Lee Westwood has welcomed the return of world-class golfers to the Midlands and is hoping a home crowd can spur him and his Majesticks team to success at LIV Golf’s UK leg this week.
After two years at Centurion Club near London, the circuit’s only British tournament has been relocated to the JCB Golf and Country Club in Staffordshire.
It means a rare chance for Midlanders to experience top-level competition on their doorstep, with most events tending to be in the Home Counties or seaside settings.
Local golf fans appear to have taken to the idea and have sold out all three days of the tournament, which runs from Friday to Sunday.
“I’m from only an hour and 20 minutes from here. It’s very much a home crowd for me so I’ll have a lot of family and friends here this week,” Worksop-born Westwood told City A.M.
“To see it sold out for three days is amazing. I think this part of the world is starved of world-class golf to a certain extent.
“When great players come to town, they either go and play the Open, which is on a links course, or play in the London area. So it’s nice to see the Midlands get a tournament.
“It’s always a great atmosphere playing in front of home fans. And they expect exactly the same as you. I just hope we can play well and make use of that home support.”
The JCB Club sits in 240 acres of farmland, parkland, woodland and lakes in a site next to the construction company’s global headquarters in Rocester.
It was conceived by JCB boss Anthony Bamford and designed not for casual golfers but with elite competition in mind, with the 7,255-yard course usually playing firm and fast.
“This is my first visit. I played nine holes today, got a look at the front nine,” Westwood said.
“It’s tight in places. It’s in good condition. It’s going to test people mentally, I think; it’s not flat, for sure. There’s a few good hills on it, so it’ll be a physical test as well.”
Majesticks teammate Ian Poulter says the JCB Club set-up is in “immaculate condition” but expects it to place a premium on accuracy.
“This golf course is going to reward very good shots and it will punish wayward shots,” he said. “There’s a couple of very tricky holes out there, a couple of blind tee shots.”
Westwood and Poulter are yet to finish on the podium with their Majesticks team (Image: LIV Golf)
The Majesticks, who also feature Sam Horsfield and Henrik Stenson, remain the only team yet to finish on the podium in the first two seasons of the LIV Golf League.
Recent performances have hinted at a change in fortunes, however, with Horsfield and Westwood were second and third in individual scoring in Nashville last month.
The Majesticks missed out on third place in team scoring by two strokes, while they were just one birdie away from the podium in Hong Kong back in March.
“We’ve been so close to a couple of podiums this year already that it’s just small margins,” said Westwood, who was speaking at the launch of a new initiative by their Little Sticks programme.
“Everybody’s got to play well in the same week. We’ve got to gel together over the first couple of days and just throw that odd low score in that really moves you up the leaderboard.”
The Majesticks, who were fifth at Centurion Club last year, have just three tournaments left to play themselves into top form before the season-ending Team Championship.
“In the closing six holes on Sunday, we need to collectively finish that off,” added Poulter.
“Nashville we got close, but we are trending in the right direction. It’s exciting to be in contention, but it’s time for us now to be able to deliver.”