5. Ogilvy’s keys to Royal Melbourne
Great work by Ben Everill for PGATour.com co-crafting a piece with Geoff Ogilvy on the Royal Melbourne vet’s keys to the course…
Here’s one…”Tee shots are all about position, not distance. The big-bombing Americans will need finesse as well as brawn this week.”
- “Says Ogilvy: “The importance of your tee shot is not about being able to get it as close as you can to the green… it is important to get yourself in a position to find the right place on the green with your next shot.”
- “You can’t outmuscle Royal Melbourne. Distance is valuable in some spots but sometimes it’s a 4-iron off the tee and sometimes it is a driver. Power is usually always an advantage but it is a balanced advantage here.
- “You need to work out where to be by theoretically playing the hole backwards. Sometimes the rough on the correct side of the hole is better than the fairway on the wrong side of the hole. You have to find that position from the tee and that can be tough as it is very wide and the best position isn’t always obvious.”
See the full piece for the other 6 secrets.
6. Best courses built this decade
A few from Digest’s list of 13…
Old Macdonald, Bandon, Ore. – An ode to the Founding Father of American Course Design, C.B. Macdonald, Old Mac is the second course by Tom Doak and Jim Urbina at Bandon Dunes, and the fourth 18-hole course that opened. The brainchild of Mike Keiser and his respect to the old-school design elements of Macdonald, Doak and Urbina created some of the architects’ favorite template holes that sit on some of the most interesting topography on property.
Cabot Cliffs, Nova Scotia, Canada – Another sensational Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw design, Cabot Cliffs overflows with variety with its southernmost holes in Lahinch-like sand dunes, its northernmost atop Pebble Beach-type ocean cliffs and bits of pine-lined Scottish highlands in between. The course has six par 5s, including three in the space of four holes, and six par 3s, plus an additional one-shot bye-hole aside the fourth. Sporting the same fescue turf mix as nearby sister course, Cabot Links, some tee shots seem to roll forever, but so do errant shots that miss greens. The cliff-edged par-3 16th is quickly becoming one of golf’s most photographed holes.
7. Economic benefits of an Open
Mark Rainey at News Letter…”The Open Championship at Royal Portrush generated more than £100 million of economic benefit for Northern Ireland, a new study has revealed.”
- “The prestigious golf tournament returned to Northern Ireland for the first time in 68 years – having been staged at the north coast club back in 1951.”
- “Commissioned by Sheffield Hallam University’s Sport Industry Research Centre, the report’s figures relate to the week of the tournament in July this year.”
- “More than 237,000 fans attended over the four days of competition which was a record number for the Championship outside of St Andrew’s in Scotland, with 57.6% of spectators from outside Northern Ireland.”
Full piece.
8. Should Reed be limited?
From the Golf.com crew…Given everything that’s happened, should the Patrick Reed controversy affect how much U.S. team captain Tiger Woods should play him?
“Jonathan Wall, equipment editor (@jonathanrwall): Not a chance. Tiger knew what he was getting when he burned a captain’s pick on Reed. Even in the aftermath of Bunkergate (Waste-Area-gate?), he stood up for Reed when the public was demanding he be bounced from the squad. The only thing that matters to Tiger this week is how Reed performs on the course. If he balls out, none of this will matter. And we all know Reed tends to play his best golf when he has a massive chip on his shoulder.”
“Alan Bastable, executive editor: (@alan_bastable): If Tiger doesn’t send out Reed in the first match, I’m boycotting the rest of the event. Better yet, Capt. Woods should pair himself with Reed – how better to support his controversial compatriot than to pace the fairways with him. Imagine the scene on the first tee. You’d feel the earth quake from Melbourne to Manhattan. Give the people want they want.”
9. Frank’s story
Sean Zak at Golf.com went on a fact-finding mission relating to the origin of Tiger Woods’ famed headcover. It’s made by Daphne Headcovers, but that is only part of the story…
- “Spicer isn’t hiding those headcovers from you or me or some headcover burglar. She’s guarding against total catastrophe. If anything tragic happened to her nearby warehouse – which holds more than 10,000 headcovers and their decades-old designs – she would always have those six tigers in their own little cage. Consider them headcover insurance, because Spicer just never knows when Tiger Woods’ mother, Tida, will come calling again for a replacement.”
- “Spicer, 56, is the always-smiling CEO of Daphne’s Headcovers, and through luck, persistence and a commitment to her customers (see above), she has provided the 15-time major winner with his world famous tiger headcover for 24 years. When Tida Woods phones, all other calls get dropped. It’s the most important business Spicer has.”
- “I remember three dates,” she says with a chuckle. “The birthdays of my two children and the date that Tiger first won the Masters. That’s pretty much it.”
Full piece. |