d,

Once Plarye
Neve
Forgotten in’s ta
tion of Bri
A celebra o les
nctive h
most disti

THE 148TH

OPEN
CHAMPIONSHIP In association with

FIVE PAST CHAMPIONS HEADLINE OUR BUMPER PREVIEW

SPIETH’S LOVE ROYAL HOMETOWN THE ULTIMATE

OF LINKS PORTRUSH HERO OPEN 18
Why he adores seaside golf Returning to the Open rota Darren Clarke on Portrush Mackenzie-Ebert’s composite
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 EVERY. SINGLE. HEAD.
I N J E C T E D A N D C A L I B R AT E D T O T H E T H R E S H O L D O F T H E S P E E D L I M I T

WHILE THE REST OF THE GOLF WORLD WAS CHASING SPEED, WE WERE PERFECTING IT WITH SPEED INJECTED TWIST FACE —
A REVOLUTIONARY PROCESS OF STRATEGICALLY INJECTING EACH HEAD TO BRING IT AS CLOSE AS POSSIBLE TO THE LEGAL LIMIT.
© 2019 TaylorMade Golf Company Limited.
Claim based on combined 2018 driver usage on the PGA, European, Japan Golf, Web.com, Champions
and LPGA Tours, as reported by the Darrell Survey Co. and Sports Marketing Surveys, Inc.
Not required for approximately 0.3% of heads.
CONTENTS July 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

16WE’D RATHER
BE PLAYING...
...Moortown, the home of the first
Ryder Cup on British soil
16
20TALKING
POINTS
Our readers let us know their thoughts
on golf’s biggest issues

22CHANGE
YOUR GAME
We taken an in-depth look at the new
Nikon Coolshot 20 GII rangefinder
77
25 THE 148TH
OPEN
Our 48-page bumper preview of the
Open Championship from Royal Portrush
155
77EQUIPMENT
The latest comprehensive and
objective gear tests

89COURSES Starring a weekend in Munich,

a trip to an exotic African Island and a
tour around Ireland’s midwest.

113CLUB GOLFAll the news and views

from the game’s grass roots
25
117COURSE
NOTES
Discover this month’s must-play tracks 89 125
125ONE-OFF
HOLES
A celebration of the most extraordinary,
one-off – even quirky holes – in Great
Britain and Ireland

155FROM THE
CLUBHOUSE
Steve Carroll is calling on everyone to
work together to curb the growing issue
of slow play

2 FEBRUARY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 H AV E YO U T R I E D
THE SPIRIT OF
THE OPEN?
Heading to Royal Portrush for The Open? Make sure to come
and visit us at the Loch Lomond Whiskies bar for a dram! And
remember, you can also purchase the entire Loch Lomond
Whiskies range at www.lochlomondwhiskies.com/buy-online

@lochlomondmalts @lochlomondwhiskies

PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY WWW.DRINKAWARE.CO.UK

 d,
Once Playe
Never
Forgotten
n of Britain’s
A celebratio e holes
most distinctiv

THE 148TH

OPEN
CHAMPIONSHIP

Editor’s comment
In association with

FIVE PAST CHAMPIONS HEADLINE OUR BUMPER PREVIEW

SPIETH’S LOVE ROYAL HOMETOWN THE ULTIMATE

OF LINKS PORTRUSH HERO OPEN 18
Why he adores seaside golf Returning to the Open rota Darren Clarke on Portrush Mackenzie-Ebert’s composite

EDITOR NGLAND Golf certainly know were playing at the very

E
Dan Murphy
how to put on a championship. back of the field, that
FEATURES EDITOR NCG is a month
The Brabazon Trophy came to my Alwoodley stretches ly
Mark Townsend magazine distrib
uted to the
PRODUCTION EDITOR home club, Alwoodley, in late May to almost 7,000 golf clubs of Gr
eat Britain
James Broadhurst and it was quite an occasion, not least because yards from the back written for the
serious golfer.
we were treated to a masterclass from a seriously tees and the fact Turn to page 74
EQUIPMENT EDITOR to subscribe
Hannah Holden now – take adva
talented teenager. that many players ntage of our
CLUB GOLF EDITOR great new offer
Rotherham’s Ben Schmidt is just 16 but were posting scores and never
Steve Carroll miss an issue
carded four successive sub-70 rounds to become in the 60s, that is
COURSES EDITOR
Chris Bertram the youngest-ever winner of this prestigious quite something.
CONTRIBUTORS championship, beating the record held by Congratulations to
Colin Callander, Karl Morris, Charl Schwartzel and Sandy Lyle. Both of these England Golf for their initiative,
Joe Hughes, Colin Montgomerie,
major champions were aged 17 when they won and the players for acting on it.
Nick McCarthy
CHIEF DESIGNER
the Brabazon. If Schmidt goes on to enjoy
Andrew Kenworthy even a fraction of the success of his illustrious T IS a quiz question waiting to
DESIGNERS
Becky Clark, Vicky Jones
COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR
Tom Irwin
ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
predecessors then we will hearing a lot more from
him in the years ahead.
Schmidt’s winning margin was an emphatic
five shots. To put that in perspective, he finished Sea.
I happen that this summer sees both
the Amateur Championship and the
Open being played across the Irish

Christian Maiden at -13 over a week in which only 12 other players I have been fortunate enough to play both
ADVERTISING MANAGER beat par. of the Amateur’s host venues – The Island and
Tom Lenton That is remarkable, and so too was the pace Portmarnock – as well as Royal Portrush in
SALES MANAGER of play. It’s one thing for a governing body to talk recent months and all three are magnificent links
Jordan Elliott
the talk but quite another to put it into practice in courses.
SALES EXECUTIVES
Jamie Perkins, Ben Ragg their most prestigious championship. I’ll soon be packing my bag to return to
DIGITAL EDITOR England Golf champion ready golf and there Antrim for the Open itself and I can’t wait. I
Alex Perry are several signposted prompts to the players to trust you’ll be the same after reading our bumper
DIGITAL MARKETING be mindful of pace of play. preview.
EXECUTIVE
Matthew Beedle What a pleasure it was to see this message
SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR being taken on board and even the final pair on
Harvey Jamison Saturday afternoon were round in under three
FINANCE & OPERATIONS hours and 45 minutes.
Will Shucksmith
Given the scale of the occasion, that they
ACCOUNTS
Emma Abbott, Alice Young
SUBSCRIPTIONS
12 issues including P&P: UK £48;
Europe £68.75; World £100
Online offers: nationalclubgolfer.com TWO HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS ISSUE...
SPORTS PUBLICATIONS LTD P25 BUMPER OPEN PREVIEW P66 ALUN EVANS’ OPEN QUIZ
2 Arena Park, Tarn Lane, Scarcroft, Our journalists have loved digging out stories and For anyone who claims truly to know their Open
West Yorkshire, LS17 9BF, UK
Telephone: +44 (0) 113 289 3979
interviews surrounding Portrush’s return to the Open Championship history there is only one place to start
e-mail: info@sportspub.co.uk rota after 68 years. There’s so much to enjoy here. this month – with our ultimate quiz.
@SPPublications @NCG_com TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE
148 TH OPEN
In association with

MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED. 20/06/2019 16:1

MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED. TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE
148 TH OPEN
NCG19 The Open Strips 203x10.indd
T WAS 21 minutes

ISSN 1354 2532

20/06/2019 16:11 2

I
In association with
that will live long
NCG19 The Open Strips 203x10.indd
in the memory of 3

Jordan Spieth, not to

mention everyone watching both
at Royal Birkdale and those glued SECTION 1
Published by ©Sports Publications Ltd. Every effort has been made to their TV screens at home.
Standing on the 13th tee at
Royal Birkdale on the final day of 1
to ensure accuracy, but the publishers cannot accept responsibility for the 2017 Open Championship,

PIONS
the Texan, level with playing
partner Matt Kuchar on 8-under,
EASY

AM
omissions and errors. Readers are advised to check pricing and details of pushed his drive right. Way right.
As soon as it left the clubface,

H
he put his hands on his head. “I

availability before making any journeys. All material in this publication is knew at that moment I was staring
Q1 Who is the current
Q7 Who was the leading

H
Open champion?
at six, seven, eight and out of the Irishman in this Open
a) Jordan Spieth
tournament,” he said afterwards. Championship?

strictly copyright and all rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is A member of the crowd on
the dunes separating the 13th and
b) Brooks Koepka
c) Francesco Molinari
a) Fred Daly
b) John McKenna
C

d) Rory McIlroy
practice ground found Spieth’s c) Christy O’Connor Sr
IP

prohibited. The views expressed do not necessarily represent the views of ball and, after much deliberation
with caddie Michael Greller, he
Q2 Where is the 2019
Open Championship
d) Cecil Beamish

decided to take an unplayable.

Q8
to Who was the leading
OPE N

Sports Publications Ltd. Every care is taken in compiling the contents but the Spieth’s only option? To
head back onto the practice area
be held?
a) Portmarnock
b) Royal Co Down
American?
a) Gene Sarazen
Q

flanked by the various brands’ b) Byron Nelson

publishers assume no responsibility for any damage, loss or injury arising enormous tour trucks. Greller
slogged to the top of the hill to
c) Royal Dublin
d) Royal Portrush
c) Sam Snead
d) Frank Stranahan
give his man a line.

from participation in any offer, competition or advertising contained within. Q3 When was the last time
UI Z

“Mikey!” screamed Spieth.

“Number?”
Open?
the course hosted the Q9 Who was the first Irish-
born golfer to win the
After a Moses-style parting

‘CHAMPION
Open ?
a) 1951
of the crowd, Spieth settled on a) Padraig Harrington
b) 1961
his club and let fly. His ball came b) Christy O’Connor Sr
c) 1971
to a rest just shy of the front c) Fred Daly
d) 1981
greenside bunker. From there he d) Paul McGinley

GOLFER IS 2019
bumped one to six feet and made
the most unlikely of bogeys.
One back of Kuchar, he was
Q4 Who was the champion
on that occasion?
a) Ben Hogan
Q10 Who was the most
recent Irish winner?
still in the tournament. a) Shane Lowry
b) Henry Cotton
What happened next was one

THE TITLE
b) Padraig Harrington
c) Peter Alliss
of the most remarkable sequence c) Darren Clarke
d) Max Faulkner
of holes in Open history. Spieth d) Rory McIlroy
almost aced the 14th before
tapping in for birdie, then drained
Q5 Which player who tied
Q11
YOU WANT’
Which American
6th in the event would
a 50-foot eagle putt at 15 that golfer was the first
begin a multi Open-winning
sparked the now famous “Go get to win the Open after the
career three years later?
that!” that he yelled at Greller, Second World War?
which Spieth later admitted was set by a) Sam Snead
a) Byron Nelson
b) Arnold Palmer
to avoid any more hold-ups – “I ALUN EVANS b) Sam Snead
in search of his
ABC July-December 2015 | 58,346
c) Bobby Locke
Jordan Spieth will travel to Antrim just felt so bad about how much
time I’d taken at 13.” ALUN Evans is a golf historian d) Peter Thomson
c) Ben Hogan
d) Arnold Palmer
second Claret Jug expecting the unexpected
is available on Amazon and
Two more birdies followed renowned for his work on the
elsewhere now,
before a par at the last and a
three-shot victory to lift the
major championships, and a
regular contributor to NCG.
priced at £14.99.
It is highly recommended to
Q6 How many times will
the course have hosted
the Open after 2019’s visit?
Q12 Which English
golfer was the first
BY GETTY Claret Jug for the first time. The latest edition in his
all who like to have to hand the
to win the Open after the war?
WORDS BY ALEX PERRY | PHOTOGRAPHY a) Two
impressive series, Alun Evans’ a) Henry Cotton
facts of every major going back b) Three
The Golf Majors Book 2019, b) Dick Burton
2019 29 to 1860.
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY c) Four
c) Harry Weetman
d) Five
66 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com d) Dai Rees
25/06/2019 16:02
28 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com
25/06/2019 16:02 066-071 NCG Open Quiz.indd 66 www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY
2019 67
066-071 NCG Open Quiz.indd 67

8 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

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 ON THE TEE
Your essential guide to the world of golf – including competitions, quick tips, interviews and new gear
MOMENT OF THE MONTH
GARY WOODLAND enjoyed the
week of his life to capture the US
Open from a charging Brooks
Koepka at Pebble Beach.
The 35-year-old American had
three previous wins on the PGA
Tour but, from seven previous
54-hole leads in regular PGA Tour
events, he had never managed
to win.
This time, as he had been all
week, he was sensationally solid,
winning by three after rolling in a
huge putt across Pebble Beach’s
iconic 18th green.
Once upon a time Woodland
was known as a big, bruising
driver of the ball but it was a
beautifully precise pitch across
the 17th green that gave him a
two-shot cushion going to the
72nd hole. Coming into Pebble
he was 169th for scrambling – in
US Open week he was top of the
pile with 16/20 saves. Take a bow,
short-game coach Pete Cowen.
Koepka, going for an
outrageous three US Opens on
the bounce, did what most of us
expected and came flying out of
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 11
the blocks on the final day with
four birdies in the first five holes.
But his last birdie came at the
11th and he couldn’t ever quite
catch his quarry. In the end he
will go down as the first player
to shoot four rounds in the 60s
and not win a US Open. Thanks
to that final putt, Woodland also
managed four sub-70 efforts.
ON THE TEE INTERVIEW | ARCHIVE | QUICK TIP | GEAR | COMPETITION | TOUR | GRASS ROOTS
CAPTURED ON FILM
July 29, 1966
Putting practice for England’s
footballers before the World Cup final
THE BACKGROUND
When footballers get together for
international duty, a round of golf is the law.
It appears it was no different 50 years ago.
Perhaps the timing may be a little off on this
occasion, though. There’s hardly a trace of
nerves on the faces of any of Alf Ramsey’s
squad but barely 24 hours after this picture
was taken many of these players were
involved in a game that would define their
lives. It’s July 29, 1966 and, the next day,
England took on West Germany in the World
Cup final at Wembley Stadium.
12 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com
THE SCENE
Sir Alf, as he became, isn’t remembered
for his relaxed nature so it is telling that he
isn’t among those gathered as the squad
took a break from training at their base
in Roehampton, London. Five of those
gathered – Gordon Banks, Geoff Hurst,
Bobby Moore, Roger Hunt and Bobby
Charlton – would put themselves through
the 90 minutes and extra time against the
West Germans. If you look carefully, you’ll
also find Peter Bonetti, Ron Springett and
Norman Hunter.
THE MOMENT
Ramsey would have had little issue with
Jimmy Greaves putting out. The prolific
striker was controversially left out against the
Germans, having been injured in the early
stages of the competition. Geoff Hurst had
replaced him and, after scoring the winner
against Argentina in the last eight, fully
vindicated his manager by netting the only
hat-trick in a World Cup final. England, of
course, won 4-2 and gave the nation its only
truly memorable football moment. Whether
Greaves made the putt is unknown.
Made in Scotland:

For the roar.

Tickets from £20 #ASIScottishOpen

10 - 14 July, The Renaissance Club, North Berwick asiscottishopen.com
NICK MCCARTHY
Reacquainting myself with matchplay after a staple strokeplay diet for 10 years

HE last time I played matchplay The Costa Del Match Play 9 was a

T
welcome chance to play matchplay
was in my county days for
Yorkshire in 2008. I’ve never
even played the Sunningdale
Foursomes. It definitely felt like it had been a
while. There’s so much talk about how we’d
all like more matchplay tournaments, yet I’d
never played matchplay as a pro.
Lots of the tours are mixing things up
a bit and the Costa del Sol Match Play 9
on the Challenge Tour at Valle Romano
ticked a lot of boxes. We played 36 holes of
strokeplay and then the top 64 were seeded
for the matchplay, with games played over
nine holes. The prize money for each losing
bracket was then ranked in how you played
over the first two rounds, which made the
first two rounds more important than just
starting again from scratch.
The mindset for the first two rounds was
like a normal event: trying to get off to a
good start and get into a good position for
the matchplay. I’ve started slowly in the first
rounds this year and we played in brutally
strong winds on the Thursday afternoon, so I was in the second group and they Then I woke up. They moved the tee up
76 wasn’t too bad. As you may have read, one radioed back that two of the players had at the 5th so it was playing about 280 yards
player, Clement Berardo, ran out of balls on bogeyed it. I managed to find the green with with water around the green on the right and
the Friday and I can see how he did it. a 5-iron and was through. out of bounds on the left. It wasn’t overly
I managed to get back in it and coming to People talk about either playing the nice but I hit my 3-wood to 12 feet so I was
my last, the 9th, I thought I was safe. I had course or the opponent and my thinking was thinking I could get it back to one down. He
a six-footer for birdie and I was obviously to try and shoot two or three under for the was a left-hander so I was thinking he might
trying to hole it but I thought three over nine holes. If that wasn’t enough, then fair just tweak it a bit and end up wet but he
would still get in as the wind would pick up enough. almost holed his tee shot and we both made
again in the afternoon. Then, of course, your opponent hits it twos.
It’s a good job I did hole it as that never in a hazard and you play well wide of it. My At the next, I took it on round the corner
happened and the scoring stayed the same. matchplay experiences both had a bit of and drove the green. We both lipped out
We were all sitting there looking at the everything. In the first match my opponent for eagle at the 8th and I had to hole a six-
scores and 65th was three over so all of us wasn’t playing well and I was three up with footer at the 9th to extend the match, which
at two over were in. We worked out that three to play. I missed a five-footer for birdie I managed. So a third play-off for the week,
Antoine Scwartz, playing in the last group, and he holed. He hit it close again at the 8th this time down the 1st. He hit a worldie chip
was the only player who could change things. and I then chipped it dead at the last – he was to 10 feet and holed it and that was that – my
Needless to say he birdied his last hole short and had a 25-footer from off the green first matchplay defeat in 11 years.
and so it was a 12-man play-off for 11 spots. and he boxed it. So we went back to the 10th,
The 9th, a par 3 of 210 yards, wasn’t the which is a really tight par 5. He hit an iron, I
nicest hole for a dozen of us to stand on for hit driver and I made a birdie to get through.
Q Nick McCarthy plays on the Challenge
Tour. He is an ambassador for Fortress Wealth
11 spots. Twenty-five minutes later and I was three
Partnership LLP, a company delivering bespoke
Antoine was first out of the hat and he down after three after playing some awful financial advice to individuals and businesses. Visit
knocked it inside 10 feet and rolled it in so he stuff. For whatever reason, I wasn’t with it, fortresswealthpartnership.com to learn more.
was the first one through. and I wasn’t settled.

14 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

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ON THE TEE INTERVIEW | ARCHIVE | QUICK TIP | GEAR | COMPETITION | TOUR | GRASS ROOTS

WE’D RATHER BE PLAYING...

Moortown
Walk in the footsteps of Ryder Cup legends at a MacKenzie masterpiece

2 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 NCG PROMOTION

T
HERE is something special
about Moortown.
From the club’s rich and
enviable history to the beauty
and challenge of the Dr Alister
MacKenzie course, Moortown
is rightly heralded as one of
England’s flagship golf clubs.
It was here that the very first
Ryder Cup battle on British
soil took place. Great Britain
triumphed 7-5 over Walter
Hagan’s Team USA as George
Duncan became the first of
only three British captains to lift
the famous trophy before the
competition was opened up to
the rest of Europe in 1979.
The club continues to play
a prominent role in hosting
prestigious tournaments. In
2020, the R&A Boys Amateur
Championship will visit Moortown
for a fifth time. Neighbouring
Alwoodley, a Regional Qualifying
venue for the Open, will co-host
the championship during the
strokeplay stage.
In addition, Moortown will
stage the English Men’s Amateur
Championship in 2021 alongside
Headingley.
Any players hoping to land
either trophy will need to be
unerringly accurate from tee
to green when they take on
Moortown. They can expect a
course that makes great use
of the natural land. The part-
heathland, part-moorland terrain
is beautiful to look at but can be
punishing should your ball go
astray, which it often can thanks
to the deceptively tight fairways.
There are also all manner
of tricky holes creatively
crafted from the genius mind
of MacKenzie. The signature
par-3 10th, dubbed Gibraltar, is
arguably his finest piece of work
at Moortown.

CONTACT
Visit moortown-golf-club.co.uk,
call the club on 0113 2686521 or
email secretary@moortown-gc.
co.uk. Follow @MoortownGC on
Twitter and Facebook.

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 3

KARL MORRIS
Very few golfers can achieve consistency and that’s why I value adaptability much higher

“I
F ONLY my game was more McGinley struggled
searching for perfection
consistent!” If I have heard that
statement once in the past 30
years of coaching, I must have
heard it a thousand times.
The idea of consistency is seen as the
ultimate golfing nirvana. The very quality we
are led to believe we should all aspire to. Yet,
is this concept realistic and, perhaps more
importantly, is it even necessary to get the
most from your game?
Looking broadly at statistics from the very
best players in the world then we run into
some strange contradiction when viewed
through the narrow lens of consistency.
The very best in the world hit on average
around 12 to 13 greens per round. So in
effect they miss every third green they
attempt to hit. They miss roughly one in
every three fairways they aim at. The putt
conversion from outside of just 10 feet is
less than 50 per cent. I have also read that
many players win the bulk of their money in
any given year in three to four weeks. Not
always three weeks in a row but their three on the cut mark. We can easily be led into like we are snatching it from the top.
biggest weeks in a year make up the bulk believing that everybody is firing bullets at The key is to be aware of what we have
of their money. A lot of weeks of ‘failure’ every green and holing putts from all over. today. If the swing feels way out of sync and
interspersed with a few highlights. Not one of The reality, as I have come to understand, you are struggling off the tee then get the thing
these statistics seems to back up the idea of is that we should strive less to be consistent in play with a 3-wood or an iron. If you are
consistency as being the be all and end all. and far more to be adaptable. Adaptability for struggling with your approach play then, just
The truth is even the best golfers on the me is the Holy Grail of the game. The ability for today, the only thing that should be on your
planet hit a lot of poor shots, they have a lot to adapt to what you have today that may well radar is the middle of the green. If you are
of results they are not happy with and they feel totally different to what you had yesterday. having issues with your timing then take one
have to deal with a lot setbacks. Yet, they are Paul McGinley alluded to this in a recent more club and aim to rein in the hit impulse.
the ones practising and playing all of the time. podcast I did with him on my Brain Booster There is tremendous satisfaction to be
This is what they do for a living. We turn up on series. He said that if he could have his time gained from getting the ball around the
a Saturday for our medal at the club having hit again in his playing career he would go less course in a decent score when you are
50 balls at the range on Wednesday night and in the search of perfection and be far more being challenged and don’t have your
we expect to be consistent. prepared to go with what he had for this A-game. Be proud of those days when you
I have said this before but golf on TV, unique day. Some days that may have been have managed what you have really well
as good as it is, paints a totally unrealistic a fade while other days it could have been a because as you get better at limiting the high
picture of the game. We are watching the draw shape. numbers, you lay the foundation for the low
best players having their best weeks and also The fact is that every day we play golf scores to sneak up on you.
what you see is a selection of the best golf so many things are different. The weather
Q The Lost Art of Putting by Karl Morris
that day. The holed putts, the irons gripping is different, the course is different, we are
and Gary Nicol, with a foreword from
the green and then spinning back to three different.
1999 Open champion Paul Lawrie, is
feet. We don’t get to see the players who What felt so good in our swing yesterday
available in hardback and on Kindle at
are struggling with their game that week. now feels like such a struggle. That beautiful amazon.co.uk
We don’t watch the struggles of the players flowing rhythm disappears and today we feel

18 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

ON THE TEE INTERVIEW | ARCHIVE | QUICK TIP | GEAR | COMPETITION | TOUR | GRASS ROOTS

TALKING POINTS
Get in touch: email letters@sportspub.co.uk
Sports Publications Ltd, 2 Arena Park, Tarn Lane, Scarcroft, West Yorkshire, LS17 9BF

@NCGMagazine nationalclubgolfer nationalclubgolfer nationalclubgolfer.com

LETTER OF THE MONTH:

OPEN YOUR MINDS TO THE NEW HANDICAPPING SYSTEM
I’m a member of Fancourt Country the member is playing from).
Club in South Africa where they have I think, as we move into the new
already brought in handicap indexes system next year, we just need to open
and slope ratings. As an example, our minds and encourage everyone to
I have a handicap index of 14.5 but play off the tees which are most suited
Fancourt has five tee boxes, which to their game.
means that off the very back tees, my The big message must be for
playing handicap is 25. Off the next set everyone to think about moving
of tees it is 23 then 16, 13 and 11 off forward is that this not only makes the
the front tees. game more enjoyable for the majority
In competitions, Fancourt allows but it will also significantly
players to play off whatever tee they speed up play.
wish to make the game enjoyable TIGER WOODS IS NOT THE GOAT!
for each member with their handicap Ivan Hutchings, Is Tiger Woods the Greatest Of All Time? Absolutely
adjusted accordingly (i.e. to the tee by email not!
This is a silly and useless debate. It’s as silly as
asking if Tiger was a better player than Braid or Tom
WRITE IN... Morris, or anyone who has ever played the game.
AND WIN A PING HOOFER LITE CARRY BAG
The author of our Letter of the Month will receive a
Jack Nicklaus was the man of the time – no
Ping Hoofer Lite Carry Bag. question. Woods is the man of this time.
For more details, email letters@sportspub.co.uk Different equipment, different technology –
amazing improvements in both. Just look at golf
balls, for example.
MY FRIEND ROD DESERVES CREDIT FOR HIS ACE AND EAGLE What about the skills and expertise of the
Many thanks for printing in that my opponent Rod claim to fame since he greenkeepers? The advances in the preparation of
the letter about my MacGregor had hit his holed his 8-iron tee shot courses? The list is endless in all fields.
albatross on the par-5 7-iron second to two on the par-3 8th during It is as ridiculous as comparing a modern fighter
5th on the Old Course. feet at the same hole to the New Golf Club’s aircraft with an ME 109 or Spitfire. Please stop it. It’s
However, perhaps the make a three. I felt bad Summer Meeting on the silly and useless and makes me very cross! Not a
main reason I contacted at getting all the glory, Old on June 1 – his first good idea when you’re at my end of the calendar.
you was that it was part so I wonder if you might ever hole-in-one. Tug Wilson,
of an even stranger story now consider Rod’s own Cliff Godley, by email by email

TIGERS WOODS IS NOT THE GREATEST. BEN HOGAN DESERVES THAT MANTLE
In response to Dan
Murphy’s article
concluding that Tiger
Woods is the “greatest”
(May issue), I suggest
that every generation
has produced at
least one great player
alongside a number of
nearly greats who could
make that claim based
on the tournaments
available coupled with Who would win if they many a person but
the means of travel at were given similar clubs Hogan went on to win
their disposal. and a ball is difficult to three majors in the
For example, Tom say, but one stands out same year and was only
Morris father and son, in my opinion – and that denied the chance of
Harry Vardon, Bobby is Ben Hogan. the PGA Championship
Jones and Walter Military service, because of the travel
Hagen, Ben Hogan a world war and car facilities available.
and Sam Snead, Jack accident, which left the Woods is up there
Nicklaus, Gary Player, doctors saying he would but not yet the greatest.
Arnold Palmer and Tom never play again, all Time will tell.
Watson. would have destroyed Stuart Robson, by email

20 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

IGNORE THE PRESSURE AND JUST ENJOY THE GAME
After reading the Karl Morris piece
on Francesco Molinari (April
issue), I totally agreed with his
comments. I am 65 and started
playing regularly from the age
of 40. I now play off 20 but have
played off 10 in my 50s. I am now
medically retired due to a serious
brain injury (accident) in my early
50s and get confused easily.
To get back to Karl’s column
with regard to setting for goals for
my golf, I don’t really bother as
to how well or not I am playing. I
just enjoy golf. I couldn’t keep a
mental ongoing score and try not
to look at the card unless writing
down the other player’s and my
score for that hole.
I still play with two societies
in the Bradford area, where I am
from, and also at my new club
in East Yorkshire in the senior
(EGGS) section. Through the
2017/18/19 seasons I have won
PAST CAPTAINS SHOULD BE ALLOWED COURTESY
For the past year I have had
the privilege of being captain of
Todmorden Golf Club.
During my year it was my
intention to take advantage
of the courtesy of the course
offered to visiting captains by
many clubs.
Unfortunately, this was
not possible as, being a
comparatively small club, the
role of captain is a hands-on role
almost £2,500 – my best time
ever. So I am quite pleased with
myself as an ordinary club golfer.
I don’t normally play the
normal club comps as this is
mentally hard for myself as I don’t
want players to make unsavoury
comments. I am fine with usual
banter and give and take it freely,
but I do not want people to
accuse me of being dim or slow
in sorting things out golf-wise. I
am physically quick round a golf
course and don’t delay anyone.
The mental side of golf is
difficult but I always get there in
the end. So to all club golfers,
do as you do and try to keep the
pressure off yourself. Disability
or not, we are not dependent
on how much we win. Victories
are good but as long as you
have enjoyed the game and the
company, that’s the main thing.
Gordon Scott, by letter
requiring time and presence at
the club during the season.
I would like to suggest that
the offer would perhaps be
more beneficial if it applied to
immediate past captains who
have served their time in office
and usually a few years prior to
that in other positions within their
respective clubs.
Alan Murray,
by email
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 21
ON THE TEE INTERVIEW | ARCHIVE | QUICK TIP | GEAR | COMPETITION | TOUR | GRASS ROOTS

THIS WILL CHANGE YOUR GAME

NIKON COOLSHOT 20 GII

Nikon’s latest laser is their lightest and smallest ever – but it still packs a punch

W
ITH the release of the
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Nikon promise the device
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Golfers can get a simple
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In addition, the First Target
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22 JULY 2019| www.nationalclubgolfer.com


in the background.
Images also appear bright
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www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 23
The new benchmark in golf trolleys the world over
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TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

July 18-21 | Royal Portrush, Northern Ireland | Defending champion: Francesco Molinari

In association with

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 25

 #1 AT THE

TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT GOLF’S ORIGINAL MAJOR

SINCE RECORDS HAVE BEEN KEPT. PROVING IT.
Source: Darrell Survey. Sports Marketing Survey Inc.
148 TH OPEN
LIMITED EDITION TITLEIST PRO V1 & PRO V1x AVAILABLE NOW
 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.

28 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

T WAS 21 minutes

I that will live long

in the memory of
Jordan Spieth, not to
mention everyone watching both
at Royal Birkdale and those glued
to their TV screens at home.
Standing on the 13th tee at
Royal Birkdale on the final day of
the 2017 Open Championship,
the Texan, level with playing
partner Matt Kuchar on 8-under,
pushed his drive right. Way right.
As soon as it left the clubface,
he put his hands on his head. “I
knew at that moment I was staring
at six, seven, eight and out of the
tournament,” he said afterwards.
A member of the crowd on
the dunes separating the 13th and
practice ground found Spieth’s
ball and, after much deliberation
with caddie Michael Greller, he
decided to take an unplayable.
Spieth’s only option? To
head back onto the practice area
flanked by the various brands’
enormous tour trucks. Greller
slogged to the top of the hill to
give his man a line.
“Mikey!” screamed Spieth.
“Number?”

‘CHAMPION
After a Moses-style parting
of the crowd, Spieth settled on
his club and let fly. His ball came
to a rest just shy of the front

GOLFER IS
greenside bunker. From there he
bumped one to six feet and made
the most unlikely of bogeys.
One back of Kuchar, he was
still in the tournament.

THE TITLE
What happened next was one
of the most remarkable sequence
of holes in Open history. Spieth
almost aced the 14th before

YOU WANT’
tapping in for birdie, then drained
a 50-foot eagle putt at 15 that
sparked the now famous “Go get
that!” that he yelled at Greller,
which Spieth later admitted was
Jordan Spieth will travel to Antrim in search of his to avoid any more hold-ups – “I
just felt so bad about how much
second Claret Jug expecting the unexpected time I’d taken at 13.”
Two more birdies followed
before a par at the last and a
three-shot victory to lift the
WORDS BY ALEX PERRY | PHOTOGRAPHY BY GETTY
Claret Jug for the first time.

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 29

 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.

Main: Spieth inspects the Claret Jug following his

victory in 2017. Below, left to right: The Texan
celebrates another birdie putt at Birkdale, this time
at the 16th; the rising star struggles at Muirfield in
2013; and his title defence slips away at Carnoustie

30 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN
SPIETH ON
THE DRAMA AT
BIRKDALE’S 13TH
“Honestly, if I was a very
straight driver of the golf ball,
I would have made a different
score on that hole. And having
been in unplayable situations
before, I just asked the
question, ‘is the driving range
out of bounds?’ And I got the
answer, ‘no’. And I thought,
‘well, then, that’s a much
better location for me to hit the
next shot because I can get it
much closer to the green and
it saves me almost a full stroke
from going back to the tee’.
“And the amount of time it
took was trying to figure out
where exactly the drop would
be, to where my nearest point
of relief from the equipment
trailers, to the right side on
the driving range instead of to
the left side, where I wouldn’t
be able to get a lot of club on
the ball.
“I knew that on that line
I was going to be – I was
going to be OK hitting from the
driving range, and getting it up
somewhere near the green.
And from there it was about
which club to hit.
“And Michael told me: ‘No
3-wood, hit 3-iron’. And I hit
it, thought it was right. After I
struck it, I didn’t like it because
it wasn’t where we were trying
to hit it, but I had some room,
given the club I had and the
yardage I had, which Michael
was right on, fortunately.”
Something, he tells me when I
visited him at his home club of
Dallas National in January, that
was a dream come true.
“The trophy itself, the
Claret Jug, is the coolest trophy
in our sport,” he says. “And
the history, how far back the
history goes into the late 1800s
and the fact that it was the
standard for championship golf,
for competitive golf, when the
sport was first coming out. The
historical significance is what the
Open means to me.
“It’s the most sought-after
trophy in our sport and, once you
have control of it, it’s the greatest
feeling. You feel like the champion
golfer, you are announced as the
champion golfer, and it’s the title
you want to have.”
There is a neat little footnote
to Spieth’s win at Birkdale. A
week before his 16th birthday,
Spieth had been at the same
venue to watch the Open for the
first time, having just finished
second in the Junior Open at
nearby Hesketh.
“Watching Opens growing up
the number one thing I remember
is seeing guys battling it out in the
weather,” Spieth explains.
“I remember playing the
Junior Open and then going
out to the Open Championship
at Birkdale, the year that
Padraig Harrington won, on the
Wednesday and Thursday. It was
just so brutally cold, wet, and
windy. I was thinking to myself,
‘This looks like a tough golf
course and these guys are playing
in these conditions’.”
But it didn’t deter him. If
anything it made him think it was
a tournament he could one day
go on and win.
“Growing up in Texas in the
wind, I embraced that. I really
liked that idea that a lot of golfers
wouldn’t enjoy that and therefore
it might make it easier for me,
someone who likes playing in the
wind.
“Similar to Augusta, I
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 31
In association with
remember thinking, ‘man, there
is a lot of feel that goes into this,
a lot of imagination that goes
into how you play tee to green
and especially on and around the
greens with the massive slopes of
links golf.’
“The uncertainty of what
conditions could come about in
the next hour or two on certain
days. Wind being one, rain being
another, as well as dropping and
rising temperatures. It will be
even more so in Ireland this year.”
Spieth, like his major record
in general, has done well at the
Open, with finishes of T44, T36,
T4 and T30 before that 2017
win. Last year he was left kicking
himself after playing in the final
group at Carnoustie thanks to a
third-round 65 before carding a
76 to fall to T9 and miss a golden
opportunity to be the first player
to defend the Claret Jug since
Harrington 10 years before.
And he puts his stuttering
debut down to the Muirfield
conditions taking him by surprise.
“I got in because of the
previous week, so it was last
minute and it was bone dry. It was
a dead golf course that was playing
so firm and fast,” he explains.
“I would think that there
was no way my 4-iron would
reach a bunker and then I’d hit
it and it would either go into the
bunker or past it. It was almost
uncontrollable. You just have
to deal with it. We had perfect
weather and it made the course
play firm and I honestly felt
like that was a disservice to the
tournament. It’s only now after
playing in a lot of other crazy
conditions that I’m like, ‘Wow,
that was unusual’. At the time,
I remember thinking, ‘I don’t
remember it being this nice over
here’. So, my first experience was
a little different but since then
it’s just changed to expect the
unexpected.”
And that might just be the
best kind of mentality with which
to go to Royal Portrush.
 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.

32 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

MASTERING
THE OLD
COURSE
Louis Oosthuizen tells Chris Bertram
how he put together one of the most
comprehensive Open wins in modern times

HERE wasn’t too much to suggest the tale of the 2010

T Open Championship would play out as it did over the Old

Course in St Andrews.
Lodewicus Theodorus Oosthuizen was ranked 54th in
the world at the start of that week and had made only one cut (73rd in
the 2008 US PGA) in his major appearances to date – a paltry return for
a man whose swing was already widely admired in the game.
But the South African quickly felt at home over the iconic links,
shooting an opening 65 to trail Rory McIlroy by two, and following it
with a best-of-the-day 67 to tie the lowest 36-hole score in Open history.
Another sub-70 round on Saturday gave him a four-stroke lead over
Paul Casey and although the Englishman closed the gap to three shots
on the 8th, Oosthuizen responded by driving the short par-4 9th to set
up an eagle two.
As Casey found gorse (making a seven) on 12, Oosthuizen made
birdie and the championship was effectively over. Boring for us,
uncommonly pleasurable for the champion-elect; rarely has a man
savoured a more serene coronation than that enjoyed by the 27-year-old.
A seven-shot win, the second lowest total in St Andrews Opens, and
membership of an elite band of South Africans to claim the Claret Jug
were the rewards for the quietly spoken man from Mossel Bay.
This is the before, during and after of Oosthuizen’s sole major victory
to date.

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 33


First experience of links golf...
It was in the 2002 St Andrews
Links Trophy – my first time
playing in Britain. I didn’t play
well. I struggled in the rain and
wind and cold; it was so different
to playing in South Africa. So it
was tough.
The cold was the toughest
thing to cope with I think. I
remember my hands being cold
and I hate that, so it was hard to
play well feeling like that. But I
loved St Andrews straight away
really. I thought it was beautiful
actually.
And Scotland has ended up
becoming one of my favourite
places to play, because I loved it
at Loch Lomond and St Andrews
with its history is so special. So it
was a tough start in Scotland but I
liked it already.
Taking to the challenge of links
golf...
I like the links style of golf. I like
playing in wind. It is a type of golf
that I embrace.
But I think you want to
play links golf in nice wind, not
40mph, just a nice breeze.
I feel I can do a lot more
shotmaking around links golf
courses, and it’s nice to be able to
play four or five different types of
shots. So the Open is always a fun
week for me.
Hopes going into the 2010
Open...
In every major you just want to
try and find your game. You just
try to make good swings and see
where it takes you.
I definitely didn’t have great
form going into the Open that
year but I found a few things at
the start of the week in practice
and then played really nicely all
four days.
I found my rhythm – that
was the thing. You just get those
sometimes where you find it early
in the week.
I didn’t feel confident going
into the week, but after the first
34 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com
MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.
round I knew that my game
was there, it was just a matter of
keeping everything together.
I felt good about my swing and
I had good rhythm. And I putted
beautifully.
The red dot that became a fad....
I had a chat with (sports
psychologist and NCG columnist)
Dr Karl Morris just before the
Open. It had been a problem for
me to let my mind wander and
make mistakes because I couldn’t
get back into the right focus.
So it helped me quite a lot
to just look down at the dot and
remember what we had talked
about to get me to focus.
And I was very happy with the
way I played the last nine. In the
past when I had a lead like that,
I would just get the club and hit
it to get it over with. But I took
my time, focused on the shot, and
didn’t try anything funny.
The celebrations afterwards...
I was all over the Jigger Inn –
outside, then inside.
I remember walking into the
garden outside and looked out on
the course and just thought about
what I’d won.
I remember thinking it would
have been cool to walk a little bit on
the course. It’s that kind of place.
Enjoying the limelight and
Main: Oosthuizen kisses the Claret Jug on the Swilcan Bridge in 2010. Below: The South African celebrates with
pressure... his wife Nel-Mare and daughter Jana, while, right: caddie Zack Rasego congratulates the 2010 champion
I don’t know if ‘enjoying’ is the
word I’d use – it’s part of the
package. It’s just how you handle it.
I don’t mind it, but it’s not a
thing that I go out to find, to be
in the spotlight or to be in the
limelight.
If you play well, you’re
eventually going to be in the
spotlight – I just take it as it comes.
If I do well and I’m in the
limelight, then it’s something I
need to be ready for.
Dealing with being Open
champion...
It’s a great honour to be Open
TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

champion, of course. It’s a nice

feeling to be that person.
But I think with it being my
first major, the year afterwards
is always tough. Hopefully when
there’s a second, I will deal with it
a little better the next time.
So when I wasn’t Open
champion any more it was sad but
also a little relief in a way.
I just wanted to get out there and
try to defend the tournament and
really looked forward to going out
and playing in front of the crowds.
Open week is always special, that
one was even more special.
Then, when I wasn’t Open
champion anymore, I could focus
on trying to win another major.

Having the Claret Jug in his

possession....
I didn’t do anything crazy with
it but the most special thing was
to take it to the club that I grew
up, Albertinia. It’s a nine-hole
course with sand-and-oil greens,
so to take it there and show it to
the members and my friends and
family was the most special thing.
To have the Claret Jug at a
golf club that’s probably got 40
members who are basically field
farmers – where I grew up – was
quite a special moment.

Favourite Open courses...

Well, I really liked Birkdale – I
thought it was very good even
though I didn’t play well.
It is one of my favourites
because it’s not just a course
where you take your driver out on
every hole and just hit it as hard
as you can.
Royal St George’s was very
tough, but I liked it. I didn’t mind
that you could get some bounces,
that’s what you expect on some
links courses. It was fun and I
liked it, but it was hard.
And for various reasons I love
the Old Course. It is right up
there with anything in the world
because of its history – everything
is special, even if it is not as tough
as other courses we play.

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 35

 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.

36 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

Portrush
Uncovered Mark Townsend sat down with lead
designer Martin Ebert to hear all about
this year’s Open Championship venue

FTER working providing architectural advice

A with Donald
Steel for 15 years,
Tom Mackenzie
and Martin Ebert, who is
pictured far left, set up their
own design company in 2005
and they now advise on seven
of the 10 courses on the
Open rota. They have been
to Royal Portrush on both the
Dunluce and Valley courses
since 2001 when they worked
with Steel, while Ebert has
overseen the recent changes
that include the addition of
two new holes, the 7th and
8th, in place of the old 17th
and 18th.

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 37


How would you sum up the
changes you’ve made?
We always look at the history
and aerial photos and there
hasn’t been a huge difference in
bunker style, unlike Turnberry
which was a great find to see
how intricate the shapes were.
At Portrush, there wasn’t
much difference in the bunkers
but they were definitely rougher
edged so we made suggestions
to go back to that. However,
the club preferred to keep the
bunkers where they have evolved
with their high sand faces, which
we were quite happy with as it
shows we do different things and
aren’t known for adopting the
same style everywhere.
However, while the focus
will be on the two new holes,
there have been a lot of other
improvements such as the
movement of the 2nd green, the
reshaping of the 3rd and 10th
greens, the movement of the
12th tees and numerous other
smaller tweaks.
Turnberry was rebuilt over a
winter. What was the Portrush
timescale like?
We started on the Valley
Course in August 2014 as we
had to make three new holes
there to replace the two that
were being lost, plus the par 3
18th which did not fit into the
revised layout. We started in the
summer and put down hollow
cores on the new Valley fairways
to establish for the following
year and then started work on
the Dunluce over that winter.
We had more time with the two
new holes on the Dunluce as we
didn’t need to relinquish the old
17th and 18th in any rush.
The club kept those new
holes closed for a whole growing
season but could have opened
them at the end of 2015. Instead,
they kept them back until the
summer of the following year.
At the start you put together
38 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com
MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.
a 72-page proposal for the 7TH CURRAN POINT
PAR 5, 592 YARDS
changes. How close did you STROKE INDEX 3
end up to that?
Pretty close. There has been the
odd bunker that hasn’t gone in -
there is one bunker to the left of
the new 7th instead of two and
one was left out on the 5th.
There are 59 bunkers on the
reconfigured course and there
were 59 before. We lost a lot on
the old 17th and 18th. The low
number shows just how good the
land form is and it’s the lowest
by a long way on the Open rota.
Were the last two holes always
a consideration for change?
We actually produced a plan
for the old 18th, not for
any commission, but when
working on other things. This
was inspired by a big job at
Enniscrone where we livened
up their 18th with dune work
along both sides of the hole and
behind the green and where we
put in a new green, so we made a
similar proposal for Portrush.
So it was a good job that
didn’t happen as we would have
had to flatten it all again!
The old 17th wasn’t
particularly bad. The Big Nellie
bunker framed the tee shot from
the back tee but it was a bit
bland for the second part of the
16TH CALAMITY
hole. The last was a tough hole PAR 3, 236 YARDS
STROKE INDEX 6
but it needed changing from a
health and safety point of view
with the road close by on the
right-hand side.
How do you keep the members,
visitors and R&A all happy?
Before there was any thought of
the Open going back, the club
allowed back tees to be put in
but the members didn’t want any
more bunkers. Once the Open
was a possibility, everything was
on the table but we have tried to
put bunkers in places affecting
elite players off the back tees so
they shouldn’t affect the shorter
hitters and there has been no
tightening of fairways.
TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN
The two new holes are
arguably more testing than the
old 17th and 18th so that has
increased the difficulty level.
The members have been
great in accepting the disruption
and being supportive of the
changes. Darren Clarke was
involved occasionally during
the process and he hit some tee
shots at the new 8th, to confirm
our design plan of having two
fairway bunkers on the right. He
has said he’s happy with most of
the changes although he is not
keen on the blind fairway bunker
to the left of the 17th.
How would you sum up your
work on the new 7th?
When designing the green, I
wanted the player coming up the
valley to see at least see some
part of the green and was keen
to encourage people to take the
second shot on and not leave
upwards of 150 yards in. So, if
the players try to get within 50
or so yards of the green, which
comes with some risk, they will
have a better chance of finding
the right portion of the green.
The 1st green has almost
four quadrants and so we’ve
done something similar to that
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 39
In association with
with the 7th in trying to keep
the green in character with what
Harry Colt might have done.
What would be your three
toughest holes?
Obviously it’s weather dependent
but almost certainly the 11th,
which was played as a par 5 in
the Irish Open but will be a 4
in July. It is such a difficult tee
shot between the dunes. The
18th will be no pushover if it is
playing into the wind and could
leave a long shot in. The 14th
has a new back tee and, with that
green perched up there and the
cavernous bunker on the left, it
could be very tough.
Do you have a set yardage in
when making changes?
No, it’s more a question of
looking at each hole and seeing
what it needs and achieving a
good balance of hole lengths.
My feeling was that the 14th
was a very short 4 for the best
players, so we added 50-60 yards.
Otherwise, the finish would have
been a short 4, another short 4,
Calamity, Purgatory, which could
be almost driveable, and then 18.
So lengthening 14 was important
to ramp up the difficulty.
14TH CAUSEWAY
PAR 4, 473 YARDS
STROKE INDEX 2
 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.

THE ULTIMATE
OPEN COURSE
Mark Townsend sat down with Tom Mackenzie and Martin Ebert to try to piece
together their perfect Open layout

40 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN
HE idea is simple. You have 10
T post-war Open Championship
courses to go at and you have to
come up with a layout that has
challenge, some sort of flow, no more than
two holes from any course and at least one
from each.
Par, as it should be, is an irrelevance and,
for Royal Liverpool, you will be picking from
the Open layout as opposed to the course
that the members play.
All of which sounds simple but then you
get stuck in all sorts of blind alleys.
In association with
Lead designers Tom Mackenzie and
Martin Ebert, who advise on seven of the
courses on the Open rota, were good enough
to step up to the plate and, after a good
while crossing out names and throwing away
various bits of paper, this is what they came
up with.
• Can you come up with your own composite 18
course from Open Championship venues to rival
Mackenzie and Ebert’s two 18-hole layouts?
Let us know your ideal Open course by
emailing letters@sportspub.co.uk
Old Course, St Andrews
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 41
 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY.
MARTIN EBERT
I BEGAN with the first and last
holes, which are always important.
I’ve gone with the 1st at the Old
Course which, other than the
enormous fairway, has the out of
bounds and the burn.
This was my first hole on the
team sheet, no doubt about it. It was
incredible to watch Paul Dunne in the
final group of the Open not even reaching
the burn with his second. That shows not
only the tension of the occasion but also
what that burn can do to a golfer’s mind.
Carnoustie’s final hole had to go in for the
sheer unpredictability that it potentially
brings to any Open.
Then I went with the venues that had
essential holes and filled those in – so the
Postage Stamp 8th hole at Troon and I also
Royal Troon
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really wanted to include the 11th at
Troon for how terrifying it is along
the railway line.
Then I had the Road Hole
17th at the Old Course, which
meant leaving out the 14th there.
For Portrush, you have the
16th, Calamity, which has to be
included along with the 5th, as having
some short 4s in the layout is essential. So
those two defined Portrush.
I really wanted to put in the par-3 6th at
Turnberry but that didn’t fit with Hogan’s
Alley at Carnoustie being included, so I
was then thinking about 9, 10 and 11 at
Turnberry. The much longer 9th works
pretty well with the Postage Stamp and I
would always have the 10th at Turnberry,
which sweeps round the bay and the green
MORE SPEED.
location is hard to beat – so a lot of the holes
took care of themselves.
Then it was a question of plenty of head
scratching.
I would have loved to have had the 13th
in at Muirfield but the 2nd is a great hole and
so I’ve gone with that. I refereed there in the
Open and walked round with Darren Clarke
and Jordan Spieth and that green floats away
from the golfer and was playing so firm that
I was convinced they would go over the
green and into all of the hoardings. I was so
relieved that they didn’t.
I could also have had the par-5 9th at
Muirfield, a great Tom Simpson design.
Some people can’t understand the 3rd
at Royal Liverpool, which is the 1st as the
club play it, with its internal out of bounds
but it is one of those great opening-hole
 TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

experiences. Otherwise at Hoylake, 13, the
Alps, would have been a good short hole to
have but I would go with the 14th, with the
green perched up into the dunes.
Certain holes on the courses just pick
themselves and then, on occasion, you have
to fill in with maybe not the best hole on a
particular course but that’s the nature of the
exercise.
The 12th at Birkdale is another which is
hard to leave out. The feeling of isolation,
a hole out there on its own, an across-the-
valley par 3 sensation, a well-bunkered green,
trouble over the back – it is just a brilliant
hole – but having that then knocks out
Muirfield’s 13th.
The 13th at Lytham conjures up images
of Seve in ’79 and ‘88 and provides some
relief before the finishing stretch in my
layout which is so demanding. It’s great to
have a short 4 like Portrush’s 5th on the front
nine and the 13th at Lytham provides that on
the back nine.
I finish with Hoylake’s 14th, the 15th at
Sandwich, Calamity at Portrush, the Road
Hole and Carnoustie, so that is quite a big
finish!
The 15th at Sandwich is just made by
the green; you could probably argue it was
a bogey five in the old days. The undulation
is beautiful and, with the banking off to
the right, it is a fantastic hole. There is an
element of blindness with the approach but
you know what you have to do.
I think that the Road Hole is a fantastic
test of nerve; the bolder you are, the easier
your second to a slither of a green. It might
be the most difficult hole in golf and you
couldn’t imagine the Old Course without it.
You would have to make your score in the
middle section. Hogan’s Alley and Lytham’s
7th are birdie chances and then the Postage
Stamp is a wedge – the best players are
hugely talented so they might be capable of
a 66 or 67.
I did a similar exercise for Portrush,
Turnberry and Troon and ended up with
seven par 3s and actually thought that was a
pretty good model for a course these days.
Everyone enjoys good par 3s and it allows
control over the approach shot to the green.
I think my play-off holes would be the
1st on the Old, then I might have the 4th at
Royal St George’s and then 17 on the Old
and 18 at Carnoustie.
Or I might want a par 3 in there so I
could stick in the Postage Stamp....

MARTIN EBERT’S DREAM 18

Hole Course Yds Par Hole Course Yds Par

1st St Andrews, Old Course 375 4 10th Trump Turnberry 565 5
2nd Muirfield 364 4 11th Royal Troon 482 4
3rd Royal Liverpool 426 4 12th Royal Birkdale 183 3
4th Royal St George’s 495 4 13th Royal Lytham & St Annes 355 4
5th Royal Portrush 374 4 14th Royal Liverpool 454 4
6th Carnoustie 580 5 15th Royal St George’s 496 4
7th Royal Lytham & St Annes 592 5 16th Royal Portrush 236 3
8th Royal Troon 123 3 17th St Andrews, Old Course 495 4
9th Trump Turnberry 248 3 18th Carnoustie 499 4

OUT: 3,577 YARDS, PAR 36 IN: 3,765 YARDS, PAR 35

TOTAL: 7,342 YARDS, PAR 71

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 43


TOM MACKENZIE
I STARTED off thinking
this would be a bit
of fun and a free-
thinking exercise
but then ended up
surrounded by lots
of screwed up bits of
paper.
I started off with my
definites, which I felt really
strongly about and, having to use
all of the courses at least once,
I then went to the ones where I
might be less inclined towards
and chose my favourites from.
I started with the 1st hole at
the Old Course mainly because
I’m not a huge fan of many of
the opening holes on the Open
rota. I caddied for Jeff Hawkes
in the Open in ‘84 so I know
what that magic feels like in that
amphitheatre and I couldn’t not
use it. I also then pencilled in the
Road Hole for the same reason.
There isn’t a golfer on the planet
who doesn’t get at least a frisson
of excitement there.
Then I went to the 18th.
I don’t think there’s a stand-
out 18th but Carnoustie is
the best of the lot. The Road
Hole blocked out the 17th at
Carnoustie and I kept finding
pairs of holes that I wanted to
use but couldn’t.
The 12th at Birkdale is a very
attractive hole that is tucked
away in the dunes. You stand on
the tee and if you don’t play it
well, it will punish you.
I ended up with six par 3s
with a mixture of the longest
on the rota to the very shortest
and think that’s the best way of
testing out a player’s game, as
well as putting them under a bit
of pressure on all of them. It’s
easy to pinpoint a collection of
great short holes but a lot harder
to then rank them. I found once
I had my initial picks I might not
be picking my favourite holes on
my preferred courses so it was an
exercise in compromise. In the
44 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com
MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.
end, I had consecutive par
5s and par 3s twice.
I’ve got the 7th
at Portrush in for
the natural drama
and beauty. It’s also
good to include some
strong modern par 5s
that aren’t a drive and a
6-iron and that fits the bill.
The 14th at Sandwich is
fairly iconic with the white
stakes and anyone a bit jittery
will be significantly more jittery
when standing on the tee. Then,
when they’re left of centre after
the drive they’ll be wondering
where they’re going to hit their
second shot.
To start with, I had the 9th
at Muirfield, which then made
way for the 9th at Sandwich.
Likewise, 6, 7 and 8 at Muirfield
were also strong contenders but
in the end I settled on 4 and 15
from there.
Similarly at Turnberry, 9, 10
and 11 immediately sprung to
mind before I finally went with
10 and 11. The 10th might be
my favourite hole on this layout
as it has the views and makes
you question what line to take
off the tee. Favourite holes make
you feel the best and with the
lighthouse and the bay, it is just
one of the places to be in golf, as
well as being such a strong hole.
I wanted a strong finish and
Calamity is a must, then we
have the Road Hole. A client
once said the definition of a
great hole is if you play a hole
badly you then want to run back
to the tee and play it again. At
the 17th you soon learn if you
don’t get the tee shot right and
when you’ve snookered yourself,
the next time you’ll try and get
closer to the hotel.
My play-off loop would be
15-18 and a good score with
moderate weather conditions
might be eight under over the
four days.
TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

TOM MACKENZIE’S DREAM 18

Hole Course Yds Par Hole Course Yds Par

1st St Andrews, Old Course 375 4 10th Trump Turnberry 565 5
2nd Royal Birkdale 422 4 11th Trump Turnberry 215 3
3rd Royal Liverpool 426 4 12th Royal Birkdale 183 3
4th Muirfield 226 3 13th Royal Troon 473 4
5th Royal Lytham & St Annes 218 3 14th Royal St George’s 547 5
6th Carnoustie 580 5 15th Muirfield 448 4
7th Royal Portrush 592 5 16th Royal Portrush 236 3
8th Royal Troon 123 3 17th St Andrews, Old Course 495 4
9th Royal St George’s 410 4 18th Carnoustie 499 4

OUT: 3,372 YARDS, PAR 35 IN: 3,661 YARDS, PAR 35

TOTAL: 7,033 YARDS, PAR 70

Turnberry

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 45

 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.

“THE OPEN
SOUNDS
DIFFERENT:
THE BALL
SOUNDS
DIFFERENT
WHEN YOU
STRIKE IT.
BUNKER
SHOTS ARE
DIFFERENT.”
Nick Faldo, Open champion in 1987, 1990 and 1992, looks back
at his experiences in golf’s oldest major and also ahead to Portrush

46 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 47

 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.
O YOU think we Below: Faldo in action in the 1978 Open at St Andrews. He would finish in a tie for 7th. Right: The Englishman

D
lifts the second of his three Claret Jugs in 1990 in front of a packed crowd at St Andrews
will ever have seen
so much attention
on a home player
at the Open than Rory will face
at Portrush and what advice
would you give him?
Rory, you’ve got to use it. I
wouldn’t say it was the pressure,
it would be the pure adrenaline.
The support would be off the
charts.
If you could channel that into
it carrying you playing out of your
boots that would be the way to
cope with that.

Your three Claret Jugs all

came in Scotland rather
than England. Was that just
coincidence?
That was a coincidence about me
winning in Scotland. It was the
British Open moons ago, now
it’s the Open, so I never regarded
there to be a border.
I think I called myself British
more than English. Unless
I’m doing my Austin Powers
impersonations – then I’m
English.

As a player, did you sense a

different atmosphere from
one venue to the next or did it
always just feel like an Open
with the same sights and
sounds and smells?
No, the atmosphere was always
good. I loved playing the Irish
Open way back in 1976, I
think, and it was always a great
atmosphere. And I won it. I won
the Irish Open three times. I love
the atmosphere in Ireland and
you’re always going to have great
stories.
Yes, the whole experience
will be unbelievable. You’ve got
to battle the golf course and the
elements will more than likely be
a major part of it.

There is a school of thought

that Tiger’s best chance of
further majors will come at
the Masters and Open, where

48 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN
experience and craft tend to
count for a little more.
Do you agree and how do you
assess his chances at Portrush?
Well, I personally think that what
he needs is nice, hot weather to
keep that back mobile and I think
Tiger’s best chance is to stay fit
every April.
I’m not sure about the British,
or good old Irish, weather. It’s
going to be in the
60s and raining,
waterproofs on
and off, carrying
umbrellas. I’m not
sure that’s the best
test for Tiger. I
think Augusta is
really suited to him
perfectly.
Does the fact
nobody has played
an Open at Portrush
make it a more level
playing field or does
links-craft still apply
regardless?
Yes, I guess there’s a
little bit of the fact not
many players have any
local knowledge, real
experience. But if you
want to win the Open,
I suggest getting there
and preparing.
It’s going to be
very different if you
get a good old 30mph
wind – that is hugely
different on a links.
And if it’s going
to be raining and
nasty you better
be comfortable
playing in a comfortable set of
waterproofs, so yes it’s worth
doing a bit of local preparation.
When we prepared for the
Open moons ago we were actually
at Gleneagles the week before,
which was actually quite good
because it was nice turf, the same
sort of turf, although obviously a
different style of golf course.
But I mentally put myself
in Open mode and I would
intentionally hit knockdown shots
or swing slower and smoother as
if I was preparing for the wind.
My mind was probably
more on preparation than the
tournament so I was happy if just
played nicely. I wasn’t worried
about winning or about doing
great.
I just wanted to leave there on
Sunday – actually it was Saturday
in the good old days – and feel
that my game and striking the ball
were ready to go a links.
We usually used to get there
by Sunday and play practice
rounds every day. That was how
we prepared.
Are you a fan of the Open
going to new venues or do you
In association with
think the current rota is well SIR NICK’S FALDO
stocked? SERIES NOW RUN
Yes, I am a fan of the Open going BY SON MATTHEW
to new venues. We probably
have got a pretty good rota now. The Faldo Series dates back to
I’m sure we have got at least 10, 1996 and the year of your sixth
haven’t we? So that would kind of and final major. Can you explain
make sense. to us what it means to you?
My mission was to give kids more
opportunities to be competitive so
Can you remember the
we divided Great Britain and Ireland
experience of playing an Open up into six regions. We had three
for the first time at qualifying events in each region on
a certain venue? It some really cool golf courses. So
must have been very we wanted the players to play in the
different in terms of three events. They got points for
how you prepared, playing in all three events and we
compared to going had a grand final. Nick Dougherty
back to a venue you won. So that’s how it started. I
took the winners from each age
were very familiar
group to Orlando. Once you spend
with
a winter in Florida, you realise how
It’s always a weird unproductive the British winter is.
feeling to back to an
Open venue and you How has the Series evolved?
realise over 10 or We have events in almost all four
12 years have gone corners. We have events down
by and it was quite in New Zealand, Australia, all the
a nasty shock to the way through Asia and Europe. We
system. Where did have a Faldo Series in America with
those 10 years go? grand finals as well. We are trying
to expand.
You drive into the
same town and you
remember that things
haven’t changed a lot.
The sound of the
Open was similar
because they used that
metal fencing which
made a wonderful
ring.
So you’d play a
practice round and
if the weather was Your son Matthew now runs the
good, especially down events. How much does that
more in England at mean to you?
Royal St George’s on Matthew came out of college
a sunny breezy day, and worked as an intern with me
you’d hear the skylarks singing and that’s getting close to nearly
away. 10 years ago now. At least four
So, yes, the Open sounds or five years ago, he said, ‘Dad,
I can do this – I can run it.’ He
different. The ball sounds
took it on board himself to be the
different when you strike it.
series director and he and Keith
Bunker shots are different – when
Wood travel the globe promoting
you are deep in a pot bunker on each event and attend meetings to
your own, you get your own echo, expand in new regions. I’m very
you get your own thud. proud that Matthew has got his
Yes – the Open is different in own bee in his bonnet to try and
almost every way. create a South American tour.
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 49
 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.

50 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN
ENDING
the
DROUGHT
Fifty years after winning the Open, Tony
Jacklin looks back on the victory that
ended the long wait for a British winner
F you’ve never
I watched a clip
of Tony Jacklin
winning the 1969
Open then it’s worth it for
Henry Longhurst’s commentary
alone. It had been 18 years since
a fellow Briton, Max Faulker at
this year’s venue Royal Portrush,
had got the job done and it
would be another 16 years after
Jacklin before Sandy Lyle would
do likewise.
This was a win for the ages
and Jacklin did it in style. For
one month in 1970 he even also
held the US Open following his
exhibition at Hazeltine. It was
the only European victory in the
event in a period that lasted 84
years.
Fifty years on he looks back
on those golden days...
Does Lytham feel like 50
years, yesterday or something
in between?
Probably something in between,
50 years is a hell of a long time
but I remember it vividly and it
changed my life. It was a perfect
week. I didn’t play spectacular
golf but you don’t have to on
links courses. I played and putted
solidly and it was more a test of
patience.
Did you feel ready to win a
major?
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 51
In association with
I won the Jacksonville Open the
year before and I was making
my way in America and that win
really boosted my confidence. I
was playing with Arnold Palmer
and Don January on the final day
and it wasn’t easy at that time
with Arnie’s Army, so that stood
me in good stead for the Open.
I was coming back to home soil,
I got terrific support and it was
clear that they were interested
in what I had been doing in the
States. It was obvious from my
first practice round that I would
get a great following and that
made me feel important. It was
heartening as in the States I was
just another player.
How familiar were you with
Lytham?
I qualified for the ‘63 Open there
when I was 19 and that was the
start of my professional career
really. I got a little Morris Minor
and travelled in that to all events
in the UK. They had the Pringle
Tournament there in 1967 and
I won that, so I’ve always had
a soft spot for it. I’ve just been
made an honorary member
which is lovely and I’ll play there
this summer in a charity game.
There was no European Tour
then and I was actually the first
one in Europe to make a living
purely out of playing. My peers
like Peter Alliss and Dai Rees all

had jobs in the winter to go back
to. I never did that. From 1963,
I would play overseas in the
winter, like the Far East.
Peter Alliss said he’d like to
be a member of Lytham. Of
all the Open courses, where
would you have it?
That would also be Lytham,
both as a club to go to and it’s a
tremendous test. It lacks the look
of a Turnberry. You don’t see the
water and there is the railway
and red-roofed houses but the
back nine has some outstanding
holes and, with a stiff breeze, is a
mean test.
And how much of a fan were
you with seaside golf?
In the 1960s all the great courses
were links so we played nearly all
our golf on links courses as no
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MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY.
modern courses had been built
by then. We had Sunningdale
and Wentworth but the vast
majority were links. I was
weaned on that form and you
had to use your imagination and
not just get a yardage and hit.
You have to learn how to use the
wind and play the shot that is
required and I was comfortable
doing that.
The ‘69 Open was the first to
use on-course leaderboards.
How did it compare as a major
to those in the States?
When Palmer won in 61-62
the R&A realised that they
had to get off their backsides
and put on an event properly.
A delegation went to America
every year and learned how
to put on a tournament. The
Americans didn’t generally
MORE SPEED.
defend at the Open as it was
lousy prize money. To come over
cost more than first prize. Then
things turned around. The R&A
were adding things every year
and making it more professional.
This was the first colour TV
Open and I won with a small
ball, which was mandatory.
A lot is talked about how
well you scrambled on the
Saturday?
That is part and parcel of pulling
something off. It’s not a game
of perfect on links courses with
funny bounces. There was some
talk of conforming clubs at the
start of the week with the grooves
and I took my sand wedge in to
have it tested and they ummed
and ahhed and they thought the
grooves might be a bit on the
edge so I went into the Dunlop
tent and got myself a Roberto De
Vicenzo sand wedge – I was in 11
greenside bunkers and I got up
and down every time.
What advice would you
pass on to someone playing
four rounds in typical Open
conditions?
Tempo is a big thing. I played
in a lot of Opens and you get
drawn with players who didn’t
understand the nuances. I played
with an American and he took
driver on every hole. It was
insane – you can’t play links golf
like that. I was always impressed
by Peter Thomson and Bobby
Locke growing up and I played
a lot with Peter and his whole
thing was patience. He would hit
a lot of 3-woods and he was so
patient. Keeping the ball in play
is paramount and you can’t play
 TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

Jacklin claimed 30 professional wins in his career. He represented Great Britain & Ireland/Europe at the Ryder Cup
seven times as a player and four times as a non-playing captain, guiding Europe to victory all on four occasions

a links course out of the rough. machine, and it shortened my If you were to have a fiver
time at the top. I was trying each-way who would you go 1969 OPEN
How much did winning the to be all things to all people with? LEADERBOARD
Open in 1969 and the US and overdid it. Nicklaus would I wouldn’t back anyone against 1) Tony Jacklin
Open the following year play 18 events a year. I would Tiger. The trouble is the 68-70-70-72=280| -4
change your life? be 28-30 plus other bits all variables with links golf and 2) Bob Charles
It cemented my position as one over the world. I was intrigued getting the right tee times. I’m 66-69-75-72=282 | -2
of the best players on the planet by a question on Twitter of not sure the likes of a Dustin T3) Roberto De Vicenzo
and that was my inspiration as whether you would rather win Johnson realise the importance 72-73-66-72 = 283 | -1
a young man: to be the best a major or be world No.1. How of playing from the fairway. They T3) Peter Thomson
player in the world and I had can anybody think like that? are all obsessed with power and 71-70-70-72=283 | -1
a month of holding the two The majors are sacred. Who that really doesn’t matter, which 5) Christy O’Connor Snr
trophies. I didn’t fear anyone at remembers if you’re the No.1 is why it brings a whole lot of 71-65-74-74=284 | E
that time but I was still learning. for two days? If you win a major new players into the mix. Tiger T6) David Love Jr
I didn’t do everything right. I you’re part of the Holy Grail. gets it and he has the strongest 70-73-71-71 =285| +1
went with Mark McCormack mind, so it will be fascinating to T6) Jack Nicklaus
and he was giving me the Have you played Portrush? watch him in Ireland. 75-70-68-72=285 | +1
runaround and going here, there I played there in a Senior Open.
8) Peter Alliss
and everywhere. Winning two I missed the cut. The rough was Jacklin has invested in the Zest. 73-74-73-66 =286| +2
majors didn’t give you financial so high and I lost a ball when I Golf crowdfunding campaign, the
9) Kel Nagle
security. From my background, missed the fairway by a few yards company that is transforming global 74-71-72-70=287 | +3
I wanted to be secure and at the 2nd. It’s a brave move by online golf tee time sales. To find
10) Miller Barber
McCormack had me travelling the R&A to take it there but out more about the business and get
69-75-75-69=288 | +4
everywhere and a man is not a they’ll get a great response. involved visit seedrs.com/zest

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 53

 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.
Like most golf clubs in Ireland very beneficial to tourism so spell as captain w
here was a heavy Scottish they put up the trophies and Royal Portrush.

TALES OF ROYAL
nfluence in how the County
Golf Club, as it was originally
nown, was formed in 1888
the money and negotiated with
Lord Antrim who owned the
land to set up the club.
It turned out tha
had never liked t
name so there wa

L Baillie,
PORTRUSH
s a nine-hole course and it
was two gentlemen, George
from historian
Journalist, Musselburgh and author Roger
In 1889 Old Tom visited and
gave his recommendations for
theAnderson
course which shares his werebest never
stories with Mark
and at one stage
was going to be c
St Patrick’s.
Townsend As w
nd a schoolteacher at Belfast chronicled, he was due to come the patron saint,
Royal Academy, and another back but never did. Patrick’s church
cot, Thomas Gilroy, who The world’s oldest national course but it was
would have been regarded as association, the Golfing Union it Royal Portrush
he Rory McIlroy of his time, of Ireland (GUI) was formed
who were the driving forces in the Northern Counties The seeds of the
ehind it. Having learnt the Hotel, Portrush, in 1891. (Pic: Miss Rhona
ame at Carnoustie and gone to The following year Portrush From the very st
t Andrews University, Baillie hosted the first ever amateur that-be were inte
helped set up Royal Belfast tournament in Ireland, and in this an all-inclusi
which was the first golf club 1895 Sandy Herd beat Harry William Mann an
n Ireland, but Scottish golfers Vardon in the final of the first were the driving
were used to playing links ever professional tournament on and from the ons
o they came down to Royal the Emerald Isle. support was give
Portrush and straightaway fell in game.
ove with the land. Putting the Royal into Royal The ladies’ branc
The first day of competition was Portrush (pic: Captain James and in 1893 they
May 12 1888 and in those days Martin) the third membe
ou stepped off the train and That patronage came due to Golfing Union a
traight onto the course. The who you know. Military captain Wimbledon and
ourse was not where it is now James Martin McCalmont had Lytham and St A
ut in the centre of town and connections with the Duke the same year we
hat was the blueprint that came of Marlborough and in 1892 members of Irish
rom Scotland and tied in with he arrived at the AGM and Union.
he whole
E idea Victorian
of this is fairly simple. You have tourism. announced
10 post-war Open Championship courses to gothat hehave
at and you had received
to come The
up with a layout that first three
has challenge, some sort la
fl ow and no more than two holes from
HIS piece came about through contacting Royal each course and at least one from each.
couple of hours. Roger is coming to the close of putting together
The Par, asrailways patronage from the Duke of championships course that w

T
later we sat down
Portrush
the
Two
members
realised
be
Alldays
could
Lead
it should
and

of which
askingbe,
play.
to chronicle that
is an
them
golf
some of the
soundsAnderson
later Roger
be something
designers
at the Bushmills Tom
irrelevance
who and,

York
club’s lesser-known
simple but
InnMackenzie
rangthen
meyou
for Royal
the best storyteller

andget
Golf
and Martin
for a genuinely
would

stuck
a few
Liverpool,
tales.so it Golf
in all sorts
weeks
Ebert,Club.
fascinating who here
you will
‘History
became
Made,be History
picking

Royal
Club’. Seventeen
willofbeblind
Itarewas
from the
In The
chapters

inRoger’s
a few of hisfavourite
second
Open layout
Making:
County
as
The Story
have now been the
opposed

Scott
bits of Portrush
to the
Of Royal Portrush
written.aristocrat
The final one
alleys. after the third week in July. In the meantime,
put together
history.and here h
La

54 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

when it became completed in 1895. Watching American lady golfers decided

and playing were local girls May to bring a team to Cromer
at the members Hezlet and Rhona Adair and which was the first time Americ
the original seeing Scott made them realise had played against GB&I’s
T H E E A R L Y D A Y S
as a great debate they were toying with the game ladies. The Hezlets, May, Violet
is
The course was not where it
lookedLiklike it
e most golf clu bs in and
Irel and eightnow but in the cen
and tre Florence,
of tow n sat down with
h int tha t
there was a heavy Sco of
called Royal in how the
ttis
Co unt y
theand that was m Sco
Margaret
the blu epr
tland and tied in
and Harriot Curtis
infl uen ce cam e fro
well as being
Golf Club, as it was orig next
inally nine with the wholeand idea ofhammered
Victorian out the idea of
was for me d in 188 8 . Th e rail way s rea lise d
known, tourism
there is a St
as a nine-hole course. It was
Irish Ladies’ a competition that could be
that golf could be something
near the two old
gentlemen, George L very beneficialplayed to tourism so annually. For a number
the
Baillie, from Mussel bur gh they put up the trophies and
s carriedandto a schcall
oolteacher at Belfast money and neg ofotiareasons,
ted with Lord mainly money and
r d, to
Royal Academy, and anothe Antrim, who owned the lan
h in 1895.Scot, Thomas Gilroy, who set up the club.
funding, it didn’t happen for a
would have been regarded as In 1889, OlddecadeTom visited and but those were the seeds
Ilro y of his tim e, om me ndations for
the Rory Mc Thomas Gilroy gav e his rec
e Curtis wh Cup o were the driving forces the course, but ofthethey wereCurtis
never Cup that is now
ned the due to com e
ind it. Having lear chronicled. He was
a Adair)behgame at Carnoustie and gon
e to played today.
back but never did.
tart the powers-
St Andrews University, Bai llie
,
The world’s oldest national
ion
helped set up Ro yal Bel fast association, the Golfing Un
ent in making
which was the fi rst Amateur
gol f clu b in
of Ireland 4
(GU Man
I), was for vs
me woman (Pics: 16 down
d in
ttis h gol fers wer e Co unt ies Ho tel,
and, but Sco the Northern
ive club Ireland
used to playing links so they
copy + The
Portrush, in 1891. The follow
ing inimitable May
nd HughcamAdair e down to Royal Portrush
e wit h
year PortruHezlet)
sh hosted the first
and straightaway fell in lov ever amateur tournament in
forces for the lanthat
d. Ireland, andLongin 1895 San before
dy Herd Billie Jean King
The first day of competition Vardon in the final
set a lot of was May 12, 188 8 and in tho se
beat Harry and Bobby Riggs in tennis the
of the first ever professional
en to the day ladies’
s you stepped off the train
rse. George L Baillie tournamentvice-president
on the Emerald Isle. of the LGU,
and straight onto the cou
Mr TH Millar, decided it was
ch was formed Championships were won by time to put the prolific female
y became only P
these two. U TTThey ING alsoTwon HEfive winners
er of the Ladies’ British ROY Amateurs.
AL INTO ROYALin their
after Royal Adair stopped playing relatively place. He
earlyPObut RT inR 1903USH she made brought
That patronage came due to
Annes and in the whotrip you knoto America
w. Mili tary captain
which
Royal Portrush.
It turned out that the members
a men’s
ere founding not many lady golfershaddid
James Martin McCalmont had
connections with the Duke
neverand
liked the original team over
name so there was a great debate
h Ladies Golfing played of Marlbortournaments
ough and in 1892 throughout
and at one stage looked like init 1907 to
he arrived at the AGM and
America
announced thatand cleaned Stwas
he had received
up, goinwith
g to be called Royal
Patrick’s. As well as being
adies’ 16 trophies in her bagtheon
patronage from the Duke of
York, so it became Royal County
patronthesaint, there is a St
Patrick’s church near the old
were won by boatGolf Clu home.
b. It was in One
his secondwas cour
against
se but it was carried to call it challenge
spell as captain when it became
dy Margaret Margaret Curtis and Roy two al Poryears
trush in 1895. May Jam
es Martin McCalmont Hezlet,
at-trick was after this visit inspired the her sister
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 55
 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.
Like most golf clubs in Ireland up the trophies and the money Marlborough an
here was a heavy Scottish and negotiated with Lord arrived a
nfluence in how the County Antrim who and ann
s W
Golf Club, as it was originallyO M A N owned the had rec
MAN v
nown, was formed in in1888
before Billie
Jean K g an d th e men lostland all four m
actually play
toatchset
ed two mes ga
es,
.
from th
s a nine-hole
L on g coursein tennis, the
and vice it- M ay
When playin
up g Mill thear, instclub.
ea d of so it be
Bobby Riggs , M r T H 8, he re fused
was two gentlemen,
president of
the LGUGeorge conceding at
to pu t In 10&
1889
on until he w
onOld a County
ill ar, de ci de d it was time an d pl ay ed
M
L Baillie, thfrome prolific fem
Musselburgh
ale winne rs in
hole. He ha Tom
lved the visited
17 th
o
an
in
d
the
It was
ere is a ph ot
nd a schoolteacher
their place. at Belfast er in 18 th and th and gave s his
an d spell a
ov both te am
a men’s team ubhouse with
He brought le t, cl ill ar
Royal Academy, ay Hez tened Mr M
1907 to chaland lenge Manother a rather chas ying it beca
let an d R ho na board sign sa
her sister Vio holding a card 16 down...
cot, Thomas Adair.
Gilroy, who and ‘16 do w n’ . Portru
dn’t go to plan
would haveB been regarded as
ut th in gs di
It turned out tha
he Rory McIlroy of his time, recommendations for the course had never liked t
who were the driving forces which were never chronicled, he name so there wa
ehind it. Having learnt the was due to come back but never and at one stage
THE SEand E D S
ame at Carnoustie gone
O F THThe
to did.
E Cworld’s URToldest
was going to be c
t AndrewsthFroUniversity,
m the very
at-be were
start the pBaillie
intent in m
owers-
R h o n a Adair, and
I S C U P
national St Patrick’s. As w
helped set thup is an Royal
all-inclusiveBelfast
aking
club and
made them association, seeing Scott the Golfing Union
sat down w
the patron saint,
realise they ith Margar
which waswWerthe illiam Man
fi
e the drivin
rst n angolf
d Hugh club A d air
toying with
o f the next n
of th eIreland
g am e. E
were
ig h t
(GUI) H ar ri was
o t C u rt formed
is an d h am
et and Patrick’s church
g forces for ine Irish Lad out the idea mered
n Ireland,wFrobut m the Scottish
onset a lot golfers
of support
that. Amateur Cin the
hampionsh Northern
ies’
th Counties
at could be
of a compet
ition course but it was
as given to won by thes ips were played ann
the ladies’ g u ally.
were usedThto e ladplaying
ies’ branch links
ame.
was formed
won five BriHotel,
e two. They Portrush,
also
money and
in
For a numb
1891.
er of reason
s, m ainly
it Royal Portrush
tish Am eu funding, it
o they came and in 1893
down they becto Royal Adair stopp The atfollowing rs.
h apyear Portrush didn’t
the third m am e only ed playing rela p en for a decad
ember of th early but in tively were the se e but those
1 9 0
PortrushWandG olfing Ustraightaway
nion after R
e
oyal
L ad ie s’ fell the trinip to Amer hosted3 sh e m
ica, which
adethe first ever
that is now
edsamateur
of the Curt
played today
is Cup The seeds of the
imbledon an not many la .
ove withLytthe ham anland.
d
d St Annes played tourn tournament
dy golfers d
id, and in Ireland, and in (Pic: Miss Rhona
the same ye , an d in aments thro
The firstmem day ofar wcompetition
bers of Iris
ere foundin
g 1
Am was
erica and cl 1895
eaned up,Sandy
u g
with
h out Herd beat Harry From the very st
h Ladies’ 6 tr o p hies in her
May 12 G1888olfing Unand ion. in those days boat home. Vardon
One was ag
bag on thein the final of the first that-be were inte
The first th Margaret C ainst
ree ladies’
ou stepped
championoff ships were
the train and after this vi
urtever
is and twoprofessional tournament on
years this an all-inclusi
aristocrat L won by the sit, the Am
er
traightanonto
d her hat-t
the
ad y Marcourse.
garet Scott The
g
to
o lfers decided the Emerald
to bring a te
ic an lady
am
Isle. William Mann an
rick was co Cromer, w
hich was th
ourse inwas
1895. not
Watchin where
g and playi it is now
mpleted
time Amer
ic a had played
e first were the driving
were local ng GB&I’s lad against
girls May H
ut in the centre ofezletown
t and and
May, Viole
ies. TPutting
he Hezlets, the Royal into Royal and from the ons
t and Flore
nce,
hat was the blueprint that came Portrush (pic: Captain James support was give
rom Scotland and tied in with Martin) game.
he whole Victorian tourism. That patronage came due to The ladies’ branc
The railways realised that who you know. Military captain and in 1893 they
olf could be something very James Martin McCalmont had the third membe
eneficial to tourism so they put connections with the Duke of Golfing Union a
56 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com
 TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

d in 1892 he Wimbledon and a competition that could be

at the AGM Lytham and St Annes and in played annually. For a number
of reasons,RATHMORE
F R E D D A LY
nounced that he the same year were founding
eived patronage members of Irish Ladies Golfing funding, itAnybody
mainly money and
didn’t happen for a
who visits Royal Portrush
he Duke of York Union. decade butwillthose see within awere few hundred the seeds
yards of the clubhouse the ladies’
ecame Royal The first three ladies’ of the Curtis clubhouse Cup thatGC.isThisnow
and Rathmore
y Golf Club. championships were won by played today. is an autonomous club, a club in
its own right, borne out of Royal
in his second the aristocrat Lady Margaret Portrush and part of that artisan
golf movement like Royal Liverpool,
as captain when Scott and here hat-trick was 4 Man vs woman Carnoustie and so (Pics:
many clubs. 16 down
ame Royal completed in 1895. Watching copy + The inimitable May
Royal Portrush wanted to be
all-inclusive with the ladies and
ush. and playing were local girls May Hezlet) also people who didn’t have the
wherewithal to play golf. JH Taylor
at the members Hezlet and Rhona Adair and Long before Billie
set up the artisans Jean King
at Royal North
the original seeing Scott made them realise and BobbyDevon Riggsand he had inbeentennis
to Portrush the
in 1902 so maybe that played a part.
as a great debate they were toying Da
with the game
ly grew up in a terrac
e of houses vice-president The members ofgotthe playingLGU,
rights in
ch am pio n Fr ed the mornings or late in the evenings
The 1947 Open sit. He was the
looked like it and eight of
on Causeway Street op
positthee where nextthe coursnine
e used to Irish un d cad die
Mr TH Millar,
in exchange decided
for helping with the it was
ass Po rtr ush ma n, a shilling-a-ro
called Royal Ladies’
quint essential worki
r wa s
Amateur
a
ng
bla
-cl
cks
Championships
mith. His father didn’t
think there was anytime to put the
upkeep
became
of theprolifi
course andcthisfemale
Rathmore in 1947.
his fat he ici an ,
and an apprentice electr
well as being were
future in go lfwon
so he askbyed Frthese
ed to become two. They n and Fred winners inThistheir
is Graeme place.
McDowell’s He
home
six mo nth s as it cla shed with a competitio club. His father Kenny worked in the
which lasted
there is a St also
walked out.
won fi ve British Amateurs. in the same
brought a men’s
science lab in
team
the local
over
school, his
in
n the Op en an d als o
near the old HeAdair
was the first Irishman to wi
stopped playing relatively the Open, 1907 to challengebrother Gary works May Hezlet,
on the course
y in the Ry de r Cup. When he won
year the first to pla rtrush and, wi th all the and his uncle, Uel Loughrey, works
s carried to call theearly Irish Opbut en was in the fol 1903
lowing we she made
ek at Po
miracle that he fi nis he her
d sister Violet
at Rathmore and
and was Rhona
Graeme’s
ne on, it was a minor
ebrations that had go early coach. They took up golf
h in 1895. celthe trip to America which Adair.
ly. really late, they would have played
4th. re bets on Da
rs weren’t taking any mo
Innot
1951, many lady golfers did and n. He was But thingsa bit didn’t gosnookerto plan and
the loc al bo ok ma ke of football and and
ow tho ug ht it wa s Bobby Locke’s to wi
Those in the kn Fr ed , no t jus t wi th darts before they played golf. Uel
played tournaments re betting on
e Curtis Cup ing for a hat-t rick, but the locals we throughout behinthe d men lost was good allat every
four matches,
sport and was
go
o the ir he ad s. He ha d been second in 1948
s bu t als a cracking player while Kenny got
a Adair) America
the
He
ir
nry
he art
Co tto n an
and
d wa s thicleaned
rd behind Robe up,
rto DewithVicenzo an d Lo
May
cke
actually
down to
played
a handicap of
two
4.
games.
d for fou rth .
tart the powers- in16 1950trophies
. He ended up be in her bag on the
ing tie
When playing Millar, instead of
ent in making boat home. One was against conceding at 10&8, he refused
ive club and Margaret Curtis and two years and played on until he won a

forces
THE TROUBLES
nd Hugh Adair after this visit inspired the
for that American lady golfers decided
hole. He halved the 17th and
to 18th and wonderful there reception is a photo in the
The R&A said after the 1951 civil discontent and by the end clubs, they were maybe pulling when they
set a lot
Openofthat the next thing bring
they a that
of team decadeto we wentCromer into 30 which
back on that. Thereclubhouse was an with
played in thebothNorth ofteams Ireland and
wanted to do was bring the years of The Troubles. erosion problem at the 5th and Amateur Open Championship.
en to the ladies’
Amateur Championship to was the We fi rst atime
became pariah. We America
had hadhad to sellaoffrather
Portrush overseas chastened
The big turning point Mrcame Millar
Portrush. That came in 1960
and was won by Joe Carr.
playedno against GB&I’s
visitors from overseas
people didn’t even want to
and ladies. membership at reduced
raise money.
holding
rates to aincardboard
1993, driven by Michael
Bonallack, when they brought
sign saying
ch wasGiven
formed
the planning ahead, The
the Hezlets,
come over the May, border from Violet
the It was a battle for survival ’16 down’.
as the Amateur Championship
next date for an Open would Republic to play golf. a club and why players like back to Royal Portrush, which
y became only
have been the mid-60s but and
by Florence, Where some people sathaddown with Paul McGinley and Padraig then led to a run of six Senior
er of the Ladies’ Margaret and Harriot Curtis
then there were rumblings of membership of two or three Harrington got such 5 Rathmore
a Opens.

after Royal and hammered out the idea of Anybody who visits Royal
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 57
 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.
Like most golf clubs in Ireland up the trophies and the money Royal Portrush.
here was a heavy Scottish and negotiated with Lord It turned out tha
nfluence in how the County Antrim who owned the land to had never liked t

nown, was formed in 1888

THE 1951 OPEN
Golf Club, as it was originally set up the club.
In 1889 Old Tom visited and
name so there wa
and at one stage
Most of the journalists said the He walked the beaches to harden their medicine and chipped out.
s a nine-hole course andBobby
player who beats it Locke gave
his feet inhis recommendations
the salt water and he for played trick
But Max had always was going to be c
would be the winner. Some had was six clear going into the final shots since he was a kid.
was two gentlemen, George
a feeling for the amateur Frank
the course which were
day. He was a smoker but he
never
He had a 4-wood that he picked
St Patrick’s. As w
L Baillie, from Stranahan.
Musselburgh chronicled,
decided not to smoke –he therewas
is due to come
up in Australia and, with a the patron saint,
Max Faulkner wasn’t fancied a yarn that he had to wait for 45 shortened backswing and about
nd a schoolteacher
as his formatwasBelfast
appalling and back butthenever
minutes while did. 20 practice swings, he hit it over
others finished Patrick’s church
Royal Academy,of and another
Peter Alliss said there was a bit
gossip around the locker room
The world’s oldest national
and he nearly fainted when he
had one. The leaders didn’t go
the out of bounds with a massive
course but it was
cut and onto the green for a two-
cot, Thomas Gilroy,
that he mightwhobe considering association,
out like now so he was the
in earlyGolfi ng
putt par. Union it Royal Portrush
packing it in. and Tony Cerda was making a The night before he had said
would have been regarded
He played as eld
with Ken Bousfi of
chargeIreland
and a runner(GUI)
came into was formed
to Stranahan: ‘Frankie, old boy,
he Rory McIlroy of his time,
and Dai Rees in practice and he
couldn’t even win a match. He
in the Northern Counties
the press room and told him that
Cerda had taken six.
hope you don’t mind, but would
you mind not talking to me
The seeds of the
who were the driving
had a sports forces
car which was his Hotel,
In the morning Portrush,
of the final in 1891.
during the round tomorrow?’(Pic: Miss Rhona
pride of joy and he was said to be day on Friday, Faulkner had a And he said ‘OK’. Max turned
ehind it. Having learnt
considering sellingthe
that. The following
big lead and, trying to avoid year
a Portrush
up on the 1st tee and, in his From the very st
ame at Carnoustie and gone to
But for some reason when he
landed he had a premonition
hosted the first everinimitable
fairway bunker, he pulled it into
some barbed wire by a stile at 16
amateur fashion, said good
morning and Frank blanked
that-be were inte
t Andrews University,
that he was goingBaillie
to win. He tournament
(now played as the 18th). inIt was
Ireland, and
him. They intalk until thethis an all-inclusi
didn’t
had played well in the Irish pretty much unplayable, his arms 16th when Frank walked across
helped set up Royal
Open here Belfast
in 1947 and liked the 1895
were goingSandy
to catch theHerd
wire, and beat Harry
the fairway William Mann an
and said: ‘That’s the
which was the first golf club
course. Vardon
anyone else wouldin have
thetakenfinal of finestthe first
golf shot were the driving
I’ve ever seen.’

n Ireland, but Scottish golfers ever professional tournament on and from the ons
were used to playing links the Emerald Isle. support was give
o they came down to Royal game.
Portrush and straightaway fell in Putting the Royal into Royal The ladies’ branc
ove with the land. Portrush (pic: Captain James and in 1893 they
The first day of competition was Martin) the third membe
May 12 1888 and in those days That patronage came due to Golfing Union a
ou stepped off the train and who you know. Military captain Wimbledon and
traight onto the course. The James Martin McCalmont had Lytham and St A
ourse was not where it is now connections with the Duke the same year we
ut in the centre of town and of Marlborough and in 1892 members of Irish
hat was the blueprint that came he arrived at the AGM and Union.
rom Scotland and tied in with announced that he had received The first three la
he whole Victorian tourism. patronage from the Duke of championships w
The railways realised that York so it became Royal County the aristocrat La
olf could be something very Golf Club. It was in his second Scott and here h
eneficial to tourism so they put spell as captain when it became completed in 189
58 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com
 TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

and playing were local girls May Hezlet)

THE
at the members
the original
Hezlet and Rhona Adair and
seeing Scott made them realise
Long before Billie Jean King
and Bobby Riggs in tennis the
NORTH
as a great debate they were toying with the game vice-president of the LGU, RORY’S 61
looked like it and eight of the next nine Irish Mr TH Millar, decided it was
This came in The North in 200
called Royal Ladies’ Amateur Championships
the score was a surp
5. Although
rise in some respects,
time
stri tok belt
ping, pin put and the prolifi
white trou c female
sers so he
wasn’t afraid to show how good
well as being were won16. by these two. They
people were already talking abo
He had appeared on the chat sho
ut him at winners
He played the bacink nintheir place.
he was.
e in 28. It was an
He
w as
there is a St also wona fi tinyveboyBritish
and had wonAmateurs.
the U10 World brought a men’s last
incredible round but he didn’t
the knockout, losing in the first
teamlong in over in
Championships in Florida. round. After
near the old Adair stopped
He turned up playing relatively the
wearing a white shirt with pink
1907 tonum
61, he did challenge
erous interviewsMay and he Hezlet,
was the talk of the town and eve
s carried to call early but in 1903 she made her sister Violet and rywhereRhona
else.

h in 1895. the trip to America which Adair.

not many lady golfers did and But things didn’t go to plan and
e Curtis Cup played tournaments throughout the men lost all four matches,
a Adair) AmericaABOUT and cleaned ROGER up, with ANDERSON May actually played two games.
Roger Anderson is the author of History Made, History in the Making: The story of Royal Portrush Golf Club,
tart the powers- 16 trophies in her bag on the When playing Millar, instead of
due for release on October 21. Rather than being a succession of facts and figures, the book is an attempt to
ent inOnemaking boat home.
of the major champs staged
chronicle One
the club’s was against
history through conceding
narrative, telling the stories behind the eventsat and 10&8, he refused
people. Contributors
include Graeme McDowell, Rory McIlroy, Darren Clarke, Padraig Harrington, Paul McGinley, Tom Watson, Gary
ive club and
annually at Portrush is The
North, which started as the
Margaret Curtis
Player, and
Peter Alliss, Rich two
Beem, years
Maureen Madill and Stephanieand played
Meadow. The bookon will beuntil he won
available through the a
Royal Portrush website and pro shop, with pre-orders taken from Open week onwards. Roger has written three
nd Hugh Adair
Ulster Scratch Singles. We after
also this visit inspired the hole. He halved the 17th and
other books, including the autobiography of former Manchester United goalkeeper and hero of the Munich Air
have a South, West and East,
forces for
so there four provincialAmerican lady golfers decided to
are that
Crash, Harry Gregg; a ghost-written autobiography of former 18th and
footballer Jackiethere isThea Fighting
Fullerton; and photo Irish, in the
a book chronicling Irish and Irish-American professional boxing from the bare-knuckle era to modern times.
lot of Graeme bring a Roger
set achampionships. team to Cromer
is a former Writer of the Year,clubhouse
which
British Weekly Sports Northern Ireland Sportswith both
Journalist teams
of the Year, and and
McDowell always said the goal
was a Sports Producer with BBC Northern Ireland for 10 years. He is a member of Castlerock.
en to was
the North but he and was
Theladies’ Rory the first time America had a rather chastened Mr Millar
never won it. Shane Lowry won
it later on. The hero of Theplayed against GB&I’s ladies.
holding a cardboard sign saying
ch wasNorthformed
was Garth McGimpsey The Hezlets, May, Violet ’16 down’.
who won it five times.
y became onlywhose brother
Paul McGinley, and Florence, sat down with
er of Michael won it in 1996, lost
the Ladies’
in two finals, one of which was
Margaret and Harriot Curtis 5 Rathmore
Darren Clarke, played inand hammered out the idea of
after toRoyal Anybody who visits Royal
front of 3,000 and both players
remember every shot. Darren a competition that could be Portrush will see within a few
Annessays he could take you out now
and in
to the putting green, which is
played annually. For a number hundred yards of the clubhouse
the old 18th, and show youof
ere founding the reasons, mainly money and the ladies’ clubhouse and
very inch where the flag was and
h Ladies
where heGolfi ngMcGinley
holed from. funding, it didn’t happen for a Rathmore GC. This is an
still remembers the massive
roar at Darren’s opening drive
decade but those were the seeds autonomous club, a club in
adies’and how the crowd recognised of the Curtis Cup that is now its own right and borne out
how he fought back. Padraig
were Harrington
won byplayed in two fiplayed nals today. of Royal Portrush and part of
dy Margaret
and lost both. Rory shot that 61
but never won. His caddie Harry
that artisan golf movement like
at-trick
Diamond was 4 Man vs woman (Pics: 16 down Royal Liverpool and Carnoustie
got further, reaching
the final in 2011.
95. Watching copy + The inimitable May and so many clubs.

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 59

 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.

60 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

‘THE OPEN
IS THE
BIGGEST,
THE OLDEST
AND THE
BEST’
In 2011, Darren Clarke won the Claret Jug that looked to have passed him by. Alex
Perry found him in the mood to reminisce as the Open returns to his native Portrush

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 61

 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.

CLARKE ON
MACHRIHANISH
DUNES
After our chat we headed out
for 18 holes over the stunning
Machrihanish Dunes, David
McLay Kidd’s 2009 masterpiece
set adjacent to the 143-year-old
Machrihanish Golf Club.
Like me, Clarke was playing the
Dunes for the first time, so when
better to pick his brains than over a irrigation systems are forbidden.
pint of Dublin’s finest stout? “The way the golf course is
“If you want to play proper links shaped into the natural land is
golf that isn’t manicured but the wonderful,” Clarke adds. “This is
greens are immaculate, then this is golf as it was intended to be played
perfect,” he says. hundreds of years ago.”
Indeed, fairways are mown but For further information on
they’re largely untouched because Machrihanish Dunes, call 0800 151
on this SSSI site the use of fertiliser 3701 or visit machrihanishdunes.
and the installation of drainage and com

‘M very fortunate
“
I my name is on the
Claret Jug,” Darren
Clarke says as he
leans back in his chair and sips
on his latte.
We’re at Machrihanish
Dunes on Scotland’s Kintyre
peninsula. We’re both tired.
Clarke is suffering from jetlag
having barely arrived back at
his home in Portrush from
Japan, where he was playing in a
Champions Tour event, before
he was whisked the few miles
over the Irish Sea by helicopter.
I decide not to complain about
my eight-hour drive from my
home in Yorkshire.
Clarke must have taken part
in a thousand interviews about
his Open win in the eight years
that have passed since he held off
the American juggernauts Phil
Mickelson and Dustin Johnson
at Royal St George’s, but he
reminisces with that same glint
in his eye like it was yesterday.
Perhaps fortunate is the right
word. Clarke had more than
his fair share of major top 10s
during his career purple patch
between 1997 and 2001, but
never again came close until a
decade later.
Historically, Clarke wasn’t
exactly a shock winner of golf’s
oldest major and it certainly
wasn’t on the same level as Todd
Hamilton or Ben Curtis, but
at the time no one gave him a
chance. But there was something
about the way he was that week
in Kent, almost at peace with
himself, I suggest.
“I was,” he confirms. “I’d
won a couple of months before
and I played really well. The

62 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

Main: Clarke accepts the adulation of the crowd at

Royal St George’s in 2011, while, top left, Clarke
savours the surroundings of Machrihanish Dunes

previous week at the Scottish
Open I’d hit the ball fantastic for
the first couple of days, so I went
down to St George’s knowing I
was hitting it great but I wasn’t
making any putts at all, which
was frustrating.
“I played practice rounds
with Rory [McIlroy] and Lee
[Westwood] and on the greens
I was just picking up. On the
Wednesday I saw [renowned
psychologist] Bob Rotella and
he said, ‘Right Darren, just start
hitting some putts with your lob
wedge.’ All of a sudden my mind
cleared and that was it. I was on
the range hitting draws and fades
with the driver off the deck so I
knew my swing was pretty good.
“But that doesn’t make any
difference unless your head is in
the right place. I became very
serene and very calm with what I
was doing. I was exactly the same
way when I won my WGCs,
nothing was going to bother
me. Rotella told me: ‘Darren, if
you’re unflappable then you’re
unstoppable’.”
There is an infamous
photograph of Clarke in his
press conference the day after
his Open win where he is, to put
it politely, a bit the worse for
wear. And who would begrudge
him the celebration to end all
celebrations. This was, after all,
the one he craved, and at a time
when he thought his chance had
long gone.
“I didn’t go to bed,” he
admits, confirming what we
already suspected. “But I never
drank anything out of the
Claret Jug while it was in my
possession. I just had too much
respect to drink anything out

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 63


of it. I drank lots of stuff sitting
around it, but never anything
out of it.
“If I could pick one of out
of all of them, I would pick the
MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY.
‘you have enough putts just don’t
worry about it’.
“Walking up there I had
a sense of this is all I’ve ever
wanted to do. This is the
MORE SPEED.
Below and right: Clarke celebrates his victory at the
2011 Open. Right, below: The Northern Irishman
looking a little worse for wear the next morning

Open. It’s the oldest, the biggest,
and the best. And I would like to
have won more of them.
“It was always my best shot
because of my affinity with links
golf, playing in Ireland, playing
all the great links golf courses.
“My first US Open was 1994
at Oakmont. That opened the
eyes to that type of golf and I
didn’t really think that that was
going to fit me. It required an
awful lot of patience, with which
I was never gifted an awful lot.
“At the PGA [Championship]
I had chances as they were set up
more like a regular tournament,
and I used to love Augusta and I
had chances to win there.”
So what was going through
his mind as he walked down 18,
knowing he was about to finally
lift the trophy he’d spent his
entire life dreaming of getting
his hands on?
“It’s going to be a long
night,” he jokes. “No, I don’t
know. I hit a really nice drive
down the fairway and there was
an out of bounds stake about 30
yards over the back of the green.
I picked that as my target and
hit my 5-iron. I pured it and it
never left this white post from
about 200 yards. As soon as I
hit it I knew it was tournament
over, it was done. That was the
percentage play with the lead
that I had.
“Then I was thinking – how
many putts have I got to win? I
was trying to figure it out – four,
five, six, whatever, and I couldn’t
quite come to the right number
of putts I had. About 20 yards
from the green I said to myself
one that I wanted more than
anything else.”
Since his victory, Clarke’s
biggest contribution to the
Open is being heavily involved
in getting it back to his home
course of Royal Portrush for the
first time since 1951.
“It’s going to be incredible,”
he gushes. “It took a lot of
commitment and bravery from
Peter Dawson from the R&A,
Arlene Foster our first minister
at the time and Wilma Erskine,
the secretary at Portrush. They
worked tirelessly to make it
happen.
“They had a little bit of Rory,
G-Mac (Graeme McDowell) and
myself chirping at them to take
it on. The R&A came over and
watched how successful the Irish
Open was at Portrush in 2012
and I think that swayed them to
make a commitment to bring it
over.
“Portrush is a Harry Colt
masterpiece, a course which
you’ll hear rave reviews from
the players because it’s fair.
It’s tough, but if you play well
you’ll score well. If you try and
take Portrush on and hit driver
everywhere, there’s no point
unpacking, you won’t need
your week’s quota of clothing.
Portrush does not work that way.
“Like any links course it
needs a little bit of wind and a bit
of inclement weather to play the
way that it should. And if we get
that it will be a huge success – it’s
going to be a huge success but it
will be an even bigger success.
“It’s going to be just an
unbelievable week.”

DARREN CLARKE’S OPEN RECORD

1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
T64 MC T39 T38 T31 T11 T2 MC T30 T7 T3 T37 T59 T11

64 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

CLARKE ON HIS NEW

WHISKY CREATION
Darren Clarke is an ambassador for
Loch Lomond Whiskies. In honour
of the 148th Open Championship,
Loch Lomond The Open Course
Collection Royal Portrush whisky
has been created.
The 19-year-old single malt was
crafted in partnership with Clarke.
Matured in American Oak, the liquid
has been finished in claret casks as of my own signature edition single
homage to the famous Open trophy, malt marks an incredibly proud
and as a result has developed a summer for me. To be able to tee up
stunning rose colour. It has also alongside the world’s best golfers at
helped to deliver a beautifully a course that I call home is incredibly
balanced single malt, rich in honey special. To do it with the official Spirit
sweetness with tropical fruits of The Open by my side is the stuff
coming to the fore. that dreams are made of.”
Commenting on the new Visit lochlomondwhiskies.com
releases, Clarke said: “The release to learn more.

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
T15 MC MC DNP T52 T44 1 MC T21 T26 MC T30 MC MC

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 65

 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.

M P I O NS
A H
H
O PE N C

2019
set by
ALUN EVANS
ALUN Evans is a golf historian
renowned for his work on the
major championships, and a
regular contributor to NCG.
The latest edition in his
impressive series, Alun Evans’
The Golf Majors Book 2019,
IP
QUI Z
is available on Amazon and
elsewhere now,
priced at £14.99.
It is highly recommended to
all who like to have to hand the
facts of every major going back
to 1860.

66 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

1
SECTION

EASY

Q1 Who is the current

Open champion?
a) Jordan Spieth
Q7 Who was the leading
Irishman in this Open
Championship?
b) Brooks Koepka a) Fred Daly
c) Francesco Molinari b) John McKenna
d) Rory McIlroy c) Christy O’Connor Sr
d) Cecil Beamish

Q2 Where is the 2019

Open Championship to
be held? Q8 Who was the leading
American?
a) Portmarnock a) Gene Sarazen
b) Royal Co Down b) Byron Nelson
c) Royal Dublin c) Sam Snead
d) Royal Portrush d) Frank Stranahan

Q3
Open?
When was the last time
the course hosted the Q9
Open ?
Who was the first Irish-
born golfer to win the

a) 1951 a) Padraig Harrington

b) 1961 b) Christy O’Connor Sr
c) 1971 c) Fred Daly
d) 1981 d) Paul McGinley

Q4 Who was the champion

on that occasion?
a) Ben Hogan
Q10 Who was the most
recent Irish winner?
a) Shane Lowry
b) Henry Cotton b) Padraig Harrington
c) Peter Alliss c) Darren Clarke
d) Max Faulkner d) Rory McIlroy

Q5 Which player who tied

6th in the event would
begin a multi Open-winning
Q11 Which American
golfer was the first
to win the Open after the
career three years later? Second World War?
a) Sam Snead a) Byron Nelson
b) Arnold Palmer b) Sam Snead
c) Bobby Locke c) Ben Hogan
d) Peter Thomson d) Arnold Palmer

Q6 How many times will

the course have hosted
the Open after 2019’s visit?
Q12 Which English
golfer was the first
to win the Open after the war?
a) Two a) Henry Cotton
b) Three b) Dick Burton
c) Four c) Harry Weetman
d) Five d) Dai Rees

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 67

 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.
4 2: Recognise the backdrop of this year’s venue? 4: If you know this Open champion then hats off to you.
17: These two men prodcued an epic duel at Royal Troon. 22: An iconic image of a reinvented Open classic

22

68 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN In association with

2
SECTION

MODERATE

Q13 Which Open winner

tied 6th in 2018, his
d) Justin Rose

best finish since 2013?

a) Rory McIlroy
b) Ernie Els
Q19 Which golfer has won
most Claret Jugs?
a) Harry Vardon
c) Tiger Woods b) Peter Thomson
d) Phil Mickelson c) Jack Nicklaus
d) Tiger Woods

Q14 Who also tied 6th

and, after Rory
McIlroy and Justin Rose, was Q20 Who, after a play-
off, lost the Open to
the third Brit in the top 10? John Daly in 1995?
a) Tommy Fleetwood a) Costantino Rocca
b) Danny Willett b) Greg Norman
c) Eddie Pepperell c) Justin Leonard
d) Chris Wood d) Jean Van de Velde

Q15 Where is the 2020

Open to be staged?
a) Royal Troon
Q21 Which golfer won
the Open in 2003?
a) Rich Beem
b) Royal Liverpool b) Ben Curtis
17 c) St Andrews
d) Royal St George’s
c) Todd Hamilton
d) Shaun Micheel

Q16
1975?
Who won the first
of his five Opens in Q22 In which year did
Turnberry host its
last Open?
a) Seve Ballesteros a) 1977
b) Jack Nicklaus b) 2000
c) Lee Trevino c) 2005
d) Tom Watson d) 2009

Q17 Who at the 2016

Open, along with
Henrik Stenson, shot a 63 to
Q23 Who was the last
Open winner there?
a) Tom Watson
tie for the then low score for b) Phil Mickelson
any round in majors? c) Stewart Cink
a) Branden Grace d) Tiger Woods
b) Phil Mickelson
c) Haotong Li
d) JB Holmes Q24 Apart from Kevin
Kisner, which other
American figured in a four-

Q18
Open?
Who is the youngest
runner-up in an
way tie for second place at the
2018 Open?
a) Xander Schauffele
a) Tom Watson b) Bryson DeChambeau
b) Seve Ballesteros c) Zander Lombard
c) Sergio Garcia d) Charley Hoffman

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 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.
25: This man is a celebrated British course designer and Open champion. 27: This English links hosted the

SECTION
143rd staging of the Open. 33: Whereabouts are Tony Jacklin and Lee Trevino enjoying a cigarette together?

FIENDISH

Q25 Who was the first

player to win the
Open five times?
Q31 Which golfer has
finished runner-up
in an Open the most times?
a) JH Taylor a) Jack Nicklaus
b) Harry Vardon b) Willie Park Sr
c) James Braid c) Harry Vardon
d) Peter Thomson d) Arnold Palmer

Q26 Who, in 1977,

became the first
golfer to shoot 63 for any
Q32 Which course has
hosted the Open
Championship just once, in
round in the Open? 1932?
a) Tom Watson a) Royal Cinque Ports
b) Jack Nicklaus b) Wentworth
c) Hubert Green c) Royal North Devon
d) Mark Hayes d) Prince’s

Q27 Where will the Open

of 2022 be played?
a) Royal Troon
Q33 Where in 1972 did
Lee Trevino record
the second of back-to-back
b) Royal Liverpool Open wins?
c) Royal Porthcawl a) Carnoustie
d) Royal Cinque Ports b) Royal Birkdale
c) Muirfield

Q28 Who is the only

player to win four
d) Royal Lytham

consecutive Opens?
a) Tom Morris Sr
b) Tom Morris Jr
Q34 Who is the only
player to have won
two Opens after a play-off?
c) James Braid a) Peter Thomson
d) Walter Hagen b) Harry Vardon
c) Ernie Els
25
Q29 Tom Watson, aged
59, is the oldest
d) Tom Watson

runner-up in Open history,

but who is the next in line?
a) Sandy Herd
Q35 Who was the first
post-WWI Open
champion in 1920?
b) Dai Rees a) Walter Hagen
c) Ted Ray b) Bobby Jones
d) Phil Mickelson c) George Duncan
d) Ted Ray

Q30 The highest

winning total to win
a 72-hole Open championship Q36 The highest 72-hole
total to complete an
was 326 in 1894. Who posted Open was 392 in 1895. Who
it? posted it?
a) Andrew Kirkaldy a) Sandy Herd
b) JH Taylor b) David Brown
c) John Ball Jr c) Ben Sayers
d) Harry Vardon d) Tom Morris Sr 33
70 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 71
SECTION 1 SECTION 2 Schauffele Muirfield; Q34 Harry Vardon; Q35 George
Q1 Francesco Molinari; Q2 Royal Q13 Tiger Woods; Q14 Eddie Pepperell; SECTION 3 Duncan; Q36 Tom Morris Sr
Portrush; Q3 1951; Q4 Max Faulkner; Q5 Q15 Royal St George’s; Q16 Tom Q25 James Braid; Q26 Mark Hayes;
Peter Thomson; Q6 Two; Q7 Fred Daly; Watson; Q17 Phil Mickelson; Q18 Seve Q27 Royal Liverpool; Q28 Tom Morris *Won all four Opens between 1868-
Q8 Frank Stranahan; Q9 Fred Daly; Q10 Ballesteros; Q19 Harry Vardon; Q20 Jr*; Q29 Sandy Herd; Q30 JH Taylor; 1872, there being no championship in
Rory McIlroy; Q11 Sam Snead; Q12 Costantino Rocca; Q21 Ben Curtis; Q22 Q31 Jack Nicklaus; Q32 Prince’s; Q33 1871
Henry Cotton 2009; Q23 Stewart Cink; Q24 Xander
ANSWERS
OF FAME BETWEEN THE BUNKERS MASTER QUIZ PRACTICE GROUND
ALUN EVANS QUIZ HALL SKILFUL CHIP AND RUN BECOMING A LINKS SERIOUS WORK ON THE
ENTERED THE 30+ DONE, LIKE A 21-30 WAY TO 11-20 PUT IN SOME 0-10
YOU HAVE BEAUTIFULLY STILL A LONG YOU NEED TO
RESULTS
27
In association with
TITLEIST. THE #1 BALL AT THE 148TH OPEN
 MORE PRECISION. MORE CONSISTENCY. MORE SPEED.

COLIN CALLANDER
The R&A were correct to deny McDowell an exemption. Now he’s earned the right to play

T IS not every day that I cheer G-Mac sunk a par putt on the 18th

I
in Canada to take a spot at the Open
out loud while watching TV but
that is exactly what I did when
Graeme McDowell holed the
30-foot putt at the Canadian Open which
earned him a place in his hometown Open at
Royal Portrush.
It was a magical moment and all the more
special because I had been harbouring doubts
that the popular 2010 US Open champion
would qualify to compete on the course
where he played as a youngster and adores
more than any other.
Fairy tales do sometimes come true.
McDowell was clearly emotional in the
aftermath of confirming his place in the
Open, which was no surprise given his
lifelong attachment to the host club.
“I feel hugely relieved,” admitted the
39-year-old Ulsterman, who was made
an honorary member of Royal Portrush
back in 2002 in the aftermath of collecting
his first European Tour title at the Volvo
Scandinavian Masters.
“Just to play a small part in getting the I think all players should have to earn the happens to be in contention coming down
Open back to Portrush was one of the right to play in what is the world’s premier the closing stretch.
prouder moments of my career so it would championship and not just be handed a place The obvious candidate to be in that
have been extremely bittersweet for me not as a result of past accomplishments. I’m not position come the evening of Sunday, July 21,
to be playing in the field. altogether sure that the current qualification is McIlroy but it might not be too far-fetched
“No amount of alcohol could have kept system is perfect but that is a different to imagine McDowell playing a similarly
me at Portrush that week if I hadn’t been argument altogether and is not relevant to prominent role given that he has already
competing. It would have been too painful. whether or not McDowell and others like won on this year’s PGA Tour and followed
“It’s going to feel epic on that first tee,” him should receive preferential treatment. his top-10 finish at the Canadian Open with
he added. “The fans are going to offer huge That said, there is no doubt that another good showing at the US Open,
support and they are excited to have the best McDowell’s presence will enhance the where he shared 16th place, a shot ahead of
players in the world come to Portrush. It’s atmosphere at Northern Ireland’s first Open a certain Tiger Woods. McDowell himself
going to be a very special occasion.” for 60 years and I can confirm that it was certainly has not discounted his chances of
Prior to earning his place by finishing in already bubbling up nicely when I visited mounting a challenge and nor should he on
a share of eighth place in Canada, McDowell both Royal Portrush and nearby Portstewart a course where experience and guile will be
had asked the R&A whether he might receive just over a month ago. just as important as brute strength.
some sort of special exemption only to be The sense of anticipation was already “It’s my dream to be there on the back
told he would not. palpable during my visit and that will only nine on Sunday and be in touching distance,”
That might seem a trifle harsh given have increased now that McDowell has he said recently.
that the other three majors all offer special joined fellow Ulstermen Rory McIlroy and What a story that would be.
exemptions to high profile players who do Darren Clarke in the field.
not meet their own qualification criteria but The Irish have a deserved reputation for
Q Colin Callander is a former editor of Golf Monthly
the R&A clearly believes that is inappropriate loving their sport and supporting their own and has worked as a golf writer for 30 years. He is a
for a championship of the standing of the so, with over 43,000 spectators watching on, member of two clubs including the Royal & Ancient
Open and I tend to agree. imagine the scenes if one of the Irish players

72 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 STAY AT BRANDSHATCH PLACE HOTEL & SPA
PLAY
£199
From PACKAGE DETAILS:
• 36 holes of golf over the International
Course, Home of the 2018 & 2019
Staysure PGA Seniors Championship
• Overnight accommodation in a classic
twin or double room with upgrades
available on request
• Breakfast for two people
• Three course dinner
• Access to the health club and spa
• Complimentary car parking and WiFi

The cost of the package for two golfers is £249, whilst the package for one golfer and one non-golfer is priced
at just £199. National Club Golfer readers can quote Promo Code: PGOLF19 at the time of booking.
Available exclusively on Sunday nights, excludes Bank Holidays.
Subject to Availability, Black Out Dates Apply. Must be booked in advance.
For more information and to book please contact
Brandshatch Place Hotel & Spa on 01642 706606.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

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 EQUIPMENT
Comprehensive and objective gear tests | The latest releases | Competitions | Fashion | Accessories
BUSHNELL
THIS is a really neat, compact
device – it provides you with the
PHANTOM
key yardages you need in a small,
user-friendly device.
GOLF GPS
One of the best things about
the new Bushnell Phantom is
the free Bushnell GPS app you
Hannah Holden on get with your purchase. The app
provides fantastic graphics and
how this GPS integrates technology to help enhance your
with Bushnell’s new app round.
The Phantom is designed
to provide a simple and easy-
to-use distance measuring
device. It comes preloaded with
over 36,000 courses, providing
distances to the front, middle and
back of greens as well as showing
distances to hazards. It also
features bluetooth to allow you
to connect it to the Bushnell app.
The new bite technology features
an extra-strong magnet and clip,
meaning the Phantom can be
clipped on to your belt, golf bag
or trolley for easy viewing.
The Bushnell app has
a variety of functions from
tracking your scores to updating
golf courses on your compatible
GPS device. You can also use
your phone to act as a GPS
seeing graphics of the course
as well as all the on-course
measurements. A really cool
added feature is the ability to
view course flyovers.
The swing pro feature allows
you to analyse your swing speed
and tempo, and a pedometer also
tracks your daily step count as
well as your average speed, pace
and distance.
For more information, visit
bushnell.com
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 WOODS
Looking for a new 3 or 5-wood? Hannah Holden checks out this year’s models
2019

TITLEIST TS2
As with the TS drivers, this
club is focused on creating
more club speed and ball
speed. There’s a thinner, lighter
crown and a thinner, faster
face with weight savings used
for optimised centre of gravity
placement. The TS2 has a
really simple classic look in the
set-up position which fills you
with confidence.

BEST
OVERALL

SRIXON Z F 85
The Srixon Z F85 features a
tour preferred look and profile
at address. Engineered to
produce a powerful, penetrating
trajectory that better players
demand from the fairway and
the tee. Out of all the clubs I
tested, the Srixon looks the
smallest at address but this
was actually a look that really
suited my eye.

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 79

 MOST
FORGIVIN
G

TAYLORMADE M6
The TaylorMade M6 is designed
to be a simpler fairway wood
with a larger clubhead to inspire
confidence over the ball.
Like the M5, this looks really
great in set-up. Compared
to the M5, you can see the
clubface looks larger and
slightly deeper. Overall, I would
say I found this the easiest
wood to hit.

TAYLORMADE M5
With the M5 and M6,
TaylorMade have added twist
face to their fairway woods for
the first time. The TaylorMade
M5 is a super-adjustable model
with a movable weight in the
sole and an adjustable hosel.
The compact style means it is
isn’t as forgiving as the M6 but I
did find the smaller head easier
to hit off the fairways.

80 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 CALLAWAY EPIC FLASH
The Callaway Epic Flash
fairway woods feature Flash
Face Technology to help
provide more ball speed and
distance. At address, the Epic
Flash does look like it is set
slightly open but also has an
attractive black gloss finish and
rounded head shape. This club
was really easy to hit and also
provided excellent dispersion.

CALLAWAY EPIC FLASH SUB ZERO

The Epic Flash Sub Zero has all
the benefits of the regular Epic
Flash but aims to provide lower
spin. Over the ball this has a
much simpler clubface than
the regular Epic Flash with just
simple lines used. As claimed
by Callaway, it did provide less
spin than the Epic Flash as well
as lower launch angles and
optimal trajectory.

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 81

 WILSON STAFF D7
The Wilson Staff D7 fairway
wood has a Superlight design
to provide faster clubhead
speeds with less effort due
to a new crown construction
with thin cast pockets to
minimise weight. This club
had a slightly lighter shaft than
the others I tested and I found
it consistently easy to hit,
especially off the fairway.
BEST
FOR
DISTANC
E

PING G410
The Ping G410 is designed to
deliver fast ball speeds with
a penetrating trajectory while
launching the ball easily. The
first thing I noticed about this
wood was the large shape and
nice matt colouring. The face
does look very shallow, which
initially I was worried about
but the shots I hit were very
consistent.
COBRA KING F9
The Cobra F9 has a fixed 15g
tungsten weight positioned
low and back to promote
high, towering ball flights and
maximum forgiveness. The
colouring and gloss effect on
the top of the club look great.
Initially, the head felt slightly
heavier than some of the other
fairway woods I tested but I
found this great to hit.

82 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

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ULTIMATE GUIDE TO...

PING G410 LST DRIVER

Dan Murphy assesses this new low-spin model and concludes it was worth the wait

Available: Now
Lofts: 9°, 10.5°
Shafts: PING Alta CB Red,
PING Tour 65, 75 , Mitsubishi
Tensei CK Orange 60, Project
X Evenflow Black 75
SRP: £450

2 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com


THE TECHNOLOGY
This is a high-MOI driver engineered to
produce low and stable spin.
The centre of gravity is slightly forward
compared to the G410 Plus, leading to spin
reductions of approximately 200 to 400 rpm.
At 450cc, the LST features a more rounded,
pear-shaped design, combined with more
efficient Turbulator Technology for advanced
THE VERDICT
This looks, feels and flies like a driver aimed
at better players. It sits slightly open, it’s not
screechy off the face (but by no means dull)
and the flight appears to be a touch flatter.
It’s a high-quality driver – there’s no doubt
about that.
If you are somebody who struggles into
the wind, or whose drives climb on you,
then this has got to be worth a look. I think
the G410 LST sits better than the G400
LST. I struggled with the way the sole was
designed on the latter – it felt to me that
it either fell open or closed when I placed
it behind the ball. The G410 LST doesn’t
aerodynamics, for increased clubhead speed.
The Tour Square face sits slightly open and
the score-line pattern frames the impact area
to aid alignment.
Loft and lie angle options add another layer of
opportunity for club fitters to fine-tune.
There are four high-performance shaft
options available at no upcharge.
do that. Compared to my current gamer,
the G400 Max, the head is more compact,
which makes it seem deeper.
There is also a change of shaft to factor in,
from my current Project X Hzardus to the
new Project X Evenflow Black 75. In theory,
this is a very similar shaft – and the weight
is identical – but it’s still another variable
and I know how easy it is to attribute
performance characteristics to the head
that are actually more shaft-related. I’ll only
really know if this is the one for me after
an extended period of testing but the early
signs are highly promising.
REVIEW
PING BLUEPRINT IRONS
Scratch-handicapper Tom Irwin has
fallen for Ping’s stunning new blades
I have always really, really, wanted to play
blades. Consequently, I have got a garage full
of Mizuno classics like TP-9s and TP-19s. Then,
normally after a run of poor results, I move to
something at the other end of the spectrum.
Recently, I’ve played with Nike Coverts, Ping
i200s and am now settled on some Ping
iBlades, which are actually a cast, slightly
helpful cavity-back.
So, when Ping announced they were bringing
out a genuine forged blade, I couldn’t wait to
see them.
On first sight these irons do not disappoint.
The wedge, particularly, is to die for: compact
head, absolutely no offset, sits unbelievably
well behind the ball. The clubs I am using have
MCC Plus4 Align grips and the 120g Dynamic
Gold S300 shaft. The whole package just feels
well balanced, a proper golf club, a modern
classic already.
The longer irons are buttery, have a beautifully
thin top line, with not a hint of sole protruding.
Again, there is no offset which fills someone
fearing a left miss with confidence and the
small head looks great.
My Trackman data showed I lost a bit of
distance in the 4-iron.
On the course, the tight distance dispersion
was plain to see, and the distances of my
iBlade 4-iron and the Blueprint were very similar.
The launch was definitely lower, and the overall
flight more penetrating, with Blueprint, which
again I like – we play a lot in the wind.
With so little in the data, and so much on-
course good stuff, you would have to say this
was a win for Blueprint. I would love to game
these irons. It feels like they are a bladed iron
you could use every day.
SRP: £219 per iron w/steel shaft
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 3
 © ‘Mont Garni’ Club House, Mons

Golfing in Southern Belgium: Mons

Belgium: more flavour than world famous beers and the finest
chocolate; more culture than classic comic strip hero Tintin
or surrealist painter Magritte. Its landscapes, history and
picturesque towns, like wellbeing town of Spa with its restorative
waters or its nearby race track Spa Francorchamps are just the
beginning. Add in fantastic golf with easy access from the UK and
Good Luck Monkey © J.Jeanmart
you’ve the makings of a perfect short break.

In Wallonia alone there are 35 courses to challenge you. From the

classic designs of its royal golf clubs by noted architects like Tom
Simpson and Robert Trent Jones to the more modern, contoured
layouts of Gary Player, there’s something for every ability as well
as an opportunity to alternate between past and present.

With Mons as your base you’ll be sitting enjoying a beer in the

town’s Grand Place within two hours drive from Calais. Bustling
Doudou Festival © J.Jeanmart
cafes and restaurants, lively terraces and cobbled streets set
the scene for the after golf fun. In honour of Belgium’s quirky
character seek out the cast-iron monkey sitting at the town hall’s
façade and rub him with your left hand for good luck. Who knows,
it might even improve your chances on the course.

Golf courses nearby:

Royal Hainaut (6 miles), Mont Garni (7 miles), Chateau de La
Tournette (24 miles), Pierpont (29 miles) and Hulencourt (30 miles).
Royal Golf Club Hainaut © Gregory Mathelot

Ibis Mons Centre Gare Martin’s Dream Hotel Mons Van Der Valk Hotel Mons
• 2 nights B&B • 2 nights B&B • 2 nights B&B
• 2 rounds at ‘Royal Hainaut’ & • 2 rounds at ‘Royal Hainaut’ & • 2 rounds at ‘Royal Hainaut’ &
‘Mont Garni’ ‘Mont Garni’ ‘Mont Garni’
• Eurotunnel crossing (based on 4 • Eurotunnel crossing (based on 4 • Eurotunnel crossing (based on 4
people per car) people per car) people per car)
• Welcome drink • Welcome drink • Glass of sparkling wine & VdV golf
ball per person
From £230.00 per person From £245.00 per person From £260.00 per person

Email: admin@agolfingexperience.com Tel: 01494 875164

walloniabelgiumtourism.co.uk
 E D ITE D BY CH R I S B E RTRAM

The pride
of the Balearics
When we come to compile our Continental
European Top 100 this autumn, this course
will feature... and in one category at least
will do exceptionally well. Son Gual is the
No.1 course in Majorca and one of the
finest in Spain, and one of the reasons for
its appeal is its immaculate conditioning.
German owned and designed, it is one of
the premier venues on the Continent.
If you’re on the Balearic island this
summer, make it a priority.

90 Paradise found I Heritage Resorts in Mauritius offer the golf holiday of a lifetime
(but is affordable) I 96 Beer, Bayern and birdies I Munich is one of Europe’s
flourishing golf cities I 100 The wild west of Ireland I We visit romantic Lahinch I
106 A one-off golf resort I Korineum is indisputably the best in North Cyprus
 The lush
green fairways
of Heritage Golf
Club.

9 0 I J U LY I C O U R S E S & T R AV E L
 AR EA G U I D E

Focus on

Mauritius
Why Heritage Resorts in Mauritius
offer something special for everyone.

he golf course and hotels of Heritage Resorts all sit

T within the exclusive Domaine de Bel Ombre, a unique

destination on the unspoilt South coast of paradise
island Mauritius.
Domaine de Bel Ombre boasts a rich landscape, history and
culture and Heritage Resorts allow you to savour that within
the refinement and comfort of its luxury establishments.
The group has various high-calibre accommodation options,
an 18-hole championship course, a variety of cuisines in its 12
restaurants, a beach facing a preserved lagoon, exceptional
Wellness Experiences, a 19th-century historic plantation
house, trendy beach club, a nature reserve, kite surf spot and
school and children’s clubs.
There is something to suit all tastes within Heritage Resorts’
offering on Mauritius...

Le Telfair
Designed as a quiet village with villas and suites with sea or
garden views and decor in a contemporary plantation house-
style.
It is a beguiling blend of luxury, intimacy and elegant
colonial architecture, exuding the ambiance of grand tradition
properties and incorporating fine dining, personalised service
and world-class spa facilities.
Fully renovated hotel in Summer 2017, it is a member of
Small Luxury Hotels of the World and offers an exclusive
wellness offer with the distinctive Seven Colours Spa.
There is 1km of immaculate beach to enjoy and a
complimentary baby corner for under threes.
The rooms give you the chance to wake up to the sound
of the Indian Ocean lapping against the shore and the four-
poster bed, wooden floors and freestanding bath exude luxury
and comfort.

C O U R S E S & T R AV E L I J U LY I 9 1
 Restaurants include the main venue Annabella’s – a la carte
with interactive theme evenings and live cooking stations
– Pan-Asian Gin’Ja set on the beach and overlooking the
lagoon, and Le Palmier pool and beach restaurant.
Le Telfair is set up to let you swim, sail, kite surf, take part
in yoga or just relax by one of the pools. There is tennis (three
floodlit tennis courts and tennis rackets), table tennis, beach
volleyball, tennis and football, a fitness centre, mountain
biking, speedminton, pitch and putt, darts and badminton.
Plus, of course, golf...

Heritage Awali
Regarded as the finest five-star all-inclusive in Mauritius, the
magic of Awali lies in its perfect balance of affordable luxury,
simplicity and friendliness for a stress-free, cash-free holiday.
Ideal for families, Awali offers an exceptional range of
activities for the young...and less young.
The ultimate in relaxation, it is the perfect opportunity to
indulge your senses – and there really is an activity for each
hour of the day.
The diversity of sports in the water and on the ground is
incredible while there is a wonderful baby and kids club and
teen programme, superb amenities for adults and amazing
activities for the whole family.

Heritage The Villas

The ‘A la carte’ holiday in Mauritius allows families, groups
of friends and golfers to enjoy the independence and privacy
of a villa.
You can relax in a beautiful natural setting with views of
the serene tropical landscaped gardens, the Frederica Nature
Reserve and the Indian Ocean.
Set in 2,500 hectares of the Domaine de bel Ombré, guests
enjoy top-class services and amenities of the two five-star
resorts on the Domaine, a trendy beach club as well as the
award-winning Heritage course.

The Golf
Heritage Golf Club is a multi-award winning championship
course, located on an idyllic piece of land between rolling
mountains and the turquoise lagoon of the Indian Ocean.
Accompanied by beautiful vistas from every green and

This stunning image of Heritage Golf Club is proof of

the perception that Mauritius is a tropical paradise.

9 2 I J U LY I C O U R S E S & T R AV E L
 AR EA G U I D E

Did you know?

The AfrAsia Bank Mauritius
Open is returning to Heritage in
December this year.
The ABMO is a tri-sanctioned
tournament by the European Tour,
Sunshine Tour and Asian Tour and
hosted by Sun Resorts, Anahita
and Heritage Resorts.
afrasiabankmauritiusopen.com

Water, tropical
trees and
various rock
formations are
big features at
Heritage.

C O U R S E S & T R AV E L I J U LY I 9 3
 The clear
water of the
Indian Ocean
is perfect
for a spot of
snorkeling

tee, it is one of the most spectacular courses in Mauritius you need to pay attention to the multi-tiered green. The package
and offers a truly exceptional experience for golfers of all The home hole is also a par 5, where a couple of solid hits
handicap levels. can leave you with the chance of something special to finish. Stay at Heritage
The sloping greens also play a big part, such as on the par- Le Telfair
Established in 2004, this 27-hole complex was designed
from €360 per
by Peter Matkovich and is a gem among Mauritius’ tropical 3 3rd, where it is always better to be below the flag on this night, per suite for
courses. surface that slants from back to front. two adults, and
There is a main 18-hole championship course – with play two rounds
generous fairways and five tees on each hole, making it the at Heritage as
well as three
ideal for all levels – a nine-hole Par 3 course, exceptional rounds at three
practice facilities, golf academy, clubhouse, restaurant, and of these courses
a golf shop. – Heritage,
There are amazing views of the lagoon on one side and the Tamarina, Avalon
and Paradis – for
hills of the Black River Gorges Nature Reserve on the other.
€350 per person.
The naturally hilly landscape features many lakes, streams You will have use
and tropical flora, while the natural fauna includes a wide of a shared buggy
variety of protected bird species and a family of deer. and will receive
Some highlights of the championship course include the return transfers
at fixed times for
5th, a risk-reward par 4 where you need to avoid the valley each round. Golf
down the left. clubs and practice
Par 5s play a big part in this course, starting on the 2nd, balls at extra cost.
where keeping your ball in play is the key to your success on Valid until January
this long three-shot hole that ends on a notably undulating 31, 2020.
To book the
green. golf courses,
The 7th is a true three-shotter for most, where you need email Olivier@
to plan your attack and leave an idea wedge approach, while Heritage Golf Club plays host to European Tour thegolfcompany.
on the 14th it takes two big hits to get home in two and then stars but is still great fun for novice golfers as well. mu

9 4 I J U LY I C O U R S E S & T R AV E L
 The Weekender
Munich
Chris Bertram on why a golf trip to Germany should be next on your agenda.
hink about Munich and a lot of instantly
T appealing aspects will spring to mind…
the legendary beerhalls (and specifically
world-famous Oktoberfest), Bayern Munich,
and a vibrant yet historic city centre.
Golf probably isn’t one of them and indeed
golf breaks in Germany as a whole aren’t really
on the radar of most British golfers.
So I think the vast majority of you would be
9 6 I J U LY I C O U R S E S & T R AV E L
surprised, as I was, at the breadth and quality
of the courses in the Bavarian capital.
I was helped in getting to the best courses
by Lindsay Gomer, a British ex-pat living in
the city. After relocating to Munich in 2009
and with a passion for golf, he started playing
the courses in Bavaria. Impressed with what
he saw, in 2013 set up ‘bavaria4golf ’, as an
exclusively inbound golf tour operator.
“Having experienced golf tours throughout
Europe, the US and Asia, I saw no reason
why Bavaria could not compete in offering the
discerning golf tourist a world-class golf break
option,” he says. “With its inspiring courses,
fantastic after-golf options and a first-world
city as its hub, I think it is ready to lose its
undiscovered destination tag.”
After three days there, we tend to agree...
 AR EA G U I D E

Eichenried & Egmating Expect

immaculate
surfaces at
The home of the BMW International Open – and Tour-calibre
a course that fits beautifully into the landscape. Eichenried.

The first BMW was held at Eichenried shortly after it opened

in 1989 and it has hosted the European Tour over 20 times
since, attracting the likes of Rory McIlroy, Lee Westwood, Did you know?
John Daly and Padraig Harrington.
“Everyone wants to play where the pros play, especially Perfect browse
You might like
if it’s a key European Tour stop in the BMW International to browse in
Open,” says bavaria4golf ’s Gomer. “The friendly, open policy Midnightbazar
from the club, as well as its proximity to the airport, makes market, or stroll
Eichenried a feature on most tour itineraries.” through the pretty
Glockenbach-
Architect Kurt Rossknecht created three nine-hole loops, all
viertel district and
finishing at the clubhouse and all of a similar calibre. its chic boutiques,
Laid out on flat, easy-walking land, it is a long modern cafes and bars.
course as befits a multiple European Tour venue.
Now-mature trees, nearly 90 bunkers, water hazards in
the form of streams and ponds, and drystone walls provide
definition to a course that is in impeccable condition thanks
to the work of long-standing course manager Andrew Kelly,
who hails from Lancashire.
Two half-island greens are two of the highlights but in fact
this is a course whose strength is its consistency.
“Ask a golf tourist what they want from a course and many
will the say the best greens and a setting to typify where you
are – Egmating delivers on both and is often voted the pick of Add another 18
the courses played by visiting groups,” says Gomer.
Aschhiem
This doesn’t surprise me because this Rossknecht design Boasts unique
from the 1990s fits beautifully into the natural environment. features as a
It was in the top two of the courses we visited. result of being
It’s championship length but doesn’t feel like a slog, with carved through
a former quarry,
Rossknecht moulding the course into the significantly
Aschheim is a lot
undulating but wide fairways skilfully while also creating of fun. Laid out
some large, fabulous green complexes. among mature
There is more movement in these greens than elsewhere in trees and over
Munich and these funky complexes are defended by bunkers fairways that
follow pleasingly
and water hazards. It includes a virtual island green on the undulating terrain
short 4th and Egmating is highly recommended. with greens that
vary in character.

C O U R S E S & T R AV E L I J U LY I 9 7
 Gut Hausern
has hosted the
Ladies German
Open on several
occasions.

Did you know?

Petrol heads
Munich is the
home of BMW
at the Maisach
Academy, 40
minutes from the
centre, where you
can take the latest
models out for a
spin at high speed
on a track.

Olching and Gut Hausern

Probably our favourite of a high-calibre bunch – followed by a host of the Ladies German Open.
You quickly realise Olching's clubhouse is without for the faint-hearted,” says Gomer, who likes it so much he
pretension and has the definite feel of a golfers’ golf club. is a member here.
And the course is effortlessly charming and clearly oozes Routed between indigenous greens and water hazards, the
pedigree… oh not wait, it was created in 1981. variety of holes and the kind of interesting terrain modern
Well, it might be under four decades old but it certainly courses would kill for make it consistently interesting. Add another 18
doesn’t feel like that, and that is to the credit of original Bernhard Langer, Sergio Garcia and Seve Ballesteros are
Eurach
designer Dudok van Hee. It was updated in 2012/13 by among those who have played among the trees, sand and It offers an alpine
Thomas Himmel but retains an old world appeal. water of expansive championship course Gut Hausern. lowland challenge,
That is evident right from the start, the 1st playing along It stretches over 7,300 yards off the tips but there are strong undulations
an undulating fairway to a cool green with almost four five other tees to choose from so even beginners will find rather than hilly –
sections to it and a proper 'links green' shape to it. pleasure. It was designed by Peter Harradine, a Middle East with good views
of Alps. A former
Ridges, pimples and folds in the greens are in fact a expert but who has European courses in his portfolio too. host of the BMW
common theme here, as are beautifully, classy par 3s with “With Gut Häusern, I was able to plan a landscape that International
the targets sitting perfectly in the land like a cradle. You will be a ‘pinnacle’ in my long career as an architect,” he says. Open, its 9th
have lots of fun putting here as well as in the long game. Gut Hausern, host of the Ladies German Open 2008- hole is widely
admired and has
“A complete modernisation of the course six years ago has 2013, features two striking closing holes to the main nines. been selected for
fully bedded-in and made Olching’s tight layout even more “Deep in the Bavarian countryside, this modern design is Ccontinental Top
challenging! A fabulous track, not to be missed but not one well worth the trip,” says Gomer. 100 holes lists.

Travel essentials for your trip

Off the course ...plus Bayern
There is more nuance to the
off-course offering in Munich
than there used to be.
You'll want to explore the
architecture of the city,
carefully rebuilt after world
war bombings. And also
make time a walk through
Marienplatz, Munich’s central
square, to coincide with the
cuckoo clock coming to life
in the tower balcony of the
Neues Rathaus.
This is a must for all football
fans. Watching a game at
their new Allianz stadium is
a memorable experience but
you also really must go to
Bayern’s incredible museum.
It is so comprehensive and
fascinating you need 90
minutes to do it justice.
Among many other things,
you’ll see boots worn by club
icons and sections on their
great teams and triumphs.
Accommodation
The stylish Hilton Munich
City is ideal for golfers,
with the city centre right on
its doorstep and all of the
courses we mention no more
than a 30-minute drive away.
Its main advantage is its
location right next to the
Rosenheimer Platz tube
stop. This four-star hotel has
rooms with flat-screen TVs
and free WiFi. There is a
gym and parking.
What to do
in the evening
Where to drink
Hilton Munich City's new Juliet Rose bar is
an uber-stylish place to eat and drink and is
now popular with non-residents too.
Where to eat
Enjoy Bavarian classics on wooden boards
and traditional pans at Paulaner brewery...
and of course their many varieties of beer.
Or watch your steaks – the speciality –
being cooked on an open charcoal grill in
the centre of the Brenner restaurant.

9 8 I J U LY I C O U R S E S & T R AV E L
 AR EA G U I D E

The Ryder
Cup would have
been a very
good fit at 27-
hole Golf Valley.

Did you know?

Swim time
For an alternative
experience, surf
the waves of
Munich’s Eisbach
(Ice Stream)
River! Or swim
in the beautifully
restored baths
of Müllersches
Volksbad.

Golf Valley and Woerthsee

A 27-hole modern championship course built to host the Ryder Cup as well as one packed full of risk-reward holes.

It is very easy to explain what to expect at Golf Valley; a
modern course of a high quality that was built with a view
to hosting the Ryder Cup. So, think about the likes of Golf
National. Or Celtic Manor. David Krause’s design also has
echoes of The Centurion Club, The Shire and St Mellion.
You probably don’t therefore need to be told these 27 holes
comprise lots of water, lots of sand, lots of mounding down
the side of fairways and lots of good solid hitting - witness
the 693-yard 6th in the B loop.
The island green on C7 is another stand-out while the
par-4 A9 is just 320 yards but is a terrific risk-reward hole
with water before the green.
It opened in 2009 and is a popular members’ club with
an excellent clubhouse and terrace serving the three loops.
“Valley abounds with quality,” says Gomer. “Built to a
Ryder Cup-hosting spec, its 27 holes test you every step
of the way. It’s always available to guests with its flexible
configuration, Valley is an ideal weekend golf break host."
Woerthsee is west of Munich and this club’s history
stretches back to 1961, when the Filser family bought the
Schluifeld estate on which the course sits.
A rudimentary nine-hole course was initially laid out by
the family in 1984 and it was the tree planting back then Add another 18
that has most impact on the course that you enjoy today.
Garmisch
Within two years an 18-hole course was open. A breathtaking
This pleasant parkland is stiff enough to have hosted the course, under
Lufthansa Ladies German Open and was renovated in the Zugspitze –
2003, including new greens and a redesigned 12th. Germany’s highest
The best stretch is probably the holes to the 12th at the peak. Go here
if you absolutely
start of the back nine: the 10th plays over water for the have to have
second shot then 11 is a really nice par 3 from an elevated tee alpine golf as part
to a wide green that has water all across its front edge. The of your itinerary.
12th has water snaking up the right and OB left, making it A lovely course
and set up and
a tight test up towards a wide but shallow green. still conveniently
“This fun and varied challenge is a big hit with travelling only an hour from
golfers,” says Gomer. “Perfect if you love risk/reward holes.” Munich.

The journey The deal

Munich is fairly well served Hassle-free trip
by regional airports from Allow bavaria4golf
the UK as well as the large to build your
London hubs. perfect trip. Two
Once you’ve landed, you nights' B&B and
can easily get yourself three rounds, from
into the centre using the €395pp sharing.
underground (there is Germany April-October
a great-value pass you 2019. Ts & Cs
can buy), or just hire your apply. Contact:
car immediately from the www.bavaria4golf.
airport as you will definitely Eichenried com, info@
Gut Hausern
need one to get to the Aschhiem bavaria4golf.com,
golf courses. We hired Olching +49 89 6930
a standard compact and Egmating 7936, www.
Woerthsee Golf Valley
ended up with a top-of-the- facebook.com/
range BMW! bavaria4golf

C O U R S E S & T R AV E L I J U LY I 9 9
1 0 0 I J U LY I C O U R S E S & T R AV E L
 AR EA G U I D E

Focus on

Mid-west
Ireland
George Oldham samples the
renowned local hospitality and
relishes Irish Open venue Lahinch

f I have one complaint about the self-indulgence which I

I laughably refer to as my “job”, or ironically, as my “living”, it

is about airports. As in, hanging around for hours between
flights, walking almost as far as the destination, and standing
in queues in order to be treated as a terrorist.
However, there is an upside to flying, in that the flight into
certain airports provides spectacular bird’s-eye views of the
golf courses you might later be playing.
Flying into Faro, is a case in point, with superb views of the
Vale do Lobo, Quinta do Lago and San Lorenzo courses. The
same applies to Shannon airport, as the flight path follows
the stunning Shannon Estuary bounded by John D Harris’s
splendid Shannon Golf Club layout, which actually abuts the
airport.
Thus, in literally two minutes by taxi you can be out of the
airport, as we were, and supping the first pint of Guinness
(and, yes, it does taste 100 per cent better in Ireland) in the
welcoming first floor bar of the club’s modern clubhouse. A
quick toastie and we were on the 1st tee of a course which
could have been designed for the golfer who has just stepped
off the plane; immediately available with modest green fees,
extremely welcoming, easy-walking, not too long but well
designed and testing, aesthetically pleasing with tree-lined
fairways, and one hole, the par-3 17th bounded by the river
Shannon, which could find a place in any golf anthology.
Everyone in the party raved about this hole, as they did also
about the welcome we had received – the epitome of Irish golf
club hospitality.
Then, on to the historic city of Limerick and the five-star
Savoy Hotel for a well-earned soak in a big sudsy hot bath.
There are lots of things to like about five-star hotels. In this
one in particular, there was the Thai massage spa, gym and

C O U R S E S & T R AV E L I J U LY I 1 0 1
swim, (and steam room and sauna), but, in my book, the
highlight was the en-suite marble bathroom with the walk-in
shower for the morning and the bath for the post-round soak.
The city of Limerick has a plethora of attractions
(particularly the pubs) but after a splendid meal in the hotel
following an early flight and 18 holes, I was only too ready for
my king-sized bed.
The following morning, after breakfast of the sweetest
of local kippers, we were off on the short journey to JP
McManus’s modest pad at Adare.
I joke of course. Adare Manor is a marble chateau about the
size of Buckingham Palace. The golf course at Adare Manor
sits in 800 acres of landscaped perfection. As most golfers
know, Adare Manor is Tiger Woods’ home from home when
he is in Europe, so there was an element of pilgrimage about
our visit.
However, the principle reason was to find out whether Tom
Fazio’s multi-million pound redevelopment of Robert Trent
Jones’ 20-year-old, already award-winning course, is worthy
of the praise and myriad awards which have been heaped
upon it.
The short answer is yes…and then some. I have rarely stood
on a first tee and looked down a manicured fairway with such
a keen sense of anticipation. This is how one imagines the
Elysian Fields must look – a perfect combination of sculpted
landscape, flowing streams, diverse woodland, challenge for
the golfer and greenkeeping perfection. My caddy, Damien,
said he would give me €50 if I found a single weed or daisy
on any fairway. His money was safe. I asked how many
greenkeepers were at Adare. The answer was, “currently 55
but 70 in the summer”.
In the midst of all this beauty, the question must be, “how
do you concentrate on your golf?”. And the answer is the
classic, “with difficulty”. One of our threeball, playing off a two
handicap, failed to score on the first three holes.
There is a reason why Tom Fazio has more courses in
America’s top 100 than any other architect and that is
because his designs demonstrate a perfect match of aesthetic
pleasure with fiendish challenge. It is also no surprise that
the course at Adare Manor has been voted Best New Course
in the World.
It can fairly be said that every hole is a feature hole, if not a
signature hole. Sadly, lack of space prevents a full description,
but personal favourites include the par-5 7th, dog-legging
round the lake to its right; the roller-coaster 9th with its
backdrop of the impressive manor; the 13th and 14th, which
could have been transposed from Augusta; and, of course,
the par-5 18th, bisected by the rapid running River Maigue.
Here, two big shots, with the river to the left, are required to
reach a good position to carry the river and attack the green.
This is, of course, unless you are Rory, who, if the Ryder Cup
arrives here as predicted, will, no doubt, go for it in two. I still
needed a 3-wood for my third, which (thankfully) I hit out of
the screws to (just) reach the green.
The golf course at Adare Manor is then an experience to be
recommended, as too are the drinks and meal to be savoured
in the new Carriage House clubhouse, where I enjoyed the
most delicate smoked salmon and lightest battered cod in The warm and friendly Shannon Golf Club proved to be the perfect
living memory. I believe that rooms at the Manor (voted the opener to the trip, boasting easy-walking fairways and modest green fees.

1 0 2 I J U LY I C O U R S E S & T R AV E L
 AR EA G U I D E

Glorious,
wouldn’t you
agree? Lahinch
will hit your
senses from
beginning to
end.

Did you know?

Yes, Mr
President
Former US
President, John
F. Kennedy’s
great-grandfather,
Thomas
Fitzgerald, hails
from the town of
Bruff in east Co.
Limerick.

Add another 18
Ballybunion
The prestigious
Ballybunion Golf
Club is home to
two exceptional
links courses: the
Old and Cashen.
Golf writer Peter
Dobereiner once
said: “If sheer
pleasure is the
yardstick, then
Ballybunion’s Old
Course gets my
vote as the No.1.”

Travel essentials for your trip

Getting there
Shannon Airport serves
the west coast of Ireland
and is just a 30-minute
drive from the centre of
Limerick. Birmingham,
Glasgow, London-Heathrow,
Edinburgh and Southampton
all offer flights to Shannon.
Cork and Dublin airports
offer alternative options
but you will be looking at a
sizeable drive to the courses
we have highlighted.
Price point
Flights to Ireland are
plentiful and relatively cheap.
Depending on when you
travel, you are looking at
less than £100 for return
flights. Teeing it up will set
you back more but it’s worth
it. A round at Adare Manor
starts from €300. Lahinch
prices begin at €180 for
the Old and €35 for the
Castle course. Green fees at
Shannon start from €25.
Wild Atlantic Way
Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way
is home to 1,500 miles of
rugged coastline that runs
down the west of Ireland.
The Cliffs of Moher and
Aran Islands are just two
highlights. A tour along the
Wild Atlantic Way is the
perfect way to experience
just a portion of Ireland’s
400-plus courses. Midwest
Ireland in particular boats a
great selection of layouts.
What to do
off the course
Eat & drink...
Ireland has an array of fine-dining
restaurants and welcoming pubs serving up
rustic Irish dishes. The seafood is a must.
Visit...
O’Brien’s Tower, the Aran islands and
Thomond Park to watch Munster.
History...
Check out King John’s Castle, a fortress on
the banks of the Shannon River.

C O U R S E S & T R AV E L I J U LY I 1 0 3
 Just imagine
Europe’s Ryder
Cup heroes
striding across
this cute little
bridge at Adare
Manor.

World’s Best hotel) come out at between £300 and £2,000

a night, but if a stay-and-play here is not already on your
3rd, parallel with and set above the sands of the lovely
Lahinch Beach, requires a 240-yard uphill drive to reach
Factfile
bucket list, I recommend that it is now. the plateau to even see the green, and then another big carry For more details
Chalk and cheese describes the golf experiences at Adare over a crumpled landscape to its safety. Then a 90-degree about the courses,
hotels and events,
Manor and Lahinch, but both can be described as the best turn takes you inland along the tight valley of the famous visit
of either parkland or links golf. Klondyke, with its blind second shot over a frighteningly ireland.com/golf
Lahinch was, of course, legendary for 100 years before high dune.
Adare was even thought of and no course better illustrates Nor is there any let-up. The 5th, the legendary Dell (the Follow:
@GoToIrelandGB
the wonders of Irish west coast links golf. Three great only remaining Tom Morris hole) set among high dunes, is
| facebook.com/
architects have been involved through the 19th, 20th and again blind. Then there is the 6th, featuring another climb, DiscoverIreland
21st centuries. Firstly, there was Old Tom Morris in 1894, this time to a plateau to give a chance of reaching the green GB |
then Dr Alister MacKenzie in 1927 and, finally, Dr Martin below, set against the backdrop of the ocean. @Discover
Hawtree, who completed its redevelopment in 2003. For many, this stunning hole is the best of the best on a irelandGB |
@TourismIreland
Dr Alister MacKenzie famously said: ”Lahinch will make course on which the pros were privileged to enjoy in the
the finest and most popular golf course that I, or I believe Dubai Duty Free Irish Open. Dubai Duty
anyone else, ever constructed”. However, 50 years later, it The championship course has hosted the South of Ireland Free Irish Open:
was clear that changes to the game required changes to Amateur Open Championship since 1895 and can list dubaiduty
freeirishopen.com
the course. The club brought in Dr Martin Hawtree, who Darren Clarke, Padraig Harrington, Paul McGinley and
Follow:
was modest as always when asked what the club would Graeme McDowell among its champions. When you play @DDFIrishOpen
have after his (costly) proposals. He replied: “A restored here, you are part of golfing history. And play here you
MacKenzie course.” must. As I must again because on this occasion, as Gary, the • lahinchgolf.com
And what a course! Set against the wild Atlantic, amid course ranger, who kindly stayed with me through 40mph • adaremanor.
com/golf
towering dunes, it fully merits its constant place among winds, hail and snow, put it, “I wouldn’t put a milk bottle • shannongolfclub.
the world’s top 50 courses. Every hole presents a different out in this”. ie
challenge and every hole another peerless view. So, while I’m prepared to admit that climbing vertiginous • savoylimerick.
Lack of space again dictates that I cannot describe each dunes in driving sleet might not always seem a pleasure, com
fully but to give a feel of the nature of the experience, let to have the opportunity to play this hallowed turf is most
me take you from the 3rd to the 6th hole. The 418-yard definitely a privilege.

1 0 4 I J U LY I C O U R S E S & T R AV E L
THIS IS THE CHAMPION.
THIS IS TRIUMPHANT.
THIS IS THE BMW.

19 – 22
SEPTEMBER
Wentworth Golf Club, Surrey

Tickets available now at:

bmwpgachampionship.com
 Classic course

Korineum
Head to the northern side of Cyprus for an unrivalled sun-soaked golf break

The sun
sets over the
Korineum Golf
& Beach Resort.

1 0 6 I J U LY I C O U R S E S & T R AV E L
 CO U R S E S P OTLI G HT

ou would be entirely justified in declaring Korineum

Y to be the finest golf resort in North Cyprus.

That’s because it is the original, and to date only,
specimen of its type on the Turkish side of the Mediterranean
island.
Sun-kissed Cyprus is the most delightful place to holiday
all year round, but when it really stands out from the crowd
is away from the European summer, when it is just about the
nearest destination to home that offers guaranteed warmth
and sunshine.
Flights into Ercan, just outside the capital of Nicosia, go via
Istanbul. Alternatively, you can fly direct into Larnaca, in the
south (that’s the Greek side) and still be at Korineum within
a two-hour drive. Either way, you are looking at a four-and-
a-half hour flight – plus the transfer time if you are going via
Istanbul.
The intimate Korineum Golf and Country Club is located
on the north coast, which means you look out to sea towards
Turkey, some 60 miles away.
A pipeline serves water straight from the Turkish mountains
in the south under the sea and into Cypriot reservoirs. That’s
handy because there is so little rain. Such are the challenges
that face an island nation.
Cyprus has enjoyed a rich history, which makes it a
fascinating place for those of an inquisitive mind.
You can enjoy a wander around the ancient port of Kyrenia,
whose castle still stands proudly above the harbour. Or
check out the ghost town of Famagusta, whose 15th-century
Venetian walls and 14th-century cathedral stand proudly to
this day. Up until the 1970s and the beginning of partitioned
Cyprus, which sees half the island under Turkish control
and half under the Greeks, this was a tourist hotspot and a
millionaire’s playground.
Alternatively, and entirely understandably, you might find it
difficult to stray far beyond the confines of the resort, which
sits at the foot of the hills rising out of the sea.
We say stray far, because a shuttle bus takes guests the short
distance to the resort’s private beach club, complete with bar
and restaurant. It’s an understandably popular spot to while
away those steamy Cypriot afternoons.
The boutique accommodation comes in the form of 86
rooms in apartment blocks. All are within a short walk of
the swimming pool, bar, restaurant and clubhouse. This is
the beauty of Korineum – all you need is close at hand. That
includes exceptionally good practice facilities. It was quickly
established that wintering groups of – especially Scandinavian
– golfers would want to come here to work on their games
in the sunshine under the careful eye of their professional.
Korineum is ideally set up for such holidays.
As for the course itself, it was designed by David Hemstock
and opened in 2006. Both nines begin and end in front of
the clubhouse, initially climbing away from the resort to offer
sea views.
Off the back tees it stretches to almost 6,900 yards but you
won’t need to go anywhere near those markers to appreciate
the challenge the course presents thanks to the often-dramatic
changes in elevation and subtle changes of direction.
A few words of warning – the opening hole is nothing short
of brutally difficult. It plays at least 50 yards longer than its

C O U R S E S & T R AV E L I J U LY I 1 0 7
CO U R S E S P OTLI G HT

yardage. The green is cut into the hillside and fronted by

bunkers so even if you are not blocked out by encroaching
evening meals. Fresh fruit, salads and greens are prominent
ingredients – but it is hard to resist those Turkish meatballs,
Factfile
trees, it is quite a task to find the putting surface. not to mention an array of cheeses and locally caught fish. Energise your
Fortunately, you immediately turn 180˚ to play the Many dishes are cooked in oil from the olive trees on site. body, stimulate
your mind and
2nd which is an altogether more appealing prospect – a As for the desserts – well, if you can walk past without calm your spirit at
flatteringly downhill par 5. indulging then you must be wearing blinkers. Korineum’s Spa &
Highlights include the par-3 4th, with its dramatic tee While Korineum is set up primarily with mature golfers in Wellness Centre.
shot across a chasm, and the sweeping 5th, which goes mind, there is plenty of entertainment for both non-golfers The boutique
spa comprises
down and then round to a distant green. and families alike.
two massage
A refreshing drink will set you up for the back nine, which Facilities include a spa, tennis courts and pool tables. rooms, a Jacuzzi,
features some attractive short holes and perhaps does Korineum’s staff are incredibly friendly and whether you sauna and resting
not quite possess quite the same levels of card-wrecking want to hire a car or be picked up by a coach, there is no areas – it’s the
potential. shortage of activities. perfect spot to
explore tranquility.
It is a most pleasant place to play and beautifully For example, you might be lucky enough to watch baby There are a range
presented. Interestingly, the course, and indeed the entire turtles being released into the sea at Akdeniz on the west of packages
resort, is currently irrigated using desalinated sea water. coast in the shadow of the Troodos Mountains. available at
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taking advantage of the sumptuous buffet breakfasts and every sense.

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 The 17th
at Korineum
with the
Mediterranean
coastline on the
horizon.

C O U R S E S & T R AV E L I J U LY I 1 0 9
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CLUB GOLF

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 CLUB GOLF
Contact Steve, our man in the clubhouse: email s.carroll@sportspub.co.uk or call 0113 289 3979

Duff House Royal was ranked 51st in our Top 100

Courses in Scotland 2019 ranking

Britain’s most
bunkered?

ROYAL LYTHAM
When you fancy a
trip to the seaside, an
afternoon at Royal
Lytham & St Annes
probably wouldn’t be
your first thought.
If you ever get the
chance to tee it up at THIS CLUB IS FAMOUS FOR
the legendary Open
venue, though, you’d be
wise to pack a bucket
and spade in your golf
DUFF HOUSE ROYAL
bag.
This Aberdeenshire club has a Royal approval with a difference

T
They love sand at
Lytham and the HE Royal courses. They’re
Lancashire track may ten-a-penny, right? Royal
well be Britain’s most Birkdale, Royal Porthcawl,
bunkered. There is Royal Lytham – just three of the
a grand total of 206 mountain of clubs that have
of the blighters – managed to receive a princely
peppering the fairways blessing down the years.
and protecting the All right, not quite.
greens. There are said to be 66 clubs
The par-4 17th has 20 that have had a title conferred
on its own. There are 17 by the British Royal family. But
on the last. there is one Royal course that’s
Ranging from dastardly set apart from all the others.
little pots to the kind You’ll find it alongside the Moray
of traps where a player Firth in Aberdeenshire. Duff
can disappear forever House Royal is the only one
if they are not careful, where the royal title is used as a
there are two rules for suffix and not a prefix.
getting round Lytham The course was opened in
in a good score: Avoid 1909 and it’s believed the reason
the bunkers or take it’s all back to front at this Archie
your punishment. Simpson-designed layout was
because it was named in tribute
to Louise, the third child of King
Edward VII. She was known
as the Princess Royal – a title
given to the eldest daughter
of a reigning monarch – rather
than the Royal Princess. And
so Duff House Royal, which
was remodelled by Alister
MacKenzie, took on its unusual
name in 1925.
Why Louise? Alexander Duff,
the 6th Earl of Fife and the last
to live at Duff House, married
her in 1889. The couple were
such keen golfers they employed
a professional to maintain the
holes that then surrounded the
house. They later gifted the
18th-century mansion and land
to the communities of Banff and
Macduff, which led to the golf
course being fully constructed.
In 1923, Prince Louise expressed
the desire to become patron and
so Duff House Royal was born.
„ To learn more about Duff House Royal, visit
duffhouseroyal.com
 CLUB GOLF
THE LOWDOWN:
LADYBANK
A great-value inland course that can go head-to-head
with Fife’s very best links layouts
L
ADYBANK is somewhat of a rare
beast in Fife.
It is a tremendous inland course
worthy of any top 100 list that sits
comfortably in a region of Scotland
renowned for its world-class links
layouts. Coastal powerhouses including
St Andrews, Kingsbarns, Leven Links
and Elie are rightly celebrated in this
part of the world but Ladybank offers
a welcome alternative to its coastal
neighbours.
114 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com
NCG PROMOTION
Designed by Old Tom Morris, the
heathland course has changed little over
the years, calling on the golfer to be
deadly accurate to hit both the narrow
tree-lined fairways and small, often
contoured greens. Further obstacles
come in the form of heather, pine trees
and silver birch, while shaping shots to
get into position on the various doglegs
is never easy but always fun.
Arguably the standout hole is the
4th, a pretty par 3 and a welcome relief
following a tough opening three holes.
Typical of the greens at Ladybank,
the putting surface is small and
undulating. Three bunkers protecting
the green provide an extra headache
when weighing up club selection.
It’s this kind of challenge that has
seen Ladybank often selected as a host
for big tournaments. The course has
previously staged Final Qualifying for
the Open as well as qualifying for the
Senior Open.
IN PROFILE: LADYBANK
Course info
18 holes, Par 71
6,580 yards (white tees)
Designed by Old Tom Morris
Location
Ladybank can be found in the
picturesque Scottish county
of Fife, around 16 miles inland
from St Andrews. It is about
an hour’s drive from the
centre of Edinburgh and one
hour and 30 minutes from
Glasgow.
Off-course attractions
No trip to Fife could be
complete without visiting the
Home of Golf. St Andrews
Links is home to seven public
courses including the Old
Course, which has hosted
the Open Championship on
29 occasions. The seaside
town of St Andrews is also
a thriving university town,
complete with restaurants,
shops and impressive
architecture. Closer to
Ladybank, the nearby Scottish Contact
Deer Centre offers a great Annsmuir, Ladybank, Fife,
day out, with 14 species of KY15 7RA
deer, wolves and bird of prey t: 01337 830814
demonstrations all on show. w: ladybankgolf.co.uk
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 115
 BALLYCASTLE
GOLF CLUB
Situated just 20 minutes from the 2019 Open venue Royal Portrush.

TEE
STILL
TIMES
BLE,
AVAILA W
NO
BOOK

Ballycastle Golf Club, 2 Cushendall Road, Ballycastle, Co. Antrim, Northern Ireland BT54 6QP
7HOHSKRQH3URVKRS_2IÀFH
Email: info@ballycastlegolfclub.com | Website: www.ballycastlegolfclub.com
CLUB GOLF

Where is it? and hidden bunkers adding to

CLYNE Located just 10 minutes to the
west of Swansea, Clyne is easily
the challenge.
This 6,432-yard track is exposed
Swansea accessible. to the elements and it means
that you can easily find yourself
Ancient or modern? out of position. Those with

COURSE Laid out by the great Harry

NOTES
Colt, this moorland, seaside
track was created in the 1920s
and has been evolving ever
since as it approaches its
centenary.
What’s the course like?
Clyne was recognised as one
of Colt’s standout courses by
Peter Alliss when listing his 200
best courses in the British Isles.
It is easy to see why when you
take into consideration the
gorse, bracken, rolling fairways,
swirling breezes and jaw-
dropping vistas.
Interestingly, the back nine
was actually created first and
golfers enjoyed playing these
holes while the remaining nine
holes were constructed.
The natural attributes of the
land have been used to full
effect, with many undulations
DID YOU KNOW...
The club’s first professional
was employed in 1920.
He was Percy Alliss, the
Ryder Cup star and father
of former golfer, architect
and commentator, Peter.
In addition, this year Clyne
will host the Welsh Under
16s and Under 14s Girls and
Boys Championships.
control over their ball flight are
at a considerable advantage on
a typically breezy day at Clyne.
The greens are delightfully
consistent throughout meaning
that strong approach play will
always be rewarded.
Contact Details
Tel: 01792 401989 | Email:
manager@clynegolfclub.com

CLYNE GOLF CLUB

Listed in Peter Alliss’ top 200 Swansea’s finest championship
courses in the British Isles moorland course

STAY & PLAY PACKAGES FROM £89pp Societies welcomed

Choose from 5 championship courses! Golf Packages tailored to suit your group

118 – 120 Owls Lodge Lane, Swansea SA3 5DP

01792 929295 | manager@clynegolfclub.com
www.clynegolfclub.com

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 117

 CLUB GOLF

Where is it? in immaculate condition.”

As the name suggests, the
course is located in Wiltshire,
close to the medieval city of
Salisbury.
Ancient or modern?
Golf has been played for many
years at this venue, with some
parts of the course dating back
to the 19th century and as long
ago as 1888.
What’s the course like?
The Cathedral course has
played host to a number of
notable events, including
the South West Counties
Championships.
The club hosts an annual
pro-am event which is one
of the most well supported
tournaments in the West
region.
Having showcased the venue’s
capabilities at these events,
Tom Sheffield, PGA regional
tournament co-ordinator, was
full of praise for the course. He
said: “The course is a fantastic
layout and is always presented
An unusual aspect on the
Bibury course is that some
holes border and in fact
are played across Salisbury
racetrack, which adds
DID YOU KNOW...
There are two courses,
the 18-hole Cathedral and
9-hole Bibury. The former
has been in play since 1991
and features a blend of
original holes from the Old
Course and newly built
holes constructed in 1989.
The Bibury was designed
by J H Taylor in 1894.
something a little different to
this downland track.
Your round concludes with
a tricky par 3, played into a
narrow green that is offered
plenty of protection by
greenside bunkers.
SALISBURY & Contact details
ST WILTS Wiltshire Tel: 01722 742645 | Email:
mail@salisburygolf.co.uk

Salisbury & South Wilts Golf Club

GOLF SOCIETIES Function
WELCOME! Rooms
available
• 18 holes with coffee & bacon roll for Partie
s
- £29.50pp (Winter) Wedding ,
Confere , s
- £33.50pp (Summer) nces
*Price is for 24 or more

• Many other packages available,

including lunch, evening meals,
chef’s specials
• 27 holes of free draining chalk
downland VISITORS WELCOME
• Memberships available! 18 hole par 71 Cathedral Course
• Please enquire to see which 9 hole par 34 Bibury Course
category suits you best Both courses maintained to a very high standard

www.salisburygolf.co.uk 01722 742645 mail@salisburygolf.co.uk

118 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 2019 GCMA GOLF CLUB
Nominations MANAGEMENT AWARDS
are open Do your club’s staff deserve recognition?
now! Join us in celebrating and rewarding
excellence across golf club management.

■ Manager of the Year

The outstanding manager of the last two years
2017 winner: Amy Yeates
sponsored by

■ Newcomer of the Year

First golf club management job, and in post for
less than two years
2017 winner Gordon MacLeod
sponsored by

■ Team of the Year

Club manager; and at least two from course
manager, club professional, bar steward or
food and beverage manager
\NSSJW5^QJ0JS÷L
sponsored by

For more information, or to submit a nomination, visit:

gcma.org.uk/awards
 CLUB GOLF

Where is it? features add to the challenge

TORQUAY The course is set in the heart of
the English Riviera, just three
Devon miles from the marina and
harbour of Torquay.
Ancient or modern?
The club has been around since
the early 1900s and has been
continuously improving since.
In its early days, the land was
deemed not only suitable for
the sport of golf, but also for
horse racing. Each year, the
course would be used for a
steeplechase meeting around
Easter.
What’s the course like?
What better setting could
you imagine for a round of
golf? Bask in the views across
Lyme Bay as you play this
brilliant parkland layout. Having
seen regular improvements
throughout its history, the
course has evolved into one
of the finest in the area. The
tree-lined fairways emphasise
the importance of accuracy
from the tee, while water
on multiple holes.
An interesting aspect of the
layout is that the finishing hole
is a par 3. This 158-yard closing
hole has a green protected by
DID YOU KNOW...
Nick Faldo picked up his
first winner’s cheque as a
professional at Torquay and
the course has always been
able to attract big names.
When the new clubhouse
was opened in 1911, Harry
Vardon and JH Taylor were
engaged to take on a pair
of amateurs.
two greenside bunkers and
there is not a whole lot of room
over the back. It’s an exciting
closing hole that does offer the
chance of finishing with that
rare bird – a closing two.
Contact Details
Tel: 01754 763298
Email: info@northshorehotel.
co.uk

TORQUAY
Golf Club

In the heart of the English Riviera.

$SODFHWRHQMR\JUHDWJROIDQGÀQHGLQLQJ

www.torquaygolfclub.co.uk | tel: 01803 314591

Torquay Golf Club, Petitor Road, St Marychurch, Torquay, Devon TQ1 4QF

120 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 JOIN US TO CELEBRATE
THE UNVEILING OF:

TOP
100s
The home of golf course rankings
GREAT BRITAIN &
IRELAND 2020

Compiled by the most knowledgeable panel in the game

The Royal Armouries, Leeds

Thursday November 21st

• See our top 100 list revealed in full and the winners being congratulated
•Black-tie gala dinner with VIP drinks reception
• Take advantage of a discounted rate at a city-centre Leeds hotel
• Meet experts from the world of golf and golf courses
• Play golf the day after the awards at one of the best courses in Leeds

£95 per ticket or £900 for a table of 10

£135 per ticket with golf
£245 per ticket with golf and hotel
call 0113 289 3979 or email a.young@sportspub.co.uk to book
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DISTINCTIVE HOLES

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KILMARNOCK (BARASSIE) GOLF CLUB

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 NCG PROMOTION

ONCE PLAYED,
NEVER
FORGOTTEN
Quirky, spectacular – even unique. The British Isles is
packed with unforgettable, one-off holes

T
AKE a moment to think feature, or even some piece of we have highlighted our pick
back over the countless history that makes the hole live of Britain’s most memorable
rounds you have played. long in your memory. holes.
Is there a hole that stands out Whatever the reason, here Let us know your favourite
Royal Troon

above all the others? at NCG we love hearing about hole from the British Isle’s vast
It might have been the what makes a golf hole special. collection by emailing letters@
dramatic backdrop, a quirky Over the following pages sportspub.co.uk

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 1

 CLUB GOLF

I
F I was asked to do this again next year,
or even next month, or frankly tomorrow,
I’m sure I’d come up with a completely
different five holes.
I’ve played close to all of what most
people would regard as the Top 200
courses in Britain and Ireland, so I’ve
experienced an awful lot of brilliant holes
and there is not much to separate the 50 or
so I’d consider for my top five.
It could be more than 50 actually.
That I couldn’t find room for anything
from Liphook, Royal Porthcawl, Woking,
Aberdovey, Cruden Bay, Prestwick,
Machrihanish, North Berwick, St Enodoc
or Royal St George’s is as surprising as it is
annoying. Next time...
1st | St Andrews (Old)
Fife, 376 yards, par 4
“It’s nothing more than a flat wide fairway
with a stream!” I can hear some of you
think, despairingly. Well it is that, but
it obviously isn’t just that. And not just
because the Swilcan makes the approach
shot tricky, especially when you are being
silly with a tight club selection.
Like the whole of the ‘Old experience’
itself, it is about way more than the course.
I’ve probably asked 30 tour pros if they still
get a thrill standing on the 1st tee and every
single one has confirmed they do.
And if that cynical bunch still find it
special, it must be.
4th | Old Head of Kinsale
Cork, 427 yards, par 4
There are some modest holes at this jaw-
dropping clifftop course that stop it being
among the elite of Britain and Ireland. But
there are also some all-world classics, and
this is one.
It follows the bluffs in a vintage dogleg
shape and ends on a green wedged in
between the rocks on which the famous
lighthouse sits.
You don’t want to have much more
than an 8-iron to find this small target so
you really need to take on the dogleg off
the tee. It is strategic and daring as well as
impossibly scenic.

• Over the following pages we have

highlighted our pick of Britain’s most
memorable holes – some famous, others
that may have flown under your radar.
Have we missed your favourite hole?
Let us know by emailing letters@
sportspub.co.uk

126 JULY 2019| www.nationalclubgolfer.com

 OUR
TOP 5
HOLES
IN GB&I
Courses editor Chris Bertram selects
his favourites from the thousands he’s
played in Great Britain and Ireland

Old Head of Kinsale

1st | Trump Ireland (Doonbeg)
County Clare, 567 yards, par 5
I know, so pathetically predictable. I’m not
trying to be a hipster and choose obscure
holes though.
Everyone knows this is a great start so
I’m not telling you anything you don’t know.
But you can’t feel how good it is until
you’ve stood on the tee right outside the
clubhouse windows and looked down this
epic hole.
Drama matters as much as nuance to
me and this hole brings it in spades. And
while the presence of lots of pairs of eyes
as you drive off is unnerving, you know
anything vaguely airborne will look OK.
3rd | Royal County Down
County Down, 475 yards, par 4
My favourite course could naturally have
had several entries and this may be a
surprise because most praise is usually
reserved for the likes of the 4th, 8th and
9th.
I’ve always thought the 2nd and 3rd
were both wrongly overshadowed and
that this par 4 in particular is a brilliant
hole.
It begins on an elevated tee on the edge
of the beach and asks you to avoid two
bunkers that narrow further a slim fairway
and then find a green guarded by more
sand and mounds.
14th | Royal Dornoch
Sutherland, 445 yards, par 4
The contrarian in me tried to be insouciant
about ‘Foxy’ after the first time I played
it many years ago, given it is so widely
revered.
The second time in Dornoch made me
realise the error of my ways and by the
third I was cringing at my initial view.
It has no bunkers and there isn’t a
tree in sight; it’s all about the contours of
the linksland. You have to plan and then
execute how much of the dunes on this
s-shaped hole to cut off and you have to
be bold because the approach to the green
rejects anything other then sweet strikes.

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 127

 The
Manor & Ashbury
Hotels

 
  


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of the Dartmoor National park, our hotels offer the
unique opportunity to experience free first class
sporting, leisure and spa facilities, along with free
expert craft tuition. We offer great group discounts
of up to 7.5% off and over 400 buggies to hire from 0800 389 9891
just £8 per round. ashburygolfhotel.com
 CLUB GOLF
MIDLANDS
7th | Sherwood Forest
Nottinghamshire, 131 yards, par 3
The course: One of the finest heathland
courses in Great Britain, Sherwood Forest
sits among the pine, silver birch and oaks
18th | Ingestre Park
Staffordshire, 517 yards, par 5
The course: The venue, which is set in the
grounds of Ingestre Hall in the heart of the
Staffordshire countryside, celebrated its
40th anniversary in 2018.
The hole: Two big hits will make the green
but, if you’re not the longest, don’t take on
the captain’s bunker. Out of bounds lies
through the trees on the right and a birdie
can only be grabbed if you find the correct
tier of the green.
trees of Clipstone Woods. We ranked
the Nottinghamshire course 35th in our
England’s Top 100 Courses 2018 ranking,
showing the level of quality on offer at this
heathland course.
18th | Beedles Lake
Leicestershire, 416 yards, par 4
The course: This fine parkland layout is
framed by a river meandering through a
number of holes and is found in the heart
of the Wreake Valley.
The hole: Numerous species of trees line
the fairway, which gets tighter the closer
you get to the green. The putting surface is
protected by a bunker and, depending on
the day, the pin position can cause a real
headache.
The hole: A narrow green that slopes from
back to front makes this short par 3 a tricky
test. Bunkers offer protection on all sides
and while this is the shortest hole on the
course, it can punish any wandering shots.
7th | Tadmarton Heath
Oxfordshire, 137 yards, par 3
The course: Architect Ken Moodie
has overseen bunker additions, green
extensions and the creation of mounds, all
of which show the improvements being
made at the course fondly known as Taddy.
The hole: The 7th is an exciting par 3
where trouble lurks all around. The green is
guarded by four bunkers, with water short
and out of bounds in play on both sides. A
tee shot that carries the distance is a must.
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 129
DISTINCTIVE HOLES

Torwoodlee Golf Club

Situated just outside Galashiels in the beautiful Scottish Borders countrydside, with
over 100 years of history. Torwoodlee is a picturesque 18-hole 6,021 yrd, par 69 golf
course. Flanked by the River Gala and set amongst a mix of mature woodland and rolling
parkland, it is one of the most challenging golf courses in the Scottish Borders.

Tel: 01896 752260

4 Ball Special for £120 including Buggies. Option 3
www.torwoodleegolfclub.co.uk
torwoodleegolfclub@torwoodleegolfclub.com

• SOCIETIES WELCOME • BOOK NOW FOR 2019 •

It’s time to visit

Headingley Golf Club

Come and play one of the finest courses in Yorkshire. Our reputation has been further
enhanced following an extensive tree removal programme completed in recent years.
If you haven’t played the course recently or if you haven’t played it before, make sure
you take advantage of our £120 Fourball offer and play this year.
To book your Fourball, just call 0113 2679573 Ext 1 or e-mail
manager@headingleygolfclub.co.uk quoting NCG120
www.headingleygolfclub.co.uk
 CLUB GOLF
MIDLANDS
5th | North Shore
Lincolnshire, 458 yards, par 4
The course: The mixed styles of links and
parkland golf blend over more than 6,200
yards at North Shore on the Lincolnshire
13th | Copt Heath
West Midlands, 167 yards, par 3
The course: Featuring deep bunkers
and subtle greens, Copt Heath still
encompasses many features of Harry Colt’s
original design.
The hole: An aesthetically pleasing hole,
which also packs a considerable punch
should the green be missed. Water is in
play short and to the right, while bunkers
await those who play to the left of the
green.
coast. You will find the links holes more
exposed than the tree-lined parkland holes.
The hole: The 5th is the toughest hole on
the course for many. Teeing off over gorse,
with the sea to the right, it’s imperative that
NORTH WEST
6th | Southport Links
Merseyside, 201 yards, par 3
The course: Southport was originally
opened in 1912 and was extended to 18
holes in the 1930s with Harry Colt having a
hand in shaping the links.
The hole: The 6th is named Carr View after
a famous resident who lived behind the tee.
This hole features a large amount of water
that must be carried to find the green. The
stiff sea breeze often blows from right to
left adding to the difficulty from the tee.
you keep your ball down the left. Precision
is also essential with a large hump in the
fairway that can make for a tricky approach
shot from an uneven lie. However, lay up
short and you’ll have a long way in.
14th | Bootle
Merseyside, 184 yards, par 3
The course: Along with Southport Links,
Bootle is managed by Sefton Council, who
have been making improvements since
their acquisition of the club in 2013.
The hole: The 14th sees golfers carry a
pond to reach a green protected on each
side by tough bunkers.
With trees down the left and a steep bank
out of bounds on the right, accuracy off the
tee is essential.
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 131
DISTINCTIVE HOLES
KIRKBYMOORSIDE GOLF CLUB
MEN’S OPEN AM AM
OPEN DAYS 2019
Saturday 13th July 2019
£80.00 per team | Handicap limit
28, 90% allowance
LADIES OPEN DAY
Wednesday 31st July 2019
£52.00 per team of 4 (includes 2’s
club) | Handicap limit 36, 90%
allowance
SENIORS OPEN DAY
Thursday 1st August 2019
£28.00 per couple (includes 2’s club)
Handicap limit 28 (proof of
handicap required) 90% allowance
T: 01751 431525 E:proshop@kirkbymoorsidegolf.co.uk
www.kirkbymoorsidegolf.co.uk
Manor Vale, Kirkbymoorside, North Yorkshire, YO62 6EG
OPEN DAY RUN BY THE
The Oaks Golf Club & Spa
RABBITS SECTION
Saturday 3rd August 2019
Aughton | YORK | YO42 4PW
£28.00 per pair | Handicap limit
14-28, 90% allowance
OPEN MIXED 4BB
Saturday 24th August 2019
£30.00 per couple | Handicap
limits Gentlemen: 28 Ladies: 36,
90% allowance
LADIES TRI AM OPEN DAY
Wednesday 11th September 2019
£39.00 per team of 3 (includes 2’s club)
Handicap limit 36, 90% allowance
Visiting parties
welcome
Monday to Friday
Packages start
from £30pp
To book tel: 01757 288577
email: info@theoaksgolfclub.co.uk
 CLUB GOLF
SOUTH WEST
7th | Broadstone
Dorset, 422 yards, par 4
The course: Broadstone is a traditional
heathland track set into the Dorset
countryside with a natural feel and plenty
16th | East Devon
Devon, 408 yards, par 4
The course: Continuous investment sees
this distinctive course maintained to a very
high standard. Heathland golf and views of
the surrounding areas combine to create a
great location.
The hole: The views found on the 16th tee
must be taken in and will not be beaten
anywhere else on the course. The par-4
10th is another standout hole; it is littered
with bunkers and home to a sloping green.
of heather, pine trees and gorse. The
location leads to some spectacular views
throughout.
The hole: A challenging par 4 where
par is always a good score. The green is
16th | Saunton (East)
Devon, 435 yards, par 4
The course: Herbert Fowler is the man
behind the East course, having also
designed courses such as Walton Heath.
Since its introduction in 1937, the course
has hosted several amateur championships.
The hole: The right side should be favoured
from the tee with trouble lurking down the
left. Although this safe play does lengthen
the hole slightly, the pros outweigh the
cons.
accessible in two for the longer hitters, but
there is the option to lay up, leaving a pitch
to attack the pin. The cross bunkers before
the green ensure that even when choosing
to lay up, care must be taken.
14th | Saunton (West)
Devon, 441 yards, par 4
The course: Shot placement is key on the
West. Find the right area from the tee and
the greens will be accessible. From there,
the contours of the greens will provide the
next challenge.
The hole: There is more than one way to
play this dog-leg par 4. Take the aggressive
line in the hope of cutting the corner or
play into the fairway. With the approach, be
sure not to miss the dancefloor to the right.
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 133
DISTINCTIVE HOLES
 CLUB GOLF
SOUTH WEST
5th | Isle of Purbeck
Dorset, 404 yards, par 4
The course: Isle of Purbeck was once
owned by the author, Enid Blyton, and
her husband. In 1966, the chairman of the
15th | The Players
Bristol, 621 yards, par 5
The course: The Players Club boasts 45
holes of golf, split over two 18-holers and a
9-hole par-3 course. The Codrington course
is the flagship layout and has a par of 72.
The hole: A stern test of positional play
with water down the left. Only the very
best will have the chance to attack the
green in two. There is space to bail out
right, although it does make the next shot
longer.
Wilkinson Sword Company, Mr Randolph,
took ownership, paving the way for
constant improvement.
The hole: The drive is dramatic while the
tight entrance to the green puts a lot of
3rd | Manor House and Ashbury
(Kigbeare) Devon, 205 yards, par 3
The course: Set in 600 acres of Devon
scenery, an astonishing 99 holes await on
seven courses. Each course offers different
challenges.
The hole: A long carry, of some 180 yards, is
required to get over Hookmoor Brook on a
hole which drops 50 feet from tee to green.
A steep bank behind the putting surface
can cause problems for those that are long,
and trees protect the green on three sides.
emphasis on a quality approach. A Bronze
Age burial ground is situated underneath
the medal tee, highlighting the heritage
of the grounds. Throughout, the coastal
location ensures breathtaking views.
3rd | Dartmouth
Devon, 176 yards, par 3
The course: Dartmouth is home to 27
holes and its Championship course has
played host to the West Region PGA
Championships six times.
The hole: The 3rd hole is a downhill par 3
which demands a solid tee shot to carry
the water below. The green is huge, fully 50
yards long from front to back, so you may
well be left with a lengthy putt here if you
misjudge the distance.
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 135
 CLUB GOLF
SOUTH EAST
17th | Crowborough Beacon
East Sussex, 145 yards, par 3
The course: Crowborough Beacon is one of
the best in East Sussex and with legendary
architects Alister MacKenzie and Harry S.
10th | Chigwell
Essex, 160 yards, par 3
The course: Chigwell, which has recently
undergone bunker refurbishment and
drainage improvement on several holes, is
an undulating parkland course.
The hole: A straight tee shot is required
with trouble on both sides. To the right,
there is a water hazard and trees, while
a bunker waits on the left. A long bunker
guarding the front of the green means
taking enough club is vital.
Colt both having a hand in the course’s
design, this is hardly surprising.
The hole: An uphill tee shot awaits on
this par 3, which is played into a flat and
banked green. At just 145 yards, this could
NORTH EAST
9th | Brancepeth Castle
County Durham, 207 yards, par 3
The course: Designed by Harry Colt, the
track is set into the site of the former
Brancepeth Castle Deer Park.
The hole: The long par 3 is the signature
hole and plays over a ravine. Previously, this
was the formal garden of the castle and
the green was originally dug out by hand.
Devilishly challenging but a thrill to play. If
that wasn’t enough excitement, another par
3 follows on the very next hole.
be considered one of the simpler holes but
in reality three is always a good score.
Golf writer Bernard Darwin described the
hole as “tricky, tempting us to go for the
pin over a bunker and a bank”.
5th | The Oaks
Yorkshire, 406 yards, par 4
The course: USGA specification greens
and wide fairways feature at this natural
layout, built in such a way to complement
the surrounding woodland and nearby
Derwent Ings.
The hole: An exciting dogleg to the right
which really comes into its own with the
approach shot. The green is protected by
water at the front and back as well as a
greenside bunker.
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 137
FORTROSE & ROSEMARKIE GOLF CLUB
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@FortroseGC1793 Fortrosegc linksgolf1793

Fortrose & Rosemarkie Golf Club, Ness Road East, Fortrose, Ross-Shire, Scotland, IV10 8SE
Tel: +44 (0)1381 620529 | Email: secretary@fortrosegolfclub.co.uk
 CLUB GOLF
NORTH EAST
17th | Headingley
Yorkshire, 174 yards, par 3
The course: Designed by Dr Alister
MacKenzie and Harry Colt, Headingley
boasts 18 holes of championship golf in
13th | Kirkbymoorside
Yorkshire, 415 yards, par 4
The course: A regular host of top union
events, this challenging layout is set in the
foothills of the North York Moors.
The hole: The 13th tee is the perfect
location for golfers to take in views of the
surrounding North Yorkshire moors. This
tree-lined par 4 is a tricky but rewarding
driving hole which demands a straight
tee shot if the green is to be reached in
regulation.
a rural setting to the north of Leeds city
centre. Thanks to extensive recent drainage
work, golf can be played all year round.
The hole: The spectacular par-3 17th is a
real highlight and was described by the
12th | Bradford
Yorkshire, 142 yards, par 3
The course: One of the oldest courses in
Yorkshire, this Herbert Fowler-designed
layout features tree-lined fairways and fast
greens.
The hole: While this isn’t the longest of par
3s, there is plenty to be considered, most
notably the wind on the day. The 142-yard
hole can play from a long iron to a wedge.
Subtle contours make for interesting putts
from anywhere on the green.
three-time Open champion Henry Cotton
as one of the best short holes he had ever
played. Sitting in the shelter of hillside, it
moves downhill off the tee and has a green
protected by five bunkers.
EAST ANGLIA
16th | Ufford Park
Suffolk, 150 yards, par 3
The course: Ufford Park has matured nicely
into a course good enough to play host to
the EuroPro Tour and other pro events.
The hole: Standing on the elevated tee,
a striking tree located in the middle of a
pond makes for a demanding tee shot. A
strike which carries almost all of the hole’s
distance will provide a good chance of
finding the green, but greenside bunkers
could spell trouble.
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 139
 CLUB GOLF
SCOTLAND
6th | Panmure
Angus, 414 yards, par 4
The course: Situated between Monifieth
and Carnoustie golf clubs, Panmure, ranked
30th in our Scotland’s Top 100 Courses
4th | Fortrose and Rosemarkie
Ross and Cromarty, 497 yards, par 5
The course: Just 20 minutes north of
Inverness is the 15th-oldest recorded club in
the world, dating back to 1793.
The hole: The 4th is aptly named
Lighthouse as the Chanonry Lighthouse
features directly behind the sloping green.
Driver may not be the best choice - the
sensible play is to lay up, unless you can
carry it around 270 yards. Positional play
should be at the forefront of your mind.
2019, is part of the high-calibre portfolio
of Scottish courses. The great Ben Hogan
qualified here ahead of the 1953 Open at
Carnoustie.
The hole: Still to this day, the 6th hole is
8th | Royal Troon
Ayrshire, 123 yards, par 3
The course: One of Scotland’s most famous
venues, Royal Troon holds a prominent
spot on the Open Championship rota.
The hole: The iconic Postage Stamp is well
known within the golfing community – and
with good reason. As the name suggests,
the green is a narrow target and from a
raised tee, a shot landing on the green and
evading the deadly greenside bunkers is
essential.
spoken of with Ben Hogan in mind. It is said
that this testing par 4 to a slightly raised
green was his favourite hole at Panmure
and the hidden greenside pot bunker is
fondly referred to as Hogan’s bunker.
7th | Irvine
Ayrshire, 292 yards, par 4
The course: Having co-hosted events
such as the Senior Open and Amateur
Championship, James Braid-designed
Irvine is highly regarded.
The hole: This short par 4 is within range
of the perfect tee shot. More realistically,
avoid the fairway bunkers and steer clear
of the out of bounds on the left to leave a
pitch into the green that gathers from the
back right.
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 141
DISTINCTIVE HOLES

PURE TADDY
Experience British golf, at its finest, all year round

Plan your perfect day out, tailored to your needs

www.tadmartongolf.com | generalmanager@tadmartongolf.com | 01608 737278

INGESTRE PARK Beedles Lake

INGESTRE | STAFFORD | STAFFORDSHIRE | ST18 0RE Golf Centre
“Golf for Everyone”
SOCIETIES AND VISITORS WELCOME MONDAYS, TUESDAYS,
THURSDAYS AND FRIDAYS GREAT DEALS AVAILABLE. • 18 hole Championship course
• 9 Hole Little Owl Par3 course
• Full & Flexible membership
WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU. packages
• Societies & Visitors welcome
7 days a week
• Floodlit Driving range
• Chipping & Putting practice
greens
• Excellent modern clubhouse
facilities
www.beedleslake.co.uk
T: 0116 2607086
E: secretary@beedleslake.co.uk
170 Broome Lane, East Goscote,
Leicester LE7 3WQ

INGESTRE | STAFFORD | STAFFORDSHIRE | ST18 0RE|

01889 270845
WWW.INGESTREGOLF.CO.UK
 CLUB GOLF
SCOTLAND
12th | Kilmarnock Barassie
Ayrshire, 144 yards, par 3
The course: The 27-hole venue is a regular
host of amateur and professional events
and boasts some of the finest greens in
16th | West Kilbride
Ayrshire, 355 yards, par 4
The course: In keeping with Scotland’s
rich links heritage, the most northerly of
Ayrshire’s true links courses showcases
what seaside golf has to offer.
The hole: A fairly short par 4 should be
played with caution so as to avoid the
trouble on the right side. Out of bounds
lurks on the right, with fairway bunkers and
a burn adding extra danger. The left side of
the fairway is the ideal spot.
Scotland.
The hole: The new 12th hole at Kimarnock,
dubbed Hillhouse, has been created
alongside other subtle course changes.
The 12th features an undulating green, pot
11th | Torwoodlee
Scottish Borders, 425 yards, par 4
The course: Torwoodlee has more than
100 years of heritage and is surrounded by
the Scottish Borders countryside, ensuring
delightful views throughout. Torwoodlee is
one of the most challenging courses in the
area.
The hole: The 11th is named after the
fabulous Monkey Puzzle tree which is the
feature of the hole. It’s a tricky right-to-left
dogleg which is tough to hit in regulation.
bunkers and views to the Isle of Arran.
Bob Anderson, greens convenor, said: “It
is a well-designed signature par 3 and it
improves the enjoyment of playing Barassie
without the walks.”
12th | Kingsbarns
Fife, Par 5, 566 yards, par 5
The course: Co-host of the Alfred Dunhill
Links Championship, Kingsbarns was
ranked 5th in NCG’s Top 100 Courses in
Scotland 2019 and is a joy to play.
The hole: The 12th lingers long in the
memory with the North Sea in play
throughout on your left and a green carved
into the coast. Orrdeal, as it’s called, can
stretch out to more than 600 yards and
plays into the prevailing wind.
www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 143
DISTINCTIVE HOLES

IRVINE GOLF CLUB a stunning links golf experience

Est 1887
Set in a seaside location, the neighbouring Gulf Stream Scottish Seniors Championship and in 2016 the Scottish
ensures year round links golf, whilst the romantic peaks Youths Championship and the Ladies British Open Final
of Arran present a stunning backdrop to the landscape. Qualifying were also be held at the club.

The Irvine Golf Club established 1887, has staged Final
Open Qualifying for The Open Championship on a num-
ber of occasions. In 2003, the Club co-hosted the Ama-
teur Championship with Royal Troon and in 2007, the
British Seniors’ Open with Turnberry. In 2009, the Ladies
Home Internationals were also successfully hosted at the
Irvine Golf Club. In 2011 and 2018, the Club hosted the
It truly is one of Scotland’s hidden gems, offering a tra-
ditional links challenge, which owes much of its present
day character to the course design of the great James
Braid. One of Scotland’s most celebrated course design-
ers, James Braid created a legacy of distinctive courses,
characterised by their great variety and interesting use of
nature’s assets.

The Irvine Golf Club, Bogside, Irvine, Scotland KA12 8SN T: 0044 1294 275979 E: secretary@theirvinegolfclub.co.uk

The West Kilbride Golf Club

• Ayrshire Championship Links offering spectacular views

• 2019 Scottish Boys’ Open Championship hosts
• Visiting Parties welcome

Visit us at www.westkilbridegolfclub.com
T: 01294 823 911 E: golf@westkilbridegolfclub.com
 COPT HEATH GOLF CLUB ENGLAND’S
TOP 100
COURSES
1220 Warwick Rd, Knowle, Solihull, West Midlands BP3 9LN 2018
01564 731620 | www.coptheathgolf.co.uk

CHIGWELL GOLF CLUB

“Play and experience our newly
refurbished bunkers around the course,
as well as other course improvements”

info@chigwellgolfclub.co.uk | 020 8500 2059 | @ChigwellGC

DISTINCTIVE HOLES

BROADSTONE GOLF CLUB

Come and play Dorset’s no1 premier heathland course
GOLF MONTHLY & GOLF WORLD TOP 100 GOLF COURSE

“Stunning in every way...

Great welcome, not to be missed.”

Address: Broadstone Golf Club, Wentworth Drive, Broadstone, Dorset, BH18 8DQ
Tel: 01202 642521 Website: www.broadstonegolfclub.com Email: bookings@broadstonegolfclub.com

BRANCEPETH CASTLE

NEW IMPROVED PRACTICE GROUND FACILITY

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC THIS AUGUST

MAIN SPONSOR: MADDISON AUTO, VICTORIA COURT,

FRAMWELLGATE MOOR, DURHAM, DH1 5BY 0191 3849478

NORTH EAST / NORTH WEST PROFESSIONAL GOLFERS ASSOCIATION

BRANCEPETH CASTLE GOLF CLUB PRO/AM
WEDNESDAY 14TH AUGUST 2019
TEAM OF 4 (PRO AND X3 AMATEURS) | £225 PER TEAM + PRO ENTRY £10 OR £25
£1000 PROFESSIONAL 1ST PRIZE | EXCELLENT AMATEUR PRIZES | NEAREST PIN ALL PAR 3S
ALL FUNDS NET OF PRIZES AND EXPENSES IN AID OF ST. CUTHBERT’S HOSPICE, DURHAM.
ENTRIES TO BRANCPETH CASTLE GOLF CLUB
OFFICE MANAGER LEONA BROOM 0191 378 0075 (OPTION 2)
EMAIL: enquiries@brancepeth-castle-golf.co.uk/
 SUMMER
OPENS
AVAILABLE
TO BOOK EAGLESCLIFFE
ONLINE. GOLF CLUB

Nestled besides the River Tees with the Cleveland Hills as a backdrop,
this James Braid course provides a great challenge.
Please contact Admin on 01642 780238 or
Email admin@eaglescliffegolfclub.co.uk

PETERBOROUGH MILTON GOLF CLUB

A challenging, relaxing & enjoyable destination

• Visitors Welcome • Society & Corporate golf days

• On line green fee offers • Welcoming Clubhouse
• 2019 Open programme • Membership opportunities

For more information or to book on line visit our website www.pmgc.org.uk

or contact us on 01733 380489 / e-mail admin@pmgc.org.uk
 JOIN US TO CELEBRATE
THE UNVEILING OF:

TOP
100s
The home of golf course rankings
GREAT BRITAIN &
IRELAND 2020

Compiled by the most knowledgeable panel in the game

The Royal Armouries, Leeds

Thursday November 21st

• See our top 100 list revealed in full and the winners being congratulated
•Black-tie gala dinner with VIP drinks reception
• Take advantage of a discounted rate at a city-centre Leeds hotel
• Meet experts from the world of golf and golf courses
• Play golf the day after the awards at one of the best courses in Leeds

£95 per ticket or £900 for a table of 10

£135 per ticket with golf
£245 per ticket with golf and hotel
call 0113 289 3979 or email a.young@sportspub.co.uk to book
 ISLE OF PURBECK GOLF CLUB
Everyone Welcome | Open to the Public | Booking Advised

“I’ve always felt the club is certainly one of the most spectacular in the whole of the UK and
the general ambience of the club and course is absolutely delightful.” Peter Alliss

Twilight
golf price
Monday - s:
Thursday
After 2pm
£2
Friday - Su 5
nday
After 2PM
£30

When you play at the Isle of Purbeck, you'll enjoy a wonderfully traditional course set in an area of outstanding natural beauty.
The first thing that strikes visitors is the spectacular views, looking out over Brownsea Island, Bournemouth and the Solent.
Indeed, the fifth tee possesses one of the finest views in British golf. The late King Edward declared the view from this point as
one of the finest in his kingdom and that opinion is not likely to be disputed by anyone who has had the chance to stand there.

Purbeck Course: From 8am - 1pm After 1pm After 2pm

Monday - Thursday £53 £40 £25
Friday & Sunday £56 £45 £30
Saturday £60 £50 £30

Dene Course: 9 Holes 18 Holes 18 Holes +

£12 £16 £20
Memberships and Society Packages Available. Please enquire for details.

To book please visit www.purbeckgolf.co.uk

Email: iop@purbeckgolf.co.uk or Call: 01929 450361
 EAST DEVON
GOLF CLUB

Come and experience a truly amazing course with absolutely stunning views.

Created by Harry Colt, with later alterations by James Braid, East Devon is regarded by many as one of the finest
courses in the South West and the Club is always well reviewed in the Top 100 Golf Courses in England.

Links Rd, Budleigh, Budleigh Salterton, Salterton EX9 6DG | Tel: 01395 443370 | Web: www.eastdevongolfclub.co.uk
 CLUB GOLF

PIKE HILLS GC
I N T E R G OLF VISITING SOCIETIES ALWAYS WELCOME
W
BREAK 201
9

1 NIGHT
STAY
FROM JUST
SPRING £69pp*
PACKAGE 1 Coīee/Tea Θ Bacon Roll, 1ϴ
BREAKS Holes, one course meal £30pp (usually £39)
from just
PACKAGE 2 Coīee/Tea Θ Bacon Roll, 1ϴ
£89.00pp Holes £25pp (usually £31)

PACKAGE 3 1ϴ holes of golf £23pp

(usually £30)
WINTER BREAKS ARE 1ST NOVEMBER 2019 -28TH FEB 2020
Oīers edžclusiǀe for ͚EĂƟoŶĂl Club Golfeƌ’ readers, quote when booking
PACKAGES ALSO AVAILABLE FOR 27/36 HOLES
Donday to Friday and Sunday aŌernoons
For online Green Fee Booking ǀisit our website͗ www.pikehillsgolfclub.co.uk
Pike Hills Golf Club Tadcaster Road, Askham Bryan, York, North Yorkshire YO23 3UW
tel. 01904 700797 (opt. 5) | secretary@pikehillsgolfclub.co.uk
 TOP 100 ALL

TOUR
SCOTTISH
EVENTS N
OW
£40!

in association with

WE have teamed up with TaylorMade Included in the day:

and Golfbreaks.com to stage 12
events at Top 100 venues in England
and Scotland. Open to male and
female golfers.
Format on the day:
• Individual Stableford (full handicap).
• Top three from each event will
progress to the grand final.
• Top 25 from the running order of
merit not already exempt also
qualify for the grand final.
• Enjoy a bacon roll and coffee.
• A sleeve of TaylorMade golf balls.
• A Top 100 round of golf.
• A one-course lunch.
• England £60 per person.
How to book: Please visit
Top100Tour.golfgenius.com
For more information,
call 01132 893 979 or email
top100tour@sportspub.co.uk

Cruden Bay
Play England & Scotland’s
Top 100 courses with
Northamptonshire County GC
5th June

The Irvine Golf Club

13th June
Beau Desert GC
19th June
Royal Ashdown Forest GC
SOLDJune
27th OUT
Burnham & Berrow GC
SOLD OUT
11th July
Gailes Links
17th July
Longniddry GC
18th July
Moortown GC
SOLD OUT
29th July
Ladybank GC
1st August
Cruden Bay GC
22nd August
Littlestone GC
29th August
FINAL – Fulford GC
26th September
*ENTRIES CLOSE 1 WEEK PRIOR TO EACH EVENT AT 3PM*

Prizes
1st - A set of 2019 TaylorMade irons
2nd - The latest 2019 TaylorMade driver
3rd - A year’s supply of TaylorMade golf balls
CLUB GOLF
 WITH STEVE CARROLL

FROM THE CLUBHOUSE

The fight to curb slow play starts with our own golf clubs

I
T’S those visitors who sneaked out Let’s all work together to avoid the scenario pictured
below from becoming the norm at clubs
as a five. It’s the group that won’t let
you through when they’re hunting
for a ball. It’s the player who thinks the
midweek Stableford is a conduit to the
PGA Tour. I’m going to add another slow
play factor to the list.
When the fingers are being pointed,
some golf clubs should hold their hands
up too – specifically those that attempt
to maximise revenue by cramming in tee
times.
In their illuminating document on
Pace of Play, the R&A recommend that
twoballs are sent off at intervals of at
least eight minutes.
For threeballs, that figure increases to
at least 10 minutes while, for fourballs, it’s
advised the gap rises to as much as 12.
If you’ve got a mix of twos, threes
and fours, the governing body says the
largest interval should apply.
But how many of your clubs do that?
Honestly, how many clubs have tee
times that are spread a dozen minutes competition takes longer to complete, not be as difficult.
apart? At my own, it’s eight minutes. because the starting intervals are Of course, you’ll get those who
After a long opening par 5 and a widened, how does that impact on the complain they can’t play off the back
shortish par 4, we move to our stroke 1 early-afternoon society, or visitors, who but perhaps their bruised egos will be
hole – a dogleg par 4 that sweeps round can’t play as and when they might wish? soothed when they hit a nett 72 instead
a corner. Close to the green lies a bell. Would they go somewhere else? of 77.
That’s because the longer hitters can For some, therefore, a bit of At some clubs, Alwoodley in Leeds
take a large chunk off the corner with grumbling can be endured if the cash being a notable example, this is already
a risk-and-reward drive to make the tills keep on ringing. Golf clubs, after all, in place. Yellows are standard for men’s
approach easier. are businesses. competitions and the whites, and
So if there’s a packed medal weekend, That’s not the only way clubs can championship blues, are preserved for
it can back up. And, by the time that influence the slow play debate. A marquee events.
finally clears, we come to a par 3 over qualifying competition, for example, We can all take fewer practice strokes
water where everything can get stuck need only be played from a measured and employ Ready Golf. We can hit a
again. course. provisional and we can spend a little
Factor in a couple of groups who There are usually at least three sets less time looking for the ball that’s so
get into some difficulty and it’s not of tees on any layout which meet that obviously lost.
long before everyone’s screaming blue criteria. So why, in men’s competitions, But clubs can also play their part. If
murder about round lengths and slow are the whites so often the default we can all work together then maybe the
play. length? wailing about slow play might begin to
This isn’t a straightforward dilemma If you pop some yellow or red tee quiet just a little.
as it can present clubs with a difficulty. events into the calendar – with a yardage
The fewer the number of tee times, the that can fall substantially lower than that „ Steve is NCG’s Club Golf editor. He plays off 9 at Sandburn
fewer the number of players that can off the tips – then you can also expect Hall and Close House
be on the course at any one time. If a rounds to be quicker. The course may

www.nationalclubgolfer.com | JULY 2019 155

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MARK TOWNSEND
Welcome to my never-ending battle with golf’s ludicrous mind games
EVE was the master of golf
S mind games. He used to say he
would play with whatever he was
given on any particularly day. So
if he was hitting a little draw on the practice
ground, that’s what he would take to the
course and vice versa.
It’s as romantic a notion as it is a terrifying
one. If someone as dazzling, both in skill and
looks, is unsure of how his game is going
to perform then what hope have the rest of
us? What do we, with no practice rounds or
range visits under our belt, do at the first sign
of problems? Our games and minds are built
on sand and there is very little, if anything, to
fall back on when things go south.
Hence, in the general spirit of seeking out
the negatives and coming hot on the heels of
a mentally and physically sapping trip to the
Emerald Isle, I’ve collated a go-to guide to
recognising that your mind and body might
not be functioning at full tilt.
It will be fine, you’ve bought a course
planner
You never do this, you just rely on what you
can see in front of your own eyes. Which
means you maybe zap a particular point of
trouble that you don’t want to reach while,
at the same time, enforcing into your mind
space that there is a huge expanse of water at
220 yards.
Now you are hanging on every dreadful
word that the Pro’s Tip is telling you. Why
are you listening to someone who appears to
have even more demons than you do? By all
means drink in a few of his yardages but don’t
get dragged into his dos and don’ts, which are
generally a collection of the latter.
Stick with the process
If you are going to play this planner game,
then at least try and stay with it. There’s a
lot to be said for immediately sticking your
face in the planner in an affected tour pro
manner after a wayward shot. It’s a nice little
comfort blanket. To take things a step further
you could even include some positive and
162 JULY 2019 | www.nationalclubgolfer.com
An all-too-familiar feeling of mine on the fairways
motivational words of some previous heroics,
maybe that ripped 5-iron when you were
under the gun in the August Medal?
The simple truth is that, in your world of
gloom and self-loathing, you will be at least
five holes out having not looked at your book
for over an hour.
Reach out, you’re not alone ‘Help’ is at
hand
You are a man approaching your 50s and at
some point, either on a distant tee box or over
a pint or some pre-round scrambled eggs, you
will ask a trusted peer what on earth you are
doing wrong?
The likelihood is that they will feed you
some mumbo jumbo that is pretty much
impossible to insert into your game that
morning but you leave the conversation
slightly buoyed that you have a variation of
the same theme to now think about.
You’re not sticking with the process
Four rounds in three days is enough for
anyone of mental and physical frailties and,
over a short period of time, there will be some
erratic behaviour on a variety of tee boxes.
The following is a given: hit driver
wherever possible when confidence levels
are middling to high, one bad one (double-
cross into heavy bund) brings about an
immediate new strategy of trying to steer a
fairway wood and then hybrid into play to
leave unfathomable distances in to average-
length par 4s. Before going full circle when
you detest yourself with a prodded 21-degree
bunt that goes nowhere and returning the
chief to full duty with limited success.
Fail to prepare and so on
You’ve noticed a couple of members of your
party doing some lunges and thrusts in a
small corner away from the 1st tee in a bid to
get loose.
You, on the other hand, have done nothing
in the past 12 months to a) lose any weight,
or b) solve a long-standing back-hip-knee-
insert body part problem, and c) you’re not
doing it right anyway. You rely on Ibuprofen
and other gels and remedies and vow to do
something about your problems as soon as
this charade is over.
You download a GetFit app.
You’re really not thinking straight
One of my never-ending mental conundrums
is whether to go with a new ball for a new
round or go with the one that served me well
for the last seven holes of the last round? I
give this far too much thought, hoping not to
offend anyone upstairs by my sheer arrogance
of going with a shiny, new ball even though it
bears no relevance to anything or anybody or
anything.
I will though immediately put into play a
new ball that I have found on the course. A
gift from the Gods.
These are merely the inner workings of a
madman who is clutching at straws.
Q Features editor Mark is an unreliable 8 handicap
and member at Headingley @MarkTownsendNCG
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