By Keely Levins
Team USA already has a full coaching staff, but a surprise advisor appeared on-site at Inverness Club during Solheim Cup week. Two-time Masters winner Bubba Watson joined captain Pat Hurst and assistants Michelle Wie West, Stacy Lewis and Angela Stanford on Tuesday in Toledo, Ohio.

 

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Watson has played on four Ryder Cup and two Presidents Cup teams. He’s never been on a winning Ryder Cup team, but both of the Presidents Cups he’s played in have resulted in victories for Team USA.

On Thursday, there will be a two-team celebrity event, and Watson is one of 20 players competing. Since he’s on-site, he contacted Hurst and asked if he could help out.

“He’s got a wife, he’s got a daughter, and he loves golf and he loves, like I said, he just wants to support women’s golf. And so I was all for it,” Hurst said. “I asked the assistants. They were all for it and it’s been great. He’s been a lot of fun having him in the locker room hearing his take on a lot of the things, and a lot of times we have to tell him that, ‘Hey, men and women are a little bit different and I think he’s definitely seeing that.’ But we’re all enjoying him around, players, caddies. We’re asking him a ton of questions and it seems like he’s having just as much fun as we are with him around.”

Assistant captain Angela Stanford said that while she was walking around the course, she saw Watson talking to Danielle Kang about a chip shot. The two were going over different ways to hit it, with Watson sharing how he’d approach it.

“He’s available, and I think that’s what makes it so special is you just have,” Stanford said. “You have a major champion, multiple major champion, another one walking around and being helpful. So I think that was the cool part. I just kind of stood back and watched that and watched them interact and it was really cool.”

The post Bubba Watson is an unlikely advisor for the United States Solheim Cup team appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Alex Myers

Welcome to another edition of The Grind where we’ve learned a lot during our eighth(!) year of doing this. You can go from not being able to break 80 to winning the Masters. You can drink as many proteins shakes as you want without risking harm to your organs (Actually, we’re not sure about that one yet). And you can’t touch Tiger Woods’ coffee:

Who's stealing a cup of this coffee? ?

Stay tuned for more with @TigerWoods coming soon. pic.twitter.com/ergZwHz6v5

— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) December 3, 2020

Oh yeah, we also found out global pandemics are no joke. But hopefully, we were able to at least share a few laughs through all the weird and tough times. So thanks as always for reading, and grab a cup of joe as we take one final spin in 2020. Just not Tiger’s cup of Joe.

WE’RE BUYING

Viktor Hovland: Not only did the 23-year-old win his second PGA Tour title, he broke the “Curse of Coco Beach” by becoming the first golfer to win another tournament after winning the Puerto Rico Open. And, of course, this engaging young star was well aware of that fact.

 

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A post shared by Viktor Hovland (@viktor_hovland)

Hang in there, Tony Finau. There’s still hope for you! Plus, when Hovland wins, we get to hear these Norwegian announcers go nuts!

The Norwegian call of Viktor Hovland's winning putt @MayakobaGolf is EVERYTHING. ??? pic.twitter.com/CObVto6YYk

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) December 7, 2020

“YES! He makes it—again! Our boy! Look how ice cold he is!” Absolutely electric stuff, just like when Viktor won for the first time in February. Apparently in Norway they don’t abide by the whole “there’s no cheering from the pressbox” motto. Hey, we’re not complaining.

The Class of 2019: About 18 months ago all three (Hovland, Collin Morikawa, and Matthew Wolff) were still in college and now they all find themselves in the top 15 of the Official World Golf Ranking. And it’s not just the six PGA Tour wins between the bunch that have gotten them there. Morikawa already has a major, Wolff finished top five at his first two majors, and Hovland holds the tour record for most consecutive rounds in the 60s. These (young) guys are good.

Christiaan Bezuidenhout: But don’t forget about the Class of 2015! BEZ! Two weeks in a row! Man, this South African is absolutely cooking right now after some serious home cooking the past two weeks on the European Tour, claiming the South African Open after the Alfred Dunhill Championship in his native land.

Richard Heathcote

Our new favourite player—if you didn’t see the giant wine glass he was drinking from last week, check it out—showed he can rally after a big celebration too. Impressive stuff. He’s got an even bigger event on tap this week as the Race to Dubai wraps up:

Probably a smart move to stick to normal-sized glasses with so much at stake.

WE’RE SELLING

Peter Alliss passing away: Sadly, 2020 has claimed another. Since as far back as I can remember, my favourite part of waking up early and watching the Open Championship was when Alliss would join the American telecast for a bit. Man, was he cheeky in the booth. Like Johnny Miller, Alliss is a Hall-of-Famer on two fronts, with a lot of younger fans not realizing how great of a player he was with 31 professional wins and eight Ryder Cup appearances. I encourage you to read the fantastic pieces by our own John Huggan and John Feinstein. And here’s a touching tribute from the European Tour:

Peter Alliss – A Tribute ?

The voice of The Open ? pic.twitter.com/wc1uc0hOeg

— The Open (@TheOpen) December 7, 2020

REWIND: Golf Digest Middle East’s 2014 conversation with the ‘voice of golf’

Also, anyone would get a kick out of Alliss calling Jean van de Velde’s 72nd hole collapse at the 1999 Open Championship. Even Jean himself:

RIP to a true legend.

Putting like Happy Gilmore: We’d love to hear Peter Alliss’ take on what Joel Dahmen began doing late in the third round of the Mayakoba Golf Classic:

2020 Mayakoba Rd. 3.
No quote today, but a story instead:
Before the round, Joel was messing around putting like Happy Gilmore. Split handed-right hand way down the grip. He was making EVERYTHING! He told me he was going to bust it out during the round. Did it on 17 and here: pic.twitter.com/ngWeiII3OE

— Geno Bonnalie (@GenoBonnalie) December 5, 2020

Then after continuing to use the unique method on Sunday, Dahmen felt confident to lobby U.S. captain Steve Stricker for a spot on the American Ryder Cup team.

Here's some more evidence @stevestricker! #RyderCupBound pic.twitter.com/uBgILAqMdS

— Joel Dahmen (@Joel_Dahmen) December 6, 2020

As always with Dahmen, who at another recent tournament channelled Russell Crowe’s “Gladiator” character, we are entertained. But good luck with that, Joel. We haven’t seen Adam Sandler tearing up the celebrity golf circuit.

Getting a job at MJ’s new course: If you’re looking for a gig driving around a beverage cart at Michael Jordan’s The Grove XXIII, don’t bother sending your resume. That’s because the new ultra-exclusive course is using drones instead:

Michael Jordan's new course, The Grove XXIII, delivers drinks by drone. ?

Learn more about the NBA superstar's exclusive club: https://t.co/iFXqdGGwtF
(?:Instagram/@Chadilac_FSU) pic.twitter.com/N6SPUhaXNk

— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) December 7, 2020

What a world.

ON TAP

With the PGA Tour officially heading into the off-season, the LPGA and European Tour take centre stage. The U.S. Women’s Open is being held in Houston and the DP World Championship, the conclusion of the season-long Race to Dubai is in, you guessed it, Dubai.

Random tournament fact: Lexi Thompson will be using Bryson DeChambeau’s caddie, Tim Tucker, this week. If anyone needed an off-season, you’d think it would be Tim, but that’s a tough bag to turn down. And we’re pretty sure he’d make history by becoming the first person to win two U.S. Opens in the same year.

RANDOM PROP BETS OF THE WEEK

—Tim Tucker will spend as much time as usual deliberating shots this week: 1 MILLION-to-1 odds
—Joel Dahmen will make the 2021 U.S. Ryder Cup team: 10-to-1 odds
—If Joel were European, he’d not only make Team Europe but go 4-0-1 against Team USA: LOCK

PHOTO(S) OF THE WEEK

This beach wedding stole the show during the second round of the Mayakoba:

nothing screams "final event of the year" like the PGA Tour broadcast repeatedly cutting to a half-dozen people setting up for a wedding, which will apparently be taking place on this beach volleyball court pic.twitter.com/sv912MUZFD

— Dylan Dethier (@dylan_dethier) December 4, 2020

Genius move to save money on a photographer/videographer. I could have probably joined Michael Jordan’s golf club for the amount I spent on ours.

VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK

https://www.instagram.com/p/CIbTTb8peju/?utm_source=ig_embed

We’ve all been there, but that’s rough. Even Mike Davis thinks that’s an unfair pin position.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“I don’t know if I could say that without getting fined.” —Brooks Koepka when asked to describe a disappointing year. And that was before he missed the cut in Mexico. Rough.

THIS AND THAT

Congrats to Angela Stanford for winning a seventh career LPGA title, but a first in front of her parents. Talk about coming through under pressure. . . . According to the National Golf Foundation, there will be an increase of 50 million rounds of golf played in this country compared to last year. The last time there was a bigger increase was 1997, when Tiger Woods won his landmark first Masters. . . . Speaking of Tiger Woods, his World Golf Hall of Fame induction has been postponed until 2022. The good news is he’ll have more time to work on his speech. . . . Jason Day said he kept his ATM receipt for a couple months the first time he made a withdrawal after his first PGA Tour win. Hope he saved some of that money because now he’s about to have a fourth kid. . . .And, finally, speaking of kids, I put together this bookshelf for my daughter all by myself:

If Rory McIlroy or any of the other new PGA Tour dads need help with this stuff, let me know. Kidding. I’m miserable at it and you’d have to pay me. A lot.

RANDOM QUESTIONS TO PONDER

Will I spend more on college tuition or Pottery Barn furniture?
Can 2020 please just be over already?

The post Viktor Hovland breaks a curse and a PGA Tour pro channels Happy Gilmore appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Keely Levins
Angela Stanford has been on the LPGA Tour for two decades, but it wasn’t until this 20th season, at age 43, that she finally got to win with her parents on site. To make it even sweeter, the win came in their home state of Texas.

Stanford’s victory at the Volunteers of America Classic outside of Dallas on Sunday was her seventh career tour title. And she did it holding off a daunting leaderboard that included Inbee Park (No. 5 in the world), So Yeon Ryu (No. 15) and Jin Young Ko (No. 1). Stanford’s seven-under 277 total was good enough for a two-shot victory over Ryu, Park and Yealimi Noh, which felt like it was going to be hers for the majority of the back nine.

While everyone else in contention seemed to struggle to post a low number, Stanford shot a four-under 67, with a stretch on the back nine starting on the 13th that included four birdies in five holes. The rest of the players in the top 10 shot one under or worse on the final round.

How did the 43-year-old conquer Old American Golf Club? In part, because she’s a native. Stanford is from Fort Worth, about 45 minutes away. Knowing how to play golf in Texas in December is a skill. All week, players were bundled up in fleece and down jackets, wind chills bringing temps into the 30s. Some said it was the coldest conditions they’d ever played in. Yet having grown up playing golf in Texas, Stanford knew how to handle it—something that will likely serve her next week as well as the U.S. Women’s Open is held a few hours south in Houston at Champions Golf Club.

“It was windy, it was cold, and I think growing up in Texas you have to play in a little bit of cold in the off season, so I knew … it was harder than I thought it was going to be this week,” Stanford said. “The course played really tough but, it just felt like Texas this week, so I was really comfortable out there.”

Playing in the cold isn’t just about learning how to swing with a lot of layers on, it’s also about commitment to club selection. When it’s cold, you’re hitting a lot more club than you’d be hitting in July.

“I told my caddie on No. 1, we hit 7-wood into 1 today, I said, It’s really hard to commit to a club that you never thought you’d hit into a green. We hit 9-irons and 8-irons and wedges into 1 last year, so I think just being in December and it being cold and the wind coming from a different direction that made it hard,” Stanford said.

Stanford also credits a short-game overhaul for her success. Though the veteran won her first major in 2018, the Evian Championship, she struggled in 2019. She missed 10 cuts of the 22 events she played that season, and never finished inside the top 20. It was frustrating.

“After the major, it would have been easy to be satisfied, and I think I was for a little bit. But then there’s just something about bad golf. I don’t like bad golf,” Stanford said.

Chuck Burton
Stanford won for the seventh time in her LPGA career, but the first in which her parents were at the tournament watching.

With the help of her coach Todd Kolb, she went to work, admitting that she’s spent her entire career relying on good ball-striking, without ever really knowing how to properly hit short game shots.

“I think mechanically I’ve always been pretty average when it comes to chipping and putting,” Stanford said. “My ball-striking has carried me for 20 years. And I think that’s why I haven’t been more consistent.”

She says now, she’s starting to understand it. She’s learned how to hit the high, soft chip—a shot she didn’t know how to really hit before. And they’ve worked on making sure her hands don’t get too far away from her body during the putting stroke. Clearly, the hard work is paying off. Not only did she win in Texas, she’s had other good results in 2020: T-3 at the Arkansas Championship and T-6 at the Pelican Women’s Championship the start before this week being the highlights.

“I just felt like if I’m getting close to the end of my career, I don’t want to leave any stone unturned,” Stanford said. “I want to find out, if I chip it the best I can, if I putt it the best I can, if I hit it the best I can, what am I capable of before I’m done.”

She’ll be an assistant captain to Pat Hurst for Team USA at the Solheim Cup in 2021 along with Michelle Wie West. Stanford has played in the Solheim Cup six times. After this win, many have been prompted to ask, is she going to make it seven? For now, Stanford says she’s happy to be in her assistant title, and doesn’t want to think that far ahead to the possibility of playing. Instead, she’s soaking up this moment where her parents finally got to see her win.

“I couldn’t even look over at my mom coming up 18 because I was starting to get teary-eyed. I’m like, Just don’t look over there, don’t look over there. I would have lost it if I would have looked over there again,” Stanford said.

Her mom’s breast cancer, which was in remission for eight years, returned in 2018 and metastasized in her bones. Though that caused her to miss the win at Evian, she was right there for this one, waiting by the 18th green to hug her daughter, a winner again on the LPGA Tour.

The post Angela Stanford does the unlikely: beats a stacked leader board to win in Texas at age 43 appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Ryan Herrington
The label “best player without a major championship” often gets passed around in men’s golf, a dubious honorific to say the least. Just ask Colin Montgomerie and Lee Westwood how much fun it is to be considered worthy of such consideration. The title is far less commonly used in the women’s game, although when it is trotted out, Angela Stanford often is among those mentioned. Until Sunday, that is.

With her one-stroke victory at the Evian Championship, Stanford, who turns 41 in November, got her elusive major title. It came after 18 years playing on the LPGA Tour, winning five times and racking up 94 top-10 finishes in 436th career starts.

WIN: Places in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, Omega Dubai Desert Classic and Omega Dubai Ladies Classic Pro-Ams

Moreover, Evian was Stanford’s 76th all-time start in a major, which brings us to another milestone she likely achieved on Sunday, and one we pretty sure she’ll be OK living with. It is believed that Stanford now holds the mark for the most major appearances before finally winning her first big one.

Stuart Franklin/Getty Images

We say believed because the LPGA doesn’t keep an on-going tally on the statistic. In doing our own research, however, we struggled to find any other female close to Stanford’s mark.

Indeed, the next closest streak we came up with was Catriona Matthew, who was 39 when she played in the 2009 Women’s British Open and made it her first major victory in her 52nd career major appearance. That’s a full four years’ worth of fewer majors (adjusting for five in a season) than Stanford had to wait.

RELATED: Angela Stanford finally captures her elusive major title

Other notable streaks we found were Beth Daniel needing 43 major starts until winning the 1990 LPGA Championship and Betsy King needing 32 before winning at the 1997 Dinah Shore. (Earlier this season, Pernilla Lindberg won her first major title at the ANA Inspiration in her 32nd career major start.)

Stanford’s mark isn’t just the most we found in the women’s game, but the best in the men’s as well. When Sergio Garcia won the 2017 Masters, it was his 74th major championship start (including appearances as an amateur), which was believed to be a record. Garcia bested Tom Kite, who won the 1992 U.S. Open in his 73rd major start.

The post Angela Stanford didn’t just win her first major, she went where no golfer (male or female) has gone before appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Keely Levins
Five LPGA Tour wins, 94 top 10-finishes, six Solheim Cup appearances. It sounds like a pretty good LPGA career, right? And it is. But Angela Stanford was missing one thing: a major championship win. In her 76th major start on tour, the 40-year-old Texan finally got her moment at the 2018 Evian Championship, winning by one stroke over four players at Evian Resort Golf Club in France.

“It’s the one thing I couldn’t get my hands on. I’m not letting go now,” said Stanford, clutching the trophy in her post-win interview.

WIN: Places in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, Omega Dubai Desert Classic and Omega Dubai Ladies Classic Pro-Ams

It’s been six years since Stanford’s last win of any kind, and this one didn’t seem very likely. After rounds of 72-64-68, Stanford trailed leader Amy Olson by five shots at the start of Sunday’s final round. Playing a group ahead of Olson, Stanford hit 69 percent of fairways and needed just 25 putts to finish with a closing three-under 68. Her round that was highlighted by an eagle at the 15th, but quickly followed by the lowlight: a double bogey at 16.

“I just kept telling myself, You just got to be who you are. And maybe you’re not good at certain things, but you got to be who you are right now and you got to just fight,” Stanford said of those final holes.

Stanford stuck it out to finish birdie-par to get in the clubhouse, her 18-foot birdie effort on the 18th hole sliding just agonizingly by over the left edge of the hole. It left her at 12 under for the tournament, with Olson teeing off 18, holding a one-shot lead.

But Olson, a 26-year-old from South Dakota who has yet to win on the LPGA Tour, struggled on the 18th. After missing just one fairway all day, she pulled her drive left. Forced to punch out rather than go for the green on the par 4, her second shot came up short of the fairway in more rough. Her third got to the green but left her a 40-foot par attempt that she raced eight feet past the hole. Needing the bogey to force the playoff with Stanford, Olson missed left.

Before Olson’s missed bogey putt, Mo Martin and Sei Young Kim each had birdie chances on the 18th hole that would have gotten them into a playoff with Stanford as well, but both just missed to finish the tournament at 11 under, Martin with a closing 70 and Kim with a 72.

While clinching her elusive first major in this manor wasn’t how Stanford had envisioned it playing out, having finally accomplishing the life-long goal brought her to tears. The moment was made all the more emotional given the fight her family is going through. Stanford’s mother was previous diagnosed with breast cancer but had gone eight years cancer free since her treatment. This summer, however, she found out that it was back and had metastasized in her bones.

Smiling through tears, Stanford said she was glad her mom got to see her major moment and joked that mom might be the first to drink out of the new trophy.

The post After 18 years on tour, Angela Stanford finally wins her first major by taking the Evian Championship appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.