Indholdsfortegnelse for April 2020 i Golf Monthly

The April issue of Golf Monthly has always been our traditional Masters preview edition and in my 14 years as editor I’ve always used my welcome note to wax lyrical about the season’s first Major. Azaleas, Amen Corner, back-nine roars, Tiger, elevation changes, watching the drama unfold from the sofa, Georgia on my mind… you know the drill. Well, that was the plan, until the latest Distance Insights Report from The R&A and USGA landed in our inboxes. After two years of diligent research and gauging opinion from golfers at every level of the game, the governing bodies have unequivocally said they believe increasing length has become “detrimental to the game”. If you feel like you’ve heard this before, you’re not wrong. The view has really been in effect since…

Golf is one of the most mentally demanding sports. To bounce back from the continuous blows the game throws takes great patience and self-control. But playing to any level of competence requires a degree of physical ability. Producing a solid, repeatable swing involves a certain amount of flexibility and strength. And continuing to reproduce this action as pressure builds and time elapses over 18 holes takes fitness and stamina. It doesn’t matter how much mental fortitude someone has if they are unable to make an effective, consistent pass at the ball. Players with greater physical prowess can reduce most holes to two blows. They can attack pins with more loft, blast out of trouble, cut corners on doglegs. Quite simply, they have more options. You can’t think your ball over…

I unfortunately started off my 2020 with three missed cuts in the desert, but it’s not something I’m concerned about. I put so much work into my short game in the off-season knowing it had to improve and I think I lost the balance in terms of keeping every part of my game ticking over. The positive for me is the fact my short game has improved massively and the confidence has come back. As we get into the meat of the season, I’m optimistic I’ll start making more of those pressure up-and-downs and see the benefits of the work I’ve done over the past couple of months. It was a bit of a shame to miss those three cuts, but there were some good spells in there and I…

2017 US Open A first-round 67 put the American at the top end of the leaderboard at Erin Hills, but two rounds in the 70s damaged his chances of victory. A final-round 69 earned him a tied-5th finish. 2018 US Open A year later at Shinnecock Hills, Schauffele had no real chance of victory but shot a sublime 68 on a tough Sunday to tie for 6th. 2018 Open Championship Tied for the lead with Jordan Spieth and Kevin Kisner heading into the final round at Carnoustie (left), a 74 dropped him into a tie for 2nd behind Francesco Molinari. 2019 Masters He registered another tie for 2nd at Augusta in 2019. Five birdies in seven holes got him to the top of the leaderboard before Tiger surged ahead. 2019…

Rory McIlroy McIlroy held the honour for one week back in 2007 and has gone on to win four Majors, with The Masters the only one missing from his resume. Jordan Spieth Spieth took over from Cantlay as amateur World No.1 in 2012. Since then, the Texan has claimed three Major titles and needs a USPGA Championship win to complete the Career Grand Slam. Lydia Ko Ko was the best female amateur in the world for an astounding 130 weeks and went on to win the 2015 Evian Championship and 2016 ANA Inspiration. She has 11 Major top-tens. Danny Willett The Englishman had a stellar amateur career and has won some huge events as a pro, most notably the 2016 Masters, where he came through the field with a sublime…

GARY PLAYER 1961, 1974, 1978 Player became the first non-American winner of the Masters in 1961, when he got up and down from the bunker on the 18th to claim a one-shot victory. He finished runner-up in ‘62 and ’65, before finally slipping the Green Jacket on again in ’74. Four years later, he completed the hat-trick, coming from seven strokes back with a scintillating final-round 64. TREVOR IMMELMAN 2008 Immelman became the first South African to win The Masters since Player. Much of the good work was done after opening with three rounds in the 60s, and despite a few wobbles on the back nine on Sunday, including a double-bogey on the par-3 16th, he held on to win by three strokes over Tiger Woods. CHARL SCHWARTZEL 2011 Schwartzel…

IAN POULTER WITH MICHAEL HARRIS Putt Like A Pro Ian Poulter shares some of the secrets that have made him deadly on the greens throughout his career I was always a pretty good putter from an early age. Putting was just something I practised a lot when I was at the club, whether that was as a junior spending a lot of time on the putting green or when I was working in the shop and had a break. I quickly picked up the natural feel of putting and was able to visualise putts going in, which I think is key. Putting has always been an aspect of the game I have really enjoyed and I hope my insight will help you become more effective with the flat-stick this season.…

1 Beating a slice Strengthen your grip a little. A slice is invariably from an outside path, so you could also practise with a bucket of balls on the inside of the ball and try to hit away from it, rather than in to it as you would from the outside. 2 Reading greens I was told to always read putts side-on. If you’ve got a 10ft putt, I’d read it from the low side and break it into three. The first three feet doesn’t really do much, the middle three feet I’d have a bit of a look at, and then at the end, when the ball is losing its speed, that’s when it breaks the most. 3 Match play You’ve got to change your thinking. You’re not just…

Gear News Round-Up Matt Wallace has joined Callaway and will play a full bag that includes Mavrik woods, Apex Pro irons and Jaws MD5 wedges. Henrik Stenson has signed a multi-year partnership with Ecco to wear its hybrid shoes. The Swede has been wearing the new S-Three shoe. Sergio Garcia switched to the TaylorMade SIM driver in Saudi Arabia, despite using a Ping G410 Plus just weeks before in Abu Dhabi. Eddie Pepperell will play a full bag of Ping clubs for the 2020 season, including G410 woods, i210 irons and a custom PLD PrimeTyne putter. Keegan Bradley has switched into the TaylorMade SIM Max D driver, claiming to have picked up eight yards off the tee with the lighter model. SPOTTED ON TOUR Midweek switch Brooks Koepka used a…

Lee Westwood’s just done it at 46 and so has Graeme McDowell at 40. Phil Mickelson, who turns 50 this summer, remains highly likely to do it again while Tiger Woods, 44, has done it at Augusta and who would bet against a repeat before he’s finished. We’re talking triumph and age here, middle age, the time when sportsmen are supposed to be offering cliches about their game on TV, designing golf courses or just lying back somewhere warm while giggling at the life they have enjoyed to date. It’s claimed that wisdom comes with age, but I don’t subscribe to this particular adage. For me, it is not wisdom that arrives around the same time as sore knees and attractive wrinkles but an abrupt realisation that, mostly, as a…

Focus on course set-up I’m not sure if all the talk about altering equipment to reduce the distance a player can hit the ball is the best way forward for the game as a whole. Given the way the courses are set up in the US, with the emphasis on hitting it long and less premium on accuracy, I can’t help but think something is missing. Surely a more welcome option would be to make courses more strategic, like many of the pre-1930 courses here in the UK. I’ve seen many shorter par 4s and par 5s that have fairways broken up by heather, gorse and deeper rough. This naturally causes the golfer to think about a lay up or a more risky shot. After all, and I may be…

Photography: Kevin Murray…

7,475 Augusta National’s yardage 13 Highest score on any hole in Masters history: Sergio Garcia, 15th hole, 2018; Tom Weiskopf, 12th hole, 1980; Tommy Nakajima, 13th hole, 1978 95 The highest round in Masters history, recorded by Charles Kunkle in 1956’s final round 2019 The last time the course’s length was extended 34/48 Front nine/back nine scores for Jacky Cupit in 1963, the most contrasting round in Masters history 80,000 More than 80,000 plants of over 350 varieties have been added since Augusta opened 1 The par-4 10th has statistically been the toughest hole at Augusta National (4.31 average) 63 Course record (Nick Price, third round, 1986 and Greg Norman, first round, 1996) 29 Low back nine (Mark Calcavecchia, fourth round, 1992 and David Toms, fourth round, 1998) 270 72-hole record (Tiger Woods, 1997…

289 Highest 72-hole winning score: Zach Johnson (2007), Jack Burke (1956), Sam Snead (1954) 87 Rounds of 80 or higher in 1965, out of a total of 320 4 Albatrosses in Masters history: Gene Sarazen, 15th hole, 1935; Bruce Devlin, 8th hole, 1967; Jeff Maggert, 13th hole, 1994; Louis Oosthuizen, 2nd hole, 2012 2 Number of rounds at par or better during the second round of the 1954 Masters 6 Players to birdie the 72nd hole to win The Masters when they had to: Art Wall (1959), Arnold Palmer (1960), Gary Player (1978), Sandy Lyle (1988), Mark O’Meara (1998), Phil Mickelson (2004) 11 Most birdies in a single Masters round, recorded by Anthony Kim in the second round in 2009 3 Players have won The Masters on their debuts: Horton Smith (1934),…

506 Number of birdies recorded by Jack Nicklaus in his Masters career. He had a record 39 rounds under 70 1961 The year Gary Player became the first non-American winner of The Masters 12,061 Strokes played by Gary Player in 164 career Masters rounds. Remarkably, he’s taken part in 52 Masters 2 Number of players to have played over 100 Masters rounds with sub-par scoring averages: Nicklaus and Mickelson 32.60 The average age of all Masters Champions 17 Players have won multiple Masters, most recently Bubba Watson in 2014 71 Sub-par rounds by Jack Nicklaus at The Masters 3 Only three men have successfully defended The Masters: Jack Nicklaus (1965-66), Nick Faldo (1989-90) and Tiger Woods (2001-02) 23 Most consecutive cuts made: Couples and Player 5 Wire-to-wire winners of The Masters: Jordan Spieth (2015),…

Find an upslope Another good way to practise is to find a slight upslope to hit drives from. This will also encourage you to stay behind the ball more, rather than getting too steep.…

Odyssey Stroke Lab Marxman Putter JAMES ADKIN East Grinstead, West Sussex Handicap: 18 Why did you decide to buy the product? I‘d always used an off-the-shelf blade putter but my backswing would often not maintain the correct path, which would result in off-centre strikes. When tired or nervous I would often turn the clubhead and miss putts I should really have been making. How has the product been performing? The results of a fitting showed a mallet putter helped improve my club path. The feel is great and I get the added benefit of the long alignment line. The fitting was a quick and fun process that has resulted in me having a putter I know matches my stroke, boosting my confidence. Titleist TruFeel Ball BILL MARTIN Ballytore, County Kildare…

Earlier this year, the World Golf Group announced its proposal to institute a Premier Golf League, which would launch in either 2022 or 2023. The plan is to create an 18-tournament circuit offering a total prize fund of $240m. The tournaments would take place over 54 holes and the fields would comprise four 12-player teams. But does this new concept have the potential to be successful and would it be good for the professional game? On paper, it looks an intriguing prospect. But a salient point is that both the European and PGA Tours are under no obligation to be accommodating and could ban their members from playing in Premier Golf League events. Photography: Getty Images, Tom Miles Golf is a game steeped in tradition and there’s a reason why…

Galvin Green 2020 Part One Apparel from £55 Headlining the latest apparel collection from Galvin Green, which features nearly 300 performance garments, is the Apollo Gore-Tex Paclite waterproof jacket. It features front pockets for the first time, which are carefully designed so they don’t create any unwanted distractions or swing interference while also adding just 25 grams to the 300g total weight. Easy to pack into the golf bag, the Apollo jacket is breathable and feels extremely soft. Shaped sleeves provide easy movement and the elasticated cuffs and waist have Velcro adjusters. An elasticated drawstring at the hem delivers a comfortable fit. Also new to the Gore-Tex waterproof range is a half-zip Ashby Shakedry (£290), with an extra side zip making it easier to take on and off while off…

A meander up Magnolia Lane is back in our thoughts and I for one am thrilled. I reckon we think more about Augusta National as a club and course than the Major it hosts, such is the beauty and magic of the place. It’s such an amazing locale, with the whitest of bunkers, rhododendrons in full bloom, lightning fast greens, Amen Corner and a clubhouse that could be from Hansel and Gretel. If the golf course could tell stories, they would blow your mind. I’m not sure there’s another Major venue that parallels Augusta in terms of the drama it creates on a consistent basis. The two par 3s and the two reachable par 5s on the back nine come at completely the right time and often take centre stage,…

Former Ryder Cup captain Paul Azinger began this year with a bold prediction. Standing behind the first tee at Kapalua’s Plantation course, the analyst declared that 2020 would be the year of Patrick Cantlay. “By the end of the year, Patrick Cantlay will be World No.1,” Azinger told me. “That’s a statement, right?!” In the past three years, former amateur World No.1 Cantlay has started to blossom with two wins on the PGA Tour. Last year, he finished in the top ten at The Masters and the USPGA at Bethpage. Physically, he’s a prodigiously talented golfer. But Azinger feels it is Cantlay’s demeanour that stands out. “He hits it great, but he has that stoic personality,” Azinger said. “I told [Cantlay] he’s my favourite player to watch. I loved watching…

or what seemed like an eternity, Erik Van Rooyen could only watch and wait to see whether he’d end the year in the world’s top 50 to qualify automatically for his Masters debut. He had downed tools after the season ended in Dubai, which left his position in some jeopardy. Monday mornings were spent checking the updated rankings to see if his points had “depreciated like a car”. Fortunately for the South African, they held their value, and a few weeks later he got one of those fancy invites in the post from Augusta’s Board of Governors. Place secured. Qualification came on the back of his most successful season on the European Tour to date. In August, he won his maiden title at the Scandinavian Invitation in Sweden, and he…

Caution: You’ve got to be a bit careful as the ball tends to come off the face quite fast, but that also gives you more time to keep everything smooth.…

Once again Golf Monthly descended on mass to Orlando, Florida, last month for the annual PGA Merchandise Show. Before leaving I thought I’d seen almost everything that is new for 2020 already, but once again I was proved wrong. Besides chatting to industry gurus like Bob Vokey, Scotty Cameron and Guerin Rife, it was as much about the experiences as it was a product showcase, with brands coming up with innovative ways to immerse visitors into their latest gadgets and enjoy what they offer. First up was a spot of FootGolf using the Foresight Sports GCHawk technology, followed by trying to hole a 16 per cent breaking putt on the Zen Green putting stage. I then headed over to Adidas to try (badly) and capture six hidden outsole lugs on…

You need a putter in your bag that you’re excited to pull out and positively roll in that birdie putt, not one you dread to use because you’re scared of three-putting yet again. Confidence can often come simply from making a change, but modern technology will certainly make it easier to get the ball in the hole in a fewer number of shots. How? Well, alignment aids have become much more pronounced – the new Triple Track models from Odyssey are testament to this. There has also been a big focus on forgiveness without sacrificing feel. Through adjustable weighting and clever milling patterns, brands are able to make the heads perform more consistently, regardless of the point of contact with the ball. “I switched to a new shape last year…

By the time you read this, the worst of our incredibly wet autumn and winter will hopefully be a thing of the past. In my 40 years of playing, this has been one of the toughest times for clubs as they have wrestled with protecting their courses from further damage at the same time as keeping members and visitors happy. All of this is further influenced by the need to keep revenue coming in. There were times when I doubted whether the course I was playing should have been open. My concern was the potential harm to the playing surfaces, as much by foot as by ball. Courses I have played over many years suffered substantially more than ever before, with two exceptions being my games at the free-draining Gog…