Golf pros aren’t scam artists. I would define a scam artist as someone who is trying to profit through manipulation. . .i.e. Bank of America, who send me five times more offers for “free” life insurance, “free” credit cards and “free” magazine offers than actual statements stating how much money they are trying to take from me. ...

I didn’t single out the course because every course does this to my knowledge – Greens must be treated, its part of maintenance, but it also sucks it’s hardly ever made known until you’ve already forked over your cash. The course I played was Summerbrooke, down in Tallahassee, which is a decent course and was reviewed by Tim. I will go back again, just when the greens grow out. I wouldn’t say this is so much about bad conditions but more directly about maintenance and renovation. Do I think Summerbrooke screwed me? I wouldn’t say so. Do I wish ALL ...

With all this talk about course conditions and getting taken for a ride, why don’t courses offer discounts when they stuff a bunch of holes in their greens, making putting virtually impossible? I played a round today where it looked like my ball was pogo-sticking through an Iraqi mine field on the greens. My greens fees: the same as if I were putting on the good stuff. I’m not going back for at least two weeks, and judging by the wide open course I played on, seems the rest of the town is going elsewhere too. I’m not a business ...

“A tradition unlike any other.” This isn’t just the family motto whenever Uncle Gerry hogs the water closet after his Friday night Chilicheesechimichungas. It’s also a phrase Jim Nantz has been brainwashed with and has declared in a gazillion CBS promos. These shrining words date back to when Augusta National board members sat around a table one hot, Georgia night years ago and one of them said, “That ‘don’t leave home without it‘. . .we need a saying like that ’round here!” So you see, old, rich, southern, old conservative men can change, so long as they believe it preserves ...

Disclaimer: I told myself I’d never get involved in a quarrel between two former MSU students. . .Don’t even know if they’ll have time to read this between couch burnings and tear-gassings after Saturday night. That said, I thought I’d chime in on paying college athletes. First off, both Kiel and Chris are right: Players are already getting paid – and taken advantage of. So where should the line be drawn? MSU coach Tom Izzo had a good quote last week sometime during the tournament, which I thought may shed some light. He said, “Families should be enjoying the incredible ...