Druh Bets & Buckles founder Simon Hurd swapped running his business for being a caddy as he assisted Paul McGinley on his way to seventh place at this year’s Ballantine’s Championship at the Blackstone Exclusive Golf Club, Icheon, Korea.

Former European Tour pro Simon said; “It was the first time I’ve caddied in my life, and it was nice to see the job from the other side of the bag”.

McGinley’s seventh place finish was the best he’d had for two years, so a good joint effort!

Druh brand ambassador Lee Westwood is hoping to continue the form he showed at the end of last year and scoop his first major victory at the US Masters in Augusta in April. Although currently sitting at number three in the official world rankings (as of January 29), Lee is yet to clinch a coveted Major win.

Speaking to the BBC for Radio 4’s Today programme ahead of this week’s Qatar Masters, he said: “I think it’s all about Major championships for me, it’s the missing link in my CV.”

Lee’s been training hard recently both on and off the golf course in order to improve his game and take his career to the next level. “In the past few years, I’ve not been holing enough putts, so I’ve been working on that very hard with Phil Kenyon. I work on everything to be honest, like physical fitness in the gym.”

He joins many other Tour pro’s in realising the importance of physical fitness on their game. “Since Tiger came on the scene, the game’s got more athletic. The golf courses have become longer, the roughs have become thicker. There’s more of a premium on hitting the ball a long way so we need to be stronger.”

So as Lee heads out onto the fairway in Qatar hoping to take the title from 2011 winner, fellow Druh fan Thomas Bjørn, what else, apart from winning a Major championship, would make his 2012?

“Forest staying up, and a Cheltenham winner.”

Looks like a Major championship is your best bet, Lee!

With the new year in full swing we’ve been thinking about this year’s upcoming Majors, and who we think are going to win. So here we go, Druh’s predictions for the big winners of 2012.

US Masters: 2-8 April 2012

We fancy Tiger Woods for this one. The course at the Augusta National Golf Club is long, and so is Tiger’s game. But while he can drive the ball an incredible distance, he needs to find his short game again as it hasn’t been up to standard for the last couple of years. The long fairways here will suit his big swinging style, but this course is just as much about the short game with its tricky undulating greens.

US Open: 11-17 June 2012

The confidence Rory McIlroy gained from winning last year’s Open will give him the edge to win back-to-back titles even though it’s a feat very rarely achieved, with the last occasion being Curtis Strange winning for the second year in a row in 1989. We think Rory’s the best player in the world right now, his swing is incredible and he’s very skillful. He can hit that ball so far that even when it is a little off line, he’s so far down the fairway that it doesn’t really matter.

The Open Championship: 15-22 July 2012

We know we’re biased, but we’re backing our very own Druh brand ambassador, Lee Westwood, for this one. Lee’s the straightest driver of the ball you’ll ever see, and Royal Lytham & St. Anne’s is a very tight course, so it should suit his style. We feel he just has to get his first Major win, he’s just too good not to, and is in unstoppable form at the moment. People forget he’s only 38 so has got plenty of time to clinch that big title, but his first win must surely come soon.

PGA Championship: 9-12 August 2012

Luke Donald is great at hitting the ball low, and with the seaside course at Kiawah Island, South Carolina tends to be very windy, so his game is well suited to the conditions here as you certainly need to be in control of your golf ball to play well. Luke holes out better than anybody else in the world. From 5ft and under there’s nobody to touch him, and we think this, together with his low driving style, will be enough for him to clinch the title.

Our man Lee Westwood ended a fantastic 2011 on a high as he triumphed at the Thailand Championship. The Druh ambassador followed up his stunning early form by firing in a final round of 69 to end 22 under.

His nearest competitor was Masters champion Charl Schwartzel, who finished up seven shots behind Lee, and the result moved him up into second in the world rankings above Irishman Rory McIlroy.

Lee was as delighted with the result as we are: “I’ve amazed myself really,” he said. “It’s been staggering. It’s probably the best I’ve ever played.”

So next up for Lee and Druh belts is the US Tour, which he is rejoining in 2012. We’re confident that if he can continue this run of form, he’ll be snatching that World No. 1 slot back off Luke Donald in no time. After all, he is wearing the number 1 belt on tour!

World number three and Druh Belts and Buckles ambassador Lee Westwood continued his outstanding run of form as he followed Thursday’s career best round of 60 with a 64 in the second round of this year’s Thailand Golf Championship.

Despite windy conditions, Westwood carded eight birdies in a bogey free round to take his total to 124 after 36 holes, meaning his halfway score equalled the lowest ever on the Asian tour, a title previously held exclusively by Thailand’s Chapchai Nirat since 2009.

Westwood was understandably delighted with the standard of his game, and shared his feelings with his followers on Twitter: “Arguably a better round this morning than yesterday in windy conditions! 64 to add to yesterday’s 60. For sure the best I’ve ever played. -20,”

There’s absolutely no doubt that Westwood is a world class player at the very top of his game, and we’re really proud to have him as part of the team. He’s once again proving that Druh belts really are the “Choice of Champions”.