Tuesday, 26 June 2012 11:04
Correct footwear
THIS SUMMER I have been astonished at the number of golfers I have seen playing golf in sandals. Not only does this go against the etiquette of the game but the wearing of this type of footwear is also dangerous.
At this time of the year I fully understand that golfers like all other people want to stay as cool as possible in the soaring temperatures we have seen in the last month or so but to do so at the risk of your own safety is too much for me to accept. Golf shoes are designed to give you support where it is needed in a sport where the feet form the foundation of all of our movements in the golf swing. The support of the correct golf shoes in the area around the ankle is vital if we are to avoid niggling injuries.
The correctly designed and quality golf shoes on offer now are so light and soft that the argument that some offer that sandals are more comfortable does not hold water. These new style golf shoes also offer considerably more stability in the soles so as to avoid slipping on damp ground. This can be a constant problem here in South Eastern Spain during summer months more than winter as we try to keep the grass alive against a sun that is doing its best to roast everything in sight.
The sandal wearer will no doubt point out that their sandal have grips on the bottom as well - that is true but are they specifically designed to withstand the movements of a golf swing or are they even made of a material that will help prevent slipping? I think in the very vast majority of cases we all know that the answer to these questions is a resounding no on both points.
I have written about this subject this week because last week in another area of Spain a golfer wearing sandals on a golf course badly injured her ankle while playing and had to be taken to a local hospital where a dislocation of the ankle was put right with considerable pain and inconvenience.
The matter was reported to the insurance company used by RFEG to deal with this type of injury and the immediate comeback was why was the golfer not wearing the correct type of golf footwear that may well have avoided this injury? A very good question and one that will probably not result in the injury claim for the hospital expenses being dealt with by the insurance company which will no doubt leave the lady concerned bemoaning the service and usefulness of the insurance. In this particular case I feel for the lady concerned but also wonder why she was allowed to wear incorrect footwear and why she was not advised by her playing partners that she was more vulnerable to injury by wearing the incorrect footwear.
I along with a great number of you who have dealt with Spanish insurance companies will have a very good idea indeed of how this claim is going to be fought out and I just hope the family concerned has enough money to pay the hospital bills when the claim is eventually thrown out.
WIN A ROUND OF GOLF FOR 2 INCLUDING BUGGY AT THE BEAUTIFUL EL PLANTIO RESORT IN ALICANTE
Answer the question below correctly to have a chance to win. The winner of this fantastic prize will be picked at random at the end of each month. Send your entries by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . The decision of the editor of RTN will be final in making the winning selection.
QUESTION FOR 29TH JUNE 2012
Where is the home town of Nick Faldo?
A. Welling
B. Welwyn Garden City
C. Worksop
All answers must be received no later than 5pm on 30th June 2012 to be entered into June’s draw, which will be made on July1st. The winner will be announced in RTN on July 6th 2012.
The Professional Scene
THE BMW International in Germany last week started with a little controversy as Jose Manuel Lara was disqualified after he was found to have fifteen clubs in his bag. His opening round of 73 counted for nothing after his caddy was seen trying to hide the extra club in a bush on Hole Two. The matter was reported by Lara’s playing partners and in a serious breach of etiquette the only way was to disqualify the player in the opinion of the Tours referees. The caddy was also asked to leave the tour and never to return.
Danny Willet of England started his 106th event on tour without a victory in a much lower and more correct profile but finished it in the best way possible. After four extra holes against Australian Marcus Fraser he secured his first victory on tour with a par after a spectacular chip from behind the green to a few inches.
This weekend the tour is in Portrush for The Irish Open. The event is the best supported on Tour virtually every year and with so many Major Championship winners teeing up this week’s event sold 130,000 tickets before a ball was even hit. Weather permitting this will be a classic and will be a dress rehearsal for the time when The Open returns to the famous old links in Northern Ireland.
GOLFING TIP OF THE WEEK
Learning the mental side is just as important as learning the physical side so don’t neglect it if you really want to improve.
NOEL EASTWELL GOLF ACADEMY AT EL PLANTIO
Quality coaching at reduced rates for RTN Golf Club members: contact Noel on 639 730 891.
At this time of the year I fully understand that golfers like all other people want to stay as cool as possible in the soaring temperatures we have seen in the last month or so but to do so at the risk of your own safety is too much for me to accept. Golf shoes are designed to give you support where it is needed in a sport where the feet form the foundation of all of our movements in the golf swing. The support of the correct golf shoes in the area around the ankle is vital if we are to avoid niggling injuries.
The correctly designed and quality golf shoes on offer now are so light and soft that the argument that some offer that sandals are more comfortable does not hold water. These new style golf shoes also offer considerably more stability in the soles so as to avoid slipping on damp ground. This can be a constant problem here in South Eastern Spain during summer months more than winter as we try to keep the grass alive against a sun that is doing its best to roast everything in sight.
The sandal wearer will no doubt point out that their sandal have grips on the bottom as well - that is true but are they specifically designed to withstand the movements of a golf swing or are they even made of a material that will help prevent slipping? I think in the very vast majority of cases we all know that the answer to these questions is a resounding no on both points.
I have written about this subject this week because last week in another area of Spain a golfer wearing sandals on a golf course badly injured her ankle while playing and had to be taken to a local hospital where a dislocation of the ankle was put right with considerable pain and inconvenience.
The matter was reported to the insurance company used by RFEG to deal with this type of injury and the immediate comeback was why was the golfer not wearing the correct type of golf footwear that may well have avoided this injury? A very good question and one that will probably not result in the injury claim for the hospital expenses being dealt with by the insurance company which will no doubt leave the lady concerned bemoaning the service and usefulness of the insurance. In this particular case I feel for the lady concerned but also wonder why she was allowed to wear incorrect footwear and why she was not advised by her playing partners that she was more vulnerable to injury by wearing the incorrect footwear.
I along with a great number of you who have dealt with Spanish insurance companies will have a very good idea indeed of how this claim is going to be fought out and I just hope the family concerned has enough money to pay the hospital bills when the claim is eventually thrown out.
WIN A ROUND OF GOLF FOR 2 INCLUDING BUGGY AT THE BEAUTIFUL EL PLANTIO RESORT IN ALICANTE
Answer the question below correctly to have a chance to win. The winner of this fantastic prize will be picked at random at the end of each month. Send your entries by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . The decision of the editor of RTN will be final in making the winning selection.
QUESTION FOR 29TH JUNE 2012
Where is the home town of Nick Faldo?
A. Welling
B. Welwyn Garden City
C. Worksop
All answers must be received no later than 5pm on 30th June 2012 to be entered into June’s draw, which will be made on July1st. The winner will be announced in RTN on July 6th 2012.
The Professional Scene
THE BMW International in Germany last week started with a little controversy as Jose Manuel Lara was disqualified after he was found to have fifteen clubs in his bag. His opening round of 73 counted for nothing after his caddy was seen trying to hide the extra club in a bush on Hole Two. The matter was reported by Lara’s playing partners and in a serious breach of etiquette the only way was to disqualify the player in the opinion of the Tours referees. The caddy was also asked to leave the tour and never to return.
Danny Willet of England started his 106th event on tour without a victory in a much lower and more correct profile but finished it in the best way possible. After four extra holes against Australian Marcus Fraser he secured his first victory on tour with a par after a spectacular chip from behind the green to a few inches.
This weekend the tour is in Portrush for The Irish Open. The event is the best supported on Tour virtually every year and with so many Major Championship winners teeing up this week’s event sold 130,000 tickets before a ball was even hit. Weather permitting this will be a classic and will be a dress rehearsal for the time when The Open returns to the famous old links in Northern Ireland.
GOLFING TIP OF THE WEEK
Learning the mental side is just as important as learning the physical side so don’t neglect it if you really want to improve.
NOEL EASTWELL GOLF ACADEMY AT EL PLANTIO
Quality coaching at reduced rates for RTN Golf Club members: contact Noel on 639 730 891.
Published in
Golf
Thursday, 31 May 2012 09:37
This should not happen
EARLIER THIS week I met with the secretary of a golf society when I was out to dinner with some friends. He told me a very interesting story about his golf society and how over the last few years they have used an agent to arrange their golf days rather than book the golf courses themselves. The idea was that because the society were dealing with a British agent they would get a better service and should they need to make a complaint then it would fall on sympathetic ears and maybe something would get done. This turned out to be somewhat fanciful at best.
At one venue the society arrived expecting to find twenty buggies reserved for them. There were twelve reserved and consequently there was a wait for some players of over one hour for a buggy. A complaint was made but little if anything was done to get an apology of some kind from the golf course and an assurance that there would not be a repeat the next time they come.
Last week they arrived at another club only to find more grass in the car park than on some tee boxes and greens that were as smooth as the local rugby field. Once again the telephone call to the agent was disappointing to say the least. He was told that all the agents do is book the tee times they were not responsible for the condition of the golf course. Not an untrue statement but you would think there would be a good deal of sympathy shown and at least some representation made to the course manager in an effort to get some form of compensation copied to the golf society. No such thing.
So once again I ask why use agents and give them good money to make arrangements that can be done in seconds directly by email? At least by making the booking direct the secretary would have had a contact at the club to meet with and speak to so that something was done to assure members this sort of thing would not happen again.
Golfers pay good money that does not come easily to the vast majority to play golf. They deserve to be looked after by their society committees; anything less is totally unacceptable and shows a blatant disregard for the responsibilities committee members have to their own members. The people who elected them to look after their best interests.
WIN A ROUND OF GOLF FOR 2 INCLUDING BUGGY AT THE BEAUTIFUL EL PLANTIO RESORT IN ALICANTE
Answer the question below correctly to have a chance to win. The winner of this fantastic prize will be picked at random at the end of each month. Send your entries by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . The decision of the editor of RTN will be final in making the winning selection.
QUESTION FOR 1ST JUNE 2012
At which famous old golf course in Scotland is ‘The Road Hole?’
A. St Andrews
B. Carnoustie
C. Royal Troon
All answers must be received no later than 5pm on 30th June 2012 to be entered into June’s draw, which will be made on 1st July. The winner will be announced in RTN on 6th July 2012.
The Professional Scene
THE PGA Championship at Wentworth once again proved the depth of talent we have on The European Tour as so many new names came to the top of the leaderboard over the first few days. The West Course stood up to recent criticism and was in superb condition for the flagship event on The European Tour.
Some surprising names had a long weekend with perhaps the performance of World Number One Rory McIllroy being the most worrying to many. His inability to be able to make good contact with the golf ball was severely punished and left him stating that he needed to work harder. Has the burning desire to be a record breaker left him already?
Over the first three days the tournament was anybody’s to win and with complaints from many after Saturdays play course designer Ernie Els exploded in a surprising dig at those in authority as he joined many of his fellow professionals in stating the greens were too dry. Justin Rose and Luke Donald however saw this as just another challenge and found their attitude pay huge dividends as they finished top of the leaderboard before Sunday’s final round.
In the last year and a half Luke Donald has become extremely comfortable in his own position as a true golf superstar and his performance on Sunday just confirmed what most of us know: there is nobody to touch at the moment when he is on form. His final round of sixty eight was enough to enable him to retain a title for the first time in his career and return to the top of The World Rankings for his forty-sixth week at the top.
Luke, along with many of the games top players, will rest up before the start of The US Open in two weeks and miss out on The Wales Open this weekend. Paul Lawrie put in another sterling performance as he continues his pursuit of a place in Europe’s Ryder Cup team in September in Chicago with a tied second place finish alongside Justin Rose, sure to be a teammate in a few months’ time.
GOLFING TIP OF THE WEEK
Many golf grips will help you hold the club correctly - those lines are there for more than decoration so use them to your advantage.
NOEL EASTWELL GOLF ACADEMY AT EL PLANTIO
Quality coaching at reduced rates for RTN Golf Club members: contact Noel on 639 730 891.
At one venue the society arrived expecting to find twenty buggies reserved for them. There were twelve reserved and consequently there was a wait for some players of over one hour for a buggy. A complaint was made but little if anything was done to get an apology of some kind from the golf course and an assurance that there would not be a repeat the next time they come.
Last week they arrived at another club only to find more grass in the car park than on some tee boxes and greens that were as smooth as the local rugby field. Once again the telephone call to the agent was disappointing to say the least. He was told that all the agents do is book the tee times they were not responsible for the condition of the golf course. Not an untrue statement but you would think there would be a good deal of sympathy shown and at least some representation made to the course manager in an effort to get some form of compensation copied to the golf society. No such thing.
So once again I ask why use agents and give them good money to make arrangements that can be done in seconds directly by email? At least by making the booking direct the secretary would have had a contact at the club to meet with and speak to so that something was done to assure members this sort of thing would not happen again.
Golfers pay good money that does not come easily to the vast majority to play golf. They deserve to be looked after by their society committees; anything less is totally unacceptable and shows a blatant disregard for the responsibilities committee members have to their own members. The people who elected them to look after their best interests.
WIN A ROUND OF GOLF FOR 2 INCLUDING BUGGY AT THE BEAUTIFUL EL PLANTIO RESORT IN ALICANTE
Answer the question below correctly to have a chance to win. The winner of this fantastic prize will be picked at random at the end of each month. Send your entries by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . The decision of the editor of RTN will be final in making the winning selection.
QUESTION FOR 1ST JUNE 2012
At which famous old golf course in Scotland is ‘The Road Hole?’
A. St Andrews
B. Carnoustie
C. Royal Troon
All answers must be received no later than 5pm on 30th June 2012 to be entered into June’s draw, which will be made on 1st July. The winner will be announced in RTN on 6th July 2012.
The Professional Scene
THE PGA Championship at Wentworth once again proved the depth of talent we have on The European Tour as so many new names came to the top of the leaderboard over the first few days. The West Course stood up to recent criticism and was in superb condition for the flagship event on The European Tour.
Some surprising names had a long weekend with perhaps the performance of World Number One Rory McIllroy being the most worrying to many. His inability to be able to make good contact with the golf ball was severely punished and left him stating that he needed to work harder. Has the burning desire to be a record breaker left him already?
Over the first three days the tournament was anybody’s to win and with complaints from many after Saturdays play course designer Ernie Els exploded in a surprising dig at those in authority as he joined many of his fellow professionals in stating the greens were too dry. Justin Rose and Luke Donald however saw this as just another challenge and found their attitude pay huge dividends as they finished top of the leaderboard before Sunday’s final round.
In the last year and a half Luke Donald has become extremely comfortable in his own position as a true golf superstar and his performance on Sunday just confirmed what most of us know: there is nobody to touch at the moment when he is on form. His final round of sixty eight was enough to enable him to retain a title for the first time in his career and return to the top of The World Rankings for his forty-sixth week at the top.
Luke, along with many of the games top players, will rest up before the start of The US Open in two weeks and miss out on The Wales Open this weekend. Paul Lawrie put in another sterling performance as he continues his pursuit of a place in Europe’s Ryder Cup team in September in Chicago with a tied second place finish alongside Justin Rose, sure to be a teammate in a few months’ time.
GOLFING TIP OF THE WEEK
Many golf grips will help you hold the club correctly - those lines are there for more than decoration so use them to your advantage.
NOEL EASTWELL GOLF ACADEMY AT EL PLANTIO
Quality coaching at reduced rates for RTN Golf Club members: contact Noel on 639 730 891.
Published in
Golf
