Turning golf on its head

By Harry Emanuel Last updated: 23rd September 2009

Whilst our intrepid reporter Matt Cooper was flying the flag for England in Kazakhstan last week I found myself in Romania.

Golf in Romania makes pretty sad reading and there are only 250 or so golfers from a population of 22 million. There were six golf courses before the Second World War but two were blown away and then in 1948 the communist regime pretty much closed the other four.

However golf is making a small resurgence with one 18 hole course, two nine hole golf courses and a six hole course. The most famous course is the Diplomatic Club in Bucharest which sits in the very pleasant surroundings of Heastrau Park and just survived the communist era after being cut from an 18 hole to six hole golf course.

My mate Richard and I played a friendly international match at the Diplomatic against the Romanian pair of Gelu and Bogdan. We were unable to right the wrongs of England's 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Romanian football team in the 2000 European Championships and went down 5&4.

We were not helped by the local rule of mulligans on the first hole after the Romanian pair bashed their tee shots into the trees but cold beers, bad golf jokes and plates of Mititei (Romanian sausages) eased our pain.

It may not be one of the world's best golf courses, in fact it isn't but there is a lot to be said for a six hole course. Play six, stop for a cold drink, play six, stop for cold drink, play a final six and stop for a few drinks and some food. A very sensible and pleasant way to play in hot conditions.

To think the first Open Championships were played over 12 holes at Prestwick and it wasn't till the turn of the 20th century that 18 holes became the norm. In a world where everything is getting smaller and quicker only golf courses are bigger and slower and in places people are facing five-hour plus rounds.

By transforming courses into 12 holes not only could we get done in two and half hours or less but courses would not become outdated with technology as the land could be redesigned to accommodate 12 quality holes.

Today is the Autumnal Equinox where the hours of daylight and darkness are the same. In just three months we see the shortest day which has under eight hours of daylight. If golf courses were only 12 holes people would be able to play much more in the winter. Maybe I'm just getting lazier as I get closer to the middle age.

This week is my final attempt to hit the six grand barrier and win myself a new car. The fund took a battering as YE Yang's victory compounded a miserable PGA Championship that saw the fund fall from £5,500 to £4,000.

Having been on the losing side recently I leave it up to the Wise One to put you into a winner and I'll try to find a player to finish last.

At the BMW championship I highlighted the impressive record of Tiger Woods at golf courses redesigned by Rees Jones. East Lake is another such course and below I have ranked the field by their percentage of top 20 places on Rees Jones redesigned golf courses since 2000.

Dufner 0% RJ 66-m-m-26-77-48-m-30

Perry 12% RJ 44-45-29-23-18-29-23-23-20-49-47-m-44-24-44-43-45

Cabrera 13% RJ 37-66-48-m-33-m-19-30-m-m-20-22-m-54-63-45

Yang 13% RJ m-47-m-66-57-22-1-65

Slocum 13% RJ m-22-70-37-47-29-m-46-17-9-m-44-58-m-38

Gay 15% RJ 22-m-53-m-76-30-m-20-13-26-m-m-55

Na 17% RJ 72-45-m-w-m-m-m-26-19-m-43-8

Kelly 19% RJ 44-8-m-m-4-3-11-83-34-m-44-48-m-45-49-m-m-m-60-m-49

Marino 20% RJ 20-69-m-49-23-66-m-24-60-22-m-19-40-m-18

Watney 21% RJ Debut m-49-11-9-42-59-m-60-36-1-m-66-m-30

Senden 22% RJ 13-57-m-21-m-31-31-40-52-8-18-42-50-50-31-44-m-20

D Johnson 25% RJ 37-m-48-19-m-40-10-30

O'Hair 27% RJ m-59-12-m-12-14-25-57-49-m-31-23-35-75-4

Verplank 29% RJ 14-6-m-m-7-m-34-3-m-30-5-29-m-28-31-m-38

Harrington 37% RJ m-8-17-14-m-m-7-32-m-24-11-26-36-1-44-24-26-m-10

Cink 41% RJ 18-59-m-m-10-10-21-15-28-28-24-25-14-7-11-3-14-m-60-24-27-67

Ogilvy 42% RJ 67-m-28-6-m-9-19-12-61-17-m-2-9-31-28-6-47-43-55

Z Johnson 44% RJ 40-13-24-m-17-49-m-16-45-38-2-m-m-m-10-5

Stricker 45% RJ 66-16-m-m-m-3-7-m-9-2-3-17-11-29-18-39-10-24-m-23-m-53

Weir 45% RJ 21-16-m-34-4-42-47-6-6-8-18-m-42-67-6-10-48-m-20-m

Toms 48% RJ 11-1-45-m-3-m-10-15-10-22-m-16-14-27-18-60-15-m-m-36-23

Leishman 50% RJ 25-2

Glover 50% RJ m-m-m-m-29-4-21-46-8-m-m-12-14-m-14-54-13-3-31-1-5-5-66

Goosen 50% RJ 37-m-23-9-1-11-6-4-34-4-14-24-26-16-51-23

Donald 56% RJ 18-18-7-2-2-57-66-14-24-3-5-30-w-7-m-m-43-10

Furyk 59% RJ 6-m-9-18-28-34-13-29-2-3-14-11-37-36-3-29-3-6-33-7-63-2

Mickelson 61% RJ 1-2-m-2-34-5-4-4-19-56-33-1-8-16-51-m-20-6-23-18-7-17-3-42-m-2-73-30

Mahan 68% RJ m-m-m-m-11-56-5-8-30-5-29-m-18-12-m-8-17-11-6-6-2-16-38

Els 70% RJ 3-13-24-34-13-10-6-15-16-10-18-26-14-31-17-6-14-m-6-38

Woods 96% RJ 2-29-5-1-2-7-1-10-2-1-2-4-2-1-1-1-6-1-1-1-1-6-1-2-1

The bookies have priced it pretty well with Dufner, Gay and Slocum as co 9-1 favourites. But Dufner who is the third worst ranked player in the field (75) with Senden (91) and Leishman (112) behind has figures over last two months of m-3-m-m-m-2-30. Combined with very poor form on Rees Jones courses and in the state of Georgia (58-m-m-m) I make him the outright favourite and he must be backed.

Of the other debutants with poor Rees Jones course form Yang and Gay are both in poor form at the moment but at 28/1 Cabrera catches the eye. He either shoots the lights out or does nothing. He was fourth at Bridgestone and the Deutsche Bank which both suit long hitters but in the first playoff event three weeks ago he finished 152 of 159 and last week only had six of the current field behind him.

Long hitters such as Bubba Watson and Brett Wetterich have finished last here and although he is different class to those two he has the third worst all round ranking in the field and I'll take a chance it's not his week.

Kenny Perry has very poor form on Rees Jones courses and simply hates East Lake with a best finish of 18th. He was last in 2004 when in much better form. Even when he opened with a 65 to be just off the lead in 2005 he finished 20th.

His mother is sadly very ill and with his son on the bag recently he doesn't look very interested in the game at the moment. A small bet at 14/1 as he is a class player and made his last 27 cuts in a row.

I'll be looking for mismatches in any mythical two ball coupons and match bets. Hopefully picking losers is easier than picking winners.

Harry Emanuel