Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 469 i Today's Golfer

England is home to some of the best golf on the planet. For a country that fits into the USA 76 times (thanks, Google), little old Blighty punches well above its weight when it comes to golf. That’s why, when we were planning the second part of our UK and Ireland domestic Top 100s (finishing with Scotland next month), we couldn’t limit the countdown to 100; we had to double it. Starting on page 85, you’ll find our ranking of the 200 best courses in England. Top 100 Editor Chris Bertram says, “England is my least favourite ranking to compile… but one of the most satisfying. The reason is simple; because England’s depth and variety is matched only by the USA, it means there are difficult calls throughout the ranking.…

TG’s RATING I make absolutely no apologies for my love of all things Adam Sandler. His versatility and immense popularity were the reasons Netflix made him the highest-paid movie star on the planet. And that multi-title deal has culminated in the highly-anticipated sequel to his magnum opus: Happy Gilmore. I’ve watched it – several times, in fact – so here’s a brain dump of what I did and didn’t like. And don’t worry, I know some of you won’t have watched it yet, so this is a spoiler-free zone. What I liked Happy 2.0 is exactly how you want him to be. Not many can make you root for a deadbeat jackass the way Sandler can. Christopher McDonald as Gilmore’s nemesis Shooter McGavin has a whole new dynamic and energy,…

It’s a good job Annika Sorenstam didn’t heed that headline. The Swede may have won 72 professional titles, 10 Majors and $22m on her way to the Hall of Fame, but her real achievement was in debunking this apparent staple of sound golfing technique through her phenomenally effective trademark lifting delivery. ‘Keep your head down’ is arguably the most famous piece of ‘badvice’ in golf, but there are plenty more that are far more likely to hurt than help. Let’s take a look at some of the most common, establish why they present a clear and present danger to your scorecard, and learn some better ways to find the benefits they were supposed to deliver. Shot at stunning LA HACIENDA LINKS GOLF RESORT, Sotogrande, home to two fantastic 18-hole championship…

Experience tells us that the only way to accurately see the difference between how golf balls perform is via a repeatable swing with a consistently accurate impact location. No human tester can reproduce that – and certainly not across different swing speeds and various club categories when over 60 different balls need testing. That’s why, for the third year running, we turned to Loughborough University and partnered with Ping to produce this test – with MUCH more content at todays-golfer.com and on our YouTube channel. Scan this QR code for much more detail and insight on the TG website…

Dr Roberts has worked at Loughborough University for over 25 years. He’s completed a Callawaysponsored PhD on the feel of golf shots, as well as completing golf ball consultancy work for Nike, and more recently collaborating with Ping. His knowledge isn’t limited to golf; he works as part of a research group for adidas and has been involved in the design of the World Cup football for the last 20-plus years. James attended Loughborough University as a student and has completed a PhD for adidas and developed a new measurement system for recording how clothing and skin move relative to each other. He teaches undergraduate modules on the robot and has recently played a role in looking at the effect spray-on impact paint has when testing golf clubs. As part…

Two-piece balls are the least expensive option. Typically, they have a big core under a thick ionomer or surlyn cover. For most, two-piece models represent an excellent blend of reasonable performance and value, particularly if you’re prone to losing a few. Even though these are the least expensive balls on the market, it’s not uncommon to find a choice of softer feel and longer distance – or a blend of both – in a single ball. Mizuno RB 566 TG VERDICT: Named after the number of dimples on each ball, the Mizuno shone in the short game test (5,960rpm). Though the dimple technology isn’t specifically designed to generate spin, the RB 566 is the highest-spinning golf ball in approach play (4,947rpm), and it lands with the steepest descent angle (45.3°).…

Richard Bland is a compelling man to interview. He’s not interested in PR spin, nor is he that bothered about reading from a well-worn or pre-prepared script. Ask him why he joined LIV Golf and he doesn’t dress it up. He’s not pretending it was about legacy or a burning desire to grow the game. He’s honest — it was about the money. And at 52 years of age, after a career spent grinding on the European Tour for relatively modest returns, he makes no apology for that. “That was one of the overriding reasons why I came to LIV,” he says now. “I had the opportunity to make the rest of my life how I wanted it to be. I think anybody at my age would have done the…

YOUR COACH SHORT CUT A 10% Strokes Gained short-game improvement will save the 15-handicapper five shots a round; the same long-game improvement will save barely a shot. So, be honest: when was the last time you chose to practise your chipping or putting, as opposed to crashing full shots down the range? As greenkeepers across the land will testify, short-game areas remain generally underused while golfers queue to find their slot in the booth. I understand this; a buttoned, soaring drive offers something no chip shot can match, however cleanly struck. But what effect does our preference for full shots have on how well we play both parts of the game… and for the numbers we write on the scorecard? Let’s compare long- and short-game data from performance-tracking experts Shot…

TaylorMade have unveiled their new MG5 wedge, and it clearly puts a premium on craftsmanship. One of the clearest ways they’re showing that is by using a method that golfers associate with high quality and expert skill – forging. “Inspired by feedback from Collin Morikawa, we set out to make the best feeling wedge TaylorMade have ever created,” says Matt Bovee, Director of Product Creation – Iron and Wedge. “The best players will tell you that having great feel around the greens is critical to having confidence in your short game… and to have the best feeling wedge, it needs to be forged.” If you’re wondering what a ‘forged’ club actually is, allow us to explain. Irons and wedges are either forged or cast. Cast models are made from metal…

You get a sense of the scale the moment you climb the steep bank to the lofty 1st tee of the Old, which feels like it’s always wound its way through Royal Ashdown Forest. Through a gap between the huge trees below stretches the generous first fairway and the large two-tiered green in the distance. It’s a gentle start which eases you in before the sterner tests to come deeper into the forest. They include the two memorable par 3s, the 125-yard 6th, which is somehow as treacherous as the 249-yard 11th. And the 568-yard par-5 12th, reachable with two lusty, well-directed hits as it tumbles down from the highest part of the course. It’s 6,500 yards from the white tees – and worth it for the wonderful views they…

POWERED BY Some sports events just hit that little bit different. The Masters signals the start of the golf season. The Open showcases the best of British golf courses and culture. And the Ryder Cup never fails to capture the attention of just about every sports – not just golf – fan. The team rivalry is unlike anything we see in golf (sorry, LIV!) and after speaking to Justin Rose in July, I can assure you that the media have not manufactured that aspect. There’s actually plenty of needle between the teams right now, which is why I’m really hoping for a Rory and Bryson match at some point. We’ll have our own team on the ground in New York, covering the build-up and matches for our website, so make…

POWERED BY 19-9 The biggest winning margin in the modern era. It came in 2021 at Whistling Straits, but let’s not dwell too long on that. $500,000 How much each American player will be paid. By comparison, Rory and co won’t receive a penny or euro for their efforts. 0.65 POINTS PER MATCH COLLECTED BY AMERICAN ROOKIES IN THE LAST FOUR RYDER CUPS STAGED ON US SOIL (34-16-10). 8 The number of victories claimed by Europe since the turn of the millennium. In that time, America have only managed three. 73% THE WINNING PERCENTAGE OF THE HOST TEAM, DATING BACK TO 1979. $749.51 THE CHEAPEST DAY TICKET TO ATTEND THE COMPETITION PROPER IN NEW YORK – A 160% PRICE HIKE ON ROME IN 2023. 5.5 THE AVERAGE MARGIN OF VICTORY…

“I never played under a captain who discussed the envelope. It’s something you don’t talk about unless you think something is going to happen.” Bernard Gallacher, European captain 1991-95 “You put your weakest link in the envelope, but you don’t reveal who that is, before or afterwards. On the way back from America in 1983, a player said to me, ‘I have got to know, was my name in the envelope?’ I replied, ‘Absolutely not.’ I am not going to tell you who that player was, and I am not going to tell you whether his name was in the envelope or not, but it just shows how much some players think about it.” Tony Jacklin, European captain 1983-89 “It’s not so tough for a captain, because it’s rare that it has…

Come September, the golfing world will turn its eyes to Long Island and the formidable Bethpage Black. A Ryder Cup on American soil always carries a certain weight, but in New York it takes on a sharper edge. US fans don’t just support, they surge like a tidal wave – loud, partisan, relentless. Think football terraces with fairways. And for Europe, that makes defending this Ryder Cup all the tougher. Winning away has always been rare. Only twice in the past 20 years has the trophy crossed the Atlantic in defiance of home advantage. For America this is about more than golf. It is about redemption. The memories of Rome are still very raw for Uncle Sam. Luke Donald’s men dancing on the lawns of Marco Simone. Scottie Scheffler in…

THE PROBLEM Too much, too soon Most club golfers are aware of the dangers of remaining sideon through the downswing, and the flicky, handsy strike that body position creates. But if we go pre-armed with an intention to turn on the way down, it’s all too easy to pile on the rotation too soon. If we turn from our first move down, we will tend to throw the club outside its ideal path… a move that promotes pulls and slices. BETTER IDEA First down, then around To get on top of downswing rotation, we need to grasp that it comes later in the downswing than many people think. For the vast majority of golfers, the ideal feeling is one of the arms swinging the club down before we rotate to…

Getting the putter to speed up through the strike has long been considered a great way to guarantee an assertive stroke and a positive strike. But if acceleration is central to your putting method, you risk poor distance control. THE PROBLEM Change of pace By definition, an accelerating putter is changing speed constantly; the faster the rate of acceleration, the more quickly the speed alters. This has clear shortcomings in terms of touch and our ability to control distance – if the putter’s speed is rapidly changing, even a subtle difference in the contact or the rhythm of the stroke can make big differences in energy transfer and how far the ball rolls out. You’re particularly at risk of a slight over-acceleration which sends the ball a tricky distance past…

Yet another ‘tip’ that relates to the fertile misinformation breeding ground that is the start of the downswing. It’s another common piece of advice which encourages golfers to overdo a desired swing trait. Let’s take a closer look at the danger it poses, and once more identify a better way of going about it… THE PROBLEM The problem: Rocked back This tip is often given as an antidote to the dreaded over-the-top, shoulder-led start down employed by inveterate slicers… but it also relates to the famous ‘kinematic sequence’, a natural movement pattern used in many hitting pursuits including tennis and baseball. While the concept of the lower body leading the downswing is by no means wrong or unhelpful, it can see the golfer’s upper body rock back as the pelvis…

Almost half of the golf balls in this test are three-piece models, reflecting that this is a very popular construction method for both tourlevel and club golfer balls. The core size is shrunk to allow a mantle layer to sit between the core and outer cover, which allows engineers to dial in different characteristics based on the wants and needs of the target player. Tour-level three-piece balls have urethane covers to maximise wedge spin and greenside control. In comparison, club golfer balls (page 50) will have a softer compression for additional feel. Bridgestone Tour B XS TG VERDICT: Winning the silver medal for short game performance, the Tour B XS is higher spinning around the green than the Tour B X. It’s not drastically higher, but you can expect more…

Watch hundreds of video tips at todays-golfer.com HERE TO HELP YOU SAVE SHOTS QUICK TIP SEAT OF POWER Ideally, we will move the club back with a unified motion of body, arms and hands. It’s a move that sets up a neutral and powerful swing. So often though, this sound start is sabotaged by overactive hands and wrists, whipping the club back inside the line. But with a little imagination, you can turn the nearest golf course bench into a useful training aid. Set up behind one with a mid-iron, its clubshaft resting on the bench’s back edge. Swing the club back slowly, allowing the shaft to glide along the back edge as shown. The consistent height stops you rolling the club back with your hands and wrists, instead encouraging…

When it comes to success on the greens, we know that every degree counts. With precision a key putting virtue, it’s important we stay stable through the stroke; even the slightest twist or sway through the core can be enough to change the putter’s impact face angle or speed. Because we are zoned in on holing the putt, body movement often goes unnoticed… and therefore uncorrected. Here is a two-step plan to monitor and improve your own stability – and ultimately, hole more putts. The fix #1: Check twist Place an alignment stick or clubshaft on the ground, parallel to your target line. Insert another alignment stick through your belt loops, ensuring it runs parallel to the one on the ground. Make a putt and hold your finish. Check that…

In feet, the average proximity inside 50 yards for a scratch golfer Let’s first clarify that this piece of data, from performance-tracking specialists Shot Scope, refers to all short-game shots inside 50 yards – discounting putting. That gives an average shot distance of 25-30 yards. At this range, a scratch golfer is looking to turn three shots into two. However, an average proximity of 11ft suggests only a one-in-three chance of achieving it: make percentage in the 9-12ft range for the scratch golfer stands at 34%. In fact this performance is not hugely better than the 10-handicapper’s 15ft average at this range. If the scratch golfer could sharpen up their game inside 50 yards, they could leave themselves more putts inside the magical 6-8ft range, where make percentage rises dramatically.…

England is my least favourite ranking to compile… but one of the most satisfying. The reason is simple: because England’s depth and variety are matched only by the United States of America, it means there are difficult calls throughout the ranking. So, while it is always the case in the rankings I compile that there is very little to choose between courses as many as 20 places apart, in England that is true of entries as many as 40 places apart at times. It is incredibly, incredibly competitive, and is one of the reasons I have made this a proper Top 200. I have given the 101-200 entries exactly the same profile as the 1-100 entries and in order to make space for such a comprehensive ranking, I cast a…

1 Royal St George’s 2 Sunningdale (Old) 3 Royal Birkdale 4 Sunningdale (New) 5 Woodhall Spa (Hotchkin) 6 Swinley Forest 7 Royal Liverpool 8 Royal Cinque Ports 9 St George’s Hill (Red/Blue) 10 Royal Lytham & St Annes 11 Walton Heath (Old) 12 Alwoodley 13 Ganton 14 St Enodoc (Church) 15 Rye 16 Formby 17 Royal West Norfolk 18 Woking 19 West Sussex 20 Silloth on Solway 21 Saunton (East) 22 Hankley Common 23 Burnham & Berrow 24 Hollinwell 25 The Berkshire (Red) 26 Hillside 27 Hunstanton 28 Prince’s 29 West Lancashire 30 Wentworth (West) 31 The Addington 32 Worplesdon 33 Moortown 34 Parkstone 35 West Hill 36 Broadstone 37 Liphook 38 Wallasey 39 The JCB Club 40 The Berkshire (Blue) 41 Walton Heath (New) 42 Southport & Ainsdale 43 Royal Ashdown Forest (Old) 44 Hindhead 45 Sherwood Forest 46 Hayling 47 Royal Worlington 48 Royal North Devon 49 Woburn (Marquess) 50 Aldeburgh 51 Beau Desert 52 Ferndown 53 Seacroft 54 New Zealand 55 Wentworth (East) 56 Goswick 57 Trevose 58 Seaton Carew (M’klem) 59 Huntercombe 60 Delamere Forest 61 Ipswich (Purdis Heath) 62 Little Aston 63 Tandridge 64 Kington 65 Littlestone 66 East Devon 67…

To have this opportunity to be captain again for Europe is really special. That moment when we won in Rome was the best and the highlight of my career, and to hear those 12 guys shout “two more years” was certainly, for me, a personal moment of joy and honour that they would want me to come back and represent them again as captain. I think we created something quite special [in ’23]. The relationship between the players, the culture, the way they saw each other, the atmosphere in the team room. They performed great. You still need 12 players playing well [and] in good form, but if you can add a great culture behind that, I think it creates a real collective, something that is going to be hard…

The original trophy was commissioned by English seed merchant Samuel Ryder and manufactured in Sheffield by Mappin & Webb Co, who created the trophy in 1926 for £250. That’s roughly £13,000 in today’s money. The nine carat chalice stands at 17 inches tall without the base and weighs four pounds, roughly the same as a large bottle of ketchup. The cup sits atop a wooden base, with scores of each Ryder Cup played engraved around gold bands. Despite the competition being named after him, the gilded figure depicted atop the detachable lid is not Samuel Ryder. It is modelled to resemble golfing great Abe Mitchell, who became a friend and golf instructor of Ryder’s. Though he missed the inaugural match due to illness, Mitchell competed for Great Britain in 1929,…

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 TRUE INSPIRATION LETTER OF THE MONTH I was very surprised to read your article on the TG website about Christiaan Bezuidenhout and his terrifying incident as a toddler, in which he mistakenly drank rat poison that was in a Coca-Cola bottle and developed a lifelong stuttering problem. Such things are quite common and experts believe that the stammering gene remains dormant until severe stress from an illness or injury activates it. Bezuidenhout is definitely a role model to young people who stammer and he is actually listed among ‘famous people who stutter’ on the Stuttering Foundation website. It…

It may be pretty close to what we actually want to happen, but again, overegging the intention to do it can cause as many problems as it solves. Here’s why – alongside a more effective instruction to give yourself. THE PROBLEM Too steep Watch great bunker players and you will see the clubhead impacting the sand an inch or so behind the ball. But what you will also see is the sole of the club arriving into the sand on a shallow attack angle. That’s the key to great bunker contact; the sole of the club skimming the sand and taking a controlled, equally shallow sand divot. But so often, an active intention to get the club to impact the sand an inch behind the ball encourages a more downward…

We finish with an enduring classic, the Come On Eileen of unhelpful golfing help. And as we will see, it continues to damage more swings than it improves. THE PROBLEM The problem: Immobiliser This instruction is the usual response to a golfer appearing to lift up through the strike. It’s unhelpful for a couple of reasons: 1. It’s never the head itself that lifts. More typically it’s the golfer losing posture and straightening up. Trying to keep your head down is addressing the symptom and not the cause… and it’ll only give you neckache. 2. Lifting up is not in itself a bad thing – every great golfer extends into their followthrough position, with Sorenstam the most celebrated example. Either way, intentionally keeping your head down serves only to lock…

Traditionally, four-piece balls were firmer ‘X’-style, lower-spinning, higher-flying balls, but things have changed. The most recent Pro V1x (four-piece) has higher long game spin than the Pro V1 (three-piece) and a higher ball flight. Common thinking has it that firmer balls are faster and longer, irrespective of swing speed. We’ve also seen that they don’t always spin lower with a wedge than their softer siblings. The TP5 and TP5x are the only five-piece balls here, and with three layers between the core and cover, TaylorMade have more knobs and levers to tweak to dial in performance. Callaway Chrome Tour TG VERDICT: If you’re looking to improve your tee game, the Chrome Tour should be high on your list of options. At 114mph, it is the fastest and longest ball of…

Many of the balls in this test are three-piece, as it’s a very popular construction method for tour and club golfer balls. The core size is shrunk to allow a mantle layer to sit between the core and outer cover, which allows engineers to dial in different characteristics based on the wants of the target player. Three-piece tour balls often have urethane covers to maximise wedge spin and control, and the same can be said for lots of club golfer options, too. Of the balls here, only the Vice Tour has a Surlyn cover. Bridgestone Tour B RX TG VERDICT: There isn’t an awful lot to say about the B RX, other than that out of the five Bridgestone balls tested (including the four members of the Tour B range),…

One of the first lessons we learn when we take up this great game is that hitting harder doesn’t necessarily mean hitting further. In fact, most of us have experienced the opposite. Of course, clubhead speed plays a fundamental role in creating distance, but speed in itself is of no use at all unless it is correctly applied. Clubhead path, clubface direction and contact point are all massive influencers of distance and that’s why, if we want to hit the ball further, we must learn to blend aggression with technique. So let’s look at some of the common ways golfers of varying ability struggle to reach their power potential, and learn some simple exercises to overcome them. And don’t feel limited to your own handicap level: all three lessons here…

If you are under 40, you might not realise that golf instruction began only a few years before you were born… in 1984 or thereabouts. Yes, golf was coached before that, and there was the odd bestseller from the Player of the Day, but very, very few people made their living from teaching golf. John Jacobs was not only ahead of his time metaphorically. But this all changed when Nick Faldo met David Leadbetter and spent two years on a Florida range rebuilding his swing. A swing, it must be acknowledged, that was good enough to win six Majors. The process appeared to be the definitive proof of one of golf’s most compelling narratives: that to improve your performance, you needed to sharpen your technique. Leadbetter was golf’s version of…

With the back, shoulders and neck hogging so much of the attention for golfing injuries, wrist pain goes a little under the radar. Yet many players struggle with it. Usually, it gets attributed to the strain of impact and ground contact. While that can be the case, poor backswing mechanics can also be the cause. In this article we’ll take a look at a common movement pattern that puts the trail wrist in a vulnerable position… while also causing a host of golfing miscues. I’ll also show you a simple exercise you can do at home that will help you avoid it… and hit better golf shots into the bargain. Always consult a qualified physician before starting any new fitness regimen. In an ideal backswing, our forearms rotate in harmony…

Name: Graeme McDowell Nationality: Northern Irish Age: 46 Tour: LIV Golf Pro wins: 16 (including 1 Major) What was your first job? Ball spotting at the British Amateur at Portrush. I used to do that a lot as a kid. We used to have the North of Ireland Championship that was played there every year on the Valley course, and they put ball spotters on the first couple of holes. What’s your most treasured possession? Apart from my kids, I would say my Ryder Cup golf bags. I’ve got four. I’m not big on memorabilia, and I’m not a sentimental guy, but they’re up there. How many times have you watched back your putt to win the Ryder Cup in 2010? I’ve seen it a few times. I do struggle…

‘I’VE SAID THIS FOR THE LAST SIX OR SEVEN YEARS TO ANYONE THAT WILL LISTEN: I THINK ONE OF THE BIGGEST ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN GOLF RIGHT NOW IS WINNING AN AWAY RYDER CUP. AND THAT’S WHAT WE’RE GOING TO DO AT BETHPAGE’ RORY MCILROY POWERED BY RORY MCILROY AGE 36 CAREER NUMBERS RYDER CUPS 2010, ’12, ’14, ’16, ’18, ’21, ’23 RYDER CUP RECORD TG VERDICT: Rory has come a long since he burst into tears at Whistling Straits and said he let Europe down. Victory at the Masters has put an extra spring in his step, restoring the talismanic aura that is unmatched in the locker room. Leading Europe to another victory would not just banish the ghosts from four years ago – it would also cap a near perfect…

POWERED BY SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER AGE 29 CAREER NUMBERS RYDER CUPS 2021, ’23 RYDER CUP RECORD TG VERDICT: What to say about golf ’s Terminator who has won two Majors this year and spent 120+ weeks as the World No.1? His scoring average and Strokes Gained stats are insane, plus he hasn’t finished outside the top eight in 13 starts dating back to March. Like Tiger, his record in team events is a little sketchy but he’ll have a point to prove after that embarrassing 9&7 loss in Rome. You can also pencil him in for four team sessions and a singles match with Rahm (it’s already happened twice before). HARRIS ENGLISH AGE 36 CAREER NUMBERS RYDER CUPS 2021 RYDER CUP RECORD TG VERDICT: Three years removed from major back surgery,…

Paul McGinley was one of the most impressive Ryder Cup captains Europe has ever had. But despite masterminding Europe to a handsome victory at Gleneagles in 2014 and having a desire to captain the side in an away Ryder Cup, he never got that opportunity. He is, however, doing the next best thing. McGinley is a strategic advisor to the 2025 team and has devised a brand-new European masterplan for away success. The Irishman believes Europe’s comprehensive victories at Gleneagles, as well as at Golf National in 2018 and Marco Simone two years ago, have masked their deficiencies on American soil. The Europeans have lost three of the last four Ryder Cups in America -including a record-breaking loss (19-9) last time out at Whistling Straits. Such heavy humblings convinced McGinley…

POWERED BY What measures eight and a half inches by four and a half and could hold the key to this year’s Ryder Cup? No, it’s not Bryson’s brain or the $200,000 pay packet whisking its way to all 12 members of the American Ryder Cup. It is a plain old envelope, concealing one person’s name on a piece of paper. The humble envelope became part of Ryder Cup folklore in 1979 when, for the very first time, captains had to field all of their players in the Sunday singles. This introduced the possibility of an ill or injured player having to be removed from his match and, in the interests of fairness, this necessitated a rule change. The new regulation stated that both captains were required to hand in…