The Sand Trap, located at http://thesandtrap.com/, is one of the premier websites for the avid golf fan. We feature reviews, opinions, and news as well as a user forum. With millions of page views per month, our content reaches a lot of golfers.
Erik J. Barzeski, Editor in Chief of The Sand Trap, has written reviews for print magazines such as MacAddict and served as technical editor for O’Reilly for several years. He published a successful computer e-zine for four years, one of the strengths of which were solid, thorough reviews.
The Sand Trap‘s review policy reflects Erik’s experiences in the world of reviews and takes advantage of the medium on which they’re published: the Internet. Reviews in print magazines are constrained to relatively small spaces and are often rather… shall we say “politically motivated” pieces. The Sand Trap has no such baggage or constraints. Our reviews are in-depth, balanced, and fair. The Sand Trap believes heavily in being honest, and we’ve found that our readers respect our reviews above nearly all others for this very reason.
Our review policy is quite simple:
The Sand Trap will:
- Thoroughly, fairly, and properly review all products in an individual review (unless otherwise agreed). The Sand Trap will choose the staff member most appropriate for the review: a 20-handicapper won’t review forged blades and a scratch staff member won’t review the latest game-improvement irons.
- Provide to the manufacturer/equipment supplier a copy of the review prior to publication for factual review. We will wait up to one week for any factual corrections and make such corrections prior to the review’s publication. We’ll entertain but may not follow subjective, non-factual corrections and suggestions as well.
- Keep for the reviewer’s personal use any review equipment unless previously agreed upon. At the supplier’s request, The Sand Trap may hold give-aways or contests with products following the review.
- Make use of company logos, link to company and product sites, and provide unique photographs to fill in any voids to complete the review, though we do appreciate having access to a media kit.
We believe that The Sand Trap reviews are some of the best golfers will find on the Internet. We look forward to the opportunity to work with you and your company, and to share our thoughts on your products with our eager and vast readership.
Online Retailers
The Sand Trap will, at times, have an affiliation with various online golf retailers. Sometimes they’ll provide a portion of our review equipment, and we’ll allow them to re-publish some of our reviews.
Our contracts with all online retailers clearly states that the integrity of The Sand Trap, our reviewers, and our opinions can not and will not be influenced by any means or for any reason. In other words, if we think a product stinks, we’re going to say so. If that doesn’t help our affiliates sell the product, well, so be it.
Other Advertisers
At various times The Sand Trap may have additional advertisers on the site, and they’re likely to be golf companies. All of our advertising contracts specifically state the same thing as our contracts with our online retailers – that no editorial control can or will be granted on our reviews.
If any special disclosure of special circumstances is ever warranted, we will disclose such information on a case-by-case basis in the context and content of the article and/or review.