by Craig Lemley | Oct 27, 2018 | News
Robin Horvath (left), Martin Borgmeier (center), Jordan Brooks (right), are the top three finishers in the 2018 LDET season (Photo: Long Drivers European Tour)
It was not the way anyone wanted to end the 2018 Long Drive European Tour season. Torrential weekend rains battered Panorámica Golf in Spain. According to the LDET, area roads were blocked with up to 50 centimeters of flood water on the pavements, electrical power was lost, and the grid itself saw spots of standing water and sand deposits. And while some say conditions remained playable, the tour made the difficult decision to pull the plug on the event.
That capped off an amazing year for Germany’s The Beard Borgmeier, having won 3 other events and securing his new title as the 2018 LDET Champion. “What happened this year with Long Drive was a U-turn in my life,” Borgeier says in a post-event address.
But the Beard wasn’t the only LDET player with a standout 2018. The Hungarian Hulk Horvath also notched 3 wins, hit the season’s longest drive (443), and was a mere 400 points short of Borgmeier in final ranking points. “It was an amazing season for me,” he told the crowd. “I’m very happy for everything.”
Though England’s Jordan Brooks didn’t get the chance to strut his stuff in the season finale either, he finishes the season, with one win, 4,500 points, and the no.3 LDET ranking. “I’ve gained a lot of confidence going through the season,” Brooks said. “I feel like I belong amongst the top players.”
“2018 was an amazing season,” Xavier Eusebio, LDET CEO, says. “The tour visited 9 countries, and the competition level has been very high, with a lot of competitors from around Europe, and also US, Canada, South Africa, and more.”
Though the LDET’s 2018 season finale was marred by weather and drama, it shouldn’t take away from the landmark season the tour had. A debut in Russia and a first-of-its-kind Nations Cup event, exceptional players and exciting competition all speak to more good things to come in 2019.
by Craig Lemley | Sep 23, 2018 | 19th Hole, News
Whales’ Bry Roberts (left) and England’s Jordan Brooks (right) are your LDET Nations Cup champions. (Photo via Long Drivers European Tour)
Tiger Woods wasn’t the only big winner in the world of Golf this past weekend. Before the Big Cat teed off on Sunday, two big hitters hoisted the Long Drivers European Tour‘s inaugural Nations Cup trophy on Saturday, September 22. Jordan Brooks and Bry Roberts were the last men standing after battling against two-man teams of some of the best players the LDET has to offer in a first-of-its-kind event.
The morning began with the qualifying round to advance to the afternoon finals. Along with Brooks and Roberts, repping England and Whales, respectively, 5 other teams were assembled by players and fellow countrymen: Martin “The Beard” Borgmeier and Robin “The Hungarian Hulk” Horvath made for one of two all-German teams, Timo Petrasch and Daniel Kleiner being the second; Dewald Lubbe and Christo Pretorius made up the South African team; Alex Lange and Matthieu Moraschetti represented Germany and France, respectively; and Chris Latta of Scotland and José Quilis of Spain made up the final team.
The qualifying format was pretty straight forward, one set per match with an aggregated distance of the team — the best two teams automatically advanced to the quarterfinals. First up was The Beard/Hulk’s formidable team facing off against the South Africans (Lubbe/Pretorius) in what some would have thought was a lock for the Germans. But Lubbe and Pretorius combined for 696 yards, besting Borgmeier and Horvath’s 669. Soon after, Brooks and Roberts began their day against Latta and Quilis, easily advancing 363 to OB (0 yards). Petrasch and Kleiner also made quick work of Lange and Moraschetti 695 to 561.
Borgmeier and Horvath had a chance for redemption in the 4th match of the qualifiers, failing to hit the grid (0 yards) against Brooks and Roberts’ 361 while still clinging to a quarter final position. And Lubbe and Pretorius got some momentum going in the 6th match against Lang and Moraschetti, taking it 371 to 270.
The quarterfinals format brought individual player scores and aggregated distances (for the third set) into the mix. Borgmeier and Horvath once again found themselves facing Brooks and Roberts, and upped their game accordingly going 357/378/706. But it was too little too late to overcome Brooks and Roberts’ 358/351/709, and the number 1 and 2 ranked LDET players made an early exit from the competition. Petrasch and Kleiner continued their run against Lange and Moraschetti, advancing to the semis 337/365 to 316/OB.
The inaugural LDET Nations Cup competitors and sponsors/volunteers. (Photo via Long Drivers European Tour)
Team Brooks/Roberts seemed to hit the after burners in the opening semifinal round, topping Latta/Quilis 382/364/717 to 340/365/690 for a spot in the finals. Lubbe/Pretorius were up against a hot Petrasch/Kleiner team, but the Germans failed to hit the grid in the quarters (OB/OB) and paved the way for the South African team to advance (350/325).
And so the stage was set for the final round of one of the most anticipated events of the 2018 LDET season. Brooks and Roberts dropped two on the grid in the finals, 316 and 351, while the South Africans’ hot stick, unfortunately, cooled, going OB/346 and claiming the 2nd position on the Nations Cup podium. With the win, Brooks finds himself back in the no.3 spot of the LDET rankings with 4,500 points, trailing Horvath (no.2, 5,300 points) and Borgmeier (no.1, 5,700 points). Roberts is sitting in the no.5 spot with 3,000 points.
After strong showings of their own, Pretorius (no.7) and Latta (no.8) have punched their tickets to next month’s LDET Masters Cup as well, surely making their respective countries proud. Joining Pretorius and Latta at the Masters CUP are the tour’s top six players — Borgmeier, Horvath, Brooks, Lubbe, Roberts, and 2017 LDET champion Matt Nicole. If that’s not reason enough to tune in (Saturday 20th October, at Spain’s Panorámica Golf Resort), this year’s Masters Cup will also mark something of a milestone for the LDET, becoming the 50th event in the tour’s 6-year history. With 1,000 points on the table for the Masters Cup winner, who will claim the title of 2018 LDET Champion is still anyone’s guess.
by Craig Lemley | Aug 27, 2018 | 19th Hole
One wouldn’t have guessed that the Long Drivers European Tour‘s Italy Championship would be one of the most-anticipated and pivotal events at the beginning of the season, but the storylines of 2018 collided at Terre Dei Consoli in Rome last weekend.
Martin “The Beard” Borgmeier faced a slim 200 point deficit in the LDET rankings behind Robin “The Hungarian Hulk” Horvath after Horvath notched another 2018 win last month in his home country of Germany. The two have been exchanging wins seemingly all season long, leaving it up to anyone’s guess at who’ll be no.1 at the end of the year.
The Italy Championship quarter finals began with a number of familiar names and competitive matchups — and rain. Dewald Lubbe and Christo Pretorious went head-to-head in a tight South African showdown with Lubbe squeaking through to the semis 346/OB/346 to OB/360/344. Scotland’s Chris Latta bested England’s Tyler Dangerfield in another close match 356/388 to 335/332. Hope for a marquee match up between Horvath and Borgmeier in the semis held on the other side of the bracket for a while, but the number 1 and number 2 ranked players had to face off against Wales’ Bryan Roberts and Belgium’s Tanguy Marionex, respectively.
Roberts proved the spoiler, ousting the top-ranked Horvath with two 400+-yard bombs (406/403) which were too much for The Hulk’s 390/388 showing to overcome. Horvath’s exit would pave the way for The Beard to claim the no.1 spot in the 2018 LDET rankings, and despite the elements, he made quick work of Marionex 397/382 to 345/312 to advance to the semis.
After his impressive showing in the quarters, Roberts seemed poised to give Borgmeier a run for a spot in the finals, but The Beard survived a close matchup in the first semifinal, going 342/365 to Roberts’ 340/353. Third ranked Lubbe struggled to find the grid a little bit, but so did Latta, and Lubbe’s 360/OB/OB/332 was enough to advance him to the finals over Latta’s OB/340/OB/330‬ effort. Roberts and Latta then went to battle for the 3rd podium position, with Roberts’ 339/354 easily overtaking Latta’s 293/326‬.
The question on everyone’s mind heading into the big final was if Borgmeier could close on another victory and add to his outstanding 2018 season, and put himself at the top of the rankings. That soon proved to be an inevitability with The Beard’s strong 352/344/357 showing in the final matchup, cruising past Lubbe for the title. Lubbe’s second-place finish and 333/349/OB effort cemented his no.3 spot in the rankings as well.
Borgmeier, with 5300 points, now holds a 400-point lead over no.2 ranked Horvath. Lubbe sits in the no.3 ranking with 3600 points, and England’s Jordan Brooks and Matt Nicolle round out the top-5 rankings (at 3500 and 2400 points, respectively).
Next on the LDET schedule is the very much anticipated and first-ever Nations Cup. Most certainly one of the season’s marquee events, international teams will compete for glory at the Château de Taulane in La Martre, France, September 21st-22nd in a first-of-its-kind competition. The top-8 ranked LDET players after the Nation’s Cup will be qualified for the Masters LDET Cup, which will be held Saturday, October 20th at Panorámica Golf in Spain.
Follow LDET online and on social media for up-to-date tournament information and live posting during events, and CGB for recaps of the 2018 season’s big final events.
by Craig Lemley | Jul 31, 2018 | News
The Long Drivers European Tour Germany Championship was sure to be one of the must-see events of the season, with top-tier bombers like Martin The Beard Borgmeier, Vincent Palm, Timo Petrasch, and The Hungarian Hulk, Robin Horvath, all hailing from the great country. Borgmeier brought the tour’s #1 ranking with him to Munich’s Münchener Golf Club, which set the stage for an anticipated showdown with Horvath, a close second heading into the weekend.
Horvath made it clear early he was there to compete launching a 395-yard bomb in the qualifiers to secure his spot in the top 16 Sunday afternoon. The first taste of the The Beard vs Hulk matchup came in the first round of the top 16. 6th-ranked Tanguy Marionex (Belgium) and #16 Tyler Dangerfield (England) joined the duo, and marked a 340-yard blast and one OB, respectively. Horvath reached 374 yards and Borgmeier notched 350 in the first round.
The second round of the top 16 brought the foursome together again, with strong showings from Marionex and Dangerfield (368 and 353, respectively). But Horvath was on a mission, going 377 yards to Borgmeier’s OB, and ending our hopes for the marquee matchup in the finals.
For The Hulk to claim his home country title, though, there was a lot more ground to cover, and a lot more balls to hit. Horvath qualified for the semis after defeating #14-ranked Steve Vandebos (Belgium) 375/382 to 355/356. The second match brought #4 Dewald Lubbe (S. Africa) face to face with #12 Chris Latta (Scotland), and ended with Lubbe punching his ticket to semis as well (375/389 to OB/368). Horvath’s fellow German, Timo Petrasch was ousted from the quarters by Paul Woodcock 376/OB/OB to OB/357/348, and Jordan Brooks topped Marionex 382/390 to 362/360 for his spot in the semis.
In the first semifinal, Horvath continued his march with a 365/OB/375‬ showing, topping Lubbe’s 345/362/366 and ensuring his spot in the final. Jordan Brooks dominated the second semifinal, ousting Woodcock 352/360 to 342/345. Lubbe and Woodcock went to battle for the third place position, with Lubbe’s 361/OB/368 besting Woodcock’s 357/359/360, and the stage was set for the big final.
With the title in sight, the Hulk came out swinging and dropped a 394-yard bomb. Brooks followed with 374- and 387-yard blasts, but Horvath’s 391-yard finisher secured the title in his home country. Not only that, Horvath overtook Borgmeier’s multi-week reign at the top of the LDET rankings. The Hulk now has a slim 200 point lead over The Beard Borgmeier, which means we can anticipate more matchups between the top two German bombers in the foreseeable future.
Next up, the players head to Italy’s Terre Dei Consoli Golf Club for the Italy Championship, the last regular season event before the marquee event of the season, the Nations Cup, and the Masters LDET Cup season finale. Follow LDET online and on social media to keep up with all the action.
by Craig Lemley | Jul 16, 2018 | 19th Hole, News
The LDET bombers descended on Zala Springs Golf Resort on July 13, a little early for the Hungry Championship, but not for the reason you’d expect. Second-ranked LDET player Robin “The Hungarian Hulk” Horvath welcomed his fellow players to his home country for the inaugural European Putting Championship, organized by the tour.
A stark contrast from the usual high-flying competition, the European Putting Championship saw the best players on Tour navigating the undulations of the Zala Springs practice green. The competition came down to two notable LEDT names, Jordan Brooks (ENG) and Vincent Palm (GER), vying for the trophy, with Brooks walking off the winning putt and claiming the title of the first-ever LDET European Putting Champion.
But the bombers went right back to business the next day during qualifying rounds for the LDET Hungary Championship. Home country hero Robin Horvath gave a glimpse of what was to come with the longest drive during qualifiers, a 398-yard bomb; and top-ranked tour player Martin Borgmeier (GER) upped the ante in the round of 16 with a 408-yard blast.
Neither slowed down in the quarterfinals, with Horvath’s 399 and Borgmeier’s 407 topping the round of 8. Vincent Palm and Dewald Lubbe (S. Africa) advanced to the semis with 388-yard and 392-yard blasts respectively.
Palm, eyeing a spot in the top-10 LDET rankings, faced Borgmeier in the first semifinal, but his OB/355 couldn’t stand up against The Beard’s 398.1/398.9. Fifth-ranked Lubbe found the grid twice against Horvath, going 332.7 and 379.6, but the Hulk held his ground on his home turf with 369.1- and 388-yard bombs to advance to the final against Borgmeier.
The 2018 LDET season is no stranger to the names Borgmeier and Horvath in the final bracket, but a number 1- versus number 2-ranked player is never a disappointing matchup. The match remained square after the first two rounds, with Borgmeier going 382.9 and 390.1 to Horvath’s 383.8 and 388.3. Borgmeier finished his final round with a 352.8-yard blast, but couldn’t overcome Horvath’s 395-yard bomb to claim the title. Lubbe took the third place position on the podium.
Horvath, and the rest of the LDET bombers make their way to Münchener Golf Club in Borgmeier’s home country for the Germany Championship next, July 28th and 29th, promising another staunch competition.
