Navigating Golf + Music
+ Slumps are real — and can be broken, but how?
ON THE TEE
⛳️ Even the most cynical when it comes to Tiger Woods has to concede that his first round at the Masters, 14 months after it looked as if he might lose his right leg, is one of sports’ most remarkable moments.
⛳️ Woods says he pushed himself beyond limits normal people can’t understand to play in the Masters because he “loves to compete.” But do you suspect something bigger is at work with him?
⛳️ The most underrated performance on Thursday was the 69 shot by Joaquin Niemann, who was paired with Woods and swept up in the wave of moving patrons surrounding the Tiger drama.
⛳️ You’re part of a four-man team in a dogfight. How many holes does it take to bust up your lucky batting order?
⛳️ When Jennifer Kupcho won the Chevron Championship, she established an exclusive club — the first and only player to win the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and an LPGA major championship. Wonder how long it will take before membership increases to two?
⛳️ Tiger shot 71 on Thursday after what he termed “a terrible warmup.” When you’re chopping it on the range 10 minutes before your starting time, now you have hope.
⛳️ The older you get, the more important it is to keep your clubhead speed higher than your age.
⛳️ Do you think Phil Mickelson is watching the Masters?
⛳️ It’s your turn. Be ready to play.
:: Mike Purkey
FEATURES
The sound of music on course is not always in tune
The First Call readers sing out their praise and disdain for whether music has a place on the golf course
Editor’s Take: This week’s question actually originated from a reader of The First Call, and the response was the most we’ve ever received to a question. Surprisingly, there were more golfers receptive to music being played on the course than would have been expected. And there were quite a few creative and innovative ideas.
:: Stuart Hall
Slumps are real, but what’s the solution?
Sports psychologist Dr. Gio Valiante believes the breach in confidence is best cured by a return to fundamentals and becoming "a student of oneself"
Get To Know: Brian Friederichs
The CEO of Capstone Hospitality, which specializes in membership sales for private clubs, discusses what leadership looks like and why his father embodied those traits, how the pandemic was one of resilience for his company, and what's a good playlist to check out on Spotify
BOOKMARKED
Good reads that are mainly about golf, but not always …
📖 The Masters
[Herbert Warren Wind | Sports Illustrated | 04.04.1955]
📖 The Bullet and the Ballplayer
[Mike Damiano | Boston | 03.18.2022]
📖 You just won the Masters. Here’s what happens next
[Alan Shipnuck | Golf Digest | 2021]
📖 Hank Williams’ five most haunting performances
[Joseph Hudak | Rolling Stone | 12.30.2019]
📖 Recalling Ballesteros
[Bill Fields | The Albatross | 05.07.2021]
DESIGN NOTES
The latest news and notes in golf course architecture.
➡️ Richard Mandell’s renovation and reimagination of Bobby Jones Golf Club [Sarasota, Florida] broke ground in early March. Rundown and a money loser for years, the municipal facility named for the Masters founder will see a partial repurposing, transforming its 45 holes into 27 and also a restoration of a Donald Ross original. Currently, the club has two 18-hole layouts, the American and the British, plus a nine-hole course. The back nines of the two 18-hole courses formed the original spread, which was designed by Donald Ross in 1925. Mandell, a winner of multiple awards for his refurbishing of municipal tracks, plans to rejoin the Ross nines and restore them, improve drainage throughout the site, create an adjustable nine-hole short course and practice facilities and will establish a 110-acre nature park.
“That park is a window into golf for people that don’t know about golf,” said Mandell. “My plan, not my hope, but my plan is that people will see the golf course from the park and say, ‘You know what, I want to try that game.’” The Ross course is expected to open in November 2022, with the short course to follow early in 2023.
RELATED: Get To Know: Richard Mandell
RELATED: Design Notes archive
➡️ Minnesotan Kevin Norby has crossed the Mississippi River into Wisconsin to renovate Eau Claire Golf and Country Club [Eau Claire, Wisconsin]. While the club dates to 1901, the existing course is a 1929 layout designed by Charles Ramsdell and Tom Vardon, brother to Harry Vardon and the longtime professional at the Donald Ross-designed White Bear Yacht Club in Minnesota. Architect Paul Coates redesigned part of the Eau Claire course in the 1960s. Because there were no original drawings located and few examples of surviving Tom Vardon work, Norby and his team worked on providing consistency in restoring Golden Age characteristics. Norby re-positioned bunkers and lowered the bunker floors, which improved visibility, and also enhanced the sense of elevated green pads. Norby also added forward tees and reconstructed the seventh green to raise it above the flood plain. The planning and design project was completed in October 2021 at this Troon Prive-managed facility and will open for play in spring of 2023.
➡️ Former Tom Fazio associate Jeff Lawrence is set to commence detailed design for Phase I of a renovation project at North Carolina’s Lake Hickory Country Club. Situated 57 miles northwest of Charlotte, Lake Hickory features 27 Willard Byrd-designed holes, the Fox Run, Sulphur Springs and Dogwood nines that date to 1968. Phase I includes a bunker renovation, implementation of native grass areas, updates to the practice facility and remedial design work to holes 7, 8 and 9 on the Sulphur Springs nine. The three holes that will undergo design refinement will improve their playability by widening the landing areas and reducing the severity of the topography. The scope will include reshaping the landing areas, refined irrigation, relocating the cart path and added drainage and regrassing. Plans are expected to be completed in late May, followed by the bidding process, in order to begin construction in October or November of 2022. The expected re-opening is mid- to late summer 2023.
➡️ Brian Curley of Schmidt-Curley Design has unveiled a renovation plan that will completely transform Nevada’s Wildcreek Golf Course. Located in Sparks, Nevada, just northeast of Reno, Wildcreek was originally a 1980 Phelps-Benz 18-hole creation in Washoe County that played host to the PGA Tour Champions from 1983-1985 and whose winners were Don January, Dan Sikes and Peter Thomson. Nine holes were siphoned off for a new high school a few years back and the nine that remained became home to the First Tee’s Northern Nevada chapter. Curley’s plan would create a nearly brand new course of par 34, 3,200 yards, partly on unused portions of the property. Emphasis will be on playability and walkability, conducive to finding the ball ball and quick rounds. Curley would also revise the existing executive course and build a new 1.5-acre putting course, a double-sided driving range and a complete short game area. Approvals are in place, but more working capital needs to be raised to enact the plan. Curley expects to that to happen by this fall. For now, he has begun irrigation design plans.
NAMES | NEWS | NUMBERS
BUSINESS
▪️Dunlop forms under a new global alignment as Sumitomo Rubber Industries' North American sales company, Roger Cleveland Golf Company, will now do business as Dunlop Sports Americas. … Golf Datatech reports that the Masters tends to mark the start of the golf equipment sales season. Based upon retail sales data, the year's first quarter typically represents about 17% of total-year sales, rising to 36% for the second quarter. … Georgia Golf Trail, NewEngland.Golf, eSouthernGolf announce a two-year partnership between the Georgia golf tour operator and the digital media and marketing platforms. … The GCSAA launches the third phase of its Golf Course Environmental Profile, nutrient and pest management, that provides critical data to golf industry for assessment and best practices. … Golftec opens a 4,000-square-foot facility in Las Vegas that features six indoor bays with Foresight Sports simulators and OptiMotion motion-tracking technology, an indoor putting green and lessons enhanced by Tecputt. … Club Champion opens new studios in Sanford, Florida; Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina; Ann Arbor, Michigan; and Charlottesville, Virginia. … Malcolm DeMille handcrafts the Valero Texas Open's 100-year trophy, which stands atop a three-tiered oak wood base and commemorates past champions of the Valero Texas Open going back to 1922.
COMPETITION
▪️Youth on Course and Indiana Golf partner for reduced-rate rounds, allowing youth golfers between ages 6 and 18 to play at 10 Indiana golf courses for $5 or less. … The Asian Tour’s International Series announces that Slaley Hall Hotel, Spa and Golf Resort is the new venue for its debut International Series England event, which has also been moved to June 2-5. The ninth event on the Asian Tour schedule features a $2 million purse. … The ClubCorp Classic announces that members of the military and first responders will receive free admission for the inaugural PGA Tour Champions tournament, April 22-24 at Las Colinas Country Club [Irving, Texas]. Eligible members can register to receive two free tickets here. … Junior Golf Hub returns as Notah Begay III Junior Tour's presenting sponsor and will provide all tournament participants a free website profile and PDI self-assessment. … The USGA announces that the final batch of tickets for the 122nd U.S. Open will be released to the general public on Thursday, April 14. The 2022 U.S. Open is scheduled for The Country Club [Brookline, Massachusetts], June 13-19. A variety of daily tickets will be available for purchase while supplies last. For information and to purchase tickets, visit usopen.com/tickets. … East Coast Women’s Professional Golf Tour to waive entry fees for the entire 2022 season to the top 2022 Augusta National Women’s Amateur finisher who turns professional, a benefit of $6,000.
COURSES | DESTINATIONS
▪️Audubon Country Club and The Club at the Dunes [Naples, Florida] are selected by BoardRoom magazine as being a Distinguished Club based on proprietary criteria and evaluation process that measures a club’s member experience. … Pueblo Bonito Resorts [Los Cabos, Mexico] readies for Earth Day on April 22 by touting its sustainability, environmental responsibilities. … Arizona Biltmore Golf Club [Phoenix, Arizona] begins multi-phase renovation and improvement project. … BallenIsles Country Club [Palm Beach Gardens, Florida] breaks ground on Nicklaus Design-led project that will lengthen the 7,189-yard course and be completed by December 2022. … North Carolina Golf Panel releases its 2022 course state rankings. Champion Hills [Hendersonville, North Carolina] ranks No. 39 on the panel’s “Top 100 Golf Courses in the State” list. Rumbling Bald [Lake Lure, North Carolina] ranks as the No. 4 resort in the state. … Berkeley Country Club [El Cerrito, California] is offering resort guests at Claremont Club and Spa privileged access to its golfing and social amenities. … Palmetto Dunes Oceanfront Resort [Hilton Head Island, South Carolina] readies for spring as destination boasts three South Carolina 'Golf Course of the Year' layouts.
GEAR
▪️New Balance introduces Fresh Foam Contend, a waterproof, spikeless shoe that features a reengineered midsole designed to deliver support and comfort. … Tour Edge reports that the PGA Tour Champions' Rapiscan System Classic winner played a 22-degree Exotics C721 Hybrid with an Aldila NV 85 shaft. … GolfTrainingAids.com adds new products to online store and announces new partnerships. … Sqairz becomes the official golf shoe for the World Amateur Golfers Championship. … Galvin Green confirms that J.J. Spaun won the Valero Texas Open wearing the brand’s latest Quickdry outfit. … Titleist launches the WedgeWorks SM9 Low Bounce K Grind wedge, available in 58- and 60-degree models with 6-degree bounce. The clubs retail for $225. … FootJoy and Garrett Leight California Optical to partner on release of exclusive shoes and eyewear — Premiere Series Tarlow and Packard shoes for men and a cap-toe option for women, along with a sunglasses from GLCO’s Spring / Summer collection, Elkgrove Sun.
PEOPLE
▪️TaylorMade Golf signs Keita Nakajima, 21, of Japan, the No. 1-ranked men’s amateur golfer, to a multiyear endorsement agreement. Nakajima will play a full bag of TaylorMade equipment and wear TaylorMade apparel. … SentinelOne, an autonomous cybersecurity platform company, signs 2010 British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen as a brand ambassador. … KemperSports appoints Chris Stewart as general manager of Royal Melbourne Country Club [Long Grove, Illinois].
THE STYLE LINKS
All sorts of Masters-inspired products are popping up this week for the year’s first major, like these colorful gloves by Asher Golf.
The Peachy, Tradition and Blossom gloves for men and women are made entirely with a single-piece, precision-cut, AAA-grade Cabretta leather. The 2022 Georgia Icons premium lineup retails for $28 at ashergolf.com.
:: Janice Ferguson | IG: @janiceferguson_thestylelinks
THE GOOD LIFE
TUNING IN
Augusta National Golf Club: Masters Tournament
Television: Today, 3-7 p.m. (CBS); Sunday, 2-7 p.m. (CBS).
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