Andy Sullivan won his first European Tour title with a brilliant birdie on the first playoff hole as Charl Schwartzel let slip a five-shot overnight lead in a late collapse at the South African Open on Sunday. Schwartzel (74) finished terribly, making two bogeys and a double-bogey in his last five holes to fall back to 11-under and allow Sullivan (67) a chance at victory in the playoff. Though it has to be said that Schwartzel was playing with a broken toe for the duration of the tournament, and it was clearly bothering him on the closing day. Both players missed the fairway off the tee in the playoff, but Sullivan sent a low pitch from under a tree onto the green, before rolling in the putt for his maiden tour title. He pumped his fist with delight after a missed birdie on the last in regulation play appeared to have ensured he would have no chance at victory. Sullivan became just the second Englishman to win the South African Open, after Tommy Horton in 1970. His seven-shot comeback was the biggest in the final round since the event joined the European Tour in 1997.
Rory McIlroy will make his return to the tour this week in Abu Dhabi and will partner his old friend and rival Rickie Fowler. Big things are expected of both these young talents this year and this first tournament together could be an indication of what's to come from them in the year ahead. Rory is ready to go one better than his three runner-up finishes at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship this week, having just completed the annual ritual of recording his goals for the season on the back of a boarding pass en route to the Middle East.
Drills
As it is the start of the New Year we are going to be giving you a new set of challenges to improve your short game. The next few weeks will be focused on putting. Putting is arguably the most important part of our game.
Consider the best golfers in the world: touring professionals. If the average number of greens in regulation for touring professionals as a group is approximately 12, that means they are missing approximately one-third of the greens. But the average score for touring professionals as a group is very near par (perhaps even slightly under par, depending on which particular group you look at). The most blatantly telling statistic is putts per round, and the average number for touring professionals as a group is less than 30. That's how the average score gets back in the vicinity of par even with all those missed greens.
The aim of these drills, over the next few weeks, is to practice different types of putts so you feel confidant all around the green. This week the drill will be 'lag putts', or long putts. Use the practice green and measure out 40, 60 and 80 feet (if there's room) and play 10 putts from each spot. Use the scoring system in the image to test how you get on. Come back a day or two later and try again, is there any improvement?
If you have any questions regarding the drill please contact us by clicking here.
If you didn't already know, I am hosting a professionals evening on Friday 30th January. Tickets cost £10 and are available in the pro-shop. This includes a drink, some nibbles and a raffle ticket giving you the chance to win a SkyCaddie touch. The prize draw will also be taking place on the night and tickets are still available in the pro-shop.
The Prizes include the following:
1st prize Nike VRS Covert 2.0 irons
2nd Prize Wilson FG Tour Driver
3rd Prize Callaway Aqua Dry Cart Bag
4th Prize Callaway X2 hot Hybrid
5th Prize FootJoy Waterproof Suit
6th Prize SkyCaddie watch
7th Prize His and hers Lined Sweaters
8th Prize Lesson Voucher
Remember the more tickets you buy the more chance you have of winning!
It's the sale time of year and we have almost everything on sale for you!
25% OFF
- Clothing (except pgc logo and waterproofs)
- Shoes
15% OFF
- Bags
- Hardware
- Putters
Finally we have, new in stock, the new Callaway Big Bertha range. This is includes the driver (alpha 815), hybrids, irons and regular, stiff and x-stiff shafts to go with. If you feel you want to refresh your kit this year then we suggest you have a go with these first. We have demos available so just pop into the pro shop and see if the new technology improves the way you strike the ball.
Driver
The lowered spin in the Alpha 815 helps you maximize distance. This was achieved with a forged composite crown to save weight with a patented Gravity Core for an adjustable Center of Gravity. The result: a low spinning bomber without compromise.
Remember this name - R.MOTO Technology. It provides the structure to save weight and allow an ultra-thin face that maintains stability while elevating smash factor. Every driver should have this. Only Big Bertha does.
7 gram and 1 gram weight ports allow you to set the driver to neutral draw or fade bias. And our OptiFit hosel provides 8 different loft (-1, S, +1, +2) and lie angle (Draw or Neutral) configuration.
Hybrid
Anything with the "Big Bertha" name on it needs to be long, so a Hyper Speed Face Cup is included for higher ball speed all across the face. Centre hits are going to be faster, and your off-centre hits will be faster too.
Hybrids need to be versatile and playable for a number of different shots, and the Bertha hybrids are especially easy to launch high. This is the full package of maximum forgiveness and ball speed from a low, forgiving centre of gravity.
For the first time, they are bringing adjustability in a hybrid to go with all that distance. Choose from 8 different settings with the Optifit hosel to adjust loft, lie and shot shape.
Irons
Up to "2 clubs longer" is for real. Higher ball speed all across the face comes from 360 Face Cup technology. Combined with an Internal Standing Wave, this is the hottest iron they've ever produced.
Your shots will launch higher and fly straighter. Hollow body construction lets you put the weight where you want it so you get an incredibly forgiving iron.
A more flexible iron face helps the ball jump off the club with serious ball speed behind it. It adds to the forgiveness too - the ball speed is high wherever you hit it on the face.
The sole designs are what you want to see - wider in the longer irons to give you confidence, narrower in the shorter irons because we know you'll hit those well. With a progressive, modern top line, you can take one look at the Big Berthas and know that they'll work for you.
