Sinatra on golf

Leaving the KLM Open last Friday, my head was swirling with thoughts about an old master. Not Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus or Gary Player but Frank Sinatra!

When TIG Sports, promoter of the KLM Open started spreading the news about a move from the esteemed Kennemer Golf Club to the ‘The Dutch’ in Spijk, many people doubted it could be a success. Even those who liked this modern championship course. In the eternal words of Sinatra ‘If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere…..’

After a scintillating week of golf that witnessed a second KLM Open victory for Joost Luiten, pretty much every Dutch golf fan from Spijk to New York, New York knows where to find The Dutch now! In golfing heaven, apart from Arnie, Jack or Gary taking the first tee shot, the next best thing is a home winner and Luiten did not disappoint. The previous week, the golf pros were very close to golfing heaven in Crans-sur-Sierre Montana with the backdrop of Mont Blanc. There is no way to compete with the beautiful setting in Crans and I hope the Omega European Masters never leaves the Swiss mountains.

It would have been easy to keep the KLM Open at a tried and tested venue 30 minutes’ drive from Amsterdam but sometimes you need to take a risk or two. There might have been a few regrets but too few to mention, as the song goes. A new venue will always bring new challenges but just like golf, sometimes you bite off more than you can chew and go for that par 5 in two. At The Dutch there was a feeling of newness, bags of space and a golf course that offered great viewing at almost every turn. The course was in superb condition and the pros were able to play attacking and exciting golf. Luiten finished with an 8 under par 63 on Sunday including 10 birdies and two bogies with a final score of 19 under.

As a head sponsor, KLM was also taking a risk. A poor tournament reflects badly on image, reputation and customer satisfaction. In this case you could forgive KLM for adding Sinatra’s fly with me to their in-flight video of KLM Open highlights. As major partners credit has to be given to KLM and TIG Sports for the introduction of ‘Beat the Pro’ where amateurs can play one shot on a par 3 hole alongside the pros – during the tournament. Few sports have the opportunity that allow amateurs to line-up alongside the pros. It takes courage to introduce such concepts in a sport that is often considered ‘too conservative’.

Worldwide, golf has been struggling since the disappearance of Tiger. Nike and adidas are both off-loading their golf club business and millennials prefer the PS4 over a 4-hour round on Sunday morning. On Monday morning this week, KLM, TIG Sports, The Dutch and the PGA European Tour must have felt like they were sitting on a rainbow with the world on a string… No doubt, the organisers planned every step and can now say I did it my way!

From now on, golf fans, followers and doubters might just see ‘Spijk’ as my kind of town. No matter what happens in the future, 2016 was a very good year for the KLM Open.