What's in Your Memory Box?
+ David McLay Kidd Transforms Entrada at Snow Canyon.
ON THE TEE
⛳️ Ryan Palmer invited Scottie Scheffler to be his partner at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans by sending a photo of his victory in 2019 with partner Jon Rahm — with Scheffler’s face photoshopped over Rahm’s. Everyone thought it was hilarious. Wonder if Rahm is laughing?
⛳️ Scheffler said former President George W. Bush, who sent him a note of congratulations on his Masters victory, “has to do some work on his handwriting.” This from a guy who four-putted the 18th green on Sunday — and still won.
⛳️ The USGA announced four future U.S. Opens and four U.S. Women’s Opens at Pebble Beach Golf Links, which joins Pinehurst No. 2 and Oakmont Country Club as USGA “anchor sites.” Is this a good thing?
⛳️ Robert Garrigus is the first known PGA Tour player to ask the Tour for a release to play the LIV Golf Invitational June 8-11 in London. Anyone joining Garrigus? The deadline to request such a release is Monday (April 25).
⛳️ Boo Weekley, who hasn’t played a PGA Tour event since 2019, showed up for work at the Zurich Classic with seven wedges in his bag, presumably to test. You’d hate to be his caddie that day.
⛳️ The latest iteration of “The Match” features Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers against Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen on June 1. They’re four professionals, just not in golf and it will show. Do you care?
⛳️ J.R. Smith, former NBA player and now a college golfer at North Carolina A&T, signed a name, image and likeness deal with Lululemon, the trendy and popular activewear company. Be nice if J.R. would spread the love with his teammates.
⛳️ Speaking of which, John Daly II – who has played one college tournament at the University of Arkansas – got an NIL deal with Hooters, joining his old man with the orange-and-white. (Too many potential jokes to choose just one.)
⛳️ For the sake of everyone’s sanity – and everyone playing behind you – if you have a 9 a.m. starting time, that doesn’t mean you report to the starter at 9 a.m. At least 10 minutes early, please.
:: Mike Purkey
FEATURES
Golf memories that we hold dear
The First Call readers share their favorite pieces of memorabilia — and memories — that have special meaning
Q&A: Sharon Ritchey | QBE Insurance Group independent director
The USGA Executive Committee member discusses how women can leverage the game of golf in their careers, how the professional workplace is slowly changing and how sports impacts lives
Does quality have to be expensive?
Sam Uisprapassorn, founder and CEO of Cut Golf, joins the 'Behind the Golf Brand' podcast to talk about creating a quality golf ball at an inexpensive price point
BOOKMARKED
Good reads that are mainly about golf, but not always …
📖 Why we remember music and forget everything else
[Nayantara Dutta | Time | 04.14.2022]
📖 The greatest traveler you’ve never heard of
[Katherine LaGrave | Afar | 04.19.2022]
📖 Brad Faxon and friends join forces and celebrate the Marouf Moumine story
[Jim McCabe | Power Fades | 04.20.2022]
📖 Watching Greg Norman watch his 1996 Masters collapse in ‘Shark’ is uncomfortable yet impossible to turn off
[Dave Shedloski | Golf Digest | 04.18.2022]
DESIGN NOTES
The latest news and notes in golf course architecture.
➡️ Following a 17-month overhaul from David McLay Kidd, Entrada at Snow Canyon Country Club in St. George, Utah, reopened in early April. Kidd’s comprehensive renovation has completely transformed the original 1996 layout designed by Johnny Miller and Fred Bliss. Working in conjunction with Troon’s Design, Development and Agronomy team, Kidd started below ground, with new drainage and irrigation systems along with relined and renovated irrigation lakes. Above ground, Kidd’s team and Troon’s team relocated or renovated tees, recontoured fairways and redesigned and resurfaced every green. In addition, every bunker was reconfigured and tees, fairways and roughs were regrassed. The new course eliminates most of the more penal aspects of the old design as it introduces more width and player-friendly contours, a trait Kidd has utilized to pleasing effect elsewhere, such as Gamble Sands and Sand Valley’s Mammoth Dunes.
“It’s definitely a desert course, you’re out here in southern Utah, but I want to have that links experience,” said Kidd. “I want it to be the ground game. So many courses in America call themselves links, but you can’t run the ball anywhere. This golf course is made entirely for that. From the way the design is, to the way the grasses are maintained, it’s all about being able to run the ball along the ground and use it to your advantage.”
RELATED: Design Notes archive
➡️ Huxham Golf Design, helmed by brothers Darrell and Warren Huxham, is on track to complete the final nine holes for La Tempete Golf Club in Quebec City, Canada. The Huxhams, who trained under acclaimed Canadian architect Graham Cooke, crafted the well-received first 18 holes at La Tempete in 2004. That course will soon be known as the North course at La Tempete. Elevated demand for more golf brought the Huxhams back in 2019 to carve out another 18 from more than 200 acres of forested land. Upon completion, the layout will measure 7,300 yards, with an eye toward hosting important tournaments, including perhaps the RBC Canadian Open.
“The finishing holes of each nine are definitely the main attraction, with the par-4 ninth and the par-5 18th wrapping around either side of a large pond, with stadium mounding on the outside of each hole to accommodate spectators,” said Warren Huxham. Nine holes of the new South course opened in 2021, with the second nine scheduled for completion in 2023.
➡️ Art Schaupeter has been tabbed to revitalize the nine-hole short course and practice facilities at Lozano Golf Center for the City of Corpus Christi, Texas. Schaupeter, who crafted the award-winning TPC Colorado course that measures 7,991 yards, has a smaller, if no less significant task at Lozano, in transforming a 1,947-yard par-30 layout into a better version of itself. Improvements will include a new irrigation system, additional fairway drainage, reconstruction of tees and greens and re-grassing throughout. He will also relocate several tees and greens in order in provide more variety.
“The objective is to create a very fun and engaging playing experience for all levels of players,” said Schaupeter. “The majority of the course will be mowed at fairway height. Balls will be easy to locate, and there will be minimal hazards, with only six small bunkers, few trees, no water and only one lateral hazard area.”
To appease better players, Schaupeter will install “micro-slopes” throughout the course, notably around greens, to provide interest and challenge. He will lower, reshape and enlarge the putting surfaces for more short-game interest. Also on tap is an expanded practice range and a new short-game practice area. Construction is expected to begin in November 2022.
➡️ Post-pandemic, Vietnam continues to be the leading growth region for new courses in Asia. Adding to the stable of new layouts coming online is Nicklaus Design, which is continuing work on 36 holes at Rose Canyon Resort in Ha Nam, an hour south of Hanoi.
“The South course is sited in an old quarry comprising impressive near-vertical mountains, low-lying flatlands and water-filled excavations,” said Sean Quinn, senior design associate at Nicklaus Design. “The dramatic mountains relate to every part of the golf course. Holes play between and around the monolithic forms, with some green sites having 200-foot-high cliff backdrops.”
Construction on the South course should conclude in late 2022, with an expected opening of mid-2023. Once that occurs, the Nicklaus Design team will begin work on the North course.
NAMES | NEWS | NUMBERS
BUSINESS
▪️LIV Golf and QuintEvents partner for all ticketing and hospitality efforts, starting with the inaugural eight-event LIV Golf Invitational Series that begins in June. … Arccos expands partnership with Tour Experience Golf (TXG) to have Arccos on-course performance data fully integrated into TXG custom club fittings. … The LPGA names Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority [HTA] as a Tour partner. While the LPGA will help showcase Hawaiʻi through tournament broadcasts and various digital and social-media platforms, the HTA will fund a new LPGA-USGA Girls Golf Chapter in Hawaiʻi. … Dynamic Brands is selected as one of Richmond, Virginia's Top Workplaces for 2022 by the Richmond Times-Dispatch. … Malcolm DeMille handcrafts the RBC Heritage champions trophy awarded to Jordan Spieth — a 16-inch tall patinaed bronze sculpture of Sir William Innes highlighted with a bronze patina and mounted to a walnut base with an engraved title plate. … Sqairz Academy launches a digital golf instruction platform that features golf lessons from top instructors and players, including Jim McLean, Rick Smith, Nick Bradley and Nick Faldo. … GolfForever partners with the Metropolitan PGA Section and will support the Section's 2022 Spring Meeting and future events. … PopStroke Entertainment Group will open its Sarasota, Florida, location on April 28. The venue features two 18-hole putting courses created by Tiger Woods' TGR Design team and a two-story layout with a rooftop bar and private event space. … 2022 Arizona Summer Troon Card is now on sale and is valid from May 4 through Sept. 30 at 23 Troon-managed and brand-affiliated facilities in Arizona. … Bear Creek Golf Club [Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas] earns first-place award from Golf Inc. magazine for reinventing its outdoor restaurant’s food-and-beverage concept.
CHARITABLE
▪️Rounds 4 Research is auctioning off golf at more than 1,200 courses to benefit the GCSAA Foundation program.
COMPETITION
▪️Troon announces schedule for its 2022 Troon Challenge, which concludes with the national finals Dec. 9-11 at Indian Wells Golf Resort [Indian Wells, California]. … Turner Sports announces the next installment of Capital One’s “The Match,” featuring NFL quarterbacks Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers vs. Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen. The 12-hole event will be held at Wynn Las Vegas on June 1. … PGA Tour Latinoamerica announces that Bupa will once again serve as title sponsor of the season-ending PGA Tour Latinoamerica Championship, now known as the Bupa Tour Championship. The tournament is scheduled for June 23-26. … Silvies Valley Ranch [Silvies, Oregon] announces the inaugural Claire Owens Invitational that celebrates female golfers. … East Coast Women’s Professional Golf Tour to open inaugural season May 11-13 at Sun n’ Lake Golf Course [Sebring, Florida] … Palos Verdes Championship extends a sponsor exemption to ANWA champ Anna Davis. … The PGA Tour Champions and Grail, a healthcare technology company, partner to host a new event, the Galleri Classic, March 20-26, 2023 at Mission Hills Country Club [Rancho Mirage, California]. … PGA Tour Canada announces its 2022 schedule for the Fortinet Cup, which will be sponsored by Fortinet and will award points based on player performance, with a $100,000 bonus pool for the top competitors.
COURSES
▪️Twin Warriors Golf Club at Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort and Spa and Santa Ana Golf Club [both in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico] will host the 2023 PGA Professional Championship, April 30-May 3. … The NCAA names two additional regional host sites for each of the 2023-2026 Division I Women’s Golf Championship years — PGA National Resort [Palm Beach Gardens, Florida] and TPC San Antonio [San Antonio, Texas] in 2023; Forest Akers Golf Course [East Lansing, Michigan] and Tumblecreek Club [Cle Elum, Washington] in 2024; The Rawls Course [Lubbock, Texas] and Birdwood Golf Club [Charlottesville, Virginia] in 2025; and Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail at Hampton Cove [Huntsville, Alabama] and U-M Golf Course [Ann Arbor, Michigan] in 2026. … Tripp Davis and Associates completes its redesign work at BraeBurn Country Club [Houston]. Davis and team kept the same basic routing of the original course — designed by John Bredemus in 1931. … North Carolina’s Outer Banks places The Currituck Club (No. 17), Kilmarlic Golf Club (No. 27) and Nags Head Golf Links (No. 33) on the North Carolina Golf Panel’s Top 50 You Can Play in North Carolina list. … Omni Amelia Island Resort [Amelia Island, Florida] debuts the Little Sandy short course, a 10-hole, par-3 course designed by Beau Welling Design. … The USGA announces that Pebble Beach Golf Links will host four future U.S. Opens (2027, 2032, 2037 and 2044) as well as four future U.S. Women’s Opens (2023, 2035, 2040 and 2048). Also, the U.S. Senior Open and U.S. Senior Women’s Open will be staged back-to-back at the resort’s Spyglass Hill Golf Course location in 2030.
DESTINATIONS
▪️Explore Branson reports totaling nearly 10 million visitors to the Branson, Missouri, region in 2021. It was a 10 percent increase over 2019, the last non-COVID-19 affected year. … Champion Hills [Hendersonville, North Carolina] vaults to No. 16 in Club + Resort Business ranking of the Top Fitness and Wellness Facilities in the U.S.
GEAR
▪️Cobra Golf unveils King Forged Tec and Tec One Length irons that blend a new five-step forged body and face with game-improving technologies. … TPT expands Red Range hybrid shaft range to include new 20 and 21 Series. … FlightScope announces a trade-in program in which Mevo users can upgrade to a Mevo+ with a $300 trade-in credit. … PrideSports confirms that the RBC Heritage winner wore its Softspikes' Silver Tornado, along with directional cleats in his Under Armour UA Hovr Drive 2 shoes.
MEDIA
▪️GolfPass to stream a six-chapter series on Ernie Els, following his journey to world No. 1 and revealing how autism has impacted his family and shaped his life’s mission.
PEOPLE
▪️IBSA Pharma Inc. signs PGA Tour professional James Hahn to promote Licart, the pharmaceutical company’s newest topical pain product. As part of the partnership, Hahn will wear the Licart logo on his clothing and appear on social media and at in-person events to promote the brand. … The USGA selects the final four players — Amari Avery, Megha Ganne, Emilia Migliaccio and Latanna Stone — for its eight-player 2022 USA Curtis Cup Team roster. The 42nd Curtis Cup Match will be held June 10-12 at Merion Golf Club [Ardmore, Pennsylvania]. … U.S. Presidents Cup Team Captain Davis Love III selects Fred Couples and Zach Johnson as captain’s assistants for the 2022 Presidents Cup, Sept. 20-25 at Quail Hollow Club [Charlotte, North Carolina]. International Team Captain Trevor Immelman selects Canada’s Mike Weir, Korea’s K.J. Choi, Australia’s Geoff Ogilvy and Colombia’s Camilo Villegas as his four captain’s assistants. … The LPGA Foundation selects the eight high school graduates to receive the 2022 Marilynn Smith Scholarship, as well as the two graduates awarded the Phyllis G. Meekins Scholarship and one awarded the Dinah Shore Scholarship. Marilynn Smith Scholarship recipients: Maria Atwood (Holly Springs High, Holly Springs, North Carolina); Rileigh Leighton (Williamstown High, Williamstown, New Jersey); Nina McMurtrey (Glasgow High, Glasgow, Kentucky); Abigale Morris (Canyon View High, Waddell, Arizona); Hannah Nimmo (Wolfe City High, Wolfe City, Texas); Cybil Stillson (NorthWood High, Nappanee, Indiana); Avery Thompson (The Kinkaid School, Houston, Texas); Olivia Wilkie (Hilton Head Preparatory School, Hilton Head, South Carolina). Phyllis G. Meekins Scholarship recipients: Dariel Gray (Charles Herbert Flowers High, Upper Marlboro, Maryland); Rylie Spaulding (Wagoner High, Wagoner, Oklahoma). Dinah Shore Scholarship recipient: Magdalyn Poole (Blue Ridge High, Greer, South Carolina). … Mistwood Golf Club [Romeoville, Illinois] hires Angelica Carmen as its sustainability specialist as the club commits to environmental social responsibility in golf course maintenance, food production and food service. … LPGA hires Matthew Chmura as its new chief marketing, communications and brand officer, starting May 9. … Golftec celebrates its national award winners from 2020 and 2021.
THE STYLE LINKS
For years Travis Mathew has been asked ‘When will you make women’s clothes?’ Well, the time is ‘coming soon’ as of Wednesday this week. ‘Everyday Elevated’ is the theme. Tees, henleys, sweat pants … anxious to see the reveal.
:: Janice Ferguson | IG: @janiceferguson_thestylelinks
THE GOOD LIFE
TUNING IN
PGA Tour: Zurich Classic of New Orleans
Television: Today-Sunday, 1-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-6 p.m. (CBS).
LPGA Tour: Dio Implant LA Open
Television: Today-Sunday, 7-9:30 p.m. (Golf Channel).
European Tour: ISPS Handa Championship
Television: Today-Sunday, 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (Golf Channel).
PGA Tour Champions: ClubCorp Classic
Television: Today-Sunday, 3-7 p.m. (Golf Channel).
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