I'm writing this week's newsletter during the first days play of the Open Championship at St Andrews and don't things seem a little familiar?! Dustin Johnson sitting atop the leader board with Jordan Spieth and Jason Day lurking just behind... reminds me just a bit of the US Open!

These are 3 of the world's best players and you couldn't have two anymore differently presented golf courses, albeit the conditions would usually be reversed. St Andrews is lush with green grass and Chambers Bay was burnt to a crisp, but the best players are still coming to the top of the pile. 

Tiger Wood's on the other hand has had an awful day and is almost at the very bottom of the leader board following a 4 over 76. I have been a massive supporter of Tiger and his golf game during all his troubles, but can he continue to play competitive golf scoring like this? 

Is it his confidence and mental state rather than his golf game that is causing the problems? In practice, Tiger looks great. But when he is put out in a competitive round, things seem to fall apart. There is no way that someone who is arguably one of the best players to ever pick up a golf club, can lose their technique to this degree. For me, this is all mental/confidence based and unfortunately this is much more difficult to fix.



Summer Jobs at Noah's Ark Golf Centre 

If you are over 16 years of age and are looking for a part time job over the summer holidays, then we are looking for some new staff to join our driving range assistant's team. Jobs will include collecting and washing golf balls on our driving range along with basic maintenance and of our 18-hole mini golf putting course. If you are interested, then please email niall@noahsarkgolf.com  



This week I want to talk about the overall weight of your driver. A club's 'dead weight' is very seldom talked about. In fact I challenge you to find any mention of it by any of the golf club manufacturers on their website. Now, I'm not talking about shaft weight (that's easy to find), instead I mean the overall weight of your driver. 

Why is that important and how does it affect my drives?

A club's overall weight is very important, as different swing styles and tempo's require different weights to perform at their best. The only way to find what suits you best is to give them a try and under the watchful eye of your professional fitter, you can find the best weighted club.

The way that we will test for this is to place some impact tape upon the face of a driver and then have you hit some shots. If the weight is too heavy or light, then you will find that your impact marks spread across the clubface and that your energy transfer from club head to ball is not as good as it should be (Smash factor). 

When a driver's weight matches up with your swing correctly, then you will find that the positioning of impact upon your club face is much more consistent and that your energy transfer (Smash factor) is higher. 

If you are interested in being custom fitted for a new driver, then please give us a call on 01738 440678 and speak with one of our team. The cost of a 1 hour custom fitting session is £40. 

If you spend over £200 on your club, then 50% of your fitting fee will be refunded. If you spend over £300, then you will be fully refunded for your fitting fee.

If you'd like to become a member of our driving range, then check out our website, give us a call on 01738 440678 or email info@noahsarkgolf.com 



Play Better Golf - The Open Championship Punch 

It's Open Championship week and today I'll show you how to play the punch shot, which is a very useful weapon to have in your arsenal, especially when playing windy links courses. Punching your iron shots can help you control the ball flight, and this is something that you will see many of the top players do this week at St Andrews. The punch shot reduces the effect that the wind will have on the ball during flight.

To play this shot, make your address position with the ball positioned slightly further back in your stance and with your weight slightly favouring your lead foot. When you swing back, you must concentrate on trying to keep the centre of your chest over the top of the ball and as a result your weight will not transfer over onto your trail foot. 

On your downswing it is imperative that you again stay over the top of the ball and do not lean back as this will cause the ball to climb against the wind and not reach its target. 

You will find that your follow will be a bit shorter and feel slightly restricted and when you get this feeling, you'll know you are on the right track. 



Open Competitions

Senior Open

Our Senior Open for Gent's and Ladies, is being held on Tuesday 4th August. For more information on this event and on how to enter, please click here. 

Mixed Foursomes 

Open Our Mixed Open is being held on Sunday 9th August, this is open to couples and will be a great way to come and play at the North Inch. 

For more information and to place an entry, please click here.

101 New Season Tickets Sold 

We have now reached an amazing 101 new season ticket holders this year, which we are over the moon about. Season Tickets at North Inch remain fantastic value for money even when you join mid-season, due to our Pro Rata charging system. An Adult Season Ticket that would have cost you £279 in April, will now cost just £209.25 and a Senior/Young Adult (18-29yrs) ticket that would have cost £189 in April, will cost just £141.75. These prices are based upon 9/12ths of full annual ticket prices.

The Pro Rata pricing is available for your first year of membership after which you will be sent a renewal letter for the full 12 month season for 2016/17. North Inch Golf Course is a community facility and we actively encourage as many of you as possible to come and play at this beautiful and historic golf course. 

For more information on becoming a Season Ticket holder, click here.