The 2009 Major Winners on the PGA Tour will be

January 2009
Masters - Sergio Garcia

U.S. Open - Tiger Woods

British Open - Padraig Harrington

PGA - Tiger Woods

I'm not really going out on a limb here. These are the top three ranked players in the world and it's very hard to bet against them. I'm actually tempted to put Tiger down for all four but maybe that will have to wait until 2010. Sergio had an unbelievable 2008 season, has been so close in several recent majors, and is due to get his first major win. Harrington has won three out of the last six majors, and has become unflappable and mentally strong down the stretch. He could get his third straight British this year. And obviously, world #1 will have a great shot to repeat at Bethpage for the U.S. Open and his game is usually on fire towards the end of each season giving him a great shot at the PGA.

Congressional Country Club

January 2009
The U.S. Capitol Building


The Congressional Country Club (Blue Course) is ranked #86 in the world. The course is appropriately named, as it has a blue chip pedigree. Among its founding members were John D. Rockefeller, Vincent Astor, Pierre S. Dupont, Harvey Firestone, William Randolph Hearst and Charlie Chaplin. Devereaux Emmett was the original course architect in 1924, but revisions have been made by multiple architects over time including Donald Ross, Robert Trent Jones, Tom Fazio and Rees Jones.

Like many of our leading financial service firms today, the club went bankrupt in 1940. Between 1943 and 1946 the O.S.S., the pre-cursor organization to the C.I.A., rented Congressional for $4,000 per month and turned the club into a training center. The club was returned to private members after the war.

The course is located in Bethesda, Maryland, about thirty minutes from the U.S. Capitol Building. I took the train from New York to play Congressional. Arriving in Washington, D.C. by train never loses its luster. Union Station is one of the most elegant train stations in the United States and a pleasure to travel through. I love walking out the front entrance and glimpsing the beauty of the perfectly proportioned Capitol building. I know it sounds sappy but it is always an uplifting sight. I often picture myself as Jimmy Stewart in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.




The distinctive tee markers at Congressional



The Golf Course

While the course is not exactly as hilly as Westchester Country Club or The Country Club at Brookline, the terrain and routing at Congressional reminded me of both these courses. The course has many irregular shaped fairways and doglegs, and greens that are very small. One of the keys to playing Congressional is to make sure that you approach the greens from the fairway. Attempting to hit and hold the green from any angle except the fairway is quite difficult here.

The fourth fairway at Congressional is typical of many on the course: narrow, with an irregular shape. This hole, like most at Congressional, plays from an elevated tee. On the front nine the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 8th and 9th all play from elevated tees.

4th fairway


4th fairway at Congressional


The fourth hole, the #1 handicap, is 427 yards long and doglegs to the right.

5th fairway


5th fairway at Congressional

The fifth hole was one of my favorites. Notice the nice rolling terrain, with the fairway following the contours of the land. This hole doglegs to the left and rewards the golfer who hits a tee shot far enough left to avoid the trap and opens up a better angle to the green.



5th green
Congressional's 5th green


Like almost all the greens at Congressional, the green on the fifth is small and well bunkered.

The sixth hole is a short par five at 488 yards that tempts the golfer to hit the green in two. The perils of being short are illustrated by the water hazard short of the green.

6th green back

6th green at Congressional
7th green

Par three 7th hole green at Congressional


The par three seventh hole plays 157 yards uphill, and the green, like many at Congressional, slopes front to back.

9th green

9th green at Congressional


The ninth, a 544 yard par five, is a very good hole with a big swale that you must carry to get from the fairway to the elevated green. The front of the green slopes back toward the fairway and repels balls down into the ravine. Club selection is made trickier here because from more than 130 yards out you are playing a blind shot, as the fairway rises gently from the middle of the hole toward the green.


10th green

The par three 10th green

The back nine begins with the 170 yard par three 10th, over water, to one of the largest greens on the course. You will notice the mechanical fan behind this green. Almost every green has them due to Congressional's hot and humid summers. Unfortunately, they do come into play if you miss the green, as I found out about on the first hole, and I didn't see any local rule allowing relief if you are behind one.

12th

12th fairway at Congressional


It is difficult to tell how much of the course is the original Emmett design, but I could still see some features that reminded me of Emmett's masterpiece in Long Island, Garden City, such as the 12th hole, seen above. This type of slightly elevated rise from fairway to green is typical of Garden City. Many of the greens at Congressional are slightly elevated like this one with a narrow opening between the bunkers.

14th looking back

14th fairway looking backward

Another good example of the irregular shape of the fairways at Congressional, and a nice use of the hilly terrain, can be seen on the 408 yard fourteenth hole, above, looking back from the green.

You hit down into a landing area from an elevated tee and then the remainder of the hole rises to an elevated green.

17th

The 17th green

The seventeenth is ranked as one of the top 500 holes in the world, and it is quite a tricky hole at 420 yards. The fairway drops down to another level about three-quarters of the way toward the green. The elevated green is small and well bunkered.


18th

The 18th green

Both the 10th and 18th greens, modified by Rees Jones, seem a bit out of character with the rest of the course as their greens are surrounded by water and feels incongruent with the design.

I played Congressional on a brilliant but blustery day. As my readers know from my experience at Royal St. George's, a wind game is not the strongest part of my repertoire. I played Congressional in October of 2008, a month of bank runs and stock market crashes that I hoped I would never see in my lifetime. The Dow Jones average was as volatile as it has ever been. It had moves of more than 100 points on 20 of 23 days. Out of sympathy for the market I also had a move of more than 100 points for the day on my scorecard. My golf game experienced as much volatility as I can handle. I hope both the markets and my game calm themselves soon.


When will Tiger break Jack's record?

January 2009
This could come sooner than you think. Currently, Tiger has fourteen majors, 4 shy of Jack Nicklaus’s record of eighteen. It is quite possible that Tiger could break this record as soon as next year. I know this is crazy be we are talking about Tiger here.

Let’s go back to 2008. Tiger won five out of the seven tournaments he played, with a second place at the Masters and a 5th place at the WGC. Going back even further to 2007, in his final six events, he won five times and finished 2nd once. To summarize, before his injury, he had won ten out of his last thirteen events with two runner up finishes and one 5th place finish. By the way, his total score for those thirteen tournaments was 161 under par.

In other words, he was on one of his patented blazing hot streaks and who knows what would have happened had he not been injured. But enough about the past already, let’s begin to look forward. Let’s look at the 2009 major schedule:

Masters – Augusta
U.S. Open – Bethpage Black
British Open – Turnberry
PGA – Hazeltine

Out of these, I’m going to give Tiger wins at the U.S. Open and the PGA. Last time the Open was played at Bethpage, Tiger won. Last time the PGA was at Hazeltine, Tiger birdied the last four holes and it took a 40 foot putt by Rich Beem to avoid Tiger in a playoff. So, if this occurs, Tiger’s total will be at sixteen majors by the end of 2009.

As we move to 2010:

Masters – Augusta
U.S. Open – Pebble Beach
British Open – St. Andrews
PGA – Whistling Straights

I think this could be a legendary year in the history of golf, as long as Tiger is fully healthy, which he supposedly will be by then. The first three majors are at Augusta, Pebble Beach, and St. Andrews. As we all know, Tiger has already won four times at Augusta.The last time the U.S. Open was at Pebble Beach, Tiger won by fifteen strokes. Tiger has already won the British twice at St. Andrews. The PGA will be held at Whistling Straights. Could 2010 be the year Tiger wins the grand slam?

Basically, to break the record, Tiger needs to win five out of the next eight majors. He has a great history at several of the courses these tournaments will be played on, and you know he is ready to come back with a vengeance after the injury. It should be interesting and I can’t wait to see what unfolds. The record is going down sooner or later, and 2010 just might be the year.

2008 Medals Still To Be Collected

January 2009
The following individuals are still to collect their medals from the Club:

R Howkins - Magner's Medal
R Milligan - Bellhaven Medal
M Hill - May Monthly Medal
K Taylor - May & October Monthly Medals
S Stewart - June Monthly Medal
A Docherty - June Monthly Medal
J Grant - July Monthly Medal
P Simpson - August Monthly Medal
C Thoms - October Monthly Medal

Additionally, Matthew Bell has yet to collect the Crystal Glass awarded to the Club Champion.

Please contact the Comps Sec to arrange collection of the above prizes.

F Martin
Comps Sec

Order of Merit Points - Season 2009

January 2009
In accordance with the wishes of the membership present at the AGM, the Gent's Section Committee have reviewed the allocation of points for the Order of Merit Trophy for Season 2009. Accordingly, the number of qualifying events has been streamlined to the major Club Competitions, with the current points allocation remaining the same, 20 pts for 1st down to 1 point for 20th. The events which will receive Order of Merit Points for Season 2009 are as follows:

1. All Monthly Medals
2. Spring Meeting
3. Captains Day
4. Both Qualifying Rounds of the Club Championship
5. The George Black Memorial Trophy
6. The Ronnie Stephenson Memorial Trophy
7. President's Day
8. Autumn Meeting

Details of this change will be posted in the Clubhouse in due course.

F Martin
Comps Sec

DARTH VADER PLAYS GOLF

January 2009

No excuses for Mickelson to miss Bob Hope Classic. Also drive into the wind and quotes to live by.

January 2009

Click here to listen.




This year is considered "fifty years of Hope" and over two million dollars were distributed in 2008 to charities through the Classic event, but even so, the top fifteen PGA Tour golfers are MIA, most with no reason as to why this tournament is not worthy of their support.

Once distinguished as golf's best celebrity pro-am event with comedians ranging from Jackie Gleason to Jack Lemmon picking up the sticks for charity, the "Hope" seems to have lost a bit of its glamour and dimension. Utilizing Arnold Palmer as celebrity host (perhaps because he won the inaugural event) and, for the most part, only being able to conjure up a few old-time has-beens with some notables like Dan Quayle, Kurt Russell and Sterling Sharpe, I wonder when Tim Finchem will stand up for events of such illustriousness and not leave it up to freedom of choice? Can the PGA Tour impose a ruling to force more top-name golfers into faltering events?

Arnold Palmer recently mentioned, "I used to spread my tournament appearances so that I never missed a tournament more than two years in a row," but that was back in the day when guys were living paycheck-to-paycheck, not in this era where the top-100 golfers earn over $1 million per year. Also, events like the Bob Hope Classic were special and players would scramble to get a place in the field seeking publicity and possibly the status of being a winner or even having a top-ten finish.

To try and keep golfers interested in the "Hope", the tournament has even added the private Nicklaus venue, because guys like Phil Mickelson and Pat Perez voiced disapproval over the Classic course, but that has only lassoed in a few guys like Tim Clarke. Big names like Mickelson have not budged.

I just wonder if beloved Bob Hope mainstays such as the Classic and even the USO Tour will eventually become relics with a lack of consideration for the consequences?

Should fans even care whether or not another tournament bites the dust or are there simply too many events glutting the PGA Tour season? Unfortunately, for every event that fails, no matter how insignificant they may be to those who choose not to attend, the only ones that will suffer are those who depend on the charities receiving the funds.

This week Golf for Beginners wonders why Phil Mickelson has chosen the FBR Open as his season opener (we already know why Vijay Singh and Tiger Woods are not playing at this time). We also tell you how to pierce the wind utilizing your driver and offer a few quotes from golf's greats.





Send your golf questions and comments to golfforbeginners@aol.com.

Subscribe to our weekly podcast through this RSS feed:http://feeds.feedburner.com/golfforbeginners or through iTunes.

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"Shiny Tech" courtesy of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)"

This podcast is supported by San Diego Golf Central, 866-825-4094.

Photo Credit: © LaTimes

Don’t forget to check out our golf gift-giving guide!

Membership and Entry to Club Competition

January 2009
A very quick reminder at this time, that Club Membership must be in place bring to the beginning of the season in order to compete in Club Competitions. Failure to have paid the Club Membership, which is separate from Centre membership, will mean that you will be withdrawn from any Club competition you have signed up to.

Fergus Martin
Comps Sec.

Greatest Golf Swing of All Time

January 2009

Golf in the Off-Season

January 2009



  • Improve your strength, endurance, and flexibility. Talk to your local personal trainer.

  • Work on your swing in slow motion in front of a mirror making sure your club is in the proper positions.

  • While in your living room, work on fundamentals such as grip, posture, ball position, and alignment.

  • Work on your putting indoors and focus on the fundamentals such as keeping your head and body still, keeping your eyes over the ball, using a pendulum motion, making sure your back stroke and forward stroke are equidistant, making solid contact, and releasing the putter.

  • Work on your pre-shot and pre-putt routine in your living room.

  • Take winter lessons.

  • Brave the cold and play.

  • Find an indoor range and try to hit balls a few times per week.

  • Find a range with heaters or covered tees and hit a few times per week.

  • Purchase a hitting net for your garage or basement.

  • Take a lesson with video analysis.

  • Get your swing speed checked to make sure you are using the proper shafts.

  • Have a club fitting done to make sure you have the right dimensions on your clubs.

  • Make sure you are stocked up with all the equipment you need for the upcoming season.

  • Read golf instructional books or magazines.

  • Watch the golf channel and the pro tournaments to pick up tips.

  • Set specific goals for the upcoming season.

Wie's void filled by Tadd Fujikawa, relax your swing without drugs or alcohol and how you can play the best courses in the world

January 2009

Click here to listen.




Although Zach Johnson created excitement at the Sony Open winning by a stroke against Toms and Scott, it was fan favorite Tadd Fujikawa whom the cameras followed with the same fervor as when Michelle Wie played here.

And why not? Both Hawaiian teenagers have caused quite a stir with solid length off the tee, hustling to create opportunities to keep them in the game. Wie's claim to fame to date has been her numerous exemptions with slim success into men's events while Fujikawa has earned his way in, with congratulations flowing from guys like 2007 Masters winner Johnson who consider Tadd, "borderline phenom."

Michelle Wie, once considered a "phenom", has finally taken the necessary steps to ingratiate herself with the LPGA Tour, hoping to reinvent herself and get the fans behind her once more. It is nice to see her name listed in the roster. There were huge crowds following Tadd this weekend, hoping to see the short, stout-framed teen make the cut and put pressure on the leaders.

With the season-opening LPGA event in Turtle Bay and Michelle faring well out of the gate, Wie could easily make this combo a one-two Hawaiian punch!



Kidzworld.com thinks these two would make a great couple. "Perhaps he'll hit a growth spurt and she won't wear heels?"




Aside from a blatant man/woman distinction, Golfchannel.com jokingly calls this a "game of inches" noting that Fujikawa almost shot his height this weekend, 62, which would be easier for Wie to do on any given day considering par is a very likely score.

This week we discuss the Fujikawa/Wie phenomenon as well as offer an easy drill from Jim Flick which could help to relax you before a round of golf.

We also talk about the 3-Trak technology behind About Golf high-tech indoor simulators and the PGA Tour's agreement to partner with this innovative leader. With Immersive Play Technology, the PGA Tour hopes that the average golfer will soon be able to actually feel as if they are on golf courses once only available to professional golfers or amateurs with plenty of bucks to spend. But I ask, while in this simulator, can you flip grass into the air to determine the wind direction?

Send your golf questions and comments to golfforbeginners@aol.com.

Subscribe to our weekly podcast through this RSS feed:http://feeds.feedburner.com/golfforbeginners or through iTunes.

Click Here to receive our archived podcasts and 100's of easy golf tips free!

Check us out on MySpace!

"Shiny Tech" courtesy of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)"

This podcast is supported by Arizona Golf Packages, 1-866-444-0992.



Photo Credit: © Kidzworld.com

Don’t forget to check out our golf gift-giving guide!

Top 10 Things I Love about Japan

January 2009
I promise this will be my last post about Japan. I just can't help my enthusiasm after such a great trip there last year. My next two posts will be Congressional and Cypress Point!

The top ten things I love about Japan:

1. The taxi drivers wear a coat and tie and white gloves.



2. Japanese people are genuinely service oriented. Upon arrival at your hotel, the staff comes out and bows to you. If a staff member is nearby as you are getting into or out of an elevator, they will bow to you. Even employees and security agents at Narita airport, one of the busiest in the world, manage to more things along quickly an with respect and a service orientation.

3. The toilets have a button to push which creates a simulated 'courtesy flush' without wasting any water. Not only is it a 'green' thing to do, it's also brilliant. The Japanese fascination with technology and gadgets and something that distinguishes them in the world and only here could you have musical toilet seats.



4. There is no tipping anywhere in the country. Not in taxis, hotels or restaurants. The baristas at your local Starbucks don't have a tip cup out asking for money. It makes life much simpler.

5. The picture of the 1,000 yen note (roughly a $10 bill) features Noguchi Hideyo, was a prominent Japanese bacteriologist who discovered the agent of syphilis disease in 1911.



6. People don't abuse cellphones, assuming that the person on the other end of the phone is deaf. In the week I spent in Japan, I only overheard one person speaking in a loud voice on a cell phone.

7. The average Japanese has 70 cents in credit card debt. The average American has $2,607. We can learn a lot from the Japanese about living within your means.

8. The Imperial Palace sits in the middle of Tokyo and is surrounded by high stone walls and a moat.



9. Narita Airport. Although one of the busiest airports in the world, they treat you like a human being instead of a cow. Going through security is ten minutes, max. Four levels of shops and entertainment including good food, an observation deck on top of the terminal building so you can watch takeoffs and landings. You can get a haircut at Narita 365 days a year. You can rent a baby carriage. It has a medical clinic, pet hotel, playrooms, showers, a post office and a location where you can get a massage.



10. Geisha Girls

The Punjab and the Geisha

Vijay Singh follows in Tiger Woods' footsteps. Sorenstam returns and how to practice the aloha shot at home

January 2009

Click here to listen.




With the feature golf story of 2008 being knee surgery for Tiger Woods, it seems almost ironic that, just after winning the Chevron World Challenge, Vijay Singh would be in a similar predicament. Singh claims that he was hurt during the event but obviously didn't know the extent of his injury.

Waiting for Tiger to arrive at the podium, Vijay cajoled, "Tiger, take your time. Don't come back too early. In fact, take a year off." Isn't Singh aware of the saying, "be careful what you wish for?"

It is said that Singh is looking at a recovery time of about five weeks which puts a comeback a bit closer to the Masters Tournament than should be attempted. I know that it took much longer for my husband, who underwent similar surgery, to be 100% so I doubt that Vijay, even with his ménage of sports trainers, will be in tip-top form.

Following in Tiger Woods' footsteps, in this case, is not necessarily a good thing for Singh as the past several years of developments have kept Singh on Tiger's tail. In 2003 it was Vijay who took the money spot on the PGA Tour away from Woods by almost a million dollars (of course Singh played a third more tournaments than Tiger in order to accomplish this feat.) In 2004 Singh dethroned Woods at the top of the World Rankings, if only for the single year when Tiger battled back.

More recently Tiger won the inaugural FedEx Cup, Singh rallied to take the second cup, both accomplishing their respective goals in similar gung-ho fashion.

Also, did you know that Vijay Singh's name means "Victorious Lion"? Quite a coincidence to Tiger Woods' moniker!. However, in the battle of tiger versus lion, it is theorized that the tiger would be victorious under most conditions.

This week we not only discuss the departure of Vijay Singh but the return of both Tiger Woods and Annika Sorenstam-McGee. Wait a minute, didn't the LPGA superstar recently retire?

Also, in honor of the return of the PGA Tour to Hawaii, we offer a drill to help with the "aloha shot".





Send your golf questions and comments to golfforbeginners@aol.com.

Subscribe to our weekly podcast through this RSS feed:http://feeds.feedburner.com/golfforbeginners or through iTunes.

Click Here to receive our archived podcasts and 100's of easy golf tips free!

Check us out on MySpace!

"Shiny Tech" courtesy of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)"

This podcast is supported by MyrtleBeachGolf.com, 866-409-2177.


Photo Credit: © indrajit.wordpress.com

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Massey Park 10 January 2009

January 2009







Tiger Woods' billion-dollar record, Daly's down-under, winter golf drills

January 2009

Click here to listen.




Fear not Bill Gates! Tiger Woods will not topple the richest man in the world off of his pedestal! Tiger would require about $57 billion in order to achieve this goal but he is certainly on his way! It has been reported that Woods, even with a bum knee and attending only six golf tournaments this year has made (both on and off the course) an estimated $117 million, bringing his total earnings to just under $900 million.

If Tiger plays equally as well in 2009 as he did last season and picks up another sponsor to offset the $50 million loss of his General Motors contract, there is the possibility that Woods could crack the $1 billion mark by the end of the year.

Even if Woods barely grazed the billion dollar ceiling, it is improbable that he would join Gates on the Forbes 400 as "the price of admission … is $1.3 billion for the second year in a row." Heads up, George Steinbrenner, the Tiger is on your tail!

Prediction as to how Tiger Woods will climb the ranks of the world's richest humans? His "mini-tour" will become the place where the top golfers play for high purses, turning the PGA Tour into a shell of its former self.

While Tiger is busy building golf courses and instituting himself as the harbinger of a new age in sports, John Daly is complaining that this is the "lowest point" in his life. At one point, Daly had enough money to gamble away some $50 million but now the US PGA Tour has suspended John, forcing him onto the European Tour to play in their events.

Daly, who has dived to an unimpressive 736 position in the world rankings, should be grateful for this new opportunity to "reinvent himself". Unfortunately, I think the European Tour would be more appreciative if John would continue his antics across the pond. The Australian Tour offers him a pittance, equivalent to about $50,000 of flights and accommodations (and probably all of the beer that he wants) and, in exchange, receives about $3 million in publicity that they certainly would not have had otherwise!

This week, Golf for Beginners talks about Tiger Woods' ranking both on and off the course as well as John Daly's opportunity for a change of pace. We also offer a few golf drills to practice during the cold of winter.





Send your golf questions and comments to golfforbeginners@aol.com.

Subscribe to our weekly podcast through this RSS feed:http://feeds.feedburner.com/golfforbeginners or through iTunes.


Click Here to receive our archived podcasts and 100's of easy golf tips free!

Check us out on MySpace!

"Shiny Tech" courtesy of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)"

This podcast is supported by Arizona Golf Packages, 1-866-444-0992.


Photo Credit: © Smh.com/AP, stopmikelupica.com

Don’t forget to check out our Holiday Gift Giving guide!

Happy New Year

January 2009
Well we made it a another year.  2009 will be an exciting year for The Rim Golf Club.  Since I have started in 2006 the golf course has struggled with water and disease issues.  

Last year was a taste of how the golf course will be managed.  We saved millions of gallons of water by making the necessary adjustments in the field and on our central control system to give us the accuracy we need to apply water most efficiantly.   We lost no grass to disease by following our newly created Integrated Plant Management Program(IPM).  We struggled with excess monsoon rains that collected in some areas in the fairways.  That coupled with 95 degree weather boiled the grass in areas but our drainage program this year shall alleviate some of those issues if it does happen again. 

This year we are still on track to follow our updated IPM program.  We have added the secondary insect damage we recieved late in the summer by Masked Chafers.  We will add a blacklight trap toward the middle of the property to track the adult flight and anticipate the egg laying stage.  We will beable to accurately apply the proper control to avoid any damage this next season.

I look forward to this next year.  We are making strides in converting our decomposed granite soil into a more friendly growing medium by keeping up with our aerification program.  It will be a timely process but the good news is we are starting to make a difference.

This year also brings us the GCSAA show and conference.  This is my chance to expand my knowledge.  I will also be speaking about a portion of our IPM program to 500-1000 of my colleages.  I will focus on our success with Bluegrass Billbug prediction and with my plan of attack for Poa annua control. 

My schedule at the conference will be busy:
2/2/09 Management Strategies for Turfgrass Systems 8am-5pm

2/3/09 Cutting Edge Disease Identification and Management 8am-5pm

2/4/09 Cool Season Turfgrass Insects- Biology, Ecology and Management 8am-5pm

2/5/09 Microscopic Disease Identification 8am-5pm

2/5/09 0600 I will be giving my presentation at the Innovative Superintendent Session I

2/6/09 The Show.  I will be looking at the new equipment for 2009 and gathering ideas and information to make our course better.

If anyone has any questions please feel free to call or send me an email.

Have a great holiday season with your families.

Did women's long drive winner shaft the competition? Things to think about during golf's off-season.

January 2009

Click here to listen.




Recently, a former SWAT team cop from Los Angeles won the golf RE/MAX World Long Drive Championship. The nearest competitor lost by only a few yards in windy conditions and, where some of the challengers didn't seem to mind the outcome, a few had problems with it. Why, you may ask?

By the way, I am not talking about newly crowned RE/MAX long drive champion Jamie Sadlowski, who, with his 160-pound frame, defeated guys almost twice his size with great timing and a convincing hockey-esque style slap shot. Instead, this blog focuses on the controversy surrounding 55-year-old Lana Lawless, a 175-pound transgender who once weighed in at 245-pounds and was considered by law enforcement peers to have a very "tough and mean exterior" as Lawless admits. Lawless took women's RE/MAX honors this year after a narrow defeat at last year's semifinals.

Clubhead speed, not power alone, made the difference in the case of Sadlowski who carried his drive 400 yards. Lawless claims that her muscles have atrophied with the help of drugs that stem the flow of testosterone and that she is, for all intents and purposes, more woman than man. Sure she had drives of over 300 yards but she only bested her nearest opponent, 21-year old former long drive champion Phyllis Meti, by four yards.

About three years ago the Ladies Golf Union, which oversees that British Open, allowed transgenders to compete and Mianne Bagger took them up on their offer, becoming the first transgender since Renee Richards to play a professional sport. Looking at Bagger's 2008 stats, she appears to be a solid player with no advantage over the other players in the field but instead seems to fit right in to the middle of the pack.

The question is then, is there a definitive advantage of transgenders over "real" women and should transgenders be allowed to compete against their "peers"?

Three-time world champion Sean "The Beast" Fister said, "It's not an apples-to-apples deal. Men and women are different." Former women's world long drive champion Lee Brandon added, "if a woman has the knees, hands and feet of a man, she has genetic real estate that is more gifted."

Fox Sports polled the internet asking if it is fair for women who used to be men to compete as women and, out of almost 90,000 respondents, the answer was an overwhelming "No".

Where the average person may have trouble accepting transgenders into the fold, the media has said, "Vive la difference!" with ABC-TV leading the way featuring characters in both "Ugly Betty" and "All My Children". Of course transgenders don't have to physically compete in this platform so the question of athleticism still remains but, as long as proper procedures and guidelines are followed to ensure that transgenders do not have an unfair advantage, I think they should be allowed to compete. However, for those men who cannot adequately compete alongside their own gender and choose to make the switch solely for one-upmanship over the fairer sex, think again. Is the mandatory onsite testing really worth it?

I guess we won't be seeing "Philomena" Mickelson on the LPGA Tour any time soon!

This week on the Golf for Beginners show we not only talk about transgenders making their way onto the sports scene but also offer some great golf tips courtesy of Butch Harmon.






There is still time to get your golfer a gift! Check out our Holiday golf gift-giving guide!

Send your golf questions and comments to golfforbeginners@aol.com.

Subscribe to our weekly podcast through this RSS feed:http://feeds.feedburner.com/golfforbeginners or through iTunes.


Click Here to receive our archived podcasts and 100's of easy golf tips free!

Check us out on MySpace!

"Shiny Tech" courtesy of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)"


This podcast is supported by San Diego Golf Central, 866-825-4094.



Photo Credit: © House of Forged-Whiteshaft, FoxSports.com

2008 The Year in Review

January 2009
We begin with the greatest golf picture of 2008, which is Monty's wedding picture from his second marriage in April. This is such a strong picture that no other pictures were entered for consideration of best picture of 2008. The fan favorite will always hold a special place in my heart.




It has become a tradition of mine to review interesting comments I received throughout the year in my year-end post. One of the most interesting comments I received in 2008 was about my previous write of Medinah. One of my adoring fans wrote, "You, my friend, are nuts". I had criticized the condition of the course in my post, particularly the abundance of poop on the course, to which my gifted visitor wrote: "As for the geese, millions migrate through the area every spring and every fall and have always been a problem for all Chicago area courses. Too bad one didn't drop a turd on your head."

Voila! Although, you spelled 'spectacular' wrong in your comment. Might want to run the spell checker next time.

Another anonymous comment on my Medinah write-up: "You sound like a real tool from NY. Funny as I read your comment about your playing partner. Sounds like he might have been your long lost brother from Queens. Pound sand and stay in NYC."

Thank you for your thoughtful comments, please keep them coming. Alas, you got the wrong borough, I'm afraid. It's Brooklyn.

The biting comments were not limited to domestic readers. Regarding my Muirfield post, one enamoured fan from across the pond asked, I assume rhetorically, "Are you visually impaired, or perhaps lacking knowledge of what constitutes a great golf hole?" Very cheeky.

Touche!

The following anonymous comment is crisp and succinct, "you're a pompous ass......let me guess you are a Scientologist as-well......", although we don't discuss religion or politics on our site.

Another reader had the quintessential visitor experience to The Links Club when he wrote:

"When I entered the bar, instead of being asked what I would like to drink, I was accosted by a waitperson who admonished me that "business papers aren’t allowed here”. Thinking fast, I said, “what, this plain envelope…these aren’t business papers – it is a gift.” I received no drink, but slunk into the library, which was exactly as you described it. I picked up a magazine and hid the offending envelope in its folds and tried to look like I belonged." We feel your pain.

cds#17-2

Cabo del Sol's 17th hole

My super 2008 golfing season started south of the border in Mexico. Cabo del Sol was an ideal starting location to kick off 2008, the Corona factory visible as the plane was landing set the tone for a great year. Spyglass was also a great treat and has the best five starting holes in the game. As a public course, I encourage you to play it if you can.

Things really began to fall into place in April. My visit to the Masters started off a six week stretch where I got to play Pine Valley again, followed in rapid succession by Seminole and my favorite The National Golf Links. I was able to play Oakland Hills prior to the PGA Championship and I enjoyed my visit to The Honors Course in Tennessee.

DSCF2418

The highlight of the year was my golfing adventure to Japan. Readers of recent posts will understand the uniqueness of playing in this part of the world. I have spoken to several others who have completed playing the top 100 in the world and several of them said that aside form Augusta, getting on the private courses of Japan are the next most difficult feat in the quest. Kawana, Naruo and Hirono are all worthy courses in the top 100.

H14 fwy

Hirono's 14th hole


All-in-all, I once again had a great year in 2008 with nine new top 100 courses played and a cumulative total of eighty courses completed.

I'm also glad that I have completed eighty courses prior to the market crash. I'm a lot poorer now that when I began the quest. Hopefully my money will hold out long enough for me the play the last twenty courses. I've had to adjust my habits to my sudden lifestyle reversal. I'm clipping those coupons, comparing the unit prices of everything in the supermarket and loading up on the free tees many clubs offer. The Age of Leverage was a lot more fun than the Age of Deprivation.

I'm looking forward to a productive 2009. Happy New Year to all!



P.S. Loch Lomond is one of the courses I had hoped to play in 2009. Hopefully, its being in receivership and pending sale won't impact my ability to get on the course.
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