Hi everyone,
Well it's been a great few days in the world of sport. Firstly, on Saturday night there was one of the greatest heavyweight fights for many a year, won by a Brit for a change, and then on Monday Mark Selby won his third world snooker championship. The latter is another sport close to my heart as my misspent youth, mostly spent in Swanney's snooker hall in Ramsgate, will testify to. If Selby was a golfer I doubt that he would be a birdie machine. More likely he'd be the guy who made the least mistakes and putted you to death just when you thought you'd got him. There is no doubt he is a true competitor and it is very possible, given that he is only in his early thirties, that he could go on to be the greatest winner of the championship ever.
What Was He Thinking?
I know it's on a non-golf subject but I can't help but want to write about something that occurred during the snooker. There is only one player who I could watch play snooker all day, everyday, and that is Ronnie O'Sullivan. I look forward to watching him play the game as do millions of others. Unfortunately, he is most certainly a flawed genius. I can forgive him his meltdowns and strange capitulations, which I put down to his fragile mental state (the complete opposite of champion Selby) but there is one thing I can't forgive him for. Late in his quarter-final he was playing fantastic and found himself in a great position to make a maximum 147 break. He was, as ever, making it look ridiculously easy. Incredibly, and not for the first time I should add, with just a few reds to go he deliberately played for the pink instead of the black, most annoyingly with a smirk on his face. He cleared up casually for a 146. So what's wrong with that? I can only tell you how I felt at that time. I felt cheated. I was annoyed. I want to be able to say that I witnessed a 147. I want to feel the amazement and be able to say I was there, even if it was only on TV. Ronnie seems to have entered a rebellious and arrogant period and I don't think he quite realises what he's doing.
By having a pop at the snooker authorities (that seems to be his reasoning) he is actually upsetting those who have lined his pockets over the years, and who continue to do so. Above all I believe professional sportsmen need to understand that they are in the entertainment business. If they don't understand that then they are deluded. Providing the highest possible levels of excitement and suspense is exactly what their job is all about. We want to watch them all do things we can't believe at times, pulling off amazing moves or shots. Of course they cannot perform at their best all the time but they should, most definitely, try their hardest at all times. To deliberately do the opposite borders on gross misconduct, which for many of us may cost us our jobs. It's a great shame Ronnie can't separate his problems with the authorities from his duty to his fans, which is something sportsmen should never forget.
Anyway, that's my rant for the day. Back to my run through of our course at St Augustines:
Hole 4:
Actually quite a strong par 3 for a few reasons. The first is the obvious presence of out of bounds and a ditch only just right of the green. As the hole is a reasonable length, which dictates quite a long club for many, this is definitely in play. If that is you then here is the first tip - this is an easy par 4. Tee up to the right on the tee and aim left. A slightly short shot is fine as it takes out the bunker on the left and leaves a relatively easy chip shot. Do not mess with the right hand side at all!
If you are confident of hitting straight even with a longer club then we come back to knowing your carry distances here. The big bunker across the front is probably a grave yard for quite a few of you. Avoid it at all costs! So you must be hitting a club that can carry it comfortably. If you do not have a club that can do that then you cannot hit straight for the green here, unless you intend to lay up short of the bunker - which is not a silly idea at all. For longer hitters I want to go back to previous comments regarding par 3s. If you are hitting something hard you run the risk of losing control. For me that brings the right side into play but for some of you it might mean turning it over and going left, which brings trees and another bunker into play. Hitting a comfortable shot with enough club will generally mean a straighter shot. I think this hole plays deceptively long sometimes so don't be fooled into too short a club. Club up and swing smooth.
Hole 5:
Almost a copy of the 2nd. Easily drivable for many and very short for most. So we need to look at the green and again, it's similar to the 2nd. I would rather miss the green to the right here 8 out of 10 times, depending on the flag position.
Back centre gives us a free roll - it doesn't really matter unless you have to go over the left bunker onto a downslope. Then the lie will be all important. A flag near the front or close to the left hand bunker means you must not be left.
So feel free to bomb the green if you can but err to the right. If you're approaching from the fairway bear the slopes on the green in mind.
Hole 6:
Cracking par 3. I personally wish the lip of the front bunker was lower so we could see the front part of the green but otherwise I think this is a great looking hole with lots of bunkers round a tight green, which is slopey and can easily catch you out. So if I start my description with that you can easily follow by thinking 'give it respect'.
It's only a short iron for most but it can still punish you. Accuracy is paramount so we are back to using enough club but here I don't really think there's an easy bail out. Left is terrible but right, while not being quite as harsh, gives you no shot to most flags.
The bunkers are not bad misses, unless you really struggle with bunker shots. But otherwise it's all about hitting the surface. Hit enough club and be as accurate as you can.
I hope you're all enjoying the course run through - feel free to comment and ask questions. More next week. Have a great week everyone.
