Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2021 i Golf Monthly

1 Zalatoris was born in San Francisco and started playing at the outstanding California Golf Club with his dad. He moved to Texas as a teenager and played junior tournaments alongside good friend Jordan Spieth. His early amateur days saw him qualify to compete at the 2009 US Junior Amateur despite being just 12 years old. He won the event in 2014, defeating Davis Riley 5&3 in the last year he was eligible. 2 He won three points from four matches as part of a formidable 2017 US Walker Cup team, which also included Collin Morikawa, Cameron Champ and Scottie Scheffler. The US won 19-7 at the Los Angeles Country Club, the biggest Walker Cup victory in 20 years. 3 Since turning pro in 2018, Zalatoris has enjoyed a meteoric…

GM says We like the distinct differences in looks across the three models, and how the play and loft number has been inscribed near the hosel for clarity. The brand new TSi1 ‘hy-way’ is sure to be a hit with beginners. Joining the Titleist TSi2 and TSi3 drivers and fairways in 2021 is the TSi hybrid range. It comprises three models and caters for all players who seek versatility and playability on long approach shots and testing tee shots. The forgiving TSi2 provides high launch and easy distance for players with a sweeping delivery. The larger, classic profile is suited to those who prefer the look of a fairway metal. The TSi3 is distinctly different in looks, adjustability and performance from the TSi2. Designed with a compact iron-like profile, squarer…

The PGA 2020 Vision project marks a major landmark in the organisation’s 119-year history and perhaps its most significant and far-reaching evolution to date. Over the past 25 years, many PGA pros have moved from their traditional pro shop and teaching roles into club management positions, quite possibly at your home club or a golf facility you visit regularly. Indeed, 25 per cent of PGA members currently hold management roles. This changing work landscape for its members has been the catalyst for the first element of the PGA 2020 Vision project. This has seen the traditional single PGA membership category split into three distinct sectors – PGA Professional, PGA Coach and PGA Manager. These new categories will allow members to select the specialism most suited to their current or planned…

Best shot: the next one. Always the next one. Worst shot: the practice swing for a greenside chip that clipped the edge of the ball and sent it further away from the green, to the ice-cold bemusement of my foursomes partner. Best worst shot: the horrible, thinned, finger-tingling pitching wedge tee shot that went in for my only hole-in-one! Stupidest shot: the second shot I never hit on the 1st hole of Sunningdale’s Old course, because I’d walked in, in a huff, after my drive went out-of-bounds. Prat. Most useless par: the par I scored on the hole where my three playing partners went birdie, eagle, albatross. “The best view in golf? Your drive on the fairway and your opponent’s in the bunker” Greatest pressure shot: I once fixed up…

Photography: Getty Images, Kenny Smith Chris Wallace, Rules manager at The R&A, expands on an incident in the 2020 Masters in which Jordan Spieth was seen discussing with Rules officials whether the face of his 7-iron had been damaged during play. In this article, we take a look at what you can and cannot do should you damage a club during a round and highlight why it’s always good to check your Local Rules before teeing off. Under Rule 4.1, if a player who started with 14 clubs damages one during a round, it must not be replaced unless the damage was caused by an outside influence, natural forces, or by someone other than the player or their caddie. So, what options do players have if they do damage a…

1 In stroke play, Fergus stands on a crest to indicate the line to the hole and remains there as Jezz plays. What is the ruling? 2 Fergus moves a rake on which his ball is resting, and it rolls a few inches down the bunker. He plays from its new position. What is the ruling? 3 In stroke play, Fergus putts with the flagstick in but changes his mind with the ball in motion and asks Jezz to remove it, which he does. What is the ruling? 4 During a match, Jezz takes two practice swings in the penalty area where his ball is lying, grounding his club both times. What is the ruling? Photography: Kenny Smith – shot on location at The Gleneagles Hotel, Perth & Kinross Quiz…

GM Verdict One of golf’s most well-known equipment franchises has received a major overhaul from core to cover in 2021. The new Titleist Pro V1 and Pro V1x are claimed to offer more greenside spin, a softer feel and a higher, more consistent flight. We tested both balls on the course and on a launch monitor, hitting drivers, 7-irons and also a series of 50-yard pitches. We compared the performance between models and with the previous-generation versions. With the driver, we noticed that both balls created less spin than the previous generation. While that difference was fairly minimal in the Pro V1, the Pro V1x averaged just over 300rpm less spin than the 2019 version. However, this was coupled with a one-degree-higher launch angle, delivering a stronger trajectory. This also…

Druids Heath Par 71, 7,304 yards GF: round: €50wd, €55we The rolling rhythm of this modern hybrid – a mix of heathland and parkland – proves captivating right from the off, but it also embellishes the challenges of this muscular course. There are three key things you must know about playing here: the greens are immaculate, but their vast scale means three-putts are inevitable; the course is part of the 36-hole Druids Glen resort; and selecting the right tee box is essential. Choose wisely. Photography: Kevin Markham Blainroe Par 72, 6,715 yards GF: round: €45wd, €55we Blainroe feels almost orthodox when compared with Wicklow, and yet you are still next to the sea with three holes balanced on the clifftops. Pine trees flank fairways and deep, shapely bunkers threaten your…

Illustrations: course graphics reprinted with the kind permission of Clere Golf – www.cleregolf.com • Blackmoor You’ll find the delightfully secluded course at Blackmoor just five miles from Liphook. It started life as a Harry Colt 12-holer in 1912 before growing to 18 in 1924. You play your way through pine, birch and oak, with many fairways elegantly and strategically lined by heather. It’s a challenging test where accuracy is often of far more benefit than raw power. • Stoneham This fine Willie Park Junior heathland layout lies just north of Southampton. In recent years the club has undertaken extensive woodland clearances to help regenerate heather and improve the playing surfaces. There’s a fun back-to-back duo at 12 and 13 – a par 5 then a tight but tempting par 4…

• Dudsbury Golf Hotel & Spa Par 71, 6,606 yards Peacefully situated just to the north of Bournemouth, not only is Dudsbury close to Dorset’s premier league golf, but it is a serious attraction in its own right with a fine Donald Steel parkland course. Words: Rob Smith Photography: @Crown Copyright (2017) Visit Wales, Rob Smith Never too narrow, the gently undulating design twists and turns its way through specimen trees, with ditches and ponds regularly in play. Highlights include the short 2nd played over water, the par-4 7th which crosses two ditches, the scenic 12th played from an elevated tee and the scary 16th which skirts not one but two lakes The 24-room hotel is smart, peaceful and comfortable, and the informal and very well-priced Spike’s Bistro serves delicious…

Extra terrestrial It will be great to see all the Majors back in their usual places this year after the chaos of the last 12 months. However, it is sad that our uplifting, fascinating and, yes, frustrating game will be behind the TV paywall for a good majority of the viewing public. Wouldn’t it be great if just one golf tournament this season could break the shackles of the money men and be brought out blinking into the sunlight for eager, humble golfers to enjoy and be inspired? Cricket has already, to some extent, seen the light and has let in the wider population with the recent Channel 4 deal to show the England team in India. Not to mention the BBC showing The Hundred and the T20 tournament. I’m…

Tyrrell Hatton Picking up where he left off Tyrrell Hatton carried his fine 2020 form into the European Tour’s first event of the year to secure a four-stroke victory in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. Hatton produced a stress-free closing 66 to land his fourth Rolex Series title and overtake Rory McIlroy in the world rankings. Hatton’s triumph at Abu Dhabi Golf Club was his fourth since November 2019. The Englishman has now established himself as a genuine world-class player and Major contender. BY THE NUMBERS 6 Tyrrell Hatton collected his sixth European Tour title in Abu Dhabi 13.37 Hatton gained 13.37 strokes on the field from tee to green over the four rounds €15,686,840 Career earnings on the European Tour 5 The win took him to fifth in the…

Rory McIlroy has hit out at The R&A and USGA’s Distance Insights Report, branding it a “huge waste of time and money”. He joined fellow pros Justin Thomas and Webb Simpson in speaking out against the proposed equipment changes put forward to curb increased hitting distances. McIlroy suggested the governing bodies should have focused their efforts on other areas, like introducing more young people and minorities to golf. Meanwhile, Thomas said the governing bodies were “extremely selfish” and Simpson said that course design was the problem, not equipment. The proposed changes involve the testing of golf balls, the spring-like effect on driver faces and driver shaft lengths, which could open the door to bifurcation. The report suggests limiting professionals and elite amateurs to 46-inch drivers, with regular amateurs still being…

Slower swingers need more help in generating distance with their woods and irons, and that is exactly what the new GS range from Honma is designed to do. The GS stands for Gain Speed and the clubs are engineered by highly skilled master craftsmen at the brand’s Sakata factory in Japan, with draw-biased designs to maximise performance for the average player. The adjustable GS driver features a crank-shaped slot on the sole to maintain fast ball speeds across the face and reduce loss of distance on off-centre strikes, especially from low on the face, by reducing spin. A strategically positioned tungsten sole weight promotes draw bias and golfers can fine-tune the flight further by utilising the hosel’s Non-Rotating system. This adjusts loft and lie angle while keeping the spine of…

Bad things happen, lots of bad things. Golf course vandalism sits nowhere near the top of the list, but that doesn’t stop photos of deep tyre tracks on fairways and greens cutting to the heart of every golfer. Nobody has been hurt, but for whatever reason, or perhaps no reason, somebody has decided to wilfully harm our sacred turf. Maybe it’s a false perception generated by lockdown and excessive time on social media, but there seems to have been more of it of late and the images are always distressing. All sorts of unprintable names are directed at the perpetrators, but when you look at what humankind has done throughout history, a few bored youths or someone with an axe to grind damaging a golf course sadly comes as no…

When Jake Hibbert went to look around Florida Atlantic University, his dad, Steve, turned to him and said, “If these guys want you, you want to be saying yes!” The size of the college football stadium gave him an idea of what being a student athlete at FAU might be like. Then there was the course being built for the golf team and a new $60m gym. After mulling it over, the 19-year-old signed for the ‘Owls’. Golf scholarship secured, he was off to America to pursue his dream of becoming a professional. The last ten years have flown by. It doesn’t seem that long since he was hitting balls into the Irish Sea, enjoying stays with his grandparents in their caravan in Blackpool. He joined Warrington when he was…

The big drives, greens in regulation, quality short game… they count for nothing if you can’t stick the ball in the hole. Fortunately, there are a multitude of fantastic putting gadgets out there designed to help you identify faults and groove a better stroke. Whether your alignment is off or you’re struggling to match speed and line correctly, there’s a gadget you can use from the comfort of your own home DAVE PELZ PUTTING TUTOR pelzgolf.com $49.99 The famous short-game coach has designed a number of putting gadgets, with this one especially effective in helping players to improve their green reading. Not only does it encourage you to properly commit to a read, it helps you to start the ball on line. If you don’t, the steel marbles at the…

GM Verdict Callaway set the bar at a fairly lofty height last year with Mavrik, but now it has its own internal rival with the launch of Epic Speed and Epic Max, which replace Epic Flash. Visually, the three models look very different at address, but not in the way you might expect. It’s customary for the ‘low spin’ version to have the most compact profile, appealing to the better player who likes to shape the ball, but it’s actually the Epic Speed that has the most compact look. The Epic Max LS, by comparison, is more stretched out, which becomes even more exaggerated in the Epic Max. Our first impressions when testing were that these drivers feel fantastic. The heads are powerful and stable in equal measure, ensuring that…

GM Verdict Golf shoes don’t come more sporty than the new HyperFlex, with its athletic styling and cutting-edge Boa fastening system. The two-tone mesh upper with flashes of red details is sure to catch your eye, as is the unique Wrapid Boa system found on two of the four styles. We certainly think the absence of a moveable tongue of note makes it a little more tricky to slide your foot in, as loosening the laces doesn’t make the entry hole any bigger. But the border material is very stretchy and the raised front and back sections allow you to pull them apart to create more room. The Boa system looks complex, like a series of pulleys working together to enclose the foot. FootJoy has done a good job of…

Words: Jeremy Ellwood Image: Andy Hiseman In the Misbourne Valley below the South Buckinghamshire town of Gerrards Cross lies this beautiful parkland course, which celebrates its centenary in 2022. The original course was laid out in the grounds of the Chalfont Park estate, the legacy of which is a number of fine arboreal specimens among the many trees lining the fairways, as the course plays through mature woodland via a tremendous mix of holes. Although mostly easy-walking, you do climb from the lower ground, where the testing opening quartet plays, to the upper ground, where the main body of the course lies, in one fell swoop via the memorable and steeply uphill par-3 5th. The immediate rewards of the ascent are a dangerous but potentially driveable short par 4 and…

Next month sees the publication of Golf Monthly’s biennial rankings of the Top 100 and Next 100 Courses in the UK and Ireland. Delayed due to lockdown and travel restrictions, we are extremely grateful to our far-flung contender clubs for welcoming our panellists in such difficult times. Confined to quarters over winter, I had plenty of time to appreciate the reviews completed by our dedicated reader-assessors. Buoyed by the addition of several new panellists, a number of whom clearly have boundless energy and enthusiasm, we have a record number of visits to help inform the new lists. One thing that struck me, and which is of course entirely natural, is that regardless of the stable and well-documented criteria, each of us has personal preferences and tastes. A brilliant strategic design…

• Stay Druids Glen Resort This is a luxury resort with two 18-hole courses (the Glen has hosted four Irish Opens), a highly rated spa and a leisure centre with indoor pool. There are 145 large guest rooms and the resort is spacious and relaxing. The driving range is a mere 200 yards away. • Eat/drink Greystones Village The seaside village is crammed with super places to eat and the choices are multi-cultural. You won’t go wrong with the Hungry Monk, a cosy restaurant and wine bar… where the owner is golf-mad. • Also play The county boasts over 20 courses and nearby clubs include the top-tier Powerscourt (36 holes), the hillside adventures of Delgany and Bray and the valley wonderlands of Macreddin and Woodenbridge. There are two links, too,…

Ardglass With its clubhouse a 15th-century castle, Ardglass is a special club with a course to match. There is a thrilling opening with five holes running along the cliffs, and great diversity from start to finish. Another terrific sequence awaits from the long 9th round to the picturesque par-3 12th. You are a little more landward on the closing holes, but there are breathtaking views throughout. GF: round: £115wd, £135we; day: £200wd Dunbar Delicately laid out over a narrow strip of land fronting the North Sea, Dunbar is a cracking links that has hosted many important championships. Following the unusual 5-5-3 opening loop, you head out and back via some very fine links holes. The 7th follows an old deer wall which leads to the green. As you work your…

Across 7 Venue of 2012 Ryder Cup (7) 8 Turnberry course (5) 9 Familiar name of five-time Major winner found through perseverance (4) 10 Royal club in Scotland (8) 11 Club official who has their task off to a tee? (7) 13 Media have a second bet (5) 16 Winner of four Senior Majors between 1994 and 2000 (5) 18 A taller form of hazard (7) 20 Major winner whose brother Fred won the US Open in 1898 (4,4) 22 Sponsor of WGC-Match Play (4) 23 Links in County Mayo (5) 24 Open won by Sam Horsfield in 2020 (7) Down 1 Her bet about Major-winning brothers (6) 2 Texan Major winner up to the mark (4) 3 First to achieve modern Grand Slam (7) 4 Golfer and commentator elected…

This was your first win since 2019 on the PGA Tour. Did you feel like once you got a sniff of the lead, you would respond the way you did? Deep down, yeah, I did. I don’t know, it’s what I live for. I live for those moments where you’ve got to close it out, you’ve got to hit some quality shots, quality putts. I don’t know, I just like showing off, I guess. You had 18 months of being injured, and then you struggled with no fans. Does it now feel like you’re finally back? I struggled without fans to get momentum. I like feeling like I’ve got to show off in front of people. I struggled with just getting my head wrapped around everything. There is just no…

Jordan Spieth After a long period of swing troubles, Spieth appears to have turned a corner with T4 and T3 finishes in consecutive PGA Tour events. Davis Love III has been named as the 2022 Presidents Cup captain for the United States. The event will take place at Quail Hollow GC in North Carolina. Words: Sam Tremlett Photography: Getty Images Viktor Hovland tied for 2nd at the Farmers Insurance Open, but during the final round he missed a two-foot putt which cost him $361,125. Russell Knox In contention at Pebble Beach, Knox was handed a one-stroke penalty by rules officials four holes after the offence was deemed to have taken place, despite an official clearing him of any wrongdoing at the time.…

Golf is relatively new to Cyprus, which is blessed with a welcoming climate that makes it an appealing destination throughout the year. The first grass course, Minthis Hills, opened in 1994, with Secret Valley following two years later and a further handful since. The island welcomed the European Tour for the first time last year with back-to-back events at near-neighbour Aphrodite Hills, itself a spectacular course designed by American Cabell Robinson in 2002. A short drive from the airport, Secret Valley perhaps flies a little more under the radar, literally and metaphorically. Nonetheless, it is a delightful course running through an old river valley, flanked by steep, rocky hills. The wind heading in from the sea can be a factor as it swirls up through the river basin, and there…

Swinging into Augusta National Golf Club off Washington Road and schlepping slowly down Magnolia Lane has been one of the great privileges of my sporting life. As road trips go, this 330-yard drive may be the shortest you ever embark on, but it is also one of the most engaging if golf hovers towards the centre of your interests. This strip of tarmac is framed by 61 ancient magnolia trees, the branches reaching across to each other so that it becomes more tunnel than road. The light at the end of this ‘tunnel’ is the Augusta clubhouse, its white clapperboard exterior reflecting the sun and beckoning you forward and into another world. It really is another world, too. A place of privilege and money, of slow, gracious manners and swift,…

Cameron Smith was born to working-class parents in Brisbane, but it was last November inside the gates at famed Augusta National that the Australian came of age. Smith, playing in just his fourth Masters, became the first player in the tournament’s storied history to shoot four rounds in the 60s, an accomplishment one might reasonably believe would be enough to land an appointment in the Butler Cabin for the slipping on of a Green Jacket. If not for Dustin Johnson and an historic performance of his own, one would have been correct. One day, perhaps. Instead, the 27-year-old, whose 15-under total would have won all but seven of the 84 playings of the tournament, missed out on becoming just the second Aussie to win the Green Jacket after Adam Scott,…

CLEEVE HILL Already reeling from news of its impending closure (thankfully, the club has now been saved), Cleeve Hill suffered extensive vehicle damage to its 10th green days into the November lockdown. GRANTOWNON-SPEY This Highland club suffered a similar fate with vehicle damage to its 11th green and other areas in November. This was exacerbated by particularly soft ground conditions. PAINSWICK In late August, this famously quirky course in Gloucestershire had someone drive round in circles on the 3rd green, creating ruts and tyre marks on the putting surface and its surrounds. HADDINGTON Shortly after celebrating 120 new post-lockdown members, this 155-year-old club suffered damage by an off-road bike and quad bike. It was not the first time the club had been targeted. DAVENPORT A week before Christmas, vandals poured…

Top professionals will use the flat-stick around 28 times a round, while the average amateur will need to strike it a few more times than that. As such, it’s absolutely key to find a putter that you trust and perhaps even fall in love with a little. Over the decades the design of the putter has evolved, not only as equipment technology has moved on but also as advancements in agronomy have produced smoother and faster putting surfaces. Through the years, there have been a number of influential designs that have become beloved by top players and amateurs alike. Here, in approximately chronological order, we run through ten of the very best putters of all time… 1 Bobby Jones Calamity Jane A simple offset blade with a hickory shaft, forged…

Many golfers play a lot of four-ball golf – mostly in a match-play format, but not always. This month, we’re recapping how to correctly fill out a scorecard in four-ball stroke play, but we’ll also cover a few basics from Rule 23.2, which applies to both formats. If both players complete the hole, it is the lower score that counts towards the side’s score – sometimes gross, but more often net. It doesn’t matter if only one player completes a hole, because as long as one member of the side does, that score will stand and the other partner is not obliged to hole out. If neither player completes the hole, that’s no problem in match play as your side simply loses the hole – unless the opposing side has…

GM Verdict Ping is a brand well known for its forgiving G-Series irons and the G425 claims to take all-round playability for the average golfer to the next level. The look has become more subtle and the lofts have stayed the same as G410. Our testing on the Foresight Sports GCQuad launch monitor showed the headline numbers from G410 into G425 haven’t changed a great deal. But the spin has dropped by around 300rpm, which creates a stronger flight and maintains a descent angle that allows the ball to stop to attention when it lands. For us, the feel off the face is a touch more explosive and the sound is both louder and less clicky. It’s really stable, too – the face angle holds firm when you strike the…

GM Verdict Both these new irons look like a hollow cavity back from the future, with carbon fibre patterns and slots and notches aplenty. At address, little has changed versus what we saw in SIM Max. The SIM2 Max is the smaller of the two models, but it still has generous sole width and offset and a thick topline that ensures it looks easy to hit. The SIM2 Max OS appears larger with a wider sole and has noticeably more offset to create more slice correction. The SIM2 Max has the same 7-iron loft as the outgoing SIM Max (28.5°), while the SIM2 Max OS is half a degree stronger than its predecessor, now 26.5° in the 7-iron. Our GCQuad launch monitor testing suggested that the performance hasn’t changed a…

We got our hands on the Rapsodo Mobile launch monitor, which retails at £549 – a snip compared to many other options out there. So how did it perform in practice? We took it to the range to put it through its paces. • Ease of use The Rapsodo MLM works in conjunction with an app on your iOS smartphone indoors or outdoors. Rest your phone in the slot and position it approximately six feet behind the ball. The lines overlaid on the screen and the GPS overhead view of the range help you align it correctly and select your hitting direction. • Features Once you’ve selected the club and started hitting, the Rapsodo MLM captures video of your shots and displays tracer-style graphics on the screen, which we found…

Photography: Kevin Murray, Andy Hiseman, Rob Smith The course is something of a sleeping giant – what are your plans to awaken it? Wider playing corridors, reclaiming lost green shapes, expanding short grass around greens and regenerating lost heathland, in a sentence! Is this an Abercormby restoration, a renovation, or both? More restoration than renovation. Tees, bunkers and greens will all be in the same place as Abercromby left them. One of the best features of the course is that so little has been altered since it was built. We want to preserve that wherever possible. Fortunately, the original design remains a challenge even with today’s equipment. Will the project be limited, or do you see it as a constant evolution? While we want to take great strides in the…

Heading south-west out of London, there is a tendency for golfers to find so many heathland treasures in Surrey and Berkshire that they rarely cross the county boundary into Hampshire. This is a shame, for yet more heathland treasures lie in wait for those of a more adventurous spirit. Not least of these is magnificent Liphook near the West Sussex border, designed by Arthur Croome with Tom Simpson then making small adjustments in the late 1920s. This wonderful layout is already ranked 66th in Golf Monthly’s UK&I Top 100, despite perhaps not enjoying the wider reputation of its Surrey and Berkshire cousins. But things may be about to change on both ranking and reputation fronts following a major upgrade masterminded by course architect Tom Mackenzie, which was completed early due…