Life No.4 - on the air waves & screen
From Talk Sport radio to Golf Channel feed to Sky and the BBC, it all came rushing towards me at a speed. Realising I had absolutely no idea what I was doing, I enlisted the help of seasoned Ski Sunday presenter, Julian Tutt who took me to a studio and rehearsed me relentlessly until I couldn’t smile, speak or stumble in front of the camera anymore, but it worked.
2000 The Open golf at St Andrews with Talk Sport radio.
Highlight:
Tiger Woods is 8 shots clear of the field with Thomas Bjorn and Ernie Els the closest behind him. Coming down the final 18th Hole I was 10 feet behind him, trying to look inconspicuous.
Peter Alliss pipes up: “There’s an Ocelot stalking the Tiger and its name is Sarah Sanderson”. Fed up with the drab and badly cut, mostly tartan clothes the golfing industry was offering women then I had decided to have some velvet short golf-style skirts and waistcoats made - all in different animal prints, which became a ‘thing’.
Roll on 20 years and look around you - there’s leopard in every gym, court and course!
Tiger became the youngest in history, aged 24, to win the Grand Slam.
2002 The Victor Chandler British Masters, Woburn.
Highlight:
Justin Rose and Ian Poulter (who were good buddies), were thrashing it out down to the nail with Justin winning by one shot.
An old friend, Eddie Bullock (who managed Woburn for 9 years and now consults globally about the business of golf) and I were skulking in the shade behind a green, right by the long queue for ice creams. An unassuming, fairly scruffy older man was standing patiently in the queue. Eddie nudged me, saying “why don’t you take the microphone to him and ask how he’s enjoying the day etc.”
Off I trot: “Hello, baking hot today, what ice cream are you going for?” Response: “Shhh!, Don’t tell my wife, she’ll kill me, I’m not meant to have ice creams”. Reply: “Oh, don’t worry I won’t”. “Have you come far?” Response from him “Not really, I live here”.
Something wasn’t quite right, doing a double take I noticed this friendly ‘scruffy bloke’ had a big gold crested signet ring on his pinkie finger - and then the penny dropped…”Of course, Your Grace, you own Woburn” - It was the Duke of Bedford.
Eddie fell about in hysterics, bastard!
2011
Past Captain of The PGA (Professional Golfers Association), EddieBullock and Ryder Cup Captain Colin Montgomerie were awarded a NATO medal for promoting golf in Afghanistan. Playing with troops and encouraging Afghan men, women and children to take up and enjoy the game.
2004 The Open Championship Royal Troon
Highlight:
Just what the BBC make you do at times - production had the sparkling idea of showing that you could walk all the way down the Ayreshire coast from Royal Troon to Prestwick g.c by golf course holes. Even further, to Turnberry. So, camerman on board we head to Prestwick. “There’s a cracking view from up there on the clubhouse roof - Sarah could get up there”.
Let’s just say that having clambered through a disused loft, over endless chairs to access the loft hatch to said parapet, pushing a monumentally heavy hatch flap, I flopped onto the roof to then exclaim to camera “Wow! This is so epic, fantastic views of the Ayreshire coastline ….and did you know….”.
14 takes later, he was satisfied - Keith Floyd would have murdered David Pritchard if he’d made him do that!
These photos were in Dubai - beyond hot and sticky. It is, of course a total privilege to work in the broadcasting arm of golf but I can assure you, it’s incredibly exhausting, you walk half marathons at least twice daily, be lucky to get time to go for a pee, and in Major Championships the general public stare at you ‘inside the ropes’ - as if you are an annoying insect blocking their view, so you spend endless hours on your knees.
For once I got to snap the golf snapper who snaps some of the greatest moments in the sport’s history. David Cannon - who also shot my book.
End of a long week. Back row: Maureen Madill, Mark James, Dame Laura Davies, Gary Lineker, Alex Hay. Front row: Jean Van de Velde, Wayne Grady, Seve Ballesteros, Ken Brown, Dougie Donelly. Front: Peter Alliss. I’m obviously on the other end of the camera having just got back from interviewing a 4 year old in the Golf Foundation play zone in the tented village and was late!
Loving what went on behind the scenes at the BBC’s flagship Outside Broadcasting event, The Open - I often caught people off guard….Gary Lineker…what are you up to now Sarah?!”