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Found this article over at Golfworld and wanted to share it. It’s pretty entertaining.
The worst phrase a caddy can hear??
“I Think it’s time for us to make a change…”
-Dave
Golfnow – Discount Online Tee Times
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Patriot Golf Day started last year on September 1st, 2007. It is a fund raiser started by Major Dan Rooney, an F-16 fighter pilot and PGA professional. It was created to help support the families of fallen soldiers from Iraq and Afghanistan. Last year, in only a 24 hour period, Patriot Golf Day raised 1.1 million dollars to help aid those families.
This year from August 29th, 2008 – September 1st, 2008, golf clubs from around the US are participating in the event. Some golf courses will add an extra dollar to their greens fees and others will ask players for donations.
In addition to the greens fee, Taylor Made is auctioning off a limited edition r7 Driver.
Taylor Made Limited Edition Driver
At least 29 courses from the Central Florida area are participating and you can find a complete list of them here.
We need to get more courses added though. We’ve got to show everyone that Central Florida Golfers appreciate the sacrifices that our fellow citizens have made. Contact your local course and tell them to sign up for this event. Here’s a link you can forward to them.
If your like me and you are unable to hit the links that weekend (sigh), you can still and you should donate! Click here to make a donation.
Please do whatever you can to help this cause!
-Dave
Golfnow – Discount Online Tee Times
Read an article discussing optics and their application to putting, pretty amazing stuff.
All the colors, shapes and dots found on putters aren’t some designers way of starting a new trend in golf nor are they some nifty marketing ploy to make some putters stand out more than others, well, not totally.. 
They are in fact the results of some mad optics scientist working for club manufacturers being paid in spare body parts (see Frankenstein..).
Whenever we look over a putt, everything we see, the ball, the cup, breaks and contours in the green, the perceived line, golf channels putt-line (sponsored by Mutual of Omaha) are only as real as the image constructed in our heads. The brain is constantly assembling and reassembling information provided by the windows to our souls. There are labs all over the place where scientists are diligently working to help us improve our putting game (talk about priorities). They’ve come up with multiple theories about eye dominance, convergence, etc… Rather than go into all of that, we’ll keep it short and say that the top of the putter has three primary functions; to get you to position your eyes directly over the ball, to aim the face along the target line, and to influence the type of stroke you make.
Dr. Alan W. Reichow, Nike’s director for vision science says “Golfers are the most visually sensitive athletes, suppressing all the noncritical information, like a part that reflects more light than the alignment aid, is essential to letting a golfer maintain a comfortable focus.” Nike developed the IC series putters which the color contrast — white against green is it’s central optic element.
But there are other optical illusions to help with putting, longer sightlines, staggered discs (originally developed by Odyssey, now being expanded on by Fussell Putters) are created to help a golfer visualize the putt line. Other tricks have been developed to only be noticed if a golfer is swinging incorrectly, like Profound putters featuring orange stripes that are only noticed if your eyes are out of position.
“Not everyone’s eye is drawn to the same part of the putter,” says Blair Phillip, director of R&D for Yes! Golf. “We’re starting a study that will hopefully show a correlation between a person’s focus and his or her aiming tendencies.”
Dr. Craig L. Farnsworth, an optometrist who has worked with many professionals says there are four types for aimers, horizontal aimers who aim the leading edge, verticle aimers who aim the sightline like an arrow, golfers who aim a combination of the two, and everyone else who have no aim and putt all over the place.
To find out which type of aimer you are, you can get a teaching pro to use a laser putting analysis tool to help you figure it out.
There’s a list of putters on the site at the bottom of the article, that gives a run down of their optical benefit.
Dave
Golfnow – Discount Online Tee Times
One of my favorite fellow golf bloggers wrote a 27 page document all about the Ryder Cup. It’s a very good read, pretty entertaining and informative. He’s offering it for free for anyone who cares to read it.
Here’s the link.
Show this man some love for all the hard work he’s put into this.
Later folks!
-Dave
Doesn’t that just figure? Kid nails an Ace on his 3rd round of golf….
He wasn’t keeping score, he was using a borrowed club and a borrowed bag and on the 6th hole, from the ladies tee, he hits a driver that lands on the green and rolls 10 feet for a hole in one.
The club pro at Mandan Municipal Golf course located in Bismark, ND mention that he’s been playing golf for 42 years and has yet to nail an ace. He’s quoted saying “I’m 46 years old and I’ve been playing since I was four and I’ve never made a hole-in-one, and I’ve made a lot of money playing golf.”
His name is Allan Saylor and he and his friend Ethan Luck, didn’t realize what a big deal it was. The players behind them witnessed the shot and by the time the kids got back to the club house, everyone knew about it. The club pro Patrick Windgard approached them and asked them how their game was and they informed him of the shot, confirming the story.
Poor kid, that’s typically a once in a lifetime deal and he didn’t get to savor it…. Now he’ll spend his life trying to do it again and like the rest of us, become a slave to the game..
Boy, 11, fires ace in just his 3rd time golfing
If your crazy or extremely bored, check out the link below. It’s on the USGA website and it’s a golf rules quiz. There’s different difficulty levels depending on your skill level and you can choose 10, 18, or 25 question quizzes.
I took a 10 question basic and scored 6 out of 10.
It’s an interesting way to learn some of the more obscure rules
Dave
This is Ridiculous!
A 66 year old long-haul trucker scores two holes-in-one in the same round! Bob Hickey, from Gaylord Michigan (hickey, gaylord, man, it’s almost too hard to resist..), was playing Marsh Ridge when it happened.
His first-ever ace was on the 10th hole a 167-yard par 3, using a 7-iron.
This is an amazing hole
and his second-ever was with an 8-iron on the 147-yard 17th.
For a man who’s been playing golf for 50 years and never had a hole in one, this as he described it is “just pure luck.”
According to a 2000 Golf Digest article, the odds of a player making two holes-in-one during the same round are 67 million to one.
sigh… Just think, if he had purchased a lottery ticket instead of playing a round of golf, he’d be rich!
but then, that begs the question, which would you rather have? two holes-in-one in the same round or winning the lottery……?
Dave
Interestingly enough, I found myself yet again at PGA.com…. I came across an article about golf etiquette and figured it’d be worth sharing.
Arrive:
* If caddies are available:
o Remember caddie programs are an excellent way for young people to earn some money and be exposed to a sport that they can enjoy and might help shape their character.o A good caddie can make the round more enjoyable by giving you hints that might lower your score.o A good caddie can provide information on yardage, club selection, reading the greens and the layout of the course.
* Warm Up:
o Try to arrive soon enough to give yourself time to warm up properly.
o Work your way though the bag, beginning with the short irons, moving onto the mid-and long irons and then the woods.
o It’s often a good idea to finish warming up by hitting a few soft wedge shots before heading for the practice green and hitting a few putts.
o Don’t hit hundreds of balls and leave your game on the practice tee.
* First Tee:
o Check the scorecard to learn any local rules.
o Local rules apply only to the specific course you are playing.
o If your playing companions suggest a match, it’s a good idea to make sure everyone is comfortable with the stakes.
o Make sure to place an identifying mark on your ball and inform the other players the type and number ball you are playing.
Avoid Slow play:
* When your group is not keeping up with the pace of play of the group in front of you:
o Walk at a reasonable speed between shots.
o Begin planning your next shot as you approach the ball by studying the strength and direction of the wind.
* When you reach your ball, check the lie, select your club, visualize your swing and shot, and then play your shot.
* From the time you select your club until you actually hit your shot, you should take no more than 30 to 45 seconds.
* If you aren’t ready to play when it is your turn, encourage one of your fellow players to play.
Maintaining the course:
* Replace your divots!!!!!!!
* Turf tends to explode on impact, making it difficult, if not impossible, to replace the divot. In this case, you have two options:
o You can use the toe of your shoe to kick in the turf around the edges of the divot.
o Many courses often put containers of a soil/seed mixture on their carts and tees. If this is the case, simply fill in the divot with the mixture.
* Bring a rake into the bunker with you — remembering that you should always enter the bunker from the low side at a point nearest to the ball.
o Whenever possible, avoid walking on the steep face of a bunker.
o After hitting your shot, rake the area you played from, as well as all your footprints and any others within reach.
o Rakes should be left either in or nearby the bunker.
* Important to repair any pitch marks or indentations caused by the ball hitting the green.
* Using a tee, knife, key or repair tool, repair the mark by working the edges towards the center, without lifting the center of the mark. Don’t tear the grass. Finish by smoothing the area with a club or your foot. Try to get the area smooth enough to putt over.
* Just remember that while the Rules of Golf allow you to repair pitch marks on your putting line, you cannot repair spike marks on your putting line until after you have putted.
On the green, remember:
* Don’t step on your fellow players putting lines — the imaginary line that connects the ball to the hole.
* If your ball is on a player’s line, volunteer to mark the ball.
* If you’re ball is not furthest from the cup:
o Mark your ball, either with a plastic marker or a small, thin, dark coin such as an old penny.
o After you have marked your ball, place your putter down at a 90-degree angle with the heel touching your marker.
o Move the marker from the heel to the toe of your putter. Reverse the procedure to return the ball to its original position.
* Do not stand where you might distract a fellow player and don’t move.
* Don’t make any noise when your fellow player is preparing to putt.
* If you don’t have a caddie and are asked to tend the flagstick, make sure you aren’t standing on anyone’s line.
* Hold the flagstick at arm’s length so the flag doesn’t flutter in the breeze, and make sure your shadow doesn’t fall across the hole or line. Loosen the bottom of the flagstick so it doesn’t stick when you try and remove it by pulling it straight up after the other player has putted. The flagstick should be removed right after the player has hit the ball.
* If you lay down the flagstick, lay it off the green to prevent doing any damage to the green.
* Generally, the player closest to the hole will tend the flagstick.
* After everyone has putted out, immediately walk to the next tee.
Miscellaneous:
* If you hit a tee shot into the woods and suspect that it might be either lost or out-of-bounds, the Rules of Golf allow you to play a second or provisional ball.
o You then have five minutes from the time you reach the spot where you suspect the ball landed to find the ball. If it is not found within that five-minute period, you must declare it lost and play your provisional ball with a one-stroke penalty
o If, however, you play the provisional ball and subsequently find your original ball in-bounds, you must pick up your provisional and continue to play the original ball, in-bounds.
o Out of bounds balls are assessed the penalty of “stroke and distance.”
o For a complete discussion of the Rules of Golf, visit the USGA’s web site.
* For safety’s sake, never hit when there’s a chance you might be able to reach the group ahead of you, and anytime you hit a shot that you think even has remote chance of hitting any other players, yell “fore” immediately, and make a point of apologizing to any players your ball lands near.
* Displays of frustration are one thing, but outbursts of temper are quite another. Yelling, screaming, throwing clubs or otherwise making a fool of yourself are unacceptable and, in some cases, dangerous to yourself and others.
* As a player, you also have a responsibility to learn and understand the Rules of Golf.
* Five of the most common Rules are those deal with Out of Bounds, Lost balls, Unplayable lies, cart paths and water hazards.
* Moving on, if your group stops for refreshments, either at the turn (the end of nine holes) or following the round, volunteer to pay for them, as well as offer to buy drinks for the caddies. (Hope my golf partners are reading this!)
* Whoever pays at the turn, however, should not be expected to pay for refreshments at the end of the round. (But not reading this!)
* Finally, at the end of the round, shake hands with your fellow players, congratulate the winners, console the losers, and thank them for their company. At the end of the day, the great pleasure of the game is the time you get to spend with your friends whether old friends or new friends you just made through the game.
Courtesy of PGA.com
-Dave
he website is called Stracka.com.
It’s a myspace/facebook for Golf. Click on the link above to create an account.
You create an account for free and you gain access to a whole bunch of goodies. It has a handicap calculator that displays your handicap with and without ESC. You can record your golf rounds, they have a very comprehensive list of courses nationally as well as globally. If you don’t find the course you played in the list, you can add it.
The round tracker is cool, it offers you two ways to track your scores, first way, just log the course, the tees you played from and the score and it’ll calculate your handicap and post the score for everyone to view. The 2nd way is a bit more in depth and it tracks, FIR, GIR, putts, chips, drives, etc.. and displays a more detailed breakdown of your game and like I said, free!
I pulled the map of Falcon’s Fire from their site, check it out.
You can upload swing videos and it has a simple swing analysis tool that allows you to analyze your swing. Everything uploaded is public so other members can view the video and add their feedback. You can upload photos as well which people can rate.
I’ve uploaded a video of yours truly swinging his mighty SuMO BOOMSTICK., definitely need to check that out.
Yes, you might have to tilt your head to the left to fully appreciate the shot….
Oh, in case you were wondering, yes, I am wearing Tattoo Golf!
You can search for other golfers in your area, post up blog entries, visit the forums and more.
When you create your profile, it asks a series of questions about the type of games you like to play (betting, competitive, etiquette, etc) and you can search by those same questions and partner up with players based on that criteria.
Create or join golf groups, meet new people, view others photos, videos, stats, equipment, handicap and style.
Here’s something that sets them apart from other sites doing similar things. It’s called The Stracka Line.
It’s a patented process designed to aid a golfer’s ability to read the complex breaks on a putting green. They use state of the art laser land surveying technology to scan the surface of the green for millions of data points accurate to the millimeter to pick up even the most subtle elevation changes.
The topography maps are then run through industry leading software used to determine the fall lines of how water would drain off the surface, which is then applied to how the ball will roll off the slops on a green.
So far they only have a handful of courses that offer this feature and regrettably none are Orlando Courses 
I created a profile named OrlandoGolfBlogger (the names a bit unexpected, I know..) and an Orlando Golfers Group. So create yourself a profile and add me to your friends list!
I’m still working on organizing a golf outing/scramble for all who are interested, so let me know if you wish to be included in the list.
Leave your Comments!
Dave
These guys are based out of Michigan, so it’s not exactly an “Orlando Specific” deal, buuuut… due to the wonders of the internet, you too can partake of the celebration! I received an email about this and figured it was worth mentioning.
For their 50th anniversary, they’re giving away 50 Ultimate Golf Experiences.
I say good for them, way to reach the Golden(??) Anniversary!
I’m look forward to that golf outing with ‘Ol Tiger!
I was contacted by a gent named Nev, who is helping them get their blog started and train their staff on blogging and I thought that was pretty interesting. It seems to me that more and more businesses are getting into blogging. Blogging is no longer only for those of us who like to rant and rave about various things, hoping to one day get some free crap out of it (or am I the only one? ). Blogging has becoming a recognized and accepted media outlet for marketing and advertising and now the big dogs are paying folks to help them create them. Think it’s time to write a book!
“How to Create a Blog in three easy steps” by Dave, writer of Orlando Golf Blogger.
Catchy, no?
Below is the history of The GolfLand
The Golfland Story
The year was 1958. There was a total eclipse of the sun. The New York Yankees won the World Series and Arnold Palmer won the 1st of his 4 Masters Championships. And while the first satellite from the United States was launched into space, the first golf ball was launched from Carl’s Golfland.
Starting as a small driving range on the outskirts of Pontiac, Michigan, Carl Rose and his wife Donna opened the original Carl’s Golfland. Golf was a little known sport back then. But the Roses had a dream.
As the game of golf grew so did Carl’s. In 1962 Arnold Palmer won the Masters for the third time, the Yankees again won the World Series and Carl’s Golfland moved to what would be our present location in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. What started out as a 750 square foot building, has grown to our present capacity of over 20,000 square feet of store plus a 15-acre-world-class practice facility.
Carl’s Golfland is proud to be the only off-course golf store to be named to the prestigious Golf World Top 100 Golf Shops every year since the award started in 1985. In addition Golf World named Carl’s Best of The Best in 2006.
In October of 2000 Carl’s Golfland opened a second location at the St. John’s Golf and Conference Center in Plymouth, Michigan. The new state of the art store is a showplace among all the golf retail stores in the country. The Plymouth location also has a full practice facility featuring: grass tees, heated tees, putting green, sand bunker and chipping area. The St. John’s Golf and Conference Center features a challenging 27-hole golf course, full service conference center and world-class hotel.
Carl’s Golfland prides itself on offering only pro-line equipment and the finest names in apparel. We carry the largest selection at guaranteed lowest prices. Carl’s Golfland is proud to have on staff PGA Class A Professionals giving lessons to all ages. A PGA Life Member, Carl Rose is still an active part in the growth and direction of the business that bares his name.
Carl’s Golfland. Because When All You Do IS Golf, You Do Golf Best!
Leave your comments!
Dave