Month: August 2010

Wyndham Introduction

What you don’t see on TV – behind the scenes at a PGA Tour event.

Wyndham ChampionshipHello world. No, that’s not quite right, I think I’ve heard that somewhere before in the world of golf, but I will quickly move on. I want to thank Erik for taking a chance on letting me try my hand at golf reporting for The Sand Trap. This is really my first time writing about golf and I hope to dig up some interesting stories while I am at the finest PGA Tour stop in the Piedmont Triad area (read Greensboro)!

I am an unabashed golf nut. I first held a club at the age of 23 and somehow I was hooked. I bought some clubs at a Wal-Mart somewhere in Pennsylvania and beat balls around courses in PA from State College to Danville to Erie. I took many (mostly forgettable) lessons and never seemed to get any better than a weekend hacker-duffer. Finally, I ran into the Stack and Tilt crew and things have become so much better for me over the past 1.5 years. I can actually hit the ball. Sometimes with a push-draw! That makes me very happy.

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2010 PGA Championship Final Round Chat

We’re having a chat for the final round of the PGA. Sign up and show up at 1pm eastern time (or any time thereafter). Can Nick Watney hold off the challengers?

LeviTee Golf Glove Review

Do your forearms look like Popeye’s after a day of golf? A new glove aims to lighten your grip with special pads stitched between the fingers.

leviteebackHow many times have you heard teaching pros say something to the effect of “grip the club like a bird: tight enough it won’t fly away, but not so tight you crush it.” Strangling the club is a common problem, and it leads to mechanical flaws, funky tempo and general stress on the hands and wrists.

A new glove on the market, the LeviTee Golf Glove aims to ease your grip with technology, rather than with cute analogies about wildlife.

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Adidas Tour 360 4.0 and Tour 360 Sport Shoe Review

The most comfortable shoes on the market? Perhaps. The lowest? Adidas says so.

Tour 360 4.0 SportThe Adidas Tour 360 is entering its fifth year and fourth version and the Tour 360 Sport its third year and second version with the new “Tour 360 4.0” and “Tour 360 4.0 Sport” models. Though the styling has remained fairly similar due to the common technology of wrapping the Adidas-style triple bands around the undersole, the shoe has come a long way in five years and has claimed its spot among the leaders in the golf footwear arena.

I’m a long-time FootJoy guy – shoes with “FJ” on them have always fit me well – and I gave a pair of the 360 4.0’s and the Sport models a try. Let’s see how the shoes fared.

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Staff Predictions: PGA Championship 2010

Golf-crazed Wisconsin and Whistling Straits host this week’s PGA Championship, with plenty of story lines, most notably the struggles of the world’s top two players.

Thrash TalkWoe is Tiger, he’s coming off his worst tournament as a professional, he’s barely going to qualify for the FedEx Cup, and he’ll likely need to be a Ryder Cup captain’s pick. He’s struggling so badly, even the bookmakers have dropped him to double digit odds to win (12-1).

Woe is Phil, he’s had a summer full of chances to take over as the world’s number one golfer, yet balky play and a bout of psoriatic arthritis have kept him in his comfortable spot of second banana. He’s got a major on his 2010 resume, but that’s really the only highlight of his season.

With the game’s elite struggling (including world number three Lee Westwood, who withdrew with a leg injury), is now the time Steve Stricker steps to the forefront, in his home state to boot? Will it be one of the upstarts such as Rory McIlroy, Ryo Ishikawa or Ricky Fowler?

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PING Expands Lineup for 2011, Part II

This week, we continue our coverage of the latest equipment from Ping.

Bag DropLast week was really only the tip of the iceberg (which I’d happily trade for the ongoing heat). The K15 and Faith Series certainly looked to be great options for players looking for something in the game improvement arena, but this week we shift gears and see the newest in PING’s offerings for low- to mid-handicap players.

After taking a look at all of these new products, it’s quite obvious that PING’s commitment to all players is taken quite seriously, as there are multiple options even for players that fall into the same category. Going by their release of a forged iron to the U.S. market, it’s also obvious that PING is listening to what players want. With that said, we’ve got a lot to cover this week, so let’s get started!

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Volume Two Hundred Forty Four

Maybe Phil doesn’t want to be #1, because he sure played like #2

Hittin' the LinksHello again golf fans and welcome to another edition of the weekly column, Hittin’ the Links. So what do you think is up with Phil Mickelson? Tiger practically handed the world’s number one spot over to him on a silver platter this weekend only to see Lefty self destruct again. Maybe Phi is just happy being number two. Only Phil knows the answer.

In this week’s HTL we begin with a look at Sergio’s vacation, then turn our attention to Tiger’s latest stellar tournament effort, and take peek at this week’s PGA Championship. Also on tap, we investigate the latest in legal battles, find out whats up with Lee Westwood, and do a wrap-up of the week’s events. Read on!

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Manufactured Drama: The Tour’s Unhealthy Obsession With “Going Low”

Without Tiger Woods in the mix, the PGA Tour needs to generate some excitement and get golf into the headlines. Cue the birdies.

Thrash TalkGoing low is all the rage, as the magic number has been achieved or threatened near weekly this summer. It was fun at first, but now it’s obscene. There’s no question the spate of birdie binges is a result of a concerted effort to inject life into the low-level Tour stops. We all know how good these guys are. How about a bit of a test tossed into their 18-hole afternoons?

As with all sports, golf’s all about the drama. When the world’s best are dueling down the stretch, that’s exciting. When they’re facing the challenge of battling themselves, holding a big lead or charging from behind, there’s a story to be told, a reason to root. But when the game is lacking any compelling story lines, what’s left? Who can make 10 birdie putts vs. who can make 11 birdie putts? It’s fake, it’s a fraud, it’s manufactured drama.

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PING Expands Lineup for 2011

Ping is the first out the gate with their announcement of a number of new lines of clubs for the upcoming product year.

Bag DropAs they ride the momentum of staffer Louis Oosthuizen’s win at the Open Championship, PING shows no signs of slowing down. Proof of that is their announcement of a a wide variety of upcoming clubs for a wide variety of players. This week, we’ll check out their new K15 line, which includes a driver, a fairway wood, and a hybrid/iron set.

PING has always had a good offering for female golfers as well, with series such as the Rhapsody set. This year is no different as they pull the covers off of their new Faith series. So with all that said, let’s quit wasting time and take a look!

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