Today's Golfer

It’s hard to believe it happened 20 years ago, but I can still vividly remember watching (on the BBC in those days) Tiger’s chip in from the back of the 16th green at the 2005 Masters. We’ve all seen it hundreds of times – and there’s no doubt it will be shown hundreds more times on its big anniversary this year – but it never gets old, and it never gets boring. I’ve just watched it (again) now, on YouTube, as I write this, and it still makes the hairs on my neck stand up. It had everything! There was a Green Jacket on the line. Woods had a oneshot lead. He hadn’t won a Major since 2002. His adversary Chris DiMarco hadn’t won one at all. The 16th at…

The team at Cabot Collection are on a bit of a roll right now. After acquiring Lofoten Links, they now have four courses in our World Top 100 list, with another – Cabot St Lucia – almost certainly set to join this year. Much of our excitement had centred around the opening of Cabot Highlands in Inverness this summer, but that was before we clapped eyes on the 57 holes that have just opened up at Cabot Citrus Farms in Florida. Previously known as the World Woods Golf Club, the 1,200-acre property is home to two 18-hole courses – Roost and Karoo – which were originally built by Tom Fazio and have now been reimagined with an extra layer of creativity. Central to that vision is an ‘adventure golf’ masterpiece…

LOCKER ROOM CHAT A BASEBALL-SIZED HOLE Woodland was diagnosed with a lesion on his brain in 2023, which had been causing months of crippling pain and panic. Unable to focus, his pre-shot routine became a disjointed mess and he realised he couldn’t play on. With surgery planned for September 2023, he wrote letters to his wife and three kids in case he didn’t make it. Doctors cut a baseball-sized hole in his head to remove as much of the lesion as they could. He was back putting two days later and though he only managed one top-10 finish in 26 starts in 2024, the experiences were instructive in finding a new-normal. He’s already equalled his total of top-25s from last season (three) and recently received the PGA Tour Courage Award…

ROYAL BIRKDALE, MERSEYSIDE Summer green fees: From €370pp The English Muirfield is plotted through the grandest dunes on The Open rota. The fairways are unexpectedly flat, which is why the pros love it. Strong start, great finish, yet the most memorable section -the 9th, 10th and 12th – makes full use of the fescue-covered dunes. FORMBY, MERSEYSIDE From £270 A stellar links that fuses ingredients of heathland, parkland and moorland to test the elite while being playable for the rest of us. Few courses can see a fourball, each of whom demand different things from a golf course, walking off the 18th as satisfied as they do here. WEST LANCASHIRE, MERSEYSIDE From €225 The most southerly links on this stretch of coast, and arguably the toughest test of the lot.…

THE BIG GOLF RACE What is it? Golf’s biggest fundraiser in the UK. Why you should care… Prostate cancer is the most common form of the disease in England, affecting one in eight men. The Big Golf Race helps raise money to fund life-saving research, which is where you come in. They need golfers like you to go the extra mile this summer and play 36 or more holes in 24 hours. Everyone who raises £250 will be entered into a prize draw to win a golf holiday, worth £3,000, but this is one instance when it’s not about winning – it’s most definitely about the taking part. To sign up, visit biggolfrace.prostatecanceruk.org THE BIG GOLF RACE PGA TOUR PRO GOLF What is it? A new mobile golf game licensed…

I’ve been playing golf video games since Golden Tee landed in my local arcade in the late ’80s, so you can imagine how excited I am when a new release drops. And there’s a lot to be excited about with the new PGA Tour 2K25. First of all, Tiger Woods is back. Which is always good. And he’s got friends, too, like Max Homa, Lydia Ko and a bunch of celebs and YouTubers – and those last two additions are either good news or bad, depending on your point of view. The MyPlayer mode has been vastly improved and, if you’re anything like me, you’ll spend far too long painstakingly building an over-exaggerated version of yourself. You won’t be playing the game long before you notice other new features. When…