Rickie Fowler’s Honda Classic win is a timely reminder that he belongs in the top bracket February 27, 2017 It feels like a while ago that Rickie Fowler responded to being voted one of the most overrated players on the PGA Tour by his peers with a burst of impressive victories. Fowler started by winning the Players Championship in May 2015. He followed it up at the Scottish Open a couple of months later [...]
Becoming a Major champion has freed Dustin Johnson to realise his potential – now the new world No1 can become a prolific winner February 20, 2017 It became apparent towards the end of last year that Dustin Johnson was bound for the top of the rankings and on Sunday at Riviera he followed it through by winning the Genesis Open. Victory lifted Johnson to world No1 for the first time in his career and he did it in magnificent style. He [...]
Jordan Spieth is rediscovering his all-conquering 2015 form just as the Masters looms February 13, 2017 In his book about coaching Tiger Woods, The Big Miss, Hank Haney emphasises just how much the leading players focus on the Majors above all else. With the Masters just a few weeks away, many will already have one eye on Augusta. So it is interesting to see who has already hit their stride this [...]
Sergio Garcia and Hideki Matsuyama underline their Masters credentials February 6, 2017 The Masters may still be a couple of months away but we got a glimpse of two possible contenders over the last few days as they swept to wins on the European and PGA Tours. Sergio Garcia produced his usual magnificent golf to claim a commanding wire-to-wire victory at the Dubai Desert Classic, his first [...]
Tommy Fleetwood’s Abu Dhabi win and why your first golf coach is like your first love January 23, 2017 I always think that your first golf coach is a little like your first love; they know about your game and how you have developed better than anyone else. After his first win for three and a half years, Tommy Fleetwood may agree with that sentiment. His success at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship on [...]
Golf’s world top 10 has never been as strong as it is now – and it makes for a fascinating season January 16, 2017 When Graeme Storm stepped off the last green at Vilamoura in October, having just missed the par putt he needed to retain his European Tour card, his world must have been shattered. Storm had been among a number of players still vying to make the top 111 on the order of merit – the cut-off [...]
Justin Thomas survived extraordinary finish to beat Hideki Matsuyama, Jordan Spieth shows promising signs, Rory McIlroy to start year in unusual circumstances, and why Jim Furyk can be a great captain January 9, 2017 He won well in the end but it took an extraordinary finish before Justin Thomas clinched his second PGA Tour title already this season at the Tournament of Champions in Hawaii on Sunday. Thomas led by two overnight and stretched his advantage over the red-hot Hideki Matsuyama to five shots, only to see that gap [...]
Why Henrik Stenson and the Open made my golfing year: Sam Torrance’s 2016 review December 19, 2016 Player of the year At 40, Henrik Stenson had almost reached that stage of being the best player around without a Major when the Swede went and banished that tag by winning the Open at Royal Troon in such style. Rory McIlroy deserves a mention for his PGA Tour Championship-FedEx Cup double, but Stenson, who [...]
Sam Brazel’s surprise win in Hong Kong is a heart-warming tale but defeat will hurt for Rafa Cabrera Bello December 12, 2016 For an illustration of the vagaries of golf you need look no further than the Hong Kong Open, where unheralded Australian Sam Brazel saw off some illustrious rivals to land the biggest win of his career on Sunday. Brazel, a 37-year-old journeyman who started the week ranked 480th in the world and had never finished [...]
Tiger Woods may not have won but he couldn’t have wished for much more on his long-awaited comeback December 5, 2016 I saw nothing but positives in Tiger Woods’s comeback performance at the Hero World Challenge, which finished on Sunday – his first competitive outing for 15 injury-riddled months. The 14-time Major winner led the field in birdies, making 24 across the 72 holes in the Bahamas. That is hugely encouraging and at this stage you [...]