Golf Monthly May 2023

A few months ago, I was talking to a ten-year-old junior golfer and his dad. I asked the young lad who his favourite golfers were. His answer was very revealing: Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas… and Rick Shiels. In under a decade, Rick has gone from being a teaching pro working at a driving range in Manchester to a genuine global star who moves the needle in the game like few others can. I feel privileged to know Rick and to have had a ringside seat for his incredible journey. Rick has an amazing skill set and that is the secret to his success. At heart, he is a passionate PGA pro who wants to help golfers play better, but he is also an innovative content creator who is always pushing…

Behind the curtain The way we view golf, the players and the politics has changed beyond recognition over the past few years. Watching the Netflix Full Swing series has taken it to a new warts-and-all level. I have to say, I found it enthralling, especially the Joel Dahmen and Tony Finau episodes. Both came across as genuinely decent people and to air your vulnerabilities shows a real strength of character. What it highlighted, though, was despite the fighting between the PGA Tour and LIV, and despite the millions of pounds on the table, leaving a legacy and being true to yourself and your principles is even more important. Simon Thorpe, via email Play your cards right Standing on the 1st tee early on a cold morning just ahead of the…

Congratulations on winning The Players. How do you reflect? I played really well the whole week, really solid. I had some times where I didn’t feel like I was swinging my best or playing at a hundred per cent, and then I would just kind of wait and pick my moments, and fortunately, I got kind of hot in spurts in each of my rounds. I just found a way to choose my moments and get hot here and there. You seem to play your best in the harder events. Why do they bring out the best in you? I think I get excited for a good, hard test. I feel like I can find a way to make pars and hang in there. I think I had five bogeys…

IN THE NEWS The R&A and USGA have announced a proposal to roll back the ball through a Model Local Rule (MLR) that could come into effect in January 2026 at the elite men’s level. It comes after five years of research through the Distance Insights Project following concern in some quarters that iconic courses are becoming obsolete due to increasing hitting distances. The MLR has been proposed as a way to address that concern and reduce the importance of distance on the male professional tours. However, its use will be at the discretion of event organisers, meaning it could be adopted at some events and not others. Specifically, the distance limit for balls tested under the proposed MLR would be 317 yards (plus three yards’ tolerance) when struck with…

What would be your dream four-ball? Myself, my dad, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. Your best moment in golf? Winning the Joburg Open. What would you be doing if you weren’t a golfer? I can’t imagine my life outside of golf, so if I wasn’t playing I’d be coaching or something. Where would you use a career mulligan? A two-foot putt I missed on the last in Gainesville, Georgia, at the UNG Fall Invitational (should have been my tenth college win). Favourite app on your phone? Twitter. Would you rather win The Open at St Andrews or The Masters? The Open, 100%. You miss the cut and need a night out, which three players do you take with you? Dan Brown, Jamie Donaldson and John Murphy. What’s the lowest score…

This year’s Players Championship was just as notable for its absentees as it was for those who did tee it up in the PGA Tour’s flagship event at TPC Sawgrass. Long heralded as the male game’s unofficial ‘fifth Major’ due to the strength of field it attracts, there can be no doubt the 2023 edition was weaker for its lack of LIV Golf stars, who remain exiled from the traditional American circuit. That list included, quite remarkably, the top three finishers of 2022 but, most poignantly, defending champion Cameron Smith, among a great many others who would otherwise have taken up one of the 144 spots. At Smith’s coronation little over 12 months ago, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said the Aussie would “receive a hero’s welcome” anytime he wanted…