Heard on the Range

In the aftermath of his British Open win, Todd Hamilton thanked
two former Troon caddies by inviting them to his
pizza-and-champagne victory party at Cecchini's in Troon. The
caddies, Colin Cotter and Jimmy Main, wrote The Essential Guide
to the Open (essentialopenguide.com.), which included
hole-by-hole tips on how to play Royal Troon. Hamilton not only
read a copy but also used the tips during the Open. Main, the
author of Golf Plus's bilingual guide to the Open (July 12), told
The Daily Record, "He thanked us for our advice, but I was more
interested in congratulating him." ... A rumor that ABC had
already offered its top analyst spot to Nick Faldo in the wake of
his well-received performance at the British Open proved false.
"We thought he did a great job," says ABC producer Mark Loomis,
"but we haven't gotten that far with him yet." ... Two daughters
of eight-time Grand Slam tennis champion Ivan Lendl qualified for
last week's U.S. Girls' Junior at Mira Vista Golf Club in Fort
Worth, Texas. Isabelle, 12, was eliminated during stroke play,
while Marika, 14, reached the round of 16 in match play. "It was
very nerve-racking," Ivan said.... Graham Marsh became the first
pro to ace the same hole twice in one event when he made a hole
in one on the 170-yard 11th hole at Royal Portrush during the
first and third rounds of the Senior British Open, in which he
finished ninth. Marsh was awarded 340 bottles of Australian wine,
two for each yard of the 11th. --J.G., Farrell Evans

COLOR PHOTO: COURTESY OF THE DAILY RECORD (MAIN) MAIN MAN Our local guide--and his book--won a date with ToddHamilton.