Buyer beware
+ Checking out early; Mike Purkey on Viktor Hovland, Justin Thomas and Rose Zhang; a new abode in Cabo; and how Rapsodo is changing golf technology.
THE STARTER
🏌️ Viktor Hovland came from behind to overtake Justin Thomas at the Valspar Championship for his first victory since 2023. Who needed the victory more: Hovland or Thomas?
🏌️ Thomas, who has not won since 2022, bogeyed two of his last three holes to give up a three-shot lead. Should there be any lingering concerns about Thomas?
🏌️ Hovland, who has had a revolving door of instructors, has been called a perfectionist. Is that a bad thing?
🏌️ Atlanta Drive beat New York GC in the TGL playoff finals. Is this news to you?
🏌️ Should TGL be considered a success in its first year? Has it changed your mind — in either direction?
🏌️ Jim Nantz revealed that he plans to retire from the CBS Masters broadcast in 2036. He’s 65 now; don’t you hope he’s taking good care of himself?
🏌️ Rose Zhang chose not to defend her Founders Cup LPGA title to instead focus on a "heavy" academic winter quarter at Stanford, progressing toward her degree. With all the focus on money in professional golf, should Zhang be the most admired player in the game?
🏌️ After putter punting, club tossing and sprinkler smashing at the Valspar, is all the anger egregious or just part of the game?
🏌️ Dave Pelz, who pioneered and revolutionized the short game along with coaching a number of major champions, died at age 85. Shouldn’t we all thank him for shining a light on that part of the game?
:: Mike Purkey
FEATURES
Is it real or counterfeit? Can you even tell?
Golf apparel and gear may look and feel like the real thing, but the giveaway as to whether it’s a counterfeit may be the price tag. Be wary, though, because the counterfeit practice is spreading online.
:: Mike Purkey | Read
Golf's finest moments of the past 75 years
Golf apparel and gear may look and feel like the real thing, but the giveaway as to whether it’s a counterfeit may be the price tag. Be wary, though, because the counterfeit practice is spreading online.
:: TFC Inbox | Read
BOOKMARKED
Good reads — and listens — that are sometimes about golf, but not always.
📖 Why aren’t women allowed to play baseball?
Women have always loved America’s pastime. It has never loved them back.
:: Kaitlyn Tiffany | The Atlantic | 03.17.25 | Read
📖 Down the drain
In 1973, Steve Blass was an extremely successful and useful big-league pitcher. Then baseball suddenly stopped being fun for him.
:: Roger Angell | The New Yorker | 06.15.75 | Read
📖 How the Irish pub became one of the Emerald Isle’s greatest exports
The Dublin-based Irish Pub Company has designed upwards of 2,000 pubs in more than 100 countries around the globe.
:: Liza Weisstuch | Smithsonian Magazine | 03.17.25 | Read
THE LIBRARY
Recent drops to The First Call’s video and podcast section.
▶️ How Rapsodo Golf is changing golf technology
Justin Bryant, community manager for golf, joins 'The Coach Mo Golf Show' to talk about how technological advancements are transforming golf for everyday players.
:: The Coach Mo Golf Show | 03.19.25 | Watch
🎧 How the Valspar Championship flies under the radar
While the tournament is not a signature event and falls amid The Players Championship aftermath and pre-Masters hype, it nevertheless puts on quite a dazzling show.
:: Golf Innerview with Ann Liguori | 03.19.25 | Listen
ARCHIVES: 🎧 Podcasts | ▶️ Videos
BUSINESS
THE FIRST CALL
Week in Review: The industry’s names, news and notables making headlines. | Read
This week’s editions: Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday
Industry press releases | Industry press release videos | TFC / PR Newswire feed
Golf Industry Job / Internship Board
LIFESTYLE
THE STYLE LINKS
Spring: March Madness, Masters and new must-have apparel collections like these pieces for golf and travel from G/Fore.
:: Janice Ferguson | IG: @janiceferguson_thestylelinks
19TH HOLE
“Course of Life” podcast co-host Alex Lauzon closes each episode with the guest sharing a favorite 19th hole food and beverage experience.
Kira Peterson, Wisconsin-based golf content creator: “At my home course they have a really good strawberry and chicken salad. For a drink, I like a strawberry mojito or a typical gin and tonic.”
A PICTURE TELLS …
“The course is dry and firm, and as we plot our way across the rolling landscape, the wind blows away cobwebs and errant shots alike. We remember what golf used to be like — wild, natural — and imagine a world in which everything is this simple. Hit it, find it, hit it again, and in between shots chew the fat with friends or gaze at the natural splendor all around.”
:: Words: Richard Pennell / Pitchmarks | Photography: Simon Pope
Image: Hole No. 13, Cleeve Hill Golf Club, Cleeve Hill, England.
HOME FRONT
Park Hyatt Los Cabos Residences at Cabo Del Sol | Cabo San Lucas, B.C.S., Mexico
Listing: Villa 4.
Stats: 10,803 square feet (7,825, living; 2,454, outdoor) | 5 bedrooms.
Price: $11,900,000.
About: From architect Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos and opening in 2025, an exclusive opportunity awaits to live in one of Cabo’s newest communities — Park Hyatt Los Cabos Residences at Cabo Del Sol. The community offers a limited collection of 19 residences, including 11 villas. Few villas remain, including Villa 4, a five-bedroom retreat situated across from the prestigious Cove Club Golf Course, designed by Jack Nicklaus and named to Golf Digest’s 2024 World's 100 Greatest Golf Courses list. Owners will have the opportunity to purchase a Cove Club membership and will also have access to the Cabo Del Sol Course on property. In addition to golf, Villa 4 offers stunning ocean views, access to outdoor and ocean adventures, and exceptional culinary experiences at the Park Hyatt Los Cabos at Cabo Del Sol hotel, which will debut in summer 2025. The property will also debut as the first Park Hyatt hotel and residences in Mexico.
ARCHITECTURE
DESIGN NOTES
Andrew Green plots renovation of AAC’s Highlands Course
As part of an overwhelmingly endorsed long-term capital funding master plan by its membership, fabled Atlanta Athletic Club will renovate its famed Highlands Course, site of numerous major championships and other prestigious events.
Noted golf course architect Andrew Green, president of AH Green Design, Green Golf and Turf, has been selected to handle the renovation. Planning will start over the next several months and construction is expected to begin early in 2028. Over the past decade, Green has been responsible for some of the most notable renovations of major championship venues, including Inverness Club (Toledo, Ohio); Oak Hill Country Club’s East Course (Rochester, New York); Congressional Country Club’s Blue Course (Bethesda, Maryland); Interlachen Country Club (Minneapolis, Minnesota); Scioto Country Club (Columbus, Ohio); and East Lake Golf Club (Atlanta, Georgia).
“There are few organizations in the United States that mean this much to the game of golf,” Green said. “Atlanta Athletic Club has produced so many great players and has contributed immensely to growing the game. The Highlands Course occupies some intriguing ground. We look forward to maximizing the opportunity for unique golf that can test the world’s best while providing a canvas to enjoy the game every day at the highest level, no matter your skill level.”
Highlands has hosted the U.S. Open (1976), three PGA Championships (1981, 2001 and 2011), the U.S. Amateur Championship (2014) and the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship (2021).
In 2022, AAC renovated its Riverside Course under the direction of architect Tripp Davis, who re-envisioned the routing, playing strategy and visual quality. In 2023, his work earned second place nationally in the Best Transformation category in Golf Digest’s annual rankings. The U.S. Girls Junior Championship will be contested on the Riverside Course in July.
AAC will host its second U.S. Amateur in 2030, utilizing both courses, which will mark the 100th anniversary of Bobby Jones’ completion of the Grand Slam (victories in the U.S. Open, U.S. Amateur, British Open and British Amateur). Jones was a former president and an active member of AAC until his death in 1971. The U.S. Women’s Amateur will be contested on the Highlands Course in 2035.
Located 25 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta, the AAC is a private 36-hole club founded in 1898. In 1969, the club relocated to its current location.
RELATED: Design Notes archive
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