Our links to two golf greats

The development of golf in Bermuda is an interesting story, centred around the early development of the tourism trade, famous people and gorgeous coastal golf courses that are extremely challenging.

In addition to the hundreds of thousands of golf enthusiasts who have visited us from overseas, among them were former British Ryder Cup captain Dai Rees and Archie Compston, the British Ryder Cup player who became the Mid-Ocean Club Professional. Both were runners-up in The Open – Rees three times.

 Both Compston (1893-1962) and Rees CBE (1913-1983) were exceptional professional golfers who were also great wind players and each of them positively influenced the development of the golf game in my beloved Bermuda.

The island of Bermuda is a British Overseas Territory steeped in history and traditional charm that attracted many great players, but through the presence of these two great players many islanders and our visitors learned the fundamentals of the game, especially the art of the wind shot and the importance of practice, being focused, and being positive and confident at all costs.

With London only a six-hour flight to paradise to enjoy sun, fun and golf, Bermuda became a popular place for a winter respite.

It clearly helped our tourism develop, aided by the popularity of the game of golf together with the popularity and stature of these two great British Ryder Cup stars and their American counterparts who also played golf in Bermuda.

Compston was also regarded as a great teacher of the game — stories about him are legendary and entertaining. One particular story was how Archie — of towering stature — would force his students to hit down and through the ball ‘by stomping on the ball they were about to play with his foot during a coaching session’. Compston’s tenure was a greatly cherished and respected association that not only shaped the golf of many Bermudian golfers of that era but also the caddies who became outstanding players as well.

Rees, meanwhile, made Bermuda his winter retreat and also made many friends as he willingly shared his knowledge and love for the game of golf.

As a beneficiary of that knowledge, I can attest to how his ability to negotiate the wind, remain a focused and positive golfer was transported across the ocean to keen observers in Bermuda who cherished the opportunity to rub shoulders with and learn the skills from such a great player on a personal level.

Rees, who finished second in three Opens, once said to me: “Three reasons I never won The Open? Hogan (Ben), Thompson (Peter) and Palmer (Arnold).”

Through the coaching of Rees, I came to better appreciate that ball control — when hitting a wind shot — is mainly achieved through the proper application of the fundamentals,  especially ball positioning, proper forward weight transfer by the hips and the role of the left hand at impact. A flat left wrist at impact (for a right-handed golfer) leads and pulls through on an arc toward the intended target line as the forward-moving hips clear or turn.

In Bermuda, unpredictable wind direction and gusty velocity both make hitting accurate shots through the wind a daunting task. To be a good wind player requires controlling the ball flight and the speed the ball travels through the air.

Negotiating the wind is tough enough on its own but when the target is the dynamic Par 3 16th hole on the cliffs at Port Royal Golf Course or the spectacular Par 4 5th hole at Mid Ocean Club over Mangrove Lake — made famous by the legendary ‘Babe’ Ruth’s attempts to drive onto the green — ultimately the challenge presented by the combination of a difficult golf hole and the wind is significantly elevated.

Players must learn to take into account wind direction, cross winds and wind velocity. And by learning the distance that they can hit each club, it allows the golfer to develop the ability to accurately calculate distance influenced by the wind.

There is no simple way to acquire the proper skills to hit controlled golf shots consistently. I urge golfers of all levels to seek a qualified PGA Golf Professional and hone their golf skills through proper instruction – and then practise, practise, practise. n

Kim Swan is a Golf Professional at Port Royal Golf Club. This column is a shortened version of the original  that was published on UK website www.elysium-uk.com