The Return of the Lyrical Genius

I have previously written some mildly comedic limericks to celebrate various golfing highlights - originally as an ode to Europe's successful Ryder Cup defence last year and, subsequently, as a preamble to the Masters this year. As 2013 draws to a close (and the 2014 golf season starts), I thought I'd have another go. Enjoy.

Harey Cup 2013 - postscript

No great golf tour is complete without its winners, losers and people, without whose efforts & enthusiasm events like this wouldn't be the same (or even happen).

Harey Cup 2013 - Day 3

Day 3. The final chapter. La Cala was still cloaked in darkness when ten gladiators rose from their beds, dressed for battle and fuelled up for what lay ahead. For Team Richie, clad in European blue and sporting a 4 point deficit, the proverbial mountain was in front of them. They would need to draw on every ounce of skill at their disposal, as well as drum up memories of the Miracle of Medinah to snatch the unlikeliest of victories.

Harey Cup 2013 - Day 2

After suffering a whitewash on Day 1 around Campo America, Team Richie had a mountain to climb on Day 2 as we tackled Campo Europa. Points were required to ensure they didn't suffer the ignominy of being beaten before the singles matches.

Harey Cup 2013 - Day 1

So, after many months of waiting and much banter flowing between the participants, the 2013 Harey Cup finally got underway at 11am yesterday, with team captain & organiser Richie Munro smiting his ball down to the fairway.

Harey Cup 2013 - practice day

So, having got up at sparrow-fart o'clock to catch my flight to Malaga, I'm pleased to report that EasyJet did their jobs very well & we arrived on time, complete with luggage. After a short transfer to the hotel at La Cala (pre-booked with ziptransfers.com, in case you are interested) we checked in with minimal fuss and the man on the desk also booked us our afternoon practice round on Campo Asia.

Harey Cup 2013 - preamble

Well, the bags are packed and I am all checked in and ready to depart to Spain and the fabulous La Cala resort for the 6th running of the Harey Cup.

The teams have all been picked, the captains having made use of the latest technology to make their choices live via WhatsApp. My name came out of the hat second, so I'll be representing Team Matt

It all kicks off at 11am local time on Friday, so I have the pleasure of a day of acclimatisation tomorrow, when I can hopefully get a few holes in before the light fades

More updates to follow...stay tuned

I am the Part-Time Golfer

Well, that's 2013 pretty much finished

Now the professional wheelbarrows are out of storage, the golf 'season' is coming to an end, so as we look forward to earlier tee times, base layers and woolly hats when golfing, I realized just how slack I have been regarding keeping this blog up to date. Herewith my attempt at redress.

Bethpage Black gets the Ryder Cup

Following the announcement that Bethpage Black will host both the 2019 PGA Championship and the 2024 Ryder Cup, I thought I would rehash re-post the account of my Bethpage experience of May 2012. If you've never played this incredible course, make sure it's on your list. 

A humble apology

Just in case there are folks out there who actually read this blog, I feel I owe you an overdue apology for the lack of posts on here.

A lyrical genius pt 2

Following Europe's dramatic and inspiring Ryder Cup win back in the autumn, I wrote some limericks about the fantastic triumph (read them here). With a week to go until the Masters kicks off, I thought I'd have another bash at this. Enjoy.

The golfing year of 2013 starts now. Well, when it warms up a bit...

The interminably long winter of 2012/13, plus the rank tardiness of spring's appearance, has left me decidedly bereft of any golfing action for quite some time. I thought I had got lucky a couple of weeks back, squeezing an unexpected round in but even this was defeated by torrential rain after just 9 holes. So, with little golf to look forward to in the immediate future, my thoughts are turning to what golfing exploits I have planned for the rest of 2013.

Chip from a cart path? I'll take a drop, thanks

Tomorrow, after nearly five weeks without it, I get my 6-iron back. Yes there are major benefits to having custom-fitted shafts for golf clubs but, should an unfortunate accident befall one, it's not that simple to get it repaired, let alone cheap. Watching Phil Mickleson play a (quite remarkable) chip shot last night got me thinking about the perils associated with lauding (and attempting to recreate) this particular type of recovery shot.

How much? I nearly had a coronary

As previously mentioned on ibleedgolf.com, I have been lucky enough to play Loch Lomond GC, one of the holy grails of UK golfers. I gave a broad hint to the level of financial outlay involved and reading ‘The Money Game’, submitted by m’colleague Roland Paterson, got me thinking. I thought I would expand on this & provide more details of the day – what happened was an extreme example of a ‘Money Game’ and one which I will never forget. And neither will my wife.

At this rate, we'll be here until Monday...eh? Oh.

After the breathtakingly pedestrian conclusion to the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines on Monday, the still-active-yet-unaddressed issue of pace of play came to light again. The ensuing Twitter debate about how this problem can be sorted out has prompted me to repost a piece I wrote back in February 2012 presenting, I think, a workable solution to the problem.

What do Americans think of British golf? A reply from the Old Country

I have recently starting contributing articles for ibleedgolf.com (a bastion of golfing excellence) and a fellow contributor described what Americans think about golf in Britain. Someone would need to stand up for the mother ship - I am that man.