Posted on: 23 August
After a couple of weeks of relaxing it’s time to get back into the swing of things and get back on the road again. Literally.
From my base camp in the south of France I decide it’s easier to drive the next couple of events rather than risk my golf clubs getting swept up in the cesspool of lost luggage that seems to be the norm these days.
The first event is in Switzerland and about a 9 hour drive. Most of the journey is on the autoroute and motorways so the driving is fairly easy. To break up the trip I stopped in Lausanne, Switzerland which is the headquarters of the Olympic Games and is also situated on Lake Geneva. It is was nice to sit down and have wine with a meal overlooking the lake. The next day I arrive in Bad Ragaz in the Swiss Alps and it’s equally as beautiful as Lake Geneva. This is a favourite stop of the players on the Legends Tour and I can see why. As players, all our needs are taken care of and every aspect of the hospitality is top class. I played in the pro-am with 3 gentleman from Lichtenstein (only 15 mins from Bad Ragaz) so during the week I took the opportunity to visit another country, and enjoy their company. The golf course has a number of dogleg holes and small greens so shot shaping is at a premium. My golf was good without being great but I manage to finish in the top ten – so a good week all around.
No chance to celebrate a good finish as straight after the round I am in the car and on the road for a 10 hour trip to the next event. The tournament is in northeast Germany but I break up the journey with a stopover in Nuremberg and a visit to the famous Nuremberg Courtroom 600, site of the WWII Nuremberg Trials. The tournament is on a new course at a venue called WinstonGolf. Although the views from the course are not as scenic as the one in Switzerland, the course is in great condition. Set in rolling farmland this golf course is a lot longer with bigger greens and not so many tricky doglegs giving players a chance to use the driver a lot more and attack the course. My driver misfired a couple of times but it was another solid week and I finished 14th.
Now comes the real rush to get to next week’s event. The tournament in Germany finishes on the Sunday and I have a pre-qualifying for the Senior British Open the next day at 1pm in Edinburgh. The flight from Hamburg included a stopover (Düsseldorf) and by the time I get my rental car and drive the hour or so to my accomodation the clock just ticks over 1 am the next day. But to be honest, I was just happy my golf clubs arrived with me. At present there is a 50/50 chance of that happening and many pros have had to hire clubs (or buy a new set!) so they can compete in tournaments.
After an average night’s sleep I tee off at the back of the field on a golf course I have never seen before………… and the way I played the first few holes it certainly showed I hadn’t seen the course. The course was burnt to a crisp and the ball was bouncing all over the place. The greens had seen better days and after two weeks putting on mint greens it took me a few holes to get used to their unpredictability. 4 over early in the round, I get close with an eagle later in the round but I ultimately fall a couple of shots shy of the mark. So a week off and a chance to get ready for the JCB Championship in England.
Built right next to their headquarters, the JCB GOlf Club is only 3 years old. As you could imagine with a multinational company like JCB, no expense has been spared in the building of this course and it is beautiful with lots of water features set over a lot of land. The greens are big with lots of tiers and slopes. It’s a very long walk……….. definitely built with carts in mind. The weather was not bad but I struggled in parts during the tournament. No part of my game was bad just a little off. I did not take advantage on the par 5’s and I sometimes left my approach shots in the wrong part of the undulating greens.
I now have two weeks off to recharge the batteries. After 4 weeks on the road, visiting five countries, I am definitely looking forward to the rest. But before I can do that I collect my car from the airport in Hamburg. It’s a 15 hour drive back to Carcassonne so my wife and I take the opportunity to stop in Luxembourg and Avignon (France) – two beautiful places steeped in history. Trying to take advantage of being in Europe to see some places other than golf courses and hotels!!!
