Golf News for Monday, April 2, 2007 | TravelGolf.com Podcast

Darius Rucker of Hootie & the Blowfish, Barona Creek resort, and 007-type course security

Hear this latest episode of TravelGolf.com This Week.

The Hootie & the Blowfish Monday After the Masters Celebrity Pro/Am Charity Golf Tournament in Myrtle Beach has become a tradition over the years. In this week's podcast, host Dave Berner talks to Darius Rucker, front man of the world's most golf-loving band.

"This is our 14th year doing it. We started it out really small. It was a way to make some money to help junior golf and to help some charities around Columbia and around South Carolina," Rucker says. "It just started to grow, and it kept growing. And we started our own foundation to help more people. I think we've raised almost $4 million in the last 13 years."

California is king when it comes to golf resorts, but there are a few that might not be on every golfer's radar screen. TravelGolf.com's Kiel Christianson talks about playing California's low-profile golf resorts, including Barona Creek Golf Club near San Diego.

"These are golf resorts that aren't the high profile ones, like La Quinta," Christianson says. "These are resorts that people know about, that have fabulous golf, but that might not spring to mind when you first think about southern California."

High-end golf courses are getting pretty intense about security these days, according to Senior Staff Writer Chris Baldwin.

"I was at one place in the Palm Beach region of Florida called Frenchman's Creek, where they have a staff of former paramilitary guys," Baldwin says. "At nighttime they're dressed in all black, and they've got guys who hide in the bushes. The members call them their ninjas. And it doesn't stop there."

Also, Christianson thought he was nervous playing the Old Course at St. Andrews, but that was nothing compared to his first Texas Hold'em poker tournament. Christianson talks about the experience in this week's 'TravelGolf.com On Course' commentary.

"As the dealer shuffled, and the first hand was dealt, my knees were shaking as badly as when I stood on the first tee of the Old Course at St. Andrews," he says. "My only hope was that I wouldn't fluff this first hand as badly as I chunked my drive [there]."

This podcast is supported by Florida Golf Travel and Pioneer Golf.



 
Swing Fix