Volume One Hundred Sixty

The Ryder Cup is just around the corner, Monty is liking his chances in 2014, and Camillo finally shows his potential.

Hittin' the LinksHello and good day to you golf fans. Hittin’ the Links is again coming to you a day tardy this week due to the Newport Cup. I do apologize, but late is better than never.

In this one hundred and sixtieth volume of HTL we see why the Americans seem to always have trouble beating the Europeans, look at some more fixes for the FedExCup, and see where Aaron Baddeley will be spending the next month. Also, we take a new look at the LPGA’s recently changed English-only rule, see how Colin Montgomerie plans to get onto the 2014 Ryder Cup Team, check in on Annika’s last European tournament, and do an inventory on this week’s PGA Tour winner. Read on!

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Newport Cup 2K8: The Results

The Red team wins again, and Cody gets off the shnide, winning his first Newport Cup. 🙂

Newport CupNewport Cup 2K8 is in the books, and we have a winner. The Red team, taking up for Tiger Woods’ absence, overcame a two-point deficit in the Sunday singles to take this year’s edition of the staff competition, 19-17 in Erie, PA and surrounding areas.

As a member of the vanquished side, I can say that the week had a whole lot of laughs, a whole lot of rain, wind, clouds, and cold, and one incredibly stupid golf course.

What follows is a quick recap of the scoring. Though I’m sure the Red team might like to see more details, I’ve (fortunately for many) left those to the memories of the participants, where they will soon (hopefully) fade.

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Newport Cup 2K8: The Sponsors

The 2008 Newport Cup is here, as competitive rounds start tomorrow at one of America’s toughest courses.

Newport Cup 2K8The 2008 Newport Cup begins tomorrow, but staff members and competitors will arrive today. We’ll have a cookout, the guys will get settled in, we may play some Tiger Woods on the Wii or Xbox 360 (or watch coverage, if there is any, of the BMW Championship), and in general unwind after what will be a trying day for many aboard our nation’s airlines.

I along with other members of the staff will likely report on the Newport Cup – including the results – next week, but right now I’d like to take the opportunity to thank the sponsors of our event this year. FootJoy, Titleist, Leupold, Frogger, Zero Friction, and Crocs have all come through to provide our staff with a pretty nice goodie bag. All of the goodies were selected by me as “best-in-class,” so their sponsorship of this event can also be taken as an endorsement of their products.

So once again, and not for the last time, thank you to our sponsors. This year’s event is shaping up to be a great one, and we have you to thank.

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The Lighter Things in Golf

This week’s article focuses on some of the things I’ve enjoyed recently in the world of golf.

Thrash TalkThe 2008 Ryder Cup teams are set, and the sport’s greatest spectacle will begin two weeks from tomorrow. Both captains did a great job in picking the remaining members of their respective teams, albeit with a little second-guessing from some of the golf media. Nonetheless, this year’s playing should be full of great drama and excitement. It might even be close this time around as well.

With all the Ryder Cup talk swirling through the golf world, I’ve decided to take a week to reflect on some of the golf-related things I’ve enjoyed lately. Whether it has to do with the professional ranks, a reality television show, or a video game, the world of golf has been expanded to great lengths over the past several years. I’m one of many who enjoys all types of golf material, and hopefully you are as well.

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Golf Talk [Episode 099]

Maybe now Darren Clarke and Carl Pettersson can join Seve in rooting for the U.S. squad this year, eh?

Golf Talk PodcastThe LPGA talks about a new “English skills” requirement, Vijay Singh wins again and holds a big lead in the Playoffs, the Ryder Cup teams are now complete, and a whole lot more in this episode of Golf Talk.

You can subscribe to the RSS feed for our podcasts here or download Episode 099 as an MP4 file. For those who want to subscribe to us in iTunes, click here.

For this week’s Show Notes – links to articles we discuss in the show and additional information – just read on.

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TaylorMade Introduces Tour Preferred Irons, Rossa Core Putters, and More

TaylorMade has come out with everything but the kitchen sink.

Bag DropThe folks at TaylorMade continue to roll out the new products as a few weeks ago, we looked at the new Burner fairway woods and hybrids and now we get a total of (stay with me) two more iron sets, five putters, and two different drivers. They have been a bit busy to say the least!

The Burner name gets stamped on virtually everything now coming out of TaylorMade and for the most part, that holds true with the new items we will take a look at this week. There are a few exceptions to that rule and we get some new Moveable Weight Technology toys to tinker with as well.

Join me as we take a look at what TaylorMade has to offer.

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Volume One Hundred Fifty Nine

Vijay is undefeated in the playoffs, the European Ryder Cup team is set, Colin Montgomerie is upset, and Lefty gets Labor Day off like the rest of us.

Hittin' the LinksHello and welcome again to Hittin’ the Links. HTL is coming to you a little late this week due to Labor Day and the PGA Tour’s Monday finish. Hopefully, everyone was able to go out and get in an extra round this weekend.

In this week’s edition, we discuss the European Ryder Cup Team, find out what has upset Colin Montgomerie now, and see who David Feherty thinks are the best Ryder Cuppers of all time. Also, we check in on Tripp Isenhour and the hawk incident, see whats up this year in college golf, investigate why Phil got Monday off, and take note of this weeks tour winners. Read on!

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Cheap Course Tricks

Some times good architects and greenskeepers do bad things.

Trap Five LogoHave you ever been enjoying a round on a new course when suddenly the architect throws a twist at you that just seems out of character? When I’m playing a course laid out by a farmer (there are quite a few of these in central Ohio, by the way), I expect some quirks and tricks, but when a “name” architect does it to me, I can’t help but feel a little betrayed.

There are so many challenges designers can build into any course – chutes of trees that threaten drives from both sides, watery graves for errant shots, curled-lip bunkers that throw shots back like Hawaiian waves spit out surfers, murderous contours on firm greens – I don’t understand why architects feel the need to use cheap tricks.

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Leupold GX-I Laser Rangefinder Review

Laser rangefinders are getting smaller and less expensive, and Leupold has entered the fray.

Leupold GX-I Laser RangefinderI started a Bushnell PinSeeker 1500 review in 2005 with the sentence “Tiger Woods has long said that the secret to good golf is always being pin high.” A lot has changed since 2005, but Tiger’s advice still rings true.

What has changed is that three years ago rangefinders and GPS units were a rarity. In 2005, these types of devices were illegal. Since 2006, they’ve been legal for tournament play under a local rule, and it seems as though every serious golfer has one (or more!) in their bags. The market has expanded quickly, and the early guys in – Bushnell with laser rangefinders and SkyGolf with GPS – are being challenged at every turn.

One of the challengers in the laser rangefinder category is longtime rifle scope-maker Leupold (& Stevens) with their GX-I and GX-II laser rangefinders. These rangefinders notably improve upon the venerable PinSeeker 1500 in just about the only ways I think a laser rangefinder can really be improved: by adding features, making it smaller, and shaving a hundred bucks off the asking price.

I’ve put the GX-I to a thorough test. Read on for my results.

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