Innholdsfortegnelse for July - August 2022 i Golf Magazine

From the Editor I'VE PLAYED ST. ANDREWS, host of the upcoming Open Championship—the 150th, no less—a half dozen times. In a strange way, those 108 holes blend into a single experience. The simple fact that I was there—on those grounds, with burns, humps and gorse all around—was more than enough. We all have our lucky days. Those six on the Old do it for me. If you're not excited for the sesquicentennial Open at St. Andrews, well, stop reading now. The MLB Network is on channel 586 if you have Verizon. But if you're chuffed, as my friends across the pond like to say, consider us fast pals. With all due respect to the 100th playing of the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach in 2000 (the one where Tiger lapped…

Accessories OF COURSE IT'S COMMON practice to have a line on your ball. But what about a line on your ball marker? That idea provided the inspiration for On Point, a USGA-conforming series of ball markers ($20; proshop.golf.com) that transforms a previously mundane golf item into a conversation starter—and a useful one at that. On Point boasts a variety of different designs to match different putter alignment aids. Simply set your chosen model behind the ball, then step back and visualize your line. Adjust the ball marker as necessary, and, when you're ready, use it to aim your putter along your intended line. On Point can help you read putts faster and, hopefully, hole more of them too. –Luke Kerr-Dineen…

July–August 2022 P. 49 It's a bit fitting that Scottie Scheffler doesn't know where his green jacket is at the moment. He's riding shotgun in a golf cart on a sunny April afternoon, headed out to the 2nd hole at Royal Oaks Country Club, his home away from home on the north side of Dallas. Scheffler isn't the forgetful type by any means. It's just that this green jacket, his prize for winning the Masters a few weeks earlier, is his only jacket. In the moments before he tried it on for the first time at Augusta National, Scheffler was asked for his size, and he didn't know. “Fit me for one,” he said. He's since learned he's a 44 regular—he thinks. When the jacket finally arrives at hole No.…

When the winner of the Open Championship is presented the Claret Jug, he is anointed Champion Golfer of the Year, which sounds wildly vague and covers a lot of territory but is nevertheless entirely accurate. The Open is unquestionably the world championship of golf and has been since it was first played in 1860. It just took time for its world—and appeal—to expand. Like the murky origins of baseball, which, in the U.S., gained grassroots followers at the local semi-pro level around the same time Willie Parks Senior and Junior and Tom Morrises Old and Young were banging around Prestwick and Mussleburgh, there's no accurate moment of golf's creation. As the late, great Dan Jenkins once wrote, “…you could say that the Chinese a thou-sand years ago probably played a…

The FootJoy Tour Alpha represents the pinnacle of golf-shoe tech. These things are loaded. For starters, there's a proprietary Optimized Performance Stabilizer complete with 3D-molded heel counter (and an A-Frame with a carefully designed lateral clip) that securely “locks” in your feet for extreme stability during your swing. The Tour Alpha ($190; footjoy.com) also comes with FootJoy's TruFit system and Dual-Durometer FTF+ Foam for even greater stability and added comfort in regions where your feet need it most. The exterior is topnotch, too, made of 100 percent waterproof ChromoSkin leather for a lighter profile and added durability. Available with traditional lacing (pictured), Tour Alpha BOA and Tour Alpha Dual BOA with a proprietary lacing technology for a precision fit. Told ya—loaded.…

FOR MY MONEY, the greatest putters of the modern era are Tiger Woods, Ben Crenshaw, Brad Faxon and Jack Nicklaus. I see a lot of players try to mimic the styles of the first three but rarely Jack's. Odd, to say the least—you don't win 18 majors (including two at St. Andrews, host of this year's Open Championship) without a world-class stroke. In speaking to many students over the years, some have mentioned not being comfortable with the way Nicklaus set his head so far behind the ball at address. Fair enough—not many golfers are left-eye dominant like Jack. But what about the other aspects of his stroke? Here are three elements I think every golfer—including you—should copy. 1. Forward ball position. Nicklaus played the ball off the instep of…

THERE'S PERHAPS A NO more intimidating spirit than Scotch. The word alone conjures images of tweedy, stiff-upper-lip types sitting in dusky, lamp-lit pub corners, perhaps with a pipe or worn newspaper nearby. If wine and liquors like vodka and rum are the golden retrievers of alcohol—friendly, comfortable and universally liked—Scotch is like the Doberman, a beautiful and refined specimen, to be sure, but also seemingly aloof and necessitating great effort to wrangle. Time to get over it, for peat's sake! Because, while the spirit does indeed contain a pleasurable depth and complexity, it's important to remember that, at its core, it's simply whisky made in Scotland—not some elite nectar that only a few have the capacity to unravel. If you love wine, you're already a great candidate for Scotch appreciation,…

GEAR GOLF.COM / THE BEST STUFF IN THE GAME 1 The “kind of experience” rec golfers can enjoy with PING's Tour-inspired putter-fitting program 1 Gameimprovement iron model in TaylorMade's iron lineup to fix your misses—and look like a “player” while doing so 10 Unique ball markers that can actually improve your putting 1,000 And them some ways you can customize your Callaway Jaws Full Toe wedge 1 MIL The number of thanks you can send our ClubTest robot's way, for showing you the best loft to max out yards with your new driver “In the past, most rec golfers weren't able to get access to Tour putter fittings. We're trying to change that and give them an experience they'll remember.” WHEN VIKTOR HOVLAND needed a putter, he reached out to…

RoboTest SOME PLAYERS HIT UP on the ball with driver, otherwise known as a positive angle of attack (AoA). Some hit down on the ball, and some come in neutral. You? Better find out quick because knowing how you deliver the club at impact is critical to optimizing driver loft. Simply selecting a driver because you think more or less loft is going to generate added distance simply won't do the trick. In fact, it could rob you of yards off the tee. To know for sure, we programmed the Golf Labs robot for all three types of AoAs and had it produce each with both a 9- and 10.5-degree driver. With a neutral AoA, the 9-degree head carried the ball 7 yards longer than the 10.5. The negative AoA…

1. The world's oldest golf tournament, the Open Championship, was first played in… a. 1850 b. 1860 c. 1870 d. 1872 2. This original host course, Prestwick, had… a. 9 holes b. 12 holes c. 15 holes d. 18 holes 3. No championship took place in 1871. Why? a. A sheep virus b. The Boer War c. An outbreak of lice d. Lack of a trophy 4. St. Andrew, for whom St. Andrews is named, was the patron saint of Scotland as well as, among other things… a. Golf b. Gout c. Gourds d. Gold 5. Which American won in his only Open Championship appearance? a. Ben Hogan b. Sam Snead c. Tony Lema d. Bill Rogers 6. Who has recorded the most runner-up finishes at the Open? a. Arnold Palmer b. Jack Nicklaus c. Gary Player d. Greg Norman 7. What did Roberto de Vicenzo neglect to…

THINK / PLAY / LIVE: THE ENLIGHTENED GAME Tour Lesson: Get the Scoring Shots By three-time European PGA Tour winner SAM HORSFIELD with Luke Kerr-Dineen I WAS BORN IN Manchester, England, but have been living in the U.S. since I was a kid, and am a proud University of Florida alum. Nowadays, I split my time between PGA Tour and European Tour events. Learning how to adapt my game for both sides of the Atlantic took some time, but it basically boils down to two things: Getting a feel for hitting low shots on command and being versatile around the greens. Here's how to do both. LOOK FOR THE DOTS: Each tip throughout this section features a corresponding color code to help you understand which part of your game it…

EXTRA REPS Who: Anna Nordqvist When: May 12, 2021 Where: LPGA Founders Cup 12:20 p.m. Arrives on the green. 12:25 p.m. Works on start-line drills with a putting mirror, then moves on to longer putts. 12:29 p.m. Heads to driving range. Stops to sign a fan's hat. 12:31 p.m. Arrives at range, sees a familiar face in the gallery. Stops for a hug and chat. 12:34 p.m. Starts with short pitches; works up to full shots. 12:48 p.m. Heads to short-game area. Chips from different lies. 1:11 p.m. Back to the green. Puts on lip balm, chats with her caddie and rolls a few more putts. 1:23 p.m. Heads to 1st tee, greets playing partners and volunteers. Grabs two bananas from the starter's tent for her bag. 1:32 p.m. Tees…

Louis Oosthuizen FROM THE SOUTHERN HILLS LOCKER ROOM, SUNDAY AT THE 2022 PGA CHAMPIONSHIP Dylan Dethier: We're coming up on 12 years since your Open Championship win at St. Andrews. When you think back, what's the first thing that pops into your head? Louis Oosthuizen: I think it's moments from the full week. The town felt so much different from just a normal Dunhill [European Tour event]. The whole place just has an energy, and the whole town has an incredible vibe to it. If you're a golf guy and enjoy playing golf and love the history, it has to be on your bucket list to come play St. Andrews and go through the town. It's just great. DD: Are there places in town where you've spent time? Somewhere you like…

EVERY GOLFER OUTSIDE the PGA Tour could stand a little help from their irons, which is why the game-improvement category dominates. For some players, however, the typical bulky build of these clubs is a turnoff. Not the new TaylorMade Stealth. The expected high tech is all here but in a hollow-body design whose profile is suited more for “players.” We like the multi-material Cap Back design, which “activates” the face without affecting the overall center of gravity location, and the Thru-Slot Speed Pocket that, among other things, creates a larger sweet spot. Based on recent player testing, the Stealth design is for real. A few GOLF staffers picked up 40 yards (not a typo) with the iron on the range. The design certainly lives up to the hype. –J.W. TaylorMade…

Nick Faldo did it. Ditto Sam Snead and Seve Ballesteros. Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus pulled off the trick twice. Time after time, when golf's oldest championship has come to the Old Course, the game's biggest names have come out on top. Except when they haven't. John Daly and Zach Johnson both claimed the Claret Jug at St. Andrews. In 2010, Louis Oosthuizen ran off with the title by seven shots. If anything is clear from the historical record, it's that anything can happen at the home of golf, which has hosted the Open more often than any other venue. Of all the majors, the Open Championship is perhaps the least unpredictable, so let's take a shot at it—with the help of an A-list architect, a top Tour coach, a…

THE BRITISH POET William Cowper once—and famously—wrote, “Variety is the very spice of life… that gives it all its flavour.” Cowper penned the sentiment more than 230 years ago, and, though it still rings true, it's doubtful he had golf on his mind when he dreamed it up. Yet kudos to ol' Will because if there's a dominant theme to GOLF's inaugural ranking of the Top 100 Courses in the UK and Ireland, it's variety. From the rambunctious links carved into the Emerald Isle's southwest coast to the elegant heathland courses dotted across the English countryside, diversity rules. True, links and heathland designs dominate the list (the top 24 are one or the other), but beyond you'll find other course types, including common ground, moorland, parkland, cliff top, valley and…

YOU CAN GET FAR IN GOLF learning to do three things well: Hitting the ball before the ground, keeping your clubface relatively square and making sure your swing path (aka the direction you swing the club) is fairly neutral. The problem is, it's not always easy to know if you're doing those things well. That's where the Divot Board ($130; proshop.golf.com) comes in handy. The yellow circle represents the golf ball and the train-track lines the swing path at impact. The goal is to make a swing, hit the yellow circle first and send the club through the two lines. If you don't, you'll be able to tell immediately based on where the divot is. If it starts behind the yellow dot or too far in front, that's a sign…

RH: Hi Chris, from my favorite magazine in the world. G: I bet you say that to all the magazines. All right, what if I walked into the Shark Tank and said, “I've come up with a proven method that can shave 10 strokes off your golf game”? RH: I'm in. Don't need to hear anymore. How much money doyouneed? G: Your family emigrated from Croatia to Canada when you were eight. Growing up, did a sport like golf seem closed off to you? RH: It was not something that a lot of Eastern European immigrants did. My dad wasn't out golfing. We never watched it. But when I was 28, a customer I was trying to get a meeting with, his secretary called and said, “He has a cancellation…