Monty set for Senior Open debut

As he celebrates his 50th birthday, Colin Montgomerie is preparing to make his debut in the Senior Open Championship.

The celebrated Scot is ready to start a new chapter in his career, and is hoping to add many senior titles to the 31 European Tour titles he’s already won.

His first chance will come at the Senior Open at Royal Birkdale in Southport, England, from July 25-28.

“Freddie Couples won golf irons for sale at Turnberry last year and now we return to another venue on The Open rota in Royal Birkdale,” said Montgomerie. “It’s great that The R&A, along with the European Senior Tour, have decided to go on some of our great links courses, and I look forward to playing Mizuno MP-64 Irons at Birkdale. I’ve played there in three Opens in 1991, 1998 and 2008 when Praig Harrington won.

“So I’ve played three Opens there, not obviously a Senior Open Championship but it’s something I am really looking forward to. I think Rolex is a great presenting sponsor of the Senior Open, and I look forward to playing taylormade rbz irons on the Tuesday, and the gala dinner afterwards and competing from Thursday through Sunday. And not just competing, but contending. I would love to try to contend.”

Montgomerie is well aware of the depth in quality on the senior circuit and the size of the task he faces in his bid to make his major breakthrough, having come so close on numerous occasions in the past.

“I’m under no illusion as to how good the standard is. My good friend Bernhard Langer is dominating Senior golf right now, and all credit to him, especially as he coming up to 56 years of age in August. Then of course there’s Fred Couples, Kenny Perry, Tom Lehman – I could go on and on. There’s a great set of players, and they will take a bit of beating.

“But if I can come in and challenge them, I think they will enjoy that, and so will I, and hopefully all of the spectators will too. It’s about time I won a burner 2.0 irons for sale, so let’s hope that one might just be in the offing. But if not, I will still love the competition of it.”

Montgomerie is also looking forward to being a rookie once again, having spent the last few years playing alongside men much younger than himself.

“I’ve played callaway x-24 hot irons recently with guys who are younger than my children! You say, ‘hang on a minute, this isn’t quite a level playing field’. Suddenly I’ll be the youngest, playing against guys like Bernhard who is six years older than me,” he added.

“I’ll be a rookie, and therefore hopefully in an advantageous position. I’ve been playing against guys who are 23, 24 years old and they are hitting the ball a mile, so it’s about time that parity came along!”

 

Frustrating time for McIlroy

A series of poor performances in 2013 may be starting to take their toll on former world number one Rory McIlroy.

The Northern Irishman was the perennial Paddy Power favourite in virtually every tournament he played in last year, but since switching to his new callaway golf clubs at the start of the season on the back of a lucrative sponsorship deal, he has consistently struggled for any kind of form.

While McIlroy’s tied for 41st finish at last week’s US Open can hardly be called a surprise, his reactions at times during his final-round 76 was.

McIlroy has always kept his negative emotions in check on the course, but at Merion on Sunday he was caught on camera throwing a club away in disgust at one hole, then bending his nine iron so badly after a poor tee shot at the 11th that he couldn’t use it for the rest of the round.

Such frustration is perhaps understandable for a young golfer who has already set himself such high standards, and after his round McIlroy had clearly calmed down, once again exhibiting a positive outlook.

“I sound like a broken record. But I don’t feel like my game is that far away,” he said. “It’s a matter of trying to let taylormade r11 irons click into place.”

Asked about the nine iron situation at the 11th, he replied: “I just hit a bad tee shot into the creek there, and what you don’t want to do as a golfer is follow one mistake with another, and that’s what I did. And obviously I got a bit frustrated there.

“It’s a hole that you want to try to take advantage of. It’s a hole that you want to at least give yourself a birdie chance and you walk off with a quad and it’s not very good.

“I think that’s what this tournament does to you. At one point or another it’s got the better of you, and it definitely did this weekend.”

McIlroy did, however, admit he was finding callaway x-24 hot irons hard to adjust to his new Nike clubs.

“It’s definitely a different feeling,” he said. “The thing about new equipment is you can stand on the range all you want and hit balls, but you really need to test it on the course.

“The numbers could be great on the computer, but you need to get out and test it in competitive play and that’s something I didn’t do at the start of the year. I only played twice by the end of February, so I sort of needed to play a little bit more.

“If I was to do it all over again, I would have done things slightly differently. It’s hopefully something I’ll never have to do in my career again.”

Do you back the two-time major champion to get to grips with his new discount golf clubs and start winning tournaments again soon? Or do you think the Ulsterman is in for more trying times while Tiger Woods continues to dominate? Either way, you can bet on golf and back the world’s best as the 2013 season rolls on.

Nedbank Challenge joins Euro Tour

An official from the European Tour confirmed on Thursday that the Nedbank Golf Challenge will form part of the 2014 Race to Dubai.

This year’s 712 AP2 Irons takes place from December 5-8 this year at thee Gary Player Country Club in Sun City and will have some of the top players in the world compete.

The prize money from the event will count towards Sunshine Tour Order of Merit as well as the Race to Dubai, with the winner set to receive 1.25million dollars in price money.

The new selection criteria hands exemption to the top 10 players in both the 2013 FedEx Cup standings and Race to Dubai, while the winners or the 2012 Asian Tour Order of Merit, the 2012 Japan Golf Tour Order of Merit and the 2012 PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit will be exempt.

“I think with this new TaylorMade golf clubs we have one of the most exciting fields in world golf,” Alastair Roper, tournament director of the Nedbank Golf Challenge, said.

“We have provided opportunities for the best in world golf to have their shot at qualifying for Africa’s major.

“We’ll also have incredible momentum right up to the week before the Nedbank Golf Challenge, with players battling it out for a place in our field.

“And it’s a credit to our long time sponsor in Nedbank that we are able to increase the field and still offer such an attractive payout in prize money as we did when we were still a 12-man field.

“I have no doubt that we have strengthened the Nedbank Golf Challenge as one of the callaway x-24 hot irons in world golf and the number one event in its time slot.”

Steady Avena posts 4-stroke lead in Seniors golf

MANILA, Philippines – Abe Avena shot a two-under 70 and wrested a four-shot lead over Ramontito Garcia at the start of the NGAP’s Philippine Senior Amateur Championship at the Lobo and Malipunyo layouts of Mt. Malarayat in Lipa City, Batangas yesterday.

Avena, 56, bogeyed the final hole but still posted a big lead as the rest of his pursuers struggled with over par rounds in tough conditions. He rammed in four birdies against one other bogey to put himself in early title contention in the tournament he is playing golf irons for sale for the first time.

A former five-time club champion, Avena played his first six holes at level before gunning down three straight birdies from the seventh, leaving behind flightmates Garcia, Viray and another former champion, Francis Gaston.

Many-time seniors champion Iggy Clavecilla carded a 76 to be just six behind while Canlubang’s Mari Hechanova fired a 78 and former champion Rolly Viray was among four players who returned Ping golf clubs in the event backed by the PLDT Amateur Golf Tour, Pacsports and Club Car.

Gaston groped for an 80 like another former winner, Dave Hernandez, and stood 10 shots off Avena in the 54-hole tournament organized and conducted by NGAP.

Meanwhile, Riviera president Danny Pizarro scored a hole-in-one on No. 8 of the Lobo nine and went on to shoot an 80 to trail Super Senior leader Ochiai Masatsugu by three in the event for players 70-74 years old.

Pizarro used a Callaway 8-iron and a callaway x-24 hot irons in acing the 128-yard hole, the ninth of his career.

Golf: Rose win an inspiration for Britain

Ever since Greg Norman’s memorable final-round implosion let Nick Faldo win the golf irons for sale in 1996, a generation of fine English talent has come up short in golf’s four major championships.

With his seven top-3 finishes, Lee Westwood’s near misses are a thing of golfing folklore. Luke Donald has also been ranked No 1 but never come that close down the stretch in a major. Ian Poulter saves his best for the Ryder Cup, while Paul Casey’s star has fallen since his breakthrough year in 2009.

Finally, after a 17-year wait, England has a major winner: US Open champion Justin Rose.

The English public has long held high hopes for Rose, ever since he chipped in at the last to finish fourth at the 1998 British Open at Royal Birkdale as a skinny 17-year-old amateur. His career has taken many twists and turns since then but he realised his vast potential with a taylormade burner plus irons win at Merion.

Rose is England’s first US Open champion since Tony Jacklin in 1970.

“He had that audacious chip in at Birkdale when he was 17 and then witnessed the difficult time he had after turning pro and all the struggles that he had, and to fight through that takes a lot of courage and what was shown was exactly that,” Jacklin told BBC Radio 5 Live radio.

“He’s a good guy and he’s good for the game and he hopefully will open the door for more British players to give us some of the same.”

The modest, mild-mannered Rose is among the most popular players on the circuit and his victory has been well received, in England and beyond.

“Best player in the world the last few years,” 2010 US Open champion Graeme McDowell said on Twitter. “Major much deserved.”

Rory McIlroy also tweeted his congratulations, saying the victory “couldn’t happen to a better lad”.

“Rose to the Top,” was the headline in English newspaper the Sun. “Rose’s Sweet Smell of Success,” said the Independent.

Most of the English papers ran photos of Rose on the 18th hole, looking upward and pointing his fingers to the sky in tribute to his late father Ken, who died of leukemia in 2002.

“Father’s Day was not lost on me,” Rose said. “You don’t have opportunities to really dedicate a taylormade rbz irons win to someone you love. And today was about him and being Father’s Day.”

British golf has rarely had it so good as in the past couple of years. Donald, Westwood and McIlroy took turns at No 1 in 2012 while the Irish trio of McIlroy, McDowell and Darren Clarke have all won majors since 2010.

Britons have been the bedrock of Europe’s Ryder Cup successes in 2010 and 2012. Rose made birdie putts on . 17 and 18 on the final day of last year’s match at Medinah to clinch a stunning singles win over Phil Mickelson, one of the catalysts for Europe’s record comeback against the United States.

On that day, Mickelson stood back and applauded Rose for his courageous play callaway x-24 hot irons on the greens. Nine months later, it was the same player who suffered at the hands of the 32-year-old Englishman, finishing one shot behind for a sixth second place at a US Open.

Rose’s technique, which held up so well at Merion as he calmly made par on the unforgiving 18th under intense pressure, has always been a thing of beauty. It helped him capture big amateur tournaments when he was 14 and 15. By the time he’d won the silver medal at Royal Birkdale in 1998 for being the highest-placed amateur, comparisons were already being made with Faldo.

Rose turned professional the very next day but missed 21 cuts in a row. Victories in the Dunhill Championship and British Masters in 2002 confirmed his potential but it wasn’t until last year that he really became a force, winning at Doral for his first victory in a World Golf Championship.

“I think the fact that it hasn’t been easy for him, took him a while to get where he did has meant that he is a great inspiration for everybody here,” said Chris Gotla, general manager of North Hants Golf club where Rose played golf irons for sale as a teenager. “Everyone here knew how good he was going to be.”

Rose, who was born in Johannesburg and moved to England with his family when he was 5, was playing in the final round with Donald, who fell away after a poor start to tie for eighth to see yet another chance at a major slip by. Westwood, who held the lead on day one at Merion, finished tied for 15th and may never end his major drought.

Mickelson left heartbroken again

Phil Mickelson was left to reflect on more US Open heartache after finishing the US Open as runner-up for the sixth time.

On his 43rd birthday, the southpaw headed into the final round of the year’s second major – taking place at the tricky Merion course in Philadelphia – with a titleist newport 2 putter.

After seeing his advantage disappear over the front nine, the four-time major winner made eagle on the 10th to reclaim the top spot, but dropped three shots in the final six holes in what turned out to be a dramatic finale.

His final round 74 saw him finish two shots behind eventual winner Justin Rose, whose round of 70 was only par score from the last 10 groups of players.

“For me it’s very heart breaking,” said Mickelson, who also finished second in 1999, 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2009.

“This could have been a really big turnaround for me on how I look at the US Open and the tournament that I’d like to win a burner 2.0 irons for sale, after having so many good opportunities.

“Playing golf putter for sale very well here and really loving the golf course, this week was my best opportunity I felt heading in, certainly the final round, the way I was playing and the position I was in.

“This one’s probably the toughest for me (to take), because at 43 and coming so close five times, it would have changed the way I look at this tournament altogether and the way I would have looked at my record. Except I just keep feeling heartbreak.”

Mickelson had been near the front of the leaderboard throughout the event – carding a first round 67 to open up a one-stroke advantage, before tying for the lead after his second round 72.

 

Thornton secures first tour win

Thornton, who carded a one-under-par 70 for the final round, finished the first 72 holes on five under par for the tournament. Joining him at the top of the leaderboard after Sunday’s final round was Van der Walt, who also carded a one-under-par 70 for the round.

Thonrton got his round of to an emphatic start with birdies at the first and third holes. However, a bogey at the fourth and seventh stalled his momentum somewhat.

The Irishman managed to bounce back with a golf irons for sale at the eighth, but stumbled again at the par-five ninth.

Thornton’s solitary birdie on the back nine came at the tenth hole. While there was very little activity after that, he will be relieved that he managed to produce a flawless performance on the back stretch.

Van der Walt also had a very quiet back nine, which produced just one birdie. However, there was tremendous drama on the front of the course, especially at the par-four eighth, where the South African carded a double bogey. His other blemish came at the fifth hole.

It was clearly a very tightly contested final round, with very little separating to the two golfers.

The most critical event of the final day unfolded at the first play-off hole, where Thornton managed a par, while Van der Walt was unable to recover front the right-hand-side bunker, just in front of the green.

While Thornton had a regulation putt for par, Van der Walt had to negotiate a 10-footer – the South African failed to keep himself in the contest.

The win of callaway x-24 hot irons was Thornton’s first on the European Tour and he was naturally quite delighted by it.

Earlier in the day, Englishman Seve Benson had kept himself in contention for a play-off spot until the 16th hole, where he a carded a bogey five. Benson looked promising throughout the round, but there were two spells in particular, which would

have inspired him somewhat.

The first was on the front nine, where he sunk consecutive birdies at holes six and

seven. The second set of consecutive birdies came at holes 13 and 14. On both occasions, he took advantage of the 712 AP2 Irons. Benson finished on four under par for the tournament.

Only three other golfers finished under par for the tournament. They included: Robert Dinwiddie (-2), Pelle Edberg and Chris Lloyd, both of whom finished on one under par.

Golf Tips– Swing Basics

Once you’ve spent time perfecting your grip and setting up your shot with the correct stance, you’re ready to actually take a swing. By now the sheer number of physical things to keep in mind — pointed thumbs, interlocked hands, foot distance, weight distribution and more — probably has you reeling. Luckily, the mechanics of a solid two-part r11 irons swing are pretty simple, in theory.

• On the backswing, pivot your shoulders toward your spine, shift your weight to the front of your back foot and hinge your front arm up into a 90-degree L-shape.
• On the downswing, release your arm in its L-shaped lever toward the target as you shift your weight to your front foot in one, smooth balanced motion.

Remember how Einstein’s theory of special relativity made Newton’s law of gravity seem quaint? To golf professionals, the idea that a swing consists of a simple back-and-down pendulum action is similarly facile. Entire books have been devoted to the golf swing. Professionals have debated every aspect of the discount golf clubs swing — from how much the back elbow should stiffen to how a golfer’s weight should be distributed. Master a solid, basic swing before worrying too much about the dizzying array of variations available to you.

Stricker has low expectations

Steve Stricker, who has been less active this season, said he had no expectations ahead of the US Open.

Stricker, who turned 46 earlier this year, has never won a taylormade rocketballz irons . His best performance was a second place finish at the 1998 PGA Championship. However, the American said he was content with what he had achieved in the sport.

“I’m kind of past that,” Stricker told journalists this week.

“I think that the decision that I made earlier this year about playing golf irons for sale less has taken some of the pressure off me. I’m completely fine with my career and what I’ve done,” added the American.

“And don’t get me wrong – I’m still very competitive and I still really want to win. I still want to play well. But I’m just enjoying it. I’m enjoying coming out here and playing and not really having any expectations at all,” said Stricker, who has won 12 tournaments on the PGA Tour.

Stricker, the world number 13, has secured two runner-up finishes this season. His performance off the tea has improved considerably in the past 18 months and so too has his 712 AP2 Irons game.

Pundits generally agree that there will be many opportunities for wedges to be struck at Merion, which is a short course. While Stricker looks to just enjoy himself at this year’s tournament, he does remain a threat.

 

English in command at St Jude

Harris English carded a 64 on Friday to open up a two-stroke lead after the second round of the St Jude Classic.

The 23-year-old was in excellent form around the greens and rolled in five birdie putts during his six-under par round, but the highlight of his callaway x-24 hot irons came on the par-four fifth when he holed out from 181 yards for an eagle.

“It’s awesome to be in this position,” English said after his round.

“I’ve worked very hard the last couple weeks and couple months to get in this position, and I feel like I’m ready and I feel like I got a lot of good people around me to help me.”

In second place after a round of 65 is Shawn Stefani, with Paul Haley II and Scott Stallings in a tie for third after rounds of 68, five strokes off the pace at five-under par.

“Obviously, if he has another two days like the first two, it will be tough to catch him with my 712 AP2 Irons,” said Dustin Johnson, who is seven behind English.

“I grew up on greens like this down in south Georgia, fast Bermuda greens,” English said.

“I’m very comfortable on these type of greens. I know when it’s going to be fast, and it’s really fast. And when into the green, it’s really slow. I have a good handle on the speed. That’s really what helped me today. When you get the speed down on the greens, you can start making some putts.”

English’s only poor hole came at the 18th, where his three-wood off the tea stopped near the drain, making the approach far more difficult. In the end, he had a 30-footer for par and had to settle for a bogey after two-putting.

“I’m still looking for my first win for fairway wood for sale and still hungry to be the best and to try to get my first win,” English said.

Several high-profile players including Brandt Snedeker, D.A. Points and Paul Goydos struggled in the hot conditions and missed the cut as a result.

Guan Tianlang, the 14-year-old amateur from China made the cut at Augusta earlier this year, also struggled and was unable to qualify for the weekend.