COURSE REVIEW, by YG Publisher Danny Lockwood THESE are good days, very good days at Leeds Golf Club – Cobble Hall, to its many friends and patrons. The course is looking immaculate, the oldest professional trophy in golf – the Leeds Cup – is back home where it belongs and the grassroots of the junior section is flourishing again after a few fallow years. It’s all so much brighter than six years ago, when the club that can trace its heritage back to the very origins of golf in Leeds, faced desperate times and was on the verge of folding. “We had to go to the members and ask them to put up lump sums to keep us afloat,” said club secretary Paul Mawman. “We needed at least 75% of them to dig de
The big dipper at Puerto Aventura theme park that sits beside Lumine Golf Club in Spain is an ironic symbol of the emotional rollercoaster ride that is the final stage of the European Tour qualifying school. Joy and pain sit cheek by jowl during this gruelling six round marathon, and two Yorkshire golfers experienced the highs and lows as 28 players were handed a golden ticket to the European Tour. As Howley Hall’s Daniel Gavins celebrated a return to the top table of European golf, Huddersfield’s Chris Hanson was trying to deal with the heartache of coming home in 40 over the very last 9-holes to miss out by two shots. Their immediate reactions said it all. Leeds born Gavins tweeted: “It’s
Danny Willett bravely ended a 953-day winless drought to claim the biggest prize on the European Tour with victory in the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. The 31-year-old from Sheffield had not tasted victory since winning his first major title at Augusta National and had slumped from a career-high of ninth to outside the world’s top 450 earlier this season after numerous injuries and a loss of form. Willett credits coach Sean Foley - who formerly coached Tiger Woods - and fitness trainer Kev Duffy for his resurgence. He started working with Foley at last year’s US PGA Championship when he admitted he was “pretty low and open to trying anything” to save his career. Having started the fin
Yorkshire’s Joe Pagdin has described competing in the Youth Olympics as “the experience of a lifetime”. Pagdin, who was born in Sheffield but now resides in Lake Nona, Florida, and Essex’s Lily May Humphreys, represented Team GB in the Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires, Argentina. They didn’t figure in the medals, but both had the experience of a lifetime, competing in individual and team events. Humphreys, 16, from Stoke by Nayland Golf Club in Essex, is one of England’s youngest ever Curtis Cup players and is a multiple winner. This year she became the Scottish women’s open amateur champion and last year she won English, British and European titles and also had her first victory in the USA. P
Yorkshire golf clubs are working with Shipley College’s Apprenticeship Team to recruit and retain a motivated and knowledgeable greenkeeping workforce. Open to anyone aged 16 and over, greenkeeper apprenticeships are attracting both keen horticulturalists and those with an interest in golf. These training partnerships are helping to keep courses in peak condition as well as delivering Government approved golf greenkeeper qualifications that been written and developed by the Greenkeepers’ Training Committee (GTC). Kyran Lilley, head greenkeeper at Horsforth Golf Club, would recommend taking on apprentices and praised the recruitment process. “Taking them onboard was really easy. First, we ema
The Yorkshire Golf Academy in association with Snainton Golf were pleased to welcome Sky Sports presenter Nick Dougherty to officially open the new facility, based at Moor Allerton Golf Club in Leeds. The Lynx brand ambassador was given a warm Yorkshire welcome as he put on a superb show for members and guests alike, showcasing his long game skills and then switching his attention to the more delicate shots around the green. Nick also gave a great insight to life on tour and talked openly about his own game before officially opening the new academy. Head Professional Jonathan Pearson commented: “It was an absolute joy to see so many young golfers and families listening to Nick. “Not only did
Moortown’s Nick McCarthy saved his best for last when he won the season ending Andalusian PGA EuroPro Tour Championship at Desert Springs Golf Club, Spain, and with it a place on the Challenge Tour in 2019. McCarthy, 30, started the week 24th in the Order of Merit, needing a win and nothing less if he was to play his 2019 golf at the next level. His track record at Desert Springs heading into the week wasn’t the strongest, as three rounds in the mid 70s in 2016 saw him finish tied for 43rd. He knew it was a tall order but took good form into the event. He said: “I knew that going into Desert Springs, so it was very much win or bust. But I had been playing well and shooting low numbers thanks
Caddie Billy Foster says his split with long term boss Lee Westwood is “gut wrenching”. The break up was confirmed after the former world number one’s victory at the Nedbank Golf Challenge in South Africa where his girlfriend Helen Storey was on the bag. It appears she may well be continuing with the job after Bingley St Ives member Foster revealed that Westwood has begun doing his own yardages. Speaking to Yorkshire golfer immediately after the split was announced Foster said: “It’s gut wrenching as we are big friends, but situations change, and Lee has changed his outlook and there’s nothing I can do about that. “ Foster said that Westwood making him ‘basically just carry the bag’ created
Justin Rose and his team along with the European Tour put on a fantastic British Masters at Walton Heath. They mixed the two courses together and changed three par 5s to par 4s for the tournament, but the condition was great, and the greens fantastic. The food in the players’ lounge was exceptional too – warm hearty meals, salads, fresh smoothies, homemade flapjacks, and of course the odd cheeky pudding which went well with the special bar of Cadbury’s Justin left with a note in my locker. Monday to Wednesday the weather was perfect, and as per usual changed for the tournament days with a strong and gusting wind. In round one I controlled the ball well and gave myself plenty chances but took
