Fisher Destined for Greatness

Oliver Fisher can be golf’s world number one in the future, according to his coach Chris Jenkins.

The nineteen-year-old narrowly missed out on his first European Tour victory at the Andalucia Open three weeks ago, losing to Thomas Levet in a play-off.

After the event, the Frenchman spoke highly of Fisher, and even compared him to current world number one Tiger Woods.

And Jenkins believes Fisher can replace Woods at the top of world golf:

“Tiger can’t go on forever. Someone will have to be the next world number one. Ollie is in a different era to Tiger, so I don’t see any reason why it can’t be Ollie.”

Fisher was looking to make history in Spain by becoming only the second British teenager to win on the European Tour.

Had he won the event, he would have also become the fifth youngest winner in the tour’s history.

And he came so close. Fisher was three shots in front with six holes to play, but struggled on the latter holes, allowing Levet to clinch the title.

The Essex-born golfer has made a big impression on the professional circuit, and his coach will take some credit for this.

Jenkins first started coaching Fisher as a nine-year-old. The pair met at Warren Park Golf Centre in Chadwell Heath, Essex. Jenkins offered Fisher a free video analysis, and has been coaching him ever since.

Jenkins was immediately aware that Fisher had a natural talent:

“He was certainly much better than any other nine-year-old that I was coaching at the time, or had seen before. I suppose you could say that it was evident that he was going to be as good as he is now, but you can never tell. I haven’t seen a better nine-year-old since.”

Fisher came through the ranks as a member of Team Faldo, a mentorship programme that helps find and care for the next generation of golfing champions in Europe.

He has won Faldo Junior Series events and is still the youngest golfer ever to play in the Walker Cup.

And his coach believes that he can set an example for younger generations:

“There are more youngsters coming through, but they need a role model. A young trendy guy like Ollie could be a great person to help them come forward. He can be that someone to look up to and try and emulate.”

He was also keen to point out that Fisher is still only nineteen, and that there is still a lot of room for improvement and natural development. A scary thought.

Jenkins was asked when that next time an Englishman would win a major.

“Who knows? I’m not sure if any Englishmen at the moment could win a major, but certainly the new generation of young kids coming through have a good opportunity, and may well be able to achieve it,” he replied.

Fisher is a life-long member of West Essex Golf Club in Chingford. Another member there, Alex Stavri, explained how Fisher was always destined for greater things:

“I was aware of Ollie’s talent the moment I joined, as other members were always watching and talking about him. His talent was obvious, but he earned it by practicing more than anyone else I have ever seen. Since a very young age, all he did was practice.

“I have played a few rounds with him and quite frankly he’s amazing. His length and accuracy are machine like.”

Image from Chris Jenkins Golf

Ollie Fisher: England's answer to Tiger Woods? Vote on my poll.

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Faldo's work is paying off

English golfing great Nick Faldo can take a lot of credit for Oliver Fisher’s rise to stardom.

Fisher progressed through the ranks of Faldo’s mentorship programme Team Faldo, a concept that aims to identify and nurture the next generation of golfing champions.

After winning his last Masters in 1996, Faldo was posed the question where the next Nick Faldo was coming from. At the time, Lee Westwood was one of the only English golfers ranked inside the top 100 in the world.

With the golfing heritage in this country, Faldo knew this was unacceptable. That is why, in 1996, he established the Faldo Series.

Kerry McDonald, Director of the Faldo Series Europe, explained Faldo’s vision:

“Nick set about trying to put in place a programme that combines top quality competition on world class courses, that test every aspect of a good golfer’s game and help prepare them for tough golf courses that you would face in the professional world.

“He also felt that it was vital that these guys understood that to be a professional golfer these days, you need to be better prepared than ever before. You need to be mentally strong, physically strong, know about diet and nutrition, and also know about the business side of golf.

“All of these aspects are rolled into the Faldo Series ethos, which are really about professional development and about these guys gaining a better understanding on what is required to reach the next level.”

Fisher performed very well in the Faldo Series, and was named Faldo Series champion in successive years in 2004 and 2005.

The Essex-born teenager was hand picked by Faldo in 2003, and soon became a member of Team Faldo. It was here, where Fisher received invaluable advice and support from arguably one of the world’s greatest ever golfers.

And McDonald always knew Fisher was going to be a success:

“I am often asked the question what sets Oliver Fisher apart from a lot of top young amateur golfers out there. And it’s hunger, it’s desire, and it’s the ability to want to know more and to learn.

“One of Ollie’s greatest assets is his ability to absorb information and process it in order of what he feels he needs. Ollie has done that, in my opinion, very successfully with Nick. He was always asking questions and being inquisitive.”

But McDonald played down comparisons between Fisher and Faldo. He said: “I’m sure Oliver Fisher wants to be the next Oliver Fisher. He doesn’t want to be the next Nick Faldo.

“Oliver Fisher is going to be a very good golfer. Will he be Britain’s next major winner? There is a very good chance if he develops. He just needs to keep pushing on and performing.”

The Faldo Series also aims to combat many of the stigmas that are attached to golf, as McDonald expresses:

“It shouldn’t be about where you come from, what colour your skin is or how rich you are. It’s about how good you are or how good you could be, and how good you want to be.

“If we [the Faldo Series] can help try and break down some of the barriers that exist within golf, then I think hopefully golf will become more popular, and we will start to see more players playing regularly and more so at the top end of the pyramid. This will lead to more players competing on the professional circuit.”

One to Watch

Kerry was a little nervous about labelling future stars, but he did mention one outstanding candidate from Team Faldo who is destined for great things: the “phenomenally talented” Carly Booth.

Image from Nickfaldo.com

Oliver Fisher's European Tour

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Here is a map of all the golf events on the PGA European Tour, which Oliver Fisher is competing in.

All the blue flags indicate events that have already been played.
All the green golfers indicate upcoming events.

Click on them for further information.

Men CAN learn from the women's game

After spending far too much time on the sofa over the Easter period, I finally decided to go out and play a round of golf. After a not too shoddy round, I have now got the bug again. I'm counting down the days to the end of term, so I can go and play as much as I want.

I have also started to watch more golf on television. I was watching a women's tour event, and I couldn't help but notice one similarity between their game and mine: distance.

It is no use to me when I sit and watch a men's tournament and the commentator announces that so and so is 150 yards from the green, and he has a nine iron in his hand. I cannot relate to this.

However, I can relate to the distances hit by the women golfers. And there are many people that agree with me. Whilst browsing through a BBC Forum, I came across many people who shared my opinion.

A blog post from The Golf Girl, reveals further ways in which us men can learn from the women's game. She suggests that if men could lose male associated traits such as aggression and risk taking, and replace them with traits linked to women such as empathy and nurturing, then some men could cope better with the demands of golf. To be honest, I have to agree.

Image from JupiterImages

Can 'Tigress Woods' help improve the coverage of the women's game?

As the women's world number one, Lorena Ochoa, takes a one stroke lead into the final day of the first major of the year, comparisons are being drawn between the Mexican and Tiger Woods.

The 26-year-old is looking to secure her third win in four starts on the 2008 LPGA Tour at the Kraft Nabisco Championship in California.

The significant thing about all this is that, finally, women's golf may now have someone who can attract the mass audiences to the women's game. Or can it?

A post from the Golf Blog criticises the lack of coverage of the women's game. Within the post, it shows how the LPGA recaps on a women's event through YouTube. The video is clearly not effective, and has had just under 60 views.

It raises the question whether the women's game will ever earn the coverage that it deserves.

A BBC Forum is alive and kicking on the subject. One comment states that the women's game needs a 'Tigress Woods'.

Here's a post from the Ultimate Golf Blog, which shows that Ochoa could be the Tiger Woods of the women's tour.

If Ochoa continues her good form, maybe television companies would start to cover the women's game in greater depth, to showcase her talents. We will just have to wait and see......

Photo from http://noezbuckets.files.wordpress.com/2007/08/lorena-ochoa.jpg

Monty Misses Out

After missing out on next months Masters in Augusta, Colin Montgomerie has hit back at organisers of the event.

Reports suggest that three Asian players, all of whom are ranked lower than the Scot, have been chosen to play in the event for commercial reasons.

A post from the Hooked On Golf Blog shows little sympathy towards Monty, who is referred to as 'Mrs. Doubtfire'. The writer highlights the importance of the commercial side of the tournament, and that an Asian draw is needed for television audiences.

It will be only the second time in seventeen years that the 44-year-old has missed the Masters.

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My predictions prove to be correct!

Just a quick post. After stating in my previous post that soon we will have putters that tell us how hard, and where to hit the ball on the greens, I did some research into the crazy world of putters.

And right in front of my eyes, was the DiXX Putter, a digital instructional putter that will set you back £400. It is designed with and Internal Navigation System, multiple Accelerometers, a Micro-Electro Mechanical System and sensors, all with the aim to improve your putting stroke.

However, The Golf Blog reveals that it is not USGA or R&A approved, and so you can only practice with it.

I'm sure it will stay this way, and frankly I hope it does. The pros can't have it that easy.

Image from adamsgolf.com

Will technology ruin the game?

After watching last week's Accenture Match Play Championship, I couldn't help but notice the amount of players using the new Nike SQ Sumo square driver. I had heard a lot about this new club, and the fact that it can eradicate slices was the main reason for my interest.

I'm not sure whether such advancements in technology can benefit the game. Reviews on thegolfchannel.com have all been positive, with one person stating:

"I just bought the sumo-2 over the weekend and it took 6 strokes off my game. This club also helps a lot with a person that has a very bad slice. I am hitting more on the fairway than ever, and closer to greens. Great club!!!!"

Another added: "I am very pleased with the Sumo Sasquatch Driver. It is a very enjoyable club to hit and extremely forgiving. The face of the club is designed in such a way to allow you to review each ball strike. I was playing recently and struck the ball very poorly on the extreme end of the club face. The club twisted slightly in my hand from the impact, but still laid out a very nice drive just 10 feet off the fairway. Great Club!!"

This clearly shows how the club is helping players at club level. Imagine how it is aiding the pros!

The most exciting aspect of golf is the unexpected side to the game. With such little margins for error, anyone can shoot low rounds, or quadruple bogeys.

I just hope technology doesn't got too far. Soon we will have putters that tell us exactly where to hit, and how hard to hit a ball.

On another note, the Grouchy Golf Blog laments the amount of coverage the new club got at the event. It suggests that commentator Nick Faldo was acting as pitchman for Nike.

Nevertheless, the club has got rave reviews. I just hope it doesn't ruin the game.

Photo from lensbs

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Wie set to retire?

A BBC article reporting that Michelle Wie will never regain full fitness because of the wrist problems that have caused her to pull out of recent tournaments has fuelled debates whether the 19-year-old is set for a very early retirement.

The American has enjoyed a very successful start to her career, and has even competed in men's events. 2007 was a complete wipe out as she suffered recurrences of a problematic wrist injury.

A BBC forum shows how some people have reacted to the news that Wie might never be the same again. There are some great posts, and it goes to show how useful utilising the digital newsroom can really be.

One comment reads: "Over hyped, over marketed, overconfident, overpaid...........but mainly over par."

Most of the posts reflect how Wie's parents have pushed her too hard, and so she has been ill advised and exploited.

Whatever you believe, it is a sad story. After all, she is just nineteen, yet the spotlight seems like it has been on her for a lot longer.

A blog post on Worldgolf.com is titled "Top 7 Reasons Why Michelle Wie Will Never Be Number One." It is a very interesting read, and raises many good points.

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Forget Poulter, Scott is the man to challenge Woods

So after all, it's not Ian Poulter who is Tiger's main challenger. It is in fact, someone who I failed to mention in my poll, a certain Adam Scott who can challenge Tiger over the next five years.

This is all according to his coach, Butch Harmon, who is of course Tiger Woods' former coach.

A report from The Australian reveals how Harmon said:

"Adam Scott is the best player under 30 in the world by far,"

"You may get an argument for Luke Donald or Sergio Garcia but I just think Adam Scott is above them. He's a truly great talent.

"He's the only one I see of the young players with all the things it takes to get close to Tiger Woods."

On the other hand, a post from the Grouchy Golf Blog plays down Scott's chances. The writer claims that Scott hasn't got the short game or putting skills to match Tiger.

A really good addition to this post is how they have uploaded a video, comparing the swings of the two golfers. Its a really good example of how this blog is using the digital newsroom to great effect.

Image from usatoday