Indholdsfortegnelse for March 2025 i Golf Monthly

As the late 1965 US PGA champion and former BBC TV commentator Dave Marr once famously said: “Never bet with anyone you meet on the 1st tee who has a deep suntan, a 1-iron in his bag, and squinty eyes.” We all understand the sentiment and humour of this comment, but while golf’s real handicap bandits, sandbaggers, or whatever other unprintable names you may wish to call them, can be less easy to spot with the naked eye, they are no laughing matter as they set about manipulating the World Handicap System (WHS). They do this by finding ways to keep their handicap index artificially high so they can plunder the treasure when the biggest riches or most prestigious titles are up for grabs. For all the issues professional golf…

Shot on location at La Cala Resort, Spain 1 An adjustment to set-up with your biggest wood – the driver – will help to produce the desired upward angle of strike, a crucial element to maximise distance and consistency. The preferred body angle incorporates right side tilt, as here, producing side flexion and ‘hip bump’ towards the target. This sets the sternum slightly behind the ball, with weight favouring the right side to help strike the ball on the upswing. This, in addition to a favoured ball position of just inside the lead heel with a wider base, prepares the backswing with the goal of a dynamic coil in readiness for impact. 2 This image just prior to impact shows the trail elbow in a connected position close to the…

A situation many of us will have experienced is a bunker containing an area of standing water following heavy rainfall. If our ball has come to rest in this water, or we have interference from it, the Rules are on hand to give us options for relief. Water that has accumulated anywhere on the course, except in a penalty area, is temporary water and deemed an abnormal course condition. This includes water accumulations in bunkers. If the player has any interference for the lie of the ball, or area of intended stance or swing, then they are entitled to take relief, just as Cameron Smith did at the ISPS Handa Australian Open in November when his ball came to rest in temporary water. He called for assistance from a referee…

Following on from Qi10, the Qi35 arrives with an eye-catching new look and technological developments to match. The tech story behind Qi35 is all about CG projection. Without wanting to get too technical, essentially the clubhead has been engineered in such a way that the CG projects out to the face as low as possible, increasing what TaylorMade calls ‘the area of opportunity’. The new visual TaylorMade has created in the Qi35 is nothing short of spectacular. The head is predominantly a light grey carbon that wouldn’t look out of place as the interior of a supercar, and the minimalist way the brand has executed the overall finish is as good as I have ever seen. There is the merest hint of accent colour on show, with just a handful…

01 Scotty Cameron Phantom range This extension to the Phantom mallet putter line-up (£429) sees five new configurations added to the roster. The all-new Phantom 5.2 and 7.2 putters feature the popular wingback head shapes from Phantom 5 and 7, but have been fitted with an I-beam-style plumbing neck for slightly different toe-flow properties. The Phantom 5, Phantom 11 and Phantom 11 Long Design models have also been made available to left-handed golfers for the first time. 02 Scotty Cameron 2025 Studio Style range This launch represents the most significant redesign of Cameron’s blade putters in recent history. In part a celebration of the 20th anniversary of the brand’s original GSS-inserted Studio Style line, the 2025 Studio Style range (£449) features softer Studio Carbon Steel face inserts with chain-link face-milling…

While there is much to be said for Portugal’s most famous golf resorts and courses around the capital and on the south coast, there is a different story to tell if you decide to venture off-piste and centre a tour around Porto in the north. This enchanting and romantic city sprawls along a hillside flanking the Douro river as it makes its way out into the Atlantic. It is the nation’s second-largest city and the ideal start, end or both for a golfing trip to the region. It is packed with remarkable buildings, superb restaurants and enough attractions to warrant a visit in its own right. On the southern outskirts of the city is Oporto Golf Club, which dates back to 1890 and is the oldest on the Iberian peninsula.…

A reader contacted me to comment on last month’s column (always appreciated) after I wrote that more people than ever are playing golf. While this is true, the other truth is that fewer are joining golf clubs to do so. So much so that Jonathan tells me his club and others on his Midlands patch are struggling to attract members, that there is no longer a waiting list and that this is true for clubs in the wider area of Brummieland. A bit of research shows it’s a valid point. Nationally, in England anyway, memberships are in decline while the number of clubs charging £1,600 a year or more has increased by at least a third. Jonathan also points out that his, and other local clubs, have tried to be…

TGL hits the spot I tuned in with anticipation for the inaugural TGL golf match with my golf-fanatic sons (eight and ten years old). It didn’t disappoint! Players entered with the stage presence often associated with pop stars, boxers and even darts players. The format was brilliant – alternate shot triples followed by singles. The pace of play was rapid and just about right; the technology wowed us, with rotating greens, huge screens and wildly imaginative golf holes (more of these please!); and the golf nerd in me would have loved to see more of the stats that only fleetingly made an appearance – swing speed, carry distance and spin rates. The boys loved the wacky hole designs with lava pits, canyons and island greens galore. Can we just make…

“I THINK HE’S MADE ENOUGH MONEY TO HIRE A CHEF”Rory McIlroy joked that Scottie Scheffler should perhaps stay away from the kitchen after his freak injury “THE OLDER I GET, THE DOUBTS DO CREEP IN EVERY YEAR”Shane Lowry proved a few things to himself with his battling second place at Pebble Beach “IT WOULD BE A THRILL TO SEE TIGER COME OUT AND PLAY THE CHAMPIONS TOUR”Bernhard Langer is hopeful he’ll do battle with Woods again “I STILL FIRMLY BELIEVE RORY WILL WIN THE MASTERS. HE’S JUST TOO GOOD NOT TO”Jack Nicklaus backs McIlroy to complete the Career Grand Slam…

Jordan GF: £90-£110 Stats: par 72, 6,656 yards Jordan is a beautiful and mountainous country in the Middle East, much of which is desert. It is largely landlocked other than where it borders the Dead Sea and its southernmost outlet into the Red Sea. The country is packed with history, especially up in the hills at Petra and Wadi Rum, but also now offers high-quality golf in the far south. Ayla is a resort in Aqaba that makes a perfect stay-and-play location. It is relatively inaccessible, so the course is seldom busy, with the bonus that it is therefore presented in pristine condition throughout the year. There are film-set backdrops either side looking to the mountains, where the light constantly changes, while the Red Sea shimmers to the south. The…

Robert MacIntyre was hailed as the natural successor to Sandy Lyle and Colin Montgomerie, and the next great Scottish golfer, from the day he decided to concentrate on playing with 14 ‘sticks’ rather than just a shinty one. The left-hander from Oban won Scottish trophies in the boys and youths categories, and then won the Scottish Amateur title and finished runner-up in the Amateur Championship before turning pro at the end of 2017. Comparisons with those previous greats started to gather momentum when MacIntyre last year became the first home golfer to win the Scottish Open since Monty had done so 25 years earlier. As that event also forms part of the PGA Tour schedule – and came hard on the heels of MacIntyre’s breakthrough victory at the Canadian Open…

Lydia Ko began last year wondering how much longer she could delay her seemingly inevitable retirement. But a stunning run in the second half of the season completely flipped the narrative and Ko entered 2025 wondering whether she still has time to complete the Grand Slam of all five women’s Majors. She moved a step closer last year by winning the AIG Women’s Open just a couple of weeks after her epic victory at the Paris Olympics. If the first half of 2024 belonged to Nelly Korda – with her astonishing run of five consecutive victories before the end of April – the second half belonged to Ko, especially as she followed up her Open triumph by winning the Kroger Queen City Championship on her next start. Given that spell…

To achieve a lower flight you need to hit down on the ball more than usual and take some loft off the club. Certain changes at set-up will help here, like moving ball position back towards your trail foot and narrowing your stance. By moving the ball towards your back foot, your hands will naturally find themselves ahead of the ball, which takes loft off the club. I would also encourage you to have around 60% of your weight on your lead side and keep it there throughout the swing. Finally, lower your hands on the grip to create a shorter lever and limit the speed. This will remove some of the unwanted spin and promote a shorter, punchier swing. Can wind affect putts much? By Top 50 Coach Steve…

No real surprises but a classically reliable and impressive Ping product It’s been two years since the roaring success of Ping’s last family of drivers. While we were treated to the launch of the G430 Max 10k driver in 2024, G440 represents two years of R&D from Ping’s team of engineers. The tech story is interesting and centred around CG location, or specifically lowering the CG location. Ping has done this through multiple weight-saving advancements higher up in the head. A combination of a shallower face, a lightweight carbon crown and a technology that Ping is referring to as Free Hosel design helps save significant weight in an attempt to align the CG closer to the ‘force line’ for faster ball speed, optimal spin and higher launch. “THE ADDITION OF…

It’s been a while since we’ve seen the Adizero moniker in golf. Adizero is a name more famous in the brand’s running shoes, from when it was first introduced in 2004. When we saw Adizero for the first time in golf in 2013, it boasted an incredibly lightweight build and, on its return, the story is very much the same. The looks have not won me over, though. This is mostly because, to me, the Tour360 24 shoe is so good-looking that any other Adidas shoe simply pales in comparison. I’ll leave you to make up your mind on the silhouette, which I also think looks better in the red colourway. Where this shoe ultimately shines is in its performance. The new outsole is superb and replicates the grip and…

What was the best new gear that you saw at the recent PGA Show out in Orlando? Matty Wallis, via email Although we had already seen most of the main hardware launches before we got to the show in January, there were still a few big surprises out there, including some new club releases from Bridgestone. Though we know the brand well for its golf balls here in the UK, its hardware has been confined to the Asian market only. We saw the new MB22 irons on the show floor and it appears that Bridgestone is targeting a comeback in the UK and US markets very soon. Elsewhere, Vice was showcasing its newest drivers, fairway woods and hybrids in a move that is seeing the German brand – most famous…

01 Titleist 2025 Pro V1 and Pro V1x The Pro V1 franchise is flying and spinning into its 25th year, and Titleist has used its decades of research and development to enhance yet further one of the most popular balls on tour and at club level. Since its first appearance in 2000, more than 125 patents have been implemented on subsequent generations of Pro V1 and Pro V1x (£52 per dozen), with the team of engineers gathering approximately 20,000 points of data per day of testing. Both new models feature a faster, high-gradient core, which has been reformulated to maintain low long-game spin, increase ball speed and add spin on shots into and around the green. Through this complete reformulation, the ball engineers have steepened what Titleist calls ‘spin slope’,…

Rory, congratulations on winning at Pebble Beach. Can you talk us through that? I was excited to have a little bit of a cushion there on 18. Coming to the last hole at Pebble with a three-shot lead and being able to enjoy it somewhat was really cool. It was a great week for a lot of different reasons – hole-in-one, playing Cypress Point for the first time and obviously getting a win. I couldn’t have wished for a better start to my PGA Tour season. I’ve been on a nice run of form since last autumn. I’ve played some really good golf and continued that into 2025. It’s just a great way to start the year. How special is it to win at such an iconic venue? There are…

As I walked up the final few steps towards Martin Slumbers’ office in the Royal and Ancient clubhouse, I heard a chortle of laughter. Martin was standing at the window, looking out across the links. He turned to me with a broad smile. “Fergus, come and have a look at this,” he said. “I just watched this group teeing off the 1st and two of them hit it on the beach. They’re down there now trying to find their balls.” We watched for a few minutes, empathised with their plight and remembered difficult moments of our own from various 1st tees. After nine years as CEO of The R&A, the 63-year-old still takes huge joy from golf, good and bad! I’ve known Martin for most of his R&A tenure having…

This year represents the 25th anniversary of the ball that changed golf forever. Who would have thought when Billy Andrade won the 2000 Invensys Classic, despite being on the brink of losing his PGA Tour card, that it would usher in the reign of one of the most dominant equipment franchises of all time. Given the market-leading position Titleist has with its premium golf ball, you won’t be surprised to hear there have not been wholesale changes made to the design and the main alterations are not visible, besides a more filled-in side stamp. Most of the technological enhancements have been implemented in the core. The feel off the face with Pro V1 remains much softer and there’s less audible feedback when pitching, chipping and putting – not to the…

The start of the new calendar year is ‘silly season’ for equipment releases. Pretty much every major brand has something to shout about, so it can be tough to keep track of what new gear to get most excited about. Luckily for you, we’ve spent the first few weeks of 2025 keeping close tabs on all the latest and greatest newcomers to hit the golf equipment world. Over the next 12 pages, we give you the lowdown on many of the latest drivers, fairway woods, hybrids, irons, wedges, putters, balls, shoes and even trolleys that have been announced since the start of 2025. When you add in the Callaway Elyte range and the new Srixon balls that we covered in last month’s issue, you’ll see that 2025 is shaping up…

01 Adidas Adizero ZG The return of the Adizero franchise to golf sees the introduction of a sleek, light, spikeless shoe with a redesigned Dynamic Torsion plate and comprehensive new outsole. The design uses an innovative Spikemore traction system, in which lightweight undercut lugs along the perimeter provide improved lateral stability and adaptive traction over different lies and terrains. The Adizero ZG (£150) will have a significant presence on tour this year on the feet of Ludvig Aberg and Collin Morikawa, and will be available for both men and women in standard or Boa lacing versions. 02 FootJoy Fuel Redesigned from the ground up following its original launch in 2022, the FootJoy Fuel (£139) is constructed with lightweight comfort in mind. Benefitting from a premium synthetic upper and an EVA…

Essentials Burnham and Berrow Golf Club, St Christopher’s Way, Burnham-on-sea, Somerset, TA8 2PE Stats: par 71, 6,706 yards GF: contact club Somerset doesn’t boast the quantity of top-quality courses you feel it perhaps should, but its jewel in the crown, Burnham and Berrow, sits in splendid isolation some 40 minutes from Bristol. The club, which dates back to 1891, boasts a strong pedigree, with J.H. Taylor serving as its first professional. Herbert Fowler, Harry Colt and Alister MacKenzie were all involved in designing the challenging but fair Championship layout, which has undergone a series of upgrades over the last few years under the guidance of architect Martin Ebert. The nine-hole Channel course is also well worth playing if you’re in the market for 27 fine holes of golf. Variety is…

Aberdovey – 3rd hole GF: 18 holes: £110 Sun-Thu, £120 Fri-Sat Aberdovey in Wales has benefited from the input of some of golf’s greatest architects including Herbert Fowler, James Braid and Harry Colt. Those three aside, its most important design influence has been nature itself and the rumpled landscape on which it sits. The first two holes skirt just inside the dunes but the 3rd – Cader, meaning seat or chair – takes you right into them. It’s only 166 yards from the back tees, but calls for a full carry over no man’s land to a receptive and bunkerless punchbowl green. Club choice is vital, especially into the prevailing westerly. It’s hard to discern from the tee, but the rule of thumb is to take one more. Cruden Bay,…