The best players in the world – or a fair number of them – are in China this week for the initial-rich WGC-HSBC Champions event in Shanghai, a trading city well used to dealing with the rest of the world long before professional golfers were ever a gleam in anyone’s eye.  It’s a place well used to the dramatic, so golfers flying in in spectacular style, dressed as super heroes or whatever, fitted in nicely.

It got me thinking:  if I were to design a golfer with all the powers, which bit of which players would make up the composite?  Annika, Tiger and Jack were pretty good at most things but none of them was perfect, so how would you make up your very own super-hero golfer?

Where would you start?  Easy, said my mate at the golf club:  best driver, best long-iron player and so on.  Oh, OK then, who’d you choose?  He, a Staffordshire man, went for people he’d played with over the years and I reckon his selection, only one of whom became a professional (and won two major championships), could hold its own with more stellar names – at the very least the stellar names would have to play out of their spikes to come out on top and justify their super-heroic status.

Geoff Marks, late of this parish, would do the driving; Sandy Lyle, Open and Masters champion, would be in charge of the long irons; Dr David Marsh would be the mid-iron man – and who could question the nerve of someone who could hit the shot of his life into the 17th green at St Andrews with the Walker Cup on the line?  [That may not sound like much but given the circumstances, not least GB&I’s woeful record against the Americans, it was immense.]  Michael Bonallack, now Sir Michael, five times (British) Amateur champion, secretary of the R&A, among many other honours, would do the putting – look upon his works ye mighty and despair; he was so good that once, when he had a putt of 25 feet or so to take a match to the 19th, he was on his way to the 1st tee before the putt was halfway to the hole.

That leaves one position to fill:  that of short game maestro, from 100 yards in.  My man went unerringly for Ronnie Hiatt, who never played for England but was a Midlands, Warwickshire and Atherstone legend.  Ronnie, a fitter at Massey Ferguson, with limited time off, didn’t really know how he did it but he had an unerring eye for distance – even his rare misses finished pin high – and his putting was in the Bonallack class.

Here are some examples of Ronnie’s prowess:  his opponent holes out of a greenside bunker and Ronnie follows him in.  “Jammy so and so,” sezs the opponent, whereupon Ronnie puts his ball back in the bunker and holes out again.  “The difference,” he said, matter of factly, “was that I was expecting to hole mine and you were trying to get yours close.”

Playing Marks (England, GB and I), who outdrove him by miles, in a county match, Ronnie was 50 yards short of the final green in two, with Geoff on the back of the green.  Asked the state of the match, Ronnie said, “All square but I’ve got him.”  He put his shot stone dead and it was Geoff who had to hole a nasty 4-footer for the half that gave Staffordshire the overall match.

Then there was the time Ronnie was playing for Whittington Heath against Copt Heath with the result hanging on his game.  He was three up with four to play but his opponent had three birdies to square the match, hit a great drive 30 yards short of the last green, then watched as Ronnie, hitting a full 8-iron, holed out for a winning birdie 3.

Ronnie, who’s now in his 90s, also topped my informant’s best mental attitude category and was described as “the nicest guy you could ever play golf with”.  Great stuff.  I love being a captivated audience.

Ronnie won the Atherstone club championship so many times he’s in the Guinness Book of Records but when I tried to be good and double check that on the Guinness World Records website, I seemed to end up applying to set a record myself and was told it might take a few weeks to register because there was a very long waiting list.  Aaaagh.  Perhaps there’s a computer incompetence section because I also tried checking the Atherstone website for some facts and figures – and failed miserably to find what I was looking for.

Still, I did learn that “Atherstone is the only club in history to produce three Ryder Cup players……”  Bernard and Geoff Hunt (sons of the club professional John) and Paul Broadhurst.  Very impressive but even I, without any trawling of records, know that that proud claim is no longer valid.  Thanks to Stephen Gallacher, who joined his uncle Bernard and the incomparable Eric Brown as a Ryder Cupper, Bathgate’s tally is also up to three.

Never forget that a website is like a baby:  it needs constant attention!

 

Tyrrell Hatton is after my time but how could you not take an interest in a sportsman with such a wonderful name?  And it looks as though he might be able to live up to it after becoming the first person to win the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship two years in succession – at St Andrews no less.  It doesn’t get much better than that.  With a bit of luck and a fair wind, Hatton will prove to be a real diamond geezer and train on to win major championships but winning a big title twice in a row is a big deal in itself.

Defending a title is not particularly rare but it’s not common either and at the highest level the names tend to be familiar:  Jones, Nicklaus, Sorenstam, Woods, Faldo, Inkster, Wright, Harrington, Watson, Davies, Hagen, Sheehan, Bradley, Vardon, Trevino – an elite bunch.

Laura Davies won the Standard Register Ping title at Moon Valley in Phoenix, Arizona, four years in a row and I think I was there for all of them.  It was in the 1990s when Laura was in her pomp and it didn’t seem that outrageous because she was that good – and loved the golf course.  On reflection, it seems amazing.  And it was.

Tiger Woods was also good at winning the same tournament multiple times in succession – the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Jack Nicklaus’s Memorial Tournament, the WGC Bridgestone Invitational, to name just three – but it’s not the norm.  No matter how good you are there are still a lot of variables and another player may be having a day of days or a week of weeks and holing everything.  Tiger won the US PGA Championship twice in a row twice – in 1999 and 2000 and 2006 and 2007 – and he came second twice – to Rich Beem in 2002 and Y. E. Yang in 2009.  Tiger won the Open in 2000 by miles (eight shots) but had a long(ish) wait before winning again, in 2005 and 2006.

Padraig Harrington, a different cat altogether but driven in his own way, elevated himself into the stratosphere by winning at Carnoustie in 2007 and Royal Birkdale in 2008.  That put him in the company of, among others, Tom Morris Senior and Junior, J H Taylor, James Braid, Harry Vardon, Bobby Jones, Walter Hagen, Bobby Locke, Peter Thomson, Palmer, Lee Trevino and Tom Watson.  Other genuine golfing greats like Nicklaus, Gary Player, Seve Ballesteros and Nick Faldo won the Open more than once but none of them won the oldest championship of all in consecutive years.

Rory McIlroy has said that he wants to be the best European player ever and he has to start by winning more major championships than Vardon, who won six Opens and a US Open and Faldo, who won three Opens and three Masters.  Only he, Nicklaus and Woods have won at Augusta in consecutive years.  If Rory manages to harness his desire and win a green jacket but then sticks on five majors, does that grand slam trump Faldo’s six titles?  Mmmm.  Good question.  I think Rory has to move on to the magnificent seven and beyond to win that debate.

As time goes on, it’s easy to forget just how good Faldo was.  In his book For Love or Money, Peter McEvoy, who won the Amateur Championship twice (but not consecutively) said, “We didn’t know that Faldo would go on to win six majors but there was something about him.  He had charisma and talent….Throughout my amateur career there was only one British golfer who emptied clubhouses and that was Nick Faldo.  Even the most cynical amateur put down his drink and went out to watch Faldo hit a golf ball.”

Tyrrell Hatton is, as yet, no Faldo but even if he never wins a major or even another tournament, in years to come he’ll always have those iconic photos of himself perching on the Swilcan Bridge clutching a very large trophy and the joy of musing:  “Now, which year was that?  Was I wearing those trousers in 2016 or 2017?”

 

 

Last week was a good one for the Irish – triple-y good.

First of all, the headline writers had a field day, – “Well Dunne, Paul!”  “The boy Dunne good.”  “Job Dunne.”  And so on.  These proclamations were celebrating the maiden win of 24-year old Paul Dunne, born in Dublin, resident of Greystones.

You may remember the name.  A mere two years ago the fresh-faced youngster shared the lead in the Open after 54 holes – as an AMATEUR.  Alas, a not wholly unexpected final round of 78 tumbled him down the leaderboard to finish in a tie for 30th spot. Still, it was more than a valiant effort.

Later that year he threw his hat into the professional ring and steady progress over the next 18 months saw him, last April, once again in the lead after 54 holes, by two shots in the Trophee Hassan II in Morocco.  This time his final round effort was a 68 but a super-charged finish by the Italian Edoardo Molinari, who had two eagles in the last nine holes, forced a play-off, which Dunne subsequently lost at the first tie hole, where he had a bogey.  It was his best professional performance to date.

And then came last week and the British Masters, played at Close House in the northeast of England near Newcastle-upon-Tyne.  Going into the final round only two shots separated the top ten players with Swedish veteran Robert Karlsson one shot ahead of a group of five, containing Paul Dunne.  Rory McIlroy was also handily placed in the peleton a shot further back.

Dunne’s statement of intent was made as early as the 1st where he chipped in for birdie, almost repeated the feat at the next and then knocked his second stiff at the 5th for another birdie.  His faultless round continued, withstanding a late charge from countryman Rory McIlroy but with two to play, and Rory in the clubhouse, the lead was only one.  The hours of practice proved their worth.  A chip and putt birdie at the short par 4 17th doubled his lead giving him a cushion.  He missed the green at the par 3 last but coolly bookended his round with another pitch finding the bottom of the cup for a closing 61.  Talk about winning in style – and at the same time withstanding the ominous presence of Rory, who closed with five birdies in the last six holes, reminding us of what makes him so special.  It was an Irish one-two to be celebrated – a new star from the Emerald Isle and the welcome return to the sharp end of a tournament of the world’s most exciting player.  What could possibly top that?

Enter Seamus Power stage left.  Seamus, alongside three-time major champion and all round good egg Padraig Harrington, represented Ireland at the Rio Olympics last summer.  Hanging out for a week with Padraig and team captain Paul McGinley must have been a priceless experience for the Waterford man and may just have provided that last little extra slither of something that enabled him to retain his playing rights on the PGA Tour for the 2017-2018 season.  Last weekend the Web.com Tour Championship in Florida was the scene of high drama with the weather forcing a Monday finish, not to mention many bitten fingernails and the odd snapped club.  Power survived the cut by a single shot, going on to shoot 70,  71 to finish 48th and secure the final of the 25 cards on offer to the players who earn the most cumulative money in the four Finals events.

It all boiled down to $287, a measly sum that is the difference between being on the big stage with millions to play for or…..well, or not.  That $287 means that he teed it up yesterday in the Safeway Open in Napa, California, the first event of the new season, as a fully fledged cardholder.  In this game even one careless shot can cost you your livelihood.

So after an up and down weekend, extended painfully into Monday, the cocktail of Dunne, McIlroy and Power proved compelling and inspirational for all young Irish players.  And for us older ones – well, how about a drink to celebrate and bring the ole heart rate back down to normal?  Mine’s a triple Irish!

 

 

I don’t have many claims to fame but I know some people who do.  I’ve met Davis Love III, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame earlier this week, a few times; I’ve played golf with Lorena Ochoa, another inductee; and have known Ian Woosnam and Meg Mallon, also inducted, for a long time.

I cheered when they were honoured for their achievements because they’ve been brilliant over the years but I’m not sure I’m a fan of halls of fame.  I suppose they’re a good excuse for a party but it’s like knighthoods and that sort of thing:  do people who’ve been great at their jobs and won lots of titles and quite a bit of money really need the extra adulation?  Perhaps it’s just a human thing and it’s good to be remembered once your glory days are past.  People have short memories – and youngsters have no idea – so something has to be done.

Woosie was a wee farm boy born in Shropshire, who learned his golf at Llanymynech (15 holes in Wales and three in England) and ended up playing for Wales, becoming No 1 in the world and winning the Masters at Augusta.  He also won the Ryder Cup as a player and a captain and he and David (Lulu) Llewellyn won the World Cup for Wales.  Not bad for someone who announced that he was turning professional just after losing his final county match for Shropshire, against Staffordshire, at Oswestry.

That proved to be the moment of fame for Andrew Dathan, now a stalwart of Whittington Heath.  “I won 4 and 3,” he said, “and my teammates asked Woosie why the hell he thought he could make it as a pro if he couldn’t even beat me!  I think he had the last laugh.”

Today, Dathan is down in Cornwall at Trevose to cheer on Staffordshire in the men’s county finals against Hampshire, Northumberland and Somerset.  He was on the last Staffordshire side to win the title, way back in 1975 and this year’s side includes Whittington’s Ryan Brooks, along with Tom Hewitt, Lewis Pearce, Ollie Read, Jake Walley and England internationals Jack Gaunt and Gian-Marco Petrozzi.  Good luck to them all.

Who knows if any of them will start their own march to fame with a famous victory this weekend but over in America, in the Presidents Cup, it looked as though Nick Price’s International team was heading for another one-sided defeat by the United States, so another of my claims to fame may remain intact:  I’ve seen the Internationals win this match!

It’s happened only the once, in 1998, at Royal Melbourne, just before Christmas, when the Americans gave the impression they’d rather be anywhere but Australia and were well and truly hammered.  There’s been a draw since, at Fancourt in South Africa but as a general rule this contest has proved to be the epitome of a ho-hum non-event.  If the international players, who are some of the best in the world, keep failing to turn up with anything approaching their best stuff, it’s time to stop the pretence that it’s worth putting on and wipe it from the calendar.  The Americans no longer need a morale booster in between Ryder Cups….

Last but by no means least, congratulations to Ruth Ferguson, the pride of Harlech, indefatigable, incorrigible and infamous, who has celebrated her 100th birthday with a do at Portmeirion.