My Round at Harbour Town Golf Links
The intimidation started early. At first it was a sense of anticipation—I was about to play one of the top public courses in the entire country just a few weeks after the PGA Tour pros had done so during the RBC Heritage. The drive over the bridge onto Hilton Head Island and through The Sea […]
Course-Crafted Drinks Increasing in Popularity
A post-round drink where stories are swapped and bets are settled is one of golf’s finest traditions. Some golf courses across North America are taking it one step further than just having some favorites on tap or behind the bar—they’re growing ingredients or making their own drinks right on site, which makes a golfer’s day […]
Ben Wright: Feeling Chipper
Christmas came early for me this year—on August 27, to be exact. Who would have thought an aging hacker, ailing with pneumonia and consigned to playing “game improvement” clubs, was capable of championship golf and highlight-reel theatrics? But I’m getting ahead of myself. It all started when I ventured to Northern Michigan for Crystal Mountain […]
Ben Wright: Frequent Flier
Gary Player is as much a legend for the countless miles he has traveled as for the worldwide victories he has amassed upon arrival. In 1974—arguably Gary’s greatest season ever—I was very much a part of those ceaseless travels, during a memorable stretch that began at the Qantas Australian Open in Perth, Australia. There Player […]
Ben Wright: Gutsy Recovery
What do we make of the hole-in-one: the proper outcome of a perfectly executed shot—or an outrageous fluke? My lifetime total of two aces in nearly 63 years of playing golf could make a strong case for either theory. I managed my first hole-in-one at the tender age of 17, while representing the county of […]
Ben Wright: Days at the Beach
It’s nearly time for another Bing Crosby National Pro-Am—I’m sorry, make that AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am—which means memories of that great event come flooding back to me like the giant breakers that crash along Pebble’s famed 18th hole. Unfortunately those memories don’t include my actually having played in the Crosby, as it will always […]
Ben Wright: Magic in Monterey
Over the years, hundreds of golf fanatics have asked me which was the greatest shot I ever witnessed. It’s been an easy question to answer, thanks to one man: Jack Nicklaus. The best golfer who ever lived played scores of heroic shots, and nearly always when he needed one most. On occasion they even came […]
The Complete Golf Buddies’ Trip Checklist
Playing golf by yourself can be sublime—like when you’re sneaking in a few holes at sunset after work. Going out as a single with strangers can be rewarding, too, especially if you’ve queued from 5 a.m. to get out on the Old Course and exit the 18th green with three new friends. But the best […]
The Hardest Round of Your Life
Of all of the rounds you’ve played in your golf lifetime, there are but a few that seem to be etched in your memory in permanent ink. There’s the story of your career-low round, that your friends and family could recite back to you word-for-word. Then there are probably one or two courses you checked […]
Links Living: The Country Club at DC Ranch
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]This former cattle ranch in the Valley of the Sun is proving country clubs can flourish by offering amenities, programming, and service that appeal to all generations Opened in the late 1990s on a knoll near the McDowell Mountains, The Country Club at DC Ranch, in Scottsdale, Ariz., sits on land that a century ago […]