FOR SALE: One Back-Dwelling Monkey, fluent in Spanish. Answers to El Nino!
A bit like me trying to spell rythem…rithum…rythim…ryth…rthymn…writhe…rhythumb…it took Sergio 74 attempts to win a Major Championship, and when he finally did it was awesum…ahsome…aweso…fantastic!
...RHYTHYM!!! Yay!
Augusta National never fails to deliver special moments, but for any Golf fan or follower this year`s US Masters was especially satisfying. To see Spain`s Sergio Garcia finally get over the finishing line and claim one of Golf`s Major Championships in such an enthralling tussle with Justin Rose was worth the wait.
And it was quite apt that it was down Magnolia Lane that he finally got that monkey off his back as it made room for him to slip on a Green Jacket that he can now cherish for the rest of his life! But if it wasn`t for Sergio`s Sparkle then perhaps it would have been a Rose that bloomed brightest amongst the Azaleas. Justin was actually more just out! His putt on the 72nd stayed just out, he could only get his 2nd shot in the playoff just out and ultimately this year`s Green Jacket was just out of his reach…but he`ll be back and I`ve a feeling his time at Augusta will come. On and off the course he is a Class Act. He is as diplomatic off the course as he is determined on it and his respect and sportsmanship for his peers is as admirable and measured as his swing.
But this was Sergio`s moment and the facts are undeniable…he played great golf, and over 73 holes had the lowest score. The more romantic among us want to believe there were some other 'forces' at work to make this result a reality.
Was it 'The Spirit Of Seve', on what would`ve been his 60th Birthday? Certainly Sergio`s rollercoaster, swashbuckling back 9 was right out of the Maestros Locker! Trees & Trouble on 10 & 11, an unbelievable save on 13, the bounce back at 14 & 15 would`ve had everyone`s favourite Matador shouting 'Vamos Sergio!'
The more Pragmatic 'Experts' were however trying to convince us that it wasn`t Seve, nor Sergio for that matter, that were responsible for Garcia`s win! No, according to the likes of everyone`s favourite amateur psychologist and borderline robot Paul 'Metal' McGinley and Bram Stokers Anchorman, David 'Barely' Livingstone, it was in fact Sergio`s 'burd' that won him that Green Jacket! Now I know there comes a point in everyman`s life when their woman chooses all the clothes that they can wear…but there is no way Angela Atkins (I`ve tried her diet once!) can claim she picked up that Green Jacket! If she is then that was a hell of an 8 Iron she hit for her second at the Par 5 15th!
Although, hang on a second. Maybe it makes sense, because Sergio now has the same number of Majors as he has girlfriends and Tiger in his hay day had 14!!!
But here is my theory! Sergio was they only one who truly believed he was going to be the one slipping on that Green Jacket…so he dressed accordingly! That final day outfit was made for a Masters Champion, just like Danny Willett last year and many more down through the years if you can be bothered to Google! Justin Rose clearly went for the Phil Mick, Mike Weir, Trevor Immelman, Gary Player or Johnny Cash safety net of 'black goes with anything.'
The only time Ricky Fowler will get to see Green go with his Sunday Orange is if he gets a Gatorade Commercial! Paul Casey`s chances went as soon as he slipped off his Red Nose & Clown shoes that went with his 'garb' in the Locker Room before his round. HONK HONK! And don`t get me started on whatever Rory was wearing (all week!) Nike may have walked away from the Golf Club market but their Apparel Designers, or more importantly their colour choosers, are doing their darnedest to push them out the Clothing market too. Salmon Pink was maybe the best choice because there were times during his week's play where McIlroy looked like a fish out of water!
It was back in the water where Jordan Spieth`s chances sunk again! If his quadruple bogey 9 at the 15th on Thursday didn`t do the most damage then his now annual 'double dunk' on the 12th in Amen Corner left him without a prayer and up Rae`s Creek without a paddle! Although I did like some of the shirts he was wearing…
…(in my best Victor Kiam impression) I liked them so much I bought the Company!...well, not the whole company but certainly a good few shirts!
We have much of Jordan`s wardrobe in store right now and with a little help from my Egg-sellent Easter Promotion they are going 'Cheep' - Check out details of that later on in the blog.
We have also finally received our adidas Clothing Range, which I suppose I can now promote as 'AS WORN BY THE MASTERS CHAMPION!'
I certainly know a few people with some extra money to burn! Our Masters Sweepstake Winners.
Congratulations to Ian Gordon who now certainly has some cash to 'Flash.'
Here is a list of ALL the Winners.
TOP 5 PLACES
1st = £100 - Ian Gordon (Sergio Garcia)
2nd = £80 - Scott Sinclair (Justin Rose)
3rd = £60 - Craig Samson (Charl Schwartzel)
4th = £30 - Gordon Wallace (Matt Kuchar)
4th = £30 - Alex Handsley (Thomas Pieters)
OTHER PRIZES
Best Score Each Round = £15
RD 1 Best (£15) = Aileen McVey (Charlie Hoffman - 65)
RD 2 Best (£15) = Robbie Murdoch (Ricky Fowler - 67)
RD 2 Best (£15) = Ron Fulton (Ricky Fowler - 67)
RD 3 Best (£15) = Scott Sinclair (Justin Rose - 67)
RD 4 Best (£7.50) = Gordon Wallace (Matt Kuchar - 67)
RD 4 Best (£7.50) = Peter Griffiths (Hideki Matsuyama - 67)
Worst Score Each Round = £15
RD 1 Worst (£15) = Graham Rennnie (Scott Gregory - 82)
RD 2 Worst (£15) = Graeme Innes (Sandy Lyle - 83)
RD 3 Worst (£15) = Malcolm Thomson (Ernie Els - 83)
RD 3 Worst (£15) = Graham Miller (Ernie Els - 83)
RD 4 Worst (£3.75) = Aileen McVey (Charlie Hoffman - 78)
RD 4 Worst (£3.75) = Aileen McVey (Emiliano Grillo - 78)
RD 4 Worst (£3.75) = Lee Stweart (Soren Kjeldsen - 78)
RD 4 Worst (£3.75) = Malcolm Thomson (Ernie Els - 78)
RD 4 Worst (£3.75) = Graham Miller (Ernie Els - 78)
Top Brit = (£15) = Scott Sinclair (Justin Rose)
Top Senior = (£15) - Mark Brake (Fred Couples)
Top Amateur = (£15) - Bob Inkster (Stuart Hagestad)
We had more winners at the weekend too, but thankfully this was for their own golfing prowess. The April Medal also saw the beginning of the Cappro Cup Qualifying, check out the Standings for that next.
As for the April Medal the scoring was excellent for only the 2nd Saturday Competition of the year.
Division 1
1 Charles Watson 75(8) - 67
2 Gary Scot Lloyd 77(10) - 67
3 Raymond Summers 76(9) - 67
Division 2
1 Michael Smith 81(14) - 67
2 Brian Mitchell 79(12) - 67
3 Scott Livingstone 80(12) - 68
Division 3
1 Iain Robertson 96(27) - 69
2 Kevin Moir 93(22) - 71
3 Colin South 88(16) - 72
Sunday was the first of the Sunday Walk On Medals and the scoring was even better in that.
Division 1
1 William Bothwell 76(10) - 66
2 Malcolm Thomson 70(3) - 67
3 William Craig 79(10) - 69
Division 2
1 Iain Main 84(15) - 69
2 Grant Chalmers 84(14) - 70
3 John Legge 88(14) - 74
Division 3
1 Iain Robertson 90(25) - 65
2 Graeme Reid 81(16) - 65
3 George Fenton 85(18) - 67
Click here to view the Standings after Round 1 of Qualifying.
Saturdays Nan Noble
Division 1
1 Linda Craik 84(14) - 70 (Winner on the Countback)
Division 2
1 Diana Driver 94(24) - 70
Tuesday Division 1
1 Heather McCabe 85(13) - 72
Division 2
1 Jenny Selbie 85(21) - 64
I`d just like to take this opportunity to let you all know, and at the same time extend my congratulations, because I`m glad to say that Kamran has just completed the last of his Trainee Exams and has now passed all elements of his PGA Course and is now a Qualified Professional. One final piece of the jigsaw is his application for Membership to the PGA which is more a formality than anything else.
Well done Kam! But he`s still Santa`s 'little' Helper!
I have a lot of good news from the last couple of weeks, both from the playing side and the PGA Training side.
Most of you will have probably heard that I passed my final coaching exam last Wednesday and am now a fully qualified PGA Professional. This was the only thing I had left to pass having completed everything else on the course back in July 2016 and this was my final attempt or I would have had to start all over again! So as you can imagine, major relief!
The week before was the final North East Alliance of the season at Ellon where I shot a 64 (-6) to win by 4 shots. So I've had a pretty good last two weeks!
Last week we also had the Junior Easter Camp with myself and Terry. This ran every day, Monday to Friday - 10am to 2pm. Every day was filled with warm up games, learning new skills, tests and team games and of course letting the kids play a few holes on the course. The week was a great success with all the 12 kids improving and most of all enjoying the challenge.
Here's the minions taking on the ladies section & David Foote in a Texas scramble on the Friday!
The Junior Easter Camp runs for the second week this week with 10 different kids and also a reminder that the Junior Development Gang starts this Saturday.
There has also been plenty golf for the older 18 Hole juniors as they have played for their Winter Eclectic through the Holiday period.
Winners:
6/4/17 - P Maganti 81(15) - 66
9/4/17 - Ritchie Smart 82(19) - 63
11/4/17 - Finlay Wallace 77(12) - 65
Thanks to those who came along and supported the TaylorMade Fitting Day last Friday. It was a great success.
Remember we have the following Fitting Days coming up soon too.
Callaway Fitting Day
Wednesday, 31 May - 2pm until 4pm
To Book a 30 Minute Fitting Appointment - Click Here
It's worth pointing out again that you don`t have to wait until a Fitting Day comes along because 'every day is a fitting day' here at Portlethen thanks to the comprehensive array of Fitting Equipment & Technology I have invested in here for you guys.
We fit for the following brands - Callaway, PING, TaylorMade, Titleist, Wilson & Cleveland
To Book an Appointment - Click Here
On that note I have two people that I`d like to make mention to following their performances last week.
After a particularly disappointing round in the Hippisley Cup Malcolm Thomson booked himself in for, let`s call it a 'distress lesson'. Having highlighted where Malcolm`s destructive and demoralising shots were coming from we worked with the essence of his swing and introduced a concept to control the sequence of his movements. It wasn`t a major overhaul and there was very little 'change' to fundamentals or positions. But the small 'tweaks' clearly made big differences as Malcolm played the weekend (Sat & Sun) in 75(3) - 71 & 70(3) - 67 and shaved 0.5 off his handicap. So having played to a 12 Handicap the week before he is now down to a personal low of 2!
The moral of that story - A Lesson Doesn`t Always Equal CHANGES - Only IMPROVEMENTS! Don`t let your game suffer, or think that you will be asked to rebuild your swing. Book your Lesson today - Click Here
The second success story I`d like to highlight hopefully reinforces just that. Jenny Selbie had been working herself and her game back to fitness after a year out in 2015. In 2016 she came for a Lesson and whilst, like us all, there were areas that could be improved, the biggest thing that jumped out at me as a factor in Jenny`s struggle to improve was that her equipment wasn`t entirely suitable. The irons were heavy and the woods far too long.
Having planted that seed, Jenny decided to invest in her equipment for this new season. We fitted her to a nice neat set of only a handful of irons, some hybrids and a shorter/lighter driver. As you`ve probably read above Jenny returned a whopping nett 64 which was not only her lowest ever score but also reduced her handicap to 18 - also a personal best. All of which she is attributing to her new equipment.
The moral of that story - Let correctly fitting/suitable equipment unlock your true golfing potential! Why not see if your Clubs suit your game and book your Equipment Analysis today - Click Here
As I mentioned earlier in the piece lots of things are going 'CHEEP,' thanks to the Promotion I am running during the Easter Holidays:
Easter Week `Egg-stravaganza`
So why not pop along, see the shop bursting full of the very latest & best products and take advantage of my ONE WEEK ONLY Promotions which start this Saturday, 8 April until Sunday, 16 April.
There are some `Egg-cellent` Savings to be had with my `Cracking` Discount initiative (Applies to Purchases £50 or over - Total)
*T`s&C`s: Discount Offer Only Applies to Full Payment Purchases - Not In Conjunction With Other In Store Promotions - No Shop Credit or Shop Vouchers)
