Mike Clayton
@mikeclaytongolf.bsky.social
Clayton DeVries Pont. Golf Course Architecture Occasional (very) caddy. Golf writer.
Getting a laugh at someone called Kevin Kisner having a go at Rory and others for being paid to play in India. Kisner made his comments from America, where he plays all his golf. Because no one in their right mind would pay him to play anywhere else 😃
Courtesy of Ernie Els and Padraig Harrington, here is the real truth….something has to be done. But probably best not to hold one’s breath 🙄👇 golfweek.usatoday.com/story/sports/golf/equipment/2026/10/16/ernie-els-pga-tour-champions-golf-ball-rollback-debate/92286669007/
'It's out of control': PGA Tour Champions players on golf ball rollback debate
To Ernie Els, the modern golf ball has changed the nature of the way the game is played – and not for the better.
golfweek.usatoday.com
More on Delhi. Watching just about every competitor playing almost every hole in exactly the same way is really not too interesting. Just one consequence of rough that is both too prevalent and too thick. Why the tour sanctions such a nonsense is beyond me 🤷♂️
Rory McIlroy was just reduced to my own hack-out level when he missed a fairway by a few yards. Please explain why denying him the chance to separate himself from his competition is a good thing. #delhi
Watching the golf from Delhi. Lots of commentary talk re how “strategic” the course is. No talk, of course, about how sad it is that players don’t have to use their drivers. Heaven forbid the distance issue should be mentioned. And heaven forbid the equipment companies should be upset 🙄
Next year cleaning up the extraneous fairway bunkers - and building a few new ones. Making the golf more interesting but not more difficult
Clayton, DeVries & Pont@claytondevriespont.bsky.social · 6d agoUpdate on Phase 3 of our renovation work at Royal Perth in WA... m.youtube.com/watch?v=VU9d...
They had two jobs re equipment To defend both the skills it took to play the game and to defend courses against science. Of which Alister MacKenzie wanted them a century ago “there is no limit to science” Utterly hopeless.
John huggan@johnhuggan.bsky.social · 6d agoRe the distance thing….through their advertising budgets the equipment companies in golf buy the silence of magazines and podcasts. But the root cause of the problem is the pathetic performance of the R&A and the USGA over the last few decades. History will surely condemn both.
Heathlands at Victoria GC’s 7th hole flourishing after coastal tea-tree removal 25 years ago. Some insist the tea-tree is a better option. In places - right of 16 at KH for example - it is but it smothered these amazing plants for decades. Clearly not a better option.
Just watched a few mins of the Spanish Open. And there he is - Sergio Garcia. Wants to make the Ryder Cup team apparently. Think he might need to qualify as of right. Can’t imagine too many members of the side will want him there….🙄
It is one of life’s great mysteries. When did golfers start fondling one another’s knuckles at what appears to be every available opportunity? Bring back the handshake on the 18th green! 🤷♂️
The Yale Golf Course just got a $30 million Gil Hanse restoration. Now, Yale is charging $350 for the public to play…with poor and patchy turf conditions. So, what happened? “For them to drop the ball, that doesn’t surprise me.” www.nytimes.com/athletic/764...
A $30 million disaster: How did Yale let its newly restored golf course fall apart? (Gift Article)
Alums are upset about patchy grass, dried-out greens and want answers. "If someone gave you a Rembrandt, you’d take care of it."
nytimes.com
"Perhaps the greatest set of greens in Western Europe" - @ivgd1.bsky.social "One of the best marriages of golf and houses" - @mikeclaytongolf.bsky.social Les Pins, Golf d'Hardelot, Cote d'Opale, France
In the midst of this incredibly average prez cup commentary I am reminded of a long ago encounter with one famous member of the commentator fraternity. It was at the end of a day and I asked how it had gone. His response? “Said nothing, kept my job.” 😃
@lukasmichel.bsky.social's creations at Royal Perth continue to take shape. @mikeclaytongolf.bsky.social #afterisalwaysbetter
Mallet putters seem to be very popular on tour these days. I’m sure that has nothing to do with the fact that patting down spike marks (at a time when not that many wear spikes) is permissible. Just a coincidence I’m sure 🙄
Predictably, Niall Donegan’s mistake in the foursomes this morning has been described by some as a “controversy.” It was nothing of the sort of course. Only those in search of click-bait would even imagine that incident as anything other than a mistake followed by a proper application of the rules 🤷♂️
www.golfdigest.com/story/crazy-...
The best U.S. Walker Cup team in history also might have been the most contentious
The last time the Walker Cup was held at St. Andrews in 1975, the U.S. had a team with four future major wins and 57 PGA Tour titles among its members. But its win came with several crazy behind-the-scenes stories
golfdigest.com
Fun to see 7 Mile Beach in Golf World's new X Factor list
Just had a wee look at the Scotsman website. Always easy to see when their hard-working golf correspondent is on holiday. Not a word on the major championship being played this week. Shameful…..
One big difference between broadcasters and journalists? Journalists are not compromised by the deals they have with golf-related companies. Keep that in mind next time you hear a commentator praising a player who uses, say, a particular brand of clubs or wears a certain brand of clothing 😉
7 Mile Beach, Hobart, Tasmania Designed by @mikeclaytongolf.bsky.social & Mike DeVries Photo: Will Watt
In liaison with our own Frank Pont, Sutton Coldfield's Course Manager Chris Roberts has expanded MacKenzie's 7th green back to its original dimensions. #afterisalwaysbetter @ivgd1.bsky.social @mikeclaytongolf.bsky.social
Fabulous day, today, at Carlow Golf Club. Photos do not do it justice. Mostly I'm unmoved by parkland golf. Not at Carlow! It plays closer to a heathland course, but no heather... Brilliant routing on fantastic terrain. Feel very lucky to have experienced Carlow. Also, I won.
golf.com.au/news/clayton.... Bringing golf to life in NZ after the great Alister MacKenzie 100 years ago described it as “dead”.
golf.com.au
Here’s what Bryson should say: “I’ve watched the tape. It does look as if I possibly improved the area of my swing. I didn’t mean to do that but the possibility is enough for me. Even if the R&A hadn’t penalised me I would have insisted they do so.”
