For the uninitiated the term "Kaki" literally means "Leg" in the Malaysian Language or Bahasa Malaysia. Colloquially, Kaki-Golf, refers to a person who plays (in this case, love) Golf.
Let's have a closer look. He notched up 5 wins: 1. Valspar Championship 2. The Masters Tournament 3. The U.S Open 4. John Deere Classic 5. Tour Championship (Consisting of two Majors and the Fed Ex Cup)
He played better then anyone at the Majors:
Masters Tournament - WIN U.S Open - WIN The Open Championship - Tied 4th PGA Championship - 2nd
He's earned a staggering amount banking in more then $12 million this season alone. (This excludes the $10 million FedEx Cup bonus - seriously!?) and with the win at East Lake, Jordan returns to the top as the No.1 golfer in the world, once more.
If that ain't enough,he's definitely locked in for the Player of the year (POTY) award too.
But do you know what's the scary / crazy / amazing thing?
Maybe it's the haze... but I have had a pretty good golfing week.
On Thursday, I carded much a needed 89. It's been a while since I had a sub-90 round so I was rather pleased.
This morning, we had another round (albeit in thicker haze) and I somehow, scored an 84 which was an achievement of sorts.
For starters, it was the lowest round that I had ever played (I kid you not) and having started on the Garden 9, I made the turn in 38. Which, was also my lowest ever score for the front 9. It would have been lower if I didn't miss a few putts on the back 9, but hey I am not complaining.
I have had somewhat of an odd run over the last 2 months or so. Leading up to the BMW Cup, the game was feeling really good and I was particularly happy with how I was striking my irons. Was playing in the low 90's which was good.
Then in just a few short weeks later, the iron game came undone and nothing was right. And yet somehow and out of the blue, two sub-90 rounds in a week.
Here's hoping the consistency / streak will continue.
October beckons and it's going to be a busy golf month!
First up is the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia tournament where the stars of the LPGA (Lydia Ko, Michelle Wie, Inbee Park amongst others, will 'golf' it out at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club from from 7 - 11th October 2015.
Then at the end of the month (27th October - 1st November 2015) there's the inaugural CIMB Classic 2015 where two-time champion Ryan Moore will be defending his trophy against other formidable PGA stars in the likes of Henrik Stenson, Adam Scott, Sergio Garcia, Patrick Reed amongst others also at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.
I will be attending the CIMB as I have done in the last two years but this time things are going to be a bit different. Plenty of updates then!
Also hope to catch the Sime Darby tournament since I won a pair of weekend passes from MST.
In other news, the lads and I made for the fairways today and played through the Haze that's still blanketing our fair city.
Managed to improve on last week's score, a reverse really, from a 98 to a much welcomed 89. Managed a couple of pars and even squeeze in a Birdie on the Par 5, 4th at SCC. Would have been better except I managed to blow two holes and carded a Double Par on the par 4, 11th and a Triple bogey 8 on the par 5, 17th. I really need to reduce these silly errors.
This week is a short one and we are hoping the haze will clear up before we play again on Saturday.
We have been getting a fair bit of rain the last few days, so the weather here in Kuching has greatly improved.
So on Saturday morning, our weekly golf session resumed at the Samarahan Country Club and golf being golf. I managed a (poor, could have been much better) 98. Which consisted of a very mixed bag of 6 pars and an 8 on the par 3, 15th.
After sending two tee shots into the watery hazard I 'finally' convinced my ego to take a drop. Foolish mistake really. My iron game has gone rather haywire too. Gone are the days (not too long ago in fact) where I was confident and striking my iron shots flush. Just one of those patches I suppose.
In other news, can anyone stop Jason Day? He is clearly on fire having clinched the BMW Championship by 6 strokes and ascended to the No.1 along with his fine victory. What a run he's had since breaking through at the PGA Championship. Well deserved.
More interesting was the Solheim Cup where team USA staged one of the greatest comeback in competition. On the final day, singles, team USA earned a staggering 8.5 points to snatch the cup back from Team Europe who appeared to be cruising to a cushy victory.
A fantastic victory for the Americans no less but the controversy on the 17th hole during the fourball match between Lincicome/Lee - Pettersen/Hull will remain a sore talking point.
Did Allison Lee make a mistake? Yes, she did unfortunately. In a competition where the stakes are this high, get concrete confirmation that a putt is given, don't assume your opponent has conceded. Why risk it? Rules are rules.
But what about sportsmanship?
Everyone's had their say and the majority feel the same way that I do.
That it was poor sportsmanship on Team Europe's part.
From what I have read and gathered, Suzann and Charley both insisted they never conceded the putt.
Apart from Allison who "thought" she heard someone say it was 'good', no one else heard anything. So, chances are no one said 'anything'.
But let's look at conduct. How quickly did Charley walk away right after Alison misses? and how far Suzann was?
To be clear though, it was certainly Allison's mistake
to assume that the putt had been given. But in being so competitive and stringent to the rules, Suzann wasn't acting in the spirit of the game and that was her mistake.
But at the end of the day, perhaps that was what Team America needed to find that extra gear and kick start their comeback. And what a comeback it was. Superb display from the Americans and it was a fitting finish in the end.
Allison burried the controversy from the morning, winning her singles match in good fashion.
Angela Stanford (who has the worse Solheim Cup record) taking down villain of the hour Suzann Pettersen.
With the Cup on the line, often criticized, Captain's pick, Paula Creamer secured the winning point by whooping Sandra Gal to clinch victory for the Americans and justifying her Captain's faith in her.
Can't imagine how it will be the next time Suzann tees it up at an LPGA event or worse, when shes grouped with either Allison Lee or Brittany Lincicome or anyone from the American team for that matter. Yikes!
UPDATE : 22.09.2015 Suzann has posted a very heartfelt apology on her instagram account.
It's never easy to apologize, especially in the manner that she did. I definitely respect that. Big of her really.
I have been gaming the Srixon Q-Star since the BMW Cup and why wouldn't you want to stick with a prize winning ball? Haha. In truth though, I was very pleased with how it performed on and around the greens. Even managed a couple of back spins too. Try doing that with your usual used ball.
Before the Q-Star I was gaming the Ad-333 which was also a good ball and I got a couple of boxes for cheap. RM53.00 per box at RGT Technology Sdn. Bhd, but they are now retailing for RM100.00 for two boxes if you are keen.
Anyways before I get too carried away and before the mob come yelling "Oi! it doesn't matter what used/new ball you use if you're not a single handicapper!" I better get to the real reason for this post.
Now, the Srixon Q-Star has been replaced with a new model with new spin skin technology. So what do retailers do with last season's stock of balls? they discount them!
A couple of months ago, a box of Q-Star balls cost RM115.00 at Pan-West which translates to about RM9.60 per ball. Now comes the best part a.k.a 'Kangtao'.
If you happen to be in Kuala Lumpur, head over to Jgolf at Publika.
When you get there, check out the golf balls in the perspex clear boxes near the cashier and take a closer look.
They are usually filled with 'cheaper balls' so I didn't even give them a second glance until Kenny, my golf kaki said "Dude, check it out, Q-Star balls yo."
Brand spanking new Q-Star balls and they were going for just RM3.00 a ball. You read that correctly.
RM3.00 per b.a.l.l. RM3.00!
These aren't the latest spin skin balls and there's no packaging but why would you need it anyway? They are cheap and we bought a bunch to last us a while (won't say how many though :P)
Where I am from, a reasonably good used ball will usually cost between RM1.50 - RM2.50 (depending on brand). So for just a little more, why wouldn't you get new ones? You won't find a better ball for this price!
Thailand has always been considered as a inexpensive golfing destination.
I don't have the exact figure but Google seems to suggest that there are some 250 golf courses spread across the Thai region. So its reputation is not without basis.
I have played on a couple of courses in Hua Hin, Pattaya and Bangkok and had just the best time. Hoping to check out Chiang Mai next year if possible.
It's not just the golfing that's great, but the retail side of things is also worth a mention. From small shops to mammoth sporting chains, golf shops are aplenty.
For the uninitiated though, most golfers usually make a trip (or pilgrimage, depending on who you are asking) to Thaniya Plaza.
Situated along Silom Road (short walk from the Sala Daeng BTS station), Thaniya Plaza is a 4 story complex and is home to over 40 golf shops. New and used golfing equipment, apparel, golf balls, accessories or custom fitting. There is something for every junior, adult, male and female golfer.
Thaniya is a must visit place for in my books and there are usually good bargains to be found. Needless to say, I never leave empty handed.
In terms of golfing equipment new and used, you have your pick of the lot. From household names to brands I have never heard of (mostly Japanese brands) you would be spoilt for choice.
Custom fitting you say? Head over to Thaniya and the shops there will sort you out. Shafts, grips, ferules galore! It's like being in a candy store. But only if you have plenty of time I suppose.
Used Pro V1's? They sell them by the thousands! These were selling at a promo price of THB900 (About RM110.00) for a pack of 12 very clean used Pro V1s. But if you think those are pricey, there are other brands to choose from.
Didn't
get much this
trip. But I managed to snag another another pair of shoes (yes...another
pair of
Truelinks wear) from Transview who sell them for less then RM250.00. Also, bought two Fit39 gloves
and two Scotty Cameron head covers (price indicates they aren't
authentic but they look very nice all the same).
Admittedly,
things were alot cheaper when the Ringgit wasn't crap. I remember our
crew leaving with plenty of shopping bags after our visit.
There's room for bargain of course but bear in mind that most of these shops (Even Transview) will only accept cash on special sale items. Oh and you can forget about getting a VAT refund too.
Lastly, best to visit the place yourself, unless your partner, spouse or friend plays golf. I mean, there are a couple of other shops selling non-golf items like antiques, books and souvenirs but I would spare them the agony.
So if you are ever in Bangkok, pay a visit to Thaniya Plaza. The golfer in you won't be disappointed.
Just got back from a short trip to Bangkok, I have made a trip to the land of smiles at least once since 2011. The food is fantastic, it's a shopping haven, the golf there is awesome and we generally have a really good time there.
This trip though was slightly different. There were 4 of us (two couples) in total so we didn't play any golf this time round (Major Sigh!) and it was pretty obvious that our spending power had shrunk with the plummeting ringgit. Previously, it was almost customary to get RM1 = THB9.5. Now? RM1 = THB8.3. In Bangkok itself, money changers were giving a terrible RM1 = THB7.5. You would have thought the Ringgit was plagued!
Anyhow we had a really good time (the Mrs certainly enjoyed the shopping) and I am already looking to next year.
