The Future of Municipal Golf Courses
The future of municipal courses in America is a subject of great concern with course closures on pace to exceed openings for yet another year. Many of the approximately 2,500 municipal golf facilities in the U.S. face an uncertain future despite making positive impacts with an often-conflicting responsibility—providing an affordable community recreation option while still […]
Five Things to Know About Club Fitting
If you’re like me and have gone a while with your trusty troop of irons and woods, some days you may find yourself thinking, “I feel like I used to hit that club a little bit longer.” The truth is, you’re likely not wrong. Over time your clubs are depreciating just like anything else you […]
Weather Man: PGA Tour Meteorologist Stewart Williams
From miles away, Stewart Williams could tell the torrential afternoon thunderstorm would douse Akron, Ohio. Sure enough, it poured buckets on the field at July’s Bridgestone Senior Players Championship for a short time, but long enough to wash out bunkers. Just when the maintenance staff had the course ready to resume play, another storm rolled […]
I Was There – 1998 Presidents Cup
Royal Melbourne Golf Club holds a special place in my heart. It’s where I’ve won tournaments, shot my lowest round, and celebrated the International team’s lone triumph at The Presidents Cup, in 1998. In December, I’ll captain our side as we attempt to regain the golden trophy there. For four years, beginning in 2002, this […]
Six of the Most Interesting Driving Ranges in Golf
I tend not to hit more than a dozen balls warming up before a round of golf. Like many golfers, I might joke with those next to me that my good shots are limited, so why waste them? But during my travels I’ve come across a number of unique or unusual practice ranges where it’s […]
Thousand Greens: Match.com Meets the Top 100
Shinnecock, Winged Foot, Oakmont, Olympic—every serious golfer knows the names, but only a fortunate few have played the courses. In contrast to the UK, where the host sites of the Open Championship extend a warm welcome to visitors, U.S. Open venues and other top American courses are, for the most part, shut tight, exclusive bastions […]
What Golf Resorts Are Doing to Stay Relevant
In case you haven’t noticed, golf resorts are stepping up their game like never before. Putting courses and short courses are all the rage. Developer Mike Keiser is opening a new must-play course on almost an annual basis. And while new course design has taken a back seat, resorts are pumping significant money into restoring, […]
Golf’s Short Course Craze
By Tony Dear Golf’s short course movement is in full swing. Whether it’s a layout with fewer than 18 holes, or one consisting solely of par threes, truncated golf is appearing with increasing regularity as America discovers how much fun it can be, how great it is for introducing youth to the game, how […]
Game Changer: What Does Climate Change Mean for Golf?
In his wildly imaginative novel Golf in the Year 2100, Bob Labbance postulated a future in which golfers would strategically control factors like temperature, precipitation, and wind while playing a high-tech version of the game that he termed “Altered Environment Golf.” He made it sound like great fun. But if you believe what the overwhelming majority of the world’s […]
Yes, Drivers Can Still Get Longer
For more than two decades, Tom Olsavsky has heard the same question in one form or another. The 29-year golf industry veteran, who now heads up R&D for Cobra Puma Golf, says it goes something like this: “You can’t make the driver go any farther, right? That’s the end,” Olsavsky says. “Well, no, I don’t think […]