The Irish Examiner SpinDoctor Donal Hughes 25th Aug 2009. What’s in the bag: Justin Rose, Is Golf Only A Game?, The Rules Quiz, Yang’s Winning Hybrid, Johnnie Walker and Barclays Tips, Ross Fisher’s new putter and more!

  Under The Microscope: Justin Rose Full name:Justin Peter Rose Born: 30 July 1980 (age 29) Bithplace: Johannesburg, South Africa ...

 

Under The Microscope: Justin Rose

Full name:Justin Peter Rose

Born: 30 July 1980 (age 29)

Bithplace: Johannesburg, South Africa

Height: 6 ft 3 in

Weight: 179 lb (81 kg; 12.8 st)

Residence: Orlando, Florida, U.S.; London, England

Turned professional: 1998

Professional wins 7

Justin Rose was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, and moved to the United Kingdom at the age of five. Rose burst onto the golfing scene at The Open Championship in 1998 at Royal Birkdale. The then 17 year old amateur holed a dramatic shot from the rough for birdie on the 18th to finish tied for fourth. He controversially turned professional the following week, and promptly missed 21 cuts in a row. Four years later however Rose won his first professional event, the Dunhill Championship in South Africa and followed this up with three further victories in that year. In 2005 Rose announced that he would concentrate mainly on the U.S. tour but did continue to play a quota of European tour events culminating in winning the European Tour Order of Merit title in 2007 with victory at the Volvo Masters, which he won in a playoff.

Rose’s string of poor results this year has been widely attributed to a rift with swing coach Nick Bradley and a split was announced at the Open. Commenting on the split Rose said “Nick Bradley, my coach, is not here with me this week. He and I have mutually agreed to call it a day. We felt that we had reached a slight stalemate and neither was as effective with the other as we would have liked. Nothing was happening.” There were signs of a return to form with a good showing at last weeks Wyndham Championship.

Rose married long-time girlfriend Kate Phillips, a British former international gymnast, in December 2006. They have a house in Lake Nona, Florida, and a riverside flat in the London suburb of Putney. Kate gave birth to their first child, a son named Leo, on 21 February 2009.

What’s In Justin’s Bag

Bloggy Underfoot: Is Golf Only A Game?

Remember last week’s ‘bloggy’ where we mused about golf’s inclusion in the Olympics? Little did I realize at the time, but it was about to create a debate that was shake the old establishment of RTE to the core. Well, tickle it anyway for about 15 minutes. Your loving Spindoctor was asked to take part in a debate on golf in the Olympics on non other than RTE’s Pat Kenny morning show.

As it turned out, the discussion was to centre on two questions, should golf be in the Olympics and, wait for it, is golf actually a sport or is it just a game (like tiddly winks or bridge) ? Pat Kenny was joined in the studio by Gerry Kiernan (the marathon guy) and on the line by sports writer David Walsh.

After asking me to explain the possible format golf was to take in the Olympics Pat got down to the hard question of does golf deserve a place there? I replied that any sport which empowers kids to get off their bums and leave the Nintendo or the X-box down would be good for the games. As to whether golf would have the mass appeal of the likes of beach volleyball or the pommel horse, I wasn’t so sure!

As it turned out, Gerry Kiernan wasn’t in favour of having golf in the Olympics. Gerry’s criteria for eligible Olympic sports seemed to involve varying degrees of pain like running around a track 15 times or propelling yourself up over a little plastic pole using a big long plastic pole. A game like golf where the likes of Miguel Angel Jimenez can show up with a cigar and a glass of Rioja just wasn’t deserving of a gold medal. Surprisingly Pat agreed wholeheartedly.

So golfers with big bellies weren’t sportsmen asserted the lads. Yep, by that rationale, that big 22 stone American shot-putter CJ Hunter couldn’t possibly have been a sportsman either. Sure he was twice the size of Jimenez. Wasn’t he married to the, er, multi gold medal winning sprinter Marion Jones for a while? I wonder whatever became of both of them? Oh yes, I remember now.

Hunter and Jones: Two fine athletes!

Pat then proposed something to the effect of, how could a 59 year old man like Tom Watson be considered a sportsman? Before I had a chance to blow my top, David Walsh blew his and rightly berated the boys for daring to belittle Watson’s achievements. “Off the Ball”, this was not! I was beginning to feel like a duck in the Donnybrook silly season.

My parting comments were an attempt to embrace us all under the banner of sport. Some sports, like marathon running require a huge amount of physical effort whereas others like golf require a huge degree of skill. To say both are not sports and their participants not sportsmen would be disingenuous in the extreme.

And so the debate will rage on for another seven years. When golf returns to the Olympics in 2016, a gap of 112 years since its last appearance will be bridged. On that occasion 74 Americans, battled 3 Canadian’s for gold and guess who won? Yes Canada’s George Lyon took his place on the rostrum alongside the barbell swingers and choral singers that contested those St. Louis games.

Dr. and The Medic: Between Two Clubs

Problem

You cannot decide between two clubs.

Cure

For a high handicap player, you will want to use the longer club, choke down on the grip, and take a full swing. Try a knockdown shot if you are a low handicap player.

Therapy

Place the ball back in your stance a little. Use the longer club and choke down on the grip as the higher handicap player would. However, take a shallower swing for the knockdown shot. Do not take a full finish. This is because you want to keep the club and the ball low to the ground. To help you keep the clubhead low after impact, focus on extending your arms as you would do with your driver. This shot can be harder than it seems; so, remember to practice it before playing it on the course.

The Doc’s Rules Quiz

Question 1: True or False - In a foursomes competition partners may carry both sets of clubs in one bag, provided that each player uses only his own clubs

Question 2: True or False - A player is allowed five minutes to search for his original ball and five minutes for his provisional ball even though they are lost in the same area.

Question 3- After reaching the putting green, a player places his clubs near the next tee. An opponent's golf cart accidentally strikes the player's clubs, breaking several of them. Is the ruling-

(a) The clubs were not damaged in the normal course of play and, hence, the player is not entitled to use them in their damaged state, repair them or have them repaired, or replace them or

(b) In equity, the player may use the clubs in their damaged state, repair them or have them repaired, or replace them.

 

Last weeks answers:

Question 1: True or False- A ball to be dropped under the Rules must be dropped by the player or his partner. False (only by player)

Question 2: True or False- A and B are to play C and D in a four-ball match, however A arrives just after B, C and D have teed off at the third hole. A is prohibited from joining the match until the fourth hole but A gives advice to B during the play of the third hole. There is no penalty. True

Question 3: True or False- In a handicap Stableford competition, a competitor inadvertently returns his score card to the Committee with a score of 6 at the 11th hole when his score for the hole was actually 7. The 11th hole is a par 4 at which the competitor receives no handicap strokes. The player is disqualified. False (no point earned, no issue)

Congrats to last weeks winner Barry Rhodes, Foxrock, Dublin who wins a classy Kartel shirt compliments of Golfstyle Galway.

I Want One Of Those: Yang’s Winning Hybrid

Introducing the TaylorMade Rescue TP 2009 as used by Y.E. Yang to nail his second to the 18^th in Hazeltine and subsequently slay the Tiger. This new offering differs from the regular TaylorMade Rescue 2009 by offering the same TaylorMade adjustable head technology that is included on the R9 driver and fairway woods, and the Aldila Voodoo VS8 Graphite Shaft. With an extremely low centre of gravity for an easy launch, and Ultra Thin Wall technology for greater weight distribution, this is a club every golfer needs to save a shot from the rough. Available for €225 from Golfstyle, Galway.

Bet Your Balls-

odds thanks to Boylesports

Johnnie Walker Championships at Gleneagles

The Gleneagles Hotel

Perthshire, Scotland

27 Aug 2009 - 30 Aug 2009

Søren Hansen 14/1

Dane Soren Hansen makes his return to the European Tour after his appearance at the USPGA at Hazeltine. Although he didn’t feature there, Hansen will consider it a successful major season with top tens at the US and British Opens. Although still to register a victory this year, Soren lies 19^th in the race to Dubai thanks mainly to four top tens in his last seven outings. Narrowly missed out here in 2005 where he was pipped at the post by Paul Casey.

 

 

 

Bradley Dredge 28/1

Until last week Bradley Dredge had not featured in a European Tour top ten since January. His fortunes seemed to have changed though with a strong putting performance at Kennemer. The Welshman is a perennial performer at Gleneagles. His tied seventh last year could have so much better but for a disappointing final round of 73. In 2005 Dredge was in a four way tie for second behind Emanuele Canonica.

Martin Erlandsson 50/1

Even with a bogey six on his card Sweden's Martin Erlandsson equalled the Kennemer course record with a seven under par 63 on the final day of last weeks KLM Open. Erlandsson will be hoping his good form can continue at Gleneagles where he tied for third in 2007 when Marc Warren was the victor. The Swede has performed well over the early Summer period in the last three years to comfortably retain his card but this year he lies in the precarious position of 122^nd approaching the back end of the season. An each way shot.

The Barclays

Liberty National · Jersey City, NJ

Sergio Garcia 28/1

Sergio went form hero to zero last week at the Wyndham. Three consecutive birdies early on Sunday saw him hold a two shot lead before his putter ran cold and took three bogeys in the next three holes. Finished in a tie for fourth, only his second top ten of the year but as Padraig Harrington might advise, you rarely come off a run of poor form (Garcia is 89^th on the FedEx list) and win. It takes time to get mentally adjusted to being up there and closing the deal. Let’s hope Garcia continues his form into this week, he tied for second also last year at Ridgewood. There may a problem however in the form of a Tiger loose in the field

Kevin Sutherland 80/1

The Barclays represents the start of the 2009Fed Ex Cup Playoffs. The event is moving from last years Ridgewood venue to the Liberty National Golf Course in New Jersey. One man who brings form into the event is Kevin Sutherland who finished tied for fifth last year despite being the only player in the top ten to shoot over 70 in round one. Over the past few seasons Sutherland seems to find late season form; he finished tied for second behind Vijay in last years staging. An each way punt.

Brandt Snedeker 50/1

He was the name on everyones lips coming in to Major season but it has been a year of ups and downs for Snedeker. Twelve missed cuts in 20 events including three in his last seven starts suggests something seriously amiss but despite all that it is still fair to say when he’s good he is very good. Of the four cuts he has made recently, Snedeker has always finished in the top five including last week at the Wyndham where he only lost out by two shots. One to watch if he’s around for the weekend!

 

 

Tailored Shorts

Presidents Cup Sides Settled

With his win at the USPGA, Y.E. Yang earned himself a spot on his first Presidents Cup team. The matches between the USA and International teams will be played from October 8-11 at Harding Park in San Francisco. The Americans have not lost the Presidents Cup against the International team in 1998, and hold a 100% record at home. The International team has Ogilvy, Singh, Villegas, Goosen, Els, Cabrera, Weir, Allenby, Yang and Tim Clark. Villegas and Yang will be playing for the first time. Captain Greg Norman has a further two picks. Fred Couples’ American team consists of Woods, Mickelson, Stricker, Perry, Johnson, Cink, O'Hair, Kim and Leonard. U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover needed a birdie over the final three holes at the USPGA to secure a spot on the Presidents Cup team, but finished with a bogey and now has to wait for a captain’s pick.

Baby Pink for Ross

Scotty Too Hotty! Maybe it’s one of David Howell’s spares. It’s long enough.

Englishman Ross Fisher received a present from famous putter maker Scotty Cameron during his recent visit to Akron, Ohio. The one-off Newport special came embossed with the words “Eve Rose Fisher, 25/7/09, 8lbs 12oz’s” and features baby pink grip and matching teddy bear head cover. During the British Open, Ross had said that if wife Jo went into labour he would leave Turnberry mid-round, if need be to attend Eve's birth. In the event baby eve didn’t arrive until six days after, plenty of time for Ross to paint the spare room pink!

Hansen Test Drive

Soren Hansen is known as one of the best iron players in the game. His Titleist 670 muscle back irons have been in his bag for years and he’s not one to change on a whim. A recent visit to the Titleist testing facility at Fairhaven Massachusetts however threw up some exciting results for the Dane. Testing the new 710 CB and MB irons, Hansen immediately produced Formula One style telemetry which included some 200 yard plus five irons. At the end of the session Hansen remarked “there’s nothing like a new set of irons” and had them packaged up “to go”. I wonder did he think about that €60 Ryanair handling fee for sporting goods!

Solheim Hope

It has been a torrid year for female touring professional golfers, with fixture changes and sponsor pullouts on a regular basis. None of that seemed to matter at the Solheim Cup, where the United States team hooted and hollered, their way to a 16-12 victory over a brave Europe. The event at Rich Harvest Farms in Chicago was attended by a huge and  sometime raucous crowd. It all bodes well for the next instalment, which takes place in two years time at Killeen Castle in Dunsany. It remains to be seen whether an Irish player makes the Europe side but teenage sensations Lisa and Leona Maguire from Cavan took another positive step in that direction by appearing on the European Team at the Junior Solheim Cup in Aurora Illinois also held last week.

Christina Kim: A Couple Of Cans Short Of A Six-Pack?