Innehållsförteckning för October 2018 från Golf Australia

WHAT would you pay to be able to hit a 320-yard drive every time you stood up on the tee with a driver in your hand? Would you pay a thousand bucks? A million? Maybe 10 million? If you paid 10 large you might just get your money back if you join the PGA Tour, after all if you can hit it 320-yard drives you will be right alongside the longest on Tour – Rory McIlroy. Sounds fanciful, doesn’t it? And when something sounds this fanciful you can bet your house on the fact that a scientist is in the dark corner of a laboratory somewhere trying to turn fantasy into fact. That’s how scientists got a man to walk on the moon. That’s how they have saved millions of…

THE funny thing is that, all those years ago now, the supposedly naive Rory McIlroy was dead right:The Ryder Cup is nothing more than an exhibition. It doesn’t really matter – not not even a little bit – which team wins or loses.The result, at least for the individuals directly involved, has no real historical significance. In fact, citing a player’s wins, draws and losses at the Ryder Cup in a debate as to his quality or otherwise is actually an admission that “otherwise” is going to be the ultimate verdict. (See Ian Poulter). As Tiger Woods once reminded us, virtually no one can recite the (actually pretty mediocre) record accumulated by Jack Nicklaus when representing the United States in the biennial competition against the rampaging European hordes. But just…

IDEAS TO GROW THE GAME As I settle in for some night reading and Euro PGA golf viewing on a cold Melbourne night, I must concur with Ken Lockery and the substance of his Letter to the Editor (GA August 2018). So to expand on his final words, how can we grow the game? For me, the key is encouraging younger players to take up the game. So what incentives can be offered to our youth to play the game, become members and consolidate a solid future for the best sport in the world? Intermediate memberships for those under 35, which cost half that of full memberships are a winning recipe with my son and his mates. They give younger players access at a good price and over time the…

IT WAS probably no coincidence Melbourne recently lost its title of the “world’s most liveable city” to Vienna as another golf course closed. For someone who has lived in this town for the best part of 70 years, I regarded this dubious tag with deep suspicion because what was a marvellous town in the 1950s, when it hosted the Olympic Games, has gone steadily downhill since. The public course in question is Elsternwick, about eight kilometres south of the CBD, which was shut down by the Bayside City Council on June 30. Rather than lament the loss of a layout, which has provided enjoyment and healthy exercise since 1909, the city fathers (possibly some mothers as well) celebrated it with a public sausage sizzle. Then they followed up with this…

OPTION ONE LEAVE THE GAME AS IT CURRENTLY IS Left as it is, unchallenged in any way, it’s hard to imagine the game wouldn’t just keep on getting longer. That’s evolution, after all. Another sharp rise in distance on the pro tours, such as that which followed the introduction of the Titleist Pro V1 ball in 2000, is unlikely thanks to restrictions put on equipment that now limit the initial velocity and combined carry and roll of the ball, size of the driver head, a clubface’s spring effect, and a club’s length. But distance is likely to keep creeping up thanks to variables over which the governing bodies have less control: superior athleticism, equipment optimisation and, to a degree, better turf conditions. “There’s no doubt distance will continue to increase…

MODELS PLAYED: JPX 919 Tour (3-iron to pitching wedge), fitted with True Temper Dynamic Gold 120 S300 shafts. JPX 919 Forged (4-iron to gap wedge), with True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 S300 shafts. JPX 919 Hot Metal (4-iron to pitching wedge), with Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 Tour 105 R shafts. FIRST IMPRESSIONS: When I first laid eyes on the previous JPX 900 Tour iron I was instantly intrigued, having long associated Mizuno’s JPX line with oversized, forgiving models and always preferring the MP range. Brooks Koepka’s continued success with the model only served to further peak this interest. The new JPX 919 Tour follows closely in the footsteps of its predecessor, and looks even better with a slightly smaller head size and a lack of colourful paint fill, while the…

MODELS PLAYED: Ping i210 (4-iron to pitching wedge), fitted with True Temper Dynamic Gold 120 S300 shafts and Ping i500 (4-iron to pitching wedge), with True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 S300 shafts. FIRST IMPRESSIONS: Both models had instant visual appeal in terms of the back of the iron and at address. When placed behind the ball the difference was negligible for mine as to which model I preferred, with the edge going perhaps slightly to the i500. Once I had made my first swing with the i500 I knew I was dealing with a different sort of golf club. The feel was firm and extremely powerful; the ball coming off the face with an extremely penetrating low spin trajectory that still launched high enough and seemed to go forever. Where…

AVAILABILITY: The Red Ball is available in 34 and 35 inches in right hand models and 35 inches only for left handers. ODYSSEY SAYS: The Red Ball is a face-balanced, high MOI mallet designed to get golfers into the correct posture over the ball before making a putting stroke, and uses a distinct ‘Red Ball’ located under a ‘Scope’ within the head to perfectly position the face at address. By placing the head so the Red Ball can be seen exactly in the middle of the Scope from above, golfers can instantly see that they are giving themselves the best possible conditions to deliver a repeatable stroke to hole more putts. They can also adjust their position, if the ball is located off-centre to the scope, to dial in a…

We stayed in the Swissotel Merchant Court on Clarke Quay where they brought us beer as we lazed in the pool. And I’m not talking about a paper cup I’m talking a glass of beer. Head to Singapore, you want to stay somewhere like it. Clarke Quay, Robertson Quay, Boat Quay equals Fun City. We dined on Malay, Chinese and Indian cuisine close to water. Head into any restaurant on the river, ask for the seafood banquet and boom, out comes half-dozen courses of seafood surprise. Incredible food. Great with beer or cold white, or even red wine. We loved our night at Our Village, an Indian place with views of the skyline. Sparkling views, great food, long table, all your mates – super evening. Singapore has six of the…

THE COURSE ADDRESS: 1 Fairway Drive, Clear Island Waters. CONTACT: (07) 5572 6088, (07) 5575 1666 (pro shop); www.surfersparadisegolfclub.com.au DESIGNER: Ken Eglit & Warwick Thomas (1967). GREEN FEES: $56 (18 holes). Specials include – Play unlimited golf Monday, walking only $27; After 1pm for four hours of play, two people including a cart $85 (Tuesday, Thursday, Friday & Sunday). PGA PROFESSIONALS: Paul Orchard and Ben Jewell. COURSE SUPERINTENDENT: Duncan Lamont. THE CLUB MEMBERSHIPS: Surfers Paradise Golf Club offers seven categories of memberships including three-, five- and seven-day male and female memberships. The seven day membership is currently open and offers seven day playing rights, unrestricted use of the golf club facilities as well as a $250 bar and bistro allowance. There are no green fees attached to this class of…

IF I KEEP PLAYING LIKE I AM AND HOW I SHOULD THEN I’M GOING TO STAY NUMBER ONE. I’VE GOT A LOT OF CONFIDENCE IN MY GAME. DUSTIN JOHNSON’S victory at the St. Jude Classic saw him return to World No.1. He’s also only the third player in PGA Tour history to win a title in each of his first 11 seasons.The other two? Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods. Pretty good company to keep.The 34-year-old tells Golf Australia about tackling Tiger, shot clocks on tour and his Ryder Cup predictions. 1 How important was it to regain your position as World No.1? Losing it is going to motivate me to work harder and get my game back into the form that I think it should be…

THE field is set for the first edition of the Australian All Abilities Championship. Four Australians will be among the elite 12-person field to play at Sydney’s The Lakes Golf Club during the Emirates Australian Open. In a world first, golfers with a disability will compete on the same course, under the same tournament playing conditions, alongside many of the world’s best touring professionals competing for the Open’s time-honoured Stonehaven Cup. The AAAC field will also feature seven Europeans and one golfer from the Dominican Republic as part of the collaboration between Golf Australia and the European Disabled Golf Association, which also aims to increase the profile of inclusive golf on the global stage. R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers was thrilled with the Golf Australia initiative. “We’re delighted (the tournament…

DRIVER Cobra King F8+ with 8° loft, fitted with TPT 14 MKP LT shaft. 3-WOOD Cobra King LTD Black 3/4 with 14.5° loft, with Project X HZRDUS Black 85X shaft. 5-WOOD Cobra King F8+ Baffler with 17.5° loft, with Project X HZRDUS Black 85X shaft. Cobra King One Length Utility (4- and 5-iron), and Cobra King IRONS Forged One Length (6-iron to pitching wedge), all with True Temper Dynamic Gold X7 shafts at 37.5 inches. Cobra King V Grind (50°) and Cobra King WideLow Grind (55° and WEDGES 60°), all with True Temper Dynamic Gold X7 shafts at 37.5 inches. PUTTER SIK Pro. BALL Bridgestone Tour B X.…

SPOT THE BALL MINJEE LEE has been in hot form during 2018 with one win and 11 top-10 finishes. Here, she is flushing an approach shot. But can you spot her ball? All you have to do is correctly identify where her ball is hidden on the grid, using the letters and numbers (eg. A4, B2 etc). Answer correctly and you could win two dozen Mizuno JPX-S golf balls. The new JPX-S is a soft compression edition of Mizuno’s three piece ball – producing a balanced performance for a wider range of swing speeds, which also boasts Mizuno’s Dimple-Cluster design for improved aerodynamics. TO ENTER: Select your grid reference and then go to our website, www.golfaustralia.com.au, to submit your answer. Entries close 11.59pm on October 24. The winner and the…

IT’S been a while since a golfer has impressed me as much as Brooks Koepka did in claiming the US PGA Championship title in August. On a final day when just about everyone wanted Tiger Woods to win and complete one of the most remarkable comebacks in sport never mind golf, Brooks showed himself to be clearly the better player in almost every respect. Which was a weird thing to watch for those of us who grew up watching Tiger win just about everything. But in winning at Bellerive, Brooks drove the ball amazingly well. And his iron play was just about as good. What a golfer he is turning out to be. Indeed, this was even better than when he won the US Open at Shinnecock Hills in June.…

In March this year, the USGA and R&A issued its annual Distance Report, a joint statement that sent ripples of shock through the game of golf. The shock wasn’t that the report noted that driving distances were on the rise – that much was more than a suspicion. It was more that the USGA and the R&A vowed to investigate further – and the unspoken inference that change could possibly be afoot. Almost six months later, that investigation remains ongoing, with no announcement on when it will be complete or its findings made public. But those six months have given us time to fully digest the Distance Report and to dig deeper. Over the next 12 pages, we attempt to present the evidence – all you need to know on…

SUITABILITY: The three JPX 919 iron models are targeted at three different golfers, with the Tour model perfect for professionals and low handicappers, the Forged ideal for elite players seeking distance or average players wanting a combination of forged feel and forgiveness and the Hot Metal suiting mid to high handicap players seeking increased distance and launch, as well as forgiveness. SHAFTS: The full range of grips and shafts on offer through Mizuno’s Performance Fitting System are available at no upcharge. LEFT HANDED: Both the JPX 919 Forged and Hot Metal are available in left handed. MIZUNO SAYS: The JPX919 is a highly engineered series of irons, evolved alongside Mizuno’s custom fitting program to produce exceptional performance. Three different base materials, each with the properties to enhance the results from…

SUITABILITY: The i500 irons suit low to mid-handicap players looking for an iron with a traditional blade-like appearance combined with impressive distance, while the i210 will appeal to better players looking for a forgiving but workable option. SHAFTS: True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 and UST Mamiya Recoil ES SMAC come standard in the i500, while True Temper Dynamic Gold 120 and PING ALTA CB shafts are the standard for the i210. And a range of aftermarket shafts are also offered at no upcharge. LEFT HANDED: Both the i210 and i500 are available for left-handers. PING SAYS: The sleek-shaped i500 iron employs much of the same technology as the G700 in a smaller, more compact, muscle-back appearance. Its forged, C300 maraging-steel face is precision milled and combined with a 17-4 stainless…

Singapore is super easy to get around. Cabs are clean and cheap and convenient. Thirteen-seat mini-buses go for about $75 per journey. Our group of 10 lined up the driver from our first trip to be our driver the entire time. He brought beers with him. He smiled a lot. Cracked gags. He was a dead ringer for Kiradech Aphibarnrat. Even when road works meant his GPS betrayed us, we weren’t lost for long. Our man the ‘Barn Rat’ got us to the church on time every time. Our group was in Singapore the weekend Donald Trump was meeting Kim Jong Un. We played golf on the very island, Sentosa, where they were to meet. Yet apart from the odd military helicopter, a flotilla of police boats on the water,…

THE COURSE LOCATION: 16 Nineteenth Ave, Kirwan, Townsville, Queensland. CONTACT: (07) 4773 4777. WEBSITE: www.tropicsgolfclub.com.au DESIGNERS: Original designer unknown (1981), Graham Papworth (2005), Graham Marsh Golf Design (ongoing). SLOPE RATINGS: MEN: 130 (blue tees), 127 (white), 115 (yellow). WOMEN: 123 (red and yellow tees). PLAYING SURFACES: Bermuda (fairways). Five greens have recently been replaced with Bermuda TifEagle, the remaining 13 greens are Bermuda Tifdwarf, soon to be replaced with TifEagle. GREEN FEES: $28 (18 holes, Sunday-Friday); $32 (Saturday). Weekday special – unlimited golf with a twin share cart $32.50 per player. COURSE SUPERINTENDENT: Brett Barsby. PGA PROFESSIONALS: Matthew Duke, Stephen P. Oliver and looking for two more PGA professionals to grow with the team at Tropics Golf Club THE CLUB MEMBERSHIP: Membership at Tropics Golf Club is limited to…

AUSTRALIANS have donated a record $7.097 million to golf via the Australian Sports Foundation over the 2017-18 financial year – further highlighting the important role the sport has in Australian communities. The fundraising result for golf was a 65 percent increase on the 2016-17 fundraising total of $4.276m. Overall, the Sports Foundation raised $44.7m for the second successive year and takes total donations to sport over the past four years to nearly $150m. Golf retained third place on the overall fundraising table – behind Multi-Sports ($12.476m) and Australian Football ($12.265m) – and represents $9.57 per participant (based on data taken from the AusPlay sport sector participation survey). Australian Sports Foundation Chief Executive, Patrick Walker, said the 2017-18 financial year was highlighted by significant growth in athlete fundraising (up 142 percent);…

IF IT wasn’t the first three putt that had me thinking, it was definitely the third or fourth. This is a whole new world, I promise. Up there with a shank-free round and not finding the fairway with a provisional ball (why is that second ball straighter?). For some reason, and hoping not to sound like a total knob, the horror of the multi-three putts per round is something I’ve generally managed to avoid. Generally – until now. There had to be a reason. It wasn’t the greens, which, a week before coring, were fantastic. It wasn’t the ball or even a crooked stripe to putt to. Nope, it was something else, and aside from my good self, that left the putter. Obviously, no one was more surprised. This thing…

1 Why are the R&A and USGA acting now? Having witnessed only a modest increase across seven global tours in their previous two annual driving distance reports, the USGA and R&A felt no reason to act. Since 2003, they noted, we have seen only a “slow creep of around 0.2 yards per year”. When the 2017 distance report landed on their desks, however, the two bodies noted, as one, that the slow creep had become too significant to ignore. “The 2017 data shows a deviation from this trend,” read the report’s preamble. “The average distance gain across the seven worldwide tours was more than three yards since 2016.” The slow creep upwards had been replaced by something more alarming. “Our 2002 Joint Statement of Principles put a line in the…

1 I’m a good iron player but there’s more to hitting it close than simply hitting it pure. One of the biggest differences in my play in the past 18 months is patience. By that I mean I’ve learned not to go at every flag, especially when my swing isn’t firing on all cylinders, something that happens more than you might think. 2 I play short-range chips with a slightly closed stance to stabilise my lower body. Everything else I’ll play from a slightly open stance. The key is to keep your weight on your front foot and your chest covering the ball during the swing, which will help you keep the body turning and let the club do the work. 3 Even at the pro level, your swing changes…

RORY MCILROY ‘Use your legs to generate more power’ I’m not a massive guy but one of the reasons I’m able to generate so much power is the way I use my legs when I transition into the downswing. As I’m completing the backswing, I brace against the inside of my right leg. I’m pushing into the ground, and I can feel my right leg resisting the turn of my upper body. That stores a lot of power for the second half of the swing. As I start the downswing, I lead with my legs. I’m trying to get my left knee out the way so the club can whip through the hitting area. But you don’t want to make a big slide to your front side with the left…

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: Having seen plenty of fads come and go in equipment, I was a little wary of the concept of using a ball and scope when lining up putts. But once I got the Red Ball in my hands and onto the putting green, I was sold on the setup and alignment benefits of the design. The feel off the face was instantly recognisable as an Odyssey putter, with a nice, soft impact – and the DFX grip, one of my all-time favourite putter grips, that comes standard on the Red Ball was a major plus. HOW IT PERFORMED: Alignment when putting, particularly from close range, is perhaps the most important aspect of what can be the most frustrating yet simple part of the game and as my time…