Momentum in golf is particularly important and nobody has more of it at the moment than one of our youngest clients, Dave Horsey.
Dave made an important breakthrough earlier this season when he won the Telenet Trophy in Belgium for his first Challenge Tour success. The confidence he gained from that saw him move to Sunningdale and secure a place in golf’s oldest and most prestigious event, the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale.
And on Sunday he not only won again on the feeder tour, he also virtually guaranteed his place among the big boys next season – 20 cards being available from that route. It was a superb win for Dave because four rounds of 65, 68, 68 and 65 were only just good enough to claim the EuroOpen de Lyon title – the winning margin being just one shot over fellow Englishman Marcus Higley.
One more win on the Challenge Tour will see him automatically move on to the main tour this season and it’s something that is not beyond him as he continues to show the same kind of form that Ross McGowan enjoyed on his rise through the ranks last season.
Many of our players will feature at Loch Lomond this week and several will have one eye on the following week at Royal Birkdale. There is one final qualifying place to be had on the bonnie banks ad none will be trying harder for it than Darren Clarke.
One of Darren’s biggest challengers this week is likely to be two-time Loch Lomond winner Ernie Els. I sense a new calmness in Ernie which has probably been brought about having a short break and working with Butch Harmon. It will be interesting this week in Loch Lomond because if he finishes in the top five or six then I’m sure he’ll be bookies favourite for Royal Birkdale. That’s something he will handle very well.
Hopefully the cricketers will get chance to play against South Africa, but the forecast isn’t good. At least the English management will be happy that Freddie Flintoff is back among the runs and wickets although I don’t suppose the South Africans share the same enthusiasm.
Watching Freddie this week, it was great to see him hitting the ball into the crowd and bowling at over 90mph while making a difficult catch look bread and butter stuff. England have missed him and I was like watching the Flintoff of the Ashes winning series.
It’s the first time in a few years that he hasn’t been in pain and now I’m sure he’s ready to inflict some on the opposition, probably in the second Test against South Africa
