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When it comes to wedges, the best players of the past 40 years have trusted one man more than any other.
Bob Vokey’s career in golf club design progressed to the point where he was appointed chief designer for Titleist’s range of wedges, the Vokey wedge brand growing to become one of golf’s most trusted and recognised. A special guest at the PGA Golf Expo last year, Vokey shared his insights into an industry that has changed significantly and revealed which is the favourite wedge in his bag. With Tony Webeck
My passion for wedges goes back to the old Dyna-Power days and the old MacGregor Expeditor. They were get-out-of-jail clubs at that time. A true pitching wedge had different shots you could hit with them. Pitching wedges today, because of the strengthening, they have just evolved to be a 10-iron or an 11-iron. It’s not a true pitching wedge in the set. What we’ve done with the Titleist clubs, the 46 and 52 may have lofts of a pitching wedge but the design is with the creativity of a scoring wedge.
We used to get by with two wedges. The pitching wedge was a versatile wedge that allowed you to hit all sorts of different shots and then the sand wedge was used mainly for bunkers and the rough. But as the game evolved these players got so fantastic in being able to manipulate those particular clubs out of the bunkers that they made the greens tougher. Undulating, pot bunkers, they made it so you needed a lot of different shots. Players wanted more loft for greenside shots but with a wide sole they could not hit the shots that they needed to hit. So what evolved was a narrow-sole sand wedge with a little bit more bounce. That is the science of it but there is also an art to it as well.
I’d say it’s more of a challenge to design a wedge now than when I started. When I used to do wedges, I’d find the centre of gravity by balancing a model on my finger. Was that a science? It was an old science, but it worked.
My dad said to me, ‘Son, if you don’t love what you’re doing, quit, or you’ll never be a success.’ I worked my hiney off. I remember driving my 295,000-mile Datsun B210, sleeping in a sleeping bag in my 1,100-foot golf shop in Vista, California. I was fortunate a lot of players would come in because it was right by La Costa.
I did everything by eye, by feel, the old-fashioned way with a toolmaker by hand, which would take months to do. Now I give all these measurements to an engineer, who puts them into the computer and I can see this clubhead moving around on the screen. Ten years before it would take me two weeks to come up with a prototype; he does a playable prototype overnight. That’s the way it’s being done right now. I did it the hard way but that’s what we had to do to learn, and we learned a lot from doing it the old-fashioned way.
I’ve got what I call my go-to guys. Guys like Tom Pernice, Charley Hoffman, Ben Crane, they will come to the TPI test centre and I’ll have all these wedges waiting for them to hit and I’ll go back and do a little grind, a tweak here, a tweak there and we’ll go and hit them. That’s how it all started many, many years ago.
Every single grind that we have in the line right now came from the best players in the world. And not just in the United States. I would go over to the British Open all the time and I had a lot of very good Australian pros that I worked with. I was with Adam Scott at Medinah just this year and he was showing me a lot of different things and we were talking about a lot of different things. Geoff Ogilvy is another of my go-to guys. I’d bring Geoff prototypes five years before SM6 came out and then a few years ago when I gave him a SM6 to try he says, ‘Isn’t that the one you showed me at Torrey Pines about five years ago?’ Yes, because that’s how long it took us to work with the SM6 with the progressive centre of gravity.
In 2012 I was at Olympic in San Francisco and Adam was in the bunker. He’s a great bunker player and he had this 260-08 at that particular time, a wedge we had way back when. He wasn’t liking it and I told him to hit something. I told him not to look at the sole and hit it. Next thing you know it’s popping out and he’s asking to look at the sole. I tell him no. He hits some shots from the rough, some from the fairway. Finally I let him look at it and it happened to be the K Grind with a little bit wider sole. He said to me, ‘I can’t hit his club.’ But he put it in play, he played well and it was a 6-degree K.
Two weeks before the 2013 Masters he gives me a call. ‘Voke, can you give me one with a little bit more bounce.’ I sent him one that was 10-degree K and he won the Masters with it. And it’s still in his bag today.
Working with tour players, they basically knew what they wanted and I was able to advise them and get their feedback. Working with the avid golfer, it’s a little bit more involved.
I talk to them. Sometimes when people come to me they can be a little nervous so I try to relieve the player’s anxiety when they come in to be fit. I’ll give them a little explanation as to what bounce is, what grinds are and let them know the importance of their feedback. I can only fit that person – tour player included – if they tell me how it feels. I don’t care what anyone says, the closer you get to the green, the greater variety of shot-making comes into being. That’s where feel is.
I’ll look and analyse the equipment they’re coming in with. What are their strengths? What are their weaknesses? Take all of that into account. You can ask all sorts of questions that will help when you are fitting them for bounce, loft and grind. Their handicap will tell you a lot so have to take all of that into account before you even go out and hit a shot.
Lee Trevino would say all the time that the wedges are the most important clubs in your bag. Tour players such as Padraig Harrington and Adam Scott, very good tour players, hit 12 greens a round. There’s an opportunity to get up and down so very often and they’re up and down in par or under par. The weekend golfer is still out there trying to hit that dog-gone 300-yard drive.
I go to driving ranges and I see people hitting drivers and yet there’s nobody over at the short game area. I honestly feel like this is the low-hanging fruit in a player’s bag. With a little bit of coaching and the proper loft, lie and bounce, he has the clubhead speed to hit all those shots around the green. With these little guys right here and the proper fit you can save one heck of a lot of shots.
A funny thing happens too; his putting improves. His putting is so much better because he’s hitting those shots closer to the hole. The best players in the world might hit 12 greens but they’re up and down in par, or under. When they’ve got that wedge in their hand they’re thinking, I’m going to make it.
On any given day I might have seven wedges in my bag. I don’t carry just 14 clubs, I don’t worry about that. I’m a hack, I don’t worry about that stuff! I’m testing! I’ve got to test product.
If I had my bag set up properly I use that pitching wedge and then I go to a 48, a 52, a 56 and a 60. I look at that ‘P’ and to me that’s a 9-iron. My 56 is my go-to wedge. My 60 is almost brand new. I’m a 56 player and I’m an advocate of the 56 wedge as the most important wedge in our bag. It’s fun to take the 56 out and hit all the shots. It’s a very, very high percentage shot. You go to your lobber, when you start laying that face open, you better be hitting a thousand balls a day to make it work. I tell everybody to use that sand wedge. It should be your go-to club.
The wedge is the funnest club in golf. Once you get your confidence you can improve a player so much working with the wedges. Working on your short game versus showing them how to hit that driver. Wedges are where it’s at.
The Western Australian Golf Industry is pleased to announce the finalists for the upcoming Golf Industry Awards Night to be held at Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre on Friday 20th March 2020.
Represented by the PGA of Australia, GolfWA, Golf Course Superintendants Association of WA and Golf Management Australia (WA), the WA Golf Industry Awards Night acknowledges the achievements the finalists have accomplished throughout 2019.
With more nominations than ever before, it was encouraging to see so many individuals recognised for their tireless efforts in assisting the growth and development of golf within the state of Western Australia. Having all areas of the industry being represented by the governing bodies, the night is truly an evening that is dedicated to personalities that are involved in the game whether it be playing or teaching the game, managing facilities that allow it to be experienced or those that volunteer their time and instil so much of their passion toward assisting where needed. To book your tickets or for further details, please click here or alternatively contact the PGA (WA) Office on 08 6430 8100 or via email [email protected].
The finalists for their respective awards (in alphabetical order) are:
Volunteer of the Year Award Finalists (Proudly sponsored by Bowra & O’Dea)
| Jodie Chubb | Joondalup Golf Club |
| Rob Haines | Joondalup Golf and Country Club |
| Owen Nuttridge | Dunsborough Lakes Golf Club |
| Lyndell Olivier | Royal Perth Golf Club |
| Mal Rigoll | Busselton Golf Club |
| Adrian Thornton | Rockingham Golf Club |
Employee of the Year Award Finalists (Proudly sponsored by MiClub)
| Matija Balic | Royal Perth Golf Club |
| Dave Brennan | Bunbury Golf Club |
| Ross Davis | Busselton Golf Club |
| Idris Evans | The Western Australian Golf Club |
| Sam Hodge | Joondalup Golf and Country Club |
| Tony Howell | Mosman Park Golf Club |
Outstanding Game Development of the Year Award Finalists
| Mark Batten | Ten Golf Secret Harbour |
| Ackzel Donaldson | Joondalup Golf and Country Club |
| Kerrod Gray | Joondalup Golf and Country Club |
| Alex McKay | Mount Lawley Golf Club |
| Adam Smith | Como Secondary College |
| Mark Tibbles | The Vines Golf and Country Club |
Metropolitan Golf Course of the Year Finalists (Proudly sponsored by ADH Club Car)
| Cottesloe Golf Club |
| Joondalup Golf and Country Club |
| Meadow Springs Country Club |
Regional Golf Course of the Year Finalists (Proudly sponsored by ADH Club Car)
| Bunbury Golf Club |
| Kalgoorlie Golf Club |
Metropolitan Golf Facility of the Year Award Finalists
| Joondalup Country Club |
| Mandurah Country Club |
| The Western Australia Golf Club |
| Wanneroo Golf Club |
| Wembley Golf Complex |
Regional Golf Facility of the Year Award Finalists
| Bunbury Golf Club |
| Pinjarra Golf Club |
Tournament of the Year Award Finalists (Proudly sponsored by Golf Car World)
| Mack Hall TSA Cottesloe Open, Cottesloe Golf Club |
| Mitchell and Brown Spalding Park Open, Spalding Park Golf Club |
| Nexus Risk Services Southwest Open, Bunbury Golf Club |
| Nexus Risk Group WA Open, Cottesloe Golf Club. |
| TX Civil and Logistics WA PGA Championship, Kalgoorlie Golf Course |
Pro-Am of the Year Award Finalists
| ADH Club Car Joondalup Legends Pro Am |
| The British Sausage Ham & Bacon Co Busselton Pro-Am |
| The Metal West Lakelands Pro-Am |
| Urban Quarter Dunsborough Lakes Golf Club Pro Am, Dunsborough Lakes GC. |
| WA Hino Pro-Am (The Western Australia Golf Club) |
Hilary Lawler Club Professional of the Year Award Finalists
| Damian Chatterley | Lakelands Country Club |
| Matthew Heath | Pinjarra Golf Club |
| Peter Maidment | Mount Lawley Golf Club |
| Tristan McCallum | Seaview Golf Club |
| Correy Price | Busselton Golf Club |
PGA Coach of the Year Finalists
| Nicholas D’avoine | Lake Karrinyup Country Club/Golf Box |
| Kerrod Gray | Joondalup Golf and Country Club |
| Ritchie Smith | Royal Fremantle Golf Club |
PGA Trainee Graduates
| Ethan Andrews | Lakelands Country Club |
| Michael Lewis | Carramar Golf Course |
| Courtney Martin | Wembley Golf Course |
| Jessica Speechley | Joondalup Golf & Country Club |
| Cameron Vale | Carramar Golf Course |
Superintendents of the Year Award Finalists (Proudly sponsored by McIntosh & Son and Jacobsen)
| Oliver Bell | Dunsborough Lakes Golf Club |
| Patrick Casey | Kalgoorlie Golf Course |
| Idris Evans | The Western Australian Golf Club |
| Jason Kelly | Royal Fremantle Golf Club |
| Ashley Watson | Joondalup Golf and Country Club |
Apprentice of the Year Finalists
| Connor Butlion | Bunbury Golf Club |
| Mitchell Clay | Mandurah Country Club |
The Lakes Golf Club hosted the 2019 NSW/ACT PGA Trainee Graduation and Awards Dinner on Thursday evening, celebrating the achievements of 15 PGA Trainees graduating to Full Vocational Membership.
The newly minted PGA Professionals were welcomed to the Association by Senior State Manager David Barker and CEO of the Jack Newton Junior Golf Foundation, Peter Van Wegen.
The night was attended by PGA of Australia Life Members Geoffrey Scott, Thomas Moore and Eddie Emmerson. Geoffrey Scott presented graduates with their PGA certificates and welcome them to the association as Full Vocational Members.
The 2019 NSW/ACT PGA Trainee of the Year Award was presented by FootJoy Account Manager Andrew Williams.
Mitchell Gannon from Kogarah Golf Club received top honours amongst some very strong candidates including Matthew Grenot, Dylan Thompson, Jason Perkin, Luke Humphries and Ashley Cramond.
The award follows an outstanding 2019 season during the second year of his traineeship, whereby Mitchell topped 2019 NSW/ACT Trainee Order of Merit, finished fourth on the 2019 Trainee National Ranking List, won eight trainee matches and secured nine top-five finishes respectively during the year.
“It is a tremendous privilege to be recognized for this award and something I am very proud to have achieved and will cherish for many years to come,” said Gannon.
Deputy Chairman of the PGA, David Stretton, capped off the evening by wishing the newest PGA Members the very best of luck in growing the game of golf and to develop a career of life-long learning within the industry.
NSW/ACT PGA Trainee Graduates – Class of 2019
The PGA of Australia is proud to announce the 2019 finalists for WA PGA Pro-Am of the Year and WA PGA Tournament of the Year.
Throughout 2019 the PGA, along with Western Australia’s golfing bodies, showcased the best of golf in the state through the WA swing of the Ladbrokes Pro-Am Series, Ladbrokes Legends Tour and the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia.
PGA Professionals travelled from across the country to experience all WA has to offer while tournaments in all corners of the state continued to grow in popularity.
Among the highlights was the Nexus Risk WA Open, won by former WA local Michael Sim, and the TX Civil & Logistics WA PGA Championship played on the red dirt of Kalgoorlie.
The Tournament of the Year finalists are:
The Ladbrokes Pro-Am Series and Legends Tour travelled the length of the state, from south of Perth all the way up to Broome and the Order of Merit race was hotly contested.
The Pro-Am of the Year finalists are:
All winners will be announced at the ADH Club Car Western Australia Golf Industry Gala Dinner on 20 March 2020.
Nominations for the following 2019 PGA Awards are still open:
Nominations for these awards close on 14 February.
Visit our new WA Golf Industry Awards website for all industry nominations, news and gala dinner bookings.
Eighteen years after identifying a worrying trend in distance, the R&A and USGA have signalled their intention to implement rule changes that will stop it in its tracks.
The Distance Insights Project has been released and outlines its areas of concern based on extensive research and consultation with key stakeholders within the golf industry, the report consisting of 100 years of data, 56 supporting documents and a 15-page Conclusions paper.
Course design, course set-up, sustainability and equipment were all identified as contributing factors to the distance obsession and why continuing down a century-old path would be detrimental to the origins on which the game was founded.
“Golf is about using a broad and balanced set of skills and judgments to get a ball from the tee to the hole in the fewest strokes on holes of varying designs, pars and lengths,” the report says amongst its Conclusions.
“The game’s essential character and test of skill do not depend on the absolute length of a golf shot or a golf course.
“We believe that it is time to break the cycle of increasingly longer hitting distances and golf courses and to work to build a long-term future that reinforces golf’s essential challenge and enhances the viability of both existing courses and courses yet to be built.”
In 2002 the R&A and USGA released a Joint Statement of Principles on distance that stated that “any further significant increases in hitting distances at the highest level are undesirable.” The ongoing trend ultimately led to a two-year investigation into the impact distance was having in all aspects of the game at every level.
“Our research shows that hitting distances and the lengths of golf courses have been increasing for more than a hundred years. This is not just a phenomena of the last few decade,” said Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of the R&A.
“These changes have been driven by equipment innovation, improved course conditions and player athleticism. We believe that this continuing cycle of increases is undesirable and detrimental to golf’s long-term future.”
Increased distance compromising golf’s intrinsic values has been hotly debated for two decades but it is unlikely the game will be able to turn back the clock, rather put a halt on further advances that would further jeopardise the integrity of golf’s 30,000 courses found across the globe.
“We are not going back to some bygone era,” said Chief Executive Officer of the USGA, Mike Davis.
“We plan to build on the strengths of today’s game while taking steps to stop the cycle of golf courses feeling they need to lengthen because of increasing player hitting distances.
“The research is very clear: There’s a 100-year cycle of increasing hitting distances. There’s a 100-year cycle of subsequent golf course lengthening.
“This has had a profound effect on golf courses. It’s caused them significant resources to change. It’s increased ongoing operating costs. It’s using more resources; resources like precious water.
“The cycle of every generation hitting the ball further than the last and consequently having golf courses lengthened needs to end, and it will not unless action is taken.”
The Distance Insights Project did not identify any possible solutions to the issues raised but Davis conceded that a comprehensive review of equipment specifications will form a major part of research topics to be published within the next 45 days.
“Our next steps will be to develop and assess potential solutions in the best long-term interests of the game,” Davis explained.
“The primary next step will be to pursue a broad review of equipment specifications for both balls and clubs.
“We’ll review the overall equipment rules applying to all golfers to consider whether any of the existing specifications should be adjusted, and whether any new specifications should be created to stop the cycle of continuing increases.
“An important note to make here is that we do not currently intend to consider revising these overall specifications in a way that would produce substantial reductions in hitting distance at all levels.
“After the research on these topics is completed and comments are evaluated, if we decide that any proposed rules changes are needed, equipment manufacturers are going to receive a formal notice of these proposed changes, including a proposed implementation plan and the opportunity to comment under the equipment rules-making procedures, otherwise known as the Vancouver Protocols. We expect this to be a multi-year process.”
Here are five key topics as identified in the Distance Insights Project:
1. Equipment: Changes to equipment specifications shapes as the critical outcome of the Distance Insights Project, but collaboration and possible implementation will take years. A ball that doesn’t fly as far or less energy efficient clubs would help to stem the advances in distance with Davis raising the prospect of a Local Rule that would allow individual clubs to specify the equipment allowed to play their course.
“We plan to assess the potential use of an optional local rule that would specify the use of clubs and balls intended to result in shorter hitting distances,” Davis outlined. “The concept is that equipment meeting a particular set of reduced distance specifications, for example, a ball that doesn’t go as far or a club that doesn’t hit the ball as far might be a defined subset of the overall equipment rules. Like any of the existing local rules under The Rules of Golf, this local rule concept would not mandate the use of such equipment. Rather, it would give the game more flexibility within the rules for all levels of the game.”
2. Course design: A report cited in the Distances Insight Project states that 11 course renovation projects undertake in the US between 2018-2020 are adding 100-600 yards in length and several courses that will have a total length above 7,500 yards. It’s a century-old trend that Slumbers is adamant must be addressed.
“We believe that golf will be more successful over next decades and beyond if this continuing cycle of ever-increasing hitting distances and golf course length is brought to an end,” Slumbers said. “Longer distances, longer courses, playing from longer tees and longer times to play are taking golf in the wrong direction and are not necessary to make golf challenging, enjoyable or sustainable in the future.”
Added Davis: “You don’t see other sports continually having to change their playing fields, to change their stadiums, their arenas, to do what golf’s basically done for over a hundred years. So we just want to break that cycle of seeing golf courses feeling like they have to change.”
3. Course set-up: While stemming the need to lengthen courses is a key finding of the report, encouraging greater flexibility in course set-up is another of the recommendations. Courses played at their full length are insufficient to contain a small percentage of the game’s longest hitters yet Davis insists there are larger groups of golfers who should be catered to with shorter playing lengths.
“We believe forward tees at many golf courses are simply too long relative to the hitting distance of many golfers who play from them,” Davis said. “Here in the United States, the median forward tee course length is between 5,200 and 5,300 yards. As a result, many golfers playing from these teeing grounds may have little chance to reach greens in regulation, even with their best drives and approach shots. They are not offered the same type of playing experience as other golfers and cannot play often the way the architects intended.
“Second, we believe that many other golfers are playing from longer tees than is necessary relative to hitting distances, which can affect their enjoyment and the time it takes to play.
“In due course we’ll be providing guidance and best practices on both shorter forward tees and the appropriate tee-to-hole playing distances for golfers of all levels.”
4. Bifurcation: The distance explosion on the professional golf tours around the world is not necessarily reflected among recreational golfers still fighting to accrue 36 Stableford points. It has led to calls for different sets of equipment regulations for professionals and amateurs, a proposal Davis said was not under consideration.
“We are steadfast in our belief that one set of rules is in the best interests of the game for everyone,” Davis said. “We have long felt that. We continue to feel that.”
5. Sustainability: The crippling drought and devastating bushfire crisis further emphasised what a valuable resource water will be for the planet’s future, a resource golf’s governing bodies don’t want to be used unnecessarily on lengthened courses with more turf in play. Less water and drier conditions means that if not addressed, course conditioning will contribute to further increases in distance.
“One increasingly important practice that we believe is likely to be used at even more courses in the future is for maintained turf areas to become drier and firmer as a result of the reduced use of water and nutrients,” the report states. “This continuing trend may help contribute to hitting distance
increases at such courses.
“The sport of golf is recognising the need to adapt to escalating environmental and natural resource concerns, climate change and associated regulatory activities, such as a need to address issues such as water and chemicals, land use, wildlife and habitat protection and energy used by maintenance vehicles and equipment that can be reduced by shrinking the total acreage of maintained turf.”
This week’s Premiers Cup has given a huge shot in the arm to the Victorian bushfire recovery appeal.
An extraordinarily generous group of golfers contributed $550,000 during a fabulous day at Royal Melbourne, hosted by Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews.
Australian Golf Industry Council chairman Gavin Kirkman said it was tribute to those who both played and organised the event on the club’s famous Composite Course.
The Australian golf community came together to raise funds for bushfire relief at the Premiers Cup over the long weekend. And thanks to the participants, over $500,000 was raised to help those affected! pic.twitter.com/oSJP0RYWaO
— PGA of Australia (@PGAofAustralia) January 28, 2020
“Particularly Premier Andrews, whose commitment to helping those enduring hardship from these horrendous bushfires has been nothing short of exemplary,” Kirkman said.
“We all know he’s a big golf fan, but for he and his staff to help bring together the Victorian golf community to that extent is just fantastic.
“Through the AGIC, the Australian golf community has already collectively been raising money around the country – and even with contributions from overseas – to aid the cause in all areas affected by these fires.
“But another special mention to the officials and staff of the Melbourne Sandbelt clubs whose efforts to pull together Monday’s program and entertainment was outstanding.
“We should be very proud of the Australian golfing community’s power to make a difference when we all unite and push towards the same end.”
Australian golf is pitching in to help the victims of the country’s bushfire crisis.
The central point for donations has been set up by the Australian Golf Industry Council (AGIC), the collaboration of all the industry bodies. It includes not only a GoFundMe page, but a designated bank account for donations for donors who prefer that method.
The 2020 Australian Golf Bushfire Appeal Fund kicked off earlier this month.
The industry has pledged to hand over 50 per cent of the total raised to the Disaster Relief Recovery Fund run by the Australian Red Cross.
The remaining funds raised will be distributed to other bushfire-related charities (including wildlife funds) and to any golf clubs impacted by the disaster.
The PGA TOUR and European Tour contributed $USD 100,000 while the annual Premiers Cup – brought forward to assist bushfire-affected communities – raised more than $550,000.
As a mark of respect for our fire and emergency workers, they and their families will be admitted to the upcoming tournaments – the ISPS Handa Vic Open at 13th Beach and the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open at Royal Adelaide – free of charge.
“Our industry is heartbroken at the devastation that has been caused by these fires,’’ said Gavin Kirkman, chair of the AGIC.
“It’s something that we need to act on and it’s something that needed a coordinated approach; a galvanisation of the golf industry.
“We’ve had contact from a number of clubs and other stakeholders looking to see what they can do to help, and we’ve had a number of high profile players who’ve already dug into their pockets to make donations. We are aiming to pull that together.’’
In addition, clubs and golf facilities throughout Australia are asked to dedicate their club competitions for one week from now until the end of February 2020 to a special fundraising appeal for bushfire relief via any of the following options:
All funds raised can be lodged either via the GoFundMe page or the Australian Golf Bushfire Relief Fund Bank Account.
NAB Account Name: 2020 Australian Golf Bushfire Relief Fund;
BSB: 083004
Account Number: 934028357
The golf industry recognises that a number of clubs and stakeholders have already decided to undertake their own fundraising efforts and are encouraged to continue with these appreciated efforts.
The industry applauds the efforts of people within our sport who are working to assist the victims of the bushfires. Please email details to [email protected] and your initiatives will be acknowledged at the designated appeal web page.
The full boards of the PGA and the ALPG met today to celebrate the alignment of their two organisations.
Together we can create an exciting future that retains the independence of the individual bodies, respecting and growing on the great heritage of both the PGA and ALPG.
Collaborating in this significant way reflects the changing sporting landscape in Australia and shows leadership in golf globally, according to a joint statement by Rodger Davis, PGA Chairman and Julia Boland the President of the ALPG.
“We will work together, to progress this alignment and deep collaboration to deliver leadership for the sport, the industry and for the professionals that inspire golfers, represent on the world stage, work in and live for the game,” they said.
“We have created tools and agreed term sheets to ensure full engagement across our operations and commercial activities to guarantee speed, agility and a united approach”
“An aligned profession generates new opportunities for our members and our partners in an environment of close cultural fit, gender equality and brand equity.
“This momentous announcement of alignment, follows collaboration and planning over the last twelve months since an MOU with this objective was established.
“Both ALPG and PGA are excited and motivated to work together and forge new opportunities within professional golf, assisting our members to succeed and to inspire the next generation of professional golfers and in so doing grow our game,” they said.
The crowds who will converge on Royal Melbourne have their target; now Ian Baker-Finch has nominated the man to bring them to life.
US team member Patrick Reed’s rules infraction in the Bahamas last week continues to be the hotbed of discussion pushing the Presidents Cup towards a genuine rivalry, American playing captain Tiger Woods once again forced to come to his charge’s defence on Tuesday morning.
Australian representatives Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman were not afraid to fan the flames of heat coming down on Reed after viewing his actions in a waste bunker at the Hero World Challenge during the Australian Open, International captain Ernie Els adding that “obviously they didn’t like what they saw”.
Speaking on the PGA Golf Club podcast, Baker-Finch reiterated earlier statements that Reed should not expect a good reception when the first matches tee off on Thursday morning but said that it was equally important for fans of the International team to have someone to cheer for.
That man, according to Baker-Finch, is Chinese Presidents Cup rookie Haotong Li.
“We have to get our Internationals really geed up and get everyone around them yelling and barracking for them,” said Baker-Finch, a former assistant captain to both Peter Thomson and three times alongside Gary Player.
“The guy that I’ll be looking for to take a bit of a leadership role is Haotong Li from China. He’s a really aggressive young player and I think he will relish this type of atmosphere. He will try and get the crowd geed up.
“A few of the other guys – guys like CT Pan, Adam Hadwin, Joaquin Niemann, Abraham Ancer – they’ll be quiet and just go about doing their job. They are wonderful players and great to watch but I don’t see them being ‘rah rahs’ and trying to get the crowd behind them.
“I want the people out there to really get behind the International team. You may not know many of them that well but they’re all tremendous blokes and they’ll make a great team.”
At Royal Melbourne in an unofficial capacity this week so that he can immerse himself in the full Presidents Cup experience, Baker-Finch expects a mixed response to the American team from local fans.
The raucous band of Fanatics will undoubtedly have something special in store for Reed but the 1991 British Open champion doesn’t expect it to reach the type of fervour that comes out on both sides of the Atlantic during the Ryder Cup.
“I think he’ll be received – and deservedly so – poorly. That’s our 13th man. The Fanatics will be unrelenting,” Baker-Finch added.
“He will handle that well, because he likes to be the victim and he is a tough character in that way but I don’t think the crowds are going to cut him any slack at all.
“As Marc Leishman said, I thought it was pretty ordinary what he did last week and didn’t own up to it. The Aussie fans will let him know that.
“Because the Australian fans are so great, sport-crazy, aficionados of sport and the game, they will be looking forward to seeing their heroes and the stars that they watch every week on TV.
“I’m sure they’ll be clapping the Internationals just that little bit more but they’ll still be clapping the Americans. There won’t be any great Ryder Cup-style, battlefield feel around Royal Melbourne.”
Players often talk about the mental side of the game, but they are not the only ones who can be affected by the psychological stressors of golf.
Drought, tightening budgets and the want to please club members and guests can take a toll on all aspects of a club, but few more so than greenkeepers.
At the 2019 Emirates Australian Open, The Australian Golf Club’s superintendent, Phil Beal, took the initiative to set time aside for his team on Friday to take their concentration away from the health of the course and look within.
Joining forces with Beyond Blue, the team came together to reflect and check in with their mental wellbeing.
“Today I knew I had a few guys that I could actually capture and then we advertised it to a few more golf courses and it worked out really well,” Beal said after a talk from Beyond Blue ambassador Chris Gotham.
“Our association got a hold of Chris for me and invited him here and then the club sponsored some t-shirts and what have you here now, which is fantastic.
“I’d hope that after today, people would go away and talk to each other about their struggles and actually open up. I think it will work perfectly in all sorts of areas.”
Following 10 years at The Australian, Beal is a driving force behind a push from the Australian Sports Turf Managers Association to support its delegates in difficult times.
“There’s not a lot you can do about a drought, but people still come under pressure on golf courses to produce a surface for people to play on and sometimes it becomes near enough impossible,” he said.
“Then the pressure starts and anxiety kicks in and it may change into something that’s more serious.”
Having experienced times of depression himself, and acknowledging the effect recent times may have had on his team and the 28 greenkeepers that had volunteered for the event, Beal thought the Australian Open was the perfect opportunity to offer a little extra support.
“I’ve had depression and I’ve actually gone and sorted myself out and it feels as though there’s still a stigma to it and people still don’t want to talk about it.
“[At the Association] we partake in conferences and I’ve spoken about this at them before. We set up Beyond Blue at the conferences and with 300 delegates we may get 20 people and I take that as a sign that people are still not able to really open up about it.
“But I know that since I’ve been talking to people about it a lot of people have come to me and spoken to me about their problems.”
