You’d have thought gracing Wimbledon, winning the Champions League or being one of the most popular players in the Premier League would be enough for most. But the Sunningdale Foursomes, which starts on 11th March 2014, will see some sporting superstars grace the fairways of this unique tournament.
Well known names in the field –
Andriy Shevchenko – former AC Milan and Chelsea footballer
Tim Henman – Wimbledon Semi-Finalist and British Tennis Legend
Jimmy Bullard – former Hull, Fulham and Wigan footballer
Nick Dougherty – former European Tour winner including 2007 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship
Kenneth Ferrie – former European Tour winner including 2005 European Open
A quick look at the draw sheet sees an early start on the Old Course at 8.56 am for Andriy Shevchenko who teams up with Sunningdale Golf Club Head Professional Keith Maxwell. Their handicap for the event is +1, which is created by a unique handicapping system where professional men are given a handicap of +1, amateur men a handicap of scratch, professional women a handicap of 2 and amateur women 4. With all players, regardless of status and gender, playing from the white tees of the day there can be some fantastically interesting matches and potentially 10 shots being given away.
Shevchenko certainly won’t be worried playing in this environment; he recently played on the Challenge Tour in the Ukrainian Open and also competed last year getting through a few rounds. Shevchenko is a member at nearby Queenwood Golf Club and reportedly lives on the Wentworth Estate so golf has certainly become an active interest for him since finishing his career with Dynamo Kyiv.
[youtube width=”600″ height=”338″ video_id=”VS_H-DoBgDo”]Following on from Shevchenko is British Tennis legend Tim Henman. Having lit up our summers at Wimbledon with his scintillating tennis, including a high of world number 4, Tim has shown quite a bit of skill on the golf course with a handicap of +1. Tim is teeing off with Terry Crawley who is a regular on the amateur golfing circuit having represented Kent for many years, both amateurs will play off a combined handicap of scratch and are expected to do well in the tournament given their local knowledge in both being members of Sunningdale. Their challenge starts on the Old at 11.50am against brother and sister combo Tracey and Sam Boyes.
Famed for his sense of humour on the football pitch, Jimmy Bullard has taken to the world of golf with aplomb. Having only recently taken up the game, Jimmy has excelled, turned professional and is now a regular on the EuroPro Tour. Playing out of private members club, The Wisley, Bullard has a partner who is arguably the most desired in the field, Stiggy Hodgson. With a stunning amateur career, including two Walker Cup appearances and also the 2009 Sunningdale Foursomes title, Hodgson not only brings tournament pedigree but also the benefit of having played his junior golf at Sunningdale, so expect this pairing to be very competitive this week.
Another notable pairing are found at 10.54am on the New Course, with a combined total earnings on the European Tour of 10,175,666 euros, Nick Dougherty and Kenneth Ferrie tee-off looking to use their combined experience of eight European Tour victories to claim the acclaimed Sunningdale Foursomes trophy.
