Table of contents for December 2022 in Compleat Golfer

LIV GOLF The new Greg Norman-fronted, Saudi-funded Tour took a wrecking ball to men's professional golf in 2022 and, depending on your point of view, created either an unnecessary, rapacious divide or injected new energy into a decaying golf product. As it prepares for its second season, during which it plans to expand to 14 events around the globe, LIV’s leadership team must acknowledge the many lessons to be learned from their debut campaign - some good, some bad, some ugly. Let's assess the main talking points from a year that nobody saw coming. THE GOOD Without players, you don't have a Tour. And, my goodness, LIV has players. The field that contested the final regular event of the season in Jeddah comprised four former world No 1 golfers, 12…

Now that emotions have cooled and. as the announcers of TV reality shows are fond to say, 'the results are in', how was Season 1 of LIV Golf for you? Are you counting down the days until Season 2 gets under way? A cursory look at the injection of new faces and names throughout the eightpart Series, which started in London in June and concluded with a team event in Miami in October, highlights that there was indeed noticeable growth in the breakaway circuit. With Charl Schwartzel becoming the first winner of a LIV Golf Series event, pocketing $4-million. plus extras for being in the winning team, the quality of the fields definitely got stronger. Andy Ogletree. then ranked 1406th in the world, carded rounds of 82,77 and 75 in…

BRIDGESTONE Balls Tour B range What Bridgestone says: The new Tour B with Reactiv iQ is the smarter Tour ball. Proprietary new Reactiv iQ is smartcover technology that reacts to the force of impact. Reactiv iO rebounds quickly on tee shots, delivering explosive velocity and increased distance. Reactiv iQ stays on the face longer on approach shots, providing more spin and a soft feel around the green. Dual-dimple technology provides efficient trajectory and reduced drag through enhanced aerodynamics. Random review: 'For golfers with more moderate swing speeds, Bridgestone’s Tour B RX golf ball has plenty to offer on the course. It delivers on its promise of distance while also providing the greenside control that golfers expect from a premium golf ball. And it’s as good in the wind as anything…

CARL FOURIE/BALLO IMAGES MEN OPEN 1 (1) Kyle de Beer (Port Elizabeth GC) 2 (2) Yurav Premlall (Glendower GC] 3 (3) Jonathan Broomhoad [Durban CC) 4 (4) Aldrich Potgieter (Pinnacle Point GC] 5 (5) Christiaan Maas (Fretoria CC1 6 (6) Simon du Plooy (Krugersdorp GC) 7 (7) Daniel Bennett (Royal Durban GC) 8 [8] Jordan Wessels (Mooinooi GC] 9 [9) Werner Devzel [Woodhill CC] 10 [12] Jean Pierre van der Watt [Humewood GC] 11 [10] Behn Heyns (Silver Lakes CC) 12 (18) Altin van der Merwe (Humewood GC) 13 (11) Ivan Verster (Pinnacle Point GC) 14 (13) Fabrizio de Abreu (Woodhill CC) 15 (14) Handre Truter (Waterkloof GC) 16 (15) Joshua Koekemoer (Silver Lakes CC) 17 (16) Jordan Burnand (Ebotse GC) 18 (17) Reece McKain [Benani CC) 19 (20) Tere…

ASHLEIGH BUHAI COLUMN The last two tournaments and the final push for the end of the season is on. It’s always a stressful time for many players depending on where you are on the Race to the CME. Some players are trying to play their way Into the top SO to give themselves a shot at playing for $7-million in the season finale where the winner takes home $2-million, and some players are fighting to stay in the top 100 to keep their playing status for 2023. I have been on the end of both of those situations, and neither is easy, and both scenarios create plenty of anxiety. At the beginning of my LPGA career, I was on the side of having one tournament to keep my LPGA card,…

WYNAND DINGLE Sratch the surface of any golfer, and you will find one who loves a little wager. For almost all professional golfers, it is a careerlong gamble, juggling confidence in their abilities with the realities of the difficulties that golf - and life - throw at them. away and knowing what to keep. Because every hand’s a winner and every hand’s a loser and the best that you can hope for is to die in your sleep.’ That realism led to a couple of side hustles which have kept his head above water over the years. ‘One thing I do is music,' says Dingle. 1 play some gigs for extra cash whenever I can. I love Afrikaans music, of course, and then I enjoy older country music. You have…

RYAN CAIRNS COLUMN We have seen it all this year and, in the end, will be left with so many unanswered questions. Exactly what the men’s professional game holds for us, the viewers, will now have to be boxed up and placed under the tree this festive season. While we wait for Boxing Day, it sounds like a few more PGA Tour superstars are about to be added to Jay's naughty list. Rahm and Rors have also softened their stance of late, which may or may not be due to a few late-night WhatsApps with Greg, The Grinch, Norman. I am holding out hope for only one thing this season. That is for both Tours to stop wishing the other away. Because neither is winning this battle right now. Rather…

Throughout the year Brandon Stone is counting down, from 12 to one, the most enjoyable experiences he’s had with a playing partner on the golf course 2 Dean Burmester The world of professional golf is lonely. So, having friends out on Tour is essential. Dean is one of those people for me. He also happens to be an incredible player, I mean, the guy just got his PGA Tbur card, he's that good! The man is one of the best ball strikers I’ve ever played with. You then add that to a short game that seems to have been moulded by the short-game gods themselves. It's no wonder why Dean has accomplished what he has. But the thing that makes Dean so enjoyable to play with is his ability to…

By the end of the season, there wasn’t any doubt as to who would be named PGA Tour Rookie of the Year. Cameron Young out Sahith Theegaia and Tom Kim to the prestigious title, following in the footsteps of former world No Is Vijay Singh, Ernie Els, Tiger Woods, Jordan Spieth and Smttie Soheffler tn reoeive the award. Since 1990,11 Rookies of the Year have won Major titles, which further shows the pedigree - and level of expectation - that comes with being named Rookie of the Year. The 25 -year-old Young received 94% of the vote in seeing off his two contemporaries and he now sets off on a journey where the fairways are paved with gold. However, there have also been a few rookies who haven’t quite ‘kicked…

LONDON $4m Chari Schwartzel $2.125m Herinie du Plessis $1.5m Branden Grace $800 000 Oliver Bekker $560 000 Justin Harding, Louis Oosthuizen $232 000 JC Ritchie $172 000 Shaun Norris $166 000 lan Snyman Team payouts: $750 000 to each of Schwartzel, Du Plessis, Grace and Qosthuizen PORTLAND $4m Branden Grace ?RQ7.R Louis Oosthuizen $158 000 Hennie du Plessis, Ian Snvman $142 000 Chari Schwartzel Team payouts: $375 000 to each of Sdhwartzel, Du Plessis, Grace and Oosthuizen BEDMINSTER $293 333 Branden Grace $226 000 Chari Sehwartzei $200 000 Louis Oosthuizen, Justin Harding $168 000 Shaun Norris $127 000 Hennie du Plessis BOSTON £560 000 Louis Oosthuizen $450 000 Branden Grace $144 000 Chari Schwartzel $134 000 Shaun Norris ILLINOIS $737 500 Louis Oosthuizen, Chari Schwartzel S215 333 Brandon Grace $124…

Improving your game, especially at the highest level, requires attention to detail like no other. Improvement does not just happen by itself. It starts with a deep conviction that doing the small things well makes all the difference. Then the hard work starts! If you want to improve, you are going to have to make the necessary changes. Physicist Albert Einstein said it best: 'Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.’ In his groundbreaking book Champions: The Making of Olympic Swimmers author Daniel Chambliss takes a look at what it takes to excel at the highest level of sport as a champion and the best route to sustained success that he could find was doing seemingly mundane, everyday tasks well. He goes on to…

Gowrie Farm has entered the second phase of its development, with 29 new stands, averaging 1800 square metres, available, ranging in price from R1.5-million to R2-million. These stands are sited among seven holes now under construction that will transform the course from 12 to 18 holes The course designer is Gowrie's developer. Guy Smith. with a little help from new Gowrie shareholder, Dale Hayes. The new holes will occupy land alongside the R103 as it approaches Nottingham Road opposite the local landmark. Rawdons Hotel The course will be rerouted, with the 11th hole becoming the 2nd and the new holes numbering 3 to 9. with a halfway house due to be constructed at that juncture. Hayes says that the new 3rd has been designed with the 17th at St Andrews…

GOLF RSA The National Final of the GolfRSA Champion of Champions, delivered by The Courier Guy, came to an exciting conclusion at Kyalami Country Club, with the A Divisions of the men’s and women’s events needing to go to playoffs to determine the winners. The tournament seeks to find the country's ultimate club champions across multiple divisions, and this year included a Caddie Division. For the first time in the event's history, there was a three-way playoff for the men’s title, with Humewood’s JP van der Watt, Sandy Lane's Andrew Hagemann and firstround leader Matthew Cooper from Clovelly all finishing the 36-hole event on three over. Ultimately it was Van der Watt who prevailed on the second extra hole and was crowned the 2022 GolfRSA Club Champion of Champions after…

The event capped off a memorable and hugely successful October for the organisation and once again produced a marvellous day of golf and off-course festivities. After incredible turnouts and brilliant support at the Silver Lakes and Ebotse Golf Estate golf days. Leopard Creek was an highly exciting occasion to follow as E4A began to wrap up its year. With a smallish field all ready to go, golfers were treated to one of the best golf layouts in the country, which was sharpening up its preparation for the 2032 Alfred Dunhil! Championship after a twoyear disruption. 'Our annual event at Leopard Creek was once again another huge success and an important stop on our calendar for the year,’ said E4A development manager Nico van Rensburg, who, together with his organising team,…

2021 revisited: Daniel van Tonder sank a birdie putt on the last hole to win the South African Open, holding off a late charge from compatriot Oliver Bekker at the Gary Player Country Club at Sun City. The 30-year-old Van Tonder made eight birdies in a final-round 65 to finish 16 under par with a total of 272. Bekker, the halfway leader, finished with a round of 66, fighting back into contention over the closing holes until Van Tonder's victory putt ended his hopes of a playoff. Three birdies in his final three holes secured third place for Hennie du Plessis who ended on 12 under. The tournament was stripped of its status as a European Tour event with the discovery of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus and the…

MEET THE PRO K Can you remember how and when the golf bug first bit? I used to go to Windsor Park mashie course with my dad and uncle as a young kid, I had a cut-down 'Gary Player’ 8-iron which I used for all shots except putting I then started playing at Royal Durban in my last year at Durban Preparatory High School and from there I was hooked. How did tho appointment as Killarney GM come about? It was all about timing, as I have wanted to get back into golf for some time. Killarney Country Club was looking for a GM, I applied and went through the process and was appointed to start 1 October. My first month has been intense, but one that has shown me…

○ 'Qualified for the Open Championship at Royal Troon in 2004, hit it OB off the 1st tee then got to the green and discovered I'd been given a new Tour bag that had no ball marker. Had to ask Hunter Mahan.’ - Lewis Atkinson ○ 'I made a 10 on a par three in front of Brooke Henderson and she was keeping my scorecard.’ - Jane Park ○ 'Kicking my ball by accident while pacing around waiting for a par-five green to clear, gallery of 50, then a 10minute wait for a rules official.' - Graham Card ○ '1st tee, 40-50 people watching as I was in the first group off as one of the lowest handicap players, drive hit the ladies tee box and rebounded over my head…

NEDBANK GOLF CHALLENGE The world has gone through so much in the past three years. It still is and all the negative news can feel like a half-ton weight laying on your shoulders. Perhaps all it needs is a bit of love Pack away the anger and the barbs and throw out a few hugs. And for a few days at the Sun City resort in November, that seemed to be the case. For the week of the 40th staging of the Nedbank Golf Challenge at Sun City, there was a lot of love. All seemed to be right with the world, even if it wasn’t a South African who lifted the trophy so many refer to as 'Africa's Major’. Consider this. Of South Africa's 10 golfers in the field,…

Michael Kok was a South African motocross champion and a man more finely attuned to dirt bikes than divots when he walked away from everything he knew and decided to be a professional golfer. That was in 2012. If the future for Kok was uncertain at that point the reaction from those closest to him was certain dont"t do it. ‘A buddy and I started playing golf in 2012 and one day, at Benoni Country Club, I said to him that if I broke par I would turn professional. He laughed at me. I shot 71 that day. From there I just set my mind to that decision. I decided right there I'd turn pro. Do you know how many people told me I was crazy? They told me my…

RULES REIRARR KILIAN Weather is more often than not a factor when playing golf at the coast. This was the case during October's Vodacom Origins of Golf Final at Pinnacle Point Estate on the Sunshine Tour. While the setting of the course on the seaside cliffs makes for spectacular scenery, the professionals were not enjoying the views during round two of the tournament. High winds were predicted and they certainly arrived, with gusts of up to 40km/h from early in the day and they refused to let up. When the wind gets as strong as it did on that day, the Rules of Golf have guidelines on how to manage the situation and officials also monitor conditions throughout to ensure the course remains playable. The threshold of when it becomes…

REPLAY Ernie Els held off great rival Retief Goosen to win the South Africa Open championship by a single stroke at Durban Country Club. They both finished with a six-under 66 over the 6 157-metre layout in a head-to-head clash between the best two South African goiters of modern times. Goosen. from Polokwane. shared the lead after the first round. Johannesburgborn Els led by two strokes after the second and one after the third and was always ahead over the final 18 holes just one shot ahead eight holes into the second of two rounds played on the Sunday. Els sank a birdie putt at the 9th hole to turn with a two-shot advantage over his long-time domestic and international Opponent And that lead stretched to four by 14 as…

In 2007, Oakmont Country Club made history during the US Open when the par-three 8th hole was stretched to over 300 yards. That's a whopping 274 metres between tee and pin and. for many of us, is simply out of reach from the tee, regardless of which club we use or how strong the tailwind is. Unsurprisingly, the hole received a fair amount of criticism and organisers might have been better served by looking at some of the shorter par threes in golf and just how much interest they generate, without losing any of the skill. Land’s End 7th hole, Pebble Beach - 100m Not only short, but playing downhill, the genius of this hole is that most players will be between clubs for this length. Surrounded by bunkers and…

ANDY CAPOSTAGNO COLUMN A CORNER DEDICATED TO GOLF'S TRIERS Hie Butterfield Bermuda Championship, played over the last weekend of October, was a triumph for Seamus Power. The 35-year-old Irishman won his second PGA Tour title, finishing at 19 under par. At the other end of the scale sat Kim Swan, who shot 89, 81 to miss the cut on Friday. The cut was six under par, so Swan missed it by the small matter of 34 shots. Ordinarily the cognoscenti would be up in arms, wondering if this was the reincarnation of Maurice Flitcroft, the phantom of The Open. But sometimes two rounds of golf are far more significant than the numbers recorded on the scorecard. Scratch the surface of the Kim Swan story and you discover a remarkable man.…