Steve Dii
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- Jun 25, 2007
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Story by: Ed O'mara
A golf addict from Northampton could find himself the holder of a highly unusual world record, after teeing off from the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro.
Lawyer Andrew Winfield is waiting to hear from Guinness World Records about whether his stroke from nearly six kilometres above sea level is the highest ever hit by a golfer.
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The 50-year-old father trekked for seven days with his specially-adapted collapsible six iron, just for the chance to take the shot at the peak of the highest freestanding mountain on Earth.
And he said his passion for the sport meant he was still on top of the world, even without becoming the holder of an incredible new record.
"It's all subject to our friends at Guinness verifying the record," he said.
"But it doesn't really matter to me because I'm a mad golfer and I've done something nobody else can boast."
Mr Winfield, who lives in Overstone with his wife and daughter, hit upon the idea after friends encouraged him to combine their planned mountain trek with his passion for golf.
After an arduous night-time ascent to the 5,895m summit of the dormant volcano in sub-zero temperatures, he assembled his club, stripped off his heavy climbing gear and began warming up as the sun rose on the horizon.
"It was nerve-racking because I didn't want to make a complete fool of myself by missing after carrying a golf club up Kilimanjaro for seven days," said the Wellingborough Golf Club regular, who plays off a handicap of 5.5.
"But the shot was fantastic. I couldn't believe how well it was struck.
"It flew for about 160 or 170 yards into a beautiful azure sky and then plummeted a good quarter of a mile into a volcanic crater covered in snow and ice.
"I could have hit 50 more balls and none of them would have been as good."
Even if Mr Winfield goes on to lay claim to the highest ever golf shot on Earth, he has a long way to go to beat one golfing record which is completely out of this world.
In 1971, astronaut Alan Shepard smuggled his own six iron aboard Apollo 14 and struck two shots from the surface of the moon.
Source link:Chronicle&Echo
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