I hope you are all well and we are looking forward to welcoming you back to the club next Monday, which for many of you will be for the first time since lockdown. The timesheets are expected to be very busy but it will be great to see Dun Laoghaire back to its vibrant best!

The PGA Tour gets under way next week, the LPGA and European and ELPGA Tours will have to wait a little longer. Whilst it will be great to see the best players in the world on our TV screens again it will be very strange to watch them play with no crowd. I will definitely be tuning in to see how it all goes! There has been some debate in Europe if getting the players to wear a "mic" would be a solution to add some atmosphere and viewer involvement, I know I enjoyed listening to Shane Lowry and his caddie, Bo when they had microphone attachments at last year's Open Championship but whether it will catch on or not is yet to be seen. It could add a lot of humour!

As the Colonial Course in Forth Worth stages the re opening of the PGA Tour it gives me an opportunity to tell you about another one of my big influences as a player and a Coach as Colonial was a playground favourite of the great Ben Hogan. Hogan's book "five lessons" is a book that will reside on the book shelf of any aspiring coach and indeed many players. It was an insight into the fundamentals of playing the game as well as some personal thoughts on key movements that worked for Mr. Hogan. Whilst it is an iconic book in our business it actually did more harm than good for many players as he promoted a weaker lead hand hold on the club along with emphasising the need to "rotate" the body in the downswing, for anyone who hits the ball with a fade or slice this would in many cases exacerbate that tendency and so it gave rise to much debate amongst players and coaches over the years. Well worth a read for anyone who loves to read about or study our great game. Mr. Hogan had a steely resolve and a great ability to concentrate, like all great players he spoke at length about "seeing the shot" and always having a target! There is something positive in that for all golfers!