Compleat Golfer July 2015

The contrast could not have been starker. One minute I was watching the European players battling the course, weather and, to an extent, their own mental strength on the remarkable Royal County Down course and the next I switched channels to see the Americans playing target golf on a course that looked like it had been photoshopped. Even though the Byron Nelson Classic featured seven South Africans, I struggled to stay interested. It was as though all of the subtle nuances of the sport had been extracted, leaving a diluted version that rewarded bombers and dart throwers who had little need for imagination or course management. Perhaps I’m being a little unfair on the TPC Four Seasons course, given that it was very wet, but Steven Bowditch’s winning score of…

Daniel Slabbert has shown he is clearly the most dominant disabled golfer in South Africa, following his fourth victory in the Nedbank South African Disabled Golf Open in the last five years. The 23-year-old leg amputee from Kathu began the day with a one-shot lead over one-armed Reinard Schuhknecht and this quickly disappeared following a birdie by Schuhknecht on the first hole. The pair battled it out for the next few holes before Slabbert forged ahead and never looked back. A spectacular birdie on the final hole, where Slabbert needed only a 7-iron for his second shot into the par-five 18th, sealed a three-stroke victory over defending champion Josh Williams from Canada. Two-time champion Iglin Grobbelaar fired the low round of the day, a 74, which left him in a…

1 RORY GETS OWNED He may be the best player in the world, but Rory McIlroy is definitely not the strongest, as he found out when he arm-wrestled a 17-year-old golfer during a junior clinic. ■ Bit.ly/RoryArmWrestle 2 THE OFFICIAL FRACAS Much has been said about the altercation between Keegan Bradley and Miguel Ángel Jiménez during the WGC-Cadillac Matchplay Championship. Who do you think was at fault? ■ Bit.ly/KeeganvsMiguel 3 PROFESSIONAL WARM-UPS A great round usually starts with a good warm-up session. Take a look at how some of the world’s best get the job done before teeing up. ■ Bit.ly/CGWarmingUp 4 THE ENTERTAINING ACE Miguel Ángel Jiménez showed why he is such a popular and entertaining character when he made an ace during the Spanish Open and showed us…

Golf shoes are often purchased based on their look, with not much attention paid to the performance, but in the case of the new PUMA TitanTour footwear, the technology in the shoes far outweighs their stylish look. The slogan “Designed to be the coolest shoe in golf” doesn’t refer to the exterior and what they look like, but more about the Outlast memory foam insole, a material that is used to regulate temperature in space suits. This Outlast system regulates your foot temperature no matter how cold or hot it is and keeps your feet in an ideal temperature zone throughout the round to decrease fatigue and increase comfort for the full 18 or more holes. Excess heat created by your foot being inside the shoe is absorbed and stored…

In stark contrast to his regular career, Colin Montgomerie can’t seem to stop winning Majors on the senior tour. The 52-year-old won just about everything on offer as a regular tour golfer, including 46 tournaments and eight European Tour Order of Merit titles, but failed to land a Major title in 71 attempts. Life on the senior tour has been a little kinder to the Scot, who successfully defended his Senior PGA Championship title at French Lick in Indiana in May. He has now won three senior Majors in just 10 attempts. Monty had many close calls in Majors over his career but failed to convert any of those into wins. It seems he’s using that experience to win at senior level. “It was frustrating to come to these championships…

GREENSIDE MANNER A married couple is out for their weekly round of golf, enjoying a great day and great play but on the 9th green, something terrible happens: the wife screams in agony and collapses. “Oh no,” the husband exclaims, “you’re having a heart attack!” “Help me, dear,” the wife implores, “find a doctor.” The husband runs off as fast as he can to find a doctor. He returns to the green quickly, picks up his putter and lines up his putt. His wife raises her head off the green and glares at him. “I’m dying over here and you’re putting!?” she asks incredulously. “Don’t worry dear,” says the husband calmly. “I found a doctor on the 2nd hole and he’s coming to help you.” “Well, how long will it…