Hogan
hero 60 YEARS AGO, ON OCTOBER 4 1957, THE SOVIET UNION LAUNCHED SPUTNIK INTO ORBIT AND BEGAN THE SPACE AGE.
In his father’ s (and grandfather’ s) footsteps!
MATT JORDAN, ONE OF HOYLAKE’S FINEST PLAYERS, PARTNERED BY ROYAL BIRKDALE’S NICOLA GEORGE, WON THE HOYLAKE OPEN SCRATCH MIXED FOURSOMES AT THEIR FIRST ATTEMPT LAST SUMMER.
In doing so, this +4 handicap player maintained a family tradition. His father, Andy, won the event twice in 1998 and 1999; and his grandfather, Tony, reached the final in 1983 - with the author of this story). This popular Mixed Foursomes
tournament, which attracts a top quality field of golfers from all over the UK, as well as a handful from overseas, is played each year over the August Bank Holiday weekend. Last year saw the 53rd playing of
this knockout, generally regarded as the premier event of its type in the UK. The ‘blind date’ pairing of Jordan
and George was put together at the last minute by former England International player, Janet Melville, also of Birkdale, who introduced the pair.
Above: Ali Johnson, Captain of RLGC Ladies, Nicola George, Matt Jordan and David Smith, Captain RLGC
Nicola George, a former tennis
professional, has only turned her focus to golf in the last few years but her fine play with Jordan over the weekend suggest this will be the first of many titles for the gifted sportswoman. Their tightest game came in Round
1 where they won by the narrowest of margins on the final hole against fellow Hoylake player, Dan Heron, and his partner, Jessica Morris, from Bidston. Their
opponents in the final were
the pairing of Alistair Robinson and Gemma Bradbury, the No 3 seeds from Milford and Hearsall, who lost to Jordan and George in the Final by 3&1. Robinson and Bradbury got
through
to the semifinals by beating Hoylake’s Simon Dalby and partner Janet Melville from Birkdale, while Mike Thelwell and Elizabeth Codet from Rouen lost in the other semifinal. The weekend’s format includes a Consolation
Knockout, a handicap
event and wonderful social events. For information about the 2017 Hoylake Open Scratch Mixed Foursomes go to the Royal Liverpool Golf Club website or call the Secretary’s office on 0151 632 3101. You can read more about Matt on
page 8. HELEN HEGGARTY
ROYAL LIVERPOOL GOLF CLUB 2017 MAGAZINE
33
This technological breakthrough cause consternation in the West, though not necessarily in the White House occupied by President Eisenhower. This is an interesting extract from a book by Yanek Mieczkowski called Eisenhower’s Sputnik Moment. “Eisenhower’s near-obsession
with golf, so damaging to his image, underscored the problem with his public relations machinery. A fresh putting green on the White House South Lawn, a new miniature golf course at Camp David, and frequent trips to the links led to accusations that Eisenhower...was ‘golfing and goofing’ instead of being President. (He even wore golf cleats inside the White House, leaving scuff marks that later led President Kennedy to complain, ‘Look what that son of a bitch did to my floor.’) After Sputnik, people joked about the administration sending a golf ball into orbit. A popular bumper sticker read, ‘Ben Hogan for President (if we’ve got to have a golfer in the White House, let’s have a good one).’ ”
Above: Sputnik
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