Do we have a fight on our hands, Mr Vousden? Discuss.

Thought of the Day
It’s not an optical illusion. It just looks like one

A week is a long time…
Supposedly in politics, at least – but the same could also be said of golf. Virtually all season whenever I have thought about the Ryder Cup, and I try not to do that too much until the event is almost upon us, it has been with a quiet, almost smug sense of confidence that Europe is going to bring Samuel Ryder’s small but perfectly formed trophy back where it belongs. We have, after all, 49 of the world’s top-50 players – or so it seems – and Europeans have won seven times on the US Tour this year (including Majors, and Justin Rose’s two victories). It is necessary to remind ourselves, perhaps, that a British or European winner in America, until comparatively recently, was as rare as Monty congratulating an on-course photographer for a job well done. (more…)

Still time for a sneaky bet!

Well they should have teed off by now, in which case we’d be shouting “stop the betting!”, but the start has been delayed by fog.  So until the first ball is struck, get on in there and have a go in the USPGA comp  here

Win a GoKart in the final major of 2010.

Where did the Season go? Here we are at the last major. Not to worry, we have ages to go before the weather gets grotty and the evenings too short.

So, you know the form, predict the winner of the 2010 USPGA and, for a tie breaker, the winning score. We’ll give GoKarts to the first two correct entries out of the hat after play finishes on Sunday (there’s a rollover from the British when nobody guessed the winner, hence the extra prize!). (more…)

Only one winner at St. Andrews!

Sadly nobody walked away with a shiny new GoKart in our Open competition so it was just Mr. Oosterhuizen that triumphed. And what a triumph, talk about doing it in style!

So we have a rollover for the USPGA, when we’ll have two GoKarts up for grabs.  We’ll announce the new comp a couple of weeks before the tournie when the line up is definite.

And in honour of the week we have a wee Scottish themed limerick from Mr. W;

Old Jock the Scots pro passed away
He’d shot eagles and birdies each day
As they lowered him down
Said his caddy Jim Brown
“That’s his first hole in one I would say.”

Not sure we’d turn down Pebble Beach, Martin!

Thoughts on the US Open
Golfers don’t win the US Open; they hang on like grim death and survive – it’s like watching a 20-car motorway pile-up, and waiting to see who emerges from the wreckage once the blood, smoke and debris have cleared. A few facts to prove the point; in the first round, the world numbers one and two (Tiger and Phil) couldn’t make a birdie between them; in the last round, only five out of 82 players were under par for the day – and none of them were in contention; and the six players in the last three pairings were a combined 11-over par for the 8^th, 9^th and 10^th holes. There are numerous other stats to emphasise the point.

It might be dramatic, in the way that car, plane or rail crashes are dramatic, but it’s not what I want to watch.

All credit though, to Graeme McDowell, who did what he needed to do. He is a man, as my mother would say, who has no ‘side’; what you see is what you get and being in the public eye hasn’t changed him at all. His swing is not the most orthodox but, and here is a lesson some of his peers might want to absorb, it repeats flawlessly, even when the pressure gauge is turned up to 11. (more…)

GoKart Limerick Competition

In celebration of our extremely successful launch in Ireland we thought we’d have a bit of a limerick competition. You know the sort of thing; ‘There was a young man from Devizes…’ (cleanish please, or not, but then we won’t be able to print it, just titter here at GKHQ).  It doesn’t have to be about a GoKart, but the theme should be golf.

We’ll run the competition for a month, and the winner will have their limerick illustrated by Geoff Waterhouse and sent to them in a posh frame, completely unique and ready to display with pride.

So to start the ball rolling, a quick one from Mr. W himself -

Simply enter your creation, along with your name in the comment box below.