Opinion

  • Meghan MacLaren: “Success in golf is about more than a victory”

    Tuesday 19 October 2021

    Ladies European Tour star Meghan MacLaren asks: ‘What really constitutes success for a golfer?’ Sometimes I wonder what non-golfers’ perspectives are on golf. How do they view our game through the lens of other sports? The people who have never really tried golf, apart from a one-off foray to the driving range where they’re just as likely to try to tee...

  • Bad Golf’s John Robins: “How I halved my handicap in four months”

    Monday 18 October 2021

    After nearly halving his handicap in the space of four months, Bad Golf’s John Robins is officially a man worth listening to! In his exclusive Today’s Golfer column, the comedian and BBC 5Live presenter details his spectacular journey to a handicap of 12.3 and doles out some shrewd advice on the everlasting importance of course management and mental mastery. Well then, here...

  • Meghan MacLaren: “Is the game really about entertainment?”

    Monday 27 September 2021

    Ladies European Tour star Meghan MacLaren asks: ‘Are professional golfers really there to entertain us?’ Are you someone who watches golf on television? Chances are, if you are reading this, you probably are. Do you watch any golf tournament – no matter what event it is, what course it’s being played on, which players are involved? However much you love golf,...

  • Bad Golf’s John Robins: “The Ryder Cup remains the ultimate golf event”

    Wednesday 22 September 2021

    The Ryder Cup has got John Robins very, very excited. In his exclusive Today’s Golfer column, the comedian, broadcaster and Bad Golf star indulges in some misty-eyed Ryder Cup nostalgia and talks about his own unique relationship with this famous monolith of a tournament. Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy, it’s finally here! The Ryder Cup! Is there another sporting event like it?...

  • Bad Golf’s John Robins: “How to cope when your form deserts you”

    Thursday 2 September 2021

    Bad Golf’s John Robins has gone from a 21-handicapper to a 13-handicapper in a matter of months, putting the brand under serious threat! But never fear, the comedian and broadcaster’s recent good form proved it is still capable of deserting him with zero notice. Here, in his exclusive Today’s Golfer column, he explains how he coped when those halcyon days of...

  • Meghan MacLaren: “It’s vital to learn from our failures”

    Wednesday 1 September 2021

    Ladies European Tour star Meghan MacLaren explains why attitude and adaptability are the golfer’s key traits. Midway through a recent tournament, one of my playing partners and I realised we were telling the exact same story. The third player in our group had asked a question about golf on links courses, and so we started reminiscing about the British Amateur Championships...

  • Bad Golf’s John Robins: “I love the camaraderie (and many pints) of a golf trip”

    Friday 30 July 2021

    We’ve all been missing foreign golf trips, but for comedian and broadcaster John Robins an overseas golf adventure changed his life for the better. In his exclusive Today’s Golfer column, the co-creator of hit YouTube channel Bad Golf explains how an anxiety inducing invitation actually helped him discover his love of golf. For a long time during both lockdowns, playing a round...

  • Meghan MacLaren: “Golfers searching for perfection is a waste of time”

    Thursday 29 July 2021

    Ladies European Tour star Meghan MacLaren explains why the pursuit of golfing perfection is a waste of time. Golf is complicated, isn’t it? One day you go out and play and you’re hitting your irons the best you ever have. You think you’ve stumbled upon some great secret to success and you can’t believe it could be so simple – for...

  • Meghan MacLaren: “Joint male-female events are vital for golf’s future”

    Thursday 17 June 2021

    Ladies European Tour star Meghan MacLaren explains why mixed male-female tournaments are vital for golf’s future. By the time you read this, the Scandinavian Mixed on the Ladies European Tour and the European Tour will have taken place. You will already know what stories it throws up; who ultimately comes out on top; who shines and who grinds – and, perhaps...

  • Bad Golf’s John Robins: “What makes the perfect golf partner?”

    Tuesday 15 June 2021

    What makes the perfect golf fourball? Comedian and broadcaster John Robins, co-creator of YouTube channel Bad Golf, explains his perfect group. Last year I joined my first ever golf club at the tender age of 38 and after less than a year of being a member I’ve seen my handicap drop around three shots. RELATED: Bad Golf: “We’ll always be sh*t at golf,...

  • Meghan MacLaren: “Class is permanent but success is never predictable”

    Wednesday 19 May 2021

    Ladies European Tour star Meghan MacLaren explains that while class may be permanent at the highest levels of golf, it’s never a guarantee of success. So far, 2021 has been the year of the comeback. In the last few months we’ve had Jordan Spieth, Lydia Ko, Ariya Jutanugarn, Brooke Henderson, Hideki Matsuyama – even Rory McIlroy could be included in this...

  • Bad Golf’s John Robins: “How I shot my lowest ever score”

    Wednesday 19 May 2021

    Award-winning comedian and BBC Radio 5Live host John Robins is the co-creator of YouTube channel Bad Golf, but if his current form continues then it will need a rebrand. We’ll let him explain… Over the course of these columns I have attempted to represent the experience of the average golfer. Though I refer to myself as a ‘bad golfer’, the stats...

  • Meghan MacLaren: “What you can learn from pro golfers’ mentalities”

    Friday 7 May 2021

    Ladies European Tour star Meghan MacLaren explains what we can learn from professional golfers’ mentalities and how knowing our weaknesses can help limit their impact.  How many times have you heard someone say, after a great round or a tournament victory, that they didn’t look at a leaderboard once? Do you believe them? If I’m being honest, I’ve always found it...

  • Why are golf courses green fees so high?

    Tuesday 4 May 2021

    In compiling our all-new Golf World Top 100 Courses For £60 And Under, rankings editor Chris Bertram discovered that too many of Britain and Ireland’s courses are charging far too much money for the quality they offer. Researching the courses that were eligible for our first Top 100 Under £60 ranking was eye-opening. I had pre-conceived ideas about what would be...

  • Bad Golf’s John Robins: “I putted like a pro… unless it was within three feet”

    Friday 16 April 2021

    Golf is back from its Coronavirus closure and award-winning comedian, BBC Radio 5Live host and Bad Golfer John Robins’ return to the course saw him putting like a pro… for a few holes, at least. There is no better way to start my latest Today’s Golfer column than with words doubtless uttered on every fairway, green and tee box this last...

  • Meghan MacLaren: “How to make the most of your ‘golf IQ'”

    Monday 12 April 2021

    Meghan MacLaren explains the key part of ‘golf IQ’ is knowing what works for you and sticking to it.  There is an old cliché in golf that to be truly successful, you must be one of two things: extremely intelligent or extremely not-intelligent. The truth, like most things in life, is more likely that we all lie somewhere in the middle,...

  • Bad Golf’s John Robins: “Solving slow play is simple…”

    Monday 29 March 2021

    In his exclusive Today’s Golfer column, award-winning comedian, BBC Radio 5Live host and Bad Golfer John Robins tackles one of golf’s biggest issues – slow play – and thinks he’s come up with the solution. Slow play. It can be a bit of a mystery to the new golfer. In fairness, when your entire brain is focused on getting the ball in the...

  • Meghan MacLaren: “All golfers are frustrated perfectionists”

    Monday 15 March 2021

    Every one of us is capable of playing bad shots, even the game’s Major-winning greats. But as Ladies European Tour star Meg MacLaren explains in her exclusive column, it’s how you react to them that determines so much. Like a lot of people, particularly over the last year, I’ve been through more than my fair share of Netflix. Whether I’m rewatching...

  • Andrew Cotter: “Bryson DeChambeau is the monster golf created”

    Written by Andrew Cotter on Monday 8 March 2021

    Bryson DeChambeau distance drew headlines again as the US Open champion powered his way to his eighth PGA Tour victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. But, as our columnist Andrew Cotter muses here, golf must always be a game of skill over power. Tam Arte Quam Marte… I do like to start off with a bit of Latin – it creates an...

  • Bad Golf’s John Robins: “All I can think of is the joy of playing again”

    Monday 1 March 2021

    In his exclusive Today’s Golfer column, award-winning comedian, BBC Radio 5Live host and Bad Golfer John Robins sets out his golf goals ahead of golf’s return in England and reflects on what he’s missed most about the game in lockdown. I do hope with all my heart that this Today’s Golfer column finds you in a state of high anticipation for the imminent...

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