When Jack Nicklaus first emerged on the golfing scene as an overweight teenager with a blond crew cut in the fifties, he was greeted as the replacement to Arnold Palmer who was ten years older but fought for years to gain any sort of popularity in a nation of golfers who adored Palmer and his “go for it” attitude.
Nicklaus was coached by a gentleman called Jack Grout whose philosophy was very simple,” hit is as far as you can, find it, and hit it again”. Only then did he impart the reduction in power and add the finesse that was so critical to the modern game.
Indeed, so devoted was Nicklaus to Jack Grout that he went every year until his mentor passed away for early season lessons when Grout merely went over the basics of set up and swing technique to start another successful season for the great man.
When Nicklaus was first observed playing by the legendary Bobby Jones, who witnessed him hitting one irons as high as most players could hit a six iron, Jones remarked
“He plays a game with which I am not familiar”.
Much was written on Tuesday in the national press about the victory at Quail Hollow in Charlotte, North Carolina when Rory McIlroy won the event by scoring seventeen birdies and an eagle over his closing thirty six holes of play. Talk was of a successor to Tiger Woods who, it must be said, is not enjoying the best of form at this time having missed the cut by a healthy margin.
I must say that I still find it somewhat difficult to come to terms with distances achieved by the top players in today’s game. On a par five of five hundred and seventy yards, Mickelson drove the ball over three hundred and thirty yards and hit the green with an easy nine iron, and McIlroy closed down the final hole with a five iron of two hundred and ten yards into the centre of the green, albeit leaving a put of some thirty five feet which he holed with some nonchalance for his final birdie of the day.
He broke the course record by some two strokes for a sixty two and, testimony to his achievement, great players such as Mickelson and Jim Furyk queued to congratulate him and shake his hand. Watch this space!
Nearer home, the Denbighshire Golfing Union Seniors team has been selected for their first match of the season against Dyfed to be played at Borth and Ynyslas Golf Club on 28th May. The ten man team will be captained by John Hughes of Ruthin Pwllglas and will comprise David Jones, Mike Lowe, and Ray Bennett of Wrexham, Clive Wright and Neil Purdie of the Vale of Llangollen, Eric Howells and John Kenny of Denbigh, John Lewis of Pwllglas and George Smith of Chirk. The match will defer to age and will be eighteen holes of four ball betterball rather than the usual thirty six holes of foursomes in the morning and then singles after lunch.
Wrexham host the Clwyd championships this coming Sunday with play over thirty six holes taking place at Prestatyn on the Saturday. Playing from two tees in each club, courses will be closed for the duration on the respective days.