Is there no end to La Niña?

A common sight around the East coast of Australia during this past Summer and now Autumn

When I began playing golf in Northern Ireland, waaaay back, rain was a given on any day that you teed it up. Everyone had a pair of brown rubber golf shoes that were made of the same material as Wellington Boots (that’s gumboots down here). I searched the internet to find an image to include but without success. They were cheap (about £2 I think) but they worked. Steel studs of course. Dry feet at the end, but awful in warm weather (think gumboots on a hot day!!)

Before Christmas I bought a new pair of FootJoy ProSL’s as my previous pair were past their use by date. Now these shoes are at the opposite end of the price scale to those trusty old brown jobs from back home (around $300 rrp). I have played on some of the muckiest, flooded, slimy golf courses this past few months that I can ever remember. With no endorsement from Achusnet, I am pleased to recommend these shoes as being, so far at least, 100% waterproof and mud-resistant, extremely comfortable, great grip from the moulded sole (not spikes) and super easy to clean…no polish, dubbin, beeswax or any other substance required.

The leather has a patented coating of some compound which at the beginning I thought was just the usual marketing smoke and mirrors. But it is real, it works a dream and now I just hope that it lasts the test of time.

Depressingly, a greenskeeper at a local course told me this week that we can expect this weather stretch to continue for another 6 months, right through winter and into early spring. Courses are digging trenches everywhere to try to get the surface water to run off and keep our great game in motion.

Did you see coverage from the PGA Tour last week where the highest ever total over Par was recorded in the 3rd round at the Wells Fargo at Avenel Farm, Maryland owing to a saturated course, rain and wind. It’s not easy, even for the Pros.

Stay dry…stay well