I was out on The Old yesterday and thought I’d gone back in time as I caught sight of four gentlemen causing a bit of a stir on the first tee. They were all magnificently attired in Harris Tweed plus twos, donning waistcoats and bow ties and caps. And indeed they all had old style golf bags full of entire sets of hickory shafted clubs.
They made quite a spectacle and one chap looked marvellously like Sir Edward Elgar. Indeed they wouldn’t have looked out of place at high table at one of your more distinguished Oxbridge colleges.
It turns out there’s a party of eighteen of them from some quirky wee club in Austria. But unfortunately only four of them got ballot times for The Old. And that’s a shame after making that sort of effort.
Anyway with much aplomb the first three hit excellent drives with their hickory woods up the middle of the fairway. However the last chap, who looked rather splendid in a deep blue shooting jacket and pristine starched white breeks, hit a truly miserable shot. There was a lull and then Cologne Tom (yes it had to be), declared from the side of the tee, ‘bad luck but if it’s any consolation you’re the best dressed of the group’.
It caused great amusement to us and a fair group of onlookers. And of course it was classic Tom who will often refer to someone’s sartorial style after a bad shot.
And this was without doubt stylishly worthy of comment.