It’s a little tougher to get to, but it’s well worth it if Monarch Dunes Golf in Nipomo is any indication. First, there’s the already-established and superb Old Course at Monarch Dunes. But the newest addition, the 12-hole Challenge Course, is the icing on the cake.

If you’ve only got a couple of hours to kill, it’s the perfect solution. Plus it’s a great one-two punch with the Old Course. This is no ordinary par 3. In fact, I would rather play the Challenge Course than I would scores of regulation golf courses – any day. Huge greens, lots of undulation, mounds, water hazards and lots of links-style bunkering make it most interesting.

We’ll be publishing my review as well as more photos in the very near future.

Monarch Dunes Challenge Course

The Bridges is a fairly challenging Johnny Miller-credited daily fee course (It was really designed by Damian Pascuzzo) that just celebrated its 10th anniversary. While it isn’t exactly target golf, having a guide to get you around this KemperSports-managed golf course is helpful.

This morning I got three guides, who were decent sticks and even better people. Barry and Dick are both retired from non-golf careers; Craig is in between banking jobs. Most of all, it was apparent they loved golf. Why else would they be course marshals? It can’t be the money or the grief slow golfers give you.

We agreed to a friendly wager or two and off we went. These guys gave me the lowdown on every hole – which side of the green to hit, where not to get it above the hole and how far it was to carry every creek, gorge and bush. Some of their advice I followed. When I didn’t, like when I tried to drive it over the creek on 16, I paid the price.

I also learned a new game called “Whip out.”

“Excuse me,” I said when my cart partner brought that one up on the par-3 15th.

Barry explained to me that it’s a COD game. In other words, whoever is closest to the pin on the green on a “whip out” hole and two putts or better gets a buck from everybody – on the spot. If he three-putts, he gives everybody a buck, right then and there, before we go to the next hole.

Barry must have had a feeling. Not only was he closest to the pin, but he made the putt for birdie, which meant more junk and stuff at the end of the round.

The best part of the round was the company. Nobody threw a club, pouted or screamed. It was apparent that these guys just loved the game.

I wound up losing a total of $3.25 to these guys. It was well worth it.

The Bridges Golf Club marshals extraordinaire (from left): Craig Oki, Barry Brunckhorst and Dick Kaneko

Over the weekend, Woods won on the other side of the globe. He fired a final-round 68 en route to a two-shot victory at the Australian Masters at Kingston Heath Golf Club near Melbourne. Ho-Hum, it’s Tiger’s seventh win of the year. So what else is new? We’re pretty used to that part.

And, by the the way, anybody who says Woods isn’t the greatest player of all-time also believes we faked the moon landings (yeah, I know he still trails Jack Nicklaus in majors, but his career is far from over). Still, it’s a shame that Tiger’s wins – or Tiger’s play – seem to come with so much controversy.

Once again, Woods has been criticized for an outburst. This time, during the third round, after a tee shot on the 13th hole he banged his driver so hard against the turf that it bounced up into the crowd. A fan caught it and returned it to him. And then there’s that cursing thing he does, which most of us have been guilty of from time to time on the course. We are, however, not paid a $2 million appearance fee (which also generated controversy among Australian taxpayers) or followed around with cameras.

These actions have been incredibly divisive among golf fans, as evidenced by readers’ comments on various Web sites. Tiger haters look at this as just another example of his boorish behavior, how he doesn’t exemplify a gentleman’s game and how he’s destroying that tradition.

Many Tiger supporters say lots of players do exactly what Tiger does but that they aren’t called on the carpet for it because they aren’t in the spotlight. Or, and here’s the charge I love, Tiger is being singled out by critics who are simply racist. Those same people who make the racist charge, by the way, usually say athletes aren’t and should not be role models.

Let’s take that last point first. Parents should be role models, but most of the time, they are not. That’s just the way it is. Athletes, entertainers, politicians – anybody in the spotlight – have a great opportunity. They are in position to influence the greatest number of youth, so ideally, they should use that power for good, not bad. So Tiger should make an effort. He doesn’t have to be perfect, but he could be better.

Secondly, yes, there are those who base their criticism on Tiger’s mixed racial makeup. Yes, the world is full of bigots and no matter what Tiger does, it isn’t enough or proper in many people’s minds. That’s just the way it is unfortunately. All you have to do is read their comments online. They don’t even try to hide it.

Unfortunately, there is no one solution for this, but if Tiger tried to control himself a little better, he wouldn’t give his “haters” so much ammunition.

And yes, he can control it. How do I know this? I’ve played with a minister on a couple of occasions and both times, I was able to get through 18 holes and several bad shots and bad breaks without as much as a “darn it.” And if I can do it, anyone can. I wouldn’t utter an obscenity if there were a young child in my group either.

So Tiger, just imagine that there are minsters and children in the gallery. Because there are.

Free golf.

Well, OK, nothing in life is ever truly free, but if you book a package at the Playa Playa Azul Hotel ($255 a night) in Cozumel, you can play all the golf you want at Cozumel Country Club for free. Just pay cart fees.

And yes, it’s time for United States citizens and Canadians to start thinking about going south.

Designed by Jack Nicklaus’ son, Steve, Cozumel Country Club is the first course in Mexico to earn designation as a Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary from Audubon International. The course has four sets of tees and measures to just over 6,700 yards to a par 72. It looks pretty serene.

As for the hotel, Playa Azul Hotel is an intimate boutique hotel. All 50 rooms have ocean views.

Besides free golf, you also get free breakfast, water sports and the full-service Savia Spa with treatments inspired by the ancient Maya. There are also a couple of restaurants (one under a beach palapa), a beach bar, an indoor bar with satellite TV sports and free wireless Internet.

For more information or reservations, click here.

If that seems somewhat limiting, consider this: Troon Golf has a pretty nice portfolio, especially in Arizona, where it is based. And in the winter, green fees in Arizona as well as Florida and California, can be quite high.

For example, in Scottsdale, Ariz., you can play Troon North in peak season for as little as $85. We’re talking 36 holes of immaculate conditions at one of the most revered resorts in the state. Green fees at Troon North can often run as high as $200 or more.

The Arizona list also includes Talking Stick, The Westin Kierland and Westin La Paloma in Tucson as well as several other top courses.

Troon offers a number of different cards, depending on your needs. The cards range from $275 for a California-Nevada twosome card to $800 for a national foursome card, which is good at any of the 42 participating Troon Golf courses in the United States and Mexico for yourself and three guests. (You can also play as a single if you want).

Obviously, you have to play a lot of golf to make it worthwhile, but for those who winter in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area, for example, I would think this would be worth a look.

For more information on the program, click here and go to “ESTORE.”

For the past three years, the Fall Series event has been played at Grayhawk Golf Club’s Raptor Course in golf-rich Scottsdale. Now it will move closer to Fry’s Electronics headquarters in San Jose, Calif., which is just a 30-minute drive from the tournament’s new home – exclusive CordeValle Golf Club in San Martin, Calif.

This really shouldn’t come as a big surprise as this tournament has moved quite a bit in the last few years. Before Scottsdale, the tournament was held in Las Vegas.

Just last week, Troy Matteson defeated Rickie Fowler and Jamie Lovemark in a two-hole playoff to win at Grayhawk, a daily fee golf club.

It’s been a nice run.

“From the onset, the Frys.com Open has done a tremendous job in running and promoting its PGA TOUR event,” said Tim Finchem, PGA TOUR commissioner. “The move to California near its corporate headquarters assures the continued growth and success of the Frys.com Open in the future.”

While the pros liked Grayhawk, my guess is that they will really like CordeValle. I played it a couple of years ago, and it’s immaculate. The high-end private Robert Trent Jones Jr. design stretches across 7,169 yards of Northern California’s hillsides, canyons and broad meadows. (Guest fees approach $400.) The only shame is that it’s another tour course most of the public can’t play.

“We are very excited about moving the Frys.com Open to California and CordeValle,” said Kathy Kolder, executive vice-president and a founder of Fry’s Electronics. “We expect the tournament to prosper, attract a top field of PGA TOUR professionals and generate more dollars for charity.”

Barron only played one PGA tour event and a handful of Nationwide tournaments this year. The PGA Tour isn’t saying what he tested positive for, and Barron hasn’t divulged what the substance is either. Barron, a 40-year-old from Memphis, did issue an apology, though, for any “negative perception of the tour or its players” resulting from his suspension, which is a year. That’s right, a year, and not some 50-game suspension like Manny Ramirez got in baseball.

Now, we’re only left to speculate, except that this is so under the radar because of Barron’s anonymity that I’m afraid most golf fans really don’t care. He’s ranked 887th in the world, although he did finish second at the 2006 EDS Byron Nelson at the Four Seasons Resort near Dallas. If it were Tiger Woods or even Jim Furyk, this would be all over the dial.

It is still interesting, though, to see the limited reaction on the Web. Many golf fans assume it’s some kind of steroid or human growth hormone, and it very well could be. Rex Hoggard of the Golf Channel said he reported a few years ago that Barron and former PGA champ Shaun Micheel were both treated for testosterone deficiencies. (You can draw your own conclusions if you like.)

What many don’t understand is that although power and speed are both desirable attributes in golf, the biggest difference between top players and guys struggling to get their cards is around and on the greens. And steroids generally don’t help you there; they probably hurt (sorry, Tiger haters).

Years ago, the performance enhancing drug of choice in golf was beta-blockers, which is used to treat high blood pressure. Some believe it also controls the yips and helps calm the nerves, which could be more beneficial than steroids in a sport that’s all about being cool under pressure. For what it’s worth, Nick Price, who once took beta-blockers for high blood pressure, didn’t like the effect it had on him and switched medications.

So who knows what poor Doug Barron tested positive for? It’s too bad we’re only left to use our imagination.

The answer is a resounding yes. While the casual golf fan stops watching golf after the Tour Championship and most likely any event that Tiger Woods isn’t in, these PGA Tour “Fall Finish” events have plenty of drama.

In this case, the Viking Classic at Annandale Golf Club just outside of Jackson, Miss., was the victim of Mother Nature this week. Ironically, this tournament survived Hurricane Katrina four years ago… well, sort of. The course was severely damaged and the event was moved from September to October that year and still played.

This time is was heavy rain for the first two days (and earlier in the week) that just left the course unplayable.

PGA Tour and tournament officials will always correctly point out that charitable contributions are among the casualties when a tournament has to be cancelled, but it goes way beyond that. There are the hundreds of volunteers who gave up time to set up and work the event, the loss of money for the local economy and the general sense of disappointment that naturally follows in a large undertaking like this – and any PGA Tour event is a large undertaking.

And for the players looking to gain an exemption for next year – the ones hovering around 125 on the money list – these last few tournaments are critical. Heck, I was looking forward to seeing how guys like David Duval (125), Stuart Appleby (134), Chris DiMarco (138) and Rocco Mediate (141) – some pretty big names fighting for their tour cards – were going to fare this week.

To me it’s kind of like college football. There are only a handful of teams that can contend for a national championship, but that doesn’t make the other 100 games meaningless, does it? The Viking Classic is not meaningless.

The cancelation of the Viking Classic, by the way, is the first PGA Tour event to suffer such a fate since the 1996 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. I’m amazed it doesn’t happen more often.

Whan, 44, has plenty of golf experience, but more importantly, he has a successful track record of company growth. Most recently, he led Mission-ITECH Hockey, which makes and markets hockey gear, to success.

In the mid- to late-1990s Whan was with TaylorMade as its North American executive vice president. If he had anything to do with TaylorMade’s growth back then – which I suspect he did – then he’s probably the right guy for the job.

It’s no secret that sponsorship dollars have been dwindling rapidly on the LPGA Tour. It only has 18 tournaments under contract for next year with projections between 22 and 25, far fewer than it was a few years ago.

Whan seems to have a good grasp of what needs to be done, and it has to do with exactly what some seem to think is the problem. Instead of bemoaning the international presence on the tour, he talked about expanding the tour globally.

That’s a good strategy. It only stands to reason that if Asian players are dominating the tour, then opportunity to grow it abroad is great.

The LPGA didn’t need a figurehead (as some have suggested earlier this year). It needed somebody who was willing to go to work and somebody who can figure out how to market a product. Whan’s track record suggests he could be the guy. Time will tell.

I’m guessing 77-year-old James Wiencek can’t laugh about it, although he probably realizes he is lucky to be alive. I’m sure someone his age never thought that an alligator attack might spell the end, but it nearly did.

According to a story in the The Island Packet and The Beaufort Gazette, Wiencek was on the 11th hole earlier this month at the Ocean Creek Golf Course at Fripp Island (S.C.) Resort when an alligator attacked him as he went to get his golf ball. The 400-pound reptile then dragged him by his arm into a nearby pond. In the end, Wiencek lost his arm below the elbow.

Wildlife officials were able to kill the 10-foot alligator. Then they removed the arm from its stomach. Paramedics then packed his arm in ice in the hopes that it could be re-attached. No word on whether or not that was successful, but there have been similar reports in years past where doctors tried to do just that and failed.

It’s easy to make jokes about this, but we really shouldn’t. People today have become totally insensitive to other people’s plight, and they often hide behind the anonymity of the Internet to make crude comments. My feeling on most of this is that if you wouldn’t say it in the presence of the victim’s family, you probably shouldn’t say it.

First off, that had to really hurt. And I’m sure it was extremely frightening – you know, like a shark attack, except Mr. Wiencek was on a golf course, not in the ocean.

I’m amazed he just didn’t go ahead and have a heart attack. Goodness, he was almost 80 years old.

Playing golf is one of retirement’s great rewards. So much for that now.

Mr. Wiencek, you certainly have my sympathy. I hope your recovery isn’t too painful.

And as someone who often plays golf courses where alligators are common, I’ll think twice about looking for golf balls near the water – especially if they are my opponents’.

The new par-72 course Down Under stretches 1,365 kilometers. That’s right, about 848 miles – and 301 yards for good measure. Of course, you’re not having to hit it that yardage, but it’s more dramatic when you put it that way.

In reality, it’s merely 18 holes spread over a whole lot of land, which isn’t in short supply in Australia. In this case, we’re talking about the Nullarbor Plain, named for its lack of trees. It is the world’s largest flat bedrock surface, covering about 270,000 square kilometers.

There’s one hole in each participating town or roadhouse along the Eyre Highway, from Kalgoorlie in Western Australia to Ceduna in South Australia. Each hole has a tee and a green and somewhat rugged Outback-style fairway. It’s the quintessential Australian experience.

This is a marketing tool for the Eyre Highway Operators Association. Even so, doesn’t this sound like something that if you had the time to do, you’d love to accomplish as a golfer? Obviously pace of play is a challenge. If you can get your round finished in four days, you’ve done well.

I wonder how Bob Rotella would advise players who have had a bad hole to move on. After all, it might be three or four hours to the next hole.

Walking isn’t an option. Or is it? Gotta figure someone will try it someday.

What about playing through?

There’s got to be a halfway house, right? How about 18 of them?

Sign me up.

In years past, Tiger Woods might win a couple of the majors (meaning that they needed a fourth) or simply not find time in his schedule, leaving the PGA of America to find alternates. It also used to be played in Hawaii, but now it’s in Bermuda, specifically the Port Royal Golf Course in Southampton.

And while Stewart Cink (British), Y.E. Yang (PGA), Angel Cabrera (Masters) and Lucas Glover (U.S. Open) don’t have a lot of star power, it was obvious that they were seriously competing this week, and the crowds seem to appreciate that.

Perhaps it was because a $600,000 first prize means more to players who aren’t used to cashing in the really big checks all the time. Perhaps it was because they’re just wired that way. Whatever the reason, they were grinding it out in Bermuda. This wasn’t just another silly season event.

“When you compete, you want to win, and that’s anything,” said Lucas Glover, who finished at 11-under winning by six strokes over Cabrera. “I mean, if I went and picked up a three-on-three basketball game this afternoon, I would want to win. That’s how it was here. All four of us came here wanting to win the Grand Slam, and I’m very honored and very happy that it was me.”

It was also cool to see it on a great looking golf course. Bermuda officials spared no expense, spending some $14 million on a Roger Rulewich renovation that was completed earlier this year. Originally opened in 1970, this Robert Trent Jones Sr. design is set on the cliffs of the Atlantic. The views, even on TV, were incredible, especially down the stretch starting with the par-3 16th.

Stewart Cink, whose family went snorkeling and jet-skiing earlier this week, noticed something else while he was playing the 16th, schools of parrotfish in the clear blue water.

“They are three or four feet and easy to spot because they are dark colors. Some have really bright green tails and all different colors,” said Cink, proving once again that fishing and golf go hand-in-hand. “The Premier, Dr. (Ewart) Brown, said you have to catch and release if you do catch one of those. He was clear on the law.”

In my previous blog, I related the story of how 14-year-old Jessica Kent got to go to the Presidents Cup at Harding Park because she won the “Kids Fore Kids” art contest sponsored by KemperSports. Her piece was auctioned off yesterday.

Apparently, a rain storm came out of nowhere to make things a little uncomfortable at the dinner, but Kent’s work still brought in $2,000, courtesy of George Berridge of Bluewolf, a locally based software consulting firm.

The art contest encouraged kids to create an original piece of art that depicted their vision of “Golf in San Francisco.” Submissions, which were collected from The First Tee regional participants in California, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada and Alaska, were pared down to the top-10 finalists that were posted online during a two-week voting period.

Below is the winning entry. Enjoy.

Jessica Kent’s winning depiction of San Francisco golf.

While the U.S. team was busy dusting off the internationals, a new satellite site for the San Francisco First Tee program was unveiled in the area.

As part of the festivities, 14-year-old Jessica Kent was flown to San Francisco with her family. Jessica, you see, won an art contest in the Kids Fore Kids program, sponsored by KemperSports, which manages Harding Park, the host site of this year’s Presidents Cup and the main location for the San Francisco First Tee program.

Jessica was the winner of the contest in which kids from First Tee programs sent in artwork depicting golf in San Francisco. As part of her prize, she got to attend a clinic with Nick Faldo and Paul Azinger and meet with San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom at a new First Tee facility in inner San Francisco. She also received a pass to walk inside the ropes during Presidents Cup action as well as play golf at the Kemper Sports-managed Links at Bodega Harbour north of the city.

The best part, though, is that both teams signed her artwork, which will be auctioned off at a First Tee dinner on Monday. “I hope we can get thousands for it,” said Steve Skinner, CEO of Northbrook, Ill.-based KemperSports.

More importantly, however, the contest brought awareness to the program. And if you’re thinking that First Tee programs merely pay lip-service to an elitist sport trying to feel good about itself, think again.

Frank “Sandy” Tatum heads up the San Francisco First Tee program. You might also know him as the former president of the United States Golf Association and also as the man who was responsible for spearheading efforts to renovate Harding Park and bring it to prominence with events like the President’s Cup and American Express Championship.

We’ve all heard how golf can instill values in youth and how those values can transcend into other life skills, but this is more than that. This is about more than growing the game, and you can hear it in Tatum’s voice when the 89-year-old attorney and former Stanford golfer speaks about helping kids who live in fear in their own neighborhoods.

“I can’t tell you how much this matters to me,” said Tatum, who refers to affected areas as “war zone” neighborhoods.

Located on the east side of the city, the new $300,000 Learning Center at Visitacion Valley Middle School is the only facility of its kind in the country. It has a driving range, sand bunkers, putting green and some classroom space. It serves nine different middle schools in the area with bus transportation available to the center. The goal is to get more than 1,000 kids involved.

The hope is, of course, that not only will these kids latch onto golf, but learn other values as well. Most of all, it’s about giving them hope, something that is in short supply in many urban areas.

Jessica Kent poses with San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom at The First Tee of San Francisco’s new learning center at Visitacion Valley Middle School.

First of all, the crowds usually aren’t as intense, but more importantly, these guys seem to have more fun.

And why not – at least for the guys who already made their mark on the PGA Tour and invested wisely? For players like Nick Price, Jay Haas and Mark O’Meara, this is gravy.

As an added bonus, this week’s Administaff Small Business Classic at the Tournament Course at The Woodlands (Texas) Country Club is also free to the public as a way of giving back to the community for its support the past five years. (It will also help boost attendance.) And it’s not free just during practice rounds or pro-ams, but the weekend, too.

And it’s going to be a spectacular weekend at that. A cold front is scheduled to come through Thursday evening, leaving highs in the 70s with sunny skies on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. That’s compared the mid-90s we’re getting here in the Houston area right now.

The other cool thing about this tournament is that many of these old guys played the course when it hosted the PGA Tour’s Shell Houston Open for the better part of two decades. So we’ll get to see former champions like Allen Doyle, Curtis Strange and Phil Blackmar try their luck here again. (The Woodlands has hosted the Administaff the past two years.)

But more than that, how many more times can you see Lee Trevino play – or more importantly, hear him play. The almost 70-year-old Merry Mex still has game, I promise you, but he will not contend. What he will do is draw one of the largest galleries on the course, and he will be entertaining. That I can guarantee. And if you’re in the Houston area this weekend, it won’t cost you anything.