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Drambuie On Ice preparation hots up! |
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February 24, 2004; Source: AnyoneForTee The Ice Men cometh as Drambuie helps golfers chill out in Norway By AnyoneForTee's Nordic Correspondent Archie Pelago |
SVALBARD, NORWAY. The 2004 Drambuie World Ice Golf Championship – a unique event in the golfing world and certainly the coldest – will be played on the island of Spitsbergen from April 1 to 3. And its unofficial alternative media AnyoneForTee has some great prizes from the organisers to give away!  The event will take place on an ice fjord near the town of Longyearbyen in Spitsbergen in the remote archipelago of Svalbard between Thursday 1st and Saturday 3rd April 2004. Svalbard houses some of the most geographically dramatic and remote islands in the world, has a population of just 3,000, and sits half way between Norway and the North Pole (click the map for a larger version). It is also home to some of the closest communities to the North Pole – and around 5,000 of the biggest, cuddliest polar bears, who live on a diet of seals, penguins and golfers who have missed the fairway.  The venue was chosen by leading British explorer Pen Hadow (pictured left), who has travelled to some of the most remote and harshest places on Earth, including Craig Stadler’s locker room, to search for the ultimate location for the 2004 Championship based on three key criteria:
 The whole of this Arctic expanse is filled with fjords, wide river valleys, jutting peaks, nesting cliffs, and the stunning glaciers which cover 60% of Svalbard, many of them ending in the sea, as will no doubt numerous golf balls and probably a few clubs in early April.Said the organisers: "It is truly one of the most untamed and magnificent travel destinations in the world – a place where Polar Bears roam free, it’s light almost all night and temperatures can reach a staggering minus 30 degrees celsius over the course of the Championship period."  The tournament involves a 36 hole stroke-play competition played over two days. The day before the Championship the players also compete in a ‘Ryder Cup’ style tournament in order to get used to the freezing conditions, playing on ice, the layout of the course and sizing up their rivals, before taking part in The Drambuie World Ice Golf Championship.Records cannot be beaten hole-by-hole, day-by-day or even event-by-event, as the course is constantly altering as movements in the pack-ice allow new jutting outcrops of ice to emerge into the course.  Ice Golf is not for the faint-hearted. Temperatures can reach minus 50 degrees with the windchill factor, the green is white, the balls are orange or blue (depending on what you're talking about), and players can be exposed to the hazards of snow blindness, polar bears, falling in seal-holes and being eaten by killer whales - roughly on a par with the perils of Amen Corner at Augusta. The Drambuie World Ice Golf Championship was born in 1999 and has continued to grow, year on year, into the ultimate golfing adventure. Each year Drambuie has invited a team of 36 serious competitors from the world of professional golf, media and even a few celebrities to battle it out for The Drambuie World Ice Golf Championship title. A number of top pros are understood to have expressed interest, including ladies' favourite Patty Berg, David Frost and the not-so-cool Colin Montgomery (below right), whose glacial stare is nevertheless perfectly suited to the conditions. Last year’s event was cancelled due to unseasonal conditions which had melted the ice. A controversial Anyone For Tee report at the time sensationally alleged that global warming combined with excessive natural emissions from the ever-rising golfing population had seriously eroded the ice levels in Greenland. A US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) told AnyoneForTee "At any one time of the day, we estimate there are over 50 million golfers crouched over a putt. The combination of an unnatural posture, tight trousers plus putting anxiety leads to an enormous number of natural emissions, known as green gasses. This effect peaks whenever Craig Stadler or John Daly is playing or after VJ Singh has had a curry the night before. Nick Faldo's caddy Fanny Sunesson, with her unique squatting posture behind the Englishman's line, is another prime culprit, helping to explain why Faldo misses so many 'downwind' putts."The EPA said that the unfortunate combination of gas and climate warming had led to a new type of global village "but not one you'd want to hang around in for any length of time..."  However, help was at hand. The findings led to a surge in sales to environmentally-conscious golfers of the new 'Snowball' golfing underpants, produced by UK sports apparel specialists GOBRA. These have been scientifically proven to keep the cold out – and the wind in. As a result, conditions improved sufficiently to allow the event to stay afloat.There have been three winning title holders, including female professional golfer Annika Östberg (below right) from Denmark, one of the few women golfers to have taken up the ice golf challenge and who managed to beat all of her male competitors – twice!  Previous winners have been:
Answer the question and win a special "Ice Golf" prize! Win a bottle of Drambuie and a "Drambuie On Ice" polo shirt from the world's finest whisky liqueur by answering the following simple question and e-mailing your answer to Icegolf@AnyoneForTee.com. Which famous US golfer is often mistaken for, and takes his nickname from, a large, hairy, arctic, long-tusked mammal most often found in icy waters? Please state both the golfer's and mammal’s names. Answers must reach us by 29 February. NOTE: Look out next week for a special AnyoneForTee preview of the Ice Golf course, as our Nordic correspondent Archie Pelago sees his balls freeze on the tee, tries to buy a blue minke whale for its coat, and seals victory by chipping in off the local fauna! |
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| The beautiful Polar Bear cartoon above (and many other fine prints) can be viewed and purchased from Bob Patterson's Fine Art Galleries. |
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