The Irish Golf Club Gazette

2/15/2014

Golf Tips - On Course Behaviour

When it comes down to it, it is both amazing and completely unsurprising that golf accidents are something of a rarity.

On one hand, the sport involves small dense hard balls being smacked as hard as possible off into the distance which would seem like a recipe for injury and disaster, and yet on the other the courses are so big and empty that the chances of hitting anyone in such a large area should always be remote. As such, the results are predictable: golf accidents are rare, but have been known to happen - and a golf ball travelling at high velocity has been known to kill people. For this reason alone, you should at least be aware of public safety on golf courses.

Keep tabs on those in front of you

As the person with the club in your hands, it is your responsibility to have a good look around you, and make sure that the fairway is clear ready for your drive. Obviously make sure everyone is stood well back when you take your swing - and take extra care if you are playing with children who are less aware of golf health and safety as well as often being unpredictable in their behaviour.

Look to the left and right of where you are aiming - although we all like to consider ourselves budding Tiger Woods when out on the course, the reality is a miss-hit or an unpredictable gust of wind can easily take your ball of course, so ensure that these nearby areas are clear too, to prevent golf accidents.

Shout "fore" and listen for others doing the same!

But what if you notice someone on the fairway ahead that bit too late? What if they were obscured by a tree or you let your concentration down and forgot to check thoroughly. There is one answer - a universal language of golf, and a cliche its own right.

You shout "Fore!" with all your might. Some say this term dates back from the 1700s, but even if it does not - everyone in golf knows what it means - Watch out! It is the universal language for protecting public safety on golf courses!

If you hear someone shouting this, you should not try and see where the ball is coming from. As I mentioned earlier, the odds of someone getting hit by such a small object are tiny, but do not push your luck by making yourself into a bigger target. Crouch, hide behind a tree or your cart and cover your head with your hands.

The secret is to make yourself small to reduce the chances of being hit, and protect your head, because that is where real damage can occur.

Control your frustrations

This one is easier said than done for some of the golfers out there, but relax - enjoy yourself and do not allow yourself to be riled. That frustration can lead to carelessness, and worse - aggressive behaviour.

If that group in front of you is taking an age to move onto the next hole, do not even think about firing a warning golf ball at them - that is a golf accident waiting to happen!

Just take a breath, and enjoy the scenery and the sunshine - if there is any.

Where are they Now - E. O'Connell

GB& Ireland Team 1988 Eisenhower Trophy, Sweden

Eoghan O'Connell became Irish Boys champion in 1984 and went on to gain a crucial win over Peter McEvoy when Ireland beat England to capture the European Amateur Team Championship in Austria three years later. He followed this with two successive 65s at North Berwick to lead a professional field in final qualifying for the Open Championship at Muirfield.

In 1988, he was in the victorious British and Irish Eisenhower Trophy team in Sweden and a year later was a runner-up in the North and South Championship at Pinehurst, before gaining a memorable halved singles in the 1989 Walker Cup at Peachtree Golf Club in Atlanta against up-and-coming left-hander called Phil Mickelson.

After his successful amateur career Eoghan turned professional in 1990, but his time in the pro ranks did not fulfil the promise of his earlier years and O'Connell quit at the end of the European Tour season in 1996 and moved to Florida with his American-born wife.

Having regained amateur status, he had successful surgery on the sinews and tendons of the left wrist in 2002 and resumed his golfing career as of 2004 and still lives in Florida.

O'Connell attended Wake Forest University, where he gained a communications degree on a Lanny Wadkins Scholarship from 1986 to 1990. He was Second Team All American at Wake Forest in 1988 and All ACC for three years.

As a member of the winning Walker Cup team in 1989 he was undefeated in four matches.

Fact file

DOB: March 26th 1988

Place of Birth: Cork

Residence: Florida

Turned Pro: 1990

Why Not Get the Best From Tweeting

Customers are using social media more and more to get answers to their queries. These same customers then share experiences, product information and perhaps even make purchase decisions online as a result.

It means a new new breed of people at home in the digital space, sharing opinions with everyone who cares to listen to them. So information generated for your service will be good news. But beware any negative feedback may also damage your brand.

There were 200 million plus users on Twitter in 2011, generating 200 million tweets and 1.6 billion search queries every day. Every company now uses Twitter to at least gauge customer sentiment about their product, service or brand. The smarter, more savvy ones have realised where the true opportunity lies and now use Twitter as a means of responding to customer queries, feedback and complaints - quickly and efficiently.

Given that the social media is changing industry trends and practices, organisations serious about their prospects cannot really afford to sit on the sidelines and watch. Indeed, an active, well managed and strong presence on Twitter could well be a strong differentiators for a business.

Similarly, unhappy customers tweet their complaints online, so tracking and addressing them in real time boosts brand image and credibility. It also improves customer satisfaction.

There are challenges however and businesses on Twitter need to actively and consistently promote their presence, engage customers in conversation. They also need to set up a uniform process whereby customer service staff can track mentions, select the ones requiring responses and address them in a way that solves the customer’s problems, leaving the customer happy.

According to conventional thinking, social media has been cast as a marketing tool (which it also is) and usually someone in the marketing department is in charge of the Twitter account. When customers tweet for help, the marketing person usually responds instructing the customer to reach customer support through email or phone, instead of attending to the problem right away. It is a response which the customers do not n normally appreciate.

Monitoring and responding manually to an ever increasing number of tweets can be viable in the short term. Or at least until the volume becomes unmanageable.

In fact mining messages on twitter in this way provides companies with real time, actionable data on your company and services.

Tweet to discuss monitoring and editorial strategy @tweetingbizness or email info@tweetingbizness.com

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2/14/2014

No More Riviera for Clarke

Getty Images

Darren Clarke has withdrawn from the Northern Trust Open in California because of a chest muscle injury.

Clarke pulled out of the tournament after scoring a seven-over-par 78 in the opening round on Thursday.

It is the same injury which caused the 45-year-old Northern Irishman miss the recent Qatar Masters.

Clarke's next scheduled event is the Honda Classic in Florida, which takes place from 27 February to 2 March.

Dustin Johnson is the leader at the Northern Trust Open after firing an impressive 66 in his opening round.

Ireland's two-time Open champion Padraig Harrington started his challenge with a 75.

No Californian Dreamin' for Padraig

Getty Images

Pádraig Harrington signed for a round of 75 at the opening round of the Northern Trust Open in California with five bogeys proving the setback at the Riviera Country Club.

The Dubliner started with birdies on the par-five first and the third hole putting him among the early leaders. His first bogey would come at the par-three fourth before a run of three straight bogeys from the seventh pushed him out to two over.

Back to back dropped shots on the 12th and 13th and a three-putt from 10 feet on the par-five 17th for bogey left Harrington on five over before a closing birdie on the 18th came when he rolled in a 17-foot putt for a three.

Dustin Johnson made six birdies on a warm, sunny day at Riviera for a 5-under 66, giving him a one-shot lead Thursday in the Northern Trust Open when the opening round was suspended by darkness.

Jimmy Walker birdied his last three holes and was in the large group at 67 that included Francesco Molinari of Italy and Torrey Pines winner Scott Stallings.

Four days ago, Johnson closed with a 66 in the gray, cold weather of Pebble Beach to finish one shot behind Walker. In conditions that could not have been any different -- and could not have been any better -- he made birdie on all of the par 5s at Riviera and only had one bogey on his card, at the long par-3 fourth.

"It was cold, windy and wet at Pebble on Sunday. Here, it's not a lot of wind and perfect conditions. It's sunny and a really nice temperatures," Johnson said. "It's still golf, though. You've still got to adjust no matter what you're doing."

That was no trouble for Walker, whose victory in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am was his third of the season. He drove his RV down from the Monterey Peninsula, got up at 4:30 a.m. Wednesday to appear on Golf Channel, and then went right back to work.

Walker was in the middle of the pack until his tee shot on the par-3 16th settled just over a foot from the cup. He nearly reached the par-5 17th in two to set up a simple birdie, then finished with one of his best shots -- an 8-iron from 184 yards out of a flyer lie in the rough to the back of the green and a 30-foot putt.

"It's four more days of golf," Walker said. "You can ride the momentum of really good play. But everyone started at even and you just have to be like, `Let's go get it again.'"

It was a glorious day off Sunset Boulevard, and Riviera was in ideal shape -- firm and fast, particularly on the greens.

The warmth meant a little more distance, such as the 349-yard tee shot Johnson hammered down the middle of 13th fairway, a slight dogleg left framed by eucalyptus trees. That left him only 97 yards, and he stuffed it. And on the par-5 17th -- 608 yards up the hill, no help from wind -- he reached it in two and had a two-putt from just over 20 feet. His only glitch was coming up just short of the green and in the bunker on the 225-yard fourth.

Johnson isn't playing a lot this season, but when he does, he plays well.

He already has a win at the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions in Shanghai. He shared the 54-hole lead at Kapalua and tied for sixth, and then took off four weeks before returning at Pebble Beach. That was a good sign for Johnson, who said he doesn't have a good history of playing well in the first event after a long break.

"This time, I stayed with it. I worked hard at home," Johnson said. "It was tough at Pebble because of the weather, and it was hard to keep your concentration."

Life is bliss right now for Walker, who is going for his third win in California this season, starting with the Frys.com Open at CordeValle in October. The only struggle was a bogey on the par-5 11th when his tee shot just missed the fairway and buried in a small indentation in the long grass. He followed that with another bogey on the tough 12th, and then rallied at the end.

"I don't know what it's like for some of those guys that are winning 40 times and they have done this a ton," Walker said. "But right now, enjoy it. It's fun. It's a good place to be."

Jim Furyk, Keegan Bradley and Rickie Fowler were among those at 68.

Jordan Spieth looked as though he might be among the leaders after holing out from 125 yards for eagle on No. 7 to reach 3 under. He was in position for a birdie on the 11th until leaving a shot in the greenside bunker and missing the par putt. Spieth caught a huge break on the next hole when his tee shot was hooking out-of-bounds until hitting a tree, though he had to scramble for bogey.

He also made three par putts in the 5-foot range to hold it together, but dropped a shot on the 18th when he tried to punch a hybrid around some Eucalyptus trees. He had a 73.

Darren Clarke finished with a 78 in his comeback after injury, and has now withdrawn.