Monty will have four assistant

captains at Celtic Manor 2010

FROM THE TELEGRAPH.CO.UK WEBSITE
Colin Montgomerie, the 2010 European captain, was clearly unimpressed with Nick Faldo's decision to go into the 2008 Ryder Cup with just one assistant captain.
The Scot is not about to make the same mistake.
Speaking at the first joint press conference of the two Ryder Cup captains at Celtic Manor, the venue for the 2010 cup, on the eve of the Welsh Open at the course this week, Montgomerie said: "More is better. To have somebody with every group, to have help, to have advice, to work as a group, I think is very important. I will be having four [assistant captains]. It is very important to feed off information coming from the course."
Faldo went into the 2008 match with just the help of Jose Maria Olazabal. Controversially Faldo's son rode on the captain's buggy and D J Spoony lurked in the background, but it looked a shamefully lightweight team compared to Paul Azinger's group of Ray Floyd, Dick Stockton, Olin Browne and, by all appearances, George Bush senior.
Montgomerie even hinted as to the identity of his assistant captains. He said: "I had a big say in the selection of the Seve Trophy captains in Thomas Bjorn and Paul McGinley and there's potential for them to take up a vice-captaincy role. Ian Woosnam did a fantastic job in Ireland and being from these parts there should be no reason why he should not be involved in my thinking."
Montgomerie then went on to quote Sam Torrance's "I'm awfully glad you've left your egos at the door" as the best comment he had heard from a captain. Torrance has said he would accept if asked and a team of Torrance, Woosnam, Bjorn and McGinley would be both powerful and popular.
Montgomerie said his would be an inclusive captaincy. "One has to listen as any leader of any team has to do. A very unwise man doesn't listen."
It may not have been so intended, but that sounded like a comment on Faldo's captaincy.
Montgomerie was far cagier on other subjects and seemed to be auditioning for a role in cabinet compared to the candour of Corey Pavin, the American captain. The big question for Pavin was how to fit Tiger Woods into his team. America won last year without Woods, but they cannot seem to win with him.
Pavin said: "Tiger wants to win the Ryder Cup very badly. I was with him in Ireland [at the 2006 Ryder Cup] quite a lot. As a player I can watch another player and see in his eyes what he's thinking and what's going through his head. I saw a very determined man who wanted to win the Ryder Cup. Tiger wants to win the Ryder Cup very, very badly."
Having said all of that Pavin did not shy away from the problem of finding someone who could form a successful partnership with Woods. He said: "It's probably going to be easier now. The confidence of some of the players who played on the [winning] Ryder Cup team in 2008 will make them feel comfortable about the Ryder Cup setting and playing with Tiger."
Pavin then asked: "Would you be intimidated playing with him." When the answer came back in the affirmative Pavin said: "I think everybody feels that way in the Ryder Cup." By admitting he has a problem, Pavin is halfway to solving it.
Meanwhile Woods is looking to step up his comeback from injury when the Memorial Tournament in Ohio gets under way on Thursday.
The world No 1 will compete for the first time since last month's Players Championship at the event hosted by Jack Nicklaus at Muirfield Village Golf Clubn.
The American is still working his way back to top form after an eight-month lay-off following knee surgery as he chases his second victory since his return.
"I'm really looking forward to competing again at the Memorial Tournament and I've been working hard on my game since the Players Championship," the 33-year-old, who won the tournament in 1999, 2000 and 2001, wrote in his monthly newsletter.
The 14-time major winner underwent reconstructive surgery on his left knee last June, which ruled him out of last year's tournament, but he has recorded five top-10 finishes, including victory in the Arnold Palmer Invitational, in six Tour starts since returning to fitness.
"[That record] isn't too bad considering how long I was away from the game after my knee surgery," Woods said.
"It's just frustrating when you're in position to win and don't get it done. I just need more repetitions. I just need to fine-tune everything."

Jack Doherty finishes joint runner-up

in Celtic Pro Tour Pencoed event

North Gailes-based Jack Doherty finished joint runner-up in this week's Celtic Pro Tour event at St Mary's Golf Club, Pencoed.
Jack had rounds of 68 and 67 for a total of 135 over the par-68 course. He tied for second place with Iwan Griffiths (67-68), one shot behind the £700 first prize winner, Cennyd Mills (Vale-Hotel.com) who shot 66 and 68 for two-under-par 134.
Doherty, fresh from his first win on the EuroPro Tour in Ireland, holed a chip for an eagle at the 17th in the second round to join Mills in the lead at one under par with one hole to play.
At the par-4 18th, Doherty hit the centre of the green with his approach shot but Mills almost holed his second shot which came to rest 2ft from the stick.
Doherty could not hole his birdie putt to match Mills' birdie finish.
Griffiths holed a 12ft putt to finish with three consecutive birdies and grab a share of second place from Doherty.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 136 (2 x 68)
134 Cennyd Mills 66 68.
135 Iwan Griffiths 67 68, Jack Doherty 68 67.
136 Adam Constable 6967.
140 Llewellyn Matthews 76 67.

Tartan Tour Scoreboard
POLLOK GOLF CLUB PRO-AM
Par 71
65 Craig Matheson (Falkirk Tryst) (£1,002.88).
66 Stephen Gray (Hayston), Craig Lee (unatt) (£701.78 each).
67 David Orr (East Renfrewsshire), Mark Loftus (Cowglen), Craig Ronald (Carluke) (£370.99 each).
69 Paul McKechnie (Braid Hills), Chris Kelly (Cawder), Alan Lockhart (Ladybank) (£224 each).
71 Colin Gillies (Perry Golf), Campbell Elliott (Haggs Castle) (£160.33).
72 Jonnie Cliff (Murrayfield), Christopher Russell (RAW Golf Course Design) £135.36 each).
73 Steven Taylor (Bothwell Castle), Robert Arnott (Bishopbriggs GR), James McKinnon (Irvine), John McTear (Mar Hall Hotel Golf & Spa) (£105.28 each).
74 Edward Thomson (Senit Associates), Jonathan Lomas (unatt), Iain Colquhoun (Dundonald Links) (£70.18 each).
75 Gordon Law (Uphall), Russell Smith (Gleneagles Hotel) (£48.39 each).
76 Vincent Brown (Westerwood) (£48.39).
77 Norman Huguet (Musselburgh), Chris Morris (Kingsknowe), Lindsay Mann (Carnoustie) (£48.39 each).
80 Andrew Fullen (Largs) (£48.39)
82 Paul Jamieson (Dunblane New), David Ross Nicol (Dundonald Links) (£48.39 each).
NR Alistair Brown (Whitecraigs) (£48.39).
TEAM EVENT
Par 142 (2x71)
126 John McTear team, Chris Kelly team, Colin Gillies team.

Harrington thanks Bob Torrance for

spotting long-time swing 'niggle'

FROM THE IRISHGOLFDESK.COM WEBSITE
Padraig Harrington has finally solved the swing change “rant” that’s been driving him crazy for the best part of three years.
And that means that the triple major winner is ready to “go play golf” this week as he begins his build up to the US Open by joining Tiger Woods in this week's Memorial Tournament in Ohio.
Down to 10th in the world after two weeks off and Steve Stricker’s win at the Colonial, Harrington is happy he can leave his swing alone and concentrate on getting the ball in the hole.
Feeling positive again, Harrington beamed: “The summer months are here, it is time to go play golf. I have been trying to fix something in my swing that has been annoying me and while I still have more work to do on it, the important thing is that I’ve finally got the answer I wanted.
“I have been on this particular rant for the last two or three years and it has only been in the last four or six weeks that I have finally figured out what it is, what I need to do to change it.
“That doesn’t mean that is going to be there for the next period of time. But a huge part of this is finding the answer and because I have that, I can maybe put this on the back burner for a while.”
The news will be music to the ears of Harrington’s wife Caroline, caddie Ronan Flood and mental coach Dr Bob Rotella, who have been begging him to cut back on his marathon sessions on the driving range this season.
Things were getting out of hand and after missing four cuts from 11 starts so far this year, Harrington knows it’s time to stop tinkering and start scoring.
He’s hoping to find some form at Muirfield Village this week before putting the finishing touches to his US Open preparations at the St Jude Championship in Memphis.
And credit must go to his veteran coach Bob Torrance, who helped his top pupil get to the bottom of the technical issues that have been driving him to distraction.
While Harrington used 3D technology to spot the flaw that makes him hit the ball too high and lose penetration, it took the trained eye of his veteran Scottish coach to spot the solution.
Harrington explained: “I definitely felt that I lacked a little bit of strike and penetration but for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out how to stop it. I just had a slight misconception about what I needed to and what I felt I was doing, wasn’t what I was actually doing.
“It ultimately comes down to Bob to sort it out and he really has come up trumps. We have worked on something that he has told me before but never really focussed on. It is a different feeling for me I am very happy with it.”
Harrington will be the only Irishman in action in the US but eight players will tee it up at the Celtic Manor Wales Open this week.
Shock Irish Open winner Shane Lowry will be hoping to make his first cut as a pro after missing out by six shots on his debut in the European Open.
Ulsterman Michael Hoey and Jonnie Caldwell are also in action alongside Damien McGrane, Peter Lawrie, Gary Murphy and Paul McGinley.
McGinley got bad news last week when he heard that his first golf course design at Macreddin in Co Wicklow has gone into receivership following a move by the club’s bankers, Bank of Scotland (Ireland).
But Rory McIlroy has two weeks to recharge his batteries before he make his US Open debut at Bethpage Black in New York. The Holywood, Belfast ace, 20, ran out of gas in the European Open and finished 12th behind surprise winner Christian Cevaer of France.

Death of Moray Golf Club stalwart

Moray Golf Club is mourning the loss of honorary member and past captain Dr John McConachie, author of “The Moray Golf Club at Lossiemouth 1889 – 1989.”
Club secretary Steve Crane has informed Scottishgolfview.com that John sadly died on Friday, 29.

Scots 'Famous Five' looking for confidence

boost in Challenge Tour's Austria stop

By MICHAEL GIBBONS, Challenge Tour Press Officer
Scotland’s five Challenge Tour representatives this week will attempt to shoot down Austria’s greatest ever player, Markus Brier.
Former Scottish boys and Scottish amateur stroke-play champion Scott Henry, Dalmahoy’s Jamie McLeary, Carnoustie’s Eric Ramsay as well as Saltman brothers Elliott and Lloyd will all be competing against Brier, a former Challenge Tour player himself who has since won The Austrian Open and the Volvo China Open on The European Tour, making him Austria’s most successful golfer.
As the tournament title suggests, Brier is lending his support to the Kärnten Golf Open presented by Markus Brier Foundation to promote his Foundation and give young Austrian players an opportunity to enhance their careers on the Challenge Tour.
The Scots in the field this week will be looking to outshine Brier and gather some form and momentum as the Challenge Tour season moves into full swing, with ‘home’ events in Ireland, Scotland and Wales taking place in the next seven weeks.

Lothians boys' match-play championship results

Tuesday evening's first-round match-play results in the Lothians Golf Association boys' championship at the Braids were (qualifying position in brackets):

Grant Forest (Craigielaw) (1) bt Anthony Blaney (Liberton) (2) 2 holes.
Scott Young (Turnhouse) (13) bt Stuart Boyle (Harburn) (5) at 19th.
Simon Fairburn (Craigielaw) (15) bt Douglas Maxwell (Craigielaw) (11) 4 and 3.
Euan Mackay (Torphin Hill) (6) bt Lee Morgan (Newbattle) (8) 2 holes.

Colin Dick (Murrayfield) (14) bt Blair Todd (Greenburn) (16) 4 and 2.
Louis Gaughan(Bathgate) (12) bt Andy Rowe (Kingsknowe) (7) 4 and 3.
Josh Renwick (Uphall) (9) bt Greg Miller (Bathgate) (10) 6 and 5.
Blair Pelling (Prestonfield) (3) bt Jordyn Rhind (Uphall) (4) 3 and 2.

+Scottishgolfview.com thanks to "Stan" for providing the missing scores.

Swanston Golf Club enterprise

pays off in membership surge

FROM THE SCOTSMAN.SPORT.COM WEBSITE
By Mike Aitken
While falling membership numbers and reduced income are commonplace at many Scottish golf clubs during the economic downturn, one club in Edinburgh is reaping the benefits from adopting a pro-active approach.
Swanston Golf Club, which has almost tripled its membership over the past two years, celebrated the official opening at the weekend of an attractive new clubhouse with a gym as well as the introduction of seven new holes on the main course, a short nine-hole course and improved practice facilities.
The director of golf at Swanston, Stewart Snedden, reported how they had built an open plan facility in which all the social spaces were open to the public as well as members. This helped to keep down costs at a time when a new-nine hole course, aimed at beginners, was built, along with a driving range and putting greens.
"Because of the emphasis we placed on families, we've gone from a membership of 280 to 807 in just 18 months," reported Snedden.
Nestling in the foothills of the Pentlands, it wasn't so long ago Swanston was just another ailing members' club. There were rumours of closure until Colin and Janie McClung, as well as Snedden, injected new life and capital into the club.
"The decline of an 80-year-old members' club at Swanston was sad to see," recalled McClung. "We felt the demand was there, it just needed the facilities to match. Thankfully, we could invest for the long term without hurting members in the short term and hopefully secure the future of Swanston for another 80 years."
Local MSP David McLetchie praised Swanston's owners for encouraging youngsters and increasing the junior membership from 13 to 130 in three years. Smartly, the club sponsored a football team at the local school and was rewarded for being so community-minded when parents chose to send their children to Swanston for golf tuition.
Hamish Grey, the chief executive of the Scottish Golf Union, was among many notables who attended the opening ceremony, where Colin Montgomerie sent a message of support through his brother Douglas.
Grey would surely endorse McClung's view that golf is evolving in Scotland rather than declining, and local clubs can only keep up with the pace of change by seizing the initiative.
*The full article contains 384 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.

Jack Nicklaus appraisal of changes

to his Gleneagles course awaited

FROM THE EDINBURGH EVENING NEWS WEBSITE
By MARTIN DEMPSTER
Bosses at Gleneagles have asked golfing legend Jack Nicklaus for his seal of approval to course changes for the 2014 Ryder Cup.
Nicklaus designed what is now known as the PGA Centenary Course, venue for the biennial clash between Europe and the United States in five years' time.

But, after Scottish course designer David McLay Kidd was hired to make alterations to the course, Nicklaus was believed to have made it known that he no longer wanted to be associated with the Perthshire venue.

Concerned about that, senior staff at Gleneagles asked Nicklaus to visit the course recently to cast his eye over the re-modelling work and now they are waiting to hear what the 18-time 'Major' winner has to say about the changes.

"Jack came here because, as we go forward to the Ryder Cup in 2014, we want to have a strong relationship with him," said Patrick Emslie, operations director of the Gleneagles Hotel.

"Jack laid out the course nearly 20 years ago and, over the course of about the last 12 years, we started to look at what else needed to happen to the course. David McLay Kidd used to work within Gleneagles and our relationship with him came about organically, I suppose.

"That relationship is great and many of the things he has done with the course has been well received and appreciated. We wanted to make sure that Jack came to see what David had done and that he could feel comfortable with the changes.

"His visit only took place a week and a half ago and we are waiting for Jack to report back to us. I expect that to happen within the next month or so."

Asked if Nicklaus had given any inidications of what he thought during the visit, Emslie added: "I think there were changes that he might not necessarily have made himself but, at the same time, they weren't changes that he was uncomfortable with, if that's the right way to put it.

"I don't think that it was a good scenario where we had a situation where we had anything other than an alignment of views on how the course was and I hope that Jack, on reflection, will say that the changes have strengthened the course.

"All golf courses evolve and the PGA Centenary Course at Gleneagles is no different."

The most recent change to the course, revealed yesterday for the first time during a media day for the Johnnie Walker Championship later in the year, is a re-routed 12th hole, now an excellent par-4 instead of a routine par-5.

This follows significant changes made by McLay Kidd to the seventh, 13th and 14th holes in recent years and Emslie admitted that the 18th will also be looked at with the Ryder Cup in mind.

"The 18th is a difficult tract of land and we have looked at this for at least the last 12 years to see how we can make it different through substantial changes which may or may not work in the longer term," he added.

"As things stand, it may be the case that the Ryder Cup infrastructure will mean that any changes we do make will be cosmetic rather than a re-routing. It may be shorterned to become a par-4 rather than the par-5 it is just now.

"I think that, from a cosmetic point of view, we can make it more attractive to play and also make it a hole which gives risk to reward for those who are playing it."

By the looks of things, it is unlikely that a new clubhouse will be built specifically for the Ryder Cup, which was last held in Scotland in 1973, when Muirfield hosted the event.

"We need to be realistic on our expenditure on that sort of facility," noted Emslie.

"If our golf business requires we have a new clubhouse, then we will give it consideration. Purely for the Ryder Cup, however, it is probably a step too far and, having been to Valhalla for last year's event and seen what the team requirements are, I think we are very fortunate here at Gleneagles that we have a hotel a few hundreds yards from the course."

This year's Johnnie Walker Championship takes place on August 27-30 and Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie will again serve as the chairman of the championship committee.This week Monty will be at Celtic Manor for the Wales Open and is keen to see how specific changes he's asked to be made to the course will go down with the players, some of whom will be in his side to face the Americans at the Newport venue next year.
*The full article contains 800 words and appeared in yesterday's Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.

The tournament that Jack built

and wants to keep challenging

FROM THE US PGATOUR.COM WEBSITE
The morning calm at Muirfield Village (Dublin, Ohio) was shattered by a sound that was sure to be sweet music to players.
It came from the engine of a lawn mower.
Mowers were thought to be a myth last year at the Memorial Tournament. The rough was supposed to be 4 inches, yet it doubled in length by the end of the week, and was particularly punishing around the greens. It felt as though the U.S. Open had arrived two weeks early.
Geoff Ogilvy feared some players would stop coming.
Phil Mickelson showed his displeasure by praising the course of every tournament he had played that year except for the Memorial. Even before his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer, Lefty did not have Muirfield Village on his schedule this year.
"We were over the top last year," said Slugger White, the US PGA Tour official in charge of setting up the course.
The fault fell to Jack Nicklaus -- at least that's the perception of most players.
After all, this is the course Jack built for a tournament he has hosted since 1976. Nicklaus built his career around the majors, and he wants the Memorial to be the next best thing.
But even Nicklaus was troubled by the high grass, not to mention the complaints.
"The one thing I never liked as a golfer was hack-out rough," Nicklaus said Tuesday. "I've always felt that if you put the ball in the rough, there should be some chance of playing a shot to reach the green, but not be able to control the ball like you would normally. I think recovery is a beautiful part of the game."
Muirfield Village is spectacular as ever, but not the same this year. The rough is not as dense, not as high. The wooden rakes that created furrows in the bunkers the last three years have been replaced by standard rakes that leave the sand smooth.
This came not from concession, rather discussion.
Nicklaus met with US PGA Tour officials, as always, after Kenny Perry won last year with the highest winning score (280) in 23 years.
"I don't think Mr. Nicklaus or the Tour liked what came out of last year," said Steve Rintoul, the Tour official who oversaw the course set-up this year. "The rules committee, in conjunction with Jack, thought it better to have shorter rough."
Ultimately, the Tour has the final word in how the course plays.
But if Nicklaus is the one taking the heat whenever someone complains, then why not just take full authority of his golf tournament?
Nicklaus chuckled at the suggestion.
"We are part of the Tour," he said. "What I want to do is co-operate the best I can, have middle ground on what I want to do and what the players like. My feeling is, do I want them to not like it? Of course not. I want everybody to be happy, everybody to enjoy it. But not everyone thinks the way I think. I'm 69. Guys are 40 years younger than I am, or more. They haven't been brought up the way I was.
"It's more my job to adjust to them than their job to adjust to me."
But there are some areas where Nicklaus will not budge.
Bunkers that had furrows now are smooth. High rough is now shorter. The Tour also suggested that Nicklaus slow the speed of the greens, and that's where he drew the line.
"I'll yield to the other two, but that's our golf course," he said. "The golf course has always had fast greens."
Neither will Nicklaus budge on his belief that players are to be challenged.
There are some who believe golf should be about entertainment, that fans would rather see birdies than players grinding over par.
It's not for every tournament. It's not for the Memorial.
For Nicklaus, there is a difference between "tournament golf" and "entertaining golf," even if both can provide a similar outcome. Carl Pettersson, who won the Memorial three years ago, understood what Nicklaus was talking about.
"Tournament golf is hard work," he said. "It's like a doctor going into surgery; you're worn out when it's over. In tournament golf, you have to be thinking on every shot."
Nicklaus recalls one PGA Tour event that kept begging him to play. He finally relented, shot four rounds in the 60s and kept falling farther and farther down the leaderboard.
"My feeling is when you're setting up a golf tournament, you should try to have the best test you can have that week for the players," Nicklaus said. "When I played, I chose my tournaments based on how the golf course would be and how the challenge would be. I knew if I had a good challenge, it would not only help my game, but improve my ability to prepare for when I got to a major. To come in town and collect money and get out and not have a challenge ... was something I didn't want to do.
"But maybe I'm different."
In one aspect, he is no different from any other tournament host. No longer a player, no longer Presidents Cup captain after three straight terms, his primary involvement in the PGA Tour comes through the Memorial. And he still looks at a golf course the way he would want to see it if he were still playing.
"For the most part, this is most guys' favourite tournament, and I want it to stay that way," he said. "But I want tournament golf."