News about Tom Watson

A DJ who fathered a child by a 14-year old schoolgirl after he groomed her into believing they were having an affair has been jailed for 11 years. Kirk Wilding, 43, of Wigan, Greater Manchester, treated the victim as his secret girlfriend over a six-month period after earlier taking her mother out on dates. The father-of-two ignored a police notice warning him to keep away from her and instead repeatedly met up - falsely claiming their friendship was platonic. Wilding was arrested after a witness at a house party caught him having sex with the girl. Detectives also found hundreds of text messages between the two. One exchange read: 'Love u darling xxx' and she replied: 'It's u and I, don't want any 1 else.' The girl initially refused to make a complaint against Wilding - but last May told police that he had groomed her. Now 15, she gave birth to his son last month.

There is something profoundly moving about standing in a place where sporting history has been made. Be it at Wimbledon, the Stadio Olimpico, Madison Square Garden, Lord's, the Nou Camp ... visit any of these hallowed grounds and the echoes of defeat and historic triumphs are ever-present.

Tory leadership contender Robert Jenrick this week revealed how he took weight-loss drug Ozempic 'for a short period of time' in an effort to shed the pounds. The former immigration minister, who is bidding to replace Rishi Sunak , lost four stone in 12 months after realising he was 'overweight'. Mr Jenrick said Ozempic had been 'helpful' but he 'didn't particularly enjoy it' and he has since 'lost weight in the normal way by eating less... doing some exercise'. But he is not the only politician to have battled the bulge in recent years, with David Cameron, Boris Johnson and Tom Watson also having waged war on the scales. Here's how senior figures at Westminster have previously attempted to get fit for office:

Donald Trump has been slammed by golf fans for the new eye-watering cost to play his iconic golf course at Turnberry in Scotland. Keen golfers will have to dig deep into their pockets if they fancy playing the Ailsa course, which has hosted four Open Championships, with the new green fee surging. Those happy to play after 1pm can hit some balls around the beautiful links for a comparatively reasonable price. The 6,474-yard course is steeped in history, hosting the famous 1977 Duel in the Sun battle for Open glory between Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus, and was redesigned in 2016 by renowned architect Martin Ebert. But golf enthusiasts have reacted angrily to the price hike and taken to social media to express their frustration.

DOMINIC LAWSON: The job of the police is to detect crime and provide the courts with the evidence against those they have arrested and charged. It is not their job to comment on any sentences passed. Yet this does not seem to be the view of Detective Inspector Chris Rudd, leader of the investigation into the Just Stop Oil fivesome who, in November 2022, organised a highly dangerous scheme that disrupted traffic on the M25 for five days, causing misery to hundreds of thousands, not least those who missed funerals and hospital appointments. Yet last week, after the jury reached their verdict and Judge Christopher Hehir handed down sentences of five years to the co-founder of Just Stop Oil, Roger Hallam, and four years to the four other defendants, Det Insp Rudd took it upon himself to offer an opinion: 'The judge commented upon sentencing that he hoped it might have some deterrent effect. I do hope it does… but for some, it might be a rallying call.'

JOE BERNSTEIN AT ROYAL TROON: Scott, 39, was spotted on several occasions needing a moment in between holes on Friday, as he reportedly 'did not sleep very much' the night before. Scheffler is still well within the frame to win. 'He's a fighter. He did a good job today and battled through it,' Scheffler said after shooting a 1-under-par 70 with three birdies & two bogeys.

The question is serious. What has the passing of 25 years done to the magical memory of winning golf's biggest prize, the Open Championship? The answer from Paul Lawrie is not so serious. 'It's added an extra three stone and a head of grey hair,' he replies. The 55-year-old Aberdonian is making light of one of the great sporting comebacks. Never before in the history of the majors had anyone come back from a ten-shot deficit going into the final round. That play-off victory at Carnoustie on July 18, 1999 was truly remarkable. 'Some things are quite fresh in the memory about what happened that day, that week,' he recalls. 'That's whether or not you get into the debate about me getting enough credit for doing what I did.

Just a few miles further down the Ayrshire coastline from Royal Troon, Matteo Manassero had the dream ticket when he first teed it up in the Open Championship. It was at Turnberry back in 2009 where Manassero announced himself on the global stage as a fresh-faced 16-year-old. The fact he did so whilst playing alongside golfing royalty only made the experience all the more special for the young Italian.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW BY RIATH AlL-SAMARRAI: The problem with the joke is everyone who delivers it thinks they are the first. As the man on the receiving end, Matthew Southgate can laugh about how wrong they are. 'It happens all the time,' he tells Mail Sport. 'I'll be walking past a gallery at a tournament and without fail someone will call out, "Go on, Gareth". It becomes part of your life in a strange way.' Unlike the football manager with whom he shares a surname, the past few weeks have drawn unanimous goodwill towards an English golfer who knows what it is to struggle and has only recently been reacquainted with days of great satisfaction.

The 2013 Masters champion, who's played in every major since the 2001 British Open, can still make it, as the USGA has held six spots in case there are late qualifiers through the world ranking. He was denied automatic qualification, Monday, on the third extra hole at Springhead Country Club in Ohio by fellow Australian, Cam Davis. The US Open goes on from June 13-16.

ANDREW PIERCE: In the House of Lords last week, Labour 's Tom Watson launched a diatribe against the Press during a debate on the media, boasting he had cancelled lunch with rock star Bruce Springsteen to speak in it. Baron Watson of Wyre Forest - to give him his full moniker - became chairman of industry body UK Music after he left the Commons in 2019. He name-dropped 'The Boss', as Springsteen is known, more than once. But surely the name he should have mentioned in any debate on the media was Lord Bramall, the former head of the Armed Forces. Or Lord Brittan, the former Tory Home Secretary, or Harvey Proctor , the ex-Tory MP.

It is the fat-busting jab that Conservative MPs hope will power them to the Tory succession - but has also led to embarrassing scenes in Commons bars. According to the Westminster grapevine, at least two of the party's leadership hopefuls are injecting themselves with the 'wonder drug' Ozempic in order to hit their fighting weight in time for the next Tory contest. However, the drug comes with unfortunate side effects for some MPs who enjoy the sociable side of parliamentary life: one heavily overweight politician who started taking it found it interfered with his ability to hold his drink during an evening on the Commons riverside terrace. Paramedics were called to the collapsed MP and carted him off in a wheelchair.

MIKE KEEGAN'S AUGUSTA DIARY: Gary Player was on typically forthright form when he and his fellow old boys faced the Press. One of the topics of conversation with Player, Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus centred on legacies. 'Personally, I don't believe in legacies,' said the legendary 88-year-old South African and three-time champ. 'If you take my all-time heroes, Winston Churchill, he was probably the greatest leader for the last 200 years, without going into the Ottomans and all the great leaders.

Michal Kopaniarz, 28, as well as two others who had to assist the young mother-of-two after her car broke down on the A303 near Andover, Hampshire, in August 2021, smashed his nine-ton sedan into Alex Britton, 28. Good Samaritan Tina Ince, 58, and DAF recovery truck driver Tom Watson, 30, were killed in the accident alongside bride-to-be Alex. As he smashed into the trio, Kopaniarz, 39, was looking at a seven-minute video on his phone before trying to destroy his phone by throwing it into the undergrowth. In February last year, he was banned for a year. In harrowing interviews describing their sadness, Alex's family had to plead with motorists to remove their phone when driving. Alex's fiancée, Aaron Law, described notifying their two children of their mother's death as "one of the most tragic things I've ever done."

When Keir Starmer (left) was told by former Labour spin chief Peter Mandelson this week that he should shed weight, he must have been left wondering if he's doing it right. Lord Mandelson begged him to'burn a few pounds,' saying it would be a 'change', according to Times Radio. Sir Keir if he should shed weight, he would not be the first politician to do so. Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron (top row, left) is noticeably slimmer now than during his tenure as Prime Minister, although late Tory chancellor Nigel Lawson lost five stone and even revealed his dying secrets in a book. Since losing the money, former Tory MP Nicholas Soames (top right) and former Labour leader Tom Watson (bottom left) have also undergone dramatic changes. Boris Johnson, the former Prime Minister and Mail columnist, has openly discussed his weight fluctuations as well as down. After being seriously sick with coronavirus in 2020, he started a fitness and healthy eating regimen. In 2013, Housing Secretary Michael Gove (bottom center) visited an Austrian health resort and later shed two stone, although former Minister Robert Jenrick shed the pounds last year.

Former Prime Minister David Cameron, who made a dramatic return to politics last year, has discovered that polls are not the only thing politicians must monitor closely. The image-conscious peer is said to have been coerced into action due to the number of diplomatic food functions he attends as Foreign Secretary while cruising around the world. As he attempts to sort out the Middle East's conflict and boost support for Ukraine's war against Russia, he is said to be attempting to get through the day with just a porridge and fruit breakfast, an apple, and a lot of black coffee. In his first week in his new role, he attended a state banquet for the South Korean president; the menu featured a warm tartlet of soft poached egg and spinach puree; and a mango ice cream bombe; and a mango ice cream bombe.

The former Labour deputy leader, who died in August last year, was forced to 'grapple with trepidation fears.' Lord Watson had no symptoms and was only diagnosed with cancer after his GP ordered an annual PSA examination. He is now advising middle-aged men that they should pass the national blood test to prevent the same traumatic ordeal he was forced to endure.

RIATH AL-SAMARRAI AT ALEXANDRA PALACE: Luke Littler's future is uncertain, but Luke Humphries, the current darts champion and smaller than no man, is the subject of three dazzling weeks and one that is completely absorbing final. For so long, it seemed that the actors would line up in favour of a 16-year-old phenomenon, Alexandra Palace's child prince, who is destined to be king. But sports, a glorious hobby, doesn't always work that way, and Humphries, the game's hottest player and the game's most popular script, does not always work that way.

Robson was the official first-tee starter for 18,995 players in 41 editions of the championship between Carnoustie and St Andrews in 2015. His 'on the tee' appearance on a distinctly Scottish accent has continued to be imitated on golf courses around the world. The R&A's CEO, Martin Slumbers, who organises The Open, expressed he was "terribly sad" to hear of Ivor's death.

ROME'S RIATH AL-SAMARRAI: The overwhelming majority of his clients know who he is and who he is, according to the salesman's estimate. However, every so often someone will turn up to those meetings on the golf courses of Florida with no idea of what makes him different. They'll see his swing, and you can be certain it's the best in the class because at 67, he'll still knock it where he wants to. They'll also hear his pitches and patter, and many businesses will prosper if their company is so upbeat they could charm balls out of lakes.

In 1993, Tom Watson lifted the Ryder Cup on European soil at The Belfry. No US Captain has managed it before, which is a feat. Tiger Woods was still in high school, winning his third straight U.S. title. Rory McIlroy, the junior Amateur champion, was singing in his parents' living room, Greg Norman was the reigning Open champion, and five members of this year's USA squad weren't even born. To put it in a better perspective, Manchester United had just won their first Premier League title, Bill Clinton hadn't been elected President, and Apple was on the brink of bankruptcy. That's how long it's been since the United States last won the Ryder Cup on European soil. 30 years. This isn't just a dry spell. It's a curse, one that has spanned a decade.

Sunderland's future is uncertain with Rangers and other Premier League clubs keeping an eye on England youth star Tom Watson's contract with Rangers. The forward made his senior debut in the Championship less than a year ago in April, and he has been a regular for England Under-17s. However, he is yet to sign a professional deal with Sunderland and is now in the final year of his new contract. Talks are said to have been sluggish and have enraged the player and his camp.

Tiger Woods is no stranger to being in the spotlight at The Open Championship, but the Royal Liverpool stage displayed an emotional side not often seen by the 15-time major champion in 2006. Woods' emotional triumph over his third Claret Jug victory in Hoylake this year is one of the tournament's most memorable moments in history. It was the first time a player had gone back-to-back at the major after Tom Watson's victories in 1982 and 1983. However, Hoylake's victory meant so much more than major victories. It was a salute to his father Earl.

In the search of a first major title in the 151st Open Championship, Tommy Fleetwood rode a wave of home support to the top of the leaderboard. The 32-year-old from Southport inherited an opening 66 to split the clubhouse lead with South African amateur Christo Lamprecht and Emiliano Grillo on five under par. Antoine Rozner of France and Spain's Adrian Otaegui were a shot behind, with former champion Stewart Cink denying Tom Watson a fairytale victory at Turnberry in 2009, and US Open champion Wyndham Clark and Alex Noren.