Gender-equality drive back in the swing at Cleckheaton Golf Club

The unique appeal of the gender-equal 2020protour is exemplified by the diversity in the entrants for the tour’s event at Cleckheaton Golf Club on Monday.
Ryder Cup star Jamie Donaldson: In action at Cleckheaton. Picture: PARyder Cup star Jamie Donaldson: In action at Cleckheaton. Picture: PA
Ryder Cup star Jamie Donaldson: In action at Cleckheaton. Picture: PA

Six years ago, Jamie Donaldson struck the shot that clinched Europe’s win over the United States in the Ryder Cup at Gleneagles. The Welshman also has three European Tour titles to his name and a top-10 finish in a major.

Thirty years his junior, Abigail Taylor, a 14-year-old England Under-18s player who plays off a handicap of 3.7 at Headingley Golf Club, tees off on a day when ordinarily she would have been at school.

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At Cleckheaton today, Donaldson and Taylor are equals – just two golfers vying over 18 holes for the prize money that is on offer.

Taylor has a chance to match Donaldson because women play off the red tees, 11 per cent shorter than the men’s course. That is the only way to separate men and women on a tour that is quickly making a name for itself for its approach to gender equality.

That and the fact it is the first golf event to emerge from the coronovirus pandemic, which has prompted such an eclectic mix to gather.

Donaldson and Taylor tee off 10 minutes apart, a convenient coincidence to fuel the narrative for Chris Hanson and Adam Walker, the golf professionals who launched the 2020protour in November.

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“Abigail tried to get into the first two tournaments we staged but the handicap cut-off was 2. Now it’s up to 4 and she’s thrilled to be in,” explained Hanson.

This is just the 2020protour’s third tournament, but with it being the first tour to emerge from the coronavirus-enforced shutdown of sport, it has attracted a bumper field of 114, nearly twice as many as took part in the inaugural event at Crosland Heath. Also teeing off today are Meghan MacLaren and Carly Booth, who are multiple winners on the Ladies European Tour, and Yorkshire players Jonathan Thomson, Joe Dean, Joe Heraty, Olivia Winning, Nick Marsh and Marcus Armitage, among others. Tee times run from 9.10am until 3.20pm.

The tournament is closed to spectators and caddies and social distancing protocals will be adhered to.

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