The Masters 2016
Wow..... What a Masters that was!
As Jordan Spieth was walking down the 10th hole with a 5 shot lead, I was all set to head off to my bed as there was NO WAY that the world's number 2 player was going to give up that lead!
How wrong was I…
As Spieth started to falter with bogeys at the 10th and 11th, Danny Willet was birdying the 13th and 14th. When Spieth then quadruple bogeyed the treacherous par 3 12th hole, Willet all of a sudden found himself in the lead. A fantastic birdie 2 at the 16th, left it in the hands of Willet to get over the finishing line. Willet did just that and in some fine style too, showing that he has the mental strength to win big tournaments.
I was particularly impressed with how he dealt with a situation on the final tee, when he was interrupted during his pre shot routine. With both noise and crowd movement, Willet and his caddy had to ask the spectators to quieten down a couple of times once he had started his pre shot routine. Rather than just keeping going and hitting his tee shot, Danny and his caddy verbally agreed to re-start their routine. Out came the yardage book and the entire routine was started again.
This allowed Danny to re-set his brain and start over, cancelling out the effects of the earlier disturbance. Although this is not something that I would advise at club level (you'd be out for far too long), I think this was a very experienced decision on Willets part. A flushed 3 wood up the left centre of the fairway and the rest is history!
New Balls Please!
It's out with the old and in with the new this week at Noah's Ark. We have added 20,000 brand new top of the range TaylorMade range balls and have also installed new hitting mats into all of our driving bays.
We are always striving to offer you the best possible environment to practice and we feel that these latest additions will enhance your enjoyment when hitting balls on the range.
This week's Shop Special We have 2x 2015 model
Motocaddy S1 digital electric trolleys on sale.
These are usually
£299 and you can pick up a bargain and drive away with an S1 for just
£249 , saving
£50 .
We only have 2 of these trolleys available at this price, so don't delay!
Membership Open Day We are holding a Membership Open Day on
Sunday, 15 May. If you are interested in taking out a Season Ticket, joining one of our member clubs or would like to take up the game of golf, then this is a great opportunity for you to come and speak with us and head out and play on the historic North Inch Course. Regardless of your age or ability, North Inch Golf Course is a great choice to play.
For more information on our Season Tickets, please
click here. Play Better Golf
'Master' your Pitching What a great Masters Tournament once again and with a very deserving champion in Danny Willet. Despite a great final round of 67, Danny still required assistance from World number 2, Jordan Spieth. Playing the 10th hole Spieth had a 5 shot lead and looked like he would be the runaway champion. But with bogeys at 10th and 11th followed by a quadruple bogey 7 at the 12th the championship was placed firmly in the hands of Willet.
Spieth's tee shot found the water at 12, but it was his subsequent pitch to the green that has caused the most discussion. Jordan flat duffed this and only just reached the water. How did the second best player in the world manage to hit this shot?
The answer is that he was under immense pressure and faced with one of the hardest shots in golf, but I'm going to talk to you about what technically went wrong rather than the situation.
Spieth's duffed pitch was caused by his body decelerating into impact, causing his hands to lead, making the club head strike the ground too early and with too steep an angle of attack.
When playing a pitch shot it is important from the top of the back swing that you focus on the feeling that your chest and core lead your arms and club through to finish, rather than your hands pushing or scooping to get at the ball.
When done correctly it will feel as though your hands are very passive and that there is no 'jerkiness' to your swing. This requires some practice, but will make a huge difference to your pitching.
Golf Course Maintenance Update
Glenn Campbell and his green keeping team have been out spiking the greens this week which will be followed by a top dressing next week as long as the weather permits.
We are pleased with the progress that we have seen on the greens and are witnessing the best early season surfaces we have had in many years. We now just need a bit of heat to kick start the growth and everything should really come on.
The fairway bunker on the left of the 5th hole has been filled in and over seeded and will return to grass. We took this decision as the bunker is used more by dogs and children playing than it is by golfers and we felt the course would benefit from this change.
Danny Willet - Masters Champion vs Glenn Campbell - North Inch Golf Course Head Green Keeper What a fantastic win for Danny Willet at last week's Masters Championship. It was however not always winning ways for Danny. Back in 2007 at the Home Internationals whilst playing for England against Scotland, Danny was drawn against our very own Glenn Campbell.
Danny had been heard whispering that it should be a walk in the park as he was drawn against the 'Old Boy' from the Scotland team. A 2&1 loss later and the then young Danny Willet learned that experience is a very powerful weapon!