Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 457 i Today's Golfer

My style of golf has occasionally been described as ‘caveman-esque’. I don’t think it was meant as a compliment, either. My game’s always been based on a ‘hit it as hard as you can, find it and hit it again’ style of play. It can be fun, but it’s also infuriating - and it’s probably why my handicap’s stalled around 11 for the best part of 20 years… I was chatting to former European Tour winner and now BBC pundit Andrew Murray at The Open, and he asked what I thought my golf IQ would be. I shared that caveman comparison and Andrew laughed, put his arm around my shoulder and said, “We need to talk!” Two months later, Andrew is on the cover of this issue, sharing the key…

GET IN TOUCH As well as email (editorial@todaysgolfer.co.uk) and post (Media House, Lynch Wood, Peterborough, PE2 6EA), you can contact us using any of these social platforms… @ Thetodaysgolfer @ TodaysGolferBauer @Todaysgolfer @ Todaysgolfer A WONDERFUL GOLFING TRADITION LETTER OF THE MONTH This year, I played alongside nine of my oldest friends in the 11th edition of our annual golf tournament. We created the event aged 18, intending that it would keep us all in touch as we grew older. It is now the focal point of our calendars. Many traditions have been created over the years, with a Champions Dinner and winners wearing green polos embroidered with the year they won. The last-placed finisher gets a spoon to carry around for the rest of the year and arranges the…

With huge thanks to the magnificent Trump Turnberry, Ayrshire, host of four Open championships and boasting 45 holes of stunning linksland golf. Visit turnberry.co.uk If you’ve ever wondered why the average club handicap is stuck at 17.5 despite all the advances in equipment and coaching, consider this concept: Golfing IQ. Some golfers play the game with intelligence, others… well, less so. And if more than 50 years of playing with golfers of all standards has shown me anything, it’s that smarter golfers post lower scores. In this article, I am going to take you out to some of the finest golfland in the UK – the 10th, 11th and 12th on Trump Turnberry’s revered Ailsa – to explain what I mean by Golfing IQ, and how it can save you…

I hope you’ve enjoyed this short jaunt around Turnberry’s own Amen Corner. We’ve examined some beautiful and testing golf shots… and hopefully uncovered some better ways to manage your game, and yourself. Put these into practice throughout the entire round and your scores can’t help but improve. Here’s a summary of what we’ve learned: Par 5 Tee: Driver makes sense on the longest holes on the course… but watch out for jumping all over the shot. Maintain your rhythm and find the sweetspot. Par 5 2nd shot: Base your strategy on where you want to hit your third shot from. Use this to form a clear intent before pulling a club and executing. Par 5 3rd shot: Play for the middle of the green, wherever the pin is cut. This…

Course played? The Old Course. I felt like I was walking through history. Course you want to play? Augusta, obviously. But also Pebble Beach. Closer to home, Kingsbarns, County Down, Portrush, North Berwick and Turnberry. GB&I golf resort? Gleneagles is head and shoulders above. Gorgeous hotel, wonderful golf. Overseas golf resort? Verdura in Sicily is my wife’s favourite hotel, so that’s right up there. We’ve also had some very happy times at Costa Navarino in Greece. Overseas golf course? I loved Dunas at Comporta last year. I thought Yas Links in Abu Dhabi was superb and I also really enjoyed Saadiyat. Rugged links or well-groomed parkland? Links for me – and we have some really great places in the North East such as Dunstanburgh, Goswick and Seaton Carew that don’t…

1. It all starts with the core All the compression-moulded rubber cores inside the TP5, TP5x and Tour Response are produced in Asia at TaylorMade-owned facilities. Each one is a different colour so there’s never any confusion over which core should be inside which ball. The cores are shipped to Liberty and after that they are put through stringent quality checks. Any that don’t hit the company parameters at this stage have reached the end of the line. 2. Chilled out Before production starts, every core must be chilled below 15.5° and at a very tight humidity tolerance, or the finished ball will be out of size or weight. Sometimes in the South Carolina heat, it can take up to eight hours to get a hopper full of cores to…

The reason a lot of amateurs struggle with the short game is because they simply don’t understand the way the club should be delivered to the ball to produce different shots. It all starts with getting the right set-up, because if you don’t do that, it’s almost impossible to produce the shot you want. Get comfortable and confident with the basic fundamentals of the pitch and chip-and-run shots and your short game and scores will improve. Over the next couple of pages, I’ll show you how to master the basics of the set-up and the swing. MASTER THE BASIC PITCHING SET-UP There’s no magical secret to setting up to play a controlled pitch. Since you’re usually looking for less distance than on a full-out shot, you can take off yardage…

Fastest round (fourball) Matthew Dalton, Steven Holloway, Landyn Edwards and Michael Ryan completed 18 holes in 48 minutes, 56 seconds at Rotorua Golf Club in New Zealand. Keep that in mind next time you fancy playing ‘a few holes’ in your lunch break. Most indoor golf holes played in 24 hours In June this year, American Omar Ghaffar completed 702 holes in 22 hours and 19 minutes, eclipsing the previous record of a devilish 666. His efforts raised over $20,000 for the Cancer Research Institute. Most 18-hole golf courses played in one year Patrick Koenig (remember him?) beat the previous record (of 449 courses) with 77 days to spare, and played a total of 580 rounds in 365 days. He lived and slept in an RV and hit 44,600 shots…

In some books, touch or feel is not something that can be coached… and this is why it often plays second fiddle to other short-game desirables such as direction or strike quality. But while it is true that every golfer needs to develop their own sense of feel around the green, there are technical elements that can stop this happening easily, and drills and exercises you can execute to encourage it. In this article I will show you three such exercises – basic, intermediate and advanced – proven to develop your greenside touch wherever you are in the game. While these exercises target different skill levels, there is nothing to stop the regular golfer trying all three, and seeing which proves most effective. YOUR COACH NEIL WAIN PGA Professional based…

Keeping your head down is one of those brilliant pieces of advice that tends to cause the exact problems it is intended to solve. It may seem to be the natural, ‘logical’ solution for the golfer who fears topping or thinning the ball, but as we will see, the restriction and stalled motion it promotes only serve to tighten the swing, narrow the swing arc and bring on that nasty, thin contact. Let’s discover why this is… and learn a different concept for your head that will produce better shots, more often. THIN PICKINGS Let’s take a closer look at what really happens when we try to keep our head down. The clearest and most damaging result is a complete lockdown of the chest and upper body, which has no…

YOUR COACH DEANA RUSHWORTH Former England international and Advanced PGA Professional, Witney Lakes Resort deanagolfpro.co.uk 1 ENTRY POINT Where should the ball enter the hole? Asking this immediately forces you to focus on breaks around the hole, and on the ball’s ideal entry point into the cup. It can help to picture a vivid ring around the hole with the entry point marked on it. This slight left-to-righter needs to enter the cup just left of centre. 2 CONNECT BALL TO LINE Most balls have long, alignment-aiding decal on them these days… and of course it remains perfectly legal to draw lines around them. Picture the start line you’ll need for the ball to enter the cup at your chosen point, then set your ball mark vertical on that line. Again this…

A square face when putting is a deal breaker – but it’s easier said than done with our wonky strokes and nervy jabs at the ball. Happily, PXG believe they’ve found the answer. Their new Allan mallet has Zero Torque Balance technology, which essentially helps keep the face pointing towards the target through the entire stroke and doesn’t require the golfer to square it at impact. Alongside a multi-material construction and Precision Weighting Technology, PXG say Zero Torque Balance “delivers unmatched stability with the eye-catching look and feel of a modern PXG mallet”. It doesn’t matter whether you have a strong arc, slight arc or putt with a straight-back-straight-through path, the Allan helps players deliver the clubface square more consistently. It’s a similar concept to those ‘torque-balanced’ designs we’ve seen…

With Callaway, TaylorMade, Mizuno and PXG all launching new irons this summer, now feels like the perfect time to run a mid-season iron test pitting the latest models against each other and against our favourite irons of the year. While Callaway are celebrating 10 years of the Apex by launching a new ‘money no object’ titanium-faced iron, along with two other AI-inspired models, TaylorMade are catering for the desires of better players with their beautiful P7CB and hollow body P770. PXG’s premium GEN7 offers greater MOI performance and their budget-friendly Black Ops iron claims to blow other models out of the water in terms of forgiveness. Mizuno’s boast isn’t quite as bold, as their new JPX925 family offer club golfers better sound, feel and feedback. One theme running through all…

LA HACIENDA LINKS The two courses here have been long established (formerly known as Alcaidesa) but were upgraded recently and a new hotel is poised to open any day now. Too late for us to assess for this list, but it feels like a certain entry in 2026 – not least because of the spectacular clifftop setting it all enjoys. We look forward to going for a look. OMBRIA This new course in the Algarve has already made it into our Top 100s and a Viceroy hotel is poised to open imminently. Together, it feels as if they are going to be a compelling offering and become a new star in the Algarve, but offering a different kind of experience given Ombria is set up in the hills. It would…

Let’s think for a moment about what a high Golfing IQ actually means. Intelligent golfing means: ■ Selecting shots in line with your capability. ■ Selecting clubs appropriate to your power and the conditions. ■ Giving hazards respect in line with their severity. ■ Building in a sensible margin for error. When you look at these criteria, it’s easy to see how important it is to be brutally honest with yourself as regards the state of your game. Only through an accurate appraisal of your abilities can you select the right shots and pull the right clubs. Unfortunately, we golfers are prone to a little self-delusion. We exaggerate how far we can hit the ball. We overestimate our talents. We blame wind for the sight of a shot curving offline,…

When Thomas Pieters flew off to play in the Masters last April, he made a point of inviting his parents, girlfriend and kids just in case he never goes back. He always knew there would be repercussions for joining LIV, but it doesn’t make dealing with them any easier. He actually missed the memo about the new Ryder Cup qualification criteria for next year and needs us to fill him in about the changes which fail to recognise LIV events once again. “It’s stupid, it’s not smart,” he says, cutting us off mid-flow. The look on his face suggests he has little interest in saying anything else. Pieters has, for the most part, stayed quiet in the face of so much uncertainty. After losing his DP World Tour membership at…

Scottie Scheffler’s thrilling win at the men’s Olympic Golf Tournament will go down as one of the sport’s best events of 2024. However, without major changes, the World No.1 may not be able to defend his title in Los Angeles in 2028. In fact, it won’t just be Scheffler. Los Angeles faces the genuine prospect of hosting a golf tournament at the Olympics without all of the men’s game’s star names. No Rory McIlroy, no Tommy Fleetwood, no Hideki Matsuyama, no Xander Schauffele, no Jon Rahm, no Ludvig Aberg, no… well, you get the idea. Just as the Paris event had convinced even the strongest naysayers that the sport and its multi-millionaire stars belong in the Games, Riviera Country Club’s hopes of building on that success could be over before…

THIS MUCH I KNOW When Europe take on the United States next year, Scandinavian golfers could feasibly make up to a third of the team. There will, barring injury, be at least one Swede in Luke Donald’s line-up. A European Ryder Cup team without Scandinavians in it now seems unthinkable. But it wasn’t always that way. Continental Europeans became eligible for the team in 1979, yet it wasn’t until 14 years later that a Scandinavian first graced the line-up. It was a landmark moment, and a similar scenario today would be if a Greek, Turkish or Czech Republic golfer made the team. The trailblazer in 1993 was Joakim Haeggman. It was this supremely talented, charismatic player who smashed through the glass ceiling to clear a path for a swathe of…

■ The British Heart Foundation is an official supporter of our Drive for Defibs campaign. WHAT IS A SUDDEN CARDIAC ARREST? A cardiac arrest usually happens without warning and occurs when there is an electronic malfunction in the heart, resulting in an irregular heartbeat that disrupts the effective pumping action of the heart. The lack of blood flow to the brain and other organs means the person stops breathing normally and will be unresponsive and unconscious. Death can occur within minutes if CPR and defibrillation are not carried out. IS A CARDIAC ARREST THE SAME AS A HEART ATTACK? Although the terms are often used interchangeably, a heart attack and cardiac arrest are two very different things. A heart attack is a plumbing issue and happens when the blood supply…

YOUR COACH GARETH JOHNSTON PGA Head Professional at Bishopswood GC, Hants garethjohnstongolf.com When you invest in golf lessons, it represents a financial commitment but also a commitment to the game. Of course you’ll need to spend time on the range, working on the things you have discussed. But if you’re to see the benefit of those lessons, it’s vital you spend this time in the right way. When students report limited progress, it’s often due to a confusion about their role, and the role of the coach. Let me explain… It is the job of the coach to give the student the cues to improve. Whether that’s a set-up or a swing change, the coach must ensure you understand why your technique needs to change and should direct you to…

When we play golf, we tend to think that the worse the shot, the worse the swing flaw. That’s not always the case, and the dreaded shank is one such example. That pesky socket is only an inch or so from the centre of the clubface and a pure strike, so the sight of your ball whizzing off at right angles into the nearest bush is a punishment that definitely does not fit the crime. Your first step, then, in your bid to eradicate this terrorising shot from your bag is to grasp that you don’t need to make massive, wholesale changes to your motion. Very often, a subtle change is all that is needed… and it is probably not the one you might think. Let’s get into it. THE…

TaylorMade make some of the best women’s golf clubs money can buy, and their goal with Kalea Gold is to help women of all abilities play better golf. As part of the design and engineering process for the brand’s previous range for women golfers, the Kalea Premier, TaylorMade set up a Women’s Advisory Board. This group of female golf industry professionals was located across Europe and represented specific niches such as teaching and club fitting. Together, the Board was able to provide expert feedback on what worked for both them and for their female clients. “The two stand-out priorities were cosmetics and performance,” says Michelle Penney, Principal Engineer for TaylorMade. “The most important part of the DNA of this product is that it’s designed by women, for women. Kalea Gold…

HEAVY SHAFTS A few decades ago, many shafts fell into the heavyweight category as the tech wasn’t available to make good, lightweight alternatives. Heavy shafts weigh in at over 120g and are available in steel and graphite options. Most will suit golfers with above-average swing speeds, so these are the shafts most typically found in lots of tour player irons, which is why they’re often referred to as ‘tour weight shafts’. MID-WEIGHT SHAFTS Mid-weight iron shafts usually tip the scales between 90 and 110g. There’s been a real trend towards this category not with new shaft designs, but with lighter models that historically fell into the heavyweight category, such as the KBS Lite family. Most often shafts in this category will best suit average and above swing speeds and you’ll…

1 COSTA NAVARINO ↔ MESSINIA, GREECE Courses 38 Accommodation 20 Amenities 18 Setting 17 TOTAL 93 Getting there Athens is a two-hour+ drive away, Kalamata 30 minutes. This is the second successive Continental resorts ranking in which Costa Navarino has been our No.1. The depth, range and quality of every aspect of this Greek destination mean it is a scenario that is unlikely to change any time soon. Indeed, describing why it is No.1 becomes easier by the year, because there is always something new to report. Four years ago, the prospect of two new courses was on the agenda. When they became reality in 2022, it rose to No.1. At that time, there were two new hotels in the pipeline, and both are now fully operational. So, in the…

I was gutted to miss the BMW PGA at Wentworth last month. It’s one of my favourite events and I’ve played well there down the years, so it would have been a good opportunity to keep moving up the rankings. A few people said I should’ve got an invite, but the Tour gave the spots to those who had earned them and that’s exactly how it should be. The Tour must protect its players and ensure those who earn their spots and follow the rules are in the tournaments. More on that later. Despite missing the BMW, my game’s in a great place and I’ve been swinging beautifully. I’ve had loads of people come up to me and say “unlucky” about Crans (Omega European Masters). But there was nothing unlucky…

It is unusual in today’s fragmented entertainment landscape, where podcasts, social media and YouTube sit alongside traditional media, for a television programme to be ‘appointment viewing’. Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, though, is unquestionably that. Even if fans are not thrilled by the live game that evening, they will tune in (or record) the pre-match show. It is agenda-setting in a way others can only dream of. The man adjudicating between England defenders Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher and their insightful, often fiery debates is MNF’s long-time presenter David Jones. On Super Sunday, Roy Keane, Jamie Redknapp and Micah Richards are added to his guest list. It is a dream job that has brought Jones celebrity friendships, exciting opportunities, financial security, a large social media following and not insignificant fame.…

I like life here. I get just as disappointed now as I did when I was young. You saw me earlier – I was very hot when I came off after my round (first round of the MCB Championship). I was three under after nine holes, playing lovely, and then you make a couple of mistakes, and the course at Belle Mare Plage will bite you if you do that. And you are as frustrated and disappointed as if you were 19, but I think that’s why we keep coming back. Maybe it’s not as serious because we’ve got another day tomorrow and there’s no cut, but I know I played myself out the tournament on this back nine. It’s irritating, frustrating, disappointing. But I’ll hit a few more balls.…

It all started with 126 holes at their childhood golf club in 2012. Patrick Law and Dylan Thornborough called it ‘Marathon Monday’, their version of the Longest Day Golf Challenge. The name stuck, and so did the fundraiser in their calendar. They’ve competed in it every year since, lapping the nine-hole course at Glenboro Golf & Country Club as many as 37 times in under 12 hours for a cause which hits close to home. “Over the years we’ve had family members and friends touched and lost through the terrible disease that is cancer,” says Law, whose own mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012. “That’s really why we do it, to raise awareness and money, because our ambitions and focus have always been on the Canadian Cancer Society.”…

HERE TO HELP YOU SAVE SHOTS Watch hundreds of video tips at www.todays-golfer.com PRESENTED BY Shot Scope QUICK TIP BRUSH IT, DON’T CRUSH IT If you’re beginning to think you are going through tee pegs at a rainforest-threatening rate, chances are you have an issue with your driver attack angle. A snapped tee is a strong sign your attack is too steep; you’ll struggle to avoid weak, spinny drives that generally cut away. For a far better strike, take pity on those quivering, remaining pegs in your pocket and hit your remaining drives with the intention of leaving that little piece of wood unharmed. This intention will promote the level-to-slightly-up attack angle that is perfect for the low-lofted driver as it promotes a high launch while keeping excessive spin in…

If bunker shots conjure the thought of forcing the clubhead through heavy sand, you are going about these shots the wrong way. In fact, you really need very little force and effort to escape from greenside sand. As long as you are employing the right technique, the weight of the club will give you all the momentum you need. This month’s Challenge is a fun and educational way of learning how to apply this moderated force effectively. Here’s how it works. YOUR COACH ALASDAIR GOOD Gullane GC Head PGA Professional with special focus on coaching youngsters through his Wee Wonders clinics and national tournaments. 1. HALF AS MANY HANDS Take your normal bunker set-up and stance, ball opposite your lead chest. But grip the club with your trail hand only…

YOUR COACH KARL MORRIS Karl has worked with multiple Major winners. Check out his Brain Booster podcasts for free on iTunes themindfactor.com As a performance coach, I am fascinated by improvement in any field of sporting activity… and this year, we got one in the world of football. You don’t need me to tell you about the England team’s reputation and record when it comes to penalty shoot-outs – and yet in the quarter-finals of this summer’s European Championships, we witnessed an incredible thing: five spot-kicks dispatched with an assurance that bordered on eerie. In the aftermath, a story emerged – of how the team and its coaches had abandoned the idea that shoot-outs were a matter of luck, a lottery, and looked into ways of stacking the odds in…

OUR FAVOURITE… BUDGET MOTOCADDY SE From £479.99 The cheapest Motocaddy is the SE. It comes in at such a reasonable price because of how simple the technology is, which also makes it a doddle to use. It comes with either a lead-acid or lithium battery; the former is cheaper but much heavier. The design is based on Motocaddy’s incredibly popular S1 and features a nine-speed setting along with a USB port underneath the handle. POWAKADDY FX1 From £549 The FX1 features some of the tech found in PowaKaddy’s more premium models, notably the styling and a Plug ’n’ Play lithium battery which can be charged without needing to be removed. The FX1 folds down 20% smaller than its predecessor in one simple step, so you can pack up your trolley…

GOLF WORLD TOP 100 We’re standing on the tee at the par-3 16th, high on a hill at the snappily named International Olympic Academy Course of Costa Navarino. The Greek sun is grilling any skin left exposed but the breeze up here makes it bearable; more than that, it’s delightful. We’re on the edge of the course – to our left is Greece, to our right only the sparkling blue sea of Navarino Bay below – but that’s where the wind is moving from, and so to land the ball on the green you’re going to have to start it out there, above the water. It’s moments like this that make golf at Costa Navarino so special. Pick any of the four excellent courses and during the round you will…

1 SOTOGRANDE ANDALUCIA At the grand age of 62, Sotogrande fulfills the initial aim of its late founder, American-Filipino businessman Joseph McMicking: to be a US-style residential country club. While its international fame was boosted when it hosted the 1997 Ryder Cup, recent investment by developer Sotogrande SA has maintained its superb menu of outstanding facilities; a dazzling mix of golf, tennis, padel, polo, hiking, biking, The Beach, and just about every water sport imaginable. The most affordable property at Sotogrande is at the marina, with an array of two-bedroom apartments. But head to La Reserva, the newest and hugely impressive addition to the resort, for the most enviable homes. This club-within-a-club has new-build apartments available, as well as detached villas up to €22,500,000. If you want to come here…