I know this might come as a surprise to some of you, but sometimes words fail me...
What is going on with this World?
The shocking and heart breaking events of the suicide bombing in Manchester I just cannot comprehend. And if the loss of innocent lives, many of them children, wasn`t bad enough the news of Roger Moore`s passing just made bad news worse for me.
By the time I was old enough to discover 'Bond' it was Roger`s gig and I know Sean will always be remembered as the Best Bond (I have Daniel Craig in 2nd place incidentally) Roger Moore`s portrayal of the British Agent with the License to Kill was the one I grew up with. But no matter how absurd or far-fetched any of the Bond plots seem to be in film fantasy they pale into insignificance compared to the wretched, unfathomable, inhumane chaos that is spreading like a plague across the western world right now! We need the real life 007`s on Her Majesty`s Secret Service to get to the root of this epidemic soon!
This might sound a little extreme and morbid, although don`t panic as it`s said from a very mentally stable state, but whilst James Bond discovered 'You Only Live Twice' I`m glad we only live once and right now I`d rather be where Roger is!
A place with the music of Bowie, Mercury & Prince, the Comedy of Morecombe, Cooper & Corbett, the talent and charisma of Ali, Palmer & Ballesteros, the skill and bravery of Hunt, Senna & Sheen!
Meanwhile back on Planet Pandemonium people like John Terry are being held aloft on a pedestal as idols and 'Legends'! To be fair that pedestal was probably as self-made as the farewell ceremony he concocted himself for his last match for Chelsea...as classless at the end of his career as he was during it!
Some will remember him as a 'great' defender and captain...but anyone who can racially abuse a fellow player and have an affair with a teammate's wife is not a good role model in my book!
Although anything pales in importance compared to any terrorist induced atrocity there was a story with a good vibe about it this week. And if only to lighten the mood it took place at the site of one of my favourite jokes:
"I really wanted to dress up at Halloween as a small island off the coast of Italy, but my girlfriend said 'don`t be Sicily'!!"
Alvaro Quiros, the 6 time European Tour winner, had fallen on tough times of late. His form had deteriorated so badly that he had dropped onto the Challenge Tour this season. However a weakened field at the Rocco Forte Open had allowed him to be granted a starting place. And he certainly took advantage building up a 5 stroke lead going into the final round. Despite being pegged back by Zander Lombard, the big hitting Spaniard came through after a Playoff and in doing so regained his playing rights for the main Tour for this and next season.
It also required a Playoff to decide the winner over on the PGA Tour as well (I`ve purposely refrained from using the term Sudden Death Playoff in the light of this week`s events as it shows how flippantly it can be used out of context) After 72 holes in the AT&T Byron Nelson Classic Jason Day and Billy Horschel were all tied, but an uncharacteristic 3 Putt for Jason Day meant Billy Horschel grabbed the Title.
Either or both these 2 players winning wasn't really that big a surprise! After all they have both been there before. But given the trend of this Season perhaps the biggest surprise was that neither of them played TaylorMade Clubs! (Although Jason Day almost pulled it off for the Brand)
However Alvaro Quiros was booming his Callaway EPIC Woods en route to his win in Italy.
This was the Driver that featured a unique Clubface Framing Structure called 'Jailbreak Technology' that helped create unrivalled Ball Speeds, especially on off centre hits!
And almost as if I had planned it we have Callaway here at Portlethen for a Trial & Fitting Day next Wednesday, 31 May.
Times are filling fast but we have a limited few slots left, plus if you just want to Trial the products then feel free to pop along as I will be on hand alongside Tom, the Callaway Tech Rep.
Callaway Fitting Day
Wednesday, 31 May - 2pm until 6pm
Other Brands/Dates:
PING Demo Day
Thursday, 15 June - 2pm until 6pm
Titleist Demo Day
Friday, 16 June - 3pm until 7pm
Remember if these Dates don`t suit you then I offer one of the most Comprehensive Fitting Range & Experiences you can find, plus right now I also still have my 'Complete Equipment Solution' Promotion running just now too.
Along with (Callaway, PING, TaylorMade & Wilson) I am offering what I would call 'The Complete Performance Solution' but they have named 'The Complete Equipment Solution'
Take advantage of my FREE Custom Fit Session & FREE Lesson Offer*
This applies to any Driver, Iron or multiple Wedge Fit.
(T`s&C`s: *Free Lesson only applies to Single Brand Fittings - 1Hour session comprises 30 Minute Club Fit & 30 Minute Lesson. All Multi Brand Fits are still FREE but require the full 1 Hour slot)
We have one of the most comprehensive Fitting Selections you`ll find anywhere, but especially at a Green Grass facility and when you add to that my newly acquired GC Quad Launch Monitor not only are you getting a fantastic level of service but you are also getting it absolutely FREE!
Why not Book your Custom Fit Session today - Click Here
Many players who feature regularly in the Results & Prize Lists have already taken the plunge with correctly fitted equipment. No reason why it couldn`t be you?
Just a glance at this week`s results and I see that 5 from the first 6 winners in DIV 1 & 2 all use Custom Fitted Equipment! Although after another miserable day of Weather I might need to start specialising in Custom Fitted Umbrellas! We still managed to get 139 Competitors to brave the rain in the Marie Curie Stableford so with 39 Points to win you could say Mike Smith is worthy of collecting that Nobel Prize.
Saturday, 20 May
Division 1
1 Arthur Graham 38 Points
2 William Bothwell 36 Points
3 Graham Murray 36 Points
Division 2
1 Michael Smith 39 Points
2 Alan Simpson 38 Points
3 Brian Davie 37 Points
Division 3
1 Jack Munro 37 Points
2 Paul Dallas 36 Points
3 Alexander Legge 36 Points
The weather and the Scoring was much better on Wednesday for the Walk On Medal.
Wednesday, 17 May
Division 1
1 Gary Cruickshank 73(9) - 64
2 Stuart McLaughlin 76(7) - 69
3 Scott Livingstone 80(10) - 70
Division 2
1 Gordon Mackintosh 82(15) - 67
2 Alejandro Correa 80(12) - 68
3 Ken McCombie 82(12) - 70
Division 3
1 Sandy Duff 85(18) - 67
2 Robert Horne 85(17) - 68
3 Richard Foulger 94(25) - 69
The Sunday Results took on a different look as the Club held the first of their 2 Texas Scramble Opens, and hopefully the 2nd one will be every bit as successful as the 1st!
50 Teams took part with the majority coming from Visiting Golf Clubs, with some as far afield as Ohio! Now, granted the 7 guys (should`ve been 8 but the night before festivities in Stonehaven had taken its toll on him!) who were visiting from St Ignatius, Ohio didn`t come especially for the Texas Scramble Open, however they were recommended by several different people to come play Portlethen GC while they were in the area! Which is always nice to hear.
These guys enjoyed their day but didn`t trouble the winners circle. Mainly because the standard was immense!
Game 3 was a Team from Nigg Bay who posted a 58 Gross and 55.5 Nett which had them sitting atop both Scratch & Handicap Boards all day long...and guess what, Game 50 (last match of the day) pipped them with a 57 and Nett 54.9 thanks to them scoring a 'Hole In 1' at the 5th. The only saving grace was that best Scratch & Best Handicap had the same value Prize and you could only win one or t`other so the spoils were shared.
2nd place went to a Team from Newmacher while Portlethen were represented in 3rd by Clan Cordiner!
Click here to view a full list of results.
This week`s accolade goes to a man who since his Lesson a few weeks ago has trimmed .4 off his handicap. This helped him to a 2nd place in his Division on Wednesday.
For many golfers 'Consistency' is the holy grail and buzz word they all seek and Stuart McLaughlin was no different. Good shots were followed by destructive ones, especially from the Tee. A small tweak to Stuart`s set up and balance points allowed him to match his arm swing and body movement better. That in turn resulted in him being able to make a similar action more often.
So if you seek consistency that is only going to come if (1) you know what causes the killer shots, and (2) you understand how to eradicate them!
That`s where I come in.
So why not book your Lesson Appointment today.
Check Out the Lesson & Package Options - Click Here
What is also showing signs of improvement (but perhaps not as consistent as we would like!) is the weather & temperature! Don`t pack those Woolley Hats & Mitts away for good just yet, but we have had some short sleeve temperatures to enjoy recently.
So what better time to give you guys a great opportunity to freshen up your Summer Shirt Selection! And who doesn`t like it when you see the S.S.S. increase?
For the next Week (Saturday, 27 May through to Sunday, 4 June) All Under Armour & adidas Clothing is Buy 1 Get 1 Half Price* AND if Aberdeen win the Scottish Cup at Hampden on Saturday any 'B1G1HP' Purchase will get a FREE Cap thrown in!
(T`s&C`s: *Full Payment Purchases ONLY - No Shop Credit/Vouchers)
Last Saturday the Junior Development Gang was called off again due to the heavy rain. Everyone in Portlethen knows that the weather is only decent Monday - Friday! The competition still went ahead as normal along with the couple that were playing for their handicap.
On Tuesday just past I had the first of five coaching sessions for the kids who have been trying to get an SGU handicap on the big course.
This week it was all about the long game. We started off with some tests and finished off with some tests in which they all improved. Since there is only 4 kids in a group, I am able to spend some more time with each individual.
The part they all enjoyed most this week is having a shot at the "Happy Gilmore" swing. Many might think it`s just nonsense but it helps the kids get into really good positions in the swing. They rotate properly, they practice good weight transfer with the big step and they turn fully through the ball. All of these things are common mistakes in young golfers and it`s just a fun way to learn these basic movements. Padraig Harrington is one of many to have tried this drill and executed very well!
Check this out by clicking here!
Competition Results
Last Saturday was the first round of the Junior Club Championship in which everyone did well not to quit in the horrible conditions! And even with the really wet conditions, a couple managed to get a cut on their handicap.
1st - Lewis Sinclair - 83(15) - 68
2nd - Finlay Wallace - (12) - 70
Junior Pennant League
The 'Porty' minions have won the first two matches in the Pennant League and their final game is away to Aboyne this Sunday coming up. If they win this game they are through to the quarter finals! Even though we have lost a couple of good players this season due to them turning adult, we still have a very decent team and they are only getting better!
All the best to them this Sunday and I hope to be writing about who they have in the quarter finals this time next week!
It was Stableford galore this week for the Ladies and Barbara Watt showed she was 'on point' by winning her Division both times.
Saturday, 20 May
Division 1
1 Barbara Watt 32 Points
Division 2
1 Morag Cammack 28 Points
Tuesday, 16 May
Division 1
1 Barbara Watt 31 Points
Division 2
1 Sylvia Revell 34 Points
