Footjoy strides ahead at St Andrews; Tee plaque auction raises funds for St Andrews juniors; TaylorMade dominates with the help of its blue headwear; Famous names raise junior golf’s profile; Colin Montgomerie wears ECCO
Footjoy strides ahead at St Andrews
The vast majority of the field at the 134th Open Championship chose to take to the fairways in the supreme comfort afforded by FootJoy shoes, just as they have done at the Open Championship for the last twenty-five years. Jose Maria Olazabal, Darren Clarke and Vijay Singh were among 86 players who placed their trust in the comfort and performance of FootJoy on the Old Course. This represents 55% of the field compared to over double that of the nearest competitor.
FootJoy’s sales director Mike Lucas is delighted that FootJoy has maintained its position as the #1 choice at the Open Championship. “It is an honour to be the preferred choice of the majority of the best golfers in the world at the greatest Championship in the world, particularly at the Home of Golf. Our designers are constantly developing new technology and designs to keep ahead of the game, and the fact that in recent times more competitors at The Open choose FootJoy than all other brands combined is proof that we are consistently achieving these goals.” www.footjoy.co.uk
Tee plaque auction raises funds for St Andrews juniors
A golf auction with a difference attracted bids worth more than £16,000 ($28,000) in total, received from around the world, for the 18 tee plaques from the Old Course at St Andrews. The highest bid for an individual plaque was for the famous Road Hole, the 17th, which fetched £2,442 ($4,250).
The money raised by the auction will benefit St Andrews Links Junior Golf Association (SALJGA). Alan McGregor, general manager of St Andrews Links Trust, said, “We are absolutely delighted with the auction which demonstrates once again the great esteem in which the Old Course is held around the world. These tee plaques have borne witness to some fantastic golfing moments over the years and there were clearly many golf fans who wanted their own piece of history. I would like to thank everyone who has taken the time to bid and congratulate those who have been successful.”
St Andrews Links Trust is a charitable organisation responsible for the management and maintenance of the Links courses at St Andrews. More than 200,000 rounds are played over six public courses, which feature two additional championship courses (the New and the Jubilee), two 18-hole courses (the Eden and the Strathtyrum) and a nine-hole course (the Balgove). www.standrews.org.uk.
TaylorMade dominates with the help of its blue headwear
TaylorMade Golf achieved success in the major equipment counts, ranking No.1 in the Driver, Fairway wood, Utility club and Iron counts respectively.
The count showed that the r7 quad continues to dominate on Tour. In total 44 TaylorMade r7 quads were in play, double the total of any other manufacturer. In addition the recently launched r7 Ti fairway wood, featuring moveable weight technology, was used by six players.
In addition to dominating the equipment counts TaylorMade was also the most visible brand in the galleries following a promotion that took place throughout the week, distributing thousands of special edition TaylorMade 2005 Open Championship caps to golf fans. The caps were the same as the ones worn by many of TaylorMade playing staff. www.tmag.com
Famous names raise junior golf’s profile
Their diaries might be booked solid but people with backgrounds as diverse as those of HRH The Duke of York, Brad Faxon and DJ Spoony were willing to make time for junior golf. Not a celebrity fee was paid but a procession of big names came to support the Golf Foundation and its work with juniors at The Open at St Andrews, and the Foundation now hopes an increasing number of people will support the work of this junior golf charity that is committed to bringing golf to more young people and making the sport more accessible for all.
Around 4,000 children visited the R&A Junior Golf Centre at St Andrews during the week of the Championship. The centre was run by the Golf Foundation, the PGA and clubgolf, supported throughout by the R&A. PGA pros gave more than 1,300 free lessons, while around 2,500 children took part in the Foundation’s Tri-Golf games and the PING-sponsored clubgolf-Golf Foundation Putting Challenge – many of them having a first ever hit with a golf club. During the week, 27 school groups, from many regions of Scotland, made a special trip to the stand to enjoy Tri-Golf activities. www.golf-foundation.org
Colin Montgomerie wears ECCO
In his first Open Championship since switching to ECCO World Class golf shoes, Colin Montgomerie’s strong performance is of particular note given his well-documented foot problems in recent years. “On-course comfort is a key component of playing your best and I’ve never been more comfortable than when I’m wearing ECCO golf shoes,” says Montgomerie who sports the ECCO logo on the sleeve of his golf shirt.
“We’ve worked closely with Colin to ensure he experiences an absence of discomfort every time he steps onto the course,” notes Per Aagren, ECCO golf division general manager. “His consistently strong performance this year and outstanding play at the Open Championship are testaments to the enduring nature of his skills.” www.ecco.com