Is the handicapping allowance a real handicap? Andrew Wild from Sandford Springs discusses whether high handicappers should be given such a significant advantage during singles match play.

You will read lots about Bubba Watson and how he hasn't had a golf lesson in his life. This however is not strictly true.

It was a beautiful still, sunny day in Scotland (yes, Scotland). We drove into St Andrews and had a guided tour of the town by our host, professor Ian Percy. Fortunately for us the professor is a member of the R&A, plus a few other notable courses.

Sunday was a great day of sport. Watching football, the Carling Cup final, and also the World Matchplay golf. Fortunately, I did go for a run in the morning just to make sure I didn't spend all day on the sofa!

Should competitions in the winter be qualifiers or non qualifiers? That is the question?

 

This is the time of year most of us take stock of things and reflect. What sort of a year have I had at work? Did I achieve the goals I set for the year? How many of my new year's resolutions have I stuck to? Have I reduced my handicap this year? I am sure these are all familiar thoughts for you at this time of year.

This weekend saw Rory Mcllroy, Lee Westwood, and the great Tiger Woods all win on different continents.

 

I was lucky enough to get invited to a Yonex day with Colin Montgomerie at the Oxfordshire Golf Club recently. The format of the day was to look at the new range of Yonex clubs for 2012 and then play golf in the afternoon where Monty would join each group for a few holes.

I had a really interesting conversation with one of my members about belly putters. The member is a very good low handicapper, has himself been through the 'yips', and has thankfully come out the other side. This was done without changing his traditional style - plus he's still managed to maintain his sense of humour - not easy when the trauma lasted a couple of years.

Whether you realise it or not humans are very good at finding the path of least resistance. There are many terms that you could use; I guess lazy might be one although sometimes it is a subconscious decision as well.