

Lindsay Shield

vs Leven Thistle 14 April vs Carnoustie 21 April

Spring Meeting 23 & 24 June

Autumn Meeting 4 & 5 August

Bing Crosby Tournament 14 September

Member/Guest Day 22 September

Old Course

Mens Open Tournament 3 June

Junior event 11 July

Local Clubs’ Day 14 July

Jubilee Course

Seniors event 26 June

Strathtyrum Course

ROYAL AND ANCIENT GOLF CLUB OF ST ANDREWS

SPRING MEETING 7-10 May

CALCUTTA CUP AND SYDNEY PLATE 3-8 September

QUEEN VICTORIA JUBILEE VASE 10-14 September

AUTUMN MEETING 17-21 September

MIXED FOURSOMES 22 September

WINTER SHOTGUN 26 October

LOCAL CLUBS’ GOLD MEDAL & LOCAL CLUBS’ WOMEN’S GOLD MEDAL 20 May

ST RULE CLUB

9 Hole Stableford – Strathtyrum Course Winner B. Hunter 23 pts 2nd L. Hill 19 pts 3rd J. Roger 18 pts

Rescheduled February SG Medal– Eden Course, (CSS 75) Silver Medal Winner – B. Brown (12) 76 2nd J. Trangmar (11) 78 3rd J. Dowie (16) 79

Bronze Medal Winner – S. Watson (23) 91 2nd A. Dunlop (23) 94 3rd L. Murray (24) 97

Cancer Charity Stableford Competition (CSS 67) – Strathtyrum Course 1st D. Lawson 37 pts 2nd D. Kennedy 36 pts (bih) 3rd E. Muller-Allan 36 pts (bih) 4th E. Wilson 36 pts

INGLIS CUP QUALIFIERS 17 April

YEARLY MEDALS & 1908 CUP 15 May

SLGA MEDAL/MACKENZIE SCRATCH 31 July

ST REGULUS LADIES GOLF CLUB

January Silver Medal (Eden Course)

February Medal - Eden Course

1st Susan Suttie (17) nett 65

Silver

2nd Aileen Laing (18) nett 68 (bih)

1st Fiona Hill (7) nett 72

3rd Julia Christiansen (17) nett 68

2nd Hannah Ham (10) nett 74 (bih)

3rd Susan Suttie (15) nett 74

January Bronze Medal (Eden Course)

Bronze

1st Linda MacDonald (24) nett 71

1st Susan Clark (33) nett 69

2nd Rhoda Wilson (21) nett 73

2nd Wendy Howden (21) nett 78

3rd Susan Clark (33) nett 74

3rd Alison Wright (31) nett 80

February 9 hole medal, Strathtyrum 1. A Jeffrey 19 points 2 G Mitchell 18 points 3 L Shepherd 18 points

SILVER MEDAL 14 April

STEWART CUP & HELEN AYTON CUP April-July

ST ANDREWS LADIES’ OPEN 7 July

MEDALS FINALS 8 September

PGA SHOW YOGA

YOUR

Game

The 65th PGA Merchandise Show, the industry’s annual “MAJOR of Golf Business,” came to a close Jan. 26, in Orlando, as it welcomed nearly 40,000 golf industry professionals from all 50 U.S. states and 87 countries. The 2018 edition delivered exciting product and industry announcements that energized the industry for the New Year.

PGA Professionals and buyers uncovered the newest products, trends and technology from more than 1,000 exhibiting golf companies and brands. This included 225 companies new to the PGA Show, creating the world’s largest business-tobusiness golf event, within one million square feet of interactive exhibit, demonstration and meeting space of the Orange County Convention Center West Concourse Exhibit Hall.

As the world’s largest gathering of PGA Professionals, the 2018 PGA Merchandise Show attracted more than 7,500 PGA

Professionals from around the world. The top five countries (outside of U.S.) represented in attendance were Canada, United Kingdom, Korea, Japan and Taiwan. The top five U.S. states represented in attendance were Florida, California, New York, Georgia and North Carolina.

The 2018 PGA Show was marked by significant industry announcements and product introductions including: Callaway’s new line of Rogue drivers and fairway woods with Jailbreak technology; Cobra’s all-new line of F8 drivers with Cobra Connect technology powered

by Arccos; TaylorMade’s M3 and M4 drivers with new Twist Face technology to promote straight distance; Titleist’s new Tour Soft and Velocity golf balls, plus their SM7 Vokey Design wedges and Scotty Cameron Select putters; PING’s G400 Max driver, G700 irons, Glide 2.0 Stealth wedges and Vault 2.0 putter; Cleveland Golf's new CVX wedges and Srixon's new Q-Star Tour golf balls; among many

other product announcements.

Apparel companies introduced their newest fashions for upcoming seasons featuring bursts of color and new styles, sports performance fabrics, classic styles and leisurewear with sporty details. In all, hundreds of thousands of products and services were showcased within nearly 10 miles of Show aisles in the Orange County Convention Center.

“The 2018 PGA Merchandise Show kicked off the new season with enormous energy, strong attendance, major product launches and a renewed optimism for the upcoming year,” said PGA Merchandise Show Event Vice President Marc Simon.

“In addition to making important purchase decisions for the new season, PGA Professionals and buyers took advantage of multiple business programs to connect personally with manufacturers and industry leaders to drive golf forward in 2018.”

The global golf gathering began on Tuesday, Jan. 23, at the

PGA Show Demo Day, when thousands of PGA Professionals and invited golf retailers previewed and personally tested the newest equipment, training aids and accessories from more than 100 top golf companies at Orange County National Golf Center. The newest products were tested within 200 hitting bays, multiple putting greens and the vendor village at the 42-acre practice facility, to create the world’s largest professional golf demo event.

On Wednesday, Jan. 24, PGA Champions Dave Stockton, Hal Sutton, John Daly, Steve Elkington and Davis Love III joined PGA President Paul Levy to help open the PGA Merchandise Show, the world’s largest gathering of PGA Professionals, live on Golf Channel’s “Morning Drive,” from the Orange County Convention Center.

The PGA Champions were among a long list of celebrities, renowned golf instructors and special guests, such as: Adam Scott, Greg Norman, Jesper Parnevik, Blair O’Neal, Chip Beck, Chi

Chi Rodriguez, Michelle McGann, Brad Faxon, David Leadbetter, Hank Haney, Michael Breed, Mike Malaska, Jim McLean, Stan Utley, Claude Harmon, Mike Schy, Lou Holtz, Ron Jaworski and many more who participated in the 2018 PGA Merchandise Show.

In addition to the busy marketplace among nearly 10 miles of exhibit aisles, PGA Show days were full of professional learning opportunities during industry presentations.

The PGA Forum Stage presented by OMEGA, was a popular destination on the PGA Show floor, with a full schedule of compelling speakers and diverse programming for thousands of attending PGA Professionals and industry leaders.

Presentations began on Wednesday, Jan. 24, with the event’s keynote program, “100th PGA Championship Celebration” – a panel discussion featuring PGA Champions Davis Love III and John Daly, who shared memorable moments from their major championship victories and announced the PGA’s plans for the

upcoming 100th PGA Championship, Aug. 912, at Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis.

Additional first-day programming highlights included the Sirius XM Teachers Town Hall, hosted by PGA Vice President Suzy Whaley and featuring Michael Breed, Debbie Doniger, Hank Haney, David Leadbetter, Jim McLean and Larry Rinker; and programming on technology in golf, environmental initiatives and employment opportunities.

Days 2 and 3 presentations on the PGA Forum Stage presented by OMEGA, covered a diverse array of topics, including golf facility management, industry diversity, growth-of-thegame programs, employment, technology, teaching and the new PGA Show Live Fashion Show.

PGA Professionals attending the annual PGA Show Education Conference were able to learn from industry experts presenting more than 60 educational seminars and workshops

focusing on teaching and coaching, executive management and golf operations. Additional educational programs were offered throughout PGA Show Week at the PGA Global Youth & Family Summit presented by OMEGA; Golf Fitness, Wellness & Instruction stage, sponsored by TPI and the Club Spa Association; PGA Member Business Center; and during complimentary Performance Textile Fair workshops on the PGA Show Floor.

Attendees experienced a dynamic PGA Show Floor, featuring interactive exhibits; hundreds of vendor show specials and promotions; plus 50 equipment testing bays at the indoor Equipment Test Center; a centralized New Product Zone for a one-stop shopping of the newest golf merchandise; the Inventors Spotlight exhibitor pavilion for patented products not yet available at retail; the Golf Fitness, Wellness & Instruction area, with a new Adaptive Golf Center; and numerous

specialty exhibitor pavilions, concentrating exhibits in the areas of travel, technology, international exhibitors, women’s accessories and new exhibitors.

More than 1,000 media from some 25 countries reported from the 2018 PGA Merchandise Show. Golf Channel provided comprehensive live coverage with nearly total 20 hours of Morning Drive, Golf Central and instruction programming delivered to a worldwide audience in more than 36 countries. Also, complementing the many media outlets providing daily live digital coverage, SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio Network broadcast 32 hours live from the PGA Merchandise Show.

Golf enthusiasts also followed the latest daily news from the PGA Merchandise Show through multiple online news channels such as PGA.com, CBSSports.com and through #PGAShow on social media.

PGA Merchandise Show Winners

Award-winning PGA Professionals and top golf buyers voted for the three best new products among the merchandise displayed in the PGA Show New Product Zone.

The 2018 New Product Zone winning products were: Chippo Golf – fun golf game for backyard, beach or tailgate – www.chippogolf.com Rhineland Cutlery – custom engraved cutlery sets for golf events www.rhinelandcutlery.c om Tzu Tzu Sport – colorful apparel collection – tzutzusport.com Organized in partnership with the United Inventors Association (UIA), the Inventor's Spotlight pavilion showcased golf inventions not yet available at retail.

The 2018 Inventor’s Spotlight winning products were: Most Innovative Concept - Trans Rover, the all in one golf cart. www.transrover.com Best Marketing Effort Mokom Gloves, a sensitive natural touch and improved hi-tech grip glove. www.mokomgloves.co m The Pinnacle Award (Best in Show) – Impact Improver, an indoor training device for finding the sweet spot. www.impactimprover.c om Influential PGA Professionals and golf buyers voted two exhibitors new to the PGA Show as recipients of the Top Buyers Choice Awards.

The 2018 Top Buyers Choice winners were: Belyn Key, LLC - ladies lifestyle inspired apparel – www.belynkey.com AfterShokz – titanium open-ear, wireless headphones for the golf course – www.aftershokz.com

PGA Shows – Save the Dates 2018 & 2019 The next U.S. PGA Golf Show, the 2018 PGA Fashion & Demo Experience takes place Aug. 13-15 at The Venetian Hotel and Casino during Fashion Week on the famous Las Vegas Strip. The 2019 U.S. PGA Merchandise Show is scheduled for Jan. 2225 in Orlando, Fla.

Learn more at PGAShow.com

St Andrews’ only hot yoga studio opened its doors in August 2015. Hot yoga is a set sequence of yoga postures practiced in a heated room. Hot yoga is a cardiovascular workout that strengthens, tones and stretches your muscles while calming the mind and reducing stress. The heat allows you to stretch deeper into your tissues, tendons and ligaments, safely leading to improved flexibility, strength and blood circulation.

AJPHOTOGRAPHY.VISION

New Year, New You

With the New Year many people start making resolutions – get healthier, do more exercise and start practicing yoga.

However, how many of us make a resolution and it only lasts one month?

Often our resolutions are pointed towards a deeper, more complex, lifestyle change. This type of change is gradual, and it’s slow to achieve. This new year, follow these tips for how to start and stick to practicing yoga.

Be honest about what works for you We have a lot of expectations of what we “should” do based on external pressure from those around us. If you’re not a morning person, why force yourself to the 6:00am class? There is no right or wrong way—we all make our own way.

Remember that your yoga practice will, and should, look different than those around you.

Find a teacher and class that you LOVE Find a teacher and class type that you truly love, and it will add another layer of motivation to stick to your practice. There are a lot of different styles of yoga out there, so you might have a try a few before you find the one that suits you best.

Get yourself ready Set yourself up for success by getting everything you need ready, prior to your practice. If your yoga bag is packed and ready the night before, you are more likely to practice. When you see your bag, it’s a cue to remind you of your goals and to stick to your plan for that day. And, it cuts down on time and stress of scrambling to get things ready last minute before you’re trying to leave.

Change into your yoga clothes. Our clothes have a powerful impact on our state of mind. Our brain creates associations between the clothes we wear and the activities we do in them.

Simply putting on your yoga clothes can send signals to your body that it’s time to practice and boost your energy level.

Better still buy new workout clothes and that will motivate you to start exercising.

Make it a routine When you find out what works for you, make it a routine. That way, when every Monday (or whatever day) comes around, you’ll automatically think: it’s yoga day! Block out a chunk of your calendar for yoga and treat this time as “un-re-scheduleable.”

Be compassionate towards yourself Don’t beat yourself up if you fall out of your routine for a moment. Life happens. Boulders will fall in your path. So, remember to keep things in perspective—you are making a lifestyle change. Each day is another day to take small steps towards your goal.

If you fall off the yoga-wagon for a day or two, let it be a day to learn and gain deeper understanding of yourself. Obstacles only encourage us to find another way around.

Sleep While you are changing your normal routine, keep in mind that sleep is not a part of the equation that can be eliminated. In our over-achieving society, sleep is often wrongly designated as a “waste of time.” However, sleep is essential to overall wellbeing and health.

When you sleep better, you have more energy to be active.

When you are more active, you will get a better night’s sleep.

Most adults need a full 5-6 sleep cycles—that’s 7.5 to 9 hours every night.

New Year, New Class

This January Sarah began teaching Yoga at the New Golf Club, with many members showing an interest in taking part in an activity which could help their physical condition throughout the cold and long winter in St Andrews. Sessions are 1 hour long from 5.45-6.45pm and are held in the club’s function suite, overlooking the world famous Old Course. The Golf Club setting is of course very different to the Hot House Yoga studio, but this is not the first time Sarah has put her skills to use in a different environment.

“I am often asked to run private yoga classes for individuals, groups and sports teams.

If people can’t make it to my studio and have the space and the need for yoga I will always deliver a class.

Never think you are too stiff to practice yoga as I have taught yoga to the St Andrews University Rugby team as well as the Howe of Fife Rugby Club. Increasing flexibility for the players only enhances their performance.

The army base at Leuchars, which was an unlikely yoga group, really enjoyed their month of yoga. It helped with injuries and back pain.

Twice per week I teach aqua yoga at the stunning Fairmont St Andrews Hotel pool. This is basically yoga practiced in the water, making it easier to balance and less scary if you fall!”

New Club

FAB

St Andrews

ST ANDREWS FASHION FESTIVAL RETURNS FOR 2018

BID ST ANDREWS DRIVEN FESTIVAL HAS MORE FOCUS ON SHOWCASING ST ANDREWS RETAILERS

The Vintage Beauty Box 15% discount on retail

The St Andrews Fashion Festival Launched in February 2017 with the Runway Show, a showcase of the latest trends available from leading clothing retailers in St Andrews. The show took place at the Byre Theatre and was the centrepiece of a festival which included creative workshops happening for local schools, businesses across the town showcasing their finest stock, pop-up shops and a live multimedia fashion show.

In 2018 the St Andrews Fashion Festival has moved away from a traditional Fashion Show to more of a promotional event for the retailers of St Andrews. On Saturday 24 March many retailers across St Andrews will have special offers for their customers, in a bid to encourage shoppers to stay in town rather than venture to the larger towns and cities for their latest outfit.

Here are a selection of offers featuring in the St Andrews Fashion Festival, as promoted by St Andrews Live.

Superdry 10% student discount and a prize draw for a ÂŁ50 voucher from everyone who purchases something with them on Saturday

Sophie Butler 30% discount on pre-booked blow dry appointments on Saturday 3rd March. They will also offer a discount on personalised treatments if they are booked with a blow dry as well as 15% off retail on that day. Please quote "St Andrews Fashion Festival" when booking

Brora personal styling, prosecco and if you spend over ÂŁ200 a free pair of cashmere hand warmers.

Crew Clothing Company

Alpaca Links

20% off full priced stock

up to 50% on selected items and over 20% off on children cardigans.

Joules

Pretty Things

15% of FULL PRICE STOCK, nibbles and a huge sale event which starts on 1st March

20% off for all purchases over £50, Fizz and nibbles in store, Models modelling this seasons new fashion - demonstrating how to pull together clothes and accessories to refresh your wardrobe. Brief fashion quiz with a prize of £50 Gift Voucher.

St Andrews Golf Store 25% off Ladies, Gents and kids Under Armour clothing Gents Glenmuir Lambswool Sweaters £45.00 each or 2 for £80.00 Free entry into a prize draw with every sale

Forgan’s In celebration of St Andrews Fashion Festival 2018, Forgan's St Andrews are offering 20% off their a la carte menu, Mondays to Thursdays until 29th March.

Reith’s Menswear raffle for £50 voucher and free socks with each purchase made

THE BEAUTY OF

NEW YEAR

By Aileen Wallace-Edgar

Ahh the New Year, a time when we are overwhelmed with social media posts about it being a fresh start, time to change, the “New Year, New You” philosophy! But how many of us stick to those resolutions made once the bells strike midnight and 2017 slides into 2018? I know I tend to make lots but once the hangover fades so does my resolve!

So what are the top beauty New year resolutions that are easy to keep? Here are our top 5 resolutions for better skin, hair and nails.

I resolve to never go to bed with my makeup on again This can be a hard one to keep despite sounding relatively easy. After a long winter’s day it’s so easy to creep home, tired and have the thought “one night wont hurt”. Except that one night becomes 2,3,4, then a habit! Wearing make up to bed is not only bad for the bed sheets (some mascaras are a nightmare to get out of fabric!) its bad for your skin.

Many make ups contain pore clogging fillers like talc which can cause those nasty breakouts, dehydration and irritation in the skin. Plus our skin repairs at night, hence why its called “beauty sleep” and to do this it needs all the active ingredients in your serums and moisturisers. If you haven't removed every shred of makeup, there is no way for your skin to drink in those beneficial ingredients.

So aim to get your make up off every night with a double cleanse routine. My top products are Environ Pre-Cleanse Oil or The Skin Nerd Cleanse Off Mitt for the first step followed by a cleanser suitable for your skin concerns, e.g. a wash for oily skin or a milk for dry skin. Ask your facialist for their recommendation.

I resolve to not pick my gel nails off Picking off the gel nail treatment you loved at New Year isn’t just unsightly its also super damaging to the nail and could result in flaking, weak nails. This is because the structure of your nails is similar to a roof. All the nail cells overlap like roof tiles and when you pick the gel you take the top layer of cells resulting in white spots and textural issues.

This weakens the nails making them more prone to painful breaking and in some cases very sensitive nails. Always go back to the salon you had the treatment done in for removal (where possible) as they know exactly what was used and there for the safest way to remove them.

Already committed the cardinal nail sin? Keep the nails short to allow them to repair, hydrate the cuticles with a cuticle nail oil, I love Izabelle Hammon cuticle oil as its full of Vitamin E and smells delicious, and be sure to do this regularly throughout the day, find an IBX salon and get those nails professionally treated and, finally, take a supplement with Biotin, Horsetail and Zinc to promote growth and repair.

I resolve to take my stylists product recommendations for my hair So your new year, new you led to a new hairdo, brilliant! But did you take your stylists advice on how to look after the new ‘do at home? Nicki at Sophie Butler Hairdressing says the best way to keep your hair in tip top condition is to invest in the home care that’s recommended.

While many think the stylist is just trying to make a sale its actually to make sure you get the most from your colour as some high street products can actually strip colour from the hair.

Think of it like this would you go to the GP and instead of taking the prescription they recommend you pop to the supermarket and get an over the counter medicine? Trust your stylist they are your haircare specialist!

I resolve to use SPF every day (even in the winter) While SPF is all about protection form the sun many of our trusted summer SPFs are also beneficial in the bleak winter months. This is because they contain protection from UVA which is responsible for 90% of ageing.

And, unfortunately, UVA is present all year round and in every form of light! So unless you dwell in a cave you need to protect from this invisible but exceptionally damaging ray.

We love our RAD from Environ as it protects us from the dreaded UVA but doesn't block our absorption of Vitamin D. In addition, its super creamy and gives a good boost of moisture to the skin which is perfect for helping combat the dehydration caused by the cold outdoors and the central heating indoors.

While we are talking about protecting from the damage caused by UVA lets resolve to skip the sunbeds and stick to fake tan! Sunbeds give out more damaging rays than midday tropical sun! They are around 96% UVA rays which don’t actually contribute to Vitamin D production, so the risks outweigh the benefits massively. If you are concerned about Vitamin D deficiency, then pop to your local nutritional expert and get a Vitamin D supplement!

I resolve to wash my makeup brushes more regularly Our makeup brushes are our best friends when it comes to perfect make up application but they can also cause lots of skin breakouts if they aren’t kept clean! They are the perfect home for bacteria to breed which then gets transferred onto your skin every time they are used! As a good rule of thumb aim to wash your brushes with a speciality brush shampoo once a month.

If you are prone to breakouts make it more regular i.e. once a week. This applies to sponges too! Foam the shampoo into the bristles, rinse the brush and then leave to dry flat overnight and voilà perfectly clean brushes for perfect make up application! Thinking about it once a month is a good routine to get into to clean out the makeup bag too.

Get rid of those cotton buds that have been hiding in the bottom, chuck away those dried up mascaras and get rid of those lippies that have lost their lids. Remember you make up has a shelf life which can be from 6 months to a year, so any products you have that are from the 80s need to go!

So there you have it, 5 beauty resolutions to try in 2018! remember no-one is perfect, if you forget don't panic. Just start back on the routine as soon as possible.

We are only human and sometimes we have a blip. Unlike golf its not about the short game its about the long game.

Coming in the next edition

Spring

THE

BEAUTY OF

& TIPS ON HOW TO FRESHEN UP YOUR LOOK FOR THE NEW GOLF SEASON

TASTE

St Andrews W H E R E W E W A N T T O E A T I N 2 0 18

Seafood Ristorante

Balgove Steak Barn

The Peat Inn

The Russell Hotel

Guardbridge Inn

The Bank

The Ship Inn

Anstruther Fish Bar

The Inn at Lathones

VISIT

St Andrews

MUSIC THEATRE FILM WHAT‘S ON WHAT TO VISIT

ELAGA was founded in 2017 by a collective of St Andrews students who want to redefine what it means to experience a ‘St Andrews event’ by providing a new and unparalleled event in town. This isn’t just your typical ‘night at Kinkell’ - ELAGA will be a landmark festival in its own right and occupy its own, unique place on the St Andrews social calendar.

At first glance, it is just a music festival, but delve in to the event and you’ll find it’s a much more complete experience than just good music. The ELAGA Committee believes a true experience must engage all the senses - and while we certainly advocate for good music - each year inviting internationally acclaimed music talent to perform and cultivating homegrown, grassroots artists (you’ll find many of our performers are either incredibly talented St Andrews students or local bands) - we also are about great food, great people, and great art.

At its core, ELAGA is about inspiring people, so come try the culinary experiences our carefully sourced chefs curate; listen to the vast variety of music on offer, and enjoy the day of music as we culminate towards the artists which are household names; check out the great art and film installations; play our garden games; and bring yourself, your friends, and get ready to experience an event like nothing else.

7 APRIL CRAIGTOUN COUNTRY PARK

ELAGA STUDENT–RUN FESTIVAL LAUNCHES

THEATRE MARCH AND APRIL You’ve Got A Friend – The Music of James Taylor and Carole King 16, 17 March

7.30pm

£19

From the creators of the smash hit WEST END show ‘The Simon & Garfunkel Story’ ‘You’ve Got A Friend’ celebrates two of the World’s greatest songwriters of all time – James Taylor and Carole King. This musical journey intertwines some of the greatest songs ever written including ‘I Feel The Earth Move’, ‘Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow’, ‘How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)’, ‘Fire & Rain’, ‘You Make Me Feel (Like A Natural Woman)’ and the beautiful ‘You’ve Got A Friend’

HOW TO ACT

23 March

8pm

£12-14

Written and Directed by Graham Eatough, Presented by National Theatre of Scotland Internationally-renowned theatre director Anthony Nicholl has travelled the globe on a life-long quest to discover the true essence of theatre. Today he gives a masterclass, demonstrating first-hand, the methods he developed in Africa and Asia. Promise, an aspiring actress, has been chosen to participate.

What unfolds between them forces Nicholl to question all of his assumptions about his life and art. How to Act explores the contemporary realities of personal, cultural and economic exploitation through two individuals drawn together in the world of theatre. Both believe in truth, but each has their own version of it.

Grandad and Me

30 March

2pm £8

Grandad and Me is a living storybook about loss, longing and the treasures of memory and imagination. We meet a young girl who is missing her Grandad – he has gone, even though his favourite job was being her Grandad. Led by found objects and her imagination, she traces his footsteps on a magical adventure through time and space. For ages 5+

Blue Angels Spring Gala

5 April

7.30pm

£8-10

Founded in 2007, the Blue Angels are St Andrew’s University’s competitive dance team who perform and compete in competitions all around the UK. The Blue Angels became World Champions at the IDF World Championships held in Bellaria, Italy of July 2015 achieving two 1st places! Consisting of 4 teams and over 30 dancers, the Blue Angels specialise in a variety of styles including Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Contemporary and HipHop. The Blue Angel Spring Gala 2018 will be showcasing a number of styles and routines, including our award-winning competition pieces. Come along and join the Blue Angels Dance Team in sharing their creativity, enthusiasm and love for dance!

ULoyiko (14+)

6 April

7pm

FREE

The School of International Relations at the University of St Andrews offers a rare opportunity to experience an extraordinary play here, in North East Fife. The stage is a powerful weapon with which to resist state crime; a weapon that can be wielded against a government’s oppression, violence, injustice, and tyranny against its people. This provocative and disturbing play assumes the mantle of resistance and tells the story of Gukurahundi, the term given to Zimbabwean statesanctioned atrocities carried out in Matabeleland on the ethnic minority known as the Ndebele, between 1982-1987, by the notorious Fifth Brigade. During Gukurahundi there was mass everything… mass killings, mass rape, mass torture, mass beatings, mass starvation, mass graves.

One of the most painful aspects of this genocide is that the plight of the victims and survivors continues to be unacknowledged. This provocative and disturbing play gives voice to hundreds of thousands of victims and survivors of Gukurahundi and tells the untold story of Matabeleland’s lived and memorised experiences of the fear and horrors it endured. It is a story that is forbidden to be told within Zimbabwe’s borders; doing so invites the wrath of the oppressive state machinery of Zimbabwe, with those directly responsible for orchestrating Gukurahundi continuing to hold senior positions in the government to this day, including the newly installed President, Emmerson Mnangagwa. The play is produced by the Siphesakhe Youth Organization, based in Cape Town, South Africa. The play received outstanding reviews when launched in June 2016 at Hillbrow Theatre, Johannesburg

RED SPARROW Red Sparrow is a 2018 American spy thriller film directed by Francis Lawrence and written

by Justin Haythe, based on the 2013 novel of the same name by Jason Matthews. The film stars an ensemble cast made up of Jennifer Lawrence, Joel Edgerton, Matthias Schoenaerts, Charlotte Rampling, Mary-Louise Parker, and Jeremy Irons. It tells the story of a Russian intelligence officer who is sent to make contact with a CIA agent in the hope of discovering the identity of a mole.

In modern-day Russia, Dominika Egorova is a famed Russian ballerina who supports her sick mother.

Following a career ending injury, Dominika is approached by her uncle, Ivan, who works in Russian intelligence. Dominika is tasked with seducing Dimitry Ustinov, a Russian politician, and covertly replacing his phone with a state-provided phone, in exchange for her mother's medical care. As Dimitry rapes Dominika, he is killed by Simyonov (Onopko), a Russian operative. After they escape, Ivan reveals he intended to kill Ustinov all along, and Russian intelligence insists there must be no witnesses. Ivan offers Dominika a choice to begin working for Russian intelligence or be executed.

Nate Nash is a CIA operative working in Moscow. While meeting with an asset in a park, they are confronted by the police. Nash creates a diversion to ensure his asset, codename Marble, escapes detection. Nash is reassigned back to the US, and Marble does not contact any other operatives at the CIA. Nash insists that he is the only individual whom Marble will work with and is assigned to Budapest to regain contact with Marble.

Dominika is sent to train to become a Russian operative, known as a 'Sparrow', capable of seducing her targets. Dominika excels in her training, despite resistance to some elements, such as refusing to strip in front of her class and fighting off a classmate who attempts to rape her. Despite her issues in training, Dominika is assigned to Budapest. Russian intelligence has been tracking Nash and hopes to find out the identity of Marble. Dominika's assignment is to gain the trust of Nash and reveal his contact. Upon her arrival in Budapest, Dominika lives with Marta, another Sparrow.

Dominika quickly makes contact with Nash, who correctly determines that she is a Russian intelligence operative. Dominika reveals her true identity to him, as well as her motive to find out Marble's identity. While Marta is out, Dominika inspects her room, and realizes that she is working to gather information from Stephanie Boucher, a chief of staff for a US Senator. After a surprise visit from Ivan, Dominika reveals her intentions to gather information from Boucher, angering Marta, who believes Dominika is trying to steal her assignment. Upon returning home one day, Dominika finds Marta brutally tortured and murdered. Simyonov reveals that he carried out the murder as a warning not to betray Russian secrets.

Dominika offers her services to the CIA to work as a double agent. She carries out Marta's assignment to meet Boucher, and covertly exchanges the supplied information for CIA-supplied floppy disks. However, the CIA operatives approach Boucher, who becomes spooked and is killed as she runs into traffic. Realizing that the mission with Boucher had been compromised by Dominika, Russian intelligence returns her to Moscow to be tortured and interrogated. She repeatedly denies compromising Boucher, and convinces Ivan that she is now credible with the Americans, as she has been tortured by her own people and not revealing information. Dominika returns to Budapest, and informs Nash that she wishes to defect with her mother to America. After spending the night with Nash, Dominika awakes to find him being tortured by Simyonov, who is attempting to find the identity of Marble. Despite initially appearing to work with Simyonov, Dominika attacks and kills him.

At the hospital, General Vladimir Korchnoi reveals he is Marble. He explains that he was initially patriotic, but grew to feel that Russia was corrupt. He informs Dominika that she should reveal his identity to Ivan; the promotion she will receive for outing a high-ranking mole will allow her to further their work by passing information to the CIA. Dominika contacts her superiors to reveal the identity of the mole, but frames Ivan rather than reveal Korchnoi. Back home in Russia, Dominika lives with her mother, and receives a phone call from Nash, who plays music they had previously listened to together.

UPCOMING MOVIES AT NEW PICTURE HOUSE

Black Panther Saturday 10 March until Thursday 15 March, 5.20pm

Red Sparrow Saturday 10 until Thursday 15 March, 8pm

Coco Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 March, 2pm

Darkest Hour Saturday 10 March, 2.10pm

Early Man Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 March, 2.10pm

Game Night Saturday 10 until Thursday 15 March, 5.50pm

More at nph.nphcinema.co.uk

THE WINNERS

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE GARY OLDMAN Darkest Hour

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE SAM ROCKWELL Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE FRANCES MCDORMAND

Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE ALLISON JANNEY I, Tonya

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM COCO Lee Unkrich and Darla K. Anderson

CINEMATOGRAPHY BLADE RUNNER 2049 Roger A. Deakins

COSTUME DESIGN PHANTOM THREAD Mark Bridges

DIRECTING THE SHAPE OF WATER Guillermo del Toro

DOCUMENTARY (FEATURE) ICARUS Bryan Fogel and Dan Cogan

DOCUMENTARY (SHORT SUBJECT) HEAVEN IS A TRAFFIC JAM ON THE 405 Frank Stiefel

FILM EDITING DUNKIRK Lee Smith

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM A FANTASTIC WOMAN Chile

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING DARKEST HOUR Kazuhiro Tsuji, David Malinowski and Lucy Sibbick

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE) THE SHAPE OF WATER Alexandre Desplat

BEST PICTURE THE SHAPE OF WATER Guillermo del Toro and J. Miles Dale, Producers

PRODUCTION DESIGN THE SHAPE OF WATER Production Design: Paul Denham Austerberry; Set Decoration: Shane Vieau and Jeffrey A. Melvin

SHORT FILM (ANIMATED) DEAR BASKETBALL Glen Keane and Kobe Bryant

SHORT FILM (LIVE ACTION) THE SILENT CHILD Chris Overton and Rachel Shenton

SOUND EDITING DUNKIRK Richard King and Alex Gibson Nathan Robitaille and Nelson Ferreira

SOUND MIXING DUNKIRK Gregg Landaker, Gary A. Rizzo and Mark Weingarten

VISUAL EFFECTS BLADE RUNNER 2049 John Nelson, Gerd Nefzer, Paul Lambert and Richard R. Hoover

WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY) CALL ME BY YOUR NAME Screenplay by James Ivory

WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY) GET OUT Written by Jordan Peele

THE PLATINUM

LIST 2018

St Andrews M A G A Z I N E

THE BEST OF ST ANDREWS

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE BEST OF ST ANDREWS The Platinum List is a collection of the very best things about St Andrews in Golf, Lifestyle and More.

From the Best 18 holes in golf.

To the Best walks in town.

From the Best Bars for night out.

To the Best Restaurants to eat in.

All this and more.

Welcome to the first Platinum List by

St Andrews Magazine

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE BEST WALKS LADE BRAES WEST SANDS THE OLD COURSE ON A SUNDAY EAST SANDS FIFE COASTAL PATH

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE BEST WALKS

THE SCORES TO THE HARBOUR

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE ULTIMATE 18 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

THE OLD COURSE, PAR 4 THE EDEN COURSE, PAR 4 THE NEW COURSE, PAR 5 THE KITTOCKS COURSE, PAR 4 THE JUBILEE COURSE, PAR 3 THE NEW COURSE, PAR 4 THE KITTOCKS COURSE, PAR 4 THE NEW COURSE, PAR 5 THE NEW COURSE, PAR 3 OUT

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

PAR 36

376 YARDS 449 YARDS 511 YARDS 477 YARDS 162 YARDS 445 YARDS 430 YARDS 481 YARDS 225 YARDS

3,556 YARDS

THE NEW COURSE, PAR 4 THE OLD COURSE, PAR 3 THE JUBILEE COURSE, PAR 5 THE KITTOCKS COURSE, PAR 3 THE OLD COURSE, PAR 5 THE KITTOCKS COURSE, PAR 4 THE NEW COURSE, PAR 4 THE OLD COURSE, PAR 4 THE OLD COURSE, PAR 4

464 YARDS 174 YARDS 538 YARDS 212 YARDS 530 YARDS 462 YARDS 431 YARDS 455 YARDS 357 YARDS

IN

PAR 36

3,623 YARDS

TOTAL

PAR 72

7,179 YARDS

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE BEST BARS THE WEST PORT THE CRITERION GREYFRIARS HAMS HAME THE PILMOUR

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE BEST BARS

THE ADAMSON BAR

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE BEST RESTAURANTS MAMMACITA PLAYFAIR’S ZIGGY’S HAMS HAME MITCHELL’S DOLLS HOUSE

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE BEST RESTAURANTS

THE ADAMSON

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 BREWERS & DISTILLERIES ST ANDREWS BREWING COMPANY KINGSBARNS DISTILLERY ST ANDREWS GIN COMPANY

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 BREWERS & DISTILLERIES

EDEN MILL

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE BEST CULTURE T H E A T R E, A R T , G A L L E R I E S & MUSEUMS SPROSONS FRASER GALLERY ST ANDREWS PRESERVATION TRUST ST ANDREWS MUSEUM THE BYRE THEATRE NEW PICTURE HOUSE

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE BEST CULTURE T H E A T R E, A R T , G A L L E R I E S & MUSEUMS

BRITISH GOLF MUSEUM

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE LUXURY LIFESTYLE FARMORE INTERIORS EDENS ISLE OF SKYE CANDLE COMPANY JOHNSTONS OF ELGIN JO MALONE BOUTIQUE NUMBER 1 KINNETTLES FAIRMONT ST ANDREWS MATTHEW HENDERSON

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 THE LUXURY LIFESTYLE

OLD COURSE HOTEL

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 BEAUTY AND THERAPY HEPBURNS NAIL LOUNGE EDEN SPA OLD COURSE HOTEL FAIRMONT ST ANDREWS THE WAX BAR FRESH LOOKS

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 BEAUTY & THERAPY

THE VINTAGE BEAUTY BOX

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 HEALTH & FITNESS ST ANDREWS ADVENTURE RUNNING TEAM EAST SANDS LEISURE CENTRE UNIVERSITY OF ST ANDREWS SPORTS CENTRE

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 HEALTH & FITNESS

HOT HOUSE YOGA

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 GOLF RETAIL THE OLD COURSE SHOP GOLFINO THE PRO SHOP (NORTH STREET) THE PRO SHOP (OLD COURSE HOTEL) ST ANDREWS GOLF STORE

THE PLATINUM LIST 2018 GOLF RETAIL

AUCHTERLONIES OF ST ANDREWS

St Andrews L I F E

NEW YEAR,

NEW HOME

By Tracy Smith

As we start making our way through 2018 and are already seeing longer nights and brighter days we start to look forward to the year ahead. Perhaps you have recently moved home or are looking to change your home to bring it up to date. Every year trends come and go and unless you are a dedicated follower of fashion it can be difficult to keep up.

We love nothing more than the new collections that arrive from our suppliers at this time of year however we feel that it is important to get the balance right and start off with a base layer which will stand the test of time.

Decorating your home should be something that is planned and not rushed into, buying furniture for your home is expensive so it is important to get it right first time.

Here at Interiors by Tracy Smith we like the saying ‘Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail’ and therefore every room that we design is measured in detail to ensure that each room layout works.

We also add colour and design through accessories and key pieces which can be changeable to incorporate any new trend that our customers want to follow.

Our Top Tips when moving into a New Home Start off with a basic colour scheme for the whole house, matt emulsions with a high chalk content are a great base. Our favourite is Farrow and Ball.

Space Plan each room in detail, take measurements and do not bring anything into the room unless you know where it is going. Also remember to take items out you can always put items in other rooms and do not necessarily have to place furniture in the same room as your last home.

Consider Window Treatments - they can really make the room and are often an afterthought. If you can afford bespoke, then go for them but alternatively there are some good high street options.

If you are lucky enough to be building your own home, then sit down with your architect and consider recessed tracks into the ceiling or behind cornices. This is such an elegant way to finish a room.

Wave curtains are continuing to go from strength to strength and we have fitted several of them in and around St Andrews.

Lighting is so important whether it is task lighting in the kitchen or ambient lighting in the living room, at the initial design stage we always consider where our light sources are and if possible at a new build stage make changes to the plans. So again, as with window treatments if you can at the drawing stage consider your options.

Rugs and accessories, lots of new build homes are now open plan for a more inclusive family living space. It is however good to zone each area of the room, you may need to have a place to study or a play area and rugs are a great way of doing this. As mentioned before it is highly unlikely that you will be buying everything new for your home so a way of bringing it up to date is to accessories with objects, cushions and throws.

THE BEAST FROM THE EAST At around 3pm on Tuesday 27 February, the much anticipated “Beast from the East” carrying snow, wind and plunging temperatures low as -19c arrived in St Andrews. Matt captured images from the Old Course and around St Andrews.

MASTERS PREVIEW

FLORIDA SWING

EARLY SEASON REVIEW

THE WORLD OF

GOLF

LOOKING AHEAD TO THE MAJORS

50 YEARS OF ROLEX AND GOLF

NEWS GOLF FROM THE WORLD OF

Pioneering love.golf Programme Gears Up for Growth in 2018 (Birmingham, UK, December 6, 2017) love.golf, the award-winning social group golf experience for women is gearing up for growth in 2018 with an attractive revenue model and more opportunities for PGA coaches, as it builds upon its community of new and existing female golfers.

Announced during its annual Insights Conference (view the video here), held this year in Birmingham, love.golf aims to further develop an environment that empowers its coaches and enables their ideas to flourish, while commercially rewarding them for putting the ideas into action. As part of a love.golf license in 2018, coaches will benefit from: A financial model which sees coaches receive and retain all of the revenue they generate from love.golf coaching programmes Flexibility to develop new coaching experiences, supported by love.golf Provision of support materials including coaching manual, marketing toolkit and access to a suite of online resources to help activate love.golf at their venue -

love.golf coaches (from left to right) Nicola Stroud, Linzi Allan and Dan Higgs discuss coaching plans for 2018

Enhanced communication and idea-sharing opportunities through the community of love.golf coaches Alastair Spink, Founder and Head Coach of love.golf said: “We are so proud of our team of current coaches and they have already made a significant impact in terms of attracting and retaining new women to the game, which is crucially important when you consider only 14% of golfers are female. But now we want to create even more impact and start to close the gender gap within golf clubs in the UK, which we know from recent research is among the biggest in Europe.�

Currently consisting of 28 coaches across England, Scotland and Wales, love.golf aims to extend its unique programme to 50 PGA Professionals and venues in the UK during 2018.

“The natural progression of the programme is to create an environment that helps further unlock the potential of our coaches, ensuring their ideas can flourish as we open up even more opportunities for women to play golf up and down the country.”

“We have developed a tried and tested programme for coaches and clubs to offer women a completely different coaching experience. Now it’s time for coaches who are passionate about making a positive impact on female participation to join our team, deliver exciting experiences with the help of the love.golf brand and, retain 100% of the revenue,” added Alastair. love.golf is supported by Syngenta, the leading supplier of innovative turf management solutions for golf courses, and is part of the company’s ‘Unlocking Golf’s True Potential’ campaign, investing in the long-term business sustainability of the golf industry. (www.unlockinggolfstruepotential.co.uk) To become a love.golf coach in 2018 contact Head Coach Alastair Spink (alastair@love.golf) for more information.

love.golf coaches celebrate their achievements in 2017 at the Marco Pierre White Steakhouse Bar & Grill in Birmingham

Australian Open flying solo after Emirates ends Aussie Golf Sponsorship After 7 successful years the Australian Open Golf Championship is looking for a new title sponsor after Dubai carrier Emirates Airline ended its sponsorship of Australian golf, among other sports, last month.

Emirates will remain a sponsor of the Australian Open Tennis, along with the AO Series and some Australian Rules Football teams, but will withdraw its sponsorship of some key Horse Racing events.

The carrier is looking to scale back its worldwide sponsorship profile, which costs them $450million every year. They will continue to sponsor series and events with a wider worldwide profile such as the European Tour, Ryder Cup, Australian Open and US Open Tennis, ATP World Tour, Arsenal FC and Emirates Stadium along with some other major European clubs like Real Madrid and AC Milan.

This means Golf Australia are on the hunt for a new partner for their national championship. Emirates had brought stability to the championship after a few unsettled and nervous years of searching for a title sponsor. Emirates withdrawal may present an opportunity for Golf Auustralia to revolutionise its national championship, wth the possibility of cosanctioning with the European Tour and becoming part of the Rolex Series or becoming part of the PGA Tour’s Asia-Pacific swing at the end of the year.

SCOTTISH GOLF A new National 9-Hole Final will feature in Scottish Golf’s calendar of events for the first time in 2018, with the governing body encouraging more clubs to adopt shorter formats of the game.

The event will form part of the qualifying process to find Scotland’s finalists for The R&A’s 9-Hole Championship, where winning pairs from the Home Nations will savour the chance of a lifetime to tee up at Carnoustie just days before The Open commences.

criteria – of which there are almost 300 – will be invited to host a 9-hole stableford qualifying event before the end of May. The leading pairs from

stands at Carnoustie on Saturday 14 July.

Fraser Munro, Head of Events at Scottish Golf, said: “Nine-hole golf has long been part of the game’s fabric in

2018 Scottish Golf National Championships

APRIL Scottish Boys’ Open Stroke Play – Montrose (4 – 6) Scottish Girls’ Open Stroke Play – Monifieth (4 – 6) Helen Holm Scottish Women’s Open Stroke Play – Troon (20 – 22) JUNE Scottish Women’s Amateur – Golf House Club, Elie (5 – 9) Scottish Boys’ Area Team – Bothwell Castle (10) Scottish Golf R&A 9-Hole Championship National Final Scottish Senior Men’s Open – Irvine (20 -22) Scottish Senior Women’s Open – Prestwick St Nicholas (26 – 29) JULY Scottish Boys & Girls Amateur – Moray (1 – 6) Scottish Boys’ Under-16 Open – Fortrose & Rosemarkie (10 – 12) AUGUST Scottish Men’s Amateur – Blairgowrie (31 July – 5) Loretto Golf Academy Scottish Girls’ Under 14/16 – Murrayfield (13 – 14) Loretto Golf Academy Scottish Boys’ Under-14 – Turnhouse (13 – 14) Carrick Neill Scottish Men’s Open Stroke Play – Gleneagles King’s (27 – 29)

Part of the national SEPTEMBER GolfKings Scottish Men’s Area Team Championship – Cawder member (7 – 9) benefits Scottish Women’s County Finals – Kilmacolm (14 – 16) package, the Senior Men’s Home Internationals – Southerness (18 – 20) free-to-enter 9hole Scottish Men’s Club Championship – Kinross (23) Championship is open to each club will tee up at Scotland but we need golfers of all ages and the National Final in to do more to promote abilities who are June, before Scotland’s it to a wider audience members of clubs top four pairings join and this fantastic event possessing a qualifiers from England, gives us a higher profile designated 9-hole Ireland and Wales in platform to achieve Standard Scratch Score front of the iconic this. “The incentive of (SSS). Each affiliated playing at Carnoustie in club meeting this

NEWS

SCOTTISH GOLF the build-up to The Open is a dream come true and we would encourage as many clubs as possible to sign up and give their members a chance of taking part.”

In a further move by Scottish Golf to address pace of play concerns, ‘Ready Golf’ will be adopted at all championships from 2018. The initiative encourages players to play when they are ready to do so, rather than adhering to the traditional ‘farthest from the hole plays first’ stipulation in the Rules of Golf.

Munro added: “We are committed to speeding up the game and making competitive golf more enjoyable for everyone. We acknowledge slow play continues to be a problem but believe adopting ‘Ready Golf’ is a proactive step towards addressing this issue.”

The domestic season will open with the Scottish Boys’ and Girls’ Open Stroke Play Championships taking place at Montrose and Monifieth respectively (4 – 6 April), while Royal Troon’s Portland and Old Courses will once

again welcome the Helen Holm Scottish Women’s Open Stroke Play.

Scottish Golf’s flagship Women’s and Men’s Amateur Championships will be staged over Elie (5 – 9 June) and Blairgowrie (31 July – 5 August), before The King’s Course at Gleneagles hosts the Carrick Neill Scottish Men’s Open Stroke Play for the first time in late August, a week before the World Amateur Team Championship in Ireland.

Elsewhere, the Scottish Boys’ and Girls’ Amateur Championships will be held at Moray’s Old and New Courses in early July, while the new look Loretto Golf Academy-sponsored Scottish Boys and Girls Under-14s events are being split into two separate championships for the first time in 2018. These will run simultaneously in Edinburgh at Murrayfield and Turnhouse, with the girls’ event also including an Under-16 category.

“Our National Championships provide a platform for players

NEWS

to benchmark themselves against not only the best players in this country but the many golfers travelling internationally to compete,” added Munro. “They also provide a great showcase for clubs to market them themselves to the many thousands of golfers at home and abroad who take an interest in our events.”

Scottish Golf’s full programme of club handicap events will be announced early in 2018, with the PING Scottish Mixed Championship, Revive Active Scottish Women’s Regional Medal Finals and Belhaven Captains & Secretaries Championship joining The R&A 9-hole Championship on the calendar for the year ahead.

The venue for the National 9-Hole Final in June will be confirmed early in 2018.

Further information on all of Scottish Golf’s events can be viewed on the Championships page at www.scottishgolf.org.

Entries open at the end of January.

SCOTTISH GOLF Perthshire venue Milnathort Golf Club is looking forward to shining on the national stage when it hosts the final of the inaugural Scottish Golf R&A 9Hole Championship this summer.

An exciting new freeto-enter event on the domestic calendar, it offers club members a dream opportunity to play at Carnoustie on the eve of July’s Open Championship.

As Scottish Golf continues to encourage shorter formats of the game, each affiliated club is invited to host a 9-hole qualifying event during the early part of the season, with the winning pair from each club earning their place at Milnathort on Friday 15 June.

The event forms part of the qualifying process to find Scotland’s finalists for The R&A’s 9Hole Championship, where winning pairs from the four Home Nations will savour the chance of a lifetime to tee up at Carnoustie just days before The Open commences.

Kenny Duncan, the Captain at Milnathort, is excited for all

connected with the easily accessible, beautiful 9-hole venue near Kinross as they prepare to welcome golfers from all over the country. Indeed, in excess of 50 clubs have already registered to host a qualifier over the first few weeks since the event was announced.

He said: “It’s a great honour for the club and we are really looking forward to the event in June. It’s a terrific feather in the cap for Milnathort and we’re all over the moon.

“We have seen our membership push for more and more 9-hole competitions, as 18 holes can be too timeconsuming for a lot of people nowadays, or too tiring for older players. Nine-hole medals are proving very popular for us.”

Duncan says golfers are in for a treat at Milnathort and he continued: “People have a misconception sometimes about 9hole courses, that they are maybe inferior due to a lack of variety. But Milnathort has a variety of different tees and greens, so it doesn’t just

NEWS

feel like you are playing a 9-hole course.

“Overall, our course offers the perfect mix of challenge and forgiveness for golfers of all ages and abilities.

It may be a little shorter than other courses, but it’s tighter, so you have to be careful with club selection.”

Part of the national member benefits package, the Championship is open to golfers of all ages and abilities who are members of clubs possessing a designated 9-hole Standard Scratch Score (SSS). Each affiliated club meeting the criteria – of which there are almost 300 nationwide – is invited to host a 9-hole stableford qualifying event before the end of May. Eleanor Cannon, Executive Chair of Scottish Golf, welcomed the new event and said: “Scotland has 158 ninehole courses, while many others have a 9hole Standard Scratch Score. The new Championship gives us a fantastic platform to showcase what the country has to offer.

SCOTTISH GOLF “We are keen to encourage the shorter format of the game to give those with time constraints more opportunities to play competitive golf. It’s great to see more and more clubs embrace this and we look forward to welcoming golfers of all ages and abilities to our newest national championship.

There is no better incentive than the chance to play in front of the stands at The Open.”

Scotland’s top four pairings from the Milnathort final will join qualifiers from England, Ireland and Wales in front of the iconic stands at Carnoustie on Saturday 14 July.

Scottish Golf Appoints Football Chief McKinlay as New CEO

Scottish Golf is delighted to announce the appointment of Andrew McKinlay as its new Chief Executive.

Andrew joins from the Scottish FA, where he has worked in a number of key senior management roles over the past six years, most recently as Chief Operating Officer and Interim Chief Executive.

He has been appointed after a rigorous recruitment process which commenced last October and attracted a host of high-calibre applicants.

Eleanor Cannon, Scottish Golf Chair, said: “On behalf of the Board of Scottish Golf, I am thrilled to welcome Andrew as our new Chief Executive.

Throughout the process his experience, enthusiasm and vision stood out from a hugely impressive field of candidates.

“We were particularly impressed by the range of responsibilities in football, especially in overseeing football’s

NEWS

equality and diversity strategy at all levels of the game. Increasing girls’ and women’s participation is a priority focus area for Scottish Golf and his expertise will be vital to our future growth strategy.

“Andrew is passionate about golf and his experience working in sport and business will be integral to taking Scottish Golf’s strategic plan forward. We look forward to welcoming Andrew to Scottish Golf in May.” Andrew McKinlay said: “I look forward to the hugely exciting challenge of leading Scottish Golf towards a prosperous future as the governing body for the largest registered participation sport in Scotland.

“As a keen golfer, I know the many benefits of playing golf regardless of age, gender or ability. I realise a lot of hard work has been undertaken already to increase participation and accessibility to golf and, having attended December’s Future of Golf conference in Edinburgh, I believe the passion and collective will throughout the

SCOTTISH GOLF membership gives us a terrific foundation on which to build a bright future for our game.”

Andrew McKinlay CV January 2016 – 2018: Chief Operating Officer/Interim Chief Executive, Scottish Football Association April 2012 – December 2015: Director of Football Governance and Regulation, Scottish Football Association May 2009 – April 2012: Head of Operations, Property Solutions (a Division of Clydesdale/Yorkshire Banks) August 2007 – May 2009: Deputy Head of Legal Services, Clydesdale/Yorkshire Bank March 2004 – August 2007: Head of Commercial Contracts, Legal Services, Clydesdale/Yorkshire Bank

Junior Masters Event Launched in Memory of Barrie Douglas

One of the most popular figures across Scottish amateur golf is to be honoured with an event bearing his name to raise valuable funds for junior golf in this country.

The inaugural ‘Barrie Douglas Scottish Junior Masters’ will be staged over Blairgowrie’s Lansdowne Course this year in a fitting tribute for the Perthshire native.

Barrie, one of the game’s great characters and a guiding hand to the career of many young players including European Tour card holders Bradley Neil and Connor Syme, passed away last August while on duty as Scotland captain at the European Boys’ Team Championship in Spain.

His sudden death aged only 69 left many in the game deeply saddened and quickly saw the formation of The Barrie Douglas Foundation in his honour to help up-andcoming young players.

A huge supporter of

NEWS

Scottish Golf activities, Barrie performed various selection and captaincy roles and was also a GB&I selector for The R&A from 2009 – 2016.

Now the Scottish Junior Masters has been added to this season’s calendar, a 54-hole (no cut) World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) event for Under-16 and Under-18 boys that will be played at Blairgowrie from 27 – 29 April. A field of 120 boys are encouraged to sign up, with the great value £75 entry fee featuring the three competitive rounds, a practice round, breakfast & lunch vouchers, a player gift pack and a hot dog and family fun golf night on the evening of Saturday 28 April.

Spencer Henderson, Scottish Golf National Boys’ Coach and a great friend of Barrie’s, has played an active role in the formation of the event and hopes it is well supported.

He said: “Barrie did so much for boys’ golf, in particular, in Scotland, so I thought it would be a great tribute to run a tournament in his honour. We went to so many events together

SCOTTISH GOLF down the years so I knew what he liked and we’ve taken inspiration for Barrie’s event from the annual Sir Henry Cooper Junior Masters tournament in England.

“There is a real feel to that event, family friendly as well and we’re going to try and do the same at Blairgowrie, especially on the Saturday evening to get people together.

“The fact our event is WAGR-ranked will hopefully attract players, with the event also being on the Scottish Golf Boys’ Order of Merit. I’m just delighted we have managed to make it happen.”

Henderson hopes the event can blossom further and added: “Blairgowrie have been fantastic to work with and we look forward to raising funds through the Foundation for junior golfers across Scotland, who might not have the opportunity to play.

“I’m then hoping the event is going to grow to an international tournament over 72 holes in the future, with girls also involved.

Barrie’s genuine passion was for under16 and under-18 players and trying to help them develop and eventually see them play for Scotland and Great Britain & Ireland. He was boys’ captain for players like Bradley Neil, Connor Syme, Ewen Ferguson and Liam Johnston.

“A lot of the players that will be competing in April have also come through the Paul Lawrie and Stephen Gallacher Foundations, the work that they are doing is brilliant, and we just wanted an event to complement their activities.”

Other fundraising events for The Barrie Douglas Foundation are lined up for later this year, including a sportsman’s dinner and a charity golf day.

Entries are now open for the Barrie Douglas Junior Masters so log on to www.scottishgolf.org/c hampionships for more information.

NEWS

IRISH OPEN EMBARKS ON NEW JOURNEY AS MCGINLEY, CLARKE, HARRINGTON AND MCDOWELL JOIN MCILROY AS HOSTS OF THE NATIONAL OPEN The European Tour and Dubai Duty Free Irish Open have announced that this year’s championship at Ballyliffin will be the final edition solely hosted by Rory McIlroy and the Rory Foundation. From 2019, in the same vein as the British Masters, the Irish Open will be hosted by a rota of Darren Clarke, Graeme McDowell, Padraig Harrington, Paul McGinley and Rory McIlroy. All five men were excited by the announcement, and the Irish Open could be set for a thrilling new chapter in its history. Elevation to the Rolex Series in 2017 capped a halcyon three-year period in which Rory McIlroy became host and the championship moved to its preferred date, just two weeks before The Open Championship.

Now, with Ireland’s most prominent golfers of the last 20 years on board, the championship has an even brighter future and the list of potential host courses is truly mouth-watering. The move to a date just two weeks prior to The Open ensures that it is almost certain the Irish Open will be played on links courses for the coming decade, and this opens the possibility of creating a sensational rota for one of Europe’s premier national opens.

McDowell, Clarke and McIlroy are almost certain to host any editions played in Northern Ireland, with Royal Portrush, Portstewart and Royal County Down almost guaranteed to stage future editions. Ballyliffin is likely to be one of McIlroy’s future choices in addition to Royal County Down, as he formerly had an attachment to the resort. McDowell and Clarke both have close ties to Portrush, and it would seem likely they would alternate their turns between Royal Portrush and Portstewart, and possibly even the nearby Castlerock. Other potential sites for the Ulstermen to host Irish Open’s include the stunning Rosapenna, Carne Golf Links, Enniscrone Golf Club, Donegal Golf Club, Portsalon and Narin and Portnoo.

Paul McGinley and Padraig Harrington both hail from the Republic, and this creates the possibility of visiting numerous sensational links courses around Dublin and right across the country. Royal Dublin and Portmarnock Golf Club were frequent hosts of the championship in the 1980s and if both can be convinced to admit women members then they could be future hosts of the event too.

Portmarnock Hotel and Golf Links is a modern links designed by Bernhard Langer and could prove to be a stunning alternative to the historic club nearby.

The south and west of the emerald Isle is also blessed with a plethora of stunning links including County Louth, Ballybunion, Waterville, Old Head Links, Lahinch, Tralee, The European Club, County Sligo (Rosses Point), Trump International Golf Links Doonbeg, The Island, Connemara Golf Links, Seapoint and Rosslare.

After a turbulent few years the Irish Open is back, and its future is destined to be a golden one, with the glory days of the 1980s returning to this great national open.

THE WORLD OF GOLF

USGA BRINGS OVER A CENTURY OF TRADITION TO AN END WITH DECISION TO SCRAP 18-HOLE PLAYOFF IN FAVOUR OF 2-HOLE DECIDER

The United States Golf Association (USGA) today announced a revised playoff format for all four of its Open Championships – the U.S. Open, U.S. Women’s Open, U.S. Senior Open and U.S. Senior Women’s Open. Each championship will implement a two-hole aggregate playoff in the event of a tie at the end of 72 holes of stroke play, effective with the 2018 season.

“We know how important it is to everyone in the golf world to see play conclude on the Sunday of a major championship, and to award the trophy to the champion,” said USGA CEO/Executive Director Mike Davis, who made the announcement prior to online player registration for each USGA Open Championship, which opens next week. “After receiving input from a variety of constituents, including players, fans, volunteers, officials and our broadcast partners, it clearly came across as something that everyone valued, and would benefit from.”

“There is no right or wrong way to determine a winner in stroke play, but we’ve seen over the years how the aggregate playoff has served us well in both the U.S. Women’s Open and U.S. Senior Open,” Davis added. “Two holes will allow a player to recover from any single mistake, and at the same time, provide a memorable, and perhaps dramatic, experience for all involved.”

In all four USGA Open Championships, the two-hole aggregate playoff will be used to break any ties after 72 holes of stroke-play competition. If the playoff results in a tie, the tied players would immediately continue to play off holeby-hole (sudden-death format) until the champion is determined.

In its 117-year history, the U.S. Open has had 33 playoffs that have employed 18- and 36-hole formats. There have been 12 playoffs in U.S. Women’s Open history. A three-hole playoff was held for the first time in 2011. The U.S. Senior Open, which held a three-hole playoff for the first time in 2002, has had six playoffs in its championship history.

2018 USGA Open Championship Schedule

May 31-June 3 73rd U.S. Women’s Open, Shoal Creek, Shoal Creek, Ala. June 14-17

118th U.S. Open, Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, Southampton, N.Y.

June 28-July 1 39th U.S. Senior Open, The Broadmoor, Colorado Springs, Colo.

July 12-15

1st U.S. Senior Women’s Open, Chicago Golf Club, Wheaton, Ill.

CATCH OUR US OPEN PREVIEW IN THE NEXT EDITION OF ST ANDREWS MAGAZINE, WHERE WE WILL HAVE MORE REACTION TO HIS NEWS AND LOOK AT THE 1929 US OPEN, WHICH BOBBY JONES WON BY 23 STROKES IN A 36-HOLE PLAYOFF, AND WE TELL THE STORY OF ST ANDREWS GOLFING LEGEND, JAMES FOULIS.

FABULOUS FLEETWOOD SURGES TO SECOND SUCCESSIVE ABU DHABI VICTORY

Tommy Fleetwood

-22

Ross Fisher

-20

Rory McIlroy

-18

Matthew Fitzpatrick

-18

Chris Paisley

-17

HEROIC HAOTONG FIRST CHINESE MAN TO BREAK INTO

WORLD TOP FIFTY WITH DRAMATIC DUBAI VICTORY

Haotong Li

-23

Rory McIlroy

-22

Tyrrell Hatton

-20

Alexander Levy

-19

Chris Paisley

-17

Dustin Johnson

-24

Jon Rahm

-16

Brian Harman

-15

Hideki Matsuyama

-14

Pat Perez

-14

DOMINANT DUSTIN BEGINS YEAR WITH STUNNING WIN IN

DREAMY HAWAII

DAY RETURNS WITH MARATHON WIN

OVER NOREN AT TORREY PINES

Jason Day

-10

Alexander Noren

-10

Day won on the sixth playoff hole Ryan Palmer

-10

Jon Rahm

-22

Andrew Landry

-22

Rahm won on the fourth playoff hole John Huh

-20

RAMPANT RAHM

WINS AGAIN TO SET UP SHOT AT NUMBER ONE RANKING

BRILLIANT BUBBA IS BACK WITH A BANG WITH THIRD RIVIERA VICTORY

Bubba Watson

-12

Kevin Na

-10

Tony Finau

-10

Scott Stallings

-9

Patrick Cantlay

-9

FLORIDA

19 FEBRUARY - 18 MARCH PALM BEACH GARDENS

TAMPA BAY

ORLANDO

SWING

PREVIEW

THE 2018 FLORIDA SWING

27 HOURS OF LIVE COVERAGE ON SKY SPORTS GOLF THURSDAY FEBRUARY 22, 2.30PM-11PM, FEATURED GROUPS FROM 2.30PM FRIDAY FEBRUARY 23, 2.30PM-11PM, FEATURED GROUPS FROM 2.30PM

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 24, 6PM-11PM SUNDAY FEBRUARY 25, 6PM-11PM

THE 2018 FLORIDA SWING KICKS OFF WITH THE HONDA CLASSIC ON THE CHAMPION COURSE AT PGA NATIONAL, PALM BEACH GARDENS. Since moving to the PGA National Resort and Spa in 2007 The Honda Classic has become one of the premier events in golf in the weeks preceding The Masters.

The tournament regularly attracts a field deep in talent and worldwide in origin.

Ernie Els, YE Yang, Rory Sabbatini, Camilo Villegas, Padraig Harrington and Adam Scott having lifted the beautiful crystal trophy in the last decade. Rickie Fowler is the defending champion, and he is the model champion for this event, young, talented and a worldwide player, with the required skillset to conquer the Champion Course.

The Champion Course has staged the PGA Championship and Ryder Cup in the past and provides perhaps the greatest challenge of any event prior to the Majors beginning. This year the tournament has attracted Justin Thomas, Fowler, Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods, Tommy Fleetwood, Alex Noren and 2016 & 2017 Alfred Dunhill Links Champion, Tyrrell Hatton.

THE PALM BEACHES ARE FLORIDA’S GOLFING CAPITAL AND THE PERFECT LATE WINTER GOLF HOLIDAY DESTINATION With more courses than any other county in the United States, The Palm Beaches have more than a claim to be the home of golf in America. The PGA of America are based in the county and many of the world’s greatest golfers have also made the area their home.

In 2017 some 7.89million people visited The Palm Beaches. Known as Florida’s Golf Capital®, The Palm Beaches is home to more than 160 public and private golf courses. The Palm Beaches are home to nearly 17,000 hotel rooms, ranging from historic resorts to boutique inns. The destination features more than 100 familyfriendly attractions, world-class luxury and antique shopping experiences, 125 miles of peaceful waterways for on- or in-the-water activities, more than 150 artificial reefs that line the Atlantic Ocean’s Gulf Stream current, 160 golf courses, award-winning restaurants and a thriving entertainment scene boasting more than 200 art and culture organizations. Situated along I-95, The Palm Beaches are also home to Palm Beach International Airport (PBI), with more than 200 daily direct flights to 27 domestic and international destinations in the United States and Canada.

The Palm Beaches are also conveniently located next to Fort LauderdaleHollywood and Miami International airports, each one only an hour away. In addition, with the new Brightline train, transportation into The Palm Beaches from Fort Lauderdale is even faster and more convenient – with connections to Miami and Orlando coming soon.

Signature golf resorts in The Palm Beaches include The Breakers Palm Beach, Boca Raton Resort & Club, The Seagate Hotel & Spa among others, as well as The Honda Classic’s headquarters, PGA National Resort & Spa. Golfers of all handicap levels have ample choice of golf shops, teaching facilities and driving ranges, including the Junior Golf Academy, to improve their game.

Tiger Woods among many others, make The Palm Beaches their home. Tiger Woods says “After growing up in Southern California, I have always wanted to live next to the Ocean and trust me this Ocean is a lot warmer than The Pacific. The family orientation of the area, the people are so nice, and the relaxed nature are several reasons to live and visit The Palm Beaches.”

32 HOURS OF LIVE COVERAGE ON SKY SPORTS GOLF THURSDAY MARCH 8, 12PM-11PM, FEATURED GROUPS FROM 12PM FRIDAY MARCH 9, 12PM-11PM, FEATURED GROUPS FROM 12PM

SATURDAY MARCH 10, 6PM-11PM SUNDAY MARCH 11, 5PM-10PM

THE FORMIDABLE COPPERHEAD COURSE AT INNISBROOK PROVIDES ARGUABLY THE TOUGHEST TEST IN THE FLORIDA SWING The Copperhead Course is unusual for a Florida course in that is distinctly undulating in nature and is gaining a reputation as one of the most formidable tracks on the PGA Tour, and it culminates with a fearsome threesome of holes known as the Snake-pit. It is Innisbrook's alternative to the Bear Trap at PGA National and consists of the 460-yard Par 4 sixteenth, 215-yard Par 3 seventeenth and 445-yard uphill Par 4 eighteenth. A sting in the tail to a course which tests every skill and makes the golfer use every club in their bag. The resort has five different golf courses, a wide-ranging golf instruction facility, spa and accommodation featuring 500 rooms and suites and has played host to the Tampa Bay Championship, formerly the Tampa Bay Classic, since its first edition in 2000.

The tournament was established in 2000 as one of the final event of the PGA Tour season prior to The Tour Championship, it was a decent event which had a solid but unspectacular field for the first seven editions, but in 2007 the tournament moved to replace the Players Championship in March following the re-structuring of the PGA Tour season, and it has gone from strength to strength. Regardless of its position on the schedule the championship has always produced fantastic champions including John Huston, KJ Choi, Vijay Singh, Retief Goosen, Carl Pettersson, Mark Calcavecchia, Sean O'Hair, Jim Furyk, Gary Woodland and Luke Donald. All of the past champions displayed a rounded game needed to conquer the Copperhead Course, in a tournament which invariably has a close finish.

TAMPA BAY THE UNDISOVERED GOLFING HOTBEAD OF FLORIDA Tampa Bay is a large, natural harbour in the West of Florida and the large surrounding area is given the name of the Tampa Bay area although there is no actual place called Tampa Bay. The Tampa – St Petersburg – Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area has a population of over 4.2m people and over 90,000 people each year move to the area. St Petersburg is the fourth most populous city in the state of Florida and attracts millions of tourists to the area each year, St Petersburg stages the Honda Grand Prix of St Petersburg Indy Car race each March which showcases the skyline of St Petersburg across the world on television.

The city is locally known as St. Pete and the beach was formally renamed St. Pete Beach in 1994 after a vote by residents. St Petersburg is the second largest city in the area, with Tampa being the largest with over 345,000 inhabitants and Clearwater being home to just over 100,000 people. The Tampa Bay region is home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Tampa Bay Rays, major sporting franchises in the NFL and Major League Baseball which have brought global attention to the area with their achievements in their respective sports in recent years. The 2012 Republican National Convention was held in Tampa at the Tampa Bay Times Forum at the end of August which was one of the most televised events ever held in the region. The Tampa Bay area has hosted four Super Bowls, at the Tampa Stadium in 1984 and 1991 and at the Raymond James Stadium in 2001 and 2009.

Tampa Bay is also home to one of the world's top 25 tourist attractions, Busch Gardens is an African-themed animal theme park located in Tampa and welcomes over 4 million people every year.

Tampa Bay is home to over 50 golf courses including the Tournament Players Club Tampa Bay which hosts a Champions Tour event each year and is located to the North of Tampa Bay itself, and five courses at the Innisbrook Golf and Spa Resort, including the Copperhead course which hosts the Valspar Championship.

35 HOURS OF LIVE COVERAGE ON SKY SPORTS GOLF THURSDAY MARCH 15, 11.30AM-11PM, FEATURED GROUPS FROM 11.30AM FRIDAY MARCH 16, 11.30AM-11PM, FEATURED GROUPS FROM 11.30AM

SATURDAY MARCH 17, 4.30PM-11PM SUNDAY MARCH 18, 4.30PM-10PM

THE FLORIDA SWING CONCLUDES AT THE HOME OF THE KING AND AFTER HERE AUGUSTA COMES INTO FOCUS FOR THE WORLD’S GREATEST GOLFERS This March Tiger Woods will make his first appearance at Bay Hill since the passing of Arnold Palmer, something which is sure to be an emotional moment for the 8-time past champion of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. In the distant past Tiger used this event as one of, if not, his last tournament prior to The Masters, and invariably won it. Time will tell if he can force his way into contention despite the bright start he has made on his return.

Rory McIlroy has yet to win the tournament but has now made it a regular fixture on his early-season schedule, and with Augusta on the horizon he will certainly be looking for a positive week. The Northern Irishman is joined by Justin Rose, Rickie Fowler, Bubba Watson, Jason Day, Martin Kaymer, Hideki Matsuyama, Ernie Els, Xander Schauffle and defending champion Marc Leishman.

ORLANDO NO MICKEY-MOUSE GOLFING DESTINATION The Theme Park Capital of the World is also home to numerous world-class golf courses including upscale resorts, public courses and some of the finest private clubs in the entire United States. Bay Hill Club and Lodge is the home of the late Arnold Palmer and the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the course is open to members and their guests. Lake Nona and Isleworth Country Clubs are owned by the Tavistock Group, and are private clubs within gated communities which many of the world’s best golfers have or do call home.

Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex is home to four golf courses including the Magnolia and the Lake Buena Vista courses, former hosts to the Disney Golf Classic, which was part of the PGA Tour from 1971 until 2012. The courses offer a varying level of difficulty and are the perfect golfing destination when visiting Walt Disney World.

ChampionsGate is perhaps Orlando’s most famous public golf facility, with 27 holes of golf and is a Central Florida golf masterpiece – when on the golf course it seems that you are miles away from civilization, and yet the Orlando Golf Resort is less than 15 minutes from Walt Disney World. The Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate offers our guests staying on property a 4-diamond luxury experience, and the convenience of walk out golf, that's just minutes away from Walt Disney World for the ultimate Orlando Golf Vacation.

Together, the National and International golf courses bring a unique combination to Orlando Golf. Two totally different Greg Norman signature designs married with Florida’s natural habitat, with every hole featuring beautiful natural vistas. With its 36 holes of championship golf, its Orlando’s best golf outing and tournament venue.

Sunny Orlando's clear blue skies and year-round sunshine invite Brits to escape the frigid weather and post-holiday blues with a winter sun getaway to the Theme Park Capital of the World®, just named "Best Value Long-Haul Break" by Post Office Travel Money's annual Best Bargains report. And, with package deals starting at £552 per person, visitors can take advantage of some of the best pre-summer prices. From splashy fun at some of Orlando's coolest pools, to open-air activities like biking and ziplining, visitors can enjoy a myriad of outdoor activities in the sunshine. For more information about these experiences, go to VisitOrlando.com/blog.

THE KINGS OF FLORIDA MOST PGA TOUR WINS IN THE SUSHINE STATE

TIGER WOODS

16 14 10

SAM SNEAD

JACK NICKLAUS

WALTER HAGEN

7

RAYMOND FLOYD

5

ERNIE ELS

5

LEE TREVINO

5

ARNOLD PALMER

4

GARY PLAYER

4

GREG NORMAN

4

BEN HOGAN

4

In 2019 THE PLAYERS Championship will make a welcome return to March, with the PGA Championship moving from August to May. This means that the Florida Swing could have a very familiar look to it from next year, potentially beginning with the Valspar Championship in Tampa Bay, continuing with The Honda Classic in Palm Beach Gardens and Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando, and concluding with THE PLAYERS in Ponte Vedra Beach. The 2019 PGA Tour schedule is a closely guarded secret, but one thing is for sure, THE PLAYERS returning to March is the best thing to happen to the tour in many years.

St Andrews M A G A Z I N E

2 - 8 APRIL AUGUSTA NATIONAL

PREVIEW

FROM SILVER TO GOLD TO GREEN? ROSE READY

TO BLOOM AT AUGUSTA THIS APRIL

2013 US OPEN CHAMPION & 2016 OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALLIST THE FAVOURITE TO FINALLY WEAR GREEN JACKET

When the time came in 2016 for the twenty-year wait for an English winner of The Masters to be ended, it was, in truth, a spectacular shock that it was Danny Willett who provided the fourth Masters victory for that nation.

Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Luke Donald and Paul Casey have all been in contention for the title on Masters Sunday over the last decade, but none have come so close as Justin Rose to donning the Green Jacket.

Last April the 2013 US Open Champion and 2016 Olympic Gold Medallist was a putt away from winning his second major, before agonizingly losing out to friend and European Ryder Cup teammate, Sergio Garcia in a playoff.

The defeat took Rose some time to get over, but in the autumn his season went from consistent to spectacular.

At the WGC-HSBC Champions he surged to a record-breaking comeback over the world number one Dustin Johnson. Rose shot a final round 67 to in part erase the deficit to Johnson. But the world number one crashed and burned with a 77 and the title was Rose’s, a second World Golf Championship of his now stellar career.

Then just 7 days later he clinched the Turkish

Airlines Open title with a birdie on the 72nd hole, pushing him into serious contention for the Race to Dubai title. In Dubai he took the race to the final hole, narrowly missing out to Tommy Fleetwood, and finishing in the top ten rather than the top four which would have secured his second European Tour Order of Merit.

Just prior to Christmas, in the final event of the year on the world’s tours Rose travelled to Indonesia, for the Indonesia Masters. He led from wire-to-wire and claimed his third title in the final two and a half months of the year.

He finished the year like a steam train, and nobody can lay claim to be a more in-form player than him as we started 2018.

His hot form, coupled with his outstanding record at Augusta surely make him the favourite coming into the season’s first major.

Aside from his playoff defeat in 2017, Rose has shown a flair for playing great golf around the hallowed grounds of Augusta National.

In 12 appearances the 2013 US Open Champion has never missed a cut, finishing in the top ten on five occasions, and in each of his last three outings.

In 2015 he was also runner-up, albeit some six shots back of runaway

champion Jordan Spieth.

Rose typically starts well in The Masters, and that is born out by the fact he has twice held the sole or tied lead after 18 holes.

He has been in contention heading into the final round, but generally somewhere along the line he has stumbled.

Nowhere more dramatically than the 17th hole on the Sunday of the 2007 Masters when he was chasing the clubhouse lead of Zach Johnson. On the tee of the 71st hole he lay just 2 shots off Johnson’s 1-overpar mark, in what was a particularly difficult week for scoring. Needing 2 birdies to force a playoff, Rose needed to be aggressive, but his drive was pushed wildly to the right and ricocheted back some fifty yards off a tree, blocking his route to the green for his second shot. A doublebogey ensued and his hopes of being the first British winner at Augusta since Faldo in 1996 were dashed.

On the Saturday of the 2015 Masters he burned up the final six holes to charge into the final group with Spieth, giving the five-time Ryder Cup player a front seat view of the leader.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t apply the pressure with birdies at the right time, even when the seemingly dominant

Texan did stumble over the front nine.

Rose is a potential Masters Champion in the mould of the typical winner, he has gained experience, had the knocks and played well in patches during tournaments since making his debut in 2003.

He has started well and finished strong, but it was only last year that he kept it going from start to finish, only being beaten by inspirational play from the mercurial Spaniard.

Sergio Garcia, winner of 9 PGA Tour titles, 12 on the European Tour and 9 other tournaments around the world, was the fans favourite heading into the final round. But the critics and history dictated that Justin Rose was the favourite, the 2016 Olympic champion having broken his major duck at the 2013 US Open.

The European Ryder Cup heroes were tied through 54 holes and Garcia made the early move with a birdie at the first hole, and a second birdie at the third hole, coupled with a bogey from Rose at the fifth gave Garcia a commanding three-shot lead.

Was this to be the day that Sergio finally won his first Major title? The Englishman had other thoughts. Rose bounced

back brilliantly with birdies at the sixth, seventh and eighth holes to tie the lead through nine holes at 8-under-par.

Then the see-saw battle took another twist, as Garcia bogeyed the tenth and eleventh holes to give Rose a two-stroke lead, this amazing final round had seen a fivestroke swing over the course of six holes.

The former World Number Two then bounced back with a spectacular birdie at the par-four fourteenth hole, before the pair took the drama to the next level at the par-five fifteenth. Rose made birdie, while Garcia’s second shot thrilled the galleries as it glanced the flag, setting up a stunning eagle to tie the lead at 9under-par.

Rose then rekindled memories of Faldo and Willett with a crucial birdie at the 16th to edge ahead once more. But a bogey at the 17th saw the Englishman fall back to 9-under-par and the pair headed to the 72nd hole tied for the lead, setting up a grandstand finish.

Rose missed a sevenfooter for birdie, while García missed a five-foot putt to win the championship, forcing a sudden-death playoff.

Beginning the suddendeath playoff at the par-4 18th, Rose's drive found the trees and he was

forced to chip out.

García's drive found the fairway and he hit his approach to 12 feet, while Rose was 14 feet away for par.

Rose missed the putt, giving García two putts to win the championship, but he converted the birdie to win his first career major championship.

Garcia had won a compelling final round duel between two of Europe’s greatest and most popular golfers.

That defeat will surely be the fire that burns inside Rose, and with his near twenty years of experience in Major Championship golf, and unquestionable talent Rose will undoubtedly slip into the Green Jacket sooner or later.

A winner of Silver at the 2013 US Open at Merion, where he held off a charging Phil Mickelson to claim an emotional first Major title.

A winner of Gold at the historic 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, where he duelled with The Open Champion Henrik Stenson in the final round.

He has won 20 tournaments across six continents, and now is as good a time as ever to go from Silver, to Gold, to Green.

SLAM D U N K!

RESTED RORY READY TO ROAR AT AUGUSTA FOUR–TIME MAJOR CHAMPION TAKES AIM AT MASTERS GLORY TO COMPLETE GRAND SLAM

Golf sometimes requires bravery. Bravery to have a game plan and stick to it. Bravery to take on a difficult shot under the most extreme pressure. And sometimes away from the course a player has to show bravery. Rory McIlroy made a brave decision after the 2017 Open Championship to end his decade-long relationship with caddie JP Fitzgerald.

Then following the PGA Championship McIlroy made another brave decision, to take a break from the game for three months. A rib injury had bothered him all year, and in order to allow it to heal the former world number one took the decision to put the clubs away.

This meant McIlroy had his first winless year of his career since 2008 and began 2018 outside the world’s top ten. But it could yield the greatest reward for being so brave. It was a brave decision because it meant he also missed out on playing in the WGCHSBC Champions and three Rolex Series events, but McIlroy was looking at the bigger picture, with Augusta

and beyond in his mind.

Over 100 days after holing his final putt of 2017 at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, McIlroy made his return to the worldwide stage at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. Abu Dhabi has been a great place for Rory to begin his season for many years now, but despite playing extremely well in the emirate, he is still yet to taste success there.

Once again the Northern Irishman came up short of winning the title in 2018, but there can be no doubt he will take encouragement from a week which saw him finish in third place.

Rounds of 69, 66, 65 and 70, with just three bogeys, put him four shots behind the defending champion Tommy Fleetwood on his return to the game.

In the following week McIlroy returned to the Emirates Golf Club in Dubai, where he has won twice, and once again was in contention until the very end. Despite four days of brilliant golf McIlroy came up short again, this time being

defeated by rising Chinese star Li Haotong.

Rounds of 65, 64, 68 and 69 saw him post 22-under-par for the tournament, a score which would have won or forced a playoff in every previous edition of the OMEGA Dubai Desert Classic. His first two events can certainly be seen as a success, despite not adding to his collection of European Tour victories.

McIlroy has made a commitment to play more tournaments in 2018, and his leadup to Augusta also features the AT&T Pebble Beach pro-am, Genesis Open, Honda Classic, Valspar Championship, Arnold Palmer Invitational and WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play Championship.

A missed cut at Pebble Beach was unexpected, but he bounced back with a top 20 finish at Riviera.

Despite not contending at either tournament, and finishing well off the pace at PGA National, McIlroy has had valuable oncourse time to get his swing back to where he wants it to be ahead of The Masters.

It has been three years since McIlroy first arrived at Augusta with the Grand Slam in his grasp, and once again this April he will drive down Magnolia Lane with his eyes on the greatest prize in golf.

This time he does so with less focus on him, with others like defending champion Sergio Garcia, world number one Dustin Johnson, PGA Champion Justin Thomas and Open Champion Jordan Spieth all taking a greater share of the limelight ahead of the year’s first Major.

McIlroy has been so close to claiming a green jacket in the past, and has put great stretches of play at Augusta together, without putting it all together for 72 holes.

Some 7 years on since his infamous meltdown over the second nine holes on Sunday, McIlroy is now a much wiser golfer, and will undoubtedly handle the situation much better should he find himself in a similar position this year. In 2011 the chasing pack were of varying ages and stages of their careers, many had far

more experience than McIlroy.

Now, comparatively, McIlroy is the senior party in the group of brilliant, young golfers.

He has four major wins under his belt and has seen pretty much everything this game can throw at you.

Jordan Spieth, despite having already won at Augusta, had his own meltdown in 2016, proving that it can happen to anyone at any time. McIlroy knows he can take Augusta apart, he has done so before.

If he can do it again and do so four days, then his place in golfing history will be secured.

No European has ever won three separate major championships, something which he achieved by winning the 2014 Open at Hoylake.

Should the Ulsterman complete the Grand Slam he will become the first to do so at Augusta since Gene Sarazen in 1935. He certainly has the game to do it, and if he does do it then it will be a timely reminder to the world of golf that Rory is here and ready to win more majors.

2011 US OPEN Congressional -16

2012 PGA Kiawah Island -13

2014 OPEN Hoylake -17

2014 PGA Valhalla -16

BAND OF BROTHERS JOHNSON, THOMAS,SPIETH, KOEPKA & FOWLER SET TO DOMINATE

AMERICA‘S FAMOUS FIVE COULD ALL SIZZLE AT AUGUSTA NATIONAL

1960 was a seminal year in the history of modern golf, the achievements of one golfer transformed the game and how it was perceived forever. Arnold Palmer won The Masters and US Open, and finished second in the centenary Open Championship in St Andrews.

He also won 6 times on the PGA Tour and the World Cup of Golf, and his play generated interest in golf never seen before across America and the world. His appearance in St Andrews helped to revitalize The Open and corporate America got behind the game in a way not seen before.

Palmer’s thrilling win at Augusta where he birdied the final two holes to win was the first to be captured live on CBS television, and then in the summer he produced more dramatics.

Starting the final round of the US Open some seven shots back of leader Mike Souchak, Palmer stormed to victory with an incredible round of 65. It was and remains the largest final round comeback in the history of the US Open Championship.

That week, at Cherry Hills in Denver, Colorado, was notable for two other important moments in the game of golf. Ben Hogan contended for a major

title for the final time, tied for the lead going into the final two holes he made bogey-triple bogey to finish in a tie for ninth place.

He would record just three further major top tens in his career, but without threatening to win. The nine-time Major Champion and winner of the Career Grand Slam was America’s most famous golfer, and Palmer had taken that mantle in spectacular fashion.

The man who would finish second to Palmer that week at Cherry Hills was one, young, Jack Nicklaus. The 20-year-old US Amateur Champion held the lead with nine holes to play, finishing up just two shots out of a playoff with Palmer.

A rivalry was born.

One which would be highlighted sensationally at the 1962 US Open at Oakmont. In his first year as a professional, Nicklaus defeated Palmer in an 18hole playoff to take his first Major title.

With Palmer already signed up, sports management tycoon Mark McCormack grabbed the signature of Nicklaus, and shortly after South African star Gary Player. They would become the BIG THREE. The talented trio would go on to dominate the 1960s, and Palmer and

Nicklaus were the preeminent golfers in America.

Their incredible play saw 16 out of 36 majors between 1960 and 1966 go to either Palmer, Player or Nicklaus, including a remarkable seven consecutive Masters Tournaments.

This inspired a new generation of golfers in America particularly, and with as the decade turned into the 1970’s Nicklaus had established himself as the world’s greatest golfer. The Ohioan had won 8 Majors and was hunting down Walter Hagen’s all-time tally of 11. He had surpassed Palmer’s record of 7 and was the king of the game.

But the 1970’s would see four men rise up to challenge the Golden Bear, the duo of Palmer and Nicklaus had given birth to a new generation, a golden generation without fear.

First there was a brash, confident, flamboyant, grafting and charismatic Texan who at the age of 28 won his first Major, the 1968 US Open. Lee Trevino would go on to win six majors in a career which would include 29 PGA Tour titles and 2 on the European Tour.

The “Merry Mex” had the game to match his incessant chat, and he stood up to Nicklaus,

Five years after Trevino’s first Major victory came the remarkable win of Johnny Miller at Oakmont. This California kid was flamboyant in dress and in play, scorching the historic course near Pennsylvania with a record-setting final round of 63 to claim a stunning first Major title.

That summer also saw the emergence of Tom Weiskopf onto the major stage at Royal Troon, where he won The Open.

Between them Miller and Wieskopf won a sensational 10 tournaments around the world, and Miller partnered with Jack Nicklaus to win the World Cup in Spain. Miller won the Individual title by 3 strokes from Gary Player.

Two years later Miller and Wieskopf would have an epic contest with Jack Nicklaus at Augusta, later dubbed “The Magnificent Masters”. Nicklaus holed a stunning putt on the 16th and won by a single stroke from the prodigious youngsters. Also in 1975 Tom Watson would win his first Major title, the Open Championship at Carnoustie.

Watson would become a genuine rival for Nicklaus in the 70’s and 80’s, going on to win three of the four majors, with a career haul of 8. He and Nicklaus would battle for four major championships including epic showdowns at Turnberry

in 1977 and Pebble Beach in 1982 and in 1981 he, Nicklaus and Miller would battle it out for the Green Jacket, with Watson emerging the victor.

Woods dominated in the same fashion as Nicklaus, and even though he has fallen short of his record total of major wins, for many in this era he is the greatest golfer of all-time.

Over a 16-year period between 1971 and 1986 the Fantastic Five would win a staggering 26 Major titles, and finish second a remarkable 27 times. This fabulous group of golfers came out of the inspirational period of the 1960’s and dominated the 70’s and much of the 80’s, and if we fastforward to the year 2000 we can see a similar inspirational era which has given us a Famous Five in 2018.

This new generation is younger, fitter, stronger and more mature than any generation of young golfers in history.

Tiger Woods won a record-breaking four consecutive majors including the US Open by 15 and The Open by 8, and he was the world’s biggest sportsman. His rival for a decade was Phil Mickelson, the two locked horns in several majors and many other tournaments between 2000 and 2010, and their riveting play inspired a new generation of golfers.

Tiger Woods made golf seem cool, in the same way Palmer did in the 60’s. Phil Mickelson played the game in the same style as Palmer, hitting it hard and swashbuckling his way to major titles and wins around the world.

This Famous Five have it all. Incredible distance off the tee, stunning iron play, remarkable short games and a flair which makes the game appear cool and stylish.

Dustin Johnson is the oldest at 33, and as the World Number One for the last 50 weeks he is the unquestionable dominant force in golf right now.

Johnson has won at least one tournament on the PGA Tour in his first 11 seasons on tour, a record which is only surpassed by Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods.

The South Carolina native has only won one Major Championship so far, the 2016 US Open, but he has featured in many more, experiencing some painful defeats over the last 10 years. His tally of 17 wins on the PGA Tour is greater than any current active player in the same period, and they include some five World Golf Championships, taking him to second on the alltime list of winners in the series.

Johnson’s record at Augusta is somewhat less impressive, but over the last two editions he has finished in a tie for sixth and a tie for fourth, suggesting he is getting closer to conquering his greatest golfing challenge.

Johnson’s length off the tee sets him apart most of the group, with one exception.

Brooks Koepka is the model of the modern golfer. He is tall, athletic and powerful. Having come through the Challenge Tour in Europe, Koepka won in his first full season on the European Tour, holding off Ian Poulter to win the Turkish Airlines Open in 2014.

This success and a top five finish in that year’s US Open at Pinehurst propelled him on to the PGA Tour, and more success swiftly followed.

outside of the United States, illustrating that his incredible game travels well.

Then in June of 2017 he arrived at Erin Hills and overpowered the course, tying Rory McIlroy’s record-low score in relation to par and winning by 4 strokes in a low-scoring championship in Wisconsin.

He hasn’t yet featured in a serious way at Augusta, but his play suggests a marked upward trend, finishing T33, T21 and T11 in his first three starts in The Masters Tournament.

He has yet to miss a cut.

If Johnson is the dominant force and World Number One, and Koepka is the model modern golfer, then Jordan Spieth is the collector of Majors and the Augusta expert.

Koepka won the 2015 Phoenix Open by a stroke from Hideki Matsuyama and 2-time Masters Champion Bubba Watson. The Floridian proved that he could compete with and against the best and come out on top.

Jordan Spieth, at 24, already has a career resume which almost every current player would accept at the end of their playing days. 3 Major Championships, including 1 Masters, 1 US Open and an Open Championship, 13 wins worldwide, the FedEx Cup and multiple weeks as world number one.

Koepka has also demonstrated a willingness to play on a global basis, winning the 2016 and 2017 Dunlop Phoenix Tournament in Japan. These were his sixth and seventh victories

But Spieth is far from done, as he looks to go down in the history of the game, especially within his home state of Texas.

Byron Nelson, until now Dallas’ greatest golfer, won 5 Major titles and 64

titles worldwide in a twenty-year period.

Spieth has already made significant progress to surpassing this record in just five years.

Spieth’s record at Augusta is nothing short of sensational. In his debut in 2014 he was in the lead on the front nine of the final round, battling with 2012 Champion Bubba Watson, ultimately coming second. Then 12 months later he dominated the field, shooting a remarkable 6466 over the first two days to separate himself from the field. He eventually won by 4 strokes and matched Tiger Woods’ low-score of 18-under-par for The Masters.

A painful defeat to Danny Willett in 2016 meant he had to settle for second place. Then in 2017 he was on the fringes of things but still finished in a tie for 11th place. He is the man to beat, and anyone who finishes above him will surely win The Masters.

One of Spieth’s closest friends in golf is Justin Thomas, and 24-year-old from Louisville, Kentucky has already shown he can more than mix it with the best in the world.

After winning the 2014 Web.com Tour Championship Thomas has taken to the PGA Tour like a duck to water.

Back-tb-back wins in the CIMB Classic in 2015 and 2016 saw him settle into the tour, and then in 2017 he exploded onto the scene with a year for the ages.

A stunning victory over Hideki Matsuyama in the Sentry Tournament of Champions was followed by a dominating victory in the Sony Open in Hawaii, which included a round of 59.

Thomas left Olympic Champion and 2013 US Open Champion Justin Rose trailing in his wake with a 7-shot win.

Then at Quail Hollow the man from the home city of Muhammad Ali knocked out the opposition to claim his first Major title, the PGA Championship.

A final round of 68 saw him make up a 2-shot deficit and win by two from Francesco Molinari, Louis Oosthuizen and Patrick Reed.

This Major breakthrough set him up for a tilt at the FedEx Cup, and victory at the Dell Technologies Championship near Boston was enough to see this prodigious talent claim the $10million bonus.

He began his 2018 season with victory in last autumn’s CJ Cup in Korea, claiming the fifth title of a remarkable year.

Thomas’s performances at Augusta also show an upward trend and a growing comfort level in this unique environment.

He has finished T39 and T22 in his two appearances, and he certainly has the game to

challenge for the Green Jacket at some point in his career.

Perhaps the player with the most potential of the entire group to have a lasting impact outside of the game is Rickie Fowler.

At the age of 29 Fowler has already made a significant impact upon the way golf is perceived around the world. His good looks, stylish attire and flamboyant manner on the course has attracted a new wave of followers to golf in this social media era.

And his ability on the course is perhaps greater than any of the other four in this Famous Five, He has demonstrated skill and flair in all four majors, proving his game is adaptable to all conditions.

In 2014 he finished inside the top five of all four majors, the first to do so without winning one in a calendar year.

His first win came in the 2011 Kolon Korea Open, defeating Rory McIlroy and the field by six strokes. His PGA Tour breakthrough also came at the expense of McIlroy in the 2012 Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow in a playoff.

2 winless years were followed by victories in THE PLAYERS Championship at Sawgrass and the Aberdeen Asset

Management Scottish Open at Gullane, and the Deutsche Bank Championship near Boston. Then in January of 2016 he narrowly defeated Matt Kuchar in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship to move into the world’s top four.

Last year wins came at the Honda Classic and the Hero World Challenge, and with 8 wins in his career the California Kid in this group is starting to fulfil his remarkable potential.

This sensational group of talented Americans are all certain to be part of the United States Ryder Cup teams for the next decade, and if they carry on their torrid pace of Major victories they could dominate golf and Augusta for many years to come. They have been inspired to take up the game by Woods and Mickelson in the same way each generation before them was inspired by the previous one.

From the Morris’s and Parks to Braid, Taylor and Vardon, then from Hagen, Jones and Sarazen to Hogan, Snead and Nelson.

From Palmer, Player and Nicklaus to Nicklaus, Watson, Miller, Trevino and Wieskopf, then Norman, Faldo, Seve, Langer, Lyle and Woosnam, and Tiger Woods and Phil Miclelson.

Now we have this generation of great, young American golfers which are complimented by an incredible array of talented golfers from all corners of the globe.

McIlroy from Northern Ireland, Rose from England, Stenson from Sweden, Pieters from Belgium, Kaymer from Germany, Rahm and Garcia from Spain, Matsuyama from Japan, Day and Scott from Australia and Grace from South Africa to name just a few of the great golfers worldwide today.

All of these and more will be at Augusta this April, along with a returning Tiger Woods. What a week we should have in front of us. With the old and the new, the legends and the would-be legends colliding on one of the world’s great courses in one of the world’s most remarkable settings, this could be the best Major of all-time.

BEN HOGAN‘S ANNUS MIRABILIS A YEAR UNLIKE ANY OTHER 65 YEARS SINCE THE WEE ICE MON WON THREE MAJORS IN ONE GLORIOUS SEASON

BY MATT HOOPER

Annus mirabilis – wonderful year or year of miracles.

We have all had one, or maybe more than one.

For myself there are four I can remember specifically 1998 when I had my best year at School and my beloved Arsenal won the double of Premier League and FA Cup; 2004 when I completed my first year at University and went over to Royal County Down to caddie; 2006 when I completed my final year at University, ran a golf event in France and returned to caddie at Royal County Down and 2011 when I got the job as a caddie at St Andrews Links. Personally satisfying years where everything fitted into place, where I achieved something new and great.

In sport we can all recall those amazing years when a team or an individual soared above everyone else to create history for example Arsenal in 2004 going through the entire season unbeaten or Manchester United in 1999 winning the treble, England Rugby winning the Grand Slam and World Cup in 2003 and Michael Phelps at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

And just last year the incredible year in the

United Kingdom featuring the Diamond Jubilee, Olympic Games and Paralympic Games when it seemed like the whole nation was transfixed by an unprecedented series of events and achievements by our athletes and countless individuals from humble backgrounds whose achievements transcended normal life.

The year of miracles is a very apt title to apply to 1953 and the unprecedented achievements by Ben Hogan. 2018 marks the 65th anniversary of still the joint most successful season by any player in the history of the game in the Major Championships, three wins out of four by an individual in the four greatest championships in the world of golf. Ben Hogan's record-breaking year began with his record-breaking win at Augusta National and ended with his historic win in the only ever Open Championship he played, he returned home from Carnoustie to a hero's welcome and a tickertape parade on Broadway in New York City.

The year which Hogan had was the crowning of an already epic career that surged from humble beginnings in Texas to fame and stardom, then plunged into crisis with a life-threatening car crash and then came back to

victory in adversity after doctors had told him he may never walk again. It is the story of a real life super-hero who was the Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods of his day and whose legacy still lives on 60 years later.

to practice longer and harder than anyone else each week, and once the first win came he quickly became a prolific winner, something which could be said of him once he eventually claimed that first Major title.

In many ways Ben Hogan was the Luke Donald or Lee Westwood of his day.

He turned professional in 1930 and took 16 years to win a first Major Championship, winning 30 tournaments on the regular tour and recording 15 top ten finishes in 17 Major appearances before his breakthrough in the 1946 PGA Championship.

Hogan's maiden major win came at the Portland Golf Club in Oregon at the 1946 PGA Championship where he defeated Ed Oliver 6&4 in the 36-hole final, the win was followed in 1948 with a major double at the 1948 U.S. Open at Riviera in California and PGA Championship at Norwood Hills Country Club, making him by far the pre-eminent golfer of the era following the second World War with 3 Major titles and 52 career wins the world was at the feet of “The Hawk”.

Of course, the second World War did disrupt his early professional career and maybe a Major win would have come earlier had there not been such an event, Hogan was stationed at Fort Worth, Texas during the war from 1943 to 1945 serving as a utility pilot in the US Army Air Forces with the rank of Lieutenant. Hogan took 8 years to break through for his first tournament win and the early years of his professional career were extremely difficult, with his wife Valerie and Hogan having to juggle the finances while staying in hotels when going from tournament to tournament. These struggles made Hogan determined and resilient, increasing his motivation

Then in February of 1949 his world fell apart and he nearly lost his life in a head-on-collision in his car with a Greyhound Bus early in the morning fog, leaning across to save his wife Valerie he avoided certain death as the steering column punctured the driver’s seat. The accident left “Bantam Ben” with a double-fracture of the pelvis, a fractured collar bone, a left ankle fracture, a chipped rib, and near-fatal blood clots: he would suffer lifelong circulation problems and other

physical limitations. His doctors said he might never walk again, let alone play golf competitively. While in hospital, Hogan's life was endangered by a blood clot problem.

Can you imagine the 24hour news coverage and hype if such an accident had happened to Tiger Woods? It would be suffocating. Just as Hogan looked set to challenge all of golf's greatest records including Walter Hagen's 11 Major Championship wins he found himself fighting for his life, and golf was the furthest thing from his mind. Incredibly within 7 months following an extensive rehabilitation Hogan was back practising golf and returned to the PGA Tour at the start of the 1950 season at the course which had been labelled “Hogan's Alley” following his double wins at Riviera in 1948. He lost an 18-hole play-off to his great rival Sam Snead, but the comeback had begun, despite suffering chronic pain in his legs throughout.

At his first major appearance following the accident Hogan finished in a tie for fourth at Augusta and then dramatically won the U.S. Open at Merion in an 18hole play-off with George Fazio and Lloyd Mangrum, his famous 1iron approach helped to

set up the four which would get him into the play-off is one of the most iconic images in all of golf. He defended his U.S. Open title at the monstrous Oakland Hills South Course in Michigan, clinching a two-shot win with one of the finest rounds of his career.

A three-under-par 67 was the lowest round of the week and one of just two rounds recorded under par in the entire tournament, Hogan was quoted as saying “I am glad I have brought this course – this monster – to its knees”. The 1951 U.S. Open was Hogan's sixth major win and second of the year following a longawaited victory at Augusta National in his tenth appearance at the home of golf's great amateur Bobby Jones.

Ben Hogan's record at Augusta is among the greatest of any golfer ever. In 25 appearances he won two green jackets, finished second on four occasions and recorded seventeen top tens, missing only one cut.

He won by 2 shots from Skee Riegel and was one of only three players who completed the tournament with an under-par aggregate, finishing with a 68 to post 8-under for four rounds in demanding conditions.

Following Hogan's accident in 1949 he became a more infrequent entrant to

tournaments but continued to be victorious, he won the World Championship of Golf at Tam O'Shanter Golf Club in the madefor-television event which became a leading PGA Tour event for 10 years in the 40's and 50's. In 1952 Hogan won a solitary tournament at his home course, Colonial Country Club, the Colonial National Invitation tournament was the event which Hogan won the most throughout his career claiming five wins.

By the end of 1952 Hogan was 40 years of age and playing in an ever-reducing schedule it seemed the 6-time Major champions career was coming to an end, with 58 PGA Tour wins and all three of the American majors in his cabinet he had completed a fulfilling career. But one last hurrah was on the horizon.

1953 was the year in which Dwight D Eisenhower was inaugurated as the 34th President of the United States and Elizabeth Windsor was crowned as Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, England was defeated for the first time at home by a continental European team as they lost 3-6 to a Ferenc Puskas inspired Hungary, Arsenal won the league championship and Blackpool won the “Matthews Final” in the FA

Cup. In American Football the Detroit Lions won the NFL Championship to complete back-to-back victories, the New York Yankees won a fifth successive World Series and the Minneapolis Lakers won their second successive NBA title – the franchise would go on to become the LA Lakers.

In Tennis Australian Ken Rosewall won the first two of eight grand slam titles and American Maureen Connolly Brinker claimed the grand slam of all four major women's single titles. For all of these individuals and teams it was an Annus mirabilis and for Ben Hogan 1953 was to be the year he etched his name into golfing history forever with a year of miracles.

The bare facts are truly astonishing, Hogan entered six tournaments in 1953 and won five of them. He won all three of the majors he could have played in and only didn't complete the grand slam because of a scheduling conflict between The Open Championship and PGA Championship leaving him unable to compete in both tournaments. His Open Championship win completed the career grand slam, making him only the second man ever to achieve the feat after Gene Sarazen.

The year began for Hogan with a new found

vigour and hunger after re-dedicating himself to the game over the winter and he played in two proams at Seminole and Palmetto prior to competing in The Masters at Augusta.

Going to Augusta for Golf's First Major Hogan hadn't won a Major since defending the US Open in 1951 and the likes of Sam Snead and Bobby Locke had won further major titles to enhance their position as the leading rivals to the Texan, but nobody enjoyed a challenge more than Hogan.

Born into poverty with a Blacksmith for a father who committed suicide when he was just nine years of age Ben had to work and strive against adversity for much of his early life and early career as a touring professional.

Then the car crash in 1949 and the recovery, throw down a challenge to Ben Hogan and he responded unlike any other golfer of his era.

Hogan got off to a decent start in the first round with a two-underpar round of 70 to sit 2 shots back of Chick Harbert's lead in a tie for fourth place, one stroke ahead of Sam Snead. It was a solid start which formed the basis for a stunning final three days which put him into the record books. He took the lead following a second round 69, moving to five

under and one stroke clear of the 1944 PGA Champion Bob Hamilton.

It was the Saturday which saw Hogan completely take control of the tournament with a 6under-par 66 surging to a four stroke lead and on the verge of a second green jacket, the third round score took him ahead of the all-time low score for 72 holes at The Masters and required only a 1-over-par 73 on Sunday to be sure of breaking a fourteen-year record held by 3-time Major champion Ralph Guldahl.

In the rain on Sunday Hogan shattered the record with a 3-under-par 69 to finish the tournament five shots clear of the field on 14under-par, four shots lower than the next best total in Masters history at the time.

The Masters win, his second title at Augusta and 11th straight top ten finish in The Masters, was Hogan's 7th Major title and moved him into joint second in terms of all-time Major wins at that time, it would set up an astonishing run over the summer.

His next tournament was the Pan American Open in Mexico which he also won before going to The Greenbrier for another pro-am prior to his home tournament, the Colonial National Invitation. The tournament at Colonial

Country Club in his home town of Fort Worth, Texas quickly became the premier invitation tournament other than The Masters in American golf and in this year of miracles it was another miraculous finish from Bantam Ben that saw him claim a fourth title at Colonial and third win of 1953. A 3-under-par 67 saw the Texan come from 6 shots off the lead to win.

From Colonial The Hawk went North-east to the fearsome Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania for the U.S. Open, bidding to match Willie Anderson and Bobby Jones for four national championships.

Unlike Augusta Hogan came roaring out of the traps and posted a 5under-par 67 to open up a three-stroke lead straight away positioning himself to defend his lead over the final three days on the course which was renowned as the hardest of all the U.S. Open courses.

Rounds of 72, 73 and 71 clinched the championship by a massive six shots from Sam Snead, Hogan was the only player under par and had won the first two majors of 1953 by a combined 11 strokes and was marching towards golfing immortality.

Ben Hogan had conquered American golf, he was comfortable with staying in his

homeland but on advice from his contemporaries he decided it was necessary to make one trip to play in the oldest championship of them all – The Open. He traveled over two weeks prior to the championship to practice with the smaller British ball and acclimatize to the weather and links conditions. Carnoustie hosted the 1953 championship and in this year there we no exemptions, everyone had to qualify.

That meant a 36-hole competition over the Championship and Burnside courses on the Tuesday of championship week, Hogan safely qualified to take on a field of 90 other players including several of the great international golfers of the time including defending champion Bobby Locke, Roberto De Vicenzo and Peter Thomson.

Having started with a solid 73 the Masters and US Open champion was three shots back going into the second round on Thursday, he shot a 1under-par round of 71 in the second round and he moved to within two of the lead going into the 36-hole final day on the Friday.

A third round of 70 put him into a tie for the lead with Roberto De Vicenzo at 2-under-par and his course record 68 in the

final round on the Friday afternoon saw him walk away as the champion by four shots in his only ever Open Championship appearance. During the championship Hogan consistently drove the ball into the narrowest part of the par five sixth hole, leading to the hole to become known as “Hogan's Alley”, further cementing the lore of Ben Hogan.

The win at Carnoustie gave Hogan the complete set of the greatest championships in golf – The Masters, U.S. Open, PGA Championship and Open Championship, making him only the second golfer ever to achieve the feat and completing an unprecedented year of three professional major championships.

Yes, Bobby Jones had won both amateur and open championships of America and Britain, but nobody had won three professional majors in one season. Who is to say that Hogan wouldn't have completed the grand slam had there not been a scheduling conflict between The Open and PGA championships, the 36-hole final of the sevenday PGA Championship was played on the 7th of July, just one day prior to the start of The Open Championship week.

The 1949 car accident left Hogan much weaker than he used to be and

the gruelling format meant Hogan didn't play in the championship again until it became a strokeplay championship in 1960.

The Open Championship was Ben Hogan's final tournament of 1953 and fifth win out of six official tournaments, an astonishing record highlighted by those three Major wins by a combined fifteen shots.

The only golfer to replicate Hogan's incredible feat in the professional era is Tiger Woods, his wins in the US Open, Open Championship and PGA Championship in 2000 set up the Tiger Slam at Augusta in April of 2001 but even Tiger's strike rate during his greatest year was not close to Hogan's incredible 5 wins out of 6.

Hogan in '53 was the ultimate in peaking for the Majors.

In the modern era Tiger has always been chasing Jack Nicklaus's records but it was Hogan's historic treble which he matched first with an astonishing 11-win year in 2000 including winning the U.S. Open, Open Championship and PGA Championship by a combined 23 strokes and the treble of 2000 is not the only thing that links Tiger to Ben. Mental strength, a cold and steely manner on the golf course, unrivalled

dedication and victory in adversity are characteristics and features of the careers of both Tiger Woods and Ben Hogan. 58 years after Hogan's comeback victory at the US Open following his car crash Woods won the US Open with a broken leg and ruined knee, five days of unbelievable skill and courage in the face of excruciating pain in the hardest championship in golf.

BEN HOGAN 1953

Woods has been compared to Nicklaus, Palmer and Player, maybe people should be adding the name of Ben Hogan to the big three when comparing Tiger to the hall of fame legends.

WON BY 3 SHOTS

Time will tell as to whether any of the current crop of star golfers can achieve what Ben Hogan achieved in his career or get close to the feats achieved by Tiger. Rory McIlroy has won two majors in a season, as has Jordan Spieth, but as yet neither have won nine major titles and neither have dominated in quite the fashion that Hogan did in 1953.

This is reinforced by the reception he was given on his return to America from Carnoustie. The words icon and legend are over-used, they certainly can be applied to the great Ben Hogan and his legendary season of 1953.

MASTERS TOURNAMENT (AUGUSTA, GA) WON BY 5 SHOTS LOWEST WINNING SCORE OF ALL-TIME UNTIL 1971, BEATING THE PREVIOUS RECORD BY 5 SHOTS

PAN AMERICAN OPEN (MEXICO)

COLONIAL NATIONAL INVITATION (FORT WORTH, TX) WON BY 5 SHOTS

US OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP (OAKMONT, PA) WON BY 6 SHOTS HIS 4th US OPEN WIN, TYING ALL-TIME RECORD THE ONLY PLAYER TO FINISH UNDER PAR

THE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP WON BY 4 SHOTS

1953 RECORD PLAYED 6 WON 5 WORST FINISH – T3

THE MASTERS DOESN‘T START UNTIL THE

BACK NINE ON SUNDAY

HOLE 10 PAR 4 CAMELLIA

495 YARDS

MASTERS MEMORIES The back nine, or second nine as Augusta National Golf Club likes to call it, begins with a demanding, long, downhill par four to a tricky green and this is where charges for the green jacket have begun and come unstuck, and in the case of a few men this where the title has been won.

Rory McIlroy led The Masters by four shots in 2011 and by the time he began the back nine he still had the lead, even if it had diminished to one shot. A huge pull off the tee, a visit to the cabins and a treble-bogey later his hopes were all but over.

12 months later Bubba Watson produced one of the iconic shot in Masters history, a hooked 9-iron from the trees to find the green and win the playoff over Louis Oosthuizen.

Then after so many years of waiting both personally and for his nation, Adam Scott became the first Australian to win at Augusta, in 2013. A downhill birdie putt on the 10th defeated Angel Cabrera on the second hole of their playoff.

HOLE 11 PAR 4 WHITE DOGWOOD

505 YARDS

MASTERS MEMORIES Of all the holes which have been lengthened over the last 20 years at Augusta, the 11th has suffered the most. This once thrilling hole at the start of Amen Corner has become arguably the most boring of all the holes during The Masters.

The much longer second shot has generally seen players bail out and take their chances with a long two-putt or a chip and putt for par. Up until 2001the hole played to 455 yards and provided excitement and drama, with the water actually found more often from more aggressive second shots.

Over the last 21 years the 11th has provided ecstasy and anguish for many big names.

Greg Norman has seen his Masters hopes dashed on several occasions on this hole and in 1996 he three-putted to see his lead over Nick Faldo disappear.

Tiger Woods was battling with David Duval and Phil Mickelson for The Masters title in 2001 and a place in history as the first golfer to win four successive professional majors. Heading to the 11th hole Woods (World Number One) was tied with Duval (former World Number One and then number 8) at 14-under-par, one stroke ahead of World Number Two Phil Mickelson. Woods despatched an 8-iron from 143 yards to within three feet, the ball dancing round the pin. He made the birdie and went on to win by two.

HOLE 12 PAR 3 GOLDEN BELL 155 YARDS

MASTERS MEMORIES If there is one hole which immediately springs to mind when thinking of Augusta National and The Masters then it is the 12th, Golden Bell. This iconic view has been used in the opening of almost every CBS broadcast since it went to colour and many of the most iconic moments in Masters history have taken place here.

The 12th hole is a place where through the years more disaster than inspiring play has taken place. Golden Bell should be where Golden Moments take place, but so often it has been the graveyard of challengers for the green jacket.

Greg Norman led The Masters by six heading into the final round in 1996, but his lead had evaporated by the time he reached the 12th tee and when his tee shot found Rae’s creek his hopes were dashed once more.

Rory McIlroy led by four at the start of Masters Sunday in 2011, but the start of the back nine and a four-putt on the 12th destroyed his hopes of a first Major title.

Then Jordan Spieth led by three on the 12th tee in 2016, before finding the water twice and making a quadruple bogey and seeing his bid for a second successive Masters victory ended.

One year, perhaps, we will see a hole-in-one from a challenger, launching their quest for The Masters, but the nature of this wolf in sheep’s clothing of a hole dictates it will be more disaster than delight.

HOLE 13 PAR 5 AZALEA

510 YARDS

MASTERS MEMORIES 13 is perhaps the most beautiful and spectacular hole at Augusta National. It could also be said it is the most volatile, with scores from 3 to 7 possible in the blink of an eye. A short par-five by modern standards, the difficulty of the hole comes in the shape of the tee shot required, the sidehill lie for the second shot and the large, sloping green guarded by the creek.

In 1996 Nick Faldo was hunting down Greg Norman, and the crunch came at the 13th hole. After a stunning drive he had a choice to make. Go for the green in a bid to take the title away from Norman, and risk losing it himself. Or lay-up and hope for a one-putt birdie. After great deliberation he decided to hit the 2-iron and striped it on to the green from a side-hill lie. It goes down as one of Faldo’s greatest shots.

The entire winter of 2000/01 was spent obsessing over whether Tiger Woods could complete the Tiger Slam or not, and a key shot in that bid for a second Masters title was the drive at 13. He had spent months working on the draw that could get him into position to make birdie or eagle on that hole, and come Sunday he found driving perfection, setting up a crucial birdie on the way to victory over David Duval and Phil Mickelson.

In his ultimately disappointing charge on the second nine in 2004, Ernie Els hit a second shot from 206 yards to 10 feet, holing the putt for eagle. Phil Mickelson would ultimately deny him with birdie at the 72nd hole to win by 1.

INSPIRED BY THE OLD COURSE

HOLE 14 PAR 4 CHINESE FIR 440 YARDS

MASTERS MEMORIES The 14th hole is one of the elements of Augusta National which pays homage to St Andrews, with no bunkers but rolling terrain which the player is supposed to use to aid an approach to the pin. Whilst it lacks the wow factor of Amen Corner, it often provides the springboard for a fast finish to the tournament for the contenders.

One player who has had a spectacular time on the fourteenth hole over the years is Phil Mickelson. In his 2004 victory he made birdie here to tie Ernie Els at 7-under-par before going on to make birdie at the par-five fifteenth and the eighteenth to collect his first major title in dramatic fashion.

Then in 2010 the American holed his second shot to the fourteenth for eagle, part of a run of eagle-eagle-birdie in the third round to move into the final group on Sunday. He would win his third Masters title by three shots from Lee Westwood.

In 2005 Chris DiMarco hit a stunning second shot to set up a birdie and cut the gap on Tiger Woods to 1 shot with four holes to play.

Woods would eventually defeat DiMarco in a playoff.

In 2007 Zach Johnson birdied the hole on his way to a dramatic first Major title, winning by 2 shots from Retief Goosen, Rory Sabbatini and Tiger Woods. Justin Rose also birdied the hole as he chased down the Iowan.

HOLE 15 PAR 5 FIRETHORN

530 YARDS

MASTERS MEMORIES The 15th hole is the final par five on the course and has provided its fair share of drama over the history of The Masters. It is here that the picture of who is going to win becomes a lot clearer, and it is the last chance for the chasing pack to make a significant move up the leaderboard. Over the last 21 years it has proved pivotal in determining the winner.

One of my first memories of this hole is from 1996 and the epic duel between Nick Faldo and Greg Norman. Norman had seen his lead disappear and was chasing Faldo over the last few holes. The Australian desperately needed an eagle to close the gap on the Englishman, and went for the green in two, coming up slightly short, his ball resting on the bank rather than rolling into the water. His chip then lipped out, and Norman dramatically fell to the ground. I can still see that iconic hat of his now. Faldo went on to win by five shots.

In 2008 Trevor Immelman was bidding to become the second South African winner of The Masters after Gary Player. He came to the fifteenth with a commanding five shot lead, but having laid up with his second shot, he faced a tricky approach to the green. He caught it heavy and he seemed destined to find the water, somehow the ball stopped half-way down the slope and he managed to make par. He followed it with a doublebogey at the 16th, so the fifteenth could have seen his lead disappear in two holes. Fate was on his side like Couples at the 12th in 1992.

Trevor Immelman in 2008

HOLE 16 PAR 3 REDBUD

170 YARDS

MASTERS MEMORIES The 16th hole is perhaps the most dramatic of all 18 at Augusta National, certainly when it comes to Masters Sunday. It has provided many spectacular moments over the last 80 years and will continue to do so in to the future. However, for me, one stands above all others. The one time that I watched Masters Sunday somewhere else other than St Andrews or my hometown in Wiltshire, was in 2005 when we had returned to University after the Easter break.

I was struggling to get reception on the television in my room so I dared to put it on in the lounge, from memory, and it is rather hazy, there were four or five of us in the lounge, some of whom really weren’t interested in the golf.

By this stage the competition between Tiger Woods and Chris Di Marco had reached a critical stage and with Tiger out of position behind the green it looked like Di Marco was going to pull off an unlikely victory.

Of course we all know Woods holed his chip but as the ball edged towards the hole the shrieks from three of us got louder and louder, once the ball toppled over the edge of the hole it was pandemonium and my memory of this iconic golfing moment is of one the largest and loudest students in my class ending up on top of me on the sofa as he also toppled over the edge.

INSPIRED BY THE OLD COURSE

HOLE 17 PAR 4 NANDINA

440 YARDS

MASTERS MEMORIES The 17th hole at Augusta is a difficult, but largely uninspiring hole, made even less notable by the storm which brought down Eisenhower’s tree. However, it has played a critical role in determining many of The Masters champions over the last 21 years.

In 2009 Kenny Perry seemed on course to claim an unlikely victory, but he missed the green with his approach and the subtleties of this green caught him out, with his third shot rolling off the front of the green, resulting in a double-bogey and eventual loss to Angel Cabrera in a playoff.

It was here in 2011 that Charl Schwartzel made the third of his record-breaking four successive birdies to finish the tournament.

However, one of the most vivid memories I have comes from a player who hasn’t yet won The Masters. In that same 2011 tournament Rory McIlroy dominated, and looked destined to win a green jacket at the age of 21. On the Saturday in his third round he faced a difficult 33-foot putt for birdie to extend his lead to four shots.

He was above the hole and the putt broke several times, a seemingly impossible putt to read. The ball edged its way towards the hole and dropped, prompting McIlroy to punch the air and put him on course for a stunning victory. We all know what transpired on the Sunday, but I dare say 17 will play a critical role in any victory the Northern Irishman has in the future. .

HOLE 18 PAR 4 HOLLY

465 YARDS

MASTERS MEMORIES The first Masters I ever watched was 1996 and Nick Faldo’s stunning comeback victory over Greg Norman. I was 12 years old and I had just started to play golf in the previous year, Faldo was my idol and inspiration for taking up the game, and he and Greg Norman were the pre-eminent players of the time.

I remember not being able to watch too much of it because I was only young, and it was on fairly late for a 12-year-old in the 1990’s. The one memory that I have etched on my mind though is of Faldo, arms aloft, the putter pointing to sky after he had holed his final putt to seal the win.

Much of the drama of The Masters may take place around Amen Corner or at the 16th hole, but victory is almost always secured at the 18th, and many of my clearest memories of The Masters are winning putts on this green. Tiger in 1997 (he had won far before that, but it is the moment which stands above all others), O’Meara in 1998, Tiger in 2001 to clinch the Tiger Slam, Phil Mickelson in 2004, Tiger in 2005 to win the playoff, Schwartzel in 2011 to complete a four-birdie finish and of course Sergio Garcia last year to end the dramatic playoff with Justin Rose.

The 18th hole is kind of what I imagine as the perfect finale to a great golf course. One last climb back to the clubhouse on the hill, with the members sat outside being entertained by the golf, and nowhere can they have been more entertained than the 18th at Augusta National Golf Club.

TV GUIDE

The Par 3 Contest is Live on Sky Sports Golf Wednesday 4 April, 8pm

After months of speculation and the loss of the PGA Championship, Sky Sports and Augusta National have confirmed an extension to Sky’s live coverage of the four rounds of The Masters.

In line with Augusta’s other television broadcast contracts, the deal is for one year.

Sky Sports team of Commentators and experts will be led by David Livingstone, alongside Butch Harmon, Paul McGinley and others. In the commentary box Ewen Murray will once again be the familiar voice putting words to the stunning pictures.

The deal confirms that Sky Sports is the only place to watch all four rounds of The Masters in the UK, and their award-winning team will bring the viewer even more great coverage of Golf’s First Major.

Barney Francis, Sky Sports Managing Director said: "This is fantastic news and our viewers can look forward to another special week at Augusta National. The Masters is a magical event played on a magnificent golf course.

"I believe our awardwinning coverage and dedicated golf channel will give the best platform for a memorable tournament as part of a tremendous year of golf on Sky Sports."

Sky Sports Golf is the only place to see all four days play live in the UK. Coverage will be available on Sky Sports Golf and Sky Sports Main Event

Sky Sports Golf will broadcast the Par 3 Contest Live as part of their preview show on Wednesday April 4, coverage begins at 8pm

TV TIMINGS

PAR 3 CONTEST WEDNESDAY 4 APRIL 8PM SKY SPORTS GOLF

Sky Sports will offer interactive coverage behind the Red Button with coverage of Amen Corner (Holes 11, 12 and 13) and Holes 15 and 16 Live courtesy of CBS Sports and Augusta National

ROUND ONE THURSDAY 5 APRIL 7PM SKY SPORTS GOLF

ROUND TWO FRIDAY 6 APRIL 7PM SKY SPORTS GOLF

ROUND THREE SATURDAY 7 APRIL 7PM SKY SPORTS GOLF

ROUND FOUR SUNDAY 8 APRIL 6PM SKY SPORTS GOLF

MASTERS BREAKFAST FRIDAY, SATURDAY AND SUNDAY 9AM SKY SPORTS GOLF

Sky Sports Golf will provide a number of ancillary programmes throughout the week including The Masters Movies, showing highlights of past Masters Tournaments

HOW THE MASTERS WAS WON, MONDAY 9 APRIL 8PM SKY SPORTS GOLF

1 1 8 th U . S . O P E N SHINNECOCK HILLS 14–17 JUNE

The 118th US Open will take place at one of the historic venues in American golf. Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, New York on Long Island is one of the great links of America and most recently staged the national championship in 2004. On that occasion Phil Mickelson was bidding for his second major title after claiming his first in dramatic fashion at Augusta. The home favourite had a classic duel with South African Retief Goosen, with the 2001 champion coming out on top.

In recent years the course has undergone a careful restoration by the club and the USGA to return it to the layout as was intended by the designer. Elements of Shinnecock Hills will play much differently to how they did 14 years ago, so it may be difficult to predict the winning score. One thing is certain though, this US Open will be more like the traditional US Open some of us have loved over the years. The rough will be thick and penal, the greens will be difficult to hold and to read, and the examination will be the most exacting of the year.

The US Open. Just as it should be.

PREVIEW IN EDITION

0 4 O F St Andrews M A G A Z I N E

1 4 7 th O P E N CHAMPIONSHIP

CARNOUSTIE 19–22 JULY

And so, to Carnoustie we return.

We are guaranteed two things at Carnoustie for the 147th Open Championship. We will either have a legendary champion or a dramatic championship, quite possibly we will have both on the Angus coast this July. The last two Opens played at Carnoustie have delivered two of the most memorable Sundays in Major Championship golf, with Paul Lawrie coming back from 10 shots behind Jean Van de Velde to defeat the Frenchman and 1997 Champion Justin Leonard in a playoff in 1999. 8 years later Padraig Harrington was victorious over Sergio Garcia in a playoff at the end of a wild Sunday where multiple players could have walked away with the Claret Jug. Lawrie and Harrington added their names to a list of champions which bears comparison with any of the great major courses in the world. Tommy Armour, Henry Cotton, Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Tom Watson have each won The Open on what is renowned as being the toughest course on the rota. What it lacks in scenery it more than makes up for in difficulty.

PREVIEW IN EDITION

05

St Andrews OF M A G A Z I N E

1 0 0 th P G A CHAMPIONSHIP BELLERIVE 9–12 AUGUST

The PGA Championship becomes the third major championship to celebrate 100 editions this August at Bellerive Country Club near St Louis, Missouri, and it will be the final edition to be played in August before the year’s final major becomes the second major and moves to May in 2019.

Nothing is certain, but given the climate in May in the Midwest of the United States, there is every chance this could be the final time either the PGA Championship or US Open visits Bellerive, so it is sure to be a special occasion. In 1965 the club hosted the US Open and in 1992 the PGA of America selected it to stage its first PGA Championship, and if history is anything to go by then Jordan Spieth may well complete his career grand slam this August.

Gary Player won the 1965 US Open, claiming his fourth major title and completing the slam at the age of 29. Should Spieth go ahead to and hoist the Wanamaker Trophy this year he will join Player, Sarazen, Hogan, Nicklaus and Woods as winners of the grand slam. That is of course if Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson don’t win The Masters and US Open respectively.

PREVIEW IN EDITION 0 5 O F St Andrews M A G A Z I N E

50 YEARS OF

ROLEX AND GOLF

A GOLDEN PARTNERSHIP

Turn the clocks back 50 years to 1967 and the world was a very different place. A pioneering prototype of the Concorde supersonic aircraft was first unveiled in France, and Christiaan Barnard performed the first heart transplant in South Africa, helping to pioneer a medical procedure that would go on to save countless lives.

The year also marked the beginning of a significant new

In the 1960s, professional golf was experiencing a renaissance courtesy of an American whose domination of the sport, coupled with his disarming charisma and charm, would change the game for generations to come.

One of the world’s greatest and best loved golfers, with a playing career that spanned 30 years at the very top of the game, Arnold Palmer won seven of the

At the same time that Palmer was at the pinnacle of his career, Rolex was keen to strengthen its association with golf.

Naturally, Palmer was the perfect fit to become the brand’s first Testimonee in golf and so began an enduring partnership that has developed into one that spans the globe and extends to golfers of all ages and abilities, exemplifying the passion Rolex has for the sport.

A PARTNERSHIP BASED IN SHARED VALUES relationship between the Swiss watch brand, Rolex, and the sport of golf. A relationship that, in its solid continuity, as well as its breadth and depth, has transcended the oftenfickle realm of sports sponsorship. Exactly fifty years have gone by since the alliance first began, a half century of steadfast commitment and instrumental support.

sport’s Major championships and more than 90 professional wins.

Palmer was a pioneer and a golfing futurist.

His talent for marketing helped strengthen and promote the game he loved across the globe.

He became the first golfing superstar of the television age and is considered to be largely responsible for the prosperity of the modern game.

“It's been one of the best and most compatible relationships that I have had in my life,” Palmer once said of his abiding partnership with Rolex.

“There's far more to the relationship than I could ever tell you.

Rolex has done so many great things over the years that have been of tangible benefit to golf as a sport.”

The bond between Rolex and golf has evolved through pivotal partnerships that have cemented Rolex’s place at the

Rolex’s relationship with golf was described best by one of the most influential men in the sport – Peter Dawson.

Now President of the

“No other brand I can think of is more globally and passionately involved in our sport.

The far-reaching commitment of Rolex is

STANDING THE TEST OF TIME heart of the game. In the 1970s and 1980s, Rolex added prestigious tournaments The Open and the U.S. Open; guardians of the traditions and rules of the game The R&A and USGA; as well as the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) and the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA), to its growing number of golf partners.

International Golf Federation, it was during his tenure as Chief Executive of The R&A when he said: “Through its historic and unwavering support, Rolex has become part of the fabric of golf, from supporting the amateur game to increasing awareness of The Rules, on through an association with golf’s original Major to presenting the Senior Open.

deeply rooted in promoting and developing the game worldwide, from grassroots programs through to Major championships and elite players.”

Rolex is renowned worldwide for reliability, precision and uncompromising quality, attributes the brand recognizes in each of its Testimonees.

In the mid-1960s, a dynamic trio known as The Big Three – made up of Palmer, American Jack Nicklaus and South Africa’s Gary Player – had become

Explaining the nature of their unique rivalry, Gary Player said: “With Arnold and Jack, we all wanted to win so badly, and we had this wonderful rivalry and competition among the three of us. But, at the same time, when one of us won, the other two would put their hand out and say, ‘Well done, you beat

Player said: “I’ve worked with a lot of different companies over my lifetime.

Everything in business is negotiable except quality. That exemplifies Rolex – quality.

“I have always tried to surround myself with iconic brands. Rolex has been involved with golf for a long time, and represented some

INDIVIDUAL EXCELLENCE the vanguard of the world game. Both Nicklaus and Player joined the Rolex family around the same time as Palmer, where they remain today.

The triumvirate challenged each other with their equal stature, skill and endeavour at almost every hole, at almost every tournament. Gary Player secured nine Major wins while Jack Nicklaus’s accumulation of 18 Major titles remains unsurpassed at the very summit of the game.

me today, but I’ll get you tomorrow.’ It was a very healthy rivalry, and it was a rivalry of gentlemanly conduct.”

As modern icons of the game, The Big Three have each expressed their deep admiration for Rolex’s support of golf. Following a trip to Geneva where he received an up-close look at the inner workings of Rolex,

of the greatest ever players. It was a natural fit.”

In the same way that a Rolex wristwatch may be a treasured heirloom, passed down the generations, the legacy of The Big Three has inspired generations of golfers, who through their success, do the same for those that follow them.

Commenting on the current crop of young players at the forefront of the sport, one of the best female golfers in history, Annika Sörenstam, said: “Golf goes through cycles.

Jordan [Spieth], Rickie [Fowler] and Jason

The Swede, who is a 10time Major winner and former Rolex Rankings World Number One added: “There is certainly a new generation emerging and I feel golf is in good hands”.

These are the Rolex New Guard – a new generation of players who want to assert their authority on the sport and in doing so inspire future generations of athletes to follow them.

THE ROLEX NEW GUARD [Day] are fun personalities and powerful players as well as quality individuals.”

These golfers are part of a burgeoning group of young, aspirational players who, like The Big Three before them, confidently go about their business with integrity, maturity and respect, as well as displaying skill, precision and ambition.

Rolex is also engrained in the grass roots of the sport, and the AJGA, of which the brand has been a Premier Partner for 30 years, has helped nurture the talent of countless stars of the modern game.

AJGA Alumni who are now part of the Rolex family of Testimonees include: Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Davis Love III, Rickie Fowler and Lorena Ochoa.

What’s more, as of 2016, 24 of the past 30 U.S. Amateur

Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, as well as the leading Amateur team formats, the Walker Cup and Curtis Cup. Providing support at all levels of the game including golfers in the latter stages of their playing careers, Rolex also has a longstanding relationship with the US Senior Open Championship and, since 2012, The Senior Open Championship Presented by Rolex.

Speaking in November 2016, Keith Pelley, Chief Executive of the European Tour, said: “The Rolex Series will celebrate the highest quality of golf and the international spirit of the game, qualities that Rolex and the European Tour strengthen with this announcement. We are tremendously proud to have Rolex as our partner in this exciting new venture and we thank them for their continued support”.

ROLEX’S ONGOING COMMITMENT TO GOLF Champions and 25 of the past 30 U.S. Women's Amateur Champions are AJGA alumni.

Beyond the junior game, Rolex is also deeply committed to amateur golf, and is a partner of important amateur tournaments across the globe, including the British Amateur Championship, U.S. Amateur Championship, Latin America Amateur Championship,

Just as for the past five decades Rolex has grown its relationship with golf, there is every intention of continuing this commitment for the long term.

This anniversary year also celebrates the start of the Rolex Series – a new alliance between leading tournaments created to strengthen the European Tour’s international schedule from the 2017 season onwards.

Winding the clock forward, 50 years from now, one thing we can count on for sure, with a century of Rolex’s perpetual pursuit of precision and excellence, as well as its significant support of golf for the past five decades, is that the sport will be as prominent and prosperous as ever.

COUNTDOWN TO THE RYDER CUP

PART ONE GOLF IN FRANCE RY D E R C U P M E M O R I E S JUNIOR RYDER CUP

RANKINGS

GOLF IN FRANCE 414, 2419 GOLFERS 1,540 PGA PROFESSIONALS 1 MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIP WIN – ARNAUD MASSY 1906 OPEN EUROPEAN TOUR, CHALLENGE TOUR, SENIOR TOUR AND LET EVENTS STAGED ANNUALLY IN FRANCE HNA OPEN DE FRANCE PARIS LEGENDS CHAMPIONSHIP HAUTS DE FRANCE GOLF OPEN LE VAUDREUIL GOLF CHALLENGE CORDON GOLF OPEN OPEN DE PROVENCE BY HOPPS GROUP EVIAN CHAMPIONSHIP LACOSTE LADIES OPEN DE FRANCE 591 GOLF COURSES OLDEST GOLF COURSE – PAU, 1856 FRANCE’S GREATEST COURSES Golf de Morfontaine

Golf du Medoc

Le Golf National

St Nom la Bretesche

Les Bordes

Paris International

HNA OPEN DE FRANCE ROLEX SERIES EUROPEAN TOUR EVENT, FIRST PLAYED IN 1906 37 EDITIONS WON BY MAJOR CHAMPIONS INCLUDING JH TAYLOR, JAMES BRAID, GEORGE DUNCAN, ARNAUD MASSY, RETIEF GOOSEN, GRAEME MCDOWELL, WALTER HAGEN, BYRON NELSON, NICK FALDO, SEVE BALLESTEROS

EVIAN CHAMPIONSHIP WOMEN’S MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIP, FIRST PLAYED IN 1994 ELEVATED TO MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIP IN 2013, WINNERS INCLUDE SUZANN PETTERSEN, INBEE PARK, LYDIA KO, ANNA NORDQVIST, PAULA CREAMER, KARRIE WEBB, ANNIKA SORENSTAM, LAURA DAVIES

TROPHEE LANCOME FORMER EUROPEAN TOUR EVENT, PLAYED 1970-2003 26 EDITIONS WON BY MAJOR CHAMPIONS INCLUDING VIJAY SINGH, RETIEF GOOSEN, SEVE BALLESTEROS, BERNHARD LANGER, NICK PRICE, SANDY LYLE, ARNOLD PALMER, GARY PLAYER, JOHNNY MILLER, LEE TREVINO

SEVE TROPHY PLAYED IN FRANCE IN 2009, 2011 & 2013 WORLD CUP PLAYED IN FRANCE IN 1963 EISENHOWER TROPHY PLAYED IN FRANCE IN 1994 ESPIRITO SANTO TROPHY PLAYED IN FRANCE IN 1963 & 1994 OLYMPIC GOLF PLAYED IN FRANCE IN 1900

RYDER CUP MEMORIES 1993, THE BELFRY

THE RYDER CUP AND MY LOVE FOR GOLF ARE INEXTRICABLY LINKED, WITH MY INTEREST IN THE GAME BEING SPARKED BY ONE STELLAR MOMENT DURING THE SUNDAY SINGLES AT THE 1993 MATCHES AT THE BELFRY. THE 1993 RYDER CUP WAS THE FINAL EDITION OF THE MATCH BETWEEN EUROPE AND THE UNITED STATES TO BE BROADCAST LIVE ON BBC, AND DURING SUNDAY GRANDSTAND, AS A JUST TURNED 10-YEAROLD BOY I WATCHED ON AS NICK FALDO MADE A HOLE-IN-ONE AGAINST PAUL AZINGER ON THE PAR 3 FOURTEENTH HOLE. FALDO WENT ON TO HALVE HIS MATCH AND EUROPE LOST THE RYDER CUP 13-15, STILL THE MOST RECENT VICTORY BY THE USA ON EUROPEAN SOIL. EUROPE LED THE MATCHES AFTER THE FIRST DAY BY 4 ½ TO 3 ½ AND MAINTAINED THEIR LEAD THROUGH SATURDAY BEFORE WINNING ONLY THREE MATCHES ON SUNDAY TO LOSE THE RYDER CUP FOR THE SECOND-STRAIGHT YEAR.

COUNTDOWN TO THE JUNIOR RYDER CUP 2018

MAJOR JUNIOR EVENTS IN THE UK THIS SEASON

SCOTTISH BOYS OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP, Montrose 4-6 April SCOTTISH GIRLS OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP, Monifieth 4-6 April BARRIE DOUGLAS JUNIOR MASTERS, Blairgowrie 27-29 April

MUNROSS TROPHY, Montrose 20 May SIR HENRY COOPER JUNIOR MASTERS, Nizel 22-24 June JUNIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP, St Andrews Links 14-18 July MCGREGOR TROPHY, Kedleston Park 17-19 July ST ANDREWS BOYS’ OPEN, St Andrews Links 6-9 August ST ANDREWS JUNIOR LADIES’ OPEN, St Andrews Links 6-9 August

REID TROPHY, Reading Golf Club 7-9 August

THE JUNIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP 2018 THE EDEN COURSE, ST ANDREWS LINKS

The Junior Open Championship will play a pivotal part in determining the team to represent Europe at the Junior Ryder Cup, at Disneyland Paris this September. The Junior Open will be played over the mature links of the Eden Course this July, which will provide a stiff but enjoyable test for some of the best junior golfers in the world. Patrick Reed is the most notable past champion, having won at Heswall in 2006.

The Junior Open Championship came under The R&A's administrative umbrella in 2000, having been founded in 1994. The biennial event, to which all golfing nations affiliated to The R&A are invited to enter their best under-16 boy and girl golfers, is closely linked to The Open and is always played on a nearby course.

St Andrews Magazine will have complete coverage of The Junior Open and other major junior evets this summer in our JUNIOR EDITION, out this August

2018 RYDER CUP RANKINGS EUROPE

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

EUROPEAN POINTS LIST 1

JUSTIN ROSE

2,713,074.57

1

DUSTIN JOHNSON

4,199.739

2

TYRRELL HATTON

2,516,447.12

2

BROOKS KOEPKA

3,464.658

3

ROSS FISHER

1,444,881.17

3

JUSTIN THOMAS

2,975.023

4

MATTHEW FITZPATRICK

1,321,391.43

4

JORDAN SPIETH

2,886.042

5

Jon RAHM

1,278,344.36

5

MATT KUCHAR

2,438.587

6

Tommy FLEETWOOD

1,060,617.03

6

BRIAN HARMAN

2,127.873

7

Paul DUNNE

1,029,794.37

7

GARY WOODLAND

1,797.006

8

Shane LOWRY

1,007,090.53

8

RICKIE FOWLER

1,724.387

9

Scott JAMIESON

913,109.03

10

Joost LUITEN

839,641.09

9

Chez REAVIE

1,647.686

10

Bubba WATSON

1,581.719

WORLD POINTS LIST 1

Justin ROSE

217.89

11

Phil MICKELSON

1,457.205

2

JON RAHM

186.43

12

Patrick REED

1,303.959

3

Tyrrell HATTON

137.75

13

Patton KIZZIRE

1,292.116

4

TOMMY FLEETWOOD

107.98

14

James HAHN

1,257.697

5

Matthew FITZPATRICK

89.74

15

Kevin CHAPPELL

1,243.245

6

SERGIO GARCIA

88.27

16

Brendan STEELE

1,142.167

7

Ross FISHER

79.56

17

Tony FINAU

1,073.569

8

RORY MCILROY

74.76

18

Zach JOHNSON

1,058.826

9

Chris PAISLEY

60.82

19

Xander SCHAUFFELE

1,005.703

10

Paul DUNNE

60.15

20

Charley HOFFMAN

996.748

TYRRELL HATTON ALFRED DUNHILL LINKS CHAMPION, ITALIAN OPEN CHAMPION EUROPEAN LIST NUMBER 2

PARK AND SE RI PAK STAR IN THE OPENING CEREMONY FOR PYEONGCHANG 2018 WINTER OLYMPICS Korea’s greatest female golfers played prominent roles in the Opening Ceremony for the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, Korea this February.

Inbee Park was one of the final torchbearers of the Olympic flame during the spectacular Opening Ceremony to the 2018 Winter Olympic Games. Se Ri Pak was one of 8 Koreans to carry the Olympic flag into the stadium.

Park and Se Ri are arguably Korea’s two most prominent golfers, with Park having won 7 Majors and an Olympic Gold, and Se Ri having won 5 Majors. The pair have won a combined 76 titles worldwide.

ALPENSIA TAKES CENTRE STAGE AS VENUE FOR NORDIC SKIING AT PYEONGCHANG 2018 One of Korea’s great golfing destinations is a winter wonderland and thrills the world during Nordic competitions at the 2018 Winter Olympics.

Alpensia, in Gangwon, Pyeongchang, is a recreation village located in the mountains of the region and offers two unique golfing experiences. The Troon Golf and Country Club offers three distinct nines, designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr, and the Alpensia 700 Golf Club has a golf course inspired by the iconic holes of golf courses around the world such as St Andrews, Augusta and Pebble Beach.

The resort is owned by Cuningham Group, based in the USA.

Image: Skip Godow

C O M I N G I N E D I T I O N 04

SPRING IN ST ANDREWS THE SEASON BEGINS JAMES FOULIS U.S. OPEN PREVIEW MASTERS REVIEW

St Andrews M A G A Z I N E

GOLF. LIFESTYLE. MORE.