Interview with a Flagstick
Recently I had the rare opportunity to spend some time with one of the most iconic figures in golf—the flagstick at the 18th hole of the Augusta National Golf Club. With the Masters approaching, and at a decidedly turbulent time in the life of all flagsticks, he was extremely gracious with his time and remarkably […]
Bandon Dunes’s Junior Bandonista Program
By Erik Matuszewski When Ryan Page took a work-related road trip from Seattle to San Francisco with his wife and four kids last summer, he made a point to squeeze in a couple days at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort on the rugged Oregon coast. Or, as he calls it, Daddy Disneyland. The Kaysville, Utah, resident […]
State of the Game – Do You Know How Healthy Golf Really Is?
If you’re reading this newsletter, chances are you’re a fairly passionate golfer. You’ve probably played several times this year. Maybe you’ve taken a few lessons or have been practicing in earnest, champing at the bit to test that latest swing tip on the course. Perhaps you’ve been planning another annual golf trip that brings old […]
The Best Course I’ve Never Played
By Adam Schupak As the old American Express tagline suggested, membership has its privileges. For some big-name golfers, celebrities, architects, and administrators, membership in the game’s A List means access to the cathedrals of the game. As Wayne Gretzky put it, “I don’t mean to sound egotistical, but since I’ve retired I’ve played Augusta, […]
Six of Golf’s Best 19th Holes
One year at the Masters Tournament, my wife and I were sitting with Robert Trent Jones, Jr., and his better half, Claiborne, at an evening function when he told me that Alister MacKenzie’s original drawings of Augusta National included a 19th hole for settling tied matches. He told me I better fact-check this when I […]
My Top 5 Bucket-List Golf Experiences
At only 24, I’ve been very fortunate to have already been exposed to some of the best experiences golf has to offer. I’ve played venerable U.S. Open venues weeks before they hosted the tournament, walked the hills of Augusta National during the Masters, played classic courses restored to their former glory, and interviewed legends of […]
Questions: Ray Floyd
The winner of the 1986 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills—and a Hamptons summer resident for over 20 years—recalls the pressure of that week but hasn’t forgotten what it was like to win his first Tour event, 23 years earlier Q. You won 22 times on the PGA Tour. What do you remember about your maiden victory, which […]
Bobby Jones: Record Breaker
Bob Jones’s Grand Slam is a record that has remained undisturbed for nearly 90 years and is perhaps the most significant longstanding record in sports history. During Jones’s 16-year competitive amateur career, plenty of attention was paid to his breaking the record on his home course, East Lake’s No. 1, a record seven times, culminating […]
The Masters Par 3 Contest
Matt Wallace is 1-for-1 at Augusta National. The 28-year-old from England has played in one competition at the home of the Masters, and won it. Of course, Wallace didn’t win the Masters (not yet anyway) but the Par 3 Contest which precedes the main event. The debutant won in a playoff at the third extra […]
A Year-Long Golf Road Trip—Patrick Koenig
Pulled over on the side of a lonely stretch of road in North Dakota, with twinkling stars overhead, Patrick Koenig swatted a dozen or so golf balls into the darkness from the makeshift driving range atop his RV. Make that his RGV: recreational golf vehicle. You might think playing close to 450 rounds at 405 […]