To paraphrase the famous saying somewhat: Behind every great golfer is a great coach. Just ask any of the pros who have sought the guidance of the likes of Hank Haney, Sean Foley, Peter Cowen or anyone with the last name Harmon.

These are the men who live away from the spotlight, working on the sidelines to ensure their pupils are ready and able to give their best when they step on to the fairways.

Now there is another name you can add to the list of coaching greats who helped make waves at the Open Championship at Royal Liverpool last month.

American pro Brian Harman left all trailing in his wake in Hoylake, storming to a six-stroke victory, showing nerves of steel in front of a hostile English crowd, and put on a putting masterclass in some seriously nasty British weather.

Cradling the claret jug on the Sunday, Harman, who has a Ryder Cup to look forward to next month, was the first to admit this was far from a one-man show, and thanked his family and team, including coach Justin Parsons.

The 36-year-old has been working with Parsons since 2019, taking over from the late Jack Lamkin, and years of hard work eventually bore fruit with Harman’s third pro win and their first together (he had previously won the John Deere Classic in 2014 and the 2017 staging of the Wells Fargo Championship).

Speaking in the 100th edition of Golf Digest Middle East back in 2017, Parsons said: “I would love to think in nine years’ time I have helped a player to achieve a major championship victory.”

He did it in six.

“No disrespect to the fact I get pleasure from helping you strike a seven iron better or whatever, but I think professionally what really thrills you the most is to see someone you have nurtured come up and perform higher than they have before. That’s what Butchy [Harmon] always says to us, your biggest job when you have got a good player is: ‘Don’t screw it up.’”

Back in the present, Parsons is now an Elite Golf Instructor at The Sea Island Golf Performance Center in Harman’s home of St Simons, Georgia. But it was quite a journey for the coach to reach the top, having begun in his home in Northern Ireland before cutting his teeth in the UAE.

The UAE was certainly instrumental in getting Parsons to see the wider world of golf after first picking up a club and playing around on his local course as a kid back home.

“My late uncle had given me an intro to golf when I was about 10 or 11, but it was basically just how to hold a club,” he told Golf Digest Middle East. “It wasn’t until I was 13 that I really got into golf, when a friend asked me to play with him. We ended up playing the entire day, and from that moment on I can remember being hooked on the game. That was in the summer, and by the following year I was a competitive amateur and I went on to play in boys’ team events all over Ireland.

“I took to it very quickly, and having gone through the amateur ranks, I was teaching in Bangor when a client took me to Dubai. We played golf every day. This was around 2004 and we were up at Jebel Ali and we played there, the Montgomerie and, I think, Dubai Creek. I was just blown away by the facilities, they were just incredible.

“Even back then, Dubai felt like such a buzzing place and felt to me like a really cool place for a young person to be.

“Having met some of the club teams — I met Wayne [Johnson] while at the Montgomerie — and I decided on a wing and a prayer to head over and it all worked out. I will always be grateful to Wayne for giving me that start in 2005 and joining the team at the Monty.

“I learnt so much about the operational side of an academy. It really was an invaluable lesson in how an upscale property is managed.”

It is no understatement to say Parsons was making an impression, but even he was taken aback as his career went in a new direction. 

“I rose to the position of Director of Instruction in 2007 and then came my next opportunity,” he explained. “In 2008, I was watching the FA Cup final with a few of the golfing guys in Dubai and my phone rang. I saw it was an American number so I went outside to take the call. It was Claude Harmon III — we had met a couple of times before — and he asked if would like to help him open the Butch Harmon School at the Els. I thought it was just such a great offer from the ‘First ‘Family’ of golf instruction, and immediately I told him I was interested.

“Again I was so fortunate to be working with guys in Dubai who made it fairly streamlined for me to make the move from one position to another in the UAE, which was not as common as it is now.

“I started in the late summer of that year by procuring and creating programmes and looking at who we would have on the staff. We were fortunate to have Butch come over in early 2009 and it has been a good run since and the facility has been a great success.”

As his stature grew, Parsons found himself working with professionals in Europe and the States and, with a young family in the UAE, the travel began to keep him away from home more and more. 

“While I was not actively throwing my CV around, there were some who knew I would consider an opportunity in the States,” he told us. “Todd Anderson, an excellent fellow coach for the likes of Billy Horschel, had left his position at Sea Island around 2016 and there was a growing feeling that they needed someone to occupy that role of teaching Tour players and they also had plans to open the Golf Performance Center, which has become an incredible facility on par with everything in the UAE.

Sea Island

“Through some of the contacts in America, we had some approaches made and what it would take to come over. In the summer of 2018, my wife and I came over to the US Open at Shinnecock Hills and we combined that with a trip to St Simons and we had a good look around. It felt like a great place, not only to continue my PGA Tour work but also to establish a home base for my wife and kids where Dad wasn’t going to be away as much. It is a beautiful island and a great place to raise the children.”

While he was thrust into the limelight somewhat thanks to Harman’s success at Royal Liverpool, Parsons had already been well-established in coaching circles for many years. 

Eliot VanOtteren/Sea Island

“The Brian Harman adventure has been one of many,” he said. “I have helped numerous notable players in Europe — Darren Clarke, Colin Montgomerie and I started out with David Howell and Michael Hoey back in the day — those were the guys I was regularly working on tour with. We had Will Smith and Hugh Grant out at the Els golf school, guys who are very connected to the UAE like Dwight Yorke and Brian Lara would come down too.

“It was very cool to be part of all that in Dubai, where you would see so many excellent players, stars and celebrities, and you would pick up an awful lot from them too.

“In my last couple of years in Dubai, I was helping Peter Uihlein and Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel, and they were mainly playing in the PGA Tour, which is what took me across to the States so much. While I was there I was lucky enough to work with Michael Thompson, who had won a PGA tour event in our first year together. Then I also had Harris English, who went on a great run and won twice, which kinda led to be being on the coaching team for the United States Ryder Cup team at Whistling Straits, which was a very proud moment, if slightly strange to be on the ‘other side’ from which I have always supported.

“I am also helping Davis Love III with his swing on the Senior Tour. Interspersed with that, I have helped Seamus Power, Patton Kizzire, Ben Coles, Will Gordon, Branden Grace, so there is quite a decent list there.”

Now the Parsons family is well settled in St Simons, Justin has had time to reflect on his past life in the UAE and how things have changed for him professionally and personally. 

“We do miss a number of things about Dubai, and it will always be special to me as that’s really where it all began,” he said. “There is the vibrancy of the city and the multinational dynamic, the pace we enjoyed in our twenties. Now we are in our forties, the pace here is a little slower and it gives us a chance to reflect on things. My wife teaches yoga and, looking back, Dubai has a special place in our hearts personally and professionally and we wouldn’t have done it any other way.”

MIND CONTROL

Back to that major moment and, while Harman had not won a title since 2017, Parsons knew it was just a matter of time before things clicked and there was no need to massively change anything. All the signs were there that something special could be about to happen at the Scottish Open the week before the showdown in Hoylake.

“We met up at the Renaissance on Tuesday, and he reacts and responds very well to links golf — the conditions are good for his iron play and I think it suits the way he putts the ball and the creativity he has as a player,” Parsons said. “As we went through the week at the Renaissance, I don’t think we changed anything. The putting system he runs remained the same, the full-swing stuff we have implemented over the past two or three years was pretty much the same. We were in a good position going into the weekend, and Rory [McIlroy] was hitting some brilliant shots in tough conditions while Brian settled for finishing eighth.

“On the Sunday before the Open, I was down at Royal Liverpool having a look at the course, looking at how it was going to play, and Brian got down after us. He took the Monday morning off and then we got down to it in the afternoon.

“It is clear that when these guys are playing well, as a coach, you need to just keep them in their process, give them assistance, answer any questions, but making sure you are not introducing anything that would lead them in the wrong direction, which can be easy to do.

Eliot VanOtteren/Sea Island

“Brian, his caddie Scott, and I had some good preparation, playing nine holes in some really wet conditions. The golf course did play well for him. He is a very straight hitter, the driver can go further than others and he can challenge those bunkers and, of course his putting was excellent all week. He got a little template that I think got him rolling the ball really well on the greens. You will notice if you look back the putts were all going in at good speed and running right at the hole.

“He did make one little change by taking ice baths up at Renaissance and he continued that at Royal Liverpool. I think that had some mental and physical benefits. We saw some great mental control from being in that lead from Friday afternoon all the way to the last hole on Sunday. He was in the lead at the Open and he controlled his mind and his expectations and his process very, very well.

“By his own admission he will say he had to control his expectations at times, and that has been part of his training over the past three or four years. That has been something we have done collectively, not only with me but with his caddie and the other people that we talk to through the years — to control a fast-moving mind — it really has been a collaborative effort.

“To see him to be able to gather all that together and play the type of golf he is capable of in his mid-thirties is really special and he joins a special club as Open Champion and if he can continue to implement the processes that he has implemented and keep himself in good shape and control that busy mind and let the talent he clearly has as a player come out, it would be no surprise to see him have a very good next three to five years.”

The post Speaking with Justin Parsons about his journey from Northern Ireland and the UAE to the US and Open Championship glory with Brian Harman at Hoylake appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Finca Cortesin General Manager Francisco de Lancastre David takes us through the final preparations of hosting such a monumental event as the Solheim Cup, and we analyse the unlike-any-other-competition pressures of competing in the Ryder Cup in Rome.

Coach Justin Parsons takes us on his journey from Northern Ireland to the UAE and Open glory with Brian Harman, and Wyndham Clark explains what it takes to win a major.

All this and much, much more in the September 2023 edition of Golf Digest Middle East.

The issue is again free to our loyal audience. You can scroll through the ISSUU link provided here or download to your favourite device for later. Alternatively, pick up a copy at your favourite club. Whatever option you take, we hope you enjoy the read.

The post Get the September 2023 edition of Golf Digest Middle East FREE here today! appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

A man with an insatiable appetite for living and an acumen still too keen and kinetic to be restrained by age could do all those things. And so Jack Nicklaus does them. And more. Because the one thing he couldn’t ever see himself doing is slowing down.

“I’ve still got a lot of things I want to do,” said Nicklaus, the 18-time major champion, course designer, tournament host and go-to guru to a wave of young players who recognise his genius, even if they’ve never seen him swing a golf club. “I certainly don’t have any reason to want to go curl up in a corner someplace with a green banana and hope it gets ripe,” Nicklaus says.

The Golden Bear delights in telling old-man jokes, but there’s a constancy to Nicklaus, a consistency of mind-set and character and core beliefs that keeps him relevant and, therefore, contemporary. The guy you get today is the same one who won 73 PGA Tour titles, including the record 18 majors, over three decades. He stands nearly three inches shorter than he was in his prime, when he was known as Big Jack because of his size, his outsized power game and personality, and his stature as one of the game’s leaders. Nevertheless he remains, indisputably, Big Jack. He still thinks like a competitor and still has the best interests of the game at heart, be it his tireless crusade, born of practicality, to reign in the golf ball or promote the inclusion of golf in the Olympics.

Nicklaus’ playing record doesn’t hurt, either. He was Tiger Woods before Tiger Woods—a decorated amateur, dominant as a pro, intimidating in the big events, physically gifted and psychologically irrepressible. Driven.

He still is.

In addition to hosting a PGA Tour event, the Memorial Tournament, outside his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, Nicklaus remains active in golf-course design, working on close to a dozen courses. With his wife, Barbara, who turns 80 in February, Jack is passionate about raising money for their charitable initiative, the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation. He is especially proud of the foundation, which has raised more than $100 million since its inception in 2004 and has financed 18 children’s medical facilities in Florida. Nice number, 18.

Barbara and Jack share a laugh during the Memorial. (Chris Condon)

“I don’t think I’m really going to retire. I have no desire to retire,” Nicklaus said. “From a standpoint of golf, I still keep my hand in with a few sort of special events and different tournaments. … From the foundation standpoint, we’re just getting started. And we’ve had such great results from what we’ve done, and we’ve helped a lot of kids, and Barbara’s been so great in the way she’s led the foundation. It’s changed my life. And I’ve said many times, ‘She supported me for 50 years; now it’s my turn.’ I’ve, frankly, really enjoyed it, and it’s been eye-opening to me.”

Another eye-opener has been the number of young players who have been seeking his counsel. This began about 15 years ago, which just so happens to be around the time he stepped away from competitive golf.

Players like Trevor Immelman and Charl Schwartzel approached him to get his thoughts on how to play Augusta National, and now they are Masters champions. Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler, Justin Thomas, Patrick Cantlay and Dustin Johnson are among others who have sat down with him. Just last week, Patrick Rodgers asked to have lunch with him at his Bear’s Club in Jupiter, Fla., where most of these tutorials take place.

“I don’t go out and seek this. But I am available,” Nicklaus said with a tinge of wonder in his voice. “I’ve always felt like I might have some knowledge or … you might call it wisdom. I don’t know whether it is or not. I might have something to impart to the kids that might help them, and I’m delighted to supply that to any one of them. It’s very flattering to me that anybody 22 or 23 years old would want to hear from an 80-year-old. You never listened to your dad, why would you listen to your great-great-grandfather, you know? But it’s very nice, and I enjoy it.”

Nicklaus relishes the chance to mentor younger players, including McIlroy, who have sought him out for advice. (Tracy Wilcox)

Nicklaus says he has no regrets, and that’s not surprising because he has left himself so little time in a four-score lifetime to really sit back and come up with any. He had no special plans for the big day; he and Barbara celebrated their birthdays together a week ago Saturday with a guest list of some 200 family and friends. More than 100 people—from politics, golf, sports and entertainment—sent video wishes to the couple, who will mark their 60th wedding anniversary in July.

“I think 80, hopefully it’s just a number,” Nicklaus said. “You know, I got the same questions when I was 70, and I’m still doing things. So, hopefully, if I get to 90, we’ll have the same questions then.”

Doubt he’ll be retired even then. Doubt he’ll be buying green bananas, though he’ll still joke about it. Undoubtedly, he’ll still be a relevant figure in the game he still calls the greatest of all.

The post Jack Nicklaus at 80: ‘I’ve still got a lot of things I want to do’ appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Howells, formerly of the Butch Harmon School of Golf at the Els Club in Dubai, commended Thomas for his golf, noting 17 under through 54 holes at The Royal Golf Club was impressive given the Bahrain course’s sometimes “quirky” nature. He followed up with a question for which he already knew the answer: “So I’m guessing the putting is working?”

Thomas’ retort? “Putting was solid son, still needs work though”.

Related: Dubai prodigy Rayhan Thomas wins second pro title in Bahrain

Having just turned 19, Thomas has every right to over hype his five storke victory at the 11th King Hamad Trophy, a sensational follow up to his Dubai Creek triumph on the MENA Tour two seasons ago. A professional career, after a stint at one of collegiate golf’s ultimate finishing schools, Rickie Fowler’s old Oklahoma State University, beckons but Thomas is able to put the win into longer term context, as excited as he inevitably was in the moment.

“I’m not sure people know how hard he works but it really is something special about the kid,” Howells told GolfDigestme.com afterwards.

“He’s always looking to improve and it [the WhatsApp exchange] just gives you a nice insight into his mind. Credit to his Mum and Dad [Neena and John] and to [his swing coach] Justin [Parsons].

“He’s going places that guy. His attitude is brilliant.”

The past 12 months have been topsy-turvy results wise for Thomas but he’d dedication to improving has never waned. But for a slow start to October’s 10th Asia Pacific Amateur Championship, a four-over 74, he could have won invites to next year’s Masters and Open at Royal Portrush but was still quietly chuffed with his second placing in Singapore. His game was coming back, as it was there for all to see in Bahrain in what he described as a “very clinical” display.   

“The last win was at the Creek in the MENA Tour so it’s been a while since the last big win. I’m just proud of myself that I was able to keep a very clean and crisp job over the last three days,” Thomas said.

“I had two bogeys all week and both in the first round, I was bogey free the last two rounds so just very clean, very tight, I didn’t really make many mistakes which is essential.

“The only way anybody was going to beat me is if they caught up to me. I just felt if I kept doing what I was doing, keep it clean, it was going to be very hard for anybody else. So very happy with the way I played and it’s good to see my game is progressing nicely.”

Thomas’ victory is further validation for the Middle East’s very own finishing school, the MENA Tour which will resume in the New Year after a 15-month restructuring hiatus. Yas Links-atached Luke Joy, a regular contender on the regional development circuit, won the King Hamad Trophy last year and finished his defence T-19 on -2, 14 shots adrift on Thomas, while the MENA Tour’s first life member, 10-time winner Zane Scotland, earned a share of 15th place alongside former European Tour player Jamie Elson on -3.

Thomas was toying with teeing it up in the Indian Amateur Championship but is now unlikely to do so as he knuckles down to his studies in the final year of correspondence school. He will play as many of the new MENA Tour events as possible before heading to college in the United States next summer.

“Hopefully I can keep this form up and take it into the next events, probably next year. I’m not too sure what I’m in playing next, probably won’t be playing anything for a while.

“So a lot of prep work, keep this form going and hopefully keep winning.”

There are no guarantees in golf but as Howells points out, it certainly won’t be for the lack of effort.

The post Text exchange after Thomas’ King Hamad Trophy triumph gives insight into the teen’s steely focus on the future appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
The UAE’s highest profile teaching professional has accepted a plum role at a prestigious club in the United States that boasts five PGA Tour players, including major champions David Love III and Zach Johnson, among its membership.

Justin Parsons will join Sea Island Golf Club on St. Simons Island in Georgia in February after establishing himself as one of the game’s most promising teaching talents during 14 years in Dubai.

The 42-year-old Northern Irishman will finish up as Director of Instruction at the Butch Harmon School of Golf, Dubai at The Els Club on Nov. 30 after opening the facility with Claude Harmon III in 2008-09.

RELATED: The rise and rise of Justin Parsons

The move will allow him more regular access to major champions Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel and star-in-waiting Peter Uihlein. Parsons is currently working with the trio at the CJ Cup @ Nine Bridges, the latest PGA Tour stop in Korea. He will also continue working with leading Dubai amateur Rayhan Thomas who is headed to Oklahoma State University next year, as well as European Tour Frenchman Mike Lorenzo-Vera.

Parsons announced the appointment, a long held secret among the UAE golf industry, on Twitter Thursday:

I am thrilled to announce that I will be joining the instruction team at The Sea Island Golf Performance Center in 2019. @seaislandgpc @SeaIslandResort pic.twitter.com/DMriKJNQay

— Justin Parsons (@JParsonsGolf) October 18, 2018

Bryan Harman and Patton Kizzire, both two-time winners on the PGA Tour, and Keith Mitchell, 67th in last season’s FedEx Cup standings, are also attached to Sea Island G.C., where Love’s father, Davis Milton Love Jr, was one of the first teaching professionals.

Love III boasts the 1997 PGA Championship and two Players Championships among his 21 PGA Tour wins while Johnson won the 2007 Masters and 2015 Open.

That Parsons is an indirect replacement at Sea Island for Billy Horschel’s coach Todd Anderson speaks volumes of the Dubai instructor’s growing reputation in the U.S.

Anderson reportedly departed the Sea Island Golf Performance Centre team in 2016 and Sea Island have waited for the right fit as a replacement. Parsons was alerted to the potential opportunity via a Titleist contact and after initially meeting Titleist Performance Institute co-founder and golf fitness guru Randy Myers, flew to Georgia with his wife Cheryl for an interview learning centre manager Craig Allan just before the U.S. Open in July.    

“It’s a very, very tough decision to leave Dubai,” Parsons told Golf Digest Middle East from chilly Jeju Island in South Korea. “It’s been our home, a wonderful place to raise our family and has given me the opportunity to grow and do things that I could never have done anywhere else and I’ll be forever grateful for that. 

“But having made the amounts of trips I’ve made this year as my career has kind of progressed to the PGA Tour, I was looking for something that would allow me to maintain that growth and also give me a base to work from.

“The guys at Sea Island have certainly said that’s what they want. They want somebody who is a good full swing golf coach who can try and get close to what Todd had done there as well as travelling on the PGA Tour and representing what is a very prestigious facility.”

Parsons, who got his break in Dubai at The Address Montgomerie Dubai, admitted leaving the high-profile Harmon network was a massive call. His replacement at The Els Club, Dubai training centre has yet to be formally unveiled but is understood to be a coach with a global profile.

“Obviously I opened up with Claude in 2008 [at the Els Club, Dubai], in 2009 we opened the Golf School [Butch Harmon School of Golf, Dubai], so I’ve been there since the inception,” Parsons said.

“So although I’m not with the Harmon family anymore, I’ll always be part of the Harmon family and their framework.

“Career wise it allows me to continue to develop my own instruction on the PGA Tour. I’m getting more use to what the players need, I’m getting more use to the pressures they have to deal with and how to assist them day to day, not only with their swing but the linkage with their physical therapists, their medical teams, their caddies. I’m becoming better at being able to do all of that.

“I’m really thankful for the opportunity Dubai has given me to grow and obviously this ongoing opportunity.”

We are excited to announce that Justin Parsons @JParsonsGolf is joining our Instruction team in 2019.
A native of Northern Ireland, Justin will bring the skills and knowledge he shares with students such as @CA_Schwartzel @Louis57TM @PeterUihlein @SeaIslandResort pic.twitter.com/rH3fEjC6tw

— Sea Island GPC (@seaislandgpc) October 18, 2018

The post UPDATED: Parsons lured to prestigious Georgia club where Davis Love III launched his World Golf Hall of Fame worthy career appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
Justin Parsons was with pals at Emirates Golf Club watching the 2008 FA Cup final when his cellphone rang. The call was prefixed +1, instantly recognisable as the dialling code for the U.S., and was about to make the Northern Irishman as giddy as Nwankwo Kanu had been moments earlier when the Portsmouth striker tucked away a near-post chance. The Nigerian’s 37th-minute goal would ultimately sink Cardiff City hearts, not that the football registered much after halftime for Parsons, his mind suddenly awash with possibility.

RELATED: Parsons lured to Georgia club that boasts David Love III and Zach Johnson among its membership

JP with Claude and Butch Harmon

Claude Harmon III, the middle of Butch and Christy Harmon’s three children, had just made the overture of a lifetime. Would JP be interested in joining him to open a new Butch Harmon School of Golf in Dubai Sports City, attached to the new Els Club? CH3, as he’s affectionately known in the trade, didn’t need to ask twice.

Parsons would start in late September as part of the pre-opening team. With much to do before Butch came out for the official opening on Jan. 14 the following year (Adam Scott also lent his celebrity to the occasion), Parsons figured a holiday was a sage move to recharge his batteries. After resigning from his position as Director of Instruction (DOI) at The Montgomerie, he got ready to kick back. Or so he thought.

“I’m thinking I’m going to have a nice three weeks to chill out in Dubai but in keeping with the Harmon work ethic, Claude rang and asked if I could come in for a morning to go over a few things. I got in here [the BHSG Academy] at about 9 o’clock, ended up working the whole day thinking about projects and different stuff, and at the end of the day, I thought right, that’ll be me. But Claude says ‘Great, see you tomorrow’.”

Parsons, now 41, has been chained to the BHSG Dubai production line for the nine years since and very happily so. He remembers giving the first public lessons on Valentines Day in 2009 but before then appeared in the launch edition of Golf Digest Middle East alongside Claude. Parsons’ contribution to the Nov. 2008 issue was no more than a fleeting mention as Claude rightly had the honour in a series of instruction articles with the magazine. It proved one of the few times he’s played second fiddle to any teaching professional in the UAE ever since.

Today Parsons is DOI once more, this time leading a team of five PGA professional. He’s Dubai’s undisputed coach to the stars, and not merely to golfing names like PGA Tour-bound Peter Uihlein and Dubai amateur sensation Rayhan Thomas. Even Parsons has to pinch himself occasionally as he works fundamentals with Hollywood A-lister Will Smith and cricket god Sachin Tendulkar or chews the fat with Rory McIlroy as his young countryman goes through his annual New Years tune-up regime at The Els.

Actor Will Smith (left) and cricket god Sachin Tendulkar (right) often seek Parsons’ help.

The link to the Harmon dynasty was made by Wayne Johnson who had worked with Butch in Las Vegas, the Bahamas and Portugal before landing the top Troon teaching job at The Montgomerie where he created a position for Parsons in 2005.

Fast-forward three fun years to the BHSG and working for Claude quickly proved an eye-opener. Lee Westwood, then the world No.1, was regularly on the range tinkering with the young Harmon, as were the likes of Darren Clarke, Søren Hansen and Mikko Ilonen.

“I’d worked with one or two tour players myself but nothing of the calibre that was starting to come through here with Claude,” Parsons recalls. “It gave me a great chance to see how they [the Harmons] kept the message simple and worked on ways to help players without confusing them.”

And what gems have Butch imparted over the years?

“He would always encourage us to see the problem quicker, try to uncover what Butch would refer to as cancer the swing. The one thing that isn’t going to completely confuse somebody but something you can deliver that is going to fix two or three other things.”

The world’s most respected coach also challenges his instructors to keep their eye on the man, not the ball, so to speak.

“I was out with Butch and I remember Webb Simpson had been out to see him, and Webb is a lovely gentleman, religious family, very well spoken and would never swear. So Butch sounds like an old southern gentleman, no swear words. But when Butch is teaching one of the boys like Dustin Johnson he’s a little bit more of a sports jock. The language can get kind of… colourful.

“It is having the ability to appeal to different people and to be a bit of a comedian. I think that helps an awful lot too.”

Nowadays there’s ample banter, given and taken, with Thomas who was a member of an early junior intake at the Dubai school and remains a treasured project today.

Peter Uihlein and partner Chelsea Gates

Parsons was something of a junior prodigy himself, getting down to scratch quickly and finishing runner-up at the Irish Boys’ Championship within two years of taking to golf as a 13-year-old.

He went to Alabama on a scholarship but it was short-lived, as were dreams of becoming a touring pro after “moderate to limited success” on the then MasterCard (now EuroPro) Tour.

By the age of 25, a lingering lower back problem had become chronic to the point where an orthopaedic surgeon suggested corrective surgery after he’d literally crawled into his apartment after a range session. Parsons is thankful he opted against the op now and while his playing dreams were dashed, the door to a teaching career had long been ajar.

“If you talked to the boys I use to play with back in Ireland, they’d say ‘he’s far too technical’ because I was always trying things. I’ve always had a real love for the swing.”

While still uber-inquisitive, Parsons is also proud that the early BHSG team were able to quickly find a balance between the data being spat out of modern teaching tools and remembering they were “in the business of human beings”. “Do you need to see a video or to get images in your head? Do you need to get a drill?  Do you want to talk about the physics of how Trackman is telling you the ball is flying? I think Butch is one of the masters of, you know, if he meets Mr X, he’ll understand within 15 minutes what makes Mr X tick.”

Parsons applied that human first theory when Uilhien came knocking in Aug. 2016 looking for a swing and fortune reboot.

“I wanted to find the best way for Peter Uihlein to swing the golf club, not what I wanted from the perfect swing. He’s a really good player already and just happens to be in a bit of a pickle based on injuries and some poor form.” Having recovered from wrist surgery, Parsons went to work on creating a power fade swing to replace the draw Uihlein had gone to most of his career. After winning the Web.com Tour Finals opener in Ohio last month, it’s fair to say the only pickle Uilhein now finds himself now is trying to figure out how to juggle a PGA and European Tour schedule next season.

Parsons has savoured working with Uihlein at three of the year’s four majors and the European Tour’s flagship BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. The grown-up kid from Killinchy, a town roughly 20 miles north of Royal Country Down, still has plenty of pinch yourself moments – “don’t lose your mind because you are meeting Tom Watson” – which make the job, well, awesome. But it is a job, bottom line, and like his players, Parsons has set KPIs.

An early BHSG junior intake (from left to right): Eric Hartzuiker, Rayhan Thomas, Matthew Laven, Jai Bhalla, Aryan Chordia and Arkesh Bhatia

“I would love to think in 9 years time I have helped a player to achieve a major championship victory. I’d like to think that I’ve helped another lad like Rayhan or young lady to come up and become a very good player.

“To me, those are the things that say back to me ‘I know what I’m doing’. That’s no disrespect to the fact I get pleasure from helping you strike a seven iron better or whatever, but I think professionally what really thrills you the most is to see someone you have nurtured come up and either re-perform or perform higher than they have before.

“That’s what Butchy always says to us, your biggest job when you have got a good player is, ‘Don’t screw it up’.”

So far, so good.

This story first appeared in Golf Digest Middle East’s 100th edition in October 2017.

The post The rise and rise of Justin Parsons appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The 18-year-old Dubai star isn’t grumbling after a sensational run to joint second place at the 10th Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in Singapore on Sunday.

It’s the best performance by an Indian at an event ranked among the world’s top five amateur tournaments and earns the Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club member a start in the qualifying series for the next year’s 148th Open Championship at Royal Portrush.

But Thomas was left to rue a four-over-par opening round of 74 at Sentosa Golf Club’s new Tanjong course on Thursday. He went on to play the final 54 holes in -15 with rounds of 64-65-66 to eventually finish -11 with a 269 aggregate.

Consider that the winner, Japanese 20-year-old Takumi Kanaya, won with a -13 total to earn exemptions to next year’s U.S. Masters, the Open and the 124th (British) Amateur Championship.

Still, Thomas is the toast of Middle East golf after getting within a shot of the lead on Sunday at Sentosa before settling for second with Kanaya’s countryman Keita Nakajima.

The silver medal is the biggest result of Thomas’ career and earns him a place in one of the Open Championship’s qualifying series events of his choice, among them the Australian Open, Joburg Open, SMBC Singapore Open or the Gateway to The Open Mizuno Open.

The top-five finish also guarantees Thomas a start in next year’s Asia Pacific Amateur Championship in Shanghai during a year where he’ll further his golf education in the U.S. at Oklahoma State, the university where Rickie Fowler honed his game.

“I’m pretty proud. It’s been a good week,” Thomas said in the understatement of the day.

“I mean the four-over start wasn’t good but I was able to pull it together and have a good last three rounds. Birdie on 12 put me in a place where I thought I maybe could just about grab it but I think Takumi’s in a good spot, he’s not going to do anything wrong. But it’s good to know I was in contention.”

The result is also a further nod to Thomas’ coach Justin Parsons and the MENA Tour, the developmental circuit on which the teen created history as the first amateur winner at his home Dubai Creek Open in 2016 as well as a joint world record for successive birdies in a pro event in his defence of the event in September last year.

David Spencer, a strategic advisor to the MENA Tour, led the chorus of online applause to Thomas’ performance.

We are all so proud @RayhanThomas and your SILVER MEDAL @AAC_Golf ! A massive moment for Indian Golf and for your legion of fans, friends, & Family in #MyDubai who were cheering you on today!!!You are an amazing young person!!! @theMENATour @rejwilliams @BUAMIMMj @OMEGAGolfDubai

— David Spencer (@thestripegroup) October 7, 2018

How about getting a doff of the cap from the son of Butch Harmon:

Still remember this kid, beyond proud of him! pic.twitter.com/x1B3MlKX83

— Claude Harmon III (@claudeharmonIII) October 7, 2018

Joy Chakravarty was on hand at Sentosa G.C. to enjoy the biggest moment from the region’s best performing amateur:

Such a proud moment for Indian golf – @RayhanThomas with the silver medal at the @AAC_Golf! pic.twitter.com/4RLn4Rq1tN

— Joy Chakravarty (@TheJoyofGolf) October 7, 2018

This from his coach, Parsons:

Great playing in the Asia Pacific from Rayhan Thomas- what a comeback after a bad start. #butchharmondubai #golfinstruction #titleist #golfswing #golf @ Dubai, United Arab Emirates https://t.co/K8oqDfAeXh

— Justin Parsons (@JParsonsGolf) October 7, 2018

Thomas not only did the Emirates Golf Federation region proud as this tweet from India highlights:

Congratulations to Rayhan on this fantastic silver medal . Great show and you have made all of India very proud. Best wishes for your very bright future.

— IndianGolfUnion (@IndianGolfUnion) October 7, 2018

The post Thomas eyes the 148th Open Championship at Royal Portrush after sensational run to joint second at Asia-Pacific Amateur appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Kent Gray
Welcome to the first edition of The Sand Trap, where we scour the worldwide inter-web for the Middle East’s best golf news before expertly splashing it out with absolutely no (okay, sometimes a little) spin. Call it old school polishing (reporting) of today’s social media overload, a light-hearted take on everything that is great about golf in the game’s hottest destination.

We’re unapologetically Middle East centric – our colleagues at Golf Digest H.Q. in New York will continue to update you on the best global goings on via ‘The Grind’ and the ‘Dew Sweeper’ – so if it has even a tenuous link to the game here, we’ll be all over it.

If you win a title and your club does the needful online, check in here – you might just feature (remember to smile and share!) alongside the region’s more high profile players. Don’t be shy to share that viral worthy post either. A trick shot or a laughter educing whiff from one of your golfing pals perhaps? Simply tag us @GolfDigestME and we’ll do the rest. Who knows, you really could go global with the assistance of Golf Digest.

With that, enjoy this, your first escape from with the Sand Trap, which we coincidently launch just as the year’s final major is about to take the starter’s orders in St. Louis. Enjoy.

THIS WEEK IN THE INCREDIBLE RISE AND RISE OF JUNIOR PHENOM JOSH HILL

Before we head to Bellerive Country Club for the 100th staging of the U.S. PGA Championship, divert your attention, Dear Sand Trappers, to Royal Dornoch where they’ve apparently been golfing since 1616. That’s 402 years ago according the abacus at Media One Towers, or 388 years since Josh Hill was born right here in Dubai. The drawn out connection here is that Hill is set to tee it up at Dornoch on Tuesday as England opens the defence of its Boys Home Internationals title. And that’s as stunning as the fabled Scottish highlands links land hosting the matchplay event where each team faces the other over three days in five morning foursomes and 10 afternoon singles matches each day.

Hill’s selection to the U-18 England team – remember he’s 14! – continues a meteoric rise. It wasn’t that long ago he was posing with Ryder Cuppers Andy Sullivan and Rory McIlroy as a wide-eyed 12-year-old having just played the DP World Tour Championship Pro-Am at JGE, coinsidently where he trains.

That was late 2016. Fast-forward to early 2018 and Hill marked himself as the hottest prospect in UAE golf since the emergence of Rayhan Thomas, courtesy of eight wins in a magical three month stretch to April. It will be fascinating to see how Hill fares in the pressure-filled matches against Scotland, Wales and Ireland as England aim for a title three-peat. Whatever happens at Dornach, Dubai looks to have unearthed a genuine gem. Best wishes to Josh and kudos to his supportive parents Russell and Jo and Butch Harmon School of Golf Dubai instructor Joe Marshall. All can be justifiably proud of the unexpected international call-up.

JP ON THE ROAD (AGAIN) TO THE 100th PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

Talking of the BHSG Dubai, the stock of the Els Club Dubai-based academy’s Director of Instruction, Justin Parsons, continues to rise. ‘JP’ has been criss-crossing the globe recently working with former major champions Charl Schwartzel and Louis Oosthuizen who are now firmly ensconced in a stable that also includes Peter Uihlein, Frenchman Mike Lorenzo-Vera and the aforementioned Rayhan Thomas. The Northern Irishman was in Akron last week and departed for the PGA Championship thoroughly encouraged by Schwartzel’s storming finish to the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, a 63 at Firestone Country Club propelling the former Masters champion up to a share of 31st with, among others, Tiger Woods.

Great to watch @charlschwartzel get it going today- 63 to finish the week strong. Firestone is a great venue and will be missed, glad I saw the last one. On to the @pgachampionship

A post shared by Justin Parsons (@jparsonsgolf) on Aug 5, 2018 at 1:07pm PDT

Here’s more of JP’s recent handiwork (scroll through the Insta post to see Oosty and Schwartzel in practice at Firestone).

Great to be in Akron for the WGC!!

A post shared by Justin Parsons (@jparsonsgolf) on Jul 31, 2018 at 6:12pm PDT

Parsons was headed to Bellerive (Schwartzel, Oosthuizen, Uihlein and Lorenzo-Vera are all in the field) overnight via a road trip with International Sport Management (think Chubby Chandler’s company) player manager Louis Martin in an RV.  (FYI, Oosthuizen and Uihlein are ISM clients).

So the NFL Hall of Fame is here, flights are full. This legend and I are taking a road trip from Akron-St Louis in an RV. Story to follow- seems like a good idea ????? @ Firestone Country… https://t.co/PtJyDK0xQT

— Justin Parsons (@JParsonsGolf) August 5, 2018

It’s a pretty epic sounding trip – all 900km of it – and we do hope JP shares some footage as promised. What we can guarantee, cough, cough, splutter, splutter, is that it’s not the final destination for the UAE’s best known coach. Again, watch this space.

Related: Woods, Rory and WGC-Bridgestone champion Thomas paired for PGA

TALKING OF GLOBE-TROTTING UAE PROS

With the mercury at sizzling point and the UAE’s driving ranges relatively empty as a result, it’s an ideal time for the UAE’s hard working PGA teaching professionals to grab some well-deserved R&R. And some, like Trump International Dubai head pro Sven Nielsen, are doing it better than most as these epic pictures from Scotland highlands illustrate.

Some breathtaking views at @carnegielinks with the guys yesterday!! Great to play in 20 degrees again. #summergolf #golf #golfer #greatgolfcourse #views #unreal

A post shared by Sven Nielsen (@svennielsenpga) on Aug 3, 2018 at 11:17am PDT

The Carnegie Club at Skibo Castle is a private club “offering limited tee times to non-residents”. As a former pro at Trump Turnberry, we’re guessing Nielsen didn’t have too much trouble getting on. He certainly had little trouble playing his Tiger-esque stinger:

Little 2-iron stinger here!!! ???? Amazing day at @carnegielinks with @msweenie_golf @rob.satterley.golf and @calsatterley what a phenomenal golf course and experience!! Thanks for having us!!! #golf #golfer #golflesson #golfcoach #greatcourse #greatgolfcourse

A post shared by Sven Nielsen (@svennielsenpga) on Aug 2, 2018 at 4:55pm PDT

Nice shot, Sven. But perhaps not quite as flush as your recent ace at Trump.

?HOLE IN ONE? today for me while playing with one of my clients. 145yards PW. ???? #golf #golfer #holeinone #golfcoach #golflesson @trumpgolf @trumpgolfdubai

A post shared by Sven Nielsen (@svennielsenpga) on Jul 20, 2018 at 11:52pm PDT

We’re genuinely happy for the hard-working South African but won’t be so generous if the Springboks show as much class in the upcoming Rugby Championship. Did we mention the team behind the Sand Trap are ardent supporters of the All Blacks?

LUKE’S PRO V1 JOY

Just like the mighty All Blacks, we love golf swag at the Sand Trap, especially swag of the, well, you know, free kind. Check out the booty MENA Tour player Luke Joy has just recieved from a couple of well-known sponsors.

Huge thanks to @GOLFPRINCIPLES @callawaygolf @Callaway_Mat for all the help with getting the new X- Forged irons set up ?Awesome service and superb product come as standard! Many thanks guys?#golfprinciples #lukejoygolf #callaway #rogue #trackman pic.twitter.com/erN0cnP3Nj

— Luke Joy (@JoyBoy59) July 28, 2018

Always great to get a delivery from @titleistukireland / Africa Thanks @titleist for keeping me stocked up… I use the Pro V1 X Ball and Players glove?. #1 #1ballingolf #prov1x #golf #titleist #golfball #lukejoygolf

A post shared by Luke Joy – ‎ليوك (@lukejoygolf) on Aug 3, 2018 at 10:48am PDT

Nice. We’re guessing these shiny new spheres will travel a little further than the tee shot of Joy’s brother Ollie during a recent social round.

So bit of social golf today with my Bro @ollie_joy85 and Cousin at Queens Park GC… Both didn’t make it past the ladies tee… Rules are Rules ? #queenspark #sunshine #pantsdown #golf #keepingitfun #ladiestee #familygolf #family #priceless #bournemouth #england #funinthesun #chef #aussie #lukejoygolf

A post shared by Luke Joy – ‎ليوك (@lukejoygolf) on Aug 2, 2018 at 1:55pm PDT

Rules are rules but enough of those shenanigans. The Yas Links-attached Englishman is just back from a steady 12th place finish in last week’s Sunshine Tour stop in Kenya, an encouraging bounce-back after playing like a complete plonker – his words, not ours – in Open Championship qualifying. 

Joy still has designs on a European Tour card via Q-School ahead of a series of starts on the Sunshine and Asian Tours towards the end of 2018 “with the end goal of punching a ticket to secure European Tour status or at least have some events with a full playing category on the Challenge Tour”.

“I’m working hard with Matt Parker down at Yas so all seems to be working towards the ET for the coming years.”

Here’s hoping, although don’t be surprised if you see more off the course action on JoyBoy59’s twitter feed in the coming weeks; the 30-year-old Dorset pro is getting married at the end of the month. We’re sure fiancée Lauren-Leanne Bellows wouldn’t mind a prolonged honeymoon following hubby to some of the European Tour’s more exotic locales.

To be fair, Joy will need to keep winning to continue to afford experiences like this watching his beloved England in the World Cup.

Thanks for an amazing few weeks @England … You got a whole nation believing, dreaming and singing! Gutted yes, but the future looks very promising for this young side ???????#threeloins pic.twitter.com/BarrHQw8br

— Luke Joy (@JoyBoy59) July 11, 2018

JoyBoy indeed!

FRIENDLY REMINDER #1

It’s not long now until the climax of the European Tour season at JGE. In fact, it’s 99-days until the DP World Tour Championship. Follow the prompt for free tickets, Sand Trappers.

Only #100daystogo until the #greatestplayersonearth return to @JumeirahGolfEst for the #dpwtc. Register for free general admission now #racetodubai pic.twitter.com/MOX8le3aOw

— DP World Tour Championship (@DPWTC) August 5, 2018

DUBAI TROPHY BLAST FROM THE PAST

Former head pro Malcolm Young is clearly in a nostalgic space as he packs up after 10½ years at Arabian Ranches to take up a new posting in Hong Kong. Or perhaps he just found this picture as he was clearing out some clutter.

Either way, it’s a cool rewind to the 2010 Dubai Golf Trophy which the professionals snuck by a solitary point. The Pros will miss Young’s talents next winter as they try to avert a fourth straight loss to the EGF’s best amateurs, but not half as much as the quietly spoken Scot’s old clientele at Ranches. Dubai’s loss is the Jack Nicklaus Academy of Golf’s gain. Yup, that’s how highly rated Young is.

ANOTHER SAD FOND FAREWELL

There are leaving dos and then there’s the way Sharjah Golf and Shooting Club do the leaving do. Stick with us here.

How about honouring New Zealand-bound course superintendent Marty Brown with his own golf tournament.

Marty Brown, our Golf Course superintendent is leaving (after 12 years service). Come down and join us on his farewell golf day on 10 August.#golf #sharjah #sharjahgolf #golfindubai #farewellgolf pic.twitter.com/KpYl2d4qRF

— Sharjah Golf & SClub (@SharjahGolf) August 2, 2018

A classy move from a club that is making a habit of doing classy things and best of all, there’s still time to farewell Brown by entering the event.  The Kiwi leaves huge steel-capped boots to fill after presenting SGSC in pristine condition for the last two Staysure Tour (formerly European Senior Tour) Sharjah Senior Golf Masters events. Go well Marty. Oh, and I’m sure you’ll join us in wishing the Mighty All Blacks all the best as well. We did warn you!

TODAY’S TEAR-JERKER

Okay, here’s the Sand Trap’s first tenuous Middle East link. Sure Justin Thomas hasn’t played in the Desert Swing yet – perhaps the American will be the star draw at January’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship or even the OMEGA Dubai Desert Classic? – but we just couldn’t ignore his win in the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational overnight. More to the point, we loved that JT’s grandparents were on hand to see his third win of the season at Firestone.

What a day for the family

A post shared by Justin Thomas (@justinthomas34) on Aug 5, 2018 at 7:59pm PDT

What a keepsake that pic will be. And now on to Bellerive with Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy set to push Thomas all the way in his defence of the Wanamaker Trophy. Golf is deep. Really, really deep as this 72nd hole drive from JT shows. And to think McIlroy hit a 400+ yarder in the final round at Firestone.

JT’s 394 yards drive at the 18th is the second longest drive ever hit on the final hole at Firestone (396, Tiger in 2003). ・・・ #WGCBridgestone Repost #europeantour

A post shared by Golf Digest Middle East (@golfdigestme) on Aug 5, 2018 at 9:54pm PDT

GEORGIA ON OUR MINDS

The newly-minted Ricoh Women’s British Open champion has been a perennial contender at the OMEGA Dubai Ladies Classic is recent years so there’s a genuine Middle East link to this snippet.

Stunning moment @RICOHWomensBrit #champion @georgiahall96 and a crowd of very #excited youngsters just shows what a young #homegrown #talent can do for #golf #congratulations #georgiahall @ricoheurope @CallawayGolfEU @goodwood_golf #berenberg @RandA @GettySport pic.twitter.com/gw0NORULmW

— David Cannon (@Cannonball63) August 5, 2018

And these stunning pictures are from our favourite golf photographer too, UAE regular David Cannon. Enjoy.

David Cannon

David Cannon

David Cannon

David Cannon

THE GULF CLUB

How about the play of David Baldwin and Leighton Johnson in capturing the EGF’s Summer Pairs Open sponsored by Golf Superstore. Check out all the action in his post from Al Ain Equestrian Shooting and Golf Club:

Looks like they were having fun in the sun (okay, blistering heat) at Abu Dhabi and Saadiyat Beach Golf Club too in annual Troon Executive Card Summer Series.

We had fantastic TEC Summer Series over the weekend at Abu Dhabi Golf Club and Saadiyat Beach Golf Club. Thank you all for your participation and congratulations to the winners! #playgolf #troongolf

A post shared by Saadiyat Beach Golf Club (@saadiyatbeachgolfclub) on Aug 5, 2018 at 4:58am PDT

We had fantastic TEC Summer Series over the weekend at Abu Dhabi Golf Club and Saadiyat Beach Golf Club. Thank you all for your participation and congratulations to the winners! #playgolf #troongolf

A post shared by Abu Dhabi Golf Club (@abudhabigolfclub) on Aug 5, 2018 at 5:01am PDT

The winners were grinners in the fourth round of the Summer BMW X5 Series Open Social at Sharjah Golf & Shooting Club too.

Aurn & Vivian win. The fourth round of the Summer BMW X5 Series Open Social was hosted on the 4th August 2018. The format was Betterball medal on the front nine and a Texas Scramble Medal on the back nine. The duo returned net 35 (1 under par) in the betterball & net 30 (6 under par) in the nine hole Texas Scramble format. Giving the pair a combined score of 65, 7 under par. Congratulation to both! @bmwmiddleeast #golf #sharjahgolf #sharjah #greatprizes #summergolf #winners

A post shared by Sharjah Golf (@sharjahgolf) on Aug 5, 2018 at 5:38am PDT

WE. CAN’T. STOP. WATCHING.

Finally, if you’re not already following us on Instagram, here’s a couple of recent posts that should entice you to sign-up at golfdigestme:

Father and son weekend goals. ?‍?

A post shared by Golf Digest Middle East (@golfdigestme) on Aug 2, 2018 at 1:38pm PDT

Talk about father-son goals.

And then there is this in the latest installment of Phil Being Phil, just in case you missed it (quite how that is possible is beyond us).

In My Philings ???

A post shared by Golf Digest Middle East (@golfdigestme) on Aug 2, 2018 at 9:35pm PDT

We don’t know what Lefty’s Dad dance is so weirdly alluring. But… We. Can’t. Stop. Watching. At least it was better than his running putt in the U.S. Open. But lets move on, maybe by watching again. Until next time…Wow Phil. Just wow.

The post Welcome to the ‘Sand Trap’, a social media take on all things Middle East golf appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Last year at Erin Hills, I remember being rather disappointed on my first look at the course. Although Shinnecock Hills came with a fabled reputation, I was once again felt underwhelmed when I walked the front nine on Monday to start my week at the 118th U.S. Open.

Like last year, it was overcast and there was an unusual win, the opposite of Tuesday when the sun shone and the wind switched. Suddenly Shinnecock was a different proposition and the course played a lot more like the legend that I was expecting.

There is a great buzz around the U.S. Open –  when that is you can get there. I am staying in East Quogue and there have been tales of tour staff taking three hours to travel 15 miles (24km) to get to the course on Long Island through a bottleneck on the way out to the Hamptons!

I watched Tiger hit balls on Sunday night and he definitely adds to the buzz. I was walking with Charl Schwartzel, Louis Oosthuizen, Branden Grace and Ernie Els this morning and saw Butch (Harmon) out walking with Dustin Johnson and Tiger – that was pretty cool to see.

The keys to playing the course well will be approach shots to the green which will need to be powerful and precise. There will be some big shots needed; high, strong iron shots that will fit Rory’s game (and Peter Uihlein’s for that matter) and the par threes (which are excellent) will need great control of line and distance to get into position. Having spent some time with the Afrikaans group, Peter (Uihlein) was playing with Danny Willett, Paul Waring and Bubba Watson. Sean Foley was walking with Danny whose form has been returning a little of late. Sean has got Danny loading up his right side and widening his swing which is a real change for the former Masters Champion. It was my first time up close to Bubba who has power and control to burn. Probably the ultimate golfing artist, he was fun to be around and the pink driver goes far – very far. Peter has good control and is in good form with a recent 5th place finish in the Memorial Tournament in Ohio. The way that Peter’s putter performs may be the key this week.

@peteruihlein beautiful approach into 16 #teamtitleist #titleist #golfswing #golf #usopen

A post shared by Justin Parsons (@jparsonsgolf) on Jun 12, 2018 at 6:13am PDT

Adding to the buzz is the launch of the new TS Titleist driver – Justin Thomas, Jimmy Walker and Charley Hoffman have put it straight in (unusual in a Major week) and the general feedback is that the driver is hotter whilst maintaining the Titleist dispersion profile. I also sat with the Greenbook guys at lunch. They laser the greens and give the players a 3D profile with the breaks etc. It is always a thrill coming to a Major – you see what is going on in the game in all aspects.

On to the rest of the week. I wouldn’t be surprised if DJ went very well and Justin Thomas also looks good. As for the players I am helping (Schwartzel and Uihlein), they are all in good form and hoping for a good week. Lets see.

@charlschwartzel with a held up 5 iron to hole 7 to 12 feet @shinnecockhillsgolfclub @usopengolf #teamtitleist #titleist #golf #usopen #newyork

A post shared by Justin Parsons (@jparsonsgolf) on Jun 12, 2018 at 10:52am PDT

Justin Parsons is the Director of Instruction at The Butch Harmon School of Golf at The Els Club, Dubai. Among his pupils are PGA Tour player Peter Uihlein, former Masters winner Charl Schwartzel and celebrated Dubai-based, Indian amateur No.1 Rayhan Thomas.

The post Justin Parsons at Shinnecock: Tiger adds buzz but now I’ve seen Bubba, he might be the ultimate golfing artist appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

“Having seen first hand the challenges presented by Augusta National, I want to share what makes it such an incredible course and one that invariably brings the very best players to the top of the leaderboard. That is one of the true testaments to this fabled layout: Patrick Reed, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy and Bubba Watson were all in the top 10 in April, illustrating again how the cream truly rises to the top. There are areas where these players excel over and above technical excellence or distance gains that you can incorporate into your own game.

Short game contact

Getty Images
Crisp contact and steely focus is vital for short game success, as exemplified by Jordan Spieth.

The grass at Augusta is beautiful, lush, healthy and very, very green. It is quite easy to gain a good strike from it but I also noticed a lot of the players taking time to both measure and improve their contact around the green. Backspin is created from a combination of a centred faced contact, correct strike (gentle angle of attack and loft imparted at impact) as well as club head speed. The friction imparted by these impact conditions on the ball generates the desired backspin and also leads to the required trajectory. You need this control in different situations at Augusta to cope with the fast greens and slopes.

“You should always add consequences and a little pressure to your practice to be ready for your Masters moment.” – Justin Parsons.

Your Masters takeaway: When practicing your short game, make sure you have a damp towel or a tee peg in your pocket to clean the clubface after each shot. Look at where the ball contacted the face after each shot and work on attaining consistent centred face strikes.

Creativity and adaptability

Getty Images
Patrick Reed employed his patented ‘helicopter fade’ follow through to claim the green jacket.

The slopes, angles and hills at Augusta National are more pronounced than at other venues. This prompts players to adapt to situations and create shots that they will need to master the difficultly of the course. I watched Tony Finau play after the freak ankle accident in the Par 3 contest. What he did was a great example of how great players can adapt; he did so by hitting shots keeping his weight on his back foot throughout the tournament and ended up a highly credible T-10 on -7. Being able to have the creativity to see unusual shots and adapt your technique – Patrick Reeds’ helicopter fade follow through is another great example – is imperative for success at golf’s highest level.

Getty Images
Tony Finau hit shots off his back foot to compensate for the ankle injury. (Insert left): Finau’s celebration after acing the 7th int he Par-3 contest went painfully wrong.

Your Masters takeaway: In practice, even if you feel it is above your level, try to hit the ball low and high as well as left to right and right to left. Try to hit a high 4-iron or a low 9-iron and set about playing some short game shots from tricky lies with weird clubs. Creating and adapting to situations will make you learn fast and you never know when your new found skills will come in handy during an important round.

Distance control with irons

Getty Images
Rory McIlroy and caddy Harry Diamond crunch the numbers. Know your distances to hit it closer.

At Augusta, the targets are small and the areas within the targets even smaller. It is therefore imperative that players know how far they hit each club. When you couple this with the fact that many of the shots are hit from sloping lies and with the wind swirling in the trees, there is even more of a premium on distance control.

Your Masters takeaway: When you practice, take time to note down your distances with each club. Make further notes in the wind and if possible, get acquainted with your tendencies from sloping lies. This will lead to better control with your irons.

Commitment

Getty Images
Reed reportedly hit 5000 putts in practice and enjoyed the fruits of his labour with his maiden major title.

At Augusta National, each and every shot tests the mental reserve of a player. If you miss in the wrong spot off the tee, your angle might be cut off to the green. A missed iron shot or pitch will leave your in a place from where an up and down may be impossible while a putt just missed can lead to a nervy 10-footer coming back. The best players, through a combination of their skill and commitment accept, stand up to and overcome these challenges. The very best are not really playing for the outcome – they simply stay focused on the shot in front of them.

Your Masters takeaway: The main reason commentators talk about the average player not breaking 100 at Augusta is due to the fact every shot can lead to potential disaster, even straightforward ones. That’s why you should always add consequences and a little pressure to your practice. Use a tree line as a virtual out of bounds on the range or imagine that bunker in front of the target green is actually water that would cost you a shot in a competition round. On and around the putting green, set up a little friendly competition with a mate and ensure there’s something on the line like a post practice sun-downer. What you are trying to achieve in your practice time on a Wednesday evening is the same feelings you’ll encounter on Friday morning when you tee it up in the monthly medal. Accept the outcome and commit to the shot and things will be fine. – With Kent Gray

Justin Parsons is the Director of Instruction at The Butch Harmon School of Golf at The Els Club, Dubai. Among his pupils are PGA Tour player Peter Uihlein, former Masters winner Charl Schwartzel and celebrated Dubai-based, Indian amateur No.1 Rayhan Thomas.

The post Justin Parsons: Master JP’s 4 Augusta Takeaways appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.