Sunday, January 30, 2011

Good Ending to Farmers Insurance Open

Well the ending to the Farmers Insurance Open was a pretty exciting one.  With two lefty's slugging it out for first place.  In the end it came down to see if Phil, the master of the wedge could make an amazing wedge shot, but sadly he did not, but came extremely close.  So Bubba Watson won it.  I was rooting for Phil but hey Bubba is a lefty too so I see no harm in him winning haha.  I wish Daly would have done better, but you don't expect him to do much except have the longest drive of every tournament he is in.  I wish he would win some time though which I've explained in other blog posts.  Either way it was a very exciting end to the tournament which kept me glued to my T.V.  We need more endings like this to increase interest and T.V. ratings for golf.  I know my girlfriend even stayed interested for this one so that is a good thing.  So if this is how exciting the season is starting I'm excited to watch the rest of it.

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Farmer's Insurance Open Saturday

I'm watching shot tracker right now since I'm on campus doing homework and John Daly is actually doing good. He's tied for 9th now.  I'm excited about that because Daly is the guy I always wish would win because he almost never does so I guess he is the underdog I would like to cheer for.  Mickelson is doing good as well and I have to cheer for a fellow lefty.  The match is on CBS life right now and will be on there again tomorrow.  Tiger is way back in 30th spot but still within distance of catching the leaders if he has an amazing round today and tomorrow.  The seems like it would be a very exciting match to watch so I suggest anyone that is bored and has free time to go watch it on T.V. right now.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

I updated my current Golf Equipment Page

It's not much but I have updated my Golf Equipment Page.  I put golf courses I would like to golf on before, but never really mentioned it in a blog post, so those are up.  Today, I also put up courses I have golfed at over last summer on there with a little info about each one on there.  Go ahead check it out.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

I'm Featured on PGA.com again!!!!

I'm on pga.com again!! If you go here and scroll down to putters and look at the third thing someone said you will see my want for the new golf season.  I'm starting to think the PGA has the hots for me haha.  Seriously though thanks PGA for putting me on there again!  Now go find me my cheap, but good putter and some wedges!  Have a good day everyone.

P.S. Does anyone look at the price of putters and cringe?  I do that is why I'm hoping some company starts putting good ones out at a better price.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Swing Sequence: Long-drive phenom Domenic Mazza Swing Sequences: Golfdigest.com

Swing Sequence: Long-drive phenom Domenic Mazza Swing Sequences: Golfdigest.com
Picture from Golf Digest
Remember that kid I was raving about in the Remax Long Drive, Domenic Mazza?  Well he has his swing sequence analyzed by Golf Digest.  This kid has power the kind of power anyone should be proud, especially a 16 year old.  Just imagine how crazy it would be if you were only a 1.6 handicap and could drive the ball as far as 436 yards.  That is scary good.  He isn't sure yet if he is going to pick golf or baseball for his sport, which I understand because he is equally scary good at baseball.  I just can't get over how good this kid is at golf.  It is just crazy and I hope I never have to play a game of golf against him it might just make me quit my new hobby.  One thing that makes me think he is going to pick golf as his sport is he turned down the $70,000 second place prize money to keep his amature status.  If that is the case every tour player and long driver better watch out!  Since he can do more than just long drive it will be very interesting to see what is in store for this Kid's future.  Golf Digest also has a video about his swing analysis and it has a little bit of a golf lesson in it so check it out below.

Friday, January 21, 2011

Happy Birthday Jack Nicklaus

Happy Birthday to the Golden Bear!  He is 71 today and since I'm currently using his brand of golf clubs I better wish him a Happy Birthday!  So here's to you and thanks for making clubs at a decent price to start off my obsession with golfing.
Picture from PGA Tour Facebook page
Also everyone don't forget to watch the Packers vs Bears game on Sunday I think you all know who I will cheer for.  Go Pack Go!

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

My Opinion on America's 50 Toughest Golf Courses Golf Courses: Golfdigest.com

America's 50 Toughest Golf Courses Golf Courses: Golfdigest.com

This is a decent article but sadly it lacks pictures for each course.  It does give the reason why they choose each golf course so that helps you understand why they picked it.  There are a lot of PGA courses on there, but there are also some courses in there which are more accessible.  I noticed a lot of Pete Dye designed courses, which to me is no surprise.  He has designed many golf courses and all of them are good in at least some way.  There is even a Pete Dye designed course by where I am during the summers in Wisconsin.  It's Big Fish Golf Club in Hayward.  It surprisingly has some fair priced twilight rates.  I will for sure put it on my list of golf courses to try out over the summer.  There are three golf courses in there from Wisconsin and one of them, number 48 is right where near I am during the summer.  Surprise it is in Hayward just like every other good golf course in the area.  So mark that on the list of golf courses I should attempt to try out over the summer.  I suggest if any one of these courses is near you see the cost and accessibility and try it out.  See if Golf Digest is right in saying the course is difficult.

Monday, January 17, 2011

Winter golf according to the PGA

I just read an article about Golfing in the winter in the snow from the PGA.  They talk about what to wear and how to deal with the cold which is common sense to most people in the midwest, but I understand there are a lot of golfers not from there.  They also offered a suggestion of getting a different colored ball to help you find it which also seems like common sense.  Then they talked about a tournament at Cog Hill which happens during the snow.  When I first clicked on this article I got excited thinking people besides me actually thought of golfing in the snow.  The more I read about it though the more I realized that it just wouldn't happen here.  The snow is over 2 feet deep on most golf courses around here.  It would be almost impossible to walk.  Also no matter what the color of the ball it would be near impossible to find in snow that deep.  How in the world would you even get the ball into the cup?  So my dreams of winter outdoor golf were crushed.  This is probably good considering it is a little bit of a crazy idea.  In the end this article just ended up making me disappointed.  So back to playing with my putting return thingy.

Friday, January 14, 2011

TOC and update/ Product Review Clubhouse Collection Electric Putting Partner, and Sony Open

Well as I'm sure most of you know that Jonathan Byrd won the Tournament of Champions in a playoff against Robert Garrigus.  Since i'm really late on updating about the tournament you can read more about it here if you would like.

I decided to treat myself on my way back to North Dakota and purchase myself an Electric Putting Partner from the Scheels in the St. Cloud Mall.  I guess I got a really good deal on it.  It was originally $14.99 on sale for $9.99.  The version they have on Amazon which looks exactly like the one I have other than the color is $17.99 so I guess I got a really good deal on it.
My Putting Partner
It works quite well.  It has returned the ball every time.  The only thing I don't get about it which I'm sure someone has an answer for, but I don't know why it has such a wide hole with it being numbered 1, 2, and 3 for each part of it.  It makes the hole slightly larger than a regular cup.  You could also shoot it up the ball return hole and it will still return the ball just fine.  This has so far helped me spend a little free time between classes, homework, and work.  Overall I think this is a good buy, and can help anyone keep their putting skills from getting rusty, or in my case improve my almost non-existent putting skills.  It also comes with a 90 day warranty, but I doubt I'll need that.  I'd say for $10 you should purchase this item but for the $18 Amazon wants you to pay I'd say don't do it.  It's a little to expensive at $18 because the only thing it does other than putting into a glass is it returns the ball to you, and it only does that if you make it into it.  So I guess in closing I'll say if you can get it for a deal it's worth it to buy it if not then just wait for it to be on sale.

The Sony Open is going on right now, but sadly I can't see it, because I don't have the Golf Channel.  If you have the Golf Channel I suggest you watch it, because one of my favorite golfers is golfing in it, John Daly.  He is one of those kind of people that makes golf interesting.  His chances of winning are slim, but I still cheer for him anyway.

In ending I'd like to apologize for being so long before I posted this.  I have been quite busy with the new semester of school starting for me and have been getting that in order.  Also if anyone reading this is a hockey fan.  The Fighting Sioux are taking on their huge rivals the Gophers tonight at The Ralph.  I'll be there for sure, because it is always and exciting hockey series.  Here is a picture of the arena I took today.  It's snowing pretty good so I hope they don't cancel the game.  I'm sure the game will be on FSN in North Dakota, Minnesota, and part of Wisconsin.
The Ralph

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Tournament of Champions: Saturday

It looks like the greens are pretty evil like the video game suggested with many players having the ball just roll way far away from the hole if they misread the green due to the slope.  On Friday Jason Day ended up looking like me off the tee and sending the ball right into the ground but it still ended up traveling 106 yards and he still ended up getting par for the whole and a bogey free round score of 66 which is just crazy.  Robert Garrigus is the leader on Friday shooting a 63.  There was another wonderful (o.k. not so much) issue with the odd rules of golf again with Camilo Villegas getting disqualified for moving some grass with his club as the ball was rolling back down to where he was do to the wonderful slopes of Kapalua.  It actually happened because of a guy watching the tournament on T.V. saw it and decided to twitter it to the PGA.  So this adds another log to the fire of anger towards how the rules and way they are enforced laid out.  The Golf Channel story about it is here.  You can watch it here.  The scoreboard is pretty close so far with plenty of people still in contention.  Today's round just came up on T.V. so time to go watch that.


Thursday, January 6, 2011

Things I found of interest at the Tournament of Champions: Day Before Tournament Starts

First off the night before the tournament started I watched Alice Cooper play a par 3 hole of golf.  That was pretty interesting.  Alice plays some good golf, but he sure looks weird doing it.  I can't say to much though because I probably look weird playing golf as well.  The event I watched with Alice Cooper in it was something the golf channel set up and had some other interesting things in it.  I caught it halfway through, but it seemed to be an alternating shot team tournament of all the par 3 holes at Kapalua.  Anthony Kim picked out his playing partner for one hole from the crowd who was quite full of himself but ended up playing decently well for the one hole he played.  Watch now he is getting offers to be sponsored haha.  Also the pro's got teamed up with some of the Golf Channel Staff who proved they played pretty well and were deserving to be staff for the Golf Channel.

Also there was a long drive for charity on the last hole of Kapalua where the final ended up being Bubba Watson vs Jamie Sadlowski who is a professional long driver and of course Sadlowski won by a large margin, and then hit Bubba's left handed driver at the end just for show.  So far it seems like the mood at Kapalua is very fun and laid back.  Now I just have to wait for the tournament to start today.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Hyundai Tournament of Champions

picture from golf365.com
Approach shot on first hole
Well the 2011 PGA Tour is kicking off this week.  You can see it starting tomorrow thru Sunday on  the Golf Channel.  I will be able to see most of this except the last day.  It's sad but for some reason Grand Forks North Dakota does not seem to believe in putting the Golf Channel on basic cable like they do here in Wisconsin.  Nonetheless I plan on watching as much of it as I can.  Now that I have started this golf blog I feel it to be my duty to try to stay as updated as possible on the world of golf.  Also I have my own personal reason to watch the tournament.  Kapalua is probably my most hated real course on the PGA game I play on my Tiger Woods game.  You know it is bad when you are swearing up a storm on the first hole because of how hilly it is.  It seems like the greens on every hole on this course for the game have some crazy hills to them, or on the side of a hill where if you screw up the putt the ball either rolls back past you or is gone down a steep hill.  So I want to watch this tournament to see if really that course is as devilish as it is on the game.  I would also like to thank Tiger Woods game for making me interested in the courses played on the PGA tour which probably will make my golf addiction even less manageable.  I really have no predictions on who is going to win the tournament, so I don't really have any specific golfer I am rooting for for this one.  Either way I am still excited and cannot wait to start watching it.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Things I've noticed in the golf area of sporting goods stores

So recently I have gone to a few sporting goods stores while I have been home over my break from school.  The two stores I have checked out are Dunham's in Rice Lake Wisconsin, and Scheel's in Eau Claire Wisconsin.  What I have noticed is they still have tons of Taylormade Burner Driver's they both have on sale for $149 which they both have had on sale since the end of the Summer.  So if anyone here prefer's a Burner and hasn't gotten one yet look like everyone is trying to get rid of them.  My business senses are telling me almost everyone that wants one already has one so they are just trying to get everyone else to buy it.  Most golfers I know have one and it seems to be the most popular selling driver out there.  One thing I've noticed both stores are getting a lot more of are the Diablo driver's.  They are priced at $199 at both stores so currently they are more expensive than the Burner's.  It seems though now that Golf Digest has voted Callaway's driver as the best driver of 2010 it  is becoming the new popular driver pushing the Burner out of the way.

I have also noticed that there are alot of Odyssey putters out there for sale, and most of them are on sale for around $120.  I don't know if I could ever justify buying a putter that is that expensive even on sale unless I have a large golfing budget, or I'm winning golf tournaments.  I may see if I can try one out next time I go to the Grand Forks golf store and see if the putters are worth the price.  I doubt I would consider them worth the price, but I want to see why they are so popular.

Monday, January 3, 2011

My Amazon Golf Store

I have had this up for a short while, but have not put a blog post about it yet.  I have an Amazon Golf Store that I filled with budget minded training golf tools, clubs I recommend, random gifts, and Fighting Sioux Golf stuff.  Take a look at it.

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Vote For me for Top Golf Blog of 2011

I have searched around and found there is an award for the top 40 golf blogs.  Feel free to vote.  I also will keep up a page for it on the right side of the blog where you can vote.  Thanks readers!
Voting Badge
Brought to you by: Online MBA

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone!  I hope no one got in to much trouble last night.  Hope you got a golf related New Year's resolution to try to do for this coming year.  To help nurse everyone's hangovers I have a golf video for you.  This is probably my favorite golf video on YouTube.  It's Phil Mickelson's famous backwards shot.  He kind of explains how to do it so it is sort of a golf lesson but more so something that makes you go "Wow I need to make an excuse to try that shot!"  Take a look at it.



Don't forget to watch the Rose Bowl Game.  Go Badgers!