Not that all this golfing activity made much difference to the quality of his game.
Billy, known throughout the Sunshine Coast as ‘the Sign Man’ before his retirement from the sign writing business a few years ago, is, by his own admission, a golfer of modest ability.
But in recent weeks something odd has happened. Billy Gill has found his golfing mojo.
A couple of weeks ago, playing off a handicap of 19, Billy scored 43 points to win a Saturday stableford competition at Maroochy River.
“It was just a fluke,” the modest Billy insisted. “Things went my way and I sunk a few putts.”
Practice makes perfect for busy Billy Gill noosanews.com.au - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from noosanews.com.au Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Richard Backwell took out the Maroochy River Legends Pro-Am.
Golf Peter Owen
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Though it’s much more casual than the usual professional golf tours – players are allowed to wear shorts, for example, and ride in carts – Australia’s Legends Tour still abides by some longstanding traditions.
One is that winners must wear long pants at the presentation.
And that presented a problem for Richard Backwell, whose round of four under-par 68 earned him the title at Friday’s Maroochy River Legends Pro-Am. Richard Backwell, in his borrowed long pants, delivers his victory speech.
Backwell had given so little thought to his chances of winning that he turned up at Maroochy River in just his shorts and golf shirt, and had to borrow trousers from a fellow pro, who had a spare pair in his car.
In the season opening Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship last week, in which Herbert contended
strongly – at least until the weekend - he averaged 321 yards off the tee, a significant improvement on his 2020 season average of 301.25 yards.
But it took an early morning Zoom chat with his Peregian coach Dom Azzopardi to sort out a few teething problems with the booming new driver.
“He was losing a few right with this driver in practice and I talked to him about what’s going to cause that in his technique, particularly now that he’s got the ball further forward,” Azzopardi said.