Latest news with #Whitnell
Khaleej Times
04-03-2025
- Sport
- Khaleej Times
Lightning Strikes Twice: Dale Whitnell's ‘bizarre' two-hole-in-one feat on the DP World Tour
Dale Whitnell carved his name into golf's history books with a feat that almost defies belief - two holes-in-one in the same round at the Durban Golf Course. The Englishman stunned the field at the Investec South African Open Championship, acing both the par-three second and 12th holes. Local favourite Dylan Naidoo won the rain-plagued event on the first playoff hole Sunday against England's Laurie Canter. Hole-in-ones are already a special moment for any golfer, but making two in a single round? That's the kind of stuff legends are made of. Whitnell becomes only the second player in DP World Tour history to achieve the feat, following Andrew Dodt's similar accomplishment at the Nordea Masters in 2013. Unlikely Achievement What made the moment even more astonishing was that Whitnell had never recorded an ace in tournament play. 'After shooting level par and coming back in the morning to complete my first round, I knew I needed to play well just to make the cut,' Whitnell said. 'I got off to a hot start, made a birdie at the first, then hit a flush seven-iron on the second. I didn't realize it had gone in until I heard the cheers from down by the green. That was lovely.' His second ace came at the 12th, where he holed out from 128 yards with a 50-degree wedge, pulling off one of golf's most unlikely feats. 'To make one is special, but to make two? It's bizarre,' Whitnell added. 'You don't really know how to react. You're buzzing, the adrenaline is pumping, but at the same time, you've got to focus and keep playing.' Unconventional Round His round was far from a conventional one. Beyond the two aces, he also carded three eagles, seven birdies, two bogeys, a double bogey, and even an air shot - ultimately finishing with a remarkable nine-under-par 63 on a historic day. Whitnell's feat comes in a season already filled with memorable aces. His two additions bring the tally of holes-in-one on the 2025 Race to Dubai to seven, following MK Kim, Daniel Gavins, Adrien Saddier, Pablo Larrazábal, and Eddie Pepperell. While Whitnell didn't take home the win, he now has a permanent place in golf history. Lightning might not strike twice in the same spot, but it sure did for him.
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
'Golf's eternal dilemma - is World Handicapping System working?'
Eavesdrop many a conversation in a golf clubhouse and one could be forgiven for believing that the recreational game is being ruined. At the heart of the complaints is the handicapping system, the mechanism by which varying standards of players compete against each other on level terms. By rating players' abilities, golf has always prided itself on providing a way for the humblest hacker to play against the most proficient of players; with both enjoying a decent contest. A little over four years ago a new global scheme, the World Handicapping System (WHS), was introduced. It has proved controversial and, anecdotally, the perception is that it has been a retrograde step. While the aim was to create an accurate reflection of a golfer's ability to take on any course in the world, many players believe the system is easy to abuse for those wanting to fuel their egos with a low handicap or for those desiring a higher one to be more competitive. But is that a true reflection of how it is or a myth? Certainly, there is a different view among those who administer the WHS, compared with those grumbling over a post round pint. Ex-motorcycle gang member reaches Open with win 67 million to one - Whitnell hits two holes-in-one Boom or bust? Golf in flux but is it really thriving? It is an issue that affects millions of golfers across the world and England Golf, the UK's biggest federation, believes the system is working. Furthermore, this is being reflected by the recreational game's increasing popularity. "The reality was, certainly up to the launch of WHS (in November 2020), that there was a decrease every year over a 10-year period with regards to people wanting to play - the numbers of people that played in competitions and then consequently, the number of people that were actually having handicaps," Jeremy Tomlinson, England Golf's chief executive told BBC Sport. Under the old CONGU system that prevailed in Great Britain and Ireland, handicaps were effectively determined by performances predominantly in club competitions. Now it is easier for regular social golf to count. This includes shorter rounds over nine holes, performances in head-to-head matchplay and while playing with a partner. Golfers are able to submit 'general play' scores from rounds with their friends, provided they have specified before teeing off that they want their game to count for handicap purposes. This means more rounds count towards determining a players ability. The best eight scores from your 20 most recent rounds are averaged to provide what is known as a handicap index. This figure is then transportable to any golf course and is used to calculate how many shots you can deduct from your total score. The harder the course, the more shots you receive to reflect the level of difficulty. But the system works on a level of trust. Some players want the lowest possible handicap to help make them eligible for elite amateur events while others desire a few extra shots to help them win swanky competition prizes. Handicaps can now be as high as 54 (previously 36) and the average in England is 19. "The game's gone soft," is a regular moan among diehard members. "I think we have a swathe of feeling that there are more people with an opportunity to do well in competitions than before," Tomlinson said. "That's probably because the old system lent, we believe, a lot more to towards the lower handicapper. "But of course, there are just more people who have come in. "And more people are doing scores now because more people want a handicap, and then because of that, more people progress on the golfer journey and want to compete." There are 722,000 golfers affiliated to England Golf through clubs and the number is continuing to rise. Since November 2020, 38m handicap scores have been submitted to the federation's central database, with 10m in the last year alone. Players do not have to be a member of a club to gain a handicap, and the Woodhall Spa based organisation offers it's iGolf app as a means for an ever growing number of more nomadic golfers. "We've seen an increase in the number of competition scores, general play scores, 18 holes scores and nine hole scores, which is great and long may it continue," England Golf chief operating officer Richard Flint told BBC Sport. Nevertheless grumbles abound and clubs are being encouraged to take action to maintain the integrity of their competitions. "Griping is a big word, but I think that those complaining are frustrated that it is different," Tomlinson said. "Golf has become a lot more inclusive in providing the opportunity for different people to win, and especially when their handicap is on the way down, while they're getting into golf and getting better and better." Tomlinson added: "The handicapping system is about integrity. It is more transparent than it's ever been because it is about the scores that you do. But there is a need for check and challenge." Sitting next to the England Golf boss, Flint nodded agreement. He said: "There is sometimes this thought that, oh, let's just ban the higher handicappers from competitions because they're always winning it. "It's a myth. Clubs can use the terms of competition and have categories, so everyone can play the competition from an inclusivity point of view. Have a prize for the low handicaps as well as mid and high handicapper." Several county unions are now insisting that more scores from competitions, rather than general play, are used to calculate low handicaps when determining eligibility for elite tournaments and representative teams. "We reserve the right to be able to review any handicap that has more than four general play scorecards," Tomlinson insisted. "We have denied players entrance to some of our championships because they've had too many general play cards." Tomlinson insists the authorities, including the R&A and United States Golf Association who brought in WHS, are keen to further the probity of the mechanism. "The R&A are just about to bring out a specification within the system which will identify where they think manipulation's happening," he said. "It's another tool that the club handicap committee can use to address that issue. It's not 100%, but it's something that will help. "Ultimately, any system - if people want to manipulate it, they will. It's not the system that's at fault, it's the individuals." Tomlinson believes he is presiding over a growing recreational sport that profited from the bounce golf received by being the first sport people could play after the 2020 Covid pandemic lockdown. As the nation shut down, hundreds of clubs in the UK feared for their future. Tomlinson sat in emergency meetings across all British sports. "We were inundated with clubs saying we're going to rack and ruin," he recalled. "Amazing. From that point onwards, people were starting to think about their health. Golf clubs became inundated with people writing to them wanting membership, wanting to have playing rights. "And I promise you that the back four weeks of that initial lockdown, I went to those meetings and I hardly said a word because I was watching in my sport compared to sports like swimming, athletics, even cricket that were suffering immeasurably because they weren't able to open up their facilities. "We were building something, and by 13 May when we came out of that lockdown, we'd almost got to zero with regard to our concerns up and down the country because almost every golf club was reporting in that they were filling up. "And of course, by the end of that year, they were pretty much full with waiting lists. That's what happened to golf from from the pandemic." Tomlinson believes his sport, at a recreational level, has been left far healthier as a result. More people are playing at every level, whether on traditional courses or at driving ranges, in simulators or at crazy golf courses. He wants to exploit this enthusiasm to grow the sport by creating pathways from these fringe versions to actual courses, club memberships and handicap competitions. Despite anecdotal grumblings, the figures stack up to suggest such movement is occurring. "And that's brilliant," he said. "And to those crusty old golfers; we still love them. We still want to take care of them, but we need them to be a bit more progressive in their thinking."
USA Today
02-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Golfer on DP World Tour has not one but two holes-in-one in the same round
Golfer on DP World Tour has not one but two holes-in-one in the same round This might be one of the crazier scorecards you'll see. It might also be one of the few times you'll ever see a golfer record two aces. Dale Whitnell of England opened with a birdie Friday in the second round of the Investec South African Open Championship at Durban Country Club in South Africa. On his next hole, he recorded a hole-in-one. Three swings, one putt and he was 3 under. On the par-5 third, he made eagle, so he was then 5 under through three holes. Talk about your hot starts. From there, Whitnell made three pars and a bogey before two more birdies, thus making the turn in 30. Then on the par-3 12th, he struck again, making his second ace of the day. According to the National Hole-in-One Registry, the odds of one player making two holes-in-one in the same round are 67-million-to-1. "I got off to a hot start as they say. I birdied the first and then hit a flush seven iron on the second and didn't realise that it had gone in until down the bottom [greenside] they cheered so that was lovely," he said. 'I hit two hybrid, hybrid into the par five and made eagle there so I was five under through three which I have never done before and then managed to get another hole in one at the 12th. It was bizarre." Whitnell also had a late double-bogey and when he signed for a 9-under 63, his scorecard had a 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and a 6. He's also 9 for the tournament, tied for eighth, five shots back of leader Shaun Norris. "I had everything today. An air shot, two bogeys, a double bogey, three eagles and I come out nine under par so I can't complain.' Whitnell says he now has five aces but never before in competition. Andrew Dodt in 2013 was the first player on the DP World Tour to make multiple holes-in-one in the same round. Later in the clubhouse, there was a nice selection of beverages courtesy of Whitnell.
Washington Post
28-02-2025
- Sport
- Washington Post
Dale Whitnell makes two holes-in-one in same round at South African Open
DURBAN, South Africa — Dale Whitnell made two holes-in-one in the same round at the South African Open on Friday, having entered the day worrying about just making the cut at the European tour event. The 36-year-old Englishman aced the par-3 second and 12th holes at the Durban Country Club in a wild 9-under 63 second round that included an eagle, seven birdies, two bogeys and one double bogey. 'I was struggling to make the cut so I knew I needed to go out and play well and got off to a hot start as they would say,' said Whitnell, ranked No. 545. 'Birdied the first and then hit a flush 7-iron on the second and didn't realize it went in until down the bottom they sort of cheered. That was lovely.' Whitnell then eagled the par-5 third and would have to wait a whopping nine holes for his second ace. 'I've never had one in tournament play. To have two in one day is pretty special,' he said, a day after shooting a level-par 72 in the opening round. Brian Harman also made two aces in the same round at the 2015 Barclays on the PGA Tour at Plainfield Country Club, acing the third and 14th holes in the final round. Yusaku Miyazato of Japan, playing on a sponsor exemption at the 2006 Reno-Tahoe Open on the PGA Tour, made a hole-in-one on the seventh and 12th holes in the second round. According to the U.S.-based National Hole-in-One Registry, the odds of making a hole-in-one twice in the same round are 67 million to 1. ___ AP golf:
Telegraph
28-02-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Watch: English golfer hits 67 million to one two holes-in-one
Englishman Dale Whitnell carded two holes-in-one during a once-in-a-lifetime round on day two of the South African Open. The 36-year-old, whose DP World Tour breakthrough came in the 2023 Scandinavian Mixed, aced the 179-yard second in soft, calm conditions at the Durban Country Club, and then repeated the feat at the 149-yard 12th. It is estimated the odds of making two holes-in-one in the same round are 67 million to one. Both of @Dale_Whitnell 's holes-in-one from the second round 🤯 #InvestecSAOpen — DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) February 28, 2025 At one stage Whitnell, who immediately followed his first ace with an eagle, needed birdies at his final three holes to card a 59 but that quest fell apart after flying the 16th green. In attempting to chip in for birdie from an awkward side-hill lie, the club head slid completely under the ball and moved it only a couple of inches and he took another three shots to get up and down for a double-bogey six. He signed for a nine-under 63, having shot level par in the first round. Although the odds of double aces are high, there have been a number of instances of them occurring. Dale Whitnell appreciation post 🍻 #InvestecSAOpen — DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) February 28, 2025 Fellow Englishman John Hudson registered two at the European Tour's Martini International at Royal Norwich in 1971. Brian Harman, who would go on to become Open champion in 2023, became the third man to achieve the feat on the PGA Tour with two aces at the Barclays in 2015, while last year Frank Bensel Jnr made back-to-back holes-in-one during the second round of the US Senior Open in Rhode Island. 'I hit a flush seven-iron on the second and I didn't realise it had gone in until down the bottom they cheered,' Whitnell, who took 11 years to earn a full DP World Tour card after turning professional in 2009, said in his post-round interview. 'It's a weird feeling. Obviously the adrenalin is pumping, but you have to focus on your job and I managed to do that today. 'I've never had one in tournament play. I've had one in practice at Le Golf National in Paris, but to have two in one day is pretty special. 'I've had everything today: an air shot, two bogeys, a double, three eagles and come out nine-under par, so I can't complain.'
