Thursday 7 July 2016
With 35 years under his belt, Troon course manager Billy McLachlan is well versed in setting up a course for a Major. He has overseen four Open Championships at Royal Troon and this year will be his third in charge of the greenkeeping team. But what can we expect when golf’s biggest names descend on Ayrshire? How is the course shaping up?...
Thursday 7 July 2016
Even off the back tees Troon’s Postage Stamp is only 123 yards. It’s the shortest hole in Major Championship golf, so should be a simple wedge for the world’s most elite players. It’s not. Throw in the ever-present breeze, the pressure of a Major, a green that’s only 10 yards wide and some of the deepest bunkers on the course, and...
Thursday 7 July 2016
Did you ever think you’d win a Major championship? Yes, actually. I almost won the Masters in 1988 only to be denied when Sandy Lyle pulled off that amazing shot from the 18th bunker. I definitely thought I’d win the Masters. But I didn’t think too much about The Open, especially after I shot a million at Royal Lytham in...
Thursday 7 July 2016
Did the massive Troon crowds drive and spur you on? I always seemed to draw encouragement from the crowds when I was playing. I wanted to hit shots that they enjoyed seeing played. And the gallery in Scotland was always so supportive of me. They had as much to do with my success as the shots. How did you deal with...
Thursday 7 July 2016
Did you ever think you’d win a Major? I dreamt about it. I don’t know if that really is believing it, but I certainly always hoped it would happen. Being honest, it was just such a relief to get my card that year as things hadn’t really been going all that well. I’m a true believer that if you can...
Thursday 7 July 2016
Nick Dougherty, a three-time European Tour winner, loves The Open. In his rollercoaster up-and down playing career the 2007 Dunhill Links champion has played in a handful of them and he hasn’t given up hope of adding another to the list and playing at Royal Troon. He’ll be seeking to qualify at Royal Birkdale’s neighbouring links Hillside, but first –...
Thursday 7 July 2016
What’s it like slugging it out with today’s young guns? It’s challenging, that’s for sure, and I’ve reduced my schedule this year to play 10 or 12 events, just the ones that I’m excited to play and on the courses where I feel I have a good chance that maybe don’t favour the long hitters as much. It’s an effort...
Thursday 7 July 2016
James Montgomerie has lived and breathed Royal Troon for almost 60 years – 11 of them as the club’s secretary. He’s overseen two Royal Troon Opens, and the 86-year-old’s passion for the club, and the game, continues to burn brightly. He still gets to grips with the famous old links twice a week, saying: “I try my best, though my legs...
Thursday 7 July 2016
Justin Rose and Niall Horan teamed up to host the most starstudded golf event of 2016. Rose told TG: “We wanted to do something meaningful and put on a golf day that really separated itself from other standard golf days around, putting on a quality event we could be proud of.” Sure enough, the inaugural Horan & Rose charity event at The...
Written by Edward Colman on Wednesday 6 July 2016
Phil Mickelson is bidding for a second Scottish Open title this week but will you be selecting the American in your fantasy team? That is just one of the tough decisions facing managers in the Today’s Golfer Fantasy Golf game ahead of the tournament at Castle Stuart. Managers have a £100m budget to spend on their ten-man team and here’s a look...
Written by Today's Golfer on Wednesday 6 July 2016
Tour pros make a lot of money. People with a lot of money tend to drive expensive cars. Those are facts. Here’s what some of the European Tour’s top pros are currently driving: Ian Poulter – La Ferrari, £1,000,000 Poulter has one of the world’s finest collections of Ferraris, and isn’t shy about showing them off on Twitter. Steve Webster – Lamborghini Huracan, £180,720 Lamborghini’s...
Written by Rob McGarr on Tuesday 5 July 2016
It’s often easy to assume that tour players are oblivious to conversations that centre around them. For several months now, there has been plenty of talk about Jordan Spieth’s pace of play. Spieth has been put on the clock numerous times, and was lucky to escape a penalty at this year’s Masters, where he took more than two minutes to...
Written by Rob McGarr on Monday 4 July 2016
Justin Thomas shot a disappointing final-round 76 to finish T-33 at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, but before that, things were really going his way. His 1-under 69 on Friday was helped by a rare eagle on the 667-yard par-5 16th at Firestone Country Club, set up by a 414-yard drive. “I was just happy to hit the fairway,” said Thomas. “I hit...
Written by Rob McGarr on Monday 4 July 2016
18 years and 386 starts. That’s how long 42-year-old Greg Chalmers has had to wait for his first PGA Tour victory. To put that into context, the Ford Focus hadn’t even been released when Chalmers made his PGA Tour debut. We were all still watching films on VHS, as DVD had only just been invented. There was no such thing...
Written by Rob McGarr on Friday 1 July 2016
The Greenbrier Classic, due to start on Thursday 7 July, has been cancelled due to severe flooding. The Old White TPC, host course for the tournament, suffered extensive damage during the flooding caused by record levels of rainfall throughout West Virginia. “We are heartbroken by the devastation that the residents of West Virginia are experiencing at this time and the reports of...
Written by Rob McGarr on Thursday 30 June 2016
We all know that the money available at the top tier of golf is little short of ludicrous. Win a PGA Tour event and you’ll likely take home a cheque for over $1 million. If it’s a big tournament, your prize could be almost double that. The prize for finishing last at this week’s WGC-Bridgestone Invitational was set at $50,500. That...
Written by Michael Catling on Wednesday 29 June 2016
Every sport fan loves a fairytale and we got two in the space of two days. The world number 607 winning the Quicken Loans National at Congressional and Iceland beating England. The latter probably wasn’t quite as welcome, but Billy Hurley III’s hometown victory will take some beating as the best story in golf this year. Not that any fantasy managers were able to...
Written by Rob McGarr on Wednesday 29 June 2016
Golf’s return to the Olympics is not really going to plan. With less than a fortnight until the cut-off point for qualification, eligible golfers are falling over themselves to withdraw. With world number four Rory McIlroy and world number one Jason Day both out, attention has turned to world number two Jordan Spieth, and things do not sound overly promising… “Right...
Written by Rob McGarr on Wednesday 29 June 2016
It’s easy to knock Colin Montgomerie. His moody on-course demeanour hasn’t always endeared him to fans, but his passion for the game of golf has never been in question. At the age of 53, many golfers would have long since given up on the rigours of Open qualifying and accept that 21 appearances would be their lot. Not Monty. Having not played...
Written by Rob McGarr on Tuesday 28 June 2016
At the beginning of May, Rory McIlroy shared his belief that players should do their bit to represent their country in the Olympics. “It’s a week,” said McIlroy at the time. “You know, go play four rounds really competitively and try to win a gold medal.” McIlroy, unlike several players who had openly stated that they didn’t value the prospect of a...