Starting tomorrow, the A Walk in the Park public golf travel team will being playing eight consecutive great western US public golf values by more than four preeminent architects. There will be interviews as well. Stunning settings, brilliant strategic designs and an unbeatable price will all combine in courses you should run to play for your next vacation. See you...
The public golf value airplane is fueled up and on the runway, which means Tour Journal reports from around the U.S.A opn some of the best public golf values. This fall we will visit New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada, Cali, Texas and The Midwest. There will also be interviews with golf architects coming soon as we report from the road. The summer “Honor Roll”...
Pine Needles Resort, Pinehurst, NC Par 72 Architect – Donald Ross, restoration by John Fought Excitement Level – 8/12 Difficulty 5/12 Cost – $95 in high season, many half price packages available Conditioning – Four Stars Value – Four and One-half stars Overall rating – Four stars Here is a terrific example of great value. You can...
First things first: here’s the poll question: Bulle Rock or Beechtree? Its time for a side by side taste test of Maryland heavyweights. Like two champion prize fighters trading haymakers, Tom Doak’s classic and beautiful minimalist design at Beechtree slugs it out admirably with Pete Dye’s strategic gem at Bulle Rock. Send in your...
I am happy to announce I have joined the outstanding golf writing team at Golf Observer. Golf Observer is one of the world’s leading golf information sites and golf writing cadres. It features great writers and scholars such as Geoff Shackelford, Sal Johnson, Billy Casper, Frank Hannigan and many more. My work will begin appearing there towards the end of the...
Geoff Shackelford is building the new Prairie Club near Valentine, Nebraska. Geoff writes the following on his website: “The design will mark a reunion of the Rustic Canyon team, headed by Gil Hanse with support from Geoff Shackelford and Jim Wagner. The private club and retreat is being developed with the goal of building a land-based design incorporating the...
Scotland can be conveniently divided into four parts by the discerning golf traveler. First, there is the St. Andrew’s area which occupies the middle one-third latitudes of Scotland on the eastern half of the country. The will be plenty of coverage at this site and at my future site on this year’s British Open venue and the birthplace of the game, so we...
The year was 1985 – perhaps the most uninspiring US Open of our generation. An unknown Taiwanese named T.C.Chen had dominated the leader board at Oakland Hills for three days and had a five shot lead four holes into Sunday. Then disaster struck. Deep in greenside rough at the fifth, Chen double-hit his wedge for a two-stroke penalty and an eight. Chen collapsed...
Early yesterday afternoon, I conversed with Tim McD and publisher Robert Lewis about the strong feelings I’ve been having that Travel Golf’s role in my career had run it’s course and that I’d like to part ways and move to my new golf writing team while it was still on a high note. While it is obvious from posts from Tim and Robert (and that...
Yesterday I told the Travel Golf team thanks so much for all their input and support but I was moving on to a different site and magazine with other, full fledged golf writers. Actually it’s TWO new sites with golf writers and sportswriters you all know and like. The detailed announcement is coming soon, so you’ll have two new sites to read...
I have made some changes I like to two pieces. First, the first part of the Brian Silva interview is here. I love it. I got to use the word “pterodactyl” in a sentence – that was fun. Let’s see you do that. And I dont mean something flippant like “so and so is a smelly old pterodactyl.” Next, I revamped part one of my Bandon Dunes...
Share the joy with me! I just found out I will get my first gold record. It’s Bowling For Soup. www.bowlingforsoup.com
Jay and the plaque from his desk in the media tent, Jen Maples and Darren from Ohio, 2005 U.S. Open, Pinehurst No. 2.
The post round interview with Retief that was broadcast on GolfChannel features three of my questions. Here are my snippets: JF: retief with all the chipping areas and collection areas and the variety of chip shots you have to hit around the greens and with the three excellent days you had previously, do you think you laid good groundwork for the British Open coning...
JF: Do you think that with all the varied recovery shots you have to play here – bump and run here, pitch and check there, putt from off the green somewhere else – that Pinehurst has helped you when it comes time for St. Andrew’s? FF: Yeah. It sure doesn’t hurt. Absolutely with the tight lies and the kind of shots you have to hit with the...