Archives for: January 2009
In anticipation of the New Course at The Tribute near Dallas
Thursday January 29, 2009 | 09:46:53 pm 234 words, 2391 views
Over on GolfTexas.com, we posted a story I wrote on the New Course at The Tribute in New Colony, Texas, which is just north of Dallas. You can read about it here.
But if you haven’t already played the “Old Course” at The Tribute, or the original course at The Tribute, you’ve really missed something. Architect Tripp Davis, who was a fine player in his own right at the University of Oklahoma, designed both courses and he enlisted the help of tour player and Dallas-area resident Justin Leonard on the New Course, which is set to open later this year.
The ...
The FBR Open's 16th: Truest of stadium golf
Wednesday January 28, 2009 | 10:49:09 pm 206 words, 2300 views
This is really cool. This week, we’re talking 15,000-20,000 fans on one hole after officials of the FBR Open added around 3,000 general admission bleacher seats and completely enclosed the par-3 16th at The TPC Scottsdale. Completely surrounding a hole with bleachers is indeed a first for the PGA Tour.
Now this is real stadium golf. On one hole, which was crazy enough already, you’ve got more fans than you get at most NBA games – and they’re a heck of a lot more boisterous.
This is also a move that perhaps helps players who are trying to tee off on the ...
Check it out: Bayonet/Black Horse golf on Monterey Bay
Tuesday January 27, 2009 | 11:59:23 am 164 words, 2292 views
Over on GolfCalifornia.com, we just posted a review I wrote on Bayonet Golf Course in Seaside, Calif. Check it out here.
Bayonet, which opened as a military golf course in 1954 on what used to be Fort Ord, is actually one of two courses at the Seaside Resort that was part of a $13 million renovation. Black Horse is the other championship course and both reopened in December, and they are spectacular.
Renowned architect Gene Bates oversaw the work, which included some rerouting, massive tree trimming and the removal of underbrush to make way for views of Monterey Bay. Both ...
Nice going, Pat Perez, in getting your first tour win
Monday January 26, 2009 | 03:39:19 am 243 words, 2303 views
It’s hard to believe that Sunday’s victory at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic Hosted by Arnold Palmer in the La Quinta, Calif., area is Pat Perez’ first win. After all, it seems like we’ve heard his name a lot in his seven-year career. But sure enough, he’s been in the hunt, but never closed the deal until now.
Could it be Perez’ new demeanor that helped him get his first win? Steve Stricker’s collapse didn’t hurt either, but Perez said he just “tried to stay even-keeled,” you know, like Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els and the lot.
“I just got tired ...
Hope Chrysler Classic: hole-in-one prize for the golfer who has everything
Saturday January 24, 2009 | 10:18:36 pm 195 words, 2206 views
You know the tournament you’re playing in isn’t run by a redneck when the hole-in-one prize is the use of a private jet. Not exactly the $500 golf shop credit or even a car that most of us are used to.
Anyway, amateur Andrew Goldfarb of Sherman Oaks, Calif., this week aced the 156-yard 15th hole at the Private Palmer Course at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif., during the first round of the 50th Bob Hope Classic hosted by Arnold Palmer to win the $100,000 Sentient Jet Hole-In-One contest.
And check out how he did it: He hooked a 51-degree ...
As golf deterioration looms, fend it off by getting in shape
Wednesday January 21, 2009 | 10:41:39 pm 264 words, 2304 views
As I anxiously await the milestone of reaching a half-century on this planet, I’m finding myself breaking down physically, and it has certainly affected my golf game. First there was plantar fasciitis a few years ago, and just when I was just getting over that, I got elbow tendonitis, which meant cortisone shots – at least in the short term.
I fought the tendonitis for three or four years and was almost pain free when the latest hit – a pinched never in my neck, which also isn’t exactly synonymous with going low on the course or helping my well-being.
Which leads ...
Now that Obama is sworn in as President, he needs to turn his attention to something really important – his golf game
Tuesday January 20, 2009 | 04:08:08 pm 370 words, 2285 views
Not that he really has time for it, but now that he’s the leader of the free world, President Barack Obama essentially has a membership at any country club or course he decides to play, including, of course, nearby Congressional Country Club.
According to one of his campaign aides, Obama would like to eventually play the great courses of the world, and he’s certainly in position to reserve the first tee time at any course of his choosing.
Obama is more known athletically, however, for his ability to drive the lane in pickup basketball than he is for hitting a driver, ...
Can golf weather be too perfect?
Saturday January 17, 2009 | 10:43:55 pm 332 words, 2400 views
We were told to pack pullovers and raingear, that the weather off Monterey Bay can turn in an instant, that it can be sunny one minute, foggy and drizzly the next. As the trip neared, however, it became quite apparent that we weren’t getting any of that. The forecast? Sunny skies, highs in the low 70s for the entire week.
Still, I only packed one pair of shorts, figuring January in Seaside, Calif., had to be long pants weather. As it turned out, the forecast was right. I never saw a cloud this past week – not one – as we ...
Golf's Kodak Challenge may prove interesting
Wednesday January 14, 2009 | 12:07:18 am 356 words, 2582 views
There’s a new twist this year on the PGA Tour, and it may turn out to have a better following than the FedEx Cup.
Ok, that’s not saying much, but the Kodak Challenge is worth $1 million to the player who wins the challenge, which is spread out over the course of the golf season.
Here’s how it works: Organizers have selected 24 holes from various venues on the PGA Tour schedule this year. Of the 24, players count the scores from their best 18 holes. The player at the end of the year with lowest score wins.
What’s intriguing is to ...
Golf as an Olympic sport – why not?
Sunday January 11, 2009 | 06:14:46 pm 303 words, 2734 views
Six years ago, PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem didn’t support the idea of golf becoming an Olympic sport. Now he’s had a change of heart.
The reason is that Finchem believes that bringing golf to the Olympics (there’s a push for 2016) will help grow the sport around the world. Speaking from Hawaii before the start of the PGA Tour’s 2009 season, Finchem said: “There’s over 100 countries where government supports sport in those countries, but only sports that are in Olympic programs. So if golf is added to the Olympic program, those federations will immediately start giving financial support to ...
Time is ripe to plan a golf trip to Las Vegas
Thursday January 8, 2009 | 09:04:21 pm 120 words, 2602 views
Over on LasVegasGolf.com, we just posted a story I wrote on how a sluggish economy translates into a good time to hit Sin City for a room, golf and entertainment. Check it out here.
It seems quite a few hotels, even high-end resorts like the Bellagio, Caesar’s Palace and Mandalay Bay are offering some pretty inexpensive room rates, and more than a couple hotels are offering packages with highly rated courses such as Bali Hai Golf Club, Lexington and Concord courses at the Revere at Anthem and Royal Links.
There also is no shortage of top-tier shows to see, and some are ...
Mercedes: Not exactly golf paradise apparently
Tuesday January 6, 2009 | 10:41:06 pm 229 words, 2721 views
It must be a bummer to have to go to Hawaii. Either that, or there really is such a thing as having too much money.
Imagine going to a tournament with no cut and a guarantee share of a $5.6 million purse among 35 players or so. The fact that it’s at Kapalua Resort’s Plantation Course in Maui, Hawaii isn’t a bad deal either, but apparently not good enough for the top four players in the world to play in the invitation-only Mercedes-Benz Championship this week (Jan. 8-11).
OK, I’ll give Tiger a pass on this one so he can further rehabilitate ...
Here's hoping John Daly somehow finds success off the golf course
Friday January 2, 2009 | 09:31:58 pm 416 words, 3210 views
Is there anyone who isn’t hoping that John Daly will finally turn his life around? Does anyone believe that he will?
Unfortunately, the answers are probably “yes, a few,” and “no,” respectively.
Daly recently announced that the PGA Tour has suspended him for six months for behavior that has embarrassed it. His conduct came to a head last October when spent the night in a Winston-Salem, N.C., jail following a night of partying with his loyal fans at a local Hooter’s Restaurant. The mug shot of a bleary-eyed Daly in an orange jump suit isn’t exactly the image the PGA Tour ...
The Accidental Golfer
The Accidental Golfer (AKA Mike Bailey) has spent more than 15 years writing about the game that has brought him unbridled joy and temporary bouts of insanity. Now on staff at WorldGolf.com, Bailey is a former senior editor for PGA Magazine, senior writer for Golfweek's SuperNEWS and Turfnet magazines and past president of the Texas Golf Writers Association. He has covered every facet of golf, including the PGA and LPGA Tours, equipment and course architecture, as well as the bane of his golfing existence: instruction. The last has led to at least 30 different golf swings, which all feel different but appear to his playing companions to be the same.
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