The Golfchick

That chick blabbing about anything golf related.

Author: golfchick (page 6 of 46)

Mesquite Am Early Bird Deadline Tomorrow! (Make that Today)

March 31, 2011 / / 1 Comment

Thanks so much to those of you who have already signed up for the Mesquite Am – we have a good looking group coming together of “golf chick participants.” How do I know? I’ve met some of you and I have to assume anyone who signs up for this must be good looking. Heh. Oh, plus we’re already at about 60 people in our group, so the statement also applies to size! Plenty of room for more though!

Tomorrow Today is the last day to get in on the the early bird deals! If you sign up by Midnight (Pacific Time) on March 31 (I guess that would actually be 11:59:59 PM), you get the discounted entry fee of $475 and get entered into the Golf Chick drawing for a chance to win your hotel stay free. On April 1, the entry fee goes up to $525, and the Mesquite Am will draw the name from all the golfchick participants for the complimentary hotel stay winner (stay tuned – I will let you know!)

Guests and parties

Also – I noticed several of you are bringing non-golfing guests, which is great. We will have adequate seating for all of us reserved at the tent on welcoming night. After that, we’re on our own at night and can sit wherever we want. For those of you who still haven’t signed up, guests can join the nightly parties for $125 (that doesn’t change on April 1). There is also plenty for non-golfers to do during the day which will be listed in the program.

Let’s get together!

Speaking of nightly parties, would anyone be interested in all of us going out somewhere together after dinner that first night? I was thinking of maybe getting a shuttle bus or something and hitting the town for a couple hours – something casual like a lounge with live entertainment, billiards, darts, or even karaoke – just so we can get to know each other a little bit before we go off to our pairings for the tournament. Please let me know if you’re interested in the comments so others can see what you’re saying. Also, anyone who has registered, please don’t assume I have your email address – if you haven’t contacted me, I don’t. I may be contacting golfchick participants aside from this blog so please make sure I have your email address. If you leave a comment, I can get it that way, or you can always send me a note to kristen(at)thegolfchick(dot)com.

We’re going to have so much fun. I can’t wait to see or meet you in Mesquite in a couple months! Spread the word!

Sign up here (don’t forget to enter “golf chick” at the bottom of the form either in the “promotion code” or “how did you hear about the event” box!

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Getting Fitted for my Green Jacket

March 29, 2011 / / 8 Comments

The long awaited, much hyped new EA Sports game was finally released to the public today: Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 12: The Masters. That’s right, we can all now finally play Augusta, at least in the virtual world. The game is available in stores today and if you pre-ordered it, it’ll be on the way. It’s available for X-Box, PlayStation and Wii, which is what I went with.

In order to play Augusta, you have to use a pro avatar or work your way up through the Tour and earn your way there using your own profile. As far as I know, you cannot bring Tour experience from an earlier game version to help get you there. So, since we all want to play the course as soon as we get our hands on the game, we’ll be playing as one of the pros at first, right? I went with Suzann Pettersen. She seems like a cool chick and I have heard great things about her fun personality.

Right away, you’ll notice a few new things besides the course.

As the game is loading, it asks to set up your balance board. I wish I had one – that would make the game even more real! (Update: Twitter friend @ToddLewiSS just told me that board only had a usable width of about 16.5″, so at 5’11”, my stance is a bit wider than that. As he pointed out, it might be fun to use for little chip shots but not for a full swing. I’ll have to think about whether or not I want to invest in this after all.)

Next, you have a caddie! Not just the Tour pros, either. When I create my own avatar (and I will), she will also have a caddie, whose own course knowledge will grow as my own experience progresses. Also, see that tee looking thingy next to my caddie in the pic above? Yep, you can re-position yourself within the teebox for better angles. Pretty cool.

Another tricky thing you may notice is that the wind actually swirls around on some holes! Careful with those shots. You may pick a club and a shot and by the time you swing the wind changed direction. Yeah, just like real golf! Only on the course, you don’t have the handy-dandy wind icon that tells you which direction and how hard it’s blowing. Just a cool little feature, I thought.

So, how did I do? Well, with swing settings on advanced, nice weather, Thursday pins and precision putting selected, here’s how “we” did:

As you can see, I had an eagle, a birdie and two bogies heading at the turn…

But then I made two birdies on Amen Corner alone! Had a three putt bogey in there and a couple good par saves. So what if the scorecard shows you going “out” on both sides? We know what they mean!

So thanks, Suzann, for being so reliable out there. And for having such a great caddy. He gave me a lot of good advice.

I recommend when you play this, you listen to your caddy! I liked figuring out my shots and THEN asking for advice to see if we agreed. Surprisingly, we usually did!

By the way, I do use the Wii Motion Plus on my controller, but that’s not all. I also have a Chicken Stick, which makes it feel much more like playing golf for real. It has a real grip and partial shaft, and the weight of the controller and motion plus in the device just about feels like the weight of an iron.  (You activate the b button by pulling that ring behind the club.) Awesome. You need one of these: Bad Chicken Wii Chick Stick Golf Club

Stay tuned as I will be posting progress reports with my own player and how I progress. Going to start on Tour and earn my way to Augusta this time.

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Potential LPGA / PGA Partnership – About More than Combined Tourney

March 16, 2011 / / 5 Comments

A few months ago, I posted a sort-of teaser about more to come regarding Tour players’ thoughts on having a combined PGA/LPGA event. Those conversations I mentioned did not happen. Players clammed up after there seemed to be some backlash against those in favor of the idea.

However, now it seems there may be more going on behind the scenes. Not just a combo tournament, it seems some higher-ups are tossing around plans/ideas that involve the PGA assuming responsibility for the LPGA Tour in at least some capacity. And now that someone with some serious clout is writing about it (see Ron Sirak’s Golf Digest article here), maybe players will be more likely to speak up as well. We shall see. What do you think of the idea(s)?

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Snowshoe Golf!

February 27, 2011 / / 4 Comments

Since it’s snowing here tonight for the first time since 1989, I thought it a fitting time to tell you about my snowshoe golf experience. That’s right. I said snowshoe golf. What else do you do when there’s 4 feet of snow on the golf course?

snowshoe golf hole

Earlier this month, I went to McCall, Idho to see my sister. It was during the town’s famous Winter Carnival,office dog when tourists pour in and make the tiny town burst. There are all sorts of things to see and do – live music, incredible snow sculptures, comedy, hockey, theater (my sister was the lead in this year’s play), snow bike race, snowmobiling, casino night, even a “monster dog pull.” *Side note: McCall is an extremely dog friendly town, which I love. Businesses have ads in the phone book to showcase the “shop dog.”* But what was I most excited about? Of course it was the snowshoe golf!

I had never heard of such a thing but thought it sounded like terrific fun. They set the snowshoe golf course up at the city course – McCall Golf Club (which, during the winter, transforms into an outdoor winter sports venue for sledding, cross country skiing, and more – and of course dogs are welcome).

They charge $20, and all net proceeds goes to local charities. For your 20 clams, you also get a souvenir cap. You can bring your own snowshoes or use some of theirs. They give you a couple tennis balls, a styrofoam cup, offer you a club or two (why two?) if you didn’t bring your own, and set you on your way. The cup is used to pack snow to make a tee, kinda like they used to do with dirt before tees were invented (bonus trivia tidbit for you). I went with my awesome fraunt (friend/aunt) Jo, who is a local and an all around winter sports fiend! Yep, she even curls. So after a quick stop at the bar for bloody marys, we strapped on our snowshoes and headed to the first tee. Jo had never played golf before and I had never used snowshoes before. Good pair.

Surprise! It’s hard to hit a tennis ball with a golf club off the snow!

Guess what? You don’t want to hit down on the ball. Doh! That was a struggle for me the whole round. You want to try to hit the middle of the back of the tennis ball with the edge of the club. I think I had a 6 iron. Seems to me a hybrid/utility club might be more suited to this game. Most of my tee shots were decent but beyond that, it was rough out there. We were looking for the beverage cart to refresh our drinks after the first hole. I mentioned that to the group we caught up with on the next tee and they called in our order and let us play through. JJ himself delivered our refills on the next hole. What service!

beverage cart

The nine-hole course is set up to direct the snowshoe traffic away from the regular tees and greens.  According to the “course architect,” James Johnson, the ball distance is about 1/3, so they set up the holes in feet rather than yards. This year they had 3 par 3’s (100 – 125′), 3 par 4’s (275 – 350′), and 3 par 5’s (400-475′). Par is 36.  The actual holes are buckets dug into the snow with flags next to them.  In case you want to set something like this up at your course, JJ says they try to make it interesting by routing fairways through natural paths through trees and placing greens next to trees and hazards, and using contours. They also use the plowed paths as “water” hazards – play the ball as it lies without grounding club, or take a drop and add a stroke. (Or toss it out and forget it was ever in there, like we did.) One day they had a tournament and the low score was 41. I’m guessing that guy has done this before. I think I shot in the high 60s!

showshoe golf fun

Does it look like I had any fun? I made a promise to Jo that I would come back next year for some more. Looking forward to it already! I’ve got more photos from the trip up on facebook if you’re interested.

Here is a video from a couple years ago put together by one of the event’s former sponsors. Enjoy! www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFb6pa8FGCI

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Kikkor Golf Shoes – Awesome New Kicks

February 25, 2011 / / 4 Comments

Have you heard of Kikkor Golf? If not, it’s time you did.

I’m just a chick who loves shoes (aren’t we all?)… so I was on high alert for news out of the PGA Show about shoes. I took notice of Kikkor Golf because they’re storming on the scene with a fresh new look not seen elsewhere in the golf shoe arena. Think young, think hip, think shoes you’d wear OFF the course. I immediately wanted some so of course I tweeted that sentiment. Next thing I know, I get an email with a shipping notification that said “Your box of awesomeness is on its way!” Two days later, I’m sporting these:

Kikkor Golf Tenny White Classic

When they asked me which ones I wanted, I felt like a kid in a candy store. So many fun colors and styles! Ultimately, I chose the Kikkor Tenny in White Classic because they looked so comfortable I thought I’d want to wear them a lot and white goes with more outfits.

I opened the box and was immediately delighted with not only the look, but the smell. I picked a bad day to stop sniffing glue. Talk about fresh off the line!

Then I put them on. Ohhhh… joy. They are like wearing pillows. But solid pillows, you know? Gotta have good support to feel confident out there in your stance. Not too many golf shoes are immediately comfortable. I can’t wait to wear them out on the course. I will get into more details about their special spike technology and performance once I put them in play.

A quick style note: These shoes are versatile! The fashionable skate-look can and will look good off the course. Once you wear the spikes down, you’ve got a cool new pair of street shoes. Then you just have to go golf shoe shopping again. Oh, the horror! I have my eye on the Tenny Clayburn already.

Also… sneaky clever! I  really dig the logo… looks like a spike and mirrored K’s for Kikkor all at once.  Kudos to the designer!

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Swag & Prizes for Mesquite Am Golf Chick Participants

February 22, 2011 / / 0 Comments

As I have mentioned, The Golf Chick is one of the sponsors at this year’s Mesquite Amateur Tournament.  (There is still time to sign up before the early bird deadline – March 31 – and be entered in the drawing to receive a complimentary hotel stay!) By the way, if you already registered and forgot to write “Golf Chick” in the comments, you can still get in on this if you let us know you meant to or otherwise heard about the tournament from The GolfChick.

Last year, all the ladies in the event received a GolfChick divot repair tool and one lucky raffle winner received an Ogio stand bag. Big thanks and shout-out to LeaderPromos.com for providing those items! If any of you noticed my snazzy GolfChick cap – that was also their handiwork.

This year, everyone who signs up using the Golf Chick in their registration entry will receive some special bonus swag items and be automatically entered into some fun side contests that will include prizes for guys, girls & couples. I’m working with some vendors on making up some cool stuff but I’m going to let it be a surprise to you! I am also considering holding an interactive contest that will involve participants’ voting for a winner – so to be ready for that, be sure to follow @TheGolfChick on twitter and on my new facebook page.

We are also looking at setting up a get-together/outing one evening for our group and anyone who wants to join us. There is already so much going on there, this will depend on interest. Feel free to comment here with your thoughts & ideas or email me. I will also be in touch via email to registered participants as plans develop.

This is going to be so much fun. We have a good group started already and I look forward to meeting you all (or seeing you again). I hope to see a bunch more people sign up with us!

If anyone has items they would like to provide for either the swag bag or prize items, please email me at kristen (at) thegolfchick (dot) com to discuss it!

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The Golf Chick is Finally on Facebook

February 10, 2011 / / 7 Comments

I’ve actually had a personal Facebook account for awhile, but I keep my friends to actual real-life friends and family. Every time someone else asked me if I had a Facebook page I’ve responded with something like “gee, I really need to create one for The Golf Chick, don’t I?” Well, I finally did. It only took me six years!

Am I too late? Have I neglected this site and Facebook too much? Will people still show up? I guess we’ll find out. But at least now when someone I don’t really know asks to connect with me on Facebook, they can.

And, of course, we always have Twitter. You can find me there at www.twitter.com/TheGolfChick (@TheGolfChick)

I also have a YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/TheGolfChick) I haven’t used much but I do have some fun videos there. And look out for more in the future. I must be ramping up for something, right? (c:

I hope you’ll say hello if you stop by any of these social sites. You can “like” me on Facebook, “follow” me on Twitter, and of course, you can always say hi right here on the blog as well!

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Warm Your Golf Balls – Great Test on Video

January 10, 2011 / / 11 Comments

The guys at Cleobury Golf Club are putting out some entertaining and informative videos for us all to enjoy (and learn something).

If you’re an avid reader of all things golf, you’ve likely seen studies and comparisons of different golf balls, their construction and performance. If you’re an average (and typical) golfer, you probably ignore most of the data and just think you MUST have the Titleist ProV or ProV1. Well you’re free to spend your clams however you like. I won’t even mock you for it. As you may know from other posts here, I’m a believer that golf is mostly a mental game, and if you THINK you play better with the most expensive golf ball used by so many Tour players, you just might. (Here is an article with lots of information on different golf balls, if you’re interested.)

That being said, if distance is your priority and you’re a mid-handicapper with a slower swing speed (whether you admit it or not), you’re better off with a 2-piece ball. Plus, you’ll save a lot of money. The video here from the Cleobury guys shows the difference in distance of 2- and 3-piece balls by just such a player. But what I found more interesting was the test on the temperature of the golf balls. I’d heard that if you keep your balls warm, they’ll perform better but I can’t recall ever seeing a video test or even reading any research on it (not to say it doesn’t exist). I think I may have even heard it from an LPGA player – Paula Creamer, perhaps. Great to see the distance theory proved here.

These guys obviously have fun making these videos, which you can see more of on their youtube channel.

Another one I particularly like is “How to Repair a Pitch Mark Correctly.” Not funny, just informative. I can’t count how many times I’ve seen people do it wrong and correct them. Don’t pull UP (the guy in the vid even messes up his first pull in the “do-it-right” segment but corrects it nicely). I’m a big advocate for taking care of greens.

Keep the videos coming guys, and good work!

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Michelle Wie Kia Commercial

December 21, 2010 / / 6 Comments

I’m pretty sure the casual viewer doesn’t put nearly this much thought into it and maybe at the most decide whether they prefer this commercial or the one with the hamsters. (I love the drummer hamster!)

And here’s the link to it on YouTube in case the embed code fails (as I know they do on here from time to time).

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Interesting Idea for Golf Tours to Collaborate

December 14, 2010 / / 4 Comments

Iain Carter, BBC 5 Live’s golf correspondent, posted some interesting thoughts yesterday on his blog on how the men’s and women’s golf tours could work together. Pro golfer (former Women’s British Open Champion) Karen Stupples shared her thoughts with him via twitter and I thought it was an intriguing idea:

“45 men 45 women. Alternating groups of men and women. Men’s yardage, women’s yardage. No cut, place according to score all one division not separate.”

There were some horrifying comments left by readers that illustrate how sexism is alive and well – not just in golf. This is an issue that never fails to ruffle my feathers, to say the least. I will be posting more about this after I talk to Ms. Stupples when she gets back in the states and perhaps some other pro golfers as well. I’d love to get some of your thoughts if you care to share them. Opinions are welcome – yes, even if they’re contrary to my own – but please keep it classy.

Meanwhile, here is a post of mine from awhile back with some of my thoughts on sexism in golf.

You can also follow Karen Stupples on twitter @KStupples , Iain Carter @IainCarterGolf , and me @TheGolfChick

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