Guests of the Pod
Junior Opens you can’t miss
Words by Peter Handcock While many of us are gearing up for the season ahead, thousands of junior golfers across the country are doing so on a much more serious level. Junior Opens are the backbone of many boys' and girls' summer holidays, offering competitive golf at incredible venues for unbeatable value. Half Par—who, despite his appearance, aged out of these events a terrifying 10 years ago—reflects on why he now values them even more than national tournaments, before highlighting a range of standout Junior Opens taking place this year. If you’ve got a son or daughter and want to introduce them to great golf courses without breaking the bank, this article is a great place to start. Table of Contents The Planning Stages For many of us, the Masters marks the start of the golfing season—golf [...]
The best golf book you’ve never read
words by Peter Handcock This week, 640 school alumni make their annual pilgrimage to the Kent coast for the 101st year of the Halford Hewitt tournament. A festival of golf where 10 old boys (and girls) from a fixed list of 64 public schools across the Isles compete in a team scratch foursomes knockout at Royal Cinque Ports (and Royal St George's for the opening rounds). Some aim to survive round one, others chase another title—but for all, it’s a reunion first, where golf takes a back seat to the camaraderie and spirit of the game. Half Par has taken a delve into the history, specifically a series of Trivia books around the event, to share more about what makes this contest so unique. Table of Contents The Hewitt With its format, characters, and long history, the [...]
300 – The Halford Hewitt w/ Nick Owen
Final call for those yet to complete the Tip Jar - our online survey which can be found here. Huge thanks to Nick Owen - Hon. Sec for The Halford Hewitt - for giving us his time for this special interview on 'the greatest of all truly amateur tournaments' as Nick Tremayne once said. Next week 64 independent schools will once again field their teams of 10 down at Royal Cinque Ports for this gruelling foursomes matchplay knockout event, with the hope of being immortalised on the boards of Deal. Nick does a wonderful job in this episode in sharing the history and unique character of the event, as well as some highlights from over 40 years of attending the week. Latest Products
299 – Ben Cowan-Dewar: Founder & CEO of Cabot
Link to complete 'The Tip Jar' - our survey can be found here. In this episode, Sam speaks to the founder and CEO of Cabot - Ben Cowan Dewar - about his early experiences with the game of golf and how he came to be one of the youngest developers in the business when we began work at Cabot Cape Breton at the age of 25. Since then, Cabot has become a powerhouse in the world of resort golf, with the portfolio of Cabot properties growing to Europe in Bordeaux, Scotland with Cabot Highlands which will see the addiiton of the new Tom Doak course (Old Petty) this summer, St Lucia with the latest Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw designed course and Citrus Farms in Florida. It's a brilliant example of an entrepreneurial mindset and sheer resilience to keep putting one foot infront of the other despite the obstacles [...]
298 – Course Diaries: Sutton Coldfield Golf Club
Link to our newly announced survey, the 'Tip Jar' can be found here. We would be really appreciative if you can find ten minutes to fill this out, and will be extremely helpful for us in our quest to create better content for you in the future. *** Sutton Coldfield was founded in 1889, with golf played on the royal park of Sutton for years before. From a 9-hole course developed by our favourite roofer - David Brown - to an 18 hole MacKenzie layout, it's wonderful example of sustainable year round golf. Huge thanks to Pat and Pat for looking after us and having us at the club a couple of weeks ago. Latest Products
Episode: 297 – The Sunningdale Foursomes
Podding from Pizza Express in Beaconsfield Service Station, Sam sits down with Peter Handcock (aka @half_par_kid) to recap on the action at Sunnnigdale for the 91st instalment of the Sunningdale Foursomes. Huge congratulations to the victors in David Corben & Harry Crockett who prevailed after seven gruelling rounds of matchplay golf, narrowly beating the Walton Heath pairing of Oscar Lent & Monty Holcombe. For more on the Sunningdale Foursomes please head to our blog page where James Burn wrote a wonderful piece on the event. Latest Products
