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Easter Golf BallsApril 19, 2019Easter Golf BallsRidiculous Golf Item of the Week...
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Resistance Band Exercises For Golf #FitnessFridayApril 19, 2019Resistance Band Exercises For Golf #FitnessFridayI go to the gym at least three times a week when I’m home and feel good for doing it. But when I’m on the road, I feel as though I’m losing momentum and perhaps even losing ground.In this video, Jeff Pelizzaro explains how to use resistance band exercises for golf to get an effective workout even while on the road.In truth, however, you could do these at home a well and perhaps save yourself the cost of a gym membership.The list of resistance band exercises for golf include: Split Squat Standing Row Pull-Through Standing Press Band Rotations Paloff Press / Standing Rotations....
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Dustin Johnson, Rickie Fowler, Bubba Watson Commit to Detroit’s Rocket Mortgage ClassicApril 18, 2019World’s #1 Golfer Dustin Johnson, Along with Rickie Fowler and Bubba Watson, to Headline Star-Studded Field at Detroit’s Rocket Mortgage ClassicRising stars Cameron Champ and Aaron Wise also announce commitment to play in DetroitFowler, a Rocket Mortgage brand ambassador and five-time PGA TOUR champion, has represented the United States in three consecutive Ryder Cups, two Presidents Cups and the 2016 Summer OlympicsDetroit’s inaugural PGA TOUR event scheduled for June 25-30 at Detroit Golf Club. Tickets and volunteer opportunities available at RocketMortgageClassic.comDETROIT (April 18, 2019) – Dustin Johnson, the #1-ranked player in the world and a 20-time PGA TOUR winner, along with Rickie Fowler, the world’s #10-ranked player, today announced their commitments to play in the inaugural Rocket Mortgage Classic – Detroit’s first ever PGA TOUR event.With Johnson and Fowler leading the way, a number of golf’s other top players have also joined the field by announcing their commitment to play, including:Bubba Watson, a two-time Masters champion, 12-time PGA TOUR winner and the 17th ranked player in the world.Jimmy Walker, the 2016 PGA Championship winner, who owns six tournament victories on the PGA TOUR.Jason Dufner, the 2013 PGA Championship winner and a five-time winner on the PGA TOUR.Kevin Kisner, the world’s #25 ranked player, with his most recent victory coming at March’s World Golf Championship – Dell Technologies Match Play. Kisner is a three-time PGA TOUR winner and was a member of the U.S. team for the 2017 Presidents Cup.Cameron Champ, a PGA TOUR rookie who has already had his first professional victory and leads all players in average driving distance this season.Aaron Wise, the reigning PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year and the 2016 NCAA Division I individual champion, who collected four top-10s in 29 starts during the 2017-18 season, highlighted by his win at the AT&T Byron Nelson.Billy Horschel, the 2014 FedExCup Champion and a five-time winner on the PGA TOUR.Lucas Glover, the 2009 U.S. Open champion who has risen to #28 in the PGA TOUR’s FedExCup standings thanks to and 10 top-25 finishes in 12 starts this season.Charles Howell III, currently ninth in the FedExCup standings with four top-10 finishes in 13 starts, including a victory at November’s RSM Classic.Si Woo Kim, a two-time PGA TOUR winner, including the 2017 PLAYERS Championship, who is currently ranked 24th in the FedExCup standings.Corey Conners, an Ontario native who secured his first PGA TOUR victory earlier this month at the Valero Texas Open, has three top-10 finishes in 14 starts and is 17th in the FedExCup standingsAdditional TOUR professionals joining the field for the Rocket Mortgage Classic will be announced in the coming weeks. The tournament takes place June 25-30 at Detroit Golf Club and will bring the PGA TOUR to the city of Detroit for the first time ever. A limited quantity of tickets is available at RocketMortgageClassic.com.“Our player field is beginning to take shape, and it is another exciting sign that the Rocket Mortgage Classic is right around the corner,” said Jason Langwell, Executive Director of the Rocket Mortgage Classic. “With some of the top-ranked players in the world, along with a host of recent major winners and FedExCup champions, the Rocket Mortgage Classic is going to be one of the summer’s most competitive events.”Johnson has won 20 times since making his PGA TOUR debut in 2007. He is the 2016 U.S. Open champion, has won six World Golf Championship tournaments and has four victories in PGA TOUR FedExCup playoff events. He is also a three-time member of the United States team playing in the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup. Johnson has two wins worldwide since the start of 2019 – at the Saudi International powered by SBIA and the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship.Fowler – a five-time winner on the PGA TOUR who has represented the United States in the last three Ryder Cups, past two Presidents Cups, and at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio – is ready to bring his incredible iron play, sharp short game, fashion-forward style and California-cool persona to Michigan. With slightly more than two months to go until the 156-player field tees it up in the PGA TOUR’s first tournament ever played in the city of Detroit, Fowler has a message for golf and sports fans in the city.“I can’t wait to get to Detroit for the Rocket Mortgage Classic. The city is known for being one of the country’s best sports towns with some of the most passionate fans around,” Fowler said. “The fans can expect to see some really good golf. I know there will be a huge turnout, which will be an incredible opportunity to showcase the great revitalization that is taking place in Detroit to thousands of fans.”Fowler captured his fifth PGA TOUR title in February at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. He brings considerable global star power to the first PGA TOUR event to be held in Michigan in 10 years.The Rocket Mortgage Classic will be more than just a new sporting event in the city of Detroit. In addition to the excitement of watching 156 of the world’s top professional golfers competing over four days, attendees will experience great local cuisine, unique entertainment options and numerous other social activities to enjoy outside the ropes that will include on-course entertainment and more.The historic Detroit Golf Club, a Donald Ross designed course that has been a fixture in the city for more than 100 years, will be open for fans with tickets beginning with player practice rounds on Tuesday, June 25, and the Delta Dental Pro-Am at the Rocket Mortgage Classic on Wednesday, June 26. The 72-hole tournament starts on Thursday, June 27, and concludes on Sunday, June 30.Those interested in volunteering can apply by visiting RocketMortgageClassic.com and clicking on “Volunteer.”About the Rocket Mortgage ClassicThe Rocket Mortgage Classic will make history in 2019 as the first PGA TOUR event ever held in the city of Detroit. Scheduled for June 25-30 at the historic Detroit Golf Club, the tournament will feature 156 of the world’s top players competing for a $7.3 million purse over four days and 72 holes. Embodying the spirit of Detroit, the week-long event will also feature great entertainment, cuisine and social activities on and off the course. The Rocket Giving Fund is the primary charitable beneficiary of the tournament and will support many local charities. More information is available at RocketMortgageClassic.com and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (@RocketClassic).About Quicken Loans / Rocket MortgageDetroit-based Quicken Loans is the nation’s largest home mortgage lender. The company closed nearly half a trillion dollars of mortgage volume across all 50 states from 2013 through 2018. In late 2015 Quicken Loans introduced Rocket Mortgage, the first fully digital mortgage experience. Today, 98% of all home loans originated by Quicken Loans utilize Rocket Mortgage Technology.Quicken Loans moved its headquarters to downtown Detroit in 2010. Today, Quicken Loans and its Family of Companies employ more than 17,000 full-time team members in Detroit’s urban core. The company generates loan production from web centers located in Detroit, Cleveland and Phoenix. Quicken Loans also operates a centralized loan processing facility in Detroit, as well as its San Diego-based One Reverse Mortgage unit. Quicken Loans ranked highest in the country for customer satisfaction for primary mortgage origination by J.D. Power for the past nine consecutive years, 2010 – 2018, and also ranked highest in the country for customer satisfaction among all mortgage servicers the past five consecutive years, 2014 – 2018.Quicken Loans was once again named to FORTUNE magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list in 2019 and has been included in the magazine’s top 1/3rd of companies named to the list for the past 16 consecutive years. In addition, Essence Magazine named Quicken Loans “#1 Place to Work in the Country for African Americans.”For more information and company news visit QuickenLoans.com/press-room....
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Detroit’s First Pro Golf Tour Event – The Motor City OpenApril 18, 2019The Detroit Area’s First Pro Golf Tour Event Was The Motor City Open.Detroit’s First Pro Golf Tour Event – The Motor City OpenThe PGA Tour returns to Michigan in 2019 for the Rocket Mortgage Classic. While it is the first PGA TOUR tournament within Detroit city limits, it is not the first tour event in the Detroit area. That honor belongs to the Motor City Open, which ran off-and-on from 1948 to 1962. In addition, Oakland Hills had previously hosted the 1924 and 1937 US Opens. The 1947 PGA Championship had been held at Plum Hollow Country Club in Southfield.It is also important to note that the event was actually a part of the PGA of America’s tournament schedule. What we now know as the PGA TOUR did not split from the PGA of America until 1968. (What is the difference between the PGA of America and the PGA TOUR?)The first Motor City Open was held July 1 – 4, 1948. It featured 121 (other sources record 130) professionals and amateurs playing 72 holes over four days. The purse was $15,000, with a $2,600 first prize. In 2018 dollars, that translates to a $155,000 purse and a $26,000 first prize.Meadowbrook served as the host course. Located in Northville, Michigan, it is about 27 miles northwest of downtown Detroit. A Willie Park design, Meadowbrook played at 6, 616 yards and played as a par 71 for the event. Ben Hogan noted that “Meadowbrook is in wonderful shape.”Free Press columnist Mark Beltaire, however, noted that officials had narrowed the fairways “by letting the clover grow. ” That, he later speculated, may explain why the pros were having trouble scoring at Meadowbrook during the Motor City Open.An aerial shot of Meadowbrook Country Club.Interest in hosting a professional tournament in the Detroit area was high in 1948. A year earlier, the National PGA Championship was played at Plum Hollow in Southfield. In the days of the match play version of the PGA Championship, Jim Ferrier won over Chick Harbert. Harbert was the professional at Meadowbrook and would go on to win the PGA Championship in 1954.Aside from Harbert, other local favorites in the field were Jimmy Demaret, the former pro at Plum Hollow, Ed Furgol, Horton Smith of Detroit Golf Club, Al Watrous of Oakland Hills and Sam Byrd who also had been at Plum Hollow.A participant of the Motor City Open, who was not well known as the time, but of historical interest, was Pete Dye, the (now) noted golf architect. Dye shot 73-76 on the first two days.The real star of the show, however was Ben Hogan, who earlier that year had won the PGA Championship and the US Open.Admission was $1.20 on the weekdays, and $2.40 for the weekend. A week-long pass was $6.The Motor City Open pro-am, held on Wednesday, featured 46 pros paired with 46 Detroit auto dealers. First prize for the pros was a $3,600 Lincoln Convertible. A golf clinic also was scheduled for that Wednesday.The winner of the Lincoln was Marty Furgol, a 30-year-old Albuquerque professional.Vic Ghezzi, who eventually won the 1941 PGA Championship and accumulated 11 wins on the PGA TOUR, had his clubs stolen on Wednesday after the pro-am. He played the first round of the tournament with borrowed clubs and shot a 74. To ward off more larceny, uniformed special policy patrolled the locker room.Ghezzi’s clubs were returned by a cab driver, who said “I was given the clubs by a man in downtown Detroit. He paid the full fare to Meadowbrook and said for me to bring them out here.”Ghezzi shot a 71 in the second round with his own sticks.Thursday, July 1, 1948 – The First Round Of The Motor City OpenJohnny Palmer, Marty Furgol, Joe Kirkwood and Gene Dahlbender led with rounds of 68 after the first day of the Motor City Open. Newspaper clip from the Windsor Daily Star.Under fair skies and cool temperatures, crowds on Thursday were a disappointing 4, 500. Temperatures topped out at 73 degrees.Amateur Gene Dahlbender of Atlanta, Georgia drew attention for his ability to drive Meadowbook’s greens. Dahlbender was in Detroit for the previous week’s Red Run Invitational with this wife of one week. When he decided to stay for the Motor City Open, he sent his wife home.Bobby Locke, known for his putting skills, needed 34 putts to complete the round. One miscue came on the 507 yard 17th. After reaching the green in two, he missed from twelve feet. His two footer coming back also missed and he settled for a par when he had Eagle in sight. All told, Locke missed from less than eight feet no less than eight times. Ben Hogan also had putter troubles, not making a putt longer than eighteen inches.Hogan, however, partially redeemed himself with an eagle 2 on the eighteenth from 75 yards.Joe Kirkwood, Sr. was one of the leaders at the end of the first day. He was 51 at the time, and had long since given up a tour player’s lifestyle for work as an exhibition trick shot artist. In his career, Kirkwood had 17 professional wins. Kirkwood also owns the dubious record of being (probably) the first to hit a shot off a howdah on the back of an elephant at the Calcutta Golf Club in India. The trick shot artist’s last win was the Canadian Open and the North and South Open, both in 1933.Gene Sarazen in 1922.Another aging legend, Gene Sarazen (age 46), was a stoke off the lead, having shot a 34-35=69. In a daily column he wrote for the Detroit Free Press while in Detroit, Hogan wrote:One of the finest things in this Motor City open was the way that Gene Sarazen and Joe Kirkwood, Sr. stole the show on opening day … I honestly believe that Sarazen is hitting the ball better and farther than he did in the day of his any championships … The reason why they don’t keep on winning is that they have lost their zest for golf. The sharpness and keenness is gone, but they can still come up with those snappy rounds while playing for fun.After the first round of play at the Motor City Open, the leaderboard looked like this:Johnny Palmer – 68Marty Furgol – 68Joe Kirkwood – 68Gene Dalhbender (a) – 68Gene Sarazen – 69Chick Harbert – 69EJ Harrison – 70C. Heafner – 70Ben Hogan – 70Elmer Reed – 70Cary Middlecoff – 70Bobby Locke – 70Friday, July 2, 1948 – The Second Round Of The Motor City OpenAt the end of two rounds of the Motor City Open, E.J. “Dutch” Harrison lead. Clip from Detroit Free Press.Rain plagued the inaugural Motor City Open on Friday. A crowd of 4, 500 braved the weather and in spite of cloudbursts continued to follow their favorites. Temperatures were in the low 80s. Most of the players played through some four holes of inclement weather.In a column he wrote for the Free Press, Ben Hogan noted that“Rain like we had for a while in Friday’s second round can be a good break for the regular tournament pros. We can play better in the rain than the club pros and the amateurs because we have to play in the rain more and get used to it. But it still costs us an average of two or three strokes on the round and we don’t’ like to play in it any better than the next fellow.”EJ “Dutch” Harrison rose to the top of the leaderboard in the rain. Harrison made five birdies on the first 16 holes for a 67 and a 137 overall. His scorecard on Friday was marred only by a three putt bogey on the 17th. The 38-year-old was recovering from a bout of what newspapers at time called “Virus X.” A Google search turned up no information on Virus X, so it likely was some sort of influenza.Matching Harrison’s 67 was Jim Turnesa, who turned in a two-round score of 138. Turnesa made six birdies on the round.Bobby Locke in Australia in 1938. Locke was in contention throughout the weekend in Detroit.South African Bobby Locke also finished the first two rounds at 138 and in the four-way tie for second. A 40 foot chip for an Eagle and a 32 on the back nine kept him in contention.Local favorite Chick Harbert finished Friday as a part of the quartet at 138. Meadowbrook club members must have been pleased to see their pro do so well. He had four birdies and two bogeys on the front nine and ended with a 69.Johnny Palmer finished the first nine on Friday with a 33, but then limped in with a 37. That 70 was possible only with birdies on 17 and 18.Elmer Reed, who was tied for third at 139 offered an interesting story angle. A pilot for Eastern Airlines on the Atlanta-to-Detroit route, Reed only played between regular flights and on vacations. Nevertheless, his working schedule helped him in the case of the Motor City Open. Three times prior to the tournament, he made the journey from Willow Run Airport in Ypsilanti, Michigan to Meadowbrook to practice.The other player at 129 was Skip Alexander, who in the second round had eagles on the two par fives. One came on a two foot putt after a 230 yard fairway wood shot. The other was from holing out on a 25 yard chip shot.Ben Hogan made history of a sort by again holing out for an eagle on the 18th. His drive was said to have landed in the same spot as on the previous day, with the same result from 75 yards. In both cases, the approach bounced three times before dropping into the hole. The legend that Hogan’s biggest problem was landing in his own divots from previous rounds was seemingly true. Hogan, however, shot a 73 and was six shots off the lead at 143.Embed from Getty ImagesOther than that, Hogan struggled, at one point going six over on a seven hole stretch. His card showed a 34-39.Joe Kirkwood, the surprise of Thursday, was out of the picture by the end of Friday. The 51-year-old, however, salvaged the weekend by booking one of his trick shot shows on Saturday.On the same day, another Detroiter, Joe Louis, was teeing up at the Forest City Golf Association in Cleveland. Heavyweight boxing champion Louis would become the first African American to play in a PGA TOUR Tournament in 1952.After two rounds of play at the Motor City Open, the leaderboard was:E.J. Harrison – 137Johnny Palmer – 138Chick Harbert – 138Bobby Locke – 138Jim Turnesa – 138Elmer Reed – 139Skip Alexander – 139Ky Laffoon – 140Marty Furgol – 141Gene Dahlbender – 141Saturday, July 3, 1948 – The Third Round Of The Motor City OpenBen Hogan played himself into contention on the third day of the Motor City Open with a 66. The lead, however, was still held by Dutch Harrison and Bobby Locke. Clip from Waco, Texas Herald.On Saturday, the crowds grew to 12,000, attracted by good weather and the holiday weekend. The temperature reached 90 — a twenty degree change from when the tournament started on Thursday.Scores were low on Saturday, aided perhaps by softened greens from Friday’s rains. More than half — 31 — of the 60 players in the field shot even par or better. At the end of 54 holes, 14 players were under par for the tournament.Ben Hogan provided the day’s fireworks, shooting a 66. It was the tournament record, but to be fair, the tournament was only three days old. That score brought Hogan from six back to within one of the lead. Hogan’s Card:Par Out45444343435Hogan Out34444343332Par In43534445436Hogan In42434454434 Total66 To Par-5A crowd of 3, 500 was said to have gathered around the eighteenth to see if Hogan could eagle the hole for the third consecutive day. He did not. Hogan’s 90 yard approach shot was off by 20 feet. Then, he missed the birdie putt by two inches, settling for a par and a 65.The lead was held by Bobby Locke and E.J. (Dutch) Harrison. Both players were at 208 after 54 holes. Locke shot a one-under 70. Harrison shot even par.Locke found himself in the lead after recording birdies on the first two holes, but then ran into trouble. He missed six fairways in the third round, and had bogeys on four, five and ten. The tenth was particularly bad, for his shot landed against a tree. His recovery shot travelled just five feet.Harrison kept Locke in the game, though, with a two over 39 on the front. He opened the back nine with a birdie, however, and finished even par 71.Playing together, both Locke and Harrison had a chance for the solo lead on the eighteenth. Locke was two feet short on a try from just off the green. Harrison missed his first putt by an inch. Both miscues resulted in pars and a tie.Tied with Hogan for second was Skip Alexander, a former Duke University star, who shot 70 on the day. Alexander wowed the crowd by driving within four feet of the green on the 340 yard par 4 tenth. The 70 was his second straight sub-par round.MEadowbrook Pro Chick Harbert in 1949.Meadowbrook Pro Chick Harbert was two back at 210. Harbert shot a disappointing one over, with his sole birdie on the seventh. That left him tied for third at 210 and leading the 22 Michigan natives in the tournament. Horton Smith, the Detroit Golf Club pro who won the first and third Masters, shot 68 for a 54-hole-total of 212.Seven amateurs were still in the tournament on the weekend, led by Gene Dahlbender. The player from Atlanta shot a 70 on Saturday to finish in tie for third.Fans were disappointed to see Jimmy Demaret quit midway through his round on Saturday. Demaret, an early favorite, complained of being too tired to play. The heat and humidity apparently did him in. Demaret shot 76-71 the first two days and was enroute to an even worse Saturday with a 37 on the front nine. Later, he said that he planned to take a ten day rest in Pittsburgh.Hogan and Demaret would team up a week later in Michigan at the Battle Creek Country Club for an exhibition match. Hogan played with Eldon Briggs, pro at the the Marywood Country Club, while Demaret played with Buck White, pro at the Country Club. Demaret carded a 72, while Hogan shot a 66,After 54 holes of the Motor City Open, the leaderboard was:E.J. (Dutch) Harrison – 208Bobby Locke – 208Ben Hogan – 209Skip Alexander – 209Jim Turnesa – 210Chick Harbert – 210Elmer Reed – 211Bob Hamilton – 211Marty Furgol – 211Ky Laffoon – 212Horton Smith – 212Cary Middlecoff – 212Lloyd Mangrum – 212Sunday, July 4, 1948 – The Fourth Round Of The Motor City OpenBen Hogan played his way into a tie for first with EJ “Dutch” Harrison in the final round of the Motor City Open. A playoff was scheduled for the following day. Clip from the Detroit Free PressSunday reached a high of 91, under a threat of scattered thundershowers in later afternoon. The crowd was estimated at 15,000.Embed from Getty ImagesHarrison began the day as co-leader with Bobby Locke, while Ben Hogan was just one shot off the lead.A hot day putting netted Harrison a final round 67. He one putted each of the last six holes. Four were for birdie. In all, Harrison took just 26 putts for the round.Harrison’s 67 put him as the leader in the clubhouse by three strokes. Hogan, however was still on the course.Hogan’s final round consisted of thirteen pars and five birdies for a 32-34. Newspaper reports said he played sharply and was “never in trouble.” A report in the Nashville Tennessean called him “Mister Ice Water.”On the eighteenth, Hogan had a chance to win the tournament outright with a 35 foot putt. He came up 18 inches short.“I wanted that first putt — I wanted to win right there, or else be second,” Hogan said later. “I’m tired and wanted to rest Monday.Low round of the day belonged to Johnny Palmer. He shot a 31-34 with nine birdies, six pars and three bogeys. The North Carolina native used only twelve putts on the front nine and ended up with just 26. Thanks to the effort, Palmer squeezed into a tie for third.Locke, the co-leader after three, faltered in the final round, shooting an even par 71. The legendary putter three putted from 30 feet on the final green.Embed from Getty ImagesCary Middlecoff, who would go on to win three Motor City Opens, finished sixth with a 280 total.At the end of four days of the Motor City Open, the leaderboard looked like this:PlayerR1R2R3R4FinalEJ Harrison70677167275Ben Hogan70736666275Marty Furgol68737067278John Palmer68707565278Lloyd Mangrum72716967279Bobby Locke70687071279Cary Middlecoff70746868280Dick Metz72717068281Jim Turnesa71677271281Chick Harbert69697271281Skip Alexander71687073282Horton Smith71736870282Gene Dahlbender (a)68727072282Gene Webb71766869284John Barnum (a)71717270284Al Watrous76707069285Clayton Heafner70747170285Gene Sarazen69737173286Elmer Reed70697275286Al Smith75687271286Otey Crisman75736870286Sam Byrd73717072286Jim Milward75716971286Ellsworth Vines73747169287Bob Hamilton71736776287Bill Nary72707273287Walter Burkemo71717272287Fred Haas, Jr.75717272287Ralph Blomquist72737072287Ky Lafoon71697275287Ed Furgol77687171287Eric Monti75737168287Vic Ghezzi74717073288Eldon Briggs77737069289Craig Wood76727072290Joe Kirkwood, St.68776976290Otto Greiner75707174290Buck White71727572290Rudy Horvath (a)74737173291Bob Gadja73717572291Fred Hawkins74737274293Gib Sellers71757474294Joe Belfore75747075294Jimmy Johnson74747275294George Schoux73737079295Charles Harmon75767074295Tommy Shannon75757373296Ben Smith (a)79727273296Ed Meister (a)71767675298Frank Walsh81707276299Dick Talbot75737478300Lee Mackey73777476300Ed Ervastl (a)74777477302Jack Winney76757579305Scorecards for Hogan and Harrison on Sunday looked like this:Par Out45444343435Hogan Out44444233432Harrison Out45464242435Par In43534445436Hogan In43434444434Harrison In34523444332 Hogan66 Harrison67Monday, July 5, 1948 – Playoff At The Motor City OpenDetroit’s First Professional Golf Tournament – The Motor City OpenMonday found Hogan and Harrison in a playoff in front of 321 spectators. Admission was $2.50, and organizers decided not to honor the weeklong passes sold in advance of the tournament. It started at 2 pm.In a column on July 5, Hogan noted thatIt’s a funny thing about playoffs — scoring is usually close, but not usually as low as in other tournament rounds. They are anti-climatic affairs and it’s hard to build up the tension and pressure that you’ve felt for the tournament proper. I guess that comes from knowing that you already have a good-sized check sewed up.Hogan’s words were prophetic. He took a two-stroke lead on the first hole that he never relinquished. But newspaper accounts noted that neither Hogan nor Harrison played well. A reporter from the Benton Harbor News-Palladium called the playoff an “anti-climax to the four-day meet from the standpoints of both fan interest and links finesse.”The day’s highlight was from Hogan on the seventeenth. His drive clipped a tree and found rough. Hogan then hit a shot onto the green from 250 yards to get within three feet. A short putt gave him a birdie 4, while Harrison settled for a par.On the same hole, Harrison sent his five iron approach thirty yards to the right of the green. He chipped to fifteen feet, missed the putt then finished with a par.For Hogan, the seventeenth was redemption for his three putt on the sixteenth.Both men parred the final hole. Harrison had a 25-foot for birdie to extend the match, but missed wide by ten inches.The final resultPar Out45444343435Hogan Out35464253436Harrison Out55455344439Par In43534445436Hogan In53534454437Harrison In42534445435 Hogan73 Harrison74Hogan’s share of the purse was $2,600, while Harrison won $1,900. The players also received a cut of Monday’s gate: $321 ($160.50 each) of the $802.50 collected.After the tournament, Harrison went on to Columbus for another tournament.Hogan declared that he was “dead tired” after the match, and skippped the the Columbus tournament– and the subsequent event in Pittsburgh. Instead, he participated in several exhibitions, including the one in Battle Creek.Hogan was at that point the money leader for the season, having won $27,000.Embed from Getty ImagesLess than a year later, Hogan was nearly killed in an auto accident in Texas.In all, the Motor City Open would be contested eight times. Dr. Cary Middlecoff won three times. Lloyd Mangrum won twice.Motor City Open Winners1962 Bruce Crampton1960-61 No tournament1959 Mike Souchak1957-58 No tournament1956 Bob Rosburg1955 No tournament1954 Cary Middlecoff1953 No tournament1952 Cary Middlecoff1951 No tournament1950 Lloyd Mangrum1949 Cary Middlecoff, Lloyd Mangrum (co-winners)1948 Ben HoganIn 1949, Middlecoff and Mangrum were declared co-winners after an eleven hole, sudden-death playoff was called on account of darkness.Motor City Open Tournament Hosts1948, 1949, 1954, 1959 Meadowbrook Country Club (Northville, Michigan) 1950, 1952 Red Run Golf Club (Royal Oak, Michigan) 1956 Western Golf and Country Club (Redford, Michigan) 1962 Knollwood Country Club (West Bloomfield, Michigan)Sources:Detroit Free PressCoshocton, Ohio TribuneLansing State JournalBattle Creek EnquirerBaltimore SunPort Huron Times HeraldBoston GlobePhiladelphia InquirerEscanaba Daily PressBenton Harbor News-PalladiumTraverse City Record-EagleDetroit’s First Pro Golf Tour Event – The Motor City Open was first published on GolfBlogger.Com...
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Titleist Golf Shag BagApril 18, 2019Titleist Golf Shag BagThis beautiful shag bag from Titleist is inspired by their staff bags....
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RBC Heritage Preview 2019April 17, 2019RBC Heritage Preview 2019Dates: April 15-21, 2019Where: Hilton Head Island, South CarolinaCourse: Harbour Town Golf Links (36-35—71/7,099)Defending champion: Satoshi KodairaPurse: $6,900,000 ($1,242,000/winner); FedExCup: 500 points to the winnerField size: 132 Format: 72-hole stroke playTwitter: @RBC_Heritage; Facebook: RBC Heritage; Instagram: RBCHeritageNotes on the Field15 of the top 30 in the current FedExCup standings, led by Matt Kuchar (1), Xander Schauffele (2), Dustin Johnson (5), Charles Howell III (9)Five FedExCup champions: Jim Furyk (2010), Bill Haas (2011), Brandt Snedeker (2012), Billy Horschel (2013-14), Jordan Spieth (2014-15)10 of the top 25 in the Official World Golf Ranking, led by Dustin Johnson (1), Francesco Molinari (7), Bryson DeChambeau (8), Xander Schauffele (9)11 past RBC Heritage champions: Satoshi Kodaira (2018), Branden Grace (2016), Jim Furyk (2015, 2010), Matt Kuchar (2014), Graeme McDowell (2013), Brandt Snedeker (2011), Brian Gay (2009), Boo Weekley (2008, 2007), Aaron Baddeley (2006), Stewart Cink (2004, 2000), Davis Love III (2003, 1998, 1992, 1991, 1987)Team RBC Ambassadors expected to tee it up: Jim Furyk, Dustin Johnson, Matt Kuchar, Graeme McDowell, Ryan Palmer, Webb Simpson, Brandt Snedeker, Adam Hadwin, Corey Conners, Ben Silverman, Roger Sloan, Nick TaylorA look back at Satoshi Kodaira’s victory at the 2018 RBC HeritagePos. Player R1 R2 R3 R4 Total 1 Satoshi Kodaira 73 63 70 66 272/-12* 2 Si Woo Kim 68 65 68 71 272/-12 T3 Bryson DeChambeau 68 64 75 66 273/-11 T3 Luke List 70 64 67 72 273/-11(*won with a birdie-2 on the third hole of sudden death)Japan’s Satoshi Kodaira overcame a 2-over 73 in round one with an 8-under 63 in round two, the low-round of the tournament, en route to a playoff victory over South Korea’s Si Woo Kim; was the 14th playoff at the RBC HeritageAfter pars from both players on the first two extra holes (18-18), Kodaira sank a 24’ 6” putt for a birdie-2 at No. 17 to claim the victory, winning in his 15th PGA TOUR start at the age of 28 years, 7 months, 4 daysFirst player from Japan to win on TOUR since Hideki Matsuyama at the 2017 WGC-FedEx St. Jude InvitationalWas the sixth straight winner who had trailed the lead after 54 holes; Satoshi Kodaira (2018), Wesley Bryan (2017), Branden Grace (2016), Jim Furyk (2015), Matt Kuchar (2014) and Graeme McDowell (2013)Payne Stewart (1989-90), Davis Love III (1991-92) & Boo Weekley (2007-08) are back-to-back winners at the RBC HeritageThe RBC Heritage and the FedExCupThe RBC Heritage is the 26th event in the 2018-19 FedExCup seasonSeven of the 12 winners of the RBC Heritage have advanced to the season-ending TOUR Championship in the FedExCup era, most recently 2015 champion Jim Furyk (who did not start at East Lake due to a wrist injury)Jim Furyk (2010) went on to win the FedExCup the same year he won the RBC Heritage for the first timeWyndham Rewards Top 10 – Current top 10 in the FedExCup standingsPos. Player Points Wins 1 Matt Kuchar 1,730 2 2 Xander Schauffele 1,558 2 3 Rory McIlroy 1,457 1 4 Paul Casey 1,261 1 5 Dustin Johnson 1,214 16 Brooks Koepka 1,112 1 7 Gary Woodland 1,102 0 8 Rickie Fowler 1,088 1 9 Charles Howell III 1,086 1 10 Justin Thomas 1,064 0Tournament notesThis is the 51st RBC Heritage, regarded as one of the TOUR’s most popular stops. One of Pete Dye’s signature designs is annually ranked among the country’s top courses and has produced a winner’s roster including inaugural winner Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Johnny Miller, Hale Irwin, Fuzzy Zoeller, Tom Watson, Nick Faldo, Davis Love III, Greg Norman and Nick Price.No defending champion who has teed it up the year following his win has missed the cut at the RBC Heritage since Davis Love III in 1993 (most recently, Wesley Bryan finished T42 in 2018).There have been 12 international winners of the RBC Heritage: Satoshi Kodaira (2018), Branden Grace (2016), Graeme McDowell (2013), Carl Pettersson (2012), Aaron Baddeley (2006), Peter Lonard (2005), Jose Coceres (2001), Nick Price (1997), Greg Norman (1988), Bernhard Langer (1985), Nick Faldo (1984) and Graham Marsh (1977).The RBC Heritage has had 14 playoffs, including both of Jim Furyk’s wins (2010, 2015).The RBC Heritage has had 13 first-time winners: Hale Irwin (1971), Graham Marsh (1977), Doug Tewell (1980), Nick Faldo (1984), Davis Love III (1987), Glen Day (1999), Jose Coceres (2001), Peter Lonard (2005), Aaron Baddeley (2006), Boo Weekley (2007), Branden Grace (2016), Wesley Bryan (2017), Satoshi Kodaira (2018).Just seven players have won the RBC Heritage in their first appearance: Arnold Palmer (1969), Bob Goalby (1970), Stewart Cink (2000), Jose Coceres (2001), Boo Weekley (2007), Wesley Bryan (2017), Satoshi Kodaira (2018).Oldest winner of the RBC Heritage: Hale Irwin (1994; 48 years, 10 months, 14 days).Youngest RBC Heritage winner: Davis Love III (23 years, 6 days) when he won the first of five titles in 1987.Brian Gay owns the low winning score (264; 2009) and largest winning margin (10; 2009) at the RBC Heritage.The largest final-round comeback at the RBC Heritage is nine strokes (Stewart Cink, 2004).RBC Heritage and the Masters TournamentFormer Masters champions in the field: Zach Johnson (2007), Charl Schwartzel (2011), Jordan Spieth (2015), Danny Willett (2016)Best finishers in the 2019 Masters: Xander Schauffele (T2), Dustin Johnson (T2), Webb Simpson (T5), Francesco Molinari (T5), Patrick Cantlay (T9)Since the RBC Heritage moved into its slot after the Masters in 1983, Seven players have won the event without having competed in the Masters the week before: Wesley Bryan (2017), Carl Pettersson (2012), Brian Gay (2009), Boo Weekley (2007), Aaron Baddeley (2006), Bob Tway (1995) and Davis Love III (1987).Aon Risk Reward ChallengeThe season-long Aon Risk Reward Challenge will highlight the world’s best professional golfers as they tackle the most strategically challenging holes across both the PGA TOUR and LPGA. The PGA TOUR and LPGA player on top of the Aon leaderboard at the end of the regular season will each receive a $1 million prize. The scoring system, identical on both the PGA TOUR and LPGA, is intuitive and produces a compelling risk/reward narrative throughout the season. Players will take their best two scores from each Aon Risk Reward Challenge hole, with the winners having the best average score to par at the end of the regular season. Players must play a minimum of 40 rounds throughout the season. The Challenge runs across regular season tournaments (36 PGA TOUR; 29 LPGA). To view the leaderboard and for more information about the Aon Risk Reward Challenge visit: https://www.pgatour.com/aon-risk-reward-challenge.html. This week’s Aon Risk Reward Challenge hole at the RBC Heritage is the 588-yard par-5 15th hole at Harbour Town Golf Links.OPPORTUNITYThe 588-yard 15th hole is a “thinking challenge” and demands deliberation for each shot on the hole. Risk zones on the par-5 is the water hazard that guards the layup area and left of the green along with bunkers that guard the front of the green.INSIGHTLast season, 24% of the field went for the green in two on the 15th hole, marking the highest going for the green percentage on this hole since 2003. Last season, two of the four eagles made on this hole were from players hitting the green in two shots (Grillo, Rd 2 & Glover, Final Rd). Since 2003, only six players have gone for the green in all four rounds. Byeong Hun An played the hole in four-under last season marking the best going for green score to par in a single year on the 15th hole at Harbour Town GL.ADVANTAGEThe strategic insight is clear, players who have the opportunity to go for the green from inside 255 yards are a combined 146-under par compared to players who have a second shot over 255 yards are five-over par, since 2003. Last year’swinner Satoshi Kodaira played the 15th hole even par through the first three rounds, however made birdie in the final round in the only round he went for the green in two....
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Tiger Is Approaching Snead’s Record 82 Wins — Or Is He?April 17, 2019Sam Snead. Tiger Is Approaching Snead’s Record 82 Wins — Or Is He?Tiger Is Approaching Snead’s Record 82 Wins — Or Is He?The PGA TOUR site has an interesting article on how the TOUR arrived at 82 for the number of career wins by Sam Snead. It is an important accounting, because with his win at the Masters, Tiger now has accumulated 81 wins. It is inevitable that Tiger will pass Snead, regardless of how many the Slammer has been credited with. But still I find the TOUR’s reasoning weak.What it comes down to are judgment calls on which of Snead’s victories were worthy of being called professional events. The PGA TOUR empowered a committee in 1987 to clean up the old record books (and not just for Snead) and as a result, the number of wins Snead was credited with fell from 84 to 81. Snead, for his part, claimed 89.In some instances, the committee credited Snead (and other players) with wins that by some standards are suspect. For example, Snead’s victories in the Crosby Clambake were counted because of its “historical significance.” That ignores the fact that it was hardly a “tournament” in those days. His 1937 victory was in an 18 hole event, his 1938 and 1941 wins were over 36 holes, and his 1950 win was a tie over 54 holes.In those cases, Snead perhaps has fewer than 81 wins, and Tiger already has passed him.On the other hand, one of Snead’s three wins at the North-South Open was not counted because the tournaments’ organizers were having a tiff with the PGA Of America.However, in 1947, 1948 and 1949, the PGA didn’t recognize the North and South as official. Back then, the Tufts family, the owners of Pinehurst, as the story goes, had a dispute with the PGA of America about money. While the North and South went on during those three years as usual, the PGA didn’t acknowledge its existence on the official schedule. That’s important because in Snead’s PGA TOUR official record, his 1949 North and South victory doesn’t count. His 1941 and 1950 North and South wins do.Similarly, Snead’s wins at the Greenbrier Invitational/Sam Snead Festival also were not counted — even though the field was arguably as good as the one in the actual PGA of America event that week.The Greenbrier, an elegant, small-town hotel and resort in White Sulphur Springs, held the 1959 Sam Snead Festival at its course opposite the PGA’s Arlington Hotel Open, hosted by an elegant, small-town hotel and resort in Hot Springs, Arkansas. While Snead won his eponymous 1959 Festival by 11 strokes over Mike Souchak in a field that also included E.J. “Dutch” Harrison, Bruce Crampton, Doug Sanders, Jim Turnesa and Gary Player, it was Gene Littler who was beating Jim Ferree in Arkansas by a stroke, with Doug Ford, Tommy Bolt, Cary Middlecoff and Tony Lema among the 99 players entered.Two years later, Snead defeated Canadian Stan Leonard by a stroke at the Festival while holding off Player, Arnold Palmer and Peter Thomson. Approximately 860 miles away, the PGA was conducting the newly named Hot Springs Open, and Sanders was beating the likes of Middlecoff, Boros, Al Geiberger and Tommy Aaron. Such was the nature of professional golf back then, two tournaments of equal stature played simultaneously, the organizers hustling to attract the best players to their events. Only one tournament, though, part of the official schedule.It all seems a bit random — and for the PGA TOUR a bit self-serving. An arguably weaker field on the PGA of America circuit would count, while a competing event would not. They count the 18 hole Crosby because it is now an official PGA TOUR event, but not the North-South in years when there was an argument over money.It seems to me very hard to go back and apply modern standards to that bygone era. The PGA TOUR as an entity didn’t even exist until 1968. Prior to that, the professional tour was an extension of the PGA of America known as the Tournament Players Division. Players often worked as pros at clubs, and toured as their schedule allowed. Others were full time touring pros. Strength of fields likely varied wildly. Records were not well kept.I have thought for years that what golf needs is an organization like the Society for American Baseball Research. SABR is an group independent of Major League Baseball that dedicates itself to research on baseball’s history, statistics, personalities. The society collects biographies, oral histories, gathers statistics from old newspapers and just generally tries to reconstruct the entire history of the game. For example, SABR has a committee dedicated to researching just the 1919 Black Sox Scandal.A Society for American Golf Research (SAGR) would be independent of the PGA TOUR, the PGA Of America, and of the USGA, all of whom have their own axes to grind and their own spittoons to polish.With all of the old newspapers now online, people interested in the history of golf should be able to fill in a lot of the gaps in the record — for example, of the old Negro Golf Tour, or of tournaments played, but now lost to time.Snead’s record is a good example of that last. His first win was at something called the Virginia Closed Pro, an event about which there was little information until the Charleston Daily Mail ran an investigation in 2010.It is something to think about....
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Adidas Climaheat Full Zip VestApril 17, 2019Adidas Climaheat Full Zip VestIn this in-between weather here in Michigan, I find a vest keeps my core warm enough to play in shirtsleeves. And, for reasons that make no logical sense, I prefer a full zip vest. This one from Adidas checks all the boxes.The Adidas Climaheat Full Zip Vest features:Climawarm keeps you warm and dry in cold weatherFront zip pocketsDroptail hem for extra coverageFull zip with mock neck...
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Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail Championship Winners and HistoryApril 16, 2019Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail Championship Winners and HistoryRobert Trent Jones Golf Trail Championship Winners and HistoryNew for 2019 on the Web.Com Tour is the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail Championship.The tournament will be played at the trail’s Senators Course in Prattville Alabama. It is the tour’s eleventh partnership with the Trail, which hosted the Web.Com Tour Championship from 1997 to 2005 on four different courses.The tournament will feature 156 players competing for a $550,000 purse.Alabama’s Robert Trent Jones Trail consists of 468 holes of golf at eleven sites across the state. Most were nominally designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr. (there is some small controversy over how much work he actually did on the courses that bear his name). The Trail was the brainchild of Dr. David Bronner, CEP of the Retirement Systems of Alabama, cho conceived it as a plan to both diversify investments and to help the state....
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Mitsubishi Electric Classic Winners and HistoryApril 16, 2019The Mitsubishi Electric Classic on the Champions Tour was played for the first time in 2013 at TPC Sugarloaf in Duluth, Georgia. It is one of two tournaments sponsored by Mitsubishi Electric on the Champions Tour.TPC Sugarloaf was built in 1997, and was designed by Greg Norman. Classic. In the three years the Mitsubishi Electric Class has been played there, the TPC Sugarloaf has ranked 6th (2013), 7th (2014) and 14th (2015) in terms of difficulty. The most difficult hole a year ago was No. 11 (par-3) and it yielded just 10 birdies and ranked 35th overall on Tour.A list of Mitsubishi Electric Classic winners follows:...
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LPGA Lotte Championship Winners and HistoryApril 16, 2019LPGA Lotte Championship Winners and HistoryThe LPGA Lotte Championship was first played in 2012 at Hawaii’s Ko Olina Golf Club.Ai Miyazato was the winner of the inaugural event.The tournament has a name sponsor, Lotte, and a presenting sponsor, Hershey. Lotte is a South Korean multinational food, retail and entertainment corporation.A complete list of Lotte Championship Winners is below:...
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Mizuno RB Tour Golf BallsApril 16, 2019Mizuno RB Tour Golf BallsMizuno is known in golf as the manufacturer of players’ golf clubs. The RB Tour is their player’s golf ball. It features:High energy 4 piece constructionC-Dimple for reduced dragUrethane Cover: Ultra soft and responsive around the greenMantle: High energy IonomerDual Core: Graduated firmness Butadiene rubber...
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1930-1939 #GAM100 – Chuck Kocsis Emerges as Michigan’s Greatest Amateur GolferApril 15, 20191930-1939 #GAM100 – Chuck Kocsis Emerges as Michigan’s Greatest Amateur Golfer. Pictured: Seven of nine Kocsis brothers posed in 1938 for this photo at a golf outing. From left, lined up by age as they often did for photos, Emerick, Alex, Chuck, Albert, Sam, Joe and Bob.1930-1939 #GAM100 – Chuck Kocsis Emerges as Michigan’s Greatest Amateur GolferEditor’s note: This is the second of a 10-part series celebrating the Golf Association of Michigan’s 100th year of service to the game. #GAM100by Greg Johnson FARMINGTON HILLS – Chuck Kocsis, who admitted he didn’t care much for match play, said in an interview just a few years before he died in 2006, that sometimes when playing in that format he would hold back with his tee shots to make sure the other player hit it past him. “I wanted to hit it on the green first and putt pressure on,” he said. “It worked a lot.” Everything Kocsis tried on the golf course seemingly worked – a lot. The Golf Association of Michigan named him Michigan’s Golfer of the 20th Century, and he was certainly the top amateur golfer in Michigan in the 1930s and into the 1940s. Golf legend Byron Nelson, a contemporary who played with and against him many times, wrote in the forward to the book Forever Scratch by Vartan Kupelian that: “Kocsis in many ways, was the most remarkable golfer I’ve ever known.” David Graham, executive director of the GAM retiring this year after 18 years leading the association, was interviewed when Kocsis passed away at the age of 93. “Chuck was not only an ambassador for the GAM, he was an ambassador for the game of golf,” Graham said. “Early in my tenure with the association, Chuck sent me a hand-written note of congratulations. I don’t remember what was being recognized but was most impressed by his act of kindness and support toward me as the rookie executive director. I feel very fortunate to have met him, talked with him and heard his stories. He was truly a gift to golf in Michigan.” He was born in Pennsylvania, one of 14 children, including nine brothers. His family, their farm washed out in the famous 1889 Johnstown Flood, relocated to Redford shortly after he was born. He grew up playing golf with his brothers, including fellow Michigan Golf Hall of Fame members Emerick and Sam. The Kocsis boys played at Warren Valley Golf Club and caddied at Redford Golf Club. Kocsis, won his first tournament at age 13 and won what was then considered the state high school championships playing with his Redford High team in 1928 and ’29. At just age 17 in 1930, just after his junior year in high school, he won the first of a record six Michigan Amateur Championships. He remains the youngest to have ever won the state amateur title. He also won six Michigan Medal Play titles – the only six he played in – and won the GAM Championship twice when it was still known as the Detroit District Championship. He started building his national resume at age 17 when he beat U.S. Open legend Francis Ouimet in the first round of the 1930 U.S. Amateur, which is most famous for being one of the Grand Slam wins of Bobby Jones. He also won three Michigan Open Championships playing against the professionals, and his first was in 1931 at age 18 when he beat Michigan resident Tommy Armour, the reigning British Open champion, in a playoff for the state title. While at the University of Michigan he was team captain and part of four Big Ten championship teams and two NCAA championship teams. He won the individual Big Ten medalist honors twice, was the top individual in the NCAA Championship in 1936 and played on three Walker Cup teams. He remains the most accomplished player in the university’s golf history. On the national and international stage while working as an automotive sales representative, he was invited to and played as an amateur in 11 Masters Tournaments. It was before the current invitation standards were in place and the players were invited by reputation by the tournament committee, which aimed at having the best players in the world and contemporaries of Jones, the Augusta National co-founder. Kocsis was low amateur in 1952 and made the 36-hole cut eight times at Augusta National. He considered Jones his friend, and Jones gave him one of his famous “Calamity Jane” putters. Kocsis also qualified 13 times for the U.S. Open and was low amateur in 1934 and 1937. He qualified 15 times for the U.S. Amateur and was runner-up in 1956, was runner-up in the 1948 Mexican Amateur, won three U.S. National Open Seniors championships and won four International Senior Championships, including 1970 at Gleneagles in Scotland by an unprecedented 21 shots. Over his career he won championships of note in seven decades. Fellow Michigan Golf Hall of Fame member Kupelian penned the book “Forever Scratch” off a series of interviews and lunch talks with Kocsis. Kupelian calls him Michigan’s answer to Bobby Jones. Along with Walter Hagen and Al Watrous, Kocsis was fittingly part of the first class inducted to the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame in 1982. “Chuck was great, and he was great over several decades,” said Bob McMasters, his one-time caddie who became a close friend, fellow Red Run member and regular two-man team competition teammate. “He was a quiet man really, but not so much once he got to know you. He was frugal, I guess you could say, which meant he wasn’t a big tipper to the caddies, and he didn’t like to gamble, though a lot of people would bet on him. “He could play the game though, and he loved to play. I loved to caddie for him because it was a walking lesson every time. He had every shot, and the best short game I’ve ever witnessed.” In that rambling interview in the early 2000s Kocsis said he tried professional golf for a year in 1940, but he opted to get a job where he could make money and be reinstated as an amateur. “I played golf because I loved to play, and I like playing it with people I like,” he said. He played with Nelson, Jones, Ben Hogan, Walter Hagen, with three presidents, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy and Gerald R. Ford, with entertainment stars, Bing Crosby and Bob Hope and elite athletes like Joe Louis and Babe Ruth, but McMasters said Kocsis never balked at playing with or partnering with high-handicap golfers. “He just wanted a game, and everybody who played with him was amazed at how consistent he was,” McMasters said. “He wasn’t like Tiger Woods making spectacular shots from the trees, though he could. Most of the time he just hit the fairways, greens and wrote down a better score than everybody else because he played so many good shots and was a great chipper and putter.” Kocsis played against many legends, but he was past his prime to go head-to-head with Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus. He watched though, and he lived long enough to take measure of Tiger Woods. “The best there is,” he said. “He hits is as far as anybody, as straight as anybody. If he misses a green, he hits it up there real close. I think he might be the best golfer I’ve seen.”#GAM History – Did you know? The GAM teams hold a 46-20-3 lead all-time in the Atlas Trophy Matches that originated in 1938 as a competition between private club golfers represented by the then Detroit District Golf Association (GAM) and public course golfers represented by the Michigan Publinx Golf Association with the trophy honoring Edward Atlas, who then was a GAM Governor as well as a USGA Public Links Committee member and Detroit area public golf official. The matches are currently presented as a biennial competition and the 69th version of the matches will be played this fall. A version of the Atlas Trophy Matches for women private and public course players was started in 1989, and the 29th set of matches, currently presented annually, will be played this June. -Greg Johnson, greg.johnson@emailgam.org...
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The RBC Heritage Winners and HistoryApril 15, 2019First played in 1969, the Heritage is one of just five of the Tour’s Invitationals. That means that it has a reduced field of 132 players (as opposed to the usual 156). There is no Monday qualifier, and the tournament does not have to fill its field according the the Priority Ranking Field.Throughout its history, the site for The Heritage has Pete Dye’s now-famous Harbor Town Golf Links, with the exception of 1972, when the first two rounds were played at both the Harbor Town Golf Links and the Ocean Course at Sea Pines.The tournament is sponsored by the Royal Bank of Canada for 2012. It had no sponsor in 2011. From 1987 to 2010, it was sponsored by either MCI (under either the MCI or WorldCom name), and by Verizon. Prior to that, the tournament was known variously as The Heritage Classic, The Sea Pines Heritage Classic, and the Sea Pines Heritage.The Tournament’s position on the Tour schedule has changed quite a bit. From 1968 to 1972, it was played in November. In 1973, September. From 1974 to 1982, it was played two weeks before the Masters; and from 1983 to 2010, it usually was one week after the Masters. In 2011, it’s positioned two weeks after the Masters. Harbortown is a relatively short drive from Augusta, and the date following the Masters apparently has been popular for the players.Tournament winners receive a red plaid jacket. Davis Love, III has won the tournament five times.A list of RBC Heritage Winners o follows:YearPlayerCountryScoreTo par1st Prize ($)Purse ($)The RBC Heritage2018Satoshi KodairaJapan272-121,206,0006,700,0002017Wesley BryanUnited States271-131,170,0006,500,0002016Branden GraceSouth Africa275-91,062,0005,900,0002015Jim FurykUnited States266-181,062,0005,900,0002014Matt KucharUnited States273-111,044,0005,800,0002013Graeme McDowellNorthern Ireland275-91,044,0005,800,0002012Carl PettersonSweden270-141,026,0005,700,0002011Brandt SnedekerUnited States272-121,026,0005,700,000Verizon Heritage2010Jim FurykUnited States271-131,026,0005,700,0002009Brian GayUnited States264-201,026,0005,700,0002008Boo WeekleyUnited States269-15990,0005,500,0002007Boo WeekleyUnited States270-14972,0005,400,0002006Aaron BaddeleyAustralia269-15954,0005,300,000MCI Heritage2005Peter LonardAustralia277-7936,0005,200,0002004Stewart CinkUnited States274-10864,0004,800,0002003Davis Love IIIUnited States271-13810,0004,500,000WorldCom Classic – The Heritage of Golf2002Justin LeonardUnited States270-14720,0004,000,0002001José CóceresArgentina273-11630,0003,500,000MCI Classic2000Stewart CinkUnited States270-14540,0003,000,0001999Glen DayUnited States274-10450,0002,500,0001998Davis Love IIIUnited States266-18342,0001,900,0001997Nick PriceZimbabwe269-15270,0001,500,0001996Loren RobertsUnited States265-19252,0001,400,0001995Bob TwayUnited States275-9234,0001,300,000MCI Heritage Golf Classic1994Hale IrwinUnited States266-18225,0001,250,0001993David EdwardsUnited States273-11202,5001,125,0001992Davis Love IIIUnited States269-15180,0001,000,0001991Davis Love IIIUnited States271-13180,0001,000,0001990Payne StewartUnited States276-8180,0001,000,0001989Payne StewartUnited States268-16144,000800,0001988Greg NormanAustralia271-13126,000700,0001987Davis Love IIIUnited States271-13117,000650,000Sea Pines Heritage1986Fuzzy ZoellerUnited States276-881,000450,0001985Bernhard LangerWest Germany273-1172,000400,0001984Nick FaldoEngland270-1472,000400,0001983Fuzzy ZoellerUnited States275-963,000350,0001982Tom WatsonUnited States280-454,000300,0001981Bill RogersUnited States278-654,000300,0001980Doug TewellUnited States280-454,000300,000Sea Pines Heritage Classic1979Tom WatsonUnited States270-1454,000300,000Heritage Classic1978Hubert GreenUnited States277-745,000225,0001977Graham MarshAustralia273-1145,000225,000Sea Pines Heritage Classic1976Hubert GreenUnited States274-1043,000215,0001975Jack NicklausUnited States271-1340,000200,0001974Johnny MillerUnited States276-840,000200,0001973Hale IrwinUnited States272-1230,000150,0001972Johnny MillerUnited States281-425,000125,0001971Hale IrwinUnited States279-522,000110,000Heritage Golf Classic1970Bob GoalbyUnited States280-420,000100,0001969Arnold PalmerUnited States283-120,000100,000...
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Testing Golf GearApril 15, 2019Testing Golf GearTesting Golf Gear: The Breakthrough Golf Technology Putter Shaft, TecTecTec Ult-X Laser Rangefinder and the Srixon Z-Star Golf Balls.It’s been a bit difficult this month. We’ve had two snowstorms in April here in Michigan, and the other days have seen more rain than not. I don’t like to do product reviews until I’ve had a dozen or more trials, so I’m holding off until better weather comes — hopefully this next week. Still, I braved cold weather to try the following:Breakthrough Golf Technology Putter ShaftBreakthrough Golf Technology Putter ShaftThis putter shaft, developed by the legendary Barney Adams, is the offspring of a steel shaft and a graphite one.It’s been a winner for me this far, and has breathed new life into my vintage Scotty Cameron Newport putter. Still, it is hard to tell because I am still putting on winter greens.Srixon Z-Star Golf BallSrixon Z-Star Golf BallSrixon Z-Star Golf Ball On AmazonEven in the colder weather, I’ve been pleased with the performance of the Srixon Z-Star golf ball. It’s got plenty of distance and a nice, penetrating ball flight. In the early going here in Michigan, I’ve got several things working against me: 1) general rust from a long layoff 2) cold air 3) wind and 4) damp ground. Nonetheless, there is enough in these balls to make me want to keep playing them.TecTecTec Ult-X Laser RangefinderTecTecTec Ult-X Laser RangefinderTecTecTec Ult-X Laser Rangefinder On AmazonIt’s a lot easier to test laser rangefinders in the cold than it is balls and clubs. I’m going to give the TecTecTec a few more rounds, but I can safely say at this point that the Ult-X Rangefinder is a winner. It very quickly locks onto the flagstick — even from hundreds of yards out — and gives an accurate reading.A really cool feature of the rangefinder is that you can pull the front of the rangefinder and it will give you the distance based on triangulation with the elevation. The yellow band means that you can use the device in tournaments as long as you don’t pull it out.I’ll have full reviews of these shortly and I’ll be testing golf gear as the season progresses....
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WVU Golf Takes Third at Rutherford IntercollegiateApril 15, 2019WVU Golf Takes Third at Rutherford IntercollegiateWVU GolfMORGANTOWN, W.Va. (April 14, 2018) – In spite of the rain, sophomore Matthew Sharpstene posted the lowest round of the tournament to lead the West Virginia University golf team to a third-place finish at the 43rd Annual Rutherford Intercollegiate on Sunday at the Penn State Blue Golf Course in State College, Pennsylvania.Sharpstene fired a 66 for five-under-par in the third and final round, jumping 17 spots in the standings. He finished two under with a 54-hole total of 73-72-66=211, tying for fourth place in his fourth top-10 finish of the season.“The scoring conditions were not easy today, but our guys stepped up,” coach Sean Covich said. “Sharp (Matthew Sharpstene) and Pap (Etienne Papineau) carried us today. Their rounds were very impressive.”The Mountaineers carded the lowest team round of the day with a 283 for one-under par. They finished at 10 over with a three-round total of 290-289-283=862 for third place. Eastern Michigan claimed the team title at three-over par (862), while host Penn State was the runner-up at five-over par (857).Junior Etienne Papineau shot a two-under-par 69 in the third round, moving into the top 10 to finish tied for ninth. He finished even par with a three-round total of 73-71-69=213.Junior Philipp Matlari and sophomore Logan Perkins each finished six-over par with a 219. Perkins shot 74-72-73 across the tournament, while Matlari finished at 70-74-75 as the two tied for 23rd place.Senior Max Sear shot 74-74-78=226 to finish in 52nd place at 13 over par. Playing as an individual, freshman Kurtis Grant finished tied for 42nd at 11 over, shooting 77-71-76=224.The Mountaineers will host the 2019 Big 12 Men’s Golf Championship from April 26-28 at The Old White TPC at The Greenbrier.Follow @WVUSports and @WVUGolf on Twitter...
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