New Zealander Plays 419 Courses in One Year
I always knew that New Zealanders were crazy. In the
Golf Observer I find a write-up on 40 year old New Zealander Ricky Bartlett who recently finished a year long journey in which he played every golf course and golf hole in New Zealand for charity.
If you count every course (even the 9 hole ones) there are 419 golf course, which is the highest number of courses per capita in the world. Bartlett played 419 rounds in 362 days which amounts to 7,542 holes in 31,594 shots.
All the courses, except for one gave Bartlett free golf in his quest, the one standout was a course on Chatham Islands that was in terrible shape with sheep droppings and worm casts on the greens. The course charged Bartlett $3 for that round. That course sounds like it could deserve some charity.
Bartlett's quest was to raise money for three different charities: the Cancer Society, Amnesty International and the Ronald McDonald House. He raised over $75,000 for his troubles.
Sure nice not to have to work for a living.
Labels: golf, New Zealand, Weird Golf Stuff
Why Bowling is Better than Golf
After an absolutely horrible round of golf. After you have thrown your clubs in the pond and stomped off the course vowing never to play the stupid game again. You can alway pick up another ball, hit the lanes and bowl. Why not? It's got a lot of advantages:
-you don’t have to bring your own ball
-you don’t need 14 different clubs
-you don’t lose your ball in the woods
-you don’t need Sudafed because you’re allergic to cut grass
-you don’t have to wait for the beer cart girl
-one game costs $4 not $40
-you don’t need to pee behind a tree
-with bumpers you’ll never miss your target
-the higher your score the BETTER you did
-you get to wear cool shoes that only cost $2 to rent
-you don’t even have to keep score, it’s done for you
-a gutter ball is part of the game, and out-of-bounds is not
-you don’t have to get up early to get a good lane
-you don’t have to talk quietly when someone is bowling
-its okay to wear matching shirts
-you can have nicknames on your shirt like: Fats, Shorty or Tiny
-there are no club memberships to pay
-it never claims to be a form of exercise
-there is no dress code, as long as you wear shoes
-you can still play when it rains
-you don’t have to watch it on TV when you should be playing
According to the
National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA), in 2006, at 44.8 million, Bowling ranks as the 4th most popular participatory sport and Golf, at 24.4 million, is ranked #16. Embarrasingly, golf lags behind sports like Fishing (#6), Weight Lifting (#10) and Billiards (#11).
Which sport ranks in last place (#41)???
Ice Hockey.
At least we still have another sport to kick around.
Labels: Bowling, golf
Turning Back the Clock to Hickory Shafted Golf Clubs
Modern golf equipment has experienced a constant technological march forward. More distance, more power, more accuracy. With 460cc titanium drivers, cavity back irons, space age graphite shafts and high tech putters, golfers are constantly searching for the Holy Grail of equipment.
At the same time, there seems to be a movement away from scoring low with the latest equipment, to the more ethereal 1920s when mashies, guttta-percha balls and cool clothes were all the rage. Players are donning knickers, finding hickory shafted collectibles and entering tournaments like the
3rd Annual World Hickory Open at Craigielaw Golf Club in Aberlady, Scotland and the
10th Annual National Hickory Championship at Oakhurst Links in West Virginia.
Yet, finding authentic 1920s-era equipment and using it on the course requires scouring antique shops, flea markets and grandpa’s attic and that doesn't guarantee you'll find anything worth playing with. For those ready to go all out for a complete set of "retro" clubs you can pick up a circa
1930 Bobby Jones Replica Set offered by Golf Links for a mere $3995.
A new company, hoping to take advantage of the surge in "retro" golf is
Sweet Wood Golf Company based in Maryland. They have introduced their first hickory shafted putters called "Brunette", "Red Head" and "Blonde", not because they have pictures of women on the soleplate, but because of the stain color on the hickory used in their shafts. They expect this line to retail for $135. A bargain in comparison to some of the fancy high tech putters currently on the market.
Since 1974 there has really only been one company that dominates the "semi-retro" space in golf equipment and that is
Louisville Golf. They have been making persimmon drivers and putters all that time and have seen the ups and downs of being a unique golf club manufacturer, but they only take the "retro" movement so far. Their heads are wood, but their shafts are modern steel and graphite. Their prices are modern too.
Another option might be playing with irons fitted with hickory shafts. Sweet Wood Golf Company expects to introduce their Modern-Day Hickory Irons that will have 8210 soft carbon steel iron heads, modern loft/lie angles, USA turned hickory shafts and PGA Tour certified slip on leather grips for the expected market price of around $1800.
It remains to be seen if hickory-shafted golf clubs take off, but if you are a "retro" fan and think that the authenticity of the equipment you play is as important as the game, then modern day golf equipment has nothing over niblicks, brassies and hickory shafts.
Labels: Bobby Jones, golf, Louisville Golf, Retailing, Retro Golf, Sweet Wood Golf
Why Can't There be a Double Standard in Golf?
The official keepers of the Rules of Golf are The
United States Golf Association (USGA) for the United States and the
Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews in Europe. Periodically they come out with ways to make the game more frustrating.
The latest is a potential rule change for the grooves on the face of an iron clubhead. The Royal and Ancient takes issue with U-grooves, which according to an article in the
Scotsman, "the combination of U-grooves and thin covered balls have enabled elite players to spin approach shots from the rough - thereby minimizing the importance of driving accuracy in the modern game."
Their objection seems to be in part a desire to protect the purity of the game. According to David Rickman, the Royal and Ancient's director of rules and equipment standards, "while there may have been different speeds for different parts of the game, ultimately it all comes together. The Royal and Ancient has existed for more than 250 years and, during that time, we've played under one set of rules for everyone."
Let’s all dress up like Tevye the Milkman in
Fiddler on the Roof and sing about Tradition.
What's wrong with a double standard in golf?
I will never play well enough to compete at an elite level. More likely, I will never play well enough to break 75. Thus, I will never be considered an "elite" player. Is it going to make any difference to me or the millions of hack golfers like me to be concerned about my "non-conforming" U-groove iron face?
Establishing two levels of equipment is known as the bifurcation of the game. This is a nasty word that gives rank amateurs like most of us as much opportunity to enjoy the game as we can.
In reality, what do we enjoy more: the ability to shoot 2-3 strokes better because our equipment is "non-conforming" according to the USGA and the Royal and Ancient or being true to the game and shooting another dismal 94?
I'll take shooting a few strokes better on my favorite course, thereby beating my playing partners and winning the pot, over the psychic scars that I'll get dealing with my moral "non-conforming" club selection quandary any day.
Labels: golf, Royal and Ancient, USGA
CLICK HERE to listen.In Episode #31 of Golf Gear News, host Bruce Stasch reports at The Newstand that
Wie is Out for Month with Injury,
Hockey Wants to Emulate Golf and
TaylorMade-Adidas Inks Deal with Chinese.
In the Perfect Fit section we learn about the
R & A's Ruling on Iron U-Grooves.
The Guru Commentary asks the question
Is TaylorMade Losing It's Edge to the Square Driver? She Golfs Too explores
About.com's Top 50 Female Golfers List and Golf Around the World visits Colorado and the
Newest Ice Golf Course.
In Can't We All Get Along a
Golfer is Wanted in Course Vandalism and Golf of the Weird reports on the
Golf Novel That Predicts the Future and the
Only Par-4 Hole on the PGA Tour.
Our Website Spotlight is
Sweet Wood Golf Company.
As always, our show is sponsored by
Golfknockoff.com.
Check out our new
Media Kit.
Labels: China, Equipment, golf, Michelle Wie, Moveable Weights, Podcast, Square Drivers, TaylorMade, Women's Golf
Why Do I Care What Bag the Pros Play?
I got my daily e-mail from Golf Press Association. It is basically a regurgitation of the press releases they receive from equipment, apparel and marketing companies. I accept that. Sometimes these e-mails even contain some interesting announcements.
What I don't get is why I would care that in the recent AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, "6 of the 20 finishers at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, including the runner up relied on Izzo to carry their bags".
Izzo is a great golf bag. They come up with innovative designs, cool colors and have bags that are easy on the back. That's not my issue. Aside from the fact that it was a caddie that actually carried an Izzo bag for his pro, I wasn't aware that the bag that I put my clubs in is going to make me successful.
Is this a case of "the clothes make the man" or maybe a Venn diagram problem that we learned in math class: if everyone in my group has an Izzo bag, Izzo bags are cool, then that must mean that I'm cool because I carry an Izzo bag. I think this is a not so veiled attempted to generate publicity about a product that has absolutely nothing to do with success on the golf course.
Just another example at trying to garner some press exposure when you really don’t have something worthwhile to say.
Labels: Equipment, golf, Golf Press Association, Izzo
What's the Deal with Pink Golf Clubs?
It must have started with the baby blanket thing. Someone, in their infinite wisdom decided that boy babies should have a blue blanket and girls should have a pink one. Who was this idiot anyway and what does blue have to do with boys and pink with girls? Why couldn’t the color have been yellow for boys and green for girls? Or mauve and periwinkle?
Why are the covers of "chick lit" books all pink? If you wander down your local Barnes & Noble and stop in the Women’s Literature section, 75% of the books have pink on their covers. Have I just uncovered the secret subliminal marketing message that tells women that "if it ain’t pink, it ain’t for me?"
So I see this press release on
Accu-Length's new Pink golf clubs. "Once young girls start using these clubs they'll understand why LPGA star Paula Creamer feels that pink is her lucky color," says Accu-Length president & COO Rick Rutter. He goes on to say "the Accu-Length Pink Set was created to meet the demands of young girls who are becoming more and more interested in playing golf."
What demands? The burning desire of girls to have a set of pink golf clubs?
I know that Paula Creamer is all about pink. That's her shtick. Annika and Lorena do just fine without wearing pink.
The Pink Panther, who obviously is a male, is all pink. Also, fiberglass insulation is pink and that clearly isn't a "female" product. Yet Nair hair remover and Bic shavers are pink.
I don't think girls, or women for that matter, care is their golf clubs are pink, green, mauve or polka dots. What they do care about, like the other gender, is golf clubs that work.
We lament the fact that the golf industry has been in a slump. Rounds played are down, there is an oversupply of courses and equipment sales have been flat. Girls and women are one of the fastest growing segments in our anemic industry.
So what do those highly-paid marketing executives at major golf club companies do to innovate and reach out to one of the fastest growing segments of the playing population? They paint their golf clubs pink. Some cutting-edge forward-thinking minds here.
Can't marketers come up with better ideas than a paint job? Please, give me a break from this pink-mania and come up with some REAL marketing innovation.
Labels: Accu-Length, Equipment, golf, LPGA, Women's Golf
Golf A New Way With New Zealand GolfCross Game
We like to think that the Scots invented golf and the Americans moved it forward by forming the PGA and making it a big money sport. But what about the New Zealanders? What do they have to do with golf?
The land of grazing sheep and beautiful scenery is the site of the newest and perhaps will become the fastest growing golf game on the planet. New Zealand game inventor Burton Silver came up with
GolfCross® in 1989. What makes this game interesting to the typical hacker is that the game is played on a regulation course, with all of the clubs in your bag (except the putter).
What makes the game unique is the oval ball. It looks like a football with dimples. Even high-handicappers can shape their shots because based on how the oval ball is positioned on the tee, the golfer can control the direction of the ball and make miracle shots around trees just like Tiger. Even better is that you can throw out you balky putter because when you get to the green, you hit the ball through a goal instead of into a tiny cup.
I like this game. It has so much potential. Think Frisbee Golf with you own clubs on a regulation-sized golf course and you start to get the idea of the game. For those of us that can't play more than once a week and never practice, this game can make us look like we're shooting in the 70s. Because of the patented oval ball, you always hit the ball straight, can generate controlled slices or hooks, and generate backspin or top spin just by how you place the ball on the tee.
On the company website, there are twelve contacts around the world that are a part of the GolfCross network, but GolfCross courses are only available in New Zealand right now. I'm guessing as this becomes more popular, we'll see a lot more courses considering this as an additional way to play the game. Six balls cost USD $44 and come with a free golf tee. That and a GolfCross goal is all you need to play the game. The balls will last a long time too because it is a lot harder to lose them than the traditional oval golf ball.
With such low growth in golf participation and the difficulty of the gof, we need innovators like Burton Silver to find new ways to get players to try out the game.
Labels: golf, GolfCross, New Zealand
Ping Finds Itself in Hot Water over Military Rebates
In late September, Karsten Manufacturing, maker of Ping golf clubs, has gotten itself into some hot water by forbidding retailers from offering a discount to active-duty and reserve members of the military.
The controversy exploded when Ping terminated its relationship with Bonaventure Discount Golf and Gordon Lakes Golf Course, both located in the Atlanta area, for selling Ping clubs at a 10% discount to military personnel.
Ping, well known for protecting the retail price of their premium golf products, had cut off these two golf retailers as well as another 60-plus military golf courses, for selling at a discount. Based on Ping’s actions, their pricing policy is sacred and a retailer that violates this policy, can, and often is, barred from selling Ping products.
Well, it appears that Ping had a mea culpa. On October 3rd, they relented and offered up their own, albeit lame, discount to military personnel. Ping would offer a mail-in rebate of $80 on a set of irons (retail price $749-1099) to these customers. Instead of getting the discount in-store, the military personnel customer will have to mail it in and wait 3-6 weeks for a check.
In a partial defense, according to Ping Chairman & CEO John Solheim, “For the last year, we’ve been looking for additional ways to support the troops,” Mr. Solheim said in a prepared statement. “On three occasions we’ve sent hundreds of free clubs for the troops to enjoy during their limited leisure time, but we wanted to provide them additional benefits.”
My take is that Ping got caught in a brewing PR fiasco that had to be quieted as soon as possible. Ping has had little interest in reducing their lofty pricing, but felt it was better to appease the media jackals than tell their retailers that they were wrong.
However, those retailers and military golf course pro shops that offered an unauthorized discount and had their accounts closed will not have them re-opened at this time according to a Ping spokesperson.
Wouldn’t it have been better for Ping just to say “We apologize and are sorry?”
Labels: golf, Karsten Manufacturing, military, Ping
