After coaching many of the game’s legends, including a spell where he teamed up with Tiger Woods as he made 142 consecutive cuts and claimed eight Major victories, you’d think Butch Harmon had nothing left to prove in the game.
However, if his latest feat is anything to go by, he’s hardly resting on his laurels, even at the age of 79. The American has been in Northern Ireland, and played the number one course in Golf Monthly’s top 100 in UK & Ireland, Royal County Down.
He proved he still has plenty of talent for the game he began playing early in his life, too, as he shot his age at a course many regard as the best in the world! Harmon posted images of himself and his playing partners at the course with the message: “There is no better day in golf then the sun shining and playing the number 1 golf course in the world Royal County Down . I also shot my age 79.”
That wasn’t the only famous course Harmon has visited on his trip, either. He also dropped in on another in the top 10 of Golf Monthly’s top 100, Sunningdale Golf Club in Berkshire, England.
An honour to welcome the legendary Butch Harmon to the Club today 🌳 ⛳️ the godfather of golf coaching 🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/8ZHhCs4vALMay 22, 2023
It’s perhaps not so surprising that Harmon’s ability on the course is still so strong. As well as coaching Woods during the most successful period of his career, Harmon also worked with many other legends of the game, including Greg Norman, Ernie Els, Phil Mickelson and Fred Couples.
Not only that, but, Harmon also had some success as a player, including one PGA Tour win, the 1971 Broome County Open. Meanwhile, Harmon is a member of one of the best-known golf families. His dad, Claude Sr, won the Masters in 1948, while his son, Claude Harmon III is a respected – and outspoken – coach in his own right.
Even so, Harmon could barely have picked a more challenging course to prove he still has it. As well as unrivalled beauty, Royal County Down is known for its dunes, blind spots and rolling fairways. For many, simply experiencing the course is enough, regardless of score. Harmon, though, is clearly no ordinary person, as his latest achievement proves.
