Indholdsfortegnelse for March 2020 i Compleat Golfer

Philosophy is not readily associated with the game of golf. Perhaps the closest it has come is Harvey Pennick’s Little Red Book and wisdom such as, ‘Take dead aim.’ For Pennick, this was the process of eliminating all negative thoughts and allowing yourself to swing freely and hit the target. Or, if we were being given a golf lesson from Socrates, he would say, ‘Know thyself.’ Shaun Norris has spent the past few years engaged in his own form of golf philosophy. Through life-changing events such as the birth of his first child and the death of his father, he has searched deep within himself. And he’s come out on the other side with a far greater understanding of who he is as a person, which in turn has led…

There’s unfinished business in Darren Fichardt’s career, so things felt a little bleak after a poor 2019 European Tour season and he had to head back to Qualifying School in an attempt to regain his playing privileges. It was the fifth time he’s had to endure the nerve-racking 108-hole marathon that rewards resilient players with the opportunity to play at some 72-hole events on one of the world’s most challenging Tours. ‘Last year was a difficult one off the golf course and going back to Q-School was a reality check,’ says Fichardt of a European season in which he missed 11 cuts, with a share of seventh at the Maybank Championship last March being his best performance. Despite this, he approached the week in a pretty casual way. ‘I didn’t…

It’s extremely pleasing to come across situations relating to the new rules, which have been in force since January 2019, that indicate just how favourable they are towards golfers. The new rules have certainly made things a bit easier for the player when it comes to some tricky situations on the golf course. In the past, damage on the putting green could not automatically be repaired even if it was clear animals caused it. Now, however, the rules allow you to repair any damage on the putting green. On courses such as Euphoria Golf and Lifestyle Estate and Koro Creek Bushveld Golf Estate, host of the recent Limpopo Championship on the Sunshine Tour, wild game roam freely and they have no qualms about running across perfectly manicured greens – much…

In 2018 Centurion decided to change its finishing holes. The par-four 9th hole used to be the 18th. But to create a more distinctive and exciting finish to the course, the island-green par three and risk-and-reward short par four on the other side of the central dam in front of the clubhouse were turned into the 17th and 18th holes. Centurion’s club professional Jannes Sik shares more on this unique layout, and how to give yourself the best possible chance to finish your round on a high. ‘Centurion is famous for the two golf holes which sit inside the large dam in front of the clubhouse. The par-three 17th has an island green, ringed by a bunker to stop firm shots running into the water. Depending on the tee placement,…

PING G710 There are three reasons I think this iron will be a hit in 2020. Firstly, the black finish is awesome. Secondly, the irons have Arccos Caddie smart grips, which will allow you to analyse your on-course game of golf. Thirdly, the head is hollow with a maraging steel face. This gives the ultimate in toe-heel weighting, plus higher-flying shots that will go further. TAYLORMADE SIM OS The OS stands for oversize. This club looks easy to hit. In addition to toe-heel weighting, TaylorMade has concentrated on the feel and sound of the ball strike. It has dampened the sound by using its echo damping system and softened the feel by adding a bridge, which runs from the top to the bottom of the head, behind the hitting area.…

MEN OPEN 1 (3) Martin Vorster (Pinnacle Point GC) 2 (2) Casey Jarvis (State Mines CC) 3 (5) Jordan Duminy (Pinnacle Point GC) 4 (6) Kyle de Beer (Port Elizabeth GC) 5 (8) Yurav Premlall (Glendower GC) 6 (4) Samuel Simpson (Bellville GC) 7 (9) Keagan Thomas (Pearl Valley Golf Estate) 8 (7) Luca Filippi (Milnerton GC) 9 (11) Werner Deyzel (Woodhill CC) 10 (18) Ryan van Velzen (Benoni CC) 11 (14) Christiaan Maas (Pretoria CC) 12 (12) Christiaan Burke (Bloemfontein GC) 13 (13) Rigardt Albertse (Potchefstroom CC) 14 (10) Therion Nel (Bloemfontein GC) 15 (-) Nikhil Rama (Bryanston Country Club) 16 (19) Christo Lamprecht (Pinnacle Point GC) 17 (-) Francois van der Walt (Irene CC) 18 (17) Jordan Burnard (Ebotse GC) 19 (16) Gregory Mckay (Mt Edgecombe CC) 20…

For the first time since winning the 2019 South African Amateur Championship, Wilco Nienaber returned to the 18th green at King David Mowbray Golf Club at the Cape Town Open. Naturally, his thoughts returned to the day, 12 months ago, where he rallied from one down with two holes to play to snatch a one-hole win against rising star Jordan Duminy by coaxing a curling, 15-foot par putt into the hole. ‘I still can’t believe I did it,’ he says. ‘I’d been battling with my swing that week and Jordan played so well in the final that I was just hanging in there at times.’ In some ways it feels just like yesterday, he mused, but it also feels like a lifetime ago. It certainly hasn’t been the comfortable ride…

There was some exciting news for us professionals towards the end of 2019 which opens another door of opportunity for South Africa’s Sunshine Tour golfers. The Tour is tough, let’s not dispute that, and over the years it has been a conveyor belt of success stories. As the old line goes, ‘If you can win on the Sunshine Tour, you can win anywhere.’ So, towards the end of last year we were informed that the Sunshine Tour and European Challenge Tour had come together to create three new co-sanctioned events – the Limpopo Championship, Cape Town Open and Dimension Data Pro-Am. This news received overwhelming support from many Europeans and the locker room was abuzz with talk of being able to escape the northern hemisphere winter and come to South…

Now here’s a thing. In 46 Players Championship tournaments, dating back to when Jack Nicklaus won the inaugural event in 1974, no one has successfully defended their title. That in itself is quite remarkable, given that many refer to The Players as the ‘unofficial fifth Major’. In all four established Majors there have been many back-to-back winners, the most recent being Tiger Woods at the Masters (2001-02), Padraig Harrington at The Open (2007-08) and Brooks Koepka at the US Open (2017-18) and The PGA Championship (2018-19). The Players has bucked that trend. In fact, more bad news on that front is that no defending champion has even been runner-up the following year at TPC Sawgrass, although there have been two occasions when the runner-up has gone on to lift the…

They really don’t make them like they used to. A few days before Jack Nicklaus’ 80th birthday on 21 January he invited golf writers to share nearly an hour with him, linked via a conference call around the US. Two members of the media actually drove to Nicklaus’ house for the chat This is the man who won 18 Major titles, the most in history and three more than Tiger Woods. Next on the list is Walter Hagen with 11 followed by Gary Player and Ben Hogan on nine. And here he was, inviting members of the media to a friendly birthday chat. A real throwback in time. Player is as accommodating to members of the media and public alike. Despite being the most successful South African golfer of all…

ODYSSEY Odyssey has added the ‘triple track alignment’ system to eight popular heads. This system has a white background on a black head with three red and three blue stripes. You have the option of face-balanced models as well as toe-hang models. The micro-hinge star insert keeps the ball running on the ground. PING The Heppler was the best putter I saw at the show. The gold and black colour scheme looks awesome with great sight lines. I loved the old Anser-style head. Another difference is the grips, which are in between the original Ping grips and the new range oversize grips. SCOTTY CAMERON The new range of Special Select Scotty Cameron putters is also a return to the past in a few respects. The top lines are thinner and…

When you think ‘golf entertainment’ these days, the 16th-hole stadium at Scottsdale during the Waste Management Phoenix Open is right up near the top of any list. Players have often referred to the moment when they emerge from the tunnel and stepped on to that tee box as what it must have felt like entering the Colosseum as a gladiator. During my time living in Scottsdale, I teed it up at the pre-qualifier for what has since been dubbed ‘the funnest week in golf’ and although I finished two shots outside the number, the tournament week certainly lives up to its cult billing as just that. From the dozens of daily activities in the hospitality villages, to live bands playing long into the night and the iconic 30 000-seater stadium…

This year our playing editor has been featuring his 12 favourite courses in South Africa. In 11th place on his list of favourite golf courses in South Africa was Parkview Country Club. This month, in 10th place, he has selected the picturesque Royal Cape Golf Club. Royal Cape Golf Club is the definition of a timeless classic. As I’ve stated before, I’m a sucker for history and it doesn’t come more historic than South Africa’s oldest Royal club. Having had the opportunity to play at this year’s Cape Town Open, my love for the place has only grown stronger. I love playing in South Africa, and being able to visit the site of my first professional victory only added to the enjoyment of the week. By modern standards this course…

There will be a time when Jayden Schaper is standing over a putt to win his first professional golf tournament. No one knows when it will come, but it will. And how does the Tour rookie think he will react? ‘To be honest, I haven’t really thought about it,’ says the latest decorated South African amateur to join the paid ranks. ‘I’ve always believed one shot means a lot. Whether it’s the difference of making the cut, winning a tournament or losing it by one. For me, that one shot affected ranking points in the amateurs; now it’s for money. In the amateurs if you miss that putt you go down the rankings; now, if you make it you stay in the same place or you go forward. It’s very…

Gauteng is the golf estate capital of South Africa. In the 1990s, the demand for safety and tranquility inspired these developments, with Centurion Country Club one of the early creations. Situated conveniently between Sandton and Pretoria, just off the N1 highway, it was a popular choice, with a golf course beautifully defined by the Hennops River. In the early days this Peter Matkovich design featured unique desert-type features that wouldn’t have looked out of place in Arizona. The course that awaits the golfer today, however, is an established parkland layout, with mature trees, water in play on 10 of the holes and an exciting finish you won’t easily forget. For the purists, estate golf courses are often a little hard on the eye, with houses lining the fairways and overpowering…

WILSON Wilson has moved to lower compression with the Duo Professional to give golfers a soft-feeling ball that will respond around the greens. The ball is as long as any on the market. BRIDGESTONE The Tour BX is the ball Tiger Woods uses. Bridgestone has made top-quality balls for over half a century. It is the No 1-selling ball in Japan and in the top three in the US. The new ball has the ‘Reactiv’ cover that offers more distance and spin. CALLAWAY Truvis balls are designed for better focus on the ball. The larger inner core gives you more height and carry. These balls have a urethane cover for the soft feel you expect from Callaway. SRIXON The Q-Star is back in South Africa. The new Q-Star is described…

Martin Vorster produced a majestic eagle when it mattered most to force his way into an unlikely playoff at the African Amateur Stroke Play Championship. The 18-year-old stood on the tee of the daunting par-five 18th hole at Leopard Creek knowing that even a birdie would not be enough. But he boxed a 35-foot eagle putt to take the tournament into extra holes against England’s Olly Huggins. With the playoff interrupted by lightning, Vorster edged out Huggins when he tapped in for par on the fourth extra hole. ‘It was unreal,’ said Vorster. ‘I’m speechless. This win means so much to me.’ The revamped Leopard Creek provided a stern test for the top amateur golfers, with only three players finishing the tournament under par. After two days of reasonable scoring,…

PICK OF THE MONTH THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP TPC SAWGRASS 12-15 MARCH 2019 winner: Rory McIlroy closed the final round of The Players Championship with two birdies and two pars to sign for a two-under 70 and beat 48-year-old Jim Furyk by one shot. McIlroy finished 16 under overall to win for the first time since the 2018 Arnold Palmer Invitational. He lost the lead at the TPC Sawgrass course with a bogey on 14, but a birdie on 15 again gave him a share of the lead. His tap-in birdie on the par-five 16th was all he needed to secure the win. McIlroy had had a strong start to the 2018-19 PGA Tour season, finishing in the top six in his previous five starts. His win in Ponte Vedra was…

The 1984 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass saw Mother Nature wreak havoc and hurl 72km/h gusts of wind at the golfers on the opening day. Statistically, it was the worst day in the history of the iconic 17th island-green hole. The stroke average of 3.853 is the highest at 17 in any single round at The Players since the tournament moved to the Stadium Course. The closest since then came in the final round in 2005, when the 17th’s stroke average was 3.780. Players used anything from 5-iron to 9-iron on the hole, which measured 132 yards. Mark McCumber celebrated his eagle at 16 until he realised that meant he had the honour at the next tee. With the wind howling, McCumber, who won The Players in 1988, called the…

I dusted off my clubs (euphemism for removing rat droppings) and gave the new decade my best shot, together with about 98 of my worst shots. My clubs are entering their fourth decade of service, which might explain their reluctance to do my bidding. My neighbour and I set forth on a blazing February morning and had our usual ding-dong battle on the front nine – 1 up, all square, 1 up, all square or, if you must, I picked up, he picked up, I picked up, he picked up, etc. Our salvation was found at the halfway house. There is something about a proper English breakfast that resonates with a man’s soul and, with one each inside us, we improved on the back nine to the extent that it…