Lee Trevino once told me that he went 72 holes without missing a single fairway or green on his way to winning a PGA Tour event.
That happened in New Orleans, apparently, and while Trevino was the best talker I ever came across on a golf course, I've no doubt over the accuracy of his story.
It was one of many he told me when we were paired together for the last two rounds of the 1985 British Masters at Woburn.
The two things that stand out most about Supermex were that he never stopped talking, and that he played the most accurate golf I've ever seen, tee to green.
One of the few fairways he missed that week at Woburn was the 18th, in the final round, although it didn't matter too much. He struck a masterful three wood from the rough 250 yards short of the green, and his ball finished a foot from the flag, giving him a tap in for an eagle and victory in the event.
At his best, Trevino was nearly unbeatable. He won six majors and might have won a lot more but for the fact he was an average putter.
I was reminded of him when watching Tiger Woods produce his brilliant final round to win the Memorial Tournament on Sunday. It must have taken a Herculean effort from Tiger to turn his game around after the Players Championship.
Of all the players who made the cut at Sawgrass that week he hit the fewest fairways. But in a huge turnaround at Muirfield Village, Woods was suddenly second best in fairways hit.
His length off the tee makes that statistic even more remarkable. He dominated with his driver, that is the combination of accuracy and distance. For the week he had an 87 per cent success rate in hitting fairways, and his driving display was a master class as he found every one off the tee.
It did look as if he had a little compromise going on in his swing. He has been losing his height coming into the ball. As a consequence he has been getting his arms stuck behind him, and as a result finding it difficult to square up the club face.
But at the Memorial, he was aiming further left than usual. This meant that when he lost height and the club came through on a left inside to outside path, he didn't have to make any compensation as this was the right path towards the target.
Trevino played that way and still to this day I haven't seen anyone control the ball better than he did in his prime.
For Woods, it isn't ideal, but with his talent, his co-ordination, his short game imagination and his will to win, it's still good enough to beat the rest.
With half a dozen holes left to play on Sunday, several other players had a chance to win but none of them could handle the pressure the way the world No 1 does.
Johnathan Byrd squandered his two-shot lead by playing the last six holes in four over par, a quite amazing slump.
Davis Love III, who had been level with Woods, stumbled through the last two holes in four over par. Jim Furyk played nicely on the back nine to get within a shot of the lead, but his challenge ended there and after that there was only one winner.
Woods still had to finish with successive birdies to capture his fourth Memorial title, but his most telling stroke came at the 11th when he chipped in for an eagle from an almost impossible position.
His ability around the greens is astonishing. He intrigues me in the way that Seve Ballesteros did, because I find myself getting excited as I wait to see how he is going to play certain shots.
He'll need all his short game wizardry if he is to capture his 15th major title next week, but who now would argue against him successfully defending his US Open title at Bethpage, which is possibly the most difficult course to stage the great event. It is a wickedly tough, 7,214-yard par-70 layout, with narrow fairways and small greens.
If the greens are firm next week, and the rough is as treacherous as it was when the US Open was last played there in 2002, it could destroy many a top golfer.
It will be a battle out there, and when that happens these days there is usually only one winner and that's Woods, as it was at Bethpage seven years ago.
pparkin@thenational.ae
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Company%20Profile
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APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
Company name: Play:Date
Launched: March 2017 on UAE Mother’s Day
Founder: Shamim Kassibawi
Based: Dubai with operations in the UAE and US
Sector: Tech
Size: 20 employees
Stage of funding: Seed
Investors: Three founders (two silent co-founders) and one venture capital fund
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
Community Shield info
Where, when and at what time Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday at 5pm (UAE time)
Arsenal line up (3-4-2-1) Petr Cech; Rob Holding, Per Mertesacker, Nacho Monreal; Hector Bellerin, Mohamed Elneny, Granit Xhaka, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain; Alex Iwobi, Danny Welbeck; Alexandre Lacazette
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger
Chelsea line up (3-4-2-1) Thibaut Courtois; Cesar Azpilicueta, David Luiz, Gary Cahill; Victor Moses, Cesc Fabregas, N'Golo Kante, Marcos Alonso; Willian, Pedro; Michy Batshuayi
Chelsea manager Antonio Conte
Referee Bobby Madley
The%20Afghan%20connection
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
MATCH INFO
Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')
Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')
Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
Who is Allegra Stratton?
- Previously worked at The Guardian, BBC’s Newsnight programme and ITV News
- Took up a public relations role for Chancellor Rishi Sunak in April 2020
- In October 2020 she was hired to lead No 10’s planned daily televised press briefings
- The idea was later scrapped and she was appointed spokeswoman for Cop26
- Ms Stratton, 41, is married to James Forsyth, the political editor of The Spectator
- She has strong connections to the Conservative establishment
- Mr Sunak served as best man at her 2011 wedding to Mr Forsyth
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Juvenile arthritis
Along with doctors, families and teachers can help pick up cases of arthritis in children.
Most types of childhood arthritis are known as juvenile idiopathic arthritis. JIA causes pain and inflammation in one or more joints for at least six weeks.
Dr Betina Rogalski said "The younger the child the more difficult it into pick up the symptoms. If the child is small, it may just be a bit grumpy or pull its leg a way or not feel like walking,” she said.
According to The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases in US, the most common symptoms of juvenile arthritis are joint swelling, pain, and stiffness that doesn’t go away. Usually it affects the knees, hands, and feet, and it’s worse in the morning or after a nap.
Limping in the morning because of a stiff knee, excessive clumsiness, having a high fever and skin rash are other symptoms. Children may also have swelling in lymph nodes in the neck and other parts of the body.
Arthritis in children can cause eye inflammation and growth problems and can cause bones and joints to grow unevenly.
In the UK, about 15,000 children and young people are affected by arthritis.
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now
Destroyer
Director: Karyn Kusama
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Toby Kebbell, Sebastian Stan
Rating: 3/5
UAE release: January 31
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
THE BIO
Ms Al Ameri likes the variety of her job, and the daily environmental challenges she is presented with.
Regular contact with wildlife is the most appealing part of her role at the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi.
She loves to explore new destinations and lives by her motto of being a voice in the world, and not an echo.
She is the youngest of three children, and has a brother and sister.
Her favourite book, Moby Dick by Herman Melville helped inspire her towards a career exploring the natural world.
Company%20profile
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Company%C2%A0profile
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
