Sad but not a tragedy….
The greatest Sportsman of the 20th Century died last week. Muhammad Ali (Cassius Clay) passed away after a long battle with Parkinson's disease. Known for his extraordinary boxing, humour and legendary bravado... Ali brightened up even the dullest chat show and interviewing him must have been great fun, none of the drab cliché, monotone dribble so many "sportspeople" runout today. Thing is he had the skills and courage to back it all up, the amazing footwork incorporating the "Ali shuffle "The predictions from the "Louisville Lip" about his opponent's fate and of course his famous quotes
"float like a butterfly, sting like a bee"
"I`m so quick, I turned the bedroom light off and was in bed before it went dark".
Who would have thought the rope a dope tactics would work against the power of George Foreman?
Ali will be best remembered in the ring for those 3 fights with Joe Frazier, especially the Thriller in Manilla, the third fight when both men had fought to a standstill over 15 rounds, only for Frazier's camp to throw the towel in seconds before Ali`s at the end of the 14th round.
He was arguably the greatest boxer of all time and no matter what he said or stood for he was the people's favourite.
He trained in Miami and often ran around a local golf course. He decided to try hitting a few balls, here's his swing in picture sequence and of course the obligatory statement… Will there ever be another Muhammad Ali?
Look at that ball go! Nobody can knock the ball that far. Nobody but me, the great, the one and only Muhammad Ali! "Muhammad Ali is the world's greatest golfer! Nobody can beat Muhammad Ali! Not Arnold Palmer, not Jack Nicklaus, not nobody. I'm gonna make 'em look bad, predict the score, how bad I'm gonna beat 'em, everything - just like I do in boxing!"
Impossible, the great man had it all. RIP The Greatest.
Euro 2016
Euros start this weekend, there is as much speculation on England's chances as there is talk about Brexit. Does Hodgson even know his best 11? Can he leave Rooney out? Will he play Wilshere and Vardy? Let's hope all the teams from these shores make it through to the knockout stages, then anything can happen one against one.
Shame about Andy Murray's loss in France, He just may have been up against the greatest tennis player of all time?
Huge international rugby Tours start this weekend as well, its non-stop sport worldwide!
Demo day coming soon....
Coming soon is our latest demo day showcasing The PING collection, with the award winning G series products from irons to drivers! If you want to see if your distance and direction can be improved, get booked but do not hesitate, as I always say; these appointments go quickly, so snooze you lose!
Remember the date Monday, July 4th 3-7 pm.
For next couple of weeks I also have some of PING short game demo kit available to try. If you're in the market for new wedges or a putter here's a great opportunity to put them to the test. Just pop in and take them out to play with and then let me help to get those gaps spot on with a custom fit session on the GC2 machine, every day can be a demo day.
At The Memorial event last week Dustin Johnson opened with a 64. Why can't this talent win more often? He drives it so so long and as straight as most, eats par 5s for lunch, what is holding him back? He must be due soon? Surely the scar tissue isn't that deep for DJ already? Please forward your opinions on how DJ can stop blowing it…
Great win for first time winner Will McGirt, who definitely doesn't go in for the gym factor. He has his own style and last week his nerve and courage held fast to win for the first time on the PGA Tour in a playoff. All the "faces "struggled in the wind but McGirt got round bogey free, he deserved it. To do it in front of Jack himself, what a confidence boost. It will be interesting to see how the rest of the season goes for the little known player from North Carolina.
Well done to Zach Chegwidden, a decent top 10 finish in last weekend's Essex County Championship over 72 holes around Colne Valley, all results are on the Essex Golf Union website.
Ladies and Gents team are in action this weekend, good luck to all of them.
For those who think it is a waste of time entering those holiday competitions, here`s a good reason to reconsider. Steve Faulkner had signed up for a regular newsletter with a Golf break company...
3 days later he gets a call saying he `s won a golf trip to Scotland. Eventually he decides it`s not a spoof from friends, he returns the call to find out he has won a three day trip to St Andrews and Kingsbarns for 2 staying in the Fairmont Hotel, curtesy of the golf company! The biggest problem was who to take... the lucky winner on the seat to Scotland with Steve 'Wilf' Winter!
Enjoy your golf, the weather and the sport this coming week,