pictured above: Ian Poulter, Tyrrell Hatton, Matthew Southgate and Matthew Fitzpatrick (Getty Images)
Team England, led by Ian Poulter, sensationally set a new GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for the Fastest hole of golf by a team of four ahead of the Turkish Airlines Open, shaving two seconds off the previous record time and beating Team South Africa by the finest of margins.
The European Tour challenged some its stars to break the existing record of 34.87 seconds, which was set last April by the French team of Raphaël Jacquelin, Alexander Levy, Grégory Havret and Romain Wattel at the Real Club Valderrama Open de España – an attempt which was watched by more than ten million people across the European Tour’s platforms.
This time there was a difference though, with the new record attempt taking place at night under floodlights on the 501-yard par five 15th hole at Regnum Carya Golf & Spa Resort in Antalya, Turkey, the venue for this week’s Turkish Airlines Open, which is the sixth of eight events in the European Tour’s Rolex Series.
France was once again part of a trio of four-man teams which attempted to break the record, with Levy returning as captain alongside Wattel, Matthieu Pavon and Mike Lorenzo-Vera. However, the quartet was unable to better the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS mark France set in Spain last year, which stood at 34.87seconds.
Instead, it was left to the English and South African teams to provide some incredible drama under the lights, with the latter quartet, featuring Brandon Stone, Haydn Porteous, Dylan Frittelli and their captain George Coetzee going from tee to hole in an impressive 32.96 seconds.
They were followed by Team England, captained by Ryder Cup legend Poulter, who was joined by Tyrrell Hatton, Matthew Fitzpatrick and Matthew Southgate for their attempt. Television replays were required to separate the two teams, but after a tense wait, it was finally confirmed that England had beaten the South African mark by a mere 0.26 seconds, setting a new Guinness World Records™ title of 32.70 seconds.
The announcement sparked exuberant celebrations from Poulter, Hatton, Fitzpatrick and Southgate, with Poulter summing up the feelings of the team:
“It feels amazing,” he said. “I didn’t think I’d ever set a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title. But it’s there, with the lads, and it’s awesome.
Hatton added: “It’s pretty cool seeing our names on there. It’s very special.”
Southgate said: “I’m quite surprised we won, but it was a great feeling when they revealed we had done it.”
And Fitzpatrick concluded: “The final celebration showed how it felt. We said if we won, we’d go mental. We kind of didn’t expect it, but it’s nice to walk away with this certificate, rather than a trophy.”
Guinness World Records Official Adjudicator Seyda Subasi-Gemici said: “This was a particularly exciting record attempt to adjudicate, a real test of both skill and teamwork. I’m pleased to confirm that the team did indeed manage to set a new Guinness World Records title for the Fastest hole of golf by a team of four, which now stands at 32.70 seconds. My congratulations go out to all those who took part.”
European Tour www.europeantour.com
Guinness World Records http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com