Category Archives: Blog Post

The British Open Championship Is Underway!

Just after 6.30am this morning American Jerry Kelly hit the opening shot of this year’s British Open Championship at Royal St George’s, Sandwich.

Kelly though it seems will be doing well to make the cut having started with a bogey, and followed that up with a double at the second.

There is plenty of coverage to choose from today but I would really recommend the BBC as it’s comprehensive.

Their Open mini-site has everything you could possibly need – however if you want to bookmark a live leaderboard then it seems that the easiest way to do this is at The Open’s Official Site.

On Twitter, @danwalkerbbc is providing some excellent coverage and analysis as is @robhodgetts .

At the time of writing, Ian Poulter is about to tee off, followed by that formidable trio of McIlroy, Els and Fowler.

Enjoy the golf and let me know what you think of today’s play over at my Facebook Page.

My Tips For The British Open

In just 48 hours the British Open at Royal St George’s in Sandwich will be well underway, with American Jerry Kelly hitting the first shot of the historic tournament at around 6.30am on Thursday morning.

All eyes are of course on Rory McIlroy, who has been teamed up veteran Ernie Els and rising American star Rickie Fowler for his first round, to see if he can repeat his success of last month at the US Open.

However in terms of the betting – I’m heading for value elsewhere!

Here are my tips:

Lee Westwood – has been paired with Masters champion Charl Schwartzel and American Steve Stricker in his first round. He looks good value at around 11/1.

Ricky Fowler – As above, he’s a rising star and expected to perform well at this tournament – he’s tremendous each value at around 90/1,

Simon Dyson – I like to back an outsider each way, and this year I’ve got my eye on this guy at 150/1 – he’s got the ability to produce a shock.

George Coetzee – Talking of outsiders, there’s a chance you may not have heard of this 24 year old South African, but he’s on form and has a tournament win to his name this year – I’ve had a cheeky couple of quid on him each-way at 200/1.

Let me know who you’re backing!

 

Great Golf Jokes

Away from all the usual news and updates, here are three of my favourite golf jokes! There are plenty out there so let me know if you’ve got a funnier one 🙂

A young man and a priest are playing together. At a short
par-3 the priest asks, “What are you going to use on this
hole, my son?”

The young man says, “An 8-iron, father. How about you?” The
priest says, “I’m going to hit a soft seven and pray.”

The young man hits his 8-iron and puts the ball on the
green. The priest tops his 7-iron and dribbles the ball out
a few yards.

The young man says, “I don’t know about you, father, but in
my church, when we pray, we keep our head down.”

—————————————————

A husband and wife are on the 9th green when suddenly she
collapses from a heart attack!

“Help me dear,” she groans to her husband.

The husband calls 911 on his cell phone, talks for a few
minutes, picks up his putter and lines up his putt. His wife
raises her head off the green and stares at him.

“I’m dying here and you’re putting?”

“Don’t worry dear,” says the husband calmly, “they found a
doctor on the second hole and he’s coming to help you.

“Well, how long will it take for him to get here?” she asks
feebly.

“No time at all,” says her husband. “Everybody’s already
agreed to let him play through.”

—————————————————

Police are called to an apartment and find a woman holding a
bloody 5-iron standing over a lifeless man. The detective
asks, “Ma’am, is that your husband?”

“Yes” says the woman.

“Did you hit him with that golf club?”

“Yes, yes, I did.” The woman begins to sob, drops the club,
and puts her hands on her face.

“How many times did you hit him?”

“I don’t know — five, six, maybe seven times…..just put
me down for a five.”

 

A Week In Golf: Round-Up

It’s been a week of mixed weather but great to see so many golfers practising and playing, also great to see so many youngsters out there too, hopefully inspired by Rory McIlroy’s US Open win which is still dominating the golf headlines nearly two weeks on!

Here are some links to some decent articles summarising the week’s golfing news, starting with a really good CNN interview by Piers Morgan with Rory himself.

Have a great weekend!

AT+ T National Leaderboard

PGA European Tour – French Open – Le Golf National – Leaderboard

Justin Rose Targets Return To Form

 

Campbell Fails To Qualify For British Open

Former US Open winner Michael Campbell finished just outside the qualifying places for next month’s Open Championship at Sandwich.

The New Zealander was among 288 players competing for 12 qualifying places over four courses in south-east England.

He carded rounds of 68 and 72 for a four-under-par total at Prince’s, one shot outside the qualifying mark.

Another to miss out was former Ryder Cup player Paul Broadhurst, who shot a 67 but then a 75 at Royal Cinque Ports.

Broadhurst, whose 63 at St Andrews in 1990 still stands as the joint best round in a major, missed out by three at the Kent course.

The Open starts on Thursday 14th July 2011 and is promising to be a great tournament.

Golfers On Twitter

Rory McIlroy’s famous win at last week’s US Open had an extra dimension that is becoming more and more prominent in the world of golf – he was able to receive hundreds of goodwill messages on Twitter from his near half a million followers, and they were able to receive updates from him after the event – he even posted this picture of the trophy on his kitchen table!

US Open Trophy | James Irons Golf

Must be a nice feeling!

Of course Rory isn’t the only golfer on Twitter – far from it – and it’s great to be able to see what’s going through the minds of these great players as they embark on these huge tournaments. It’s also amazing to be able to communicate with these guys – and if you’re lucky they might even send you a message back!

Here are some of the more active golfers on Twitter and where you can find them…

Rory McIlroy www.twitter.com/mcilroyrory

Notah Begay III www.twitter.com/notahbegay3

Ian Poulterwww.twitter.com/ianjamespoulter

Nick Faldowww.twitter.com/thesirnickfaldo

You can find an expansive list, plus all the latest tweets by clicking here.

Rory McIlroy Twitter | James Irons Golf

McIlroy Still Dominating The Headlines

Rory McIlroy continues to dominate the sporting headlines three days after his emphatic US Open win.

There are so many great articles emerging about how he learned the game, great photos, videos and interviews that I thought I’d collate the best of them here for you to take a look at.

McIlroy has indicated that he will now take three weeks off before the Open Championship which begins at Royal St Georges on 14th July 2011.

McIlroy’s Career In Photos.

Nicklaus Tips McIlroy For Glory

The Making Of McIlroy

Bernard Gallagher: Rory Will Dominate

Can Rory Steal Tiger’s Roar?

McIlroy Records Majestic US Open Win

Rory McIlroy yesterday produced that rare sporting achievement – a win that made the front pages of the papers as well as the back.

Breaking all sorts of records in the process, the 22-year-old became the youngest golfer to win the US Open since 1923, and did it in amazing style, an incredible eight shots clear by the time he rolled in his final putt.

Bogeying just three and double-bogeying 1 of an incredibly challenging 72 holes, he finished on 16 under for the tournament, leaving his competitors in his wake, and leading the competition from start to finish.

It really felt like watching a new golfing dawn, with McIlroy making the same kind of impact that Tiger Woods enjoyed when he first burst onto the scene, and there’s no doubt in my mind that McIlroy, like Woods, will be inspiring young golfers to take up the game – he is the proof that with hard work and total dedication you can achieve anything.

At 22 he has his whole career ahead of him and could well go on to be one of the greatest golfers the world has ever seen. And to do all of this just 70 days after his infamous last round at the Masters in Augusta, where he led the tournament for three days before choking on the last, showed that he has the mental strength to cope with that side of the game too.

I was proud to watch him dominate the final day at Congressional as he had dominated the previous three, check out the links below for highlights of his historic win.

Report And Video Interview

Media Reaction

Final Round Photos

 

 

The Leuka Mini Masters

An event I look forward to every summer is the Leuka Mini Masters  – ‘Golf’s Unofficial 5th Major’ which takes place at Dukes Meadows Golf Club every July, and has done for the last three years now.

I’m delighted to say that this fantastic charity tournament, which is hosted by actor Dougray Scott, returns to Dukes Meadows for its 4th year on 15th July 2011. A totally unique blend of charity golf day and summer garden party, it is now a firm fixture in both the golfing and social calendars.

The tournament’s unique atmosphere has attracted some of the biggest names in celebrity golf including Tim Henman, Hugh Grant, Rob Brydon, Jimmy Tarbuck, Jimmy Nesbitt, Jodie Kidd and Gianluca Vialli to name but a few.

The event kicked off in style yesterday evening with a Penthouse Launch Party at The Mayfair Hotel in Central London. My good friend Scott Margetts took some great photos which you can see by clicking here.

You can visit the official event page by clicking here, or follow the organisers on Twitter by clicking here.

A Beginners Guide To Golf Accessories

So we’ve covered irons, woods, putters and balls – it’s now time to take a look at the various accessories on offer to golfers.

As you look around the average Pro Shop you will see that there is a huge, sometimes confusing array to choose from. There will always be fads that come and ago, but the following are essentials that will be of benefit to you when playing your first rounds of golf.

Towel
Most players carry a towel to wipe their clubs – and if you are lucky enough to be using a caddy,  they should do this after every shot for you.

Your towel clips to the side of your bag, and only needs to be small – however you may need a couple when it’s raining to keep your clubs dry.

Head Cover
These are useful for protecting your clubs from knocks, and are mostly used on the woods. You can also buy them for irons which are useful when transporting or storing your clubs, however this can become a major pain if you’re having to constantly take them on and off your irons throughout your game! They come in various shapes and sizes, and one stage or another, everybody owns a novelty head cover, it’s kind of an unwritten rule 🙂

Pitch Fork
This is used to repair pitch marks on the green. A pitch mark occurs when the ball lands heavily on the green and creates a dent. You can use the Pitch Fork (Or Pitch Mark Repairer as they are sometimes referred to) to even these dents out and restore an even playing service to the putting green. A tee can be used instead if you don’t have one.

Marker
A marker is used only on the green, and is placed just under your ball in order that you can lift your ball off and clean it, or create room for your opponent to putt without your ball being in the way. Many golf gloves include a small pop-off marker on the wrist, otherwise you can buy plastic markers extremely cheaply, or silver / bronze markers are usually available in pro-shops in various designs. If you’re stuck you can easily use a ten-pence piece, or similar sized coin.

Pencil and scorecard
When you pay for your round in the pro-shop you will be given a scorecard, which usually acts as your proof of purchase and of course enables you to keep track of how many shots you hit on each hole.

Umbrella
It’s a sad fact that, particularly in England on Bank Holidays, it will occasionally rain during your round of golf. I would suggest an umbrella, which in most cases will keep you dry between shots. However if it’s thundering, then an umbrella (along with swinging a golf club) is not a great idea – best to head for the clubhouse on these occasions! You can also carry a set of waterproofs in your bag – these days you can get excellent lightweight waterproofs that fit easily over your existing clothing and are designed especially for golfers.

So there you go – all the accessories you need!

Did I miss anything out? Let me know, or if you have any questions, that’s what I’m hear for!

Have a great weekend 🙂