Bernard Darwin: History’s Best Golf Writer
The scion of a great English family wrote about golf better than he played it, which is saying a lot The life story of Bernard Darwin—arguably history’s first golf writer, inarguably its best—reads like a season of Masterpiece Theater. He was born in 1876 into a family of Victorian-era royalty: His grandfather was the naturalist […]
There’s More of Everything at The Landings
There’s more of everything at The Landings—more golf, more activities, more people—along with a more modest, small-town feel 6:30 pm. It’s Pickleball League Night, and the parking lot is overflowing with cars and golf carts. Games are in swing on the 15 courts, with at least another 75 players watching, kibitzing, and teaming up for […]
Palmetto Bluff Continues Its Thrilling Evolution
Already a premier Lowcountry community, Palmetto Bluff is looking forward to an exciting future Turn off the audiobook, hush the kids in the back, open the car windows—and your eyes. You want to be alert when driving into Palmetto Bluff. The four-mile trip from the gatehouse to the first signs of development starts with quintessential […]
6 Key Changes in the Golf Real Estate Market
The pandemic turned golf real estate upside down. Here’s what’s changed—and what you can do about it. As you certainly know, the last three years have affected everything. That includes everything golf, from the number of players to equipment sales. And, no surprise, the golf real estate market has changed. A lot. Roughly three years […]
The Oldest Course in Every State
Identifying the oldest and still operating course in each of the 50 states has all the makings of a good detective story WHAT: I thought it would be easy to identify the oldest golf course in each state. Silly me. The first step was defining what we were looking for, which is a course that […]
Characters: Golf Statistics Expert Lou Riccio
Whether you realize it or not, Lou Riccio’s statistical studies of golf affect how you play—and how much fun you’re having Looking for an impressive resume, you’d be hard pressed to better that of Lucius (“Lou”) Riccio. The 75-year-old has been Commissioner of New York City’s Department of Transportation, served on a Presidential Commission on […]
A Timeline of Golf’s Most Important Dates
The following timeline of notable events in golf history isn’t meant to be comprehensive, simply enlightening.
Club Designer Terry Koehler: The Wedge Guy
Club designer Terry Koehler says most wedges are hurting our games. He’s out to fix that. The story of the sand wedge is well known: Riding in an airplane with Howard Hughes, Gene Sarazen noticed that the flaps had to go down to help the plane get up. Inspired, he soldered metal onto the sole […]
Bay Creek: Third Time’s the Charm
A new owner, big plans, and a magnificent setting on the Chesapeake have Bay Creek poised for an exciting future There’s a story told about Sam Snead’s first visit to St. Andrews. Coming into town on the train, he looked out the window and said, “Looks like there used to be a golf course there.” […]
Personal Bests
The big-name architects designed courses that anyone-including you-can play. Here are the best from each of them. One of the great things about golf is how many courses are open to the public. Another terrific feature is that so many different individuals brought their aesthetics and expertise to the task of designing courses. Put those […]