James Freeman

Golfing Herald met up with James Freeman, PGA Professional at Retford GC for our Meet the Professional series.

After learning how to ‘hit a golf ball’ as a youngster on pitch and putt courses whilst on holiday, James was encouraged by his grandparents, both members of Retford Golf Club, to attend the junior coaching sessions held at the club on Saturday mornings.

James became a junior member at Retford at the start of 1995 when he received a Xmas gift card for 12 months membership. James readily admits that the scores he submitted to attain his first handicap of 36 were ‘not that good’, but from that moment onwards his golfing journey was ‘up and running’. A combination of practice, playing and closely observing the golf swing of a friend, James was playing off scratch by the time he was 16 years old… and 2 years later he was playing off +2.

Over the next few years, James played full time in major amateur events, such as the Brabazon, St Andrews Links, English Amateur and the British Amateur. In 2007, he finished runner up in the prestigious Sunningdale Foursomes. To fund playing full time on the elite amateur circuit James worked part-time in ASDA and for a short period of time worked in Security at Lincoln Prison!! His consistency was finally rewarded when selected to represent England at the Chiberta Grand Prix in Biarritz, where he and partners Rob Harris and Jamie Abbott won the 3 man team event.

James turned professional in 2009. Playing on the EuroPro Tour, he missed the cut in his first 7 tournaments and was then dropped by his sponsor…the following week James finished 2nd and won a substantial pay cheque!! Unfortunately, by 2011 James’ golf started to struggle due to a worsening back injury which eventually required surgery, resulting in James being out of the game for a couple of years.

Upon returning in 2014, James was very much at a career crossroads and he decided to enrol for the 3 year PGA Professional Studies Degree Course. Looking back he says it was the best (golfing) decision he has ever made.

Since becoming a qualified PGA Professional in 2017, James has combined his growing reputation as an innovative coach at Retford Golf Club with playing Tournament golf, highlights including:

• English PGA Championship – 2nd in 2018 and 3rd in 2019
• PGA Professional Championship – 3rd in 2018

In 2018 James reached the second stage of the European Tour School and later this month he sets out to go one better and reach the third and final stage and possibly secure a Tour Card.

Retford Golf Club

Retford Golf Club was established in 1920 when the club leased circa. 40 acres of land to create a six-hole layout. This initial configuration was designed by Tom Williamson who was the greenkeeper, professional and club maker at the nearby Notts Golf Club for an astonishing 54 years!!

In the 1940s through a share issue initiative, the club raised the funding to purchase additional land and thus by 1958 the club finally had a nine-hole layout. In the 1970s and 1980s, proposed joint ventures with the local council to transition Retford Golf Club into an 18 hole municipal course failed to materialise. However, in the mid-1980s the club membership approved an extension plan and thus finally in 1990, this private member’s club established a further nine holes.

Today, this parkland, tree-lined Par 71 course measures 6188 yards from the white tees, rewarding accuracy punctuated with a variety of ‘risk and reward’ holes.

Sheltered by the Pennines, which are 30 miles or so to the west, Retford Golf Club benefits from a micro-climate, enabling the course to be open almost all year round.

Head PGA Professional Craig Morris ably supported by James warmly welcomes members, visitors and societies alike and provides a full range of golfing services and merchandise.

The First Tee

Golfing Herald (GH): I received a most unusual welcome when I arrived at Retford Golf Club from a very unexpected quarter. Whilst waiting for James to conclude his afternoon coaching session I was greeted in the Pro Shop by Oscar, a lovely 9-month-old puppy who decided to check out this golfing blogger!! As I had not been primed to bring some ‘canine treats’, Oscar quickly turned his attention elsewhere to seek out richer pickings…anyhow, I then received a more traditional welcome, this time from James and once we had settled down in the clubhouse I started by asking James when and where his golfing journey ‘teed off’.

James Freeman (JF): I first came to this golf club (Retford) in 1994. My grandparents were members here. They lived just at the back of the practice ground and they were active members of this golf club. I had been away on caravan holidays, where they have little 9 hole pitch and putt courses and I was alright. I could hit it!! My grandparents said do you want to come up and do the junior coaching on a Saturday morning. I started to come most weeks, coached by Jonathan Willis who was the Assistant Professional here at the time. The first few weeks I would just come for that hour and a half and then I would disappear into town with my mates!!

Practice until dark

(GH): Were you into any other sports at that time?

(JF): I played football. I was really into football.

(GH): For the school or a local club?

(JF): I played locally for a decent team up in Eaton Hall. I played a bit of cricket at school, played for Notts as a youngster. But then golf after those first few weeks I was kind of just hooked. It was just one of those things where I would stop (after the coaching session) and just practice. Generally, on Saturdays I would be with my grandparents anyway so I would literally go out of their back gate, down the lane, over the dyke, onto the practice ground and I would be there until they shouted me in when it was dark!!

(GH): At that time did you watch any golf, say on the TV?

(JF): The first event I actually watched on TV was the 1991 Ryder Cup when Bernhard Langer missed that shortish putt. I would watch the open but at that time there was not that much golf on the TV. All changed since then with Sky Sports.

Back in the day

(GH): When you attended those initial Saturday morning sessions, did the club provide the equipment?

(JF): Yeah, it was all provided if you needed it. I just brought an old John Letters 2-wood, which was my Grandad’s, an old Wilson 7-iron and a tiger shark 9 iron. A real mixed bag!! I then progressed onto a Wilson 3-wood, which was actually metal. I was kind of in that era where clubs were just changing from wood to metal.

First Club

(GH): How did you then transition from those junior coaching sessions?

(JF): I became a junior member here. That was my Xmas present!! The (membership) renewals were in January so every year I would get a card saying that your gift was a membership to the golf club. Just progressed from there really.

(GH): Would that be 1995 when you joined Retford Golf Club?

(JF): Yeah. Started junior coaching probably in 94 and joined at the start of 95. I always remember that in those days you had a bag tag to get a new sticker when you renewed and by the end, they were sticking out so far!!

(GH): As members, we never remove the stickers from years gone by!!

(JF): No…just stick them over the top!!

First Handicap

(GH): Can you remember your first handicap?

(JF): Top of the shop…my first handicap was 36. I handed 3 cards in. My grandma would walk around with me just to mark the card as I just wanted to get 3 cards in as soon as possible. Even though she may have played earlier on a Tuesday, after school I would go and bang the door down and say “Look, I need another card!!”. She used to kindly come around and mark the card. They were not great scores…

(GH): In many ways those initial scores don’t really matter, it is all about securing that all-important first handicap?

(JF): I think my scores were 120, 118 and 125. I am sure there were one or two good shots in there but not many!! Shots were mainly across the ground.

From 36 to Scratch

(GH): OK James…you have been allocated an initial golf handicap of 36. What next?

(JF): At the time there were some really good juniors. This club has produced some really good juniors, lots of (Notts) county players. I would watch the others playing. I didn’t have a follow-through to start with…then I just watched this other lad, a lad called Matthew Cheshire who is one of my friends and he had nice big follow-through. I thought ‘I am going to try that’. After that initial (Saturday morning) junior coaching I didn’t really have any lessons and got down to scratch without really having a coach.

(GH): Hold on!! Let’s just take a step back…in 1995 you started off a 36 handicap. At what point did you get down to scratch?

(JF): I was down to scratch when I was 16, so 1998.

(GH): And that was purely from not mimicking but ‘observing’ other golfers, in particular, your friend Matthew?

(JF): Yeah. Just observing, Then I just kind of got obsessed with golf really. Every spare hour…weekends, after school, school holidays. I lived close to the golf course as well. It took me about 59 seconds to get to the practice ground…give or take a second or two!! I lived literally a 9-iron away from the practice ground and I would just practice and practice and practice. Junior golf was at least 36 holes a day…chip butty at halfway and go again!!

(GH): Reaching scratch by such a young age, did you come to the attention of the County Juniors?

(JF): Never really played for the County Juniors. I did some good scores in the Notts Amateur and I literally got into the 2nd team for the Seniors. A bit of a strange one really but I must have played in a competition at Sherwood Forest, and I played really well and I would have been around 17 years old when I was kind of playing decent stuff. Then within those 2 years, I was off +2 by the time I was 18. Then throughout my amateur career, it fluctuated between +2 and +3. I never got better than +3.

National Events (1)

(GH): As an amateur with a handicap of +2/+3, which if any national events did you play in?

(JF): I played in everything I could.

(GH): So, events such as the English Men’s Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship for the Brabazon Trophy?

(JF): Yeah, I played in the Brabazon Trophy. My best finish was 3rd in The Brabazon. Then I played in the St Andrews Links, English Amateur, Lytham Trophy, British Amateur, Hampshire Hog, Selborne Salver…the Berkhamsted Trophy which one year I came 2nd in. Got to the final once in the Sunningdale Foursomes, which is a great event.

(GH): Who did you partner in the Sunningdale Foursomes?

(JF): Robert Steele from Coventry. He is at Evesham now.

(If you wish to find out more about the historic and unique Sunningdale Foursomes and the illustrious list of winners and runners up since the event started in 1934 then please click here)

National Events (2)

(GH): Since starting this series I have been really lucky to interview some great Professionals, all with differing career paths, and I have started to learn much more about some of the lesser well known elite amateur events such as the Hampshire Hog and Selborne Salver.

(JF): That weekend you would always play the (36-hole) Selborne Salver on Saturday and the (36-hole) Hampshire Hog on Sunday and then you would be entered into the (72-hole) Hampshire Salver which was for the combined total across the 2 events. Then you would play the West of England at Westward Ho or Saunton. I don’t know if they still alternate the venue. I played in this event in consecutive years, possibly twice at Westward Ho and twice at Saunton. I think I made the cut every single time I played it and I think my best finish was 9th and that was at Westward Ho. The Lytham didn’t like me!! I didn’t like Lytham…we had a love-hate relationship!! Never did very well in the Lytham. I got a bit of advice off a guy called Colin Edwards who was from Bath. I think he is an England Selector or was involved with the England set-up and he just said to me “Just finish Top 20, Top 15 or Top 10 in everything and the England Selectors will pick that up because you will be playing consistently well”. In that season…I think I had 3rd in the Brabazon, 9th in the St Andrews Links, a good finish in the West of England so all of the main events I played well in.

Full-Time Amateur

(GH): How did you secure funding, if that is the correct phrase to use, to play full time on the (elite) amateur circuit?

(JF): I worked at ASDA in Retford!! I used to work on Thursday, Friday & Saturday from 3 until 11. Obviously, when I had a tournament I would swap the Saturday for a Monday. But then the amateur events would be in the week so I would need to have that week off. So what I did was loads of hours during the winter and the Manager (who was the wife of a golfing friend here at Retford) used to organise the diary around my golf. It was brilliant. It was amazing. I self-funded my golf for a long time.

England Call Up

(GH): James, going back to your earlier comment about the positive feedback and incentive provided by Colin Edwards, can you remember your first ‘call up’ to the England Team?

(JF): Yeah I can. It was funny actually in that I had been doing some fitness work with a local guy called Jeff Davis who was big into golf but hardly ever played but a good friend. He had been sort of helping me with the fitness side of things as in the early 2000s Tiger was absolutely flying and it was a massive thing about him being in the gym. When I was in my late teens I was latching onto the fitness aspect of the game and Jeff was probably one of the top people in the country to talk about training and to work with. A guy called Dave Galley was one of his mates, and he was the England Football Physio at the time. Dave, Jeff & myself were on the 8th (here at Retford) and I got a call from Anthony Abraham and he said: “I would like to sort of obviously congratulate you on your finishes in the various competitions and we have picked you to represent England in a 3 man team at the Chiberta Grand Prix in Biarritz”. I got the call when I am playing and the next thing clubs are in the air and then there was a group hug and the guys on the tee behind are wondering what the hell is going on!! It was brilliant. I could take you back to the very spot when I got the call. I was actually walking down the out of bounds line as I was really close to going out of bounds…

(GH): Just as well that the England Selectors had not seen your shot on the 8th just before the call?

(JF): Exactly…but I was loving it!!

Chiberta Grand Prix

(GH): Who else was selected for the 3 man team?

(JF): Rob Harris who was a Lincolnshire player and a lad called Jamie Abbott from Suffolk.

(GH): And you went on to win the team event?

(JF): We did. It was a fantastic experience. We went to stay with a family (in Biarritz) who were so good. Stayed at their house. It was July so it was super hot and they had their own swimming pool which was brilliant so after golf, there was the added attraction of the pool. The course was good and pulling on the English Rose was so special. It was a huge thing.

(GH): And all those hard hours at ASDA were eventually worth it?

(JF): It really was. And Retford Golf Club made a massive thing of it. There was an article in the local paper. To my knowledge, I was the first full England International at this club. It was a big thing, not only for myself but for my parents, my grandparents and the golf club.

(GH): Please tell me that you also managed to be awarded Employee of the Month at ASDA?

(JF): No…No…No…I don’t think so!! From that success in Biarritz, things started to happen for me.

Loyalty, Pride and Honour

(GH): Such as?

(JF): I got help from PING. I was invited to PING and I literally got kitted out by PING for all my clubs and I have been with them ever since.

(GH): Just returning for the moment to England, did you represent England in say the Home Internationals?

(JF): I never played in the Home Internationals. At that time there were the likes of Ross Fisher, Jamie Moul, Richard Finch and Oliver Fisher…there was always a very strong team at that time and I never got close to those teams through that year. And the Walker Cup as well. I had really good finishes but the lads who were selected were winning the events, such as Gary Wolstenholme who was very much in his prime.

(GH): Gary was one of England’s greatest ever amateurs.

(JF): Really was. Fantastic longevity at the top of the amateur game. I missed out but I was OK with it as the calibre of players I was missing out to was unbelievable.

(GH): But no one can ever take away the pride and honour of representing your country in France?

(JF): No. Still got the blazer!! Still got one of the shirts. Still got all of the memories, the photos and it was a proud moment for me and my family.

Amateur to Professional

(GH): At what point did you think about transitioning from elite amateur to the first rung on the professional ladder?

(JF): Probably when I represented my country and you are going up levels and you look at your peers, some of whom were starting to turn pro. The American Scholarship was in my mind at that time but I don’t think in those days the funding was available. It was like do I keep playing amateur golf, which by that time I had done for a few years. I had started doing some work with a coach and started to talk about ‘moving up’ and decided that I wanted to give it a go and turn pro. I had got a sponsor to help as well.

(GH): Was your focus on becoming a Touring/Playing Pro or a Teaching Pro?

(JF): Touring/Playing Pro.

(GH): When did you turn Professional?

(JF): I turned professional in 2009. At the end of 2008/09. I had got my game to a level where I definitely thought I could compete on the EuroPro Tour. That was the place where I wanted to start.

(GH): Then possibly move up to the next level (Challenge Tour) and so on?

(JF): Every time I have played in something I have always had to get to the level, feel comfortable at that level, and then naturally move on. I wouldn’t probably burst into that position. At the time I felt it was as far as I good get in amateur golf and representing England was the pinnacle of my amateur career.

(GH): And in golf, just like in any other sport or career, you don’t want to get that stale feeling?

(JF): Exactly. I wanted to stay fresh, move up, and more than anything I wanted to push myself and keep pushing myself as much as I could.

EuroPro Tour (2009)

(GH): How did your initial career as a professional unfold on the 2009 EuroPro Tour?

(JF): I missed the first 7 cuts on EuroPro and my sponsor pulled out!!

(GH): No way…was your sponsor going to pull out anyhow or was it as a direct consequence of the streak of missed cuts?

(JF): As a consequence of not doing well. They thought I would have done better!!

(GH): What happened next…did you pause for reflection and think “I’ll show you”?

(JF): The week after my sponsor pulled out I finished 2nd in the Formby Hall Classic on the EuroPro Tour and won £5000. I didn’t have a lot of money to my name but I won £5000.

Prison!!

(GH): Not sure how to phrase this next question and I certainly don’t want to offend you…but do you think you would have finished runner up if your sponsor had not pulled out?

(JF): Probably not. I went there and it was possibly going to be one of my last events of that year. Because if you have no income, and I had given my job up to go and turn pro. I am not coaching. I am not qualified to coach which I could fall back on. By finishing second the ‘fire started up again’ and I qualified for the Tour Championships on the EuroPro Tour. In the first year, I think I finished 23rd in the EuroPro order of merit. And that sort of paid-for European Tour School at the end of the year. For that winter (2009/10) I worked at Lincoln Prison as an OSG. You are basically stood there watching workman work in the winter and you have so many layers on as you are outside but the money was good.

(When writing up this article I looked up OSG on Google…Operational Support Grade)

(GH): A security role?

(JF): Yeah. You have got a bunch of keys and moving the workman/contractors around the prison to ensure they are safe. That is what I did for that winter and possibly the next winter as well. As soon as March came around, job gone and back on the EuroPro Tour.

Injured Back

(GH): In preparation for today I noted that you have also played on the Challenge Tour.

(JF): In 2011, I received an invite to play on the Challenge Tour at Spey Valley. Also, as a consequence of my finish at Tour School, and at a time when not many people would have wanted to go to Morocco, I played in the Moroccan Golf Classic. My ranking was not strong enough (to keep me up) so it was literally just EuroPro until the end of 2011 when I started to struggle with my back.

(GH): Had you been struggling with your back for a while or did it just flare-up?

(JF): In 2011 it was kind of there. 2010 it was there…if I got my (playing) record up I could say exactly when as I would play in an event, then withdraw, play in an event, then withdraw because of the pain I was in. It was manageable at first but I wasn’t able to practice and do the stuff I wanted to do physically. I was on 24-hour painkillers just to play in a Tournament. It became hard work as you are trying to free everything up before you play for a couple of hours. It was just difficult to feel physically mobile enough to swing the golf club in the way you try to. I got a medical extension on EuroPro and had about 6 or 7 months off from tournament golf. Then I would have an injection, play for a couple of weeks, then an injection and it would be OK for 2 weeks, and it felt like a new lease of life albeit just for a couple of weeks.

(GH): Could you still compete despite the pain and the injections?

(JF): I was just sore. From the end of 2010 until 2013, so about 3 years, I just struggled with my back.

(GH): I assume in the end you had to have an operation?

(JF): I had a ‘Discectomy and a Spinal Decompression’ at L4, L5 and S1 so it was involving the sciatic nerve. They took all of the discs away that were causing the problem.

Recovery

(GH): Was the prognosis from your surgeon/consultant positive in that they thought you could play golf again to a high standard?

(JF): The original chat was “because of my age I was quite young to have a procedure of this style”. But when you are in that much pain and struggling you will kind of do anything just to get rid of that pain even just for a day. I had 6 weeks at home. I didn’t get out of my home for 6 weeks as I couldn’t move. I was eating my meals laid down. I felt OK and then the captain of Retford Golf Club at the time (I am good friends with his son) invited me out to his house for tea. They just live at the end of the village. Went down there, sat at the table, started eating dinner and then I said: “Do you mind if I lay down?”. It was quite embarrassing but as I knew them they were OK. It was just horrible. In answer to your question, the conversation with the surgeon at Claremont Hospital in Sheffield was you might not play golf to that level again but you will definitely play golf again.

(GH): That must have felt very reassuring?

(JF): I am always positive. I am always ‘let’s make the best of the situation’.

(GH): Glass always half full?

(JF): Absolutely. Always, without question. You only get that from setbacks. The surgery was a huge success. That was done the day before my birthday in 2013. I woke up from surgery and the pain had completely gone. This radiation of nerve pain down my leg. I was like ‘wow’, this is a feeling I have not felt for 3 or 4 years. In addition to my surgeon, I would also like to thank Jamie Edwards (sports performance/psychologist) and Paul Farquarson (physio) who were vital in getting me fit, in both body and mind.

What Next

(GH): When fully recovered, was it your intention to return to the EuroPro Tour?

(JF): Yeah it was definitely the intention. After the operation, they get you back walking really quick. The first day I walked about 500 yards and back. Then it just gradually built up from there. I was then hitting balls, well chipping actually, after about 6 months and then I was hitting full shots after about 9 months. At that time I had taken a job in the IT Admin department at Rampton Hospital which is just outside of Retford. Worked around my rehab and my injury to just have some money coming in. Then I thought to myself “what am I going to do?”. I want to be in golf because I love the game. I still feel the same way today as I did when I first started chipping balls around here or on the caravan site. I decided to submit my papers to do the PGA course. I enrolled in 2014 and thought if I can’t play golf on the tour then I can at least be in golf. It turned out to be the best decision I have ever made really!!

(GH): In a perverse way, and aligned to your half glass full philosophy, your back injury could be viewed as a positive.

(JF): Absolutely…it certainly salvaged something!!

PGA Qualifications

(GH): Where were you attached whilst studying for your PGA qualifications?

(JF): I was attached to Owston Hall, near Doncaster.

(GH): I read an article about your success (in 2015) in the PGA North Assistants Championship of Yorkshire, where you shot a 69 at Ilkley Golf Club. After the experiences of playing on the EuroPro and Challenge Tours, how did that feel by comparison?

(JF): It felt like a new challenge. It almost felt like a re-introduction to the game. But then if you look at the field, maybe not at the time, who was playing that day at Ilkley…players such as Gareth Davies and Matthew Webb.

(GH): Gareth Davies won the prestigious Leeds Cup earlier this year which illustrates the quality of the players you beat on that day…

PGA Ambassador

(GH): In the same article that I just referenced, I read with some interest that during your PGA degree course, you were the Ambassador for the PGA Modern Apprenticeship Course for 16 to 24-year-olds…how did that role come about?

(JF): It was a funny one!! I went to Penwortham Golf Club to play in a Powerade Assistants Event. I got there, I was late, so I had about 2 chips and 1 putt and then straight onto the 1st Tee. Hooked it out of bounds and took a double and then shot a 64 after that. I just had a total disaster start and then came back well and won that qualifier. Then from that, and I am presuming because of all the things I was involved in all my pictures were on this flyer for this Modern Apprenticeship Course. A few of my friends said, “Have you seen this flyer?”. It was kind of nice to be on the pages of that and it was after the success at Penwortham, having shot a good score there. In terms of a role, in terms of having to talk to anyone or anything like that I did not have to anything in that role. But obviously being on the front page was quite a nice thing to ‘head up’.

Returning Home

(GH): As you approached the end of your 3 year PGA training course, what were your plans for the short/medium term?

(JF): I rang here and spoke to Craig (Morris) who was the Assistant here when I was a junior and then became, and still is, the Head Professional at Retford. I asked whether he needed anyone to come down and do any coaching. He spoke to the committee and they said absolutely!! Craig is brilliant and I can’t thank him enough. He then helped me build up my coaching here at Retford.

(GH): How did that feel returning as a qualified Professional to what is effectively your spiritual golfing home having played your amateur golf, won international honours, etc. whilst a member here?

(JF): Amazing. You kind of make decisions along the way and try to think at the time you are doing the right thing and trying to always better yourself. I think the desire to improve and go up and elevate your game…your primary focus is to keep getting better. But, to come back and be part of the professional team here is just amazing. Craig had a little bit of ill health in and around the time I returned and he said: “To be honest, I could really do with a hand” as he was not able to stay in the shop 7 days a week and do the coaching. The timing was really good, whether that was luck or whatever.

(GH): Everything happens for reason.

(JF): Yeah…it has turned out really well. Since then, I have not really had a direct role in the shop. I have not been expected to do anything golf club wise. Though I do support some of the things that happen here, like some of the functions. For example, we have a match we play twice a year and I always support that. Basically, I support Craig in coaching the members which then frees him up. Works really well. We get on great, good friends and the members enjoy the fact that I am still competing at a pretty high level.

Targets and Aspirations

(GH): On that topic of you still competing at a high level, I read that you attempted to qualify for the European Tour last year and that you got through to the 2nd stage. Are you looking to try and qualify again this year?

(JF): Yeah…I have entered to play in the 1st stage at Frilford Heath later this month. The good thing about Tour School is even if you don’t get through you can still be involved with an A1 or A2 associate membership. It doesn’t necessarily get you into any events but it is still worth doing because you are at least on the list and if I wasn’t on that list I wouldn’t have played in the ISPS. That invite was definitely from Tour School. They called it an invitational and I suppose it was but the place was given to me from Tour School.

(GH): You posted a number of tweets to say what a fantastic event the ISPS Handa tournament was…and you got off to a terrific start by scoring 66 in the 1st round!! Do you think this event will be repeated, a combined Invitational Men | Women Tournament?

(JF): I think they will do it again. ISPS Handa does support some of the European Tour events and if it comes up again I would definitely play in it again…and more!! My goal this Tour School is to get on the Challenge Tour and have a card on Challenge Tour. I want to move up. I am ready to move up.

(GH): To secure that card, where do you need to finish within Tour School?

(JF): I need to reach the final stage and make the cut at the final stage. Then you are guaranteed status on Challenge Tour. There are quite a few rounds to go. Last year I just narrowly missed out. For the first time I had got through to 2nd stage and I felt comfortable and actually I did not miss out by many to get to the final stage. I feel like in terms of progression it’s a good chance and a good route to go.

(GH): All the best and I will keep an eye on your progress through the various rounds/stages.

(JF): Appreciate that…I am looking forward to it.

Coaching Philosophy

(GH): On your bio on the excellent Retford Golf Club website, you highlight that your approach to coaching is tailored around and aligned to injury prevention. How does that differ from shall I say ‘traditional coaching’?

(JF): Through the PGA I was very interested in the Biomechanics side of teaching. Throughout that course, I was always trying to link it back to, or trying to put my finger on, what went wrong for me. Trying to think at what point did things change for me physically in relation to my back. I am sure other Pros are also doing this, but I what I bring is an understanding of the way people move, to set up a posturally sound golf swing. Ensure people move safely with the spine. No side tilting. Certainly for guys that are older and maybe less mobile I try to try things that help them. Footwork and moving in a certain way that protects your spine protects your joints and hips. I think people can benefit from as much movement patterns as they can.

Importance of Professional Coaching

(GH): I also noted from your bio that for the last 15 years or so you have been working with the renowned international coach Graham Walker from the Oaks Golf Club. When did you start to actively be coached yourself?

(JF): It was probably as I was kind of playing for England. When I got to scratch I thought to progress I definitely need some coaching because it just seemed the right way to go…and it was.

(GH): Did you approach Graham?

(JF): It was a funny one as we got introduced by a management company. Some guys were doing some work with him at Barlborough Links Golf Club and it was a bit of a chance meeting. They said in order for us sponsor, help and manage you a bit we will need you to be with Graham Walker. I think I had a couple of sessions with Graham and we hit it off straight away. He is a great guy. That was the introduction. After that, they never actually managed me and never sponsored me!! But the connection was made with Graham and I have not wavered since.

(GH): As a professional golfer, what form does your professional coaching take with Graham? For example, do you give him a call and say I need some help on such and such?

(JF): Graham has got busier as he is now away at majors and stuff, so we just fit round whatever we can. If he is at a competition I will send him a WhatsApp and say I am struggling with this or not quite right with that…so I am in contact with Graham quite a lot really.

Dawn to Dusk Challenge

(GH): Picking up the thread once more on the topic of fitness, please tell me more about the recent ‘Dawn to Dusk’ Challenge that you and Craig Morris undertook?

(JF): Well, Craig is into walking and he goes walking in the Peak District and all over. We were kind of thinking of a challenge to do. About 3 or 4 years ago I played 72 holes in one day and Craig had previously done one, something like 6 or 7 rounds in one day. So we kind of went in the middle and decided to get 100 holes completed for the (Retford GC) Captains charity. It was a big ask really as physically you don’t really know as I had only done 72 holes previously. So, on 9th July we just did it!! We will find out at the end of the year how much has been raised for the charity as it is ongoing throughout the year.

(GH): Is the Captains Charity for a single cause or multiple good causes?

(JF): More than one. Friends of St Giles School which is a local special needs school and Pancreatic Cancer UK, a charity for which I also ran the Great North Run yesterday!!

(GH): Talking about running and charitable causes, about 6 years ago I ran around all 18 holes on Captains Day for our Captains nominated charity. I was really pleased with my time and the money we raised, but it totally finished off my dodgy heels (caused by wear and tear of many years running) due to the very hard ground and I have never run since…

(JF): This (running) is how sometimes I have had to practice this year on EuroPro Tour. As I have college golf coaching all day on a Monday at Woodfields Astrea Academy I have been getting to the EuroPro Tour event on a Tuesday. They have the Pro-Am on a Tuesday so it is very unlikely that you can get on the course on Tuesday’s. So what I have been doing is getting there in the evening after the Pro-Am and ‘running the course’ if I have not played there before. I also use that as my training!!

The best facet of your game

(GH): What would you say is the best facet of your game?

(JF): Best facet? I would like to say it’s probably equal between driving and short game.

(GH): What is it about your driving?

(JF): My driving is generally accurate and pretty long. But short game is a Graham Walker signature having good distance control from 100 yards and in. There are not many events go by where I don’t chip in and so yeah probably a combination of the two. I enjoy the challenge of getting up and down from difficult positions…I just find it fun!!

Love of Golf

(GH): Speaking of fun, one of the common themes in the ‘Meet the Professional’ articles is that love of golf and the excitement and butterflies, either on the 1st tee in a tournament or coaching a beginner and if that feeling ever went they would know it was time to ‘give up’.

(JF): Absolutely. Linked to that I was out in America caddying for Holly Clyburn on the LPGA Tour a couple of years ago and I had some free time between tournaments and I caddied for her at a major and I caddied for her in a normal LPGA event.

(GH): How did that ‘opportunity’ come about?

(JF): We were just friends and she was struggling to get a caddy for those two events and I said I will come and help out!!

(GH): Caddying for Holly must have enabled you to observe the game from a totally different perspective?

(JF): It was amazing to watch and I learnt so much. Some of the top lady pro’s are very professional, very diligent and very conscientious about everything they do. I remember seeing the eventual winner of one of the events before it started and thought she will go close…it was Anna Nordqvist, who won the Evian Championship in 2017. I looked at golf from a completely different point of view. I actually played a practice round with two of the other caddies on a free afternoon. One of them was a guy called Patrick Turley who used to caddy for Chris Riley. A really interesting guy who had some great stories and his zest (for golf) gave me even more of a spur on to keep playing and keep doing what I was doing. Kind of thanks to him has meant I am a lot more in tune with that feeling for golf again. Golf…still love it.

Outside of golf

(GH): Following you on Twitter as I do it is fairly obvious that you quite like your football!!

(JF): Love it!!

(GH): I will overlook the fact that you support (dirty) Leeds United…so how and when did you start supporting Leeds?

(JF): I went to my first game when I was about 5 or 6. They were in (the old) Division 2 and my uncle took me to a game and I had never been to a sporting event like it…Elland Road was so loud. There was like a ringing around the ground. Just the way the fans got behind the team made it so interesting for me as a kid. Getting the seat down, standing on the seat, being at the same height as all the adults. Luckily enough I have had a season ticket for two years. Some games I can’t get to and give my ticket to someone else. I still love them, even though they drive me to distraction, they really do. Something you can’t explain is the atmosphere and you can feel the hype and the expectation before you walk into the ground…when you are walking to the ground there is all the chatter and the buzz.

(GH): Apart from your love of football, any other interests outside of golf?

(JF): I got married earlier this year so I go and watch my wife play netball. She plays to a decent standard in the Northern League. Enjoy it, quite a fast-paced game. Stuff like that we do together. We like walks over in the Peak District. Running, Cycling…we try to go up Snowdon at least once a year if we can, dependent on the weather. We have a canvas on the wall in the lounge at home of a photo (from the summit of Snowdon) taken on a panoramic iPhone and it is just fantastic. Amazing place.

Favourite Sporting Event

(GH): What is your favourite sporting event?

(JF): Favourite Sporting Event has got to be the Open Championship. I once went to watch it at Lytham and it was when you just knew where Tiger was on the golf course!! You could see and feel it a mile away. Just special. There was just a real buzz around Tiger. After that, any kind of live sport. We went to watch Baseball in America when we were over there. I am into anything but the Open is at the top of the list. Yeah, the Open Championship is the one I always watch on TV and because it is your home major you see most people getting up for it.

Fantasy Fourball

(GH): In addition to yourself, who would you pick for your Fantasy Fourball?

(JF): The other three…definitely Tiger. I am lucky enough to have played with Lee Westwood and he is probably my idol in terms of a local hero.

(GH): Is Lee based out of Workshop Golf Club?

(JF): Yeah…Workshop Golf Club is literally just up the road. I know his parents really well by playing locally. It’s a tough one really. Probably Tiger and then John Lennon, if he played golf. That would be quite cool. The last one in any fourball would have to be my Grandma because she was the one who was the catalyst that made things happen for me in terms of starting out. The reason why I ran the Great North Run yesterday was that it is 18 years since she passed away due to pancreatic cancer…so it was like 18 holes, 18 years, golfing thing. That would be the four…Tiger, John Lennon and my Grandma.

(GH): OK, although we don’t know whether he played golf or not, why John Lennon?

(JF): I love my music. Love Bands. John Lennon has been an influence through The Beatles down the years with Oasis, Stone Roses, etc. and that’s why really. Also, a recent trip to the John Lennon Museum in Liverpool as part of my minimoon so I learnt even more about him there and thought what a fantastic person he seemed to be.

(GH): I suppose in many ways he was like the Tiger Woods of music…just on a different level.

(JF): Yeah. I think so.

If not a Professional Golfer

(GH): James, if you had not been a Professional Golfer, then what?

(JF): Love watching Traffic Cops!! Absolutely love it. Don’t know why. I love watching it because it would be quite cool to drive something like, well it used to be a fast T5 Volvo. I really enjoy watching Traffic Cops.

(GH): I better watch my speed as I drive through Retford after this interview!!

(JF): Please do!! Just something outdoors…Traffic Cop, Football Coach.

(GH): Not stuck in an office?

(JF): Definitely not. Anything with some variety. As a coach, I am lucky in that I get golfers from other clubs as well. The guy I was just coaching was from Brigg so he has travelled a fair distance. I look at my diary and tomorrow is a totally full day, so busy with coaching. You look at it and there is another guy from Elsham, people from local clubs such as Worksop and Gainsborough and just the variety of different people from all over.

(GH): Then punctuate your coaching with Tour School on the horizon?

(JF): Yeah. Tour School coming up. I love it.

Favourite Golf Course

(GH): Which is your favourite golf course in the UK (excluding Retford Golf Club)?

(JF): My favourite golf course is Sunningdale. I love Sunningdale. I had some success there in the foursomes but I like how you have got two courses (Old and New) there and just love how it looks. I love how they have cut the fairways and the sculpture of the greens and the bunkers. Sometimes you don’t see the bunkers as they drop off the green. The design of the Old Course, fair but tough at the same time, generous off the tee. The greens are always good. The sausage sandwiches at halfway are absolutely legendary!! Every single time I go there it is just one of those courses where every hole suits my eye. Even the New course presents a different challenge, plays a little bit tighter. The foursomes are played over both courses but I just seem to play the Old course better.

(GH): And your favourite golf course outside of the UK?

(JF): Outside of the UK, either the Earth Course in Dubai where they play the DP World Tour or Emirates Golf Club. Played there 2 or 3 years ago on a trip to the DP World Tour and we got a chance to play a couple of games. Again, just awesome, having watched it on TV it was one of those where you just want to play the 18th, the one with the stream up the middle of the two fairways. I just really enjoyed watching it on TV and just inspiring when you see all the top players playing there, then you get an opportunity to play there.

Marooned

(GH): You are marooned on a remote Island. What would you not be without?

(JF): My wife. Definitely music and if you can have that many people just my family around me. Through your injuries and stuff you just don’t get through them without your family. I am lucky in that I have a very close family and I have a handful of some very good friends as well. I would have my squad around me…

(GH): With music in the background…

(JF): Yeah, with a bit of music…oh and a BBQ!!

The Nineteenth

(GH): And finally. You are now in charge of the R&A. What ideas would you like to implement for this great game of golf over the next few years?

(JF): I would tighten courses up. Technology has for most people improved their game. I wouldn’t redesign courses, I would just tighten them up by narrowing the fairways a little bit. The Paris National (for the 2018 Ryder Cup) demonstrated that the Americans could not dominate the courses like they do most weeks. It’s not necessarily having trees, just having fairways tighter and then the severity of rough. I think the ball and driver technology is still going to get better and it is a power game now but we have got to get accuracy back into the game.

(GH): Would you also propose tightening up around the greens as well?

(JF): Yeah, around the greens as well. The only equipment I would probably change would maybe make the most lofted club you can have a 56-degree wedge.

(GH): Would that be designed to improve shot creativity?

(JF): Yeah, just to eradicate the one dimensional up in the air shot. Having been around in the nineties playing a bit of golf it was such a buzz to move the ball around. I used to love trying to hit spinny chip shots, fading chip shots, drawing chip shots and just manoeuvring the ball around. I just think sometimes the art of golf has gone away a little bit. There is only a handful of golfers that like to move the ball…Bubba Watson is probably one of them.

(GH): Bubba takes it to the extreme when you watch some of his left to right drives, setting the ball off down an adjoining fairway!!

(JF): He’s crazy. Hopefully, we won’t have to lengthen some of the greatest courses in the country or in the world. If you are taking that long shot on then if you do miscue it then you are struggling with heavy rough and stuff like that really.

(GH): Great way to finish here at the Nineteenth…James, a huge thanks for your time today and for sharing your golfing journey to date in a very thoughtful, honest, passionate and at times humorous way. All the best for the future, in particular, your forthcoming attempt at Tour School. And thanks again to Retford Golf Club, for the very warm welcome and hospitality.