For years, the PGA Tour’s slogan has been,  “these guys are good.” And, it could not be more true.

Legions of people aspire to swing, look, and play just like their touring idols. And why not?

They get to play a game they love all year round, at the greatest golf courses in the world, and, if they’re good enough, they can become financially set for the rest of their lives.

Call it what you wish: a dream, a hope, or an aspiration. They’re good, and they get to play golf for a living. But, at the end of the day, they’re still human.

For the rest of us, Twitter has become an excellent way to connect with our athletic heroes on a one-to-one, real time level. Sure, you could always appear at a tournament and hope to get your cap signed by a pro, and perhaps catch a couple of seconds of conversation.

But, Twitter has allowed – in either a good way or bad – for fans to become more immersed in the lives of professional athletes than ever. And that’s just it, they have lives.

Why now, for a post like this?

Earlier today, I noticed that Ian Poulter, Graeme McDowell, Brandt Snedeker, and Tom Watson were shooting a commercial for MasterCard together and, quite frankly, their social banter was hilarious.

It was likely part of a social campaign by MasterCard to have the men include #Priceless into their tweets – which makes sense. Whenever a brand has socially-active assets at its disposal, they would be wise to use them – but, given each man’s natural gift of the gab, it made for some entertainment nonetheless.

A few selections of the best tweets are below, but I don’t think that anyone could top Poulter’s – one of the best athletes on Twitter, let alone golfers – where he mentions that Tom Watson just asked him to join the U.S. Ryder Cup team.

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In Touch –

[audio https://adamstanley.ca/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/podcast-no3.mp3 ]

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Hitting the Links – 

On anchoring. The PGA Tour vs. the rest of golf (ESPN UK)

Giving back, through golf. Nice story here (Toronto Observer)

Inbee Park wins LPGA event in Thailand after a disastrous final hole for Ariya Jutanugarn (Golf Channel)

The Ryder Cup signs it’s first global sponsor (Global Golf Post)

In honour of the Oscars, Golf Digest pulled together the top-15 golf scenes in movies of all time. My favourite is here (Golf Digest)

Who is the best American golfer without a major? Just a hint, it’s not Matt Kuchar (Yahoo! Devil Ball)

The LPGA: the most fan-friendly sports league in the world (Golf.com)

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Photo of the Week – 

A lot of golf contests have popped up this last week – likely in anticipation of the imminent season and the official kick-off to spring.

This is a welcome sight for many Canadians who haven’t had the opportunity to escape anywhere warm this winter.

See below for a round-up. Click on the hyperlinks for your chance to enter, or find out more.

FootJoy

An opportunity to win a pair of its new M-Project golf shoes.

Cabot Links

The acclaimed layout in Inverness, N.S. is rebuilding its pub/restaurant and is giving away a $100 voucher – and eternal bragging rights –  to the person who comes up with the winner.

Flagstick Golf Magazine

Flagstick will be running a contest in two weeks for a chance to win one of five pairs of tickets to the Ottawa-Gatineau Golf Expo, happening March 8-9 at the EY Centre in Ottawa. For more details on how to enter, follow @Flagstick on Twitter.

Prior to the Ottawa-Gatineau Golf Expo ticket giveaway, they are also giving away a Golf Channel ‘Morning Drive’ prize package this week. More details on how to enter  here.

Harry Rosen

Harry Rosen, in partnership with TaylorMade and Porter Airlines are giving Canadians a chance to play & travel to Myrtle Beach in style in their “Dressed for the Nines” contest.

Toronto Golf & Travel Show

Toronto.com is giving away four pairs of tickets to the Toronto Golf & Travel Show happening March 1-3.

Modern Golf

On the Toronto Golf Nuts forum, the guys at Modern Golf are offering a chance to join their 2013 equipment review panel. This would be an awesome opportunity for any big club geeks out there. It’s happening next Sunday.

There has been a lot of discussion of late – specifically since the anchored putter debate has come to the forefront – about the rules of golf. Who should follow which set, why are there different governing bodies, and will specific changes cause golf to lose participants are just some of the queries being raised. I have some thoughts on this, but, to come in a later post. For now, check out this piece written for Golf.com by the CEO of Achushnet Wally Uihlen. An interesting perspective: http://bit.ly/XODlSB

The Tom Doak & Bill Coore/Ben Crenshaw designed Streamsong Resort in Florida garnered a ton of buzz in late 2012 and early 2013 in the lead up to it’s grand opening. From early reports, the layout is nothing short of spectacular. I’d love to get down there as part of a tantalizing triangle of pure golf – Cabot Links, Bandon Dunes, and Streamsong – but alas, a bucket list item it will stay (for the immediate future at least). In the meantime, there were two great pieces on the destination written this week. One from ScoreGolf’s Rick Young, and the other from Sports Illustrated’s Michael Bamberger. Check out the ScoreGolf piece here: http://bit.ly/YMDiHO and the Sports Illustrated piece here: http://bit.ly/UgdAyx

Given the ridiculous weather in the Arizona desert which caused the first round of the WGC-Accenture World Match Play Championship to be postponed – a snow storm(!) – it should come as no surprise that there was criticism for the Tour’s venue choice. This is the second time in three years that there has been a snow delay in what was supposed to be the friendly confines of the southern United States. Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard has a nice take on where and why to change the venue: http://bit.ly/15w4Vvf

We’ll be ‘in touch’ again on Monday. Keep ’em straight.

Oh, and here’s Graeme McDowell doing his best Scott-Smalls-from-The-Sandlot impression –

The world we live in has become increasingly – almost entirely – digital and for better or worse, publishers of the written word have had to adapt to this fact.

There are saddening stories of bookshops going out of business, and printed novels, magazines, and newspapers being eliminated completely; however, with this comes exciting new formats for people to engage with content of their choosing.

The world of golf has not been immune to this change, and a very recent example of an intriguing digital-only publication is Golf Digest’s weekly online update, appropriately called STIX.

STIX made its debut in late January, and has already gained a lot of successful traction in the golf world.

It features content from both Golf Digest and Golf World’s contributors and focuses on golf equipment, gadgets, fashion, and apparel. Simply put, the kind of golfer who would be active in the digital space, would likely be interested with these kinds of stories.

No long-reads here.

Quarter page stories, vibrant photography, videos, and shareable content reigns supreme here. It’s simple, mobile format is perfect for the golfer on-the-go.

STIX has regular features including “Winner’s Bag” (from the previous Sunday), style suggestions from Golf Digest fashion editor Marty Hackel, reviews of new equipment and breakdowns of equipment trends, video segments of industry insiders (this week’s was on Callaway CEO Chip Brewer), and debates on equipment rules.

It’s a great way to connect with a youthful, high-tech demographic that golf has struggled with.

“This is the first time we’ve had a platform like this to showcase the vast knowledge of our equipment and fashion editors on a weekly basis,” said Golf Digest Senior Editor Peter Finch in a release.

“We have the best equipment and fashion editors in the industry, and it’s great to have a place where all this information can converge.”

From a Canadian publication perspective, there have been a lot of digital inroads  in recent years – many publications are offering online versions of their print issues, smartphone or tablet applications,  and mobile websites – but, it will be interesting to see if any publications will try to go the route of Golf Digest and build another digital-only property.

Golf Digest regularly updates its website, and continues to put out a monthly printed edition. I would argue, though, it’s their digital prowess that sets them apart from other golf publications.

Their tablet application is wonderfully interactive. Users are not just reading anymore, they are experiencing. Content is king, as they say. But the vehicle that content is delivered is becoming more frequently in the digital kingdom, and we’re the subjects.

If you’re interesting in subscribing to Golf Digest STIX, click here

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Hitting the Links –

Day 1 of the WGC-Accenture World Match Play finally got underway today after a snowstorm delay yesterday. This is what happened to my bracket after the matches completed. That’s golf.

Ian Poulter makes an appearance in this month’s British GQ (GQ UK)

Cabot Links wants you to name its renovated pub. My submission? “Shots” (Cabot  Links Facebook)

Harry Rosen, in partnership with Porter Airlines & TaylorMade, want to sent you golfing in Myrtle Beach in style (Harry Rosen)

Stacy Lewis keeps up her strong play in 2012. Leads the LPGA event in Thailand (Golf Channel)

The newest edition of The Haney Project – featuring Olympian Michael Phelps – is set to debut Feb 25 (CTV News)

One more Brad Fritsch profile. This one from Farhan Devji (Carleton J-School Grad!) (Ottawa Citizen)

On this chilly late-February day, it is odd to be commenting on the kind of winter weather that is usually reserved for Canada in context of the Arizona-based WGC-Accenture World Match Play Championship.

But, as it goes, for the second time in three years, there a cold front swept through Dove Mountain, causing the first round of the Match Play Championship to be cancelled earlier Wednesday because of a myriad of poor weather – hail, freezing rain, and snow.

This caused toques to be strapped on, rain gear to be worn, and Martin Kaymer’s infamous buff (or ‘snood’) to make a return.

The buff first debuted at the 2011 Match Play Championship. Kaymer donned one during his quarter, semi, and final matches.

Kaymer, who was on the cusp of becoming the no.1 player in the world after winning the 2010 PGA Championship, went on to lose the final to Luke Donald 3 & 2. 

It caused quite a fashion-forward discussion among the khaki-clad broadcasting contingent, before the resident style expert for golf Marty Hackel was brought in and set the world straight via a tweet – “Kaymer’s scarf is called a Buff and was designed by Vaughn Cochran at Black Fly Outfitters,” he said.

Immediately, hundreds of clicks hit the website, and according to some reports, Black Fly Outfitters claimed over 1,000 new orders on the buff in a 24-hour time span, at $23 a piece.

Black Fly Outfitters, according to its website, is the brain child of husband and wife team Vaughn and Jean Cochran, located in northern Florida. It’s a specialty fly-fishing shop, and a buff is cylindrical piece of cloth that can be rolled up into any variety of configurations depending on your activity and weather conditions.

The particular buff that Kaymer wore in 2011 is the Tarpon Fly UV Fishing Buff, made with a fabric called Coolmax Extreme, meant to help block 95% of UV rays and wick away sweat.

The point of one in Arizona this week (and 2011) – which seems ironic, given the normal desert conditions – would be to keep a player warm.

Although not wearing the more recognizable ‘Blackfly’ design from 2011, Kaymer’s 2013 selection appears to also be another Cochran version.

A photo – attributed to GolfWRX – shows Kaymer clearly wearing the buff, and considering the day’s weather and predicted forecast the next few days,  it might prove to be a valuable piece of Kaymer’s wardrobe.

Kaymer, the elegant German sponsored by Hugo Boss, sporting a fisherman’s neck-piece at a World Golf Championship event. Why not? If it works, it works.

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Hitting the Links – 

A buff may come in handy for us Canadian golfers. If you’re interested in purchasing one, you can from Black Fly’s website

If the snow keeps up, the PGA Tour should just rename this tournament the WGC-Instagram Match Play Championship. Check out the feeds of Ian Poulter, Keegan Bradley, and Rickie Fowler for on-site pictures of today’s storm.

Another nice profile on Brad Fritsch, who will be dropping the puck at the Ottawa Senators game tomorrow night (CBC)

Steve Stricker and Jim Furyk comment on the proposed anchored putting ban (Yahoo!)

Lorne Rubenstein with his own take on the matter as well (Globe & Mail)

Really fun interview with Lee Trevino here by Kyle Porter (CBS Sports)

A legal despuite is ongoing for the land on which the golf course for the 2016 Olympics will be built in Rio (Canadian Press)

PGA Tour Canada announces the opening of its Q-School registration. 40 cards up for grabs (PGA Tour Canada)

 

It seemed at the outset that the WGC-Accenture World Match Play Championship was to be positioned as golf’s version of March Madness.

Cinderella stories, office bracket pools, major upsets, and dynasty champions were set to be the norm.

It hasn’t worked out necessarily this way for the PGA Tour, but match play golf seems to bring out the best in golfers, and brings the game back to a simpler time.

And for the fans, the only thing predictable about the Match Play Championship is that it’s unpredictable.

As the top 64 players in the world get set to tee off at the Jack Nicklaus-designed Ritz-Carlton Club in Dove Mountain, each man arguably has just as good a shot to win as the other.

The only reason why there are numbers separating them is because of world ranking. Even that means very little.

The lowest-ranked seed to ever win the event was Kevin Sutherland, who dusted the field in 2002 as the 62nd-ranked player in the field – right in the heart of the prime Tiger Woods era – prior to Woods winning the event twice in a row.

When Golf.com published a list of their top 10 Match-Play golfers of all-time, it’s hard not to notice that eight of the ten photos are black and white. Many tournaments, including majors, were once contested in a match play format.

That’s since been abolished save for once a year in a regular tournament, and then annually in the Presidents and Ryder Cups.

There’s a simple reason for why this has occurred. Sometimes, the best players don’t win. Ratings drop. It’s exciting golf, without a doubt. But there are 64 men who at any point could emerge victorious and, no offense to most of the field, for a golf tournament that is so singularly-focused on one match as the rounds go on, it could become a ratings nightmare.

That said, there is also a chance that the Match Play Championship could come down to a clash of titans. Rory vs. Tiger. Keegan Bradley vs. Ian Poulter.

Compelling golf and compelling characters.

But the days of Hogan, Nelson, Snead, and Hagen are behind us.  Dominance, as I touched on yesterday, is of a collective nature now. The lower-ranked seeds have just as good an opportunity to win as the higher-ranked seeds.

This is good for golf. But is it bad for golf?

The Match Play Championship is an anomaly on the PGA Tour season because one man needs only to beat five other men to win the title, not 100+, as is usually the case week in and week out on the PGA Tour.

Your best one day still couldn’t be better than your opponents. Or, your worst could be better than your opponents’ worst and you’d be victorious.

It’s this unpredictability that makes this week in Arizona an intriguing one. The golf will be exciting, no matter who is playing. 

A match gets lit with a spark, and despite a good start to the PGA Tour season thus far, the Match Play Championship is the spark this season needs.

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Hitting the Links –

The fourth annual Joe Carter Golf Classic returns to Toronto’s Eagle’s Nest (CNW)

Oops. Cricket star breaks is ‘bat’ on a buddies golf trip (The Sun)

Callaway Golf Canada names it’s new GM (Golf News Now)

Viral video of the day. But wait, is that cup regulation size or what?! (Digital Spy)

Britney Spears hits Sherwood for a round with her new golf-nut boyfriend. Golf’s becoming so TMZ-relevant (Entertainment Wise)

An oldy, but this is Martin Kaymer’s buff from the 2011  final against Luke Donald.The coolest fashion trend to come out of Dove Mountain. And I want one (BlackFly Outfitters)

Man blinded in one eye sues golfer. That’s about the story (BBC)

There’s more to Orlando than just Disney. Plus, you might see Arnold Palmer (Globe & Mail)

In fairytale fashion, local California kid John Merrick was victorious yesterday at the Northern Trust Open.

With Bill Haas primed to join elusive company as a back-to-back winner at Riviera, it was Merrick who closed with a 2-under 69 and overtook Haas, the overnight leader.

Merrick needed extra holes to do so, and ended up beating 2012 PGA Tour winner Charlie Beljan in a playoff.

After the round, Merrick explained how much winning this tournament meant to him: “growing up as a kid I went to a lot of these tournaments and played a lot of rounds at UCLA and to win in my hometown it’s amazing. It’s a dream come true. I can’t believe it – it hasn’t sunk in yet.”

Certainly, it was a win with meaning for the 30-year-old Merrick.

However, it was Beljan who stole the headlines with his post round comments, going so far as to compare the 10^th hole at Riviera – where they played the second playoff hole, and Beljan succumbed to Merrick – to a local mini-putt layout.

“It’s just a tough hole to have a playoff on. We might as well go and put a windmill out there and hit some putts.”

Riviera is revered. It’s considered one of the greatest courses in the world. The par 4 tenth, the hole subject to Beljan’s comment, is consistently ranked as one of the best golf holes on tour.

Beljan is of course entitled to his own opinion about the layout and any other subject matter he so chooses – America and Canada are free countries and freedom of speech is allowed, if not encouraged.

But, this is not the first time that Beljan will have got in some hot water for his comments. Just last year his time on Twitter was cut short (he’s since returned) after calling American President Barak Obama “the biggest D Bag this country has ever seen.”

Beljan has had personal struggles in the past – his dealings with anxiety and panic attacks are well documented – but he’s managed to overcome them and become a winner on the PGA Tour.

As a professional athlete – although his previous diet suggested otherwise; apparently he disliked food and ate Subway once a day – his statements on politics and putting surfaces got put into a brighter spotlight than normal.

For Beljan, it will be a long RV ride to his next tournament in Florida, and perhaps some time to think about his comments.

But he did leave with a nice consolation gift from Riviera. After playing on Saturday with Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson, he got their autographs.

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In Touch –

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Hitting the Links –

David Hueber has written a PhD dissertation on what is being called ‘the most comprehensive analysis of U.S. golf course development ever produced’ (Global Golf Post)

Tiger Woods joins Barack Obama for a round of golf in Florida (National Post)

David Feherty appeared on The Late Show (Golf Channel)

Bernhard Langer goes wire-to-wire at the Champions Tour ACE Group Classic (Golf Channel)

Lydia Ko finishes third at the LPGA season opener. Will not turn pro (South China Morning Post)

Any suggestions? Dude has 15,000 golf balls and doesn’t know what to do with them. Obviously, he asks the internet (Reddit)

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Picture of the Week – 

If you’ve not yet read this profile by Sports Illustrated golf write John Garrity yet, you’re missing out. It’s an absolutely fantastic piece of writing on David Feherty, and it’s well worth a look: http://bit.ly/ZaW3dR

A nice piece here from PGATOUR.com contributor Fred Albers on Mike Weir. He’s got quite a lot of support to get back to his form of old, and not just from Canadians: http://bit.ly/YsVhTB

Finally, Jason Logan (editor for ScoreGolf magazine, and fellow Carleton University j-school graduate!) does a great interview with PGA Tour rookie Brad Fritsch, and his quick start to 2013: http://bit.ly/WLTE72 

We’ll be ‘in touch’ again on Monday. Keep ’em straight.

Matt Kuchar, the affable 15-year pro, shot a 7-under-par 64 today to take the lead on the opening day of the Northern Trust Open, hosted at Riviera Country Club.

Giving chase to Kuchar are the likes of Sergio Garcia, former world number one Lee Westwood, and rookie-sensation James Hahn.

However, Kuchar is not the star of the first day, nor will anyone be for the following three.

No, it’s Riviera itself that will play that role.

Riviera has played host to three major championships, and since the 1940s has been the primary host to the Northern Trust Open (formerly the Nissan Los Angeles Open, formerly the Los Angeles Open).

After opening in 1926 – the iconic Dr. Alister Mackenzie having a hand in the initial design and course plan – it’s fabled fairways have been home to Hollywood-types and the best golfers in the world ever since.

A handful of modifications have been made over time, most notably by the design team of Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore, they of Sand Hills, Bandon Preserve, and Streamsong fame, however for the most part, the integrity of the course has been maintained.

I’m no expert on golf course design and critique (for that, read here or here), but while watching on television, you can’t help but get a sense of familiarity with Riviera; a sense that you too could play there and enjoy the golfing experience.

Living through the wintery Toronto tundra, it’s the ultimate tease to see tour professionals descend on the vistas of Pebble Beach, Kapalua, and Torrey Pines at the beginning of the year.

However, if I was ever played at one of the aforementioned famed golfing institutions, I would be thoroughly distracted.

Would I enjoy myself? Of course. But Riviera, I could relate to, I could make my way around.

The first hole is a straight away par 5 of 503 yards. The tenth, a 315 yard par 4. And the third, although measured at 236 yards from the back tees, was once called “the greatest par 3 hole in America” by Ben Hogan.

Hogan should know. The place has been dubbed Hogan’s Alley as The Hawk triumphed there in 1947 and 1948 at the L.A. Open. And at the 1948 U.S. Open which was also contested at ‘The Riv,’ as the locals call it.

When Hogan made his return to golf in 1950 after the horrific car accident that nearly took his life, it was the L.A. Open at Riviera where he debuted.

Mike Weir, one of the shortest hitters on tour, has won at Riviera twice. He once told Globe & Mail golf writer Lorne Rubenstein that, “he plans every year not to try to drive the 10^th, but that the temptation is so great when he gets to the tee in the tournament he has to give it a shot.”

There’s one compelling hole after another. It’s a thinking-man’s golf course. And, the immaculate piece of property carries with it the mystique of modern and historical legends around every corner.

Kuchar may hold on for the next three days and win the tournament. Maybe he won’t.

But while watching the golf this weekend picture yourself at The Riv, think about how you may play a particular shot, and you’ll likely find yourself immersed in a pure golf experience.

And as a Canadian in mid-February, who wouldn’t want that? 

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Hitting the Links –

A meth lab yesterday. A kangaroo delay today. Jeez (Deadspin)

For the first time in nine years, the ‘Mario Golf’ game franchise returns to Nintendo consoles (Escapist Magazine)

Lee Westwood, Bubba Watson, and Hunter Mahan star in this new Ping commercial for the G25s (YouTube)

“Graeme McDowell” gets body-slammed in this new Srixon commercial (YouTube); aside, one of my proudest Twitter moments came courtesy of a Graeme McDowell retweet on Tuesday

Toronto.Com is running a contest to win 1 of 4 pairs of tickets to the Toronto Golf & Travel Show (Toronto.Com)

WestJet announces non-stop flights to Myrtle Beach (Fairways Golf Magazine)

Despite the overwhelming number of golfers in Canada – approximately six million, according to the National Allied Golf Associations consumer behaviour study released last year – golf courses across Canada, particularly municipal ones, are struggling to stay open.

This week two golf courses announced their respective sellings, and others in  may go through a similar fate before the first balls of spring are hit down the fairway.

In Calgary the city-owned McCall Lake Golf Course is set to close in 2014, with the municipality citing losses of over $200,000 per year and a waning interest in the sport. This, according to a report from the Calgary Herald.

The report continues to say that a new recreation centre is set to be built. Arguments for why the golf course is being sold range from financial, to multi-cultural, to logistical.

In Sudbury, the shareholders of Idylwylde Golf and Country Club decided today to sell some of the land of their club to the adjacent hospital. Why? To build a 700-900 spot parking lot. For a town with very few golf clubs to begin with, this should be seen as a blow to the northern Ontario golfing community.

Ontario has also seen it’s share of municipalities struggling with golf clubs and the land that they are on.

For example, in late January Kingston’s Belle Park Fairways was the focus of a multi-hour meeting where residents discussed the fate of the club. The recommendation was for the golf course to cease operations at the end of 2013 to make way for a solar panel operation, according to a Flagstick Golf Magazine recap.

Finally, in the nation’s capital, Ottawa’s Pine View was subject to a recommendation from a city councillor suggesting that the club may be better served if  a private operator took the reigns.

Interestingly enough, it seems that the courses owned by the City of Toronto – long-suffering from a financial perspective as they may be – had the most successful 2012, and has they have not been subject to any scrutiny so far in 2013.

In fact, the City of Toronto courses saw an increase in rounds played by nearly 12,000, and an increase in revenue by $454,000 between 2011 and 2012.

This, despite the fact that the City has not yet followed through on a communications plan recommendation to better market the courses to Toronto’s very large golfing population.

That’s not to say that Toronto golf facilities are immune to closure – for example, last fall the last balls were hit at Beach Fairway Golf Range, a fixture just east of downtown for 14 years.

With an increased spotlight on golf as an expensive, time-consuming sport, it will be interesting to see if the city councillors across Canada leverage golf for its benefits – financial or otherwise.

For the sake of an increased number of golfers in urban areas, hopefully we see more successful golf courses, and less parking lots, in the next few years.

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Hitting the Links – 

A meth lab was discovered in a porta-potty on a golf course. Yes, you read that right (News Channel 4 Oklahoma)

LPGA-hopeful gets bit by a spider. Keeps playing. Shoots 74 (Yahoo! UK)

Who else but Lorne Rubenstein gets an hour-long audience with Jack Nicklaus? (Globe and Mail)

Golf and rugby will be contested at the 2015 Pan-Am games prior to their 2016 Olympic ‘debuts’ (Hamilton Spectator)

BOOM, baby! Would you pay $18,000(!) to play golf with Jeff Overton? (Golf.com)

Power fantasty rankings for this week’s Northern Trust Open (PGA Tour)

TaylorMade trying to think of a new ‘golf-like’ game? (Canadian Golfer)