New Ace up the sleeve for latest Dutch Futures Tour Champion
Few things can compare to wining a Tour event on your home ground. Netherlander Taco Remkes felt the powerful emotional high of just such an achievement this weekend, as he took home the winner’s trophy at the RBS Dutch Futures Tour at Golf Club Houtrak, after what one commentator described as a ‘rampage through the field’.
The 23 year old produced a masterful performance over the closing stages, covering his last ten holes in seven under par – including a brilliant eagle three on the 18th – to card a final round of six under par 66 on 13 under to tie first place with Dane Jeppe Huldahl.
That meant both men were forced to go head-to-head in a sudden-death play-off, Remkes striking immediately with a birdie four at the par five 18th hole to secure the €22,400 first prize, and his second Challenge Tour victory, following his success at the Scottish Challenge earlier in the year.
“Winning in your home country, on your home course…..well you can’t ask for more than that,” smiled Remkes after receiving his trophy, that propels him from 11th to sixth on the Challenge Tour Rankings.
With Huldahl playing ahead of him, Remkes knew he needed to conjure a magical finish to his final round to have a chance of victory. A birdie on the ninth hole was the first sign that it was to be a fateful day for the young Dutchman, after which he stormed the back nine with birdies on the 10th, 13th 14th and 15th holes.
“I knew that I needed to do something special on the back nine and by the time I got to the 18th I knew that I needed an eagle to tie Jeppe who was in the clubhouse on 13 under. I had birdied 13, 14 and 15 which are some of the toughest holes on the course so I knew I had a chance.
Remkes’s recent visits to the new Yes!” Golf putting studio and custom-fitting clinic in Eindhoven have had their customary steeling effect on the nerves of this young rising star as he displayed some rock-steady technique around the greens when he needed it the most.
“The 18th was amazing. I had to make that eagle putt to have a chance of a play-off. It wasn’t an easy putt – it was downhill and left to right but I just had a feeling that I was going to make it. It went straight in the middle and there must have been about 400 people around the green going crazy, it was amazing.”
And so the two men went back to the 18th tee to determine a winner. Huldahl found the bunker with his approach to the par five 18th green, leaving a very difficult up and down. Remkes left his six iron approach short before chipping to five feet for birdie. Huldahl had to splash out of the sand and carry his ball to the top tier, but it came up short and when the Dane missed his birdie putt, Remkes knew it was his time.
“I knew that was my chance,” said the Dutchman, “It wasn’t an easy putt but I felt I could make that one too, and when it went in it was just an amazing feeling.
The Hardware
The C-Groove Natalie model is a Face-Balanced putter with an extra wide face and an extra long sight-line.
2 versions:
Standard Length: 32" to 36" (355 gram head weight; centre-shafted)
Belly Length: 40" to 45" (390 gram head weight; centre-shafted)
Titanium carbon finish
Available in RH or LH models, shaft lengths 32" to 36" and custom belly and long lengths
Custom fitted head cover
The Custom-fitting
In this case the Natalie has been fitted with a long shaft. The shaft itself is specially-constructed of aluminium alloy, and features Yes! Golf’s unique Shaft Weighting System (SWS) that allows more consistent accuracy and acceleration through the putting stroke, alongside enhanced sensitivity being fed through to the hands. The variable positioning along the shaft of either 100, 150 or 200 gram weights ensures the gravity centre is always plumb below the hands at address.
Other Tour News…
At the British Masters, meanwhile, one of Sweden’s top Yes! Men Mikael Lundberg used his Yes! Donna putter to powerful effect by coming in 4th place just four off the lead at 8 under. Impressively, Lundberg also came 2ndin the overall putting statistics for the event, averaging 28 putts per round.