Friends, join me. Rise as one and raise your glass to the dedicated stewards entrusted with the living, breathing land canvases we draw (and fade) on every day. To greens superintendents right across Canada I’d like to propose this toast.

Here’s to these consummate professionals’ expertise, their resourcefulness, vision and, most importantly, here’s to the inherent ability they have for striking balance.

How, we need to ask ourselves more
often, do our “supers” do what they do? In
 a profession dictated by the randomness
 of Mother Nature’s moods they find the common ground necessary for scratch players, intermediate players, men, women, juniors, seniors, beginners, long-knockers and short hitters all to be collectively challenged. At the same time they manage to keep the game fun and interesting while respecting and preserving the traditions and integrity of the sport. You would be hard pressed to find a more delicate juggling act.

Here’s to the devotion greens superintendents have; how they rise before the crack of dawn, work long hours to
give us the best conditions possible, yet never complain about overtime. Here’s to their knowledge of turf management, soil conditions and, critical to the game’s most important financial asset, the foresight they possess in identifying disease or potential issues before they start. Those instances mostly go unnoticed.

Here’s to their understanding of sun angles, a golf course’s requirements for proper air flow, just the right amounts of irrigation and the positive attributes of a well-intentioned tree program. Let’s not forget their respect for environmental sustainability. Using
due diligence, not abuse, as their agenda, superintendents’ control of chemicals correlates with wildlife preservation and natural habitats. Each day they seek to reduce the game’s footprint on the land while ensuring healthy turf conditions.

Neither to be forgotten is how these
men and women serve the game beyond their primary responsibilities. While providing a conduit between the golf course and management, ownership, greens committee, and members/consumers,
many superintendents also serve as brand ambassadors. For their clubs, profession, and even the game itself they create awareness through media relations, promotion and education. They might well be golf ’s most diverse multi-taskers.

I ask now that you raise your glass even higher. Here’s to supporting our superintendents, to expressing our appreciation for everything they do for the game. Especially in need of support right now are those affected by the recent catastrophic events inflicted by Mother Nature’s ill will. None have been more dramatic or destructive than last year’s floods in Alberta and the winter carnage seen at courses across various regions of Ontario, Alberta and Quebec this season. Some facilities have seen merciless devastation. A few went months without opening this year; others still remain closed.

As these events unfold the uninformed or those who simply take certain unrealistic standards for granted will look for a venting portal, a scapegoat, someone to blame. Wrongly, and all too often, superintendents bear the brunt of this frustration. As if they don’t have enough pressure already, their shoulders are weighed more heavily by unfair and unmerited criticism regarding situations beyond their control.

At this timely juncture, with course
budgets tight, resources under siege and the industry experiencing a variety of issues, including weather, here’s to standing in our superintendents’ corner. By providing them and their equally dedicated staffs in their employ with words of encouragement, not misguided condemnation, we show our respect for this fraternity of skilled experts and the indispensable role they play in the sport.

Dr. Alister MacKenzie so eloquently wrote in his marvelous book, The Spirit of St. Andrews, “A good greenskeeper keeps a careful watch on his turf, and has sleepless nights until he has overcome everything that may be the matter with it.”

Next time you’re out on the course, take a moment, look around and ask yourself one simple question: without greens superintendents where would golf be?

Can I get a hear, hear?

This commentary originally appeared in Golf Canada magazine.

All year Golf Canada magazine has been asking Canadians what they would do to make the game more fun. Over and over again we hear one stunningly simple solution. It costs little to nothing for courses to implement and allows every golfer – male, female, old and young – to have more fun. The answer? Put the ego aside and play from a distance where you can achieve success on the course. Journalist Robert Thompson takes a closer look at the tee it forward movement below…

Arthur Little and his wife Jan Leeming own a course called Province Lake
in Maine and run the Little Family Foundation. The pair felt golf courses were too long for not just high handicaps, but practically every golfer who isn’t among the best players in the world. Initially Little and Leeming wrote to Mike Keiser, the owner of the famed Bandon Dunes resort in Oregon, complaining that the forward tees on Bandon’s courses were too long.

“Then play where you’d like,” Keiser told me he replied while we wandered together around his latest venture, Cabot Links in Nova Scotia.

Keiser’s answer wasn’t what Leeming and Little hoped for. They wanted specific tees and they had research to back up their ideas. The notion that a woman should play at tees that are 5,300 yards,
as is common on many courses, is simply wrong, the pair’s research showed. They found many female players should be playing courses from 4,200 yards, while male golfers should be at 6,300. Together with Keiser, they created “Royal Blue” tees that lie significantly ahead of what were previously considered the forward tees.

“We have people who play the Royal Blue tees and tell us it is the most fun they’ve had playing golf,” says Ben Cowan-Dewar, the co-owner of Cabot Links, where the Royal Blue tees play 3,700 yards. “We want the people playing them to feel like real golfers, and those tees get a lot of use from women and junior golfers.”

Cowan-Dewar isn’t alone in trying to get more golfers to move up a few decks. The notion has taken hold in the last year under the “tee it forward” initiative, a concept that suggests most golfers – male and female alike – are simply playing from the wrong decks. There’s nothing new about the idea. Golf Canada, the PGA of Canada, and numerous other organizations have promoted the idea of moving up a deck and saving time while having more fun.

The concept isn’t far removed from Little’s idea. The suggestion is that golfers should play certain tees based on the distance they hit with their driver. For example, if a golfer can hit the ball 275 yards, he or she is able to deal with a course between 6,700 and 6,900 yards long, while someone who strikes the ball 150 yards should consider playing a course from between 4,400 and 4,600 yards. “Courses, as traditionally and currently designed, are much too long, too difficult and take too long to play,” Little wrote 
in one discussion on the subject. “Golf course owners and designers are fixated on lengthening courses to “fit” the very best players and get on “best courses” lists. As a result, they are not providing an enjoyable experience for average, beginning and aging golfers.”

Gary Bernard, chief executive of the PGA of Canada, is a big proponent of the notion of moving forward, an idea he’s become increasingly aware of. Now 57, Bernard says he’s regularly goaded into playing tees that are simply too long for him to enjoy. And if you can’t have fun, what’s the point?

“I want to play from tees where if I hit
a reasonable drive I’ll have a reasonable approach to the green and a shot at birdie,” says Bernard. “At 6,500 yards I’m having fun, having the occasional shot at birdie. I sometimes get asked to play farther back with [younger PGA members], but I can’t hit it as far as they can. My ego isn’t tied up in it,” he continues.

That’s the key, says Bernard. The notion that somehow a golfer is being cheated if he or she doesn’t tip it up from where John Daly would play is a notion that is still too common. And Bernard says there’s no easy way for golf course owners to convince people that they should move up a deck or two.

“It is hard,” he admits. “You simply can’t tell someone where to play. That’s the last thing a guy wants to hear after he’s paid for his round.”

However, there are places that do dictate the length of course golfers can play. In the United Kingdom it is common for courses to have tees for visitors that are decidedly shorter than for those golfers more familiar with the course. In the UK shorter “relief” courses are also common, with yardages often much shorter than their tougher neighbor courses. For example, the Buddon Links, sister course to the nasty Carnoustie in Scotland, host of many British Opens, tips out at 5,300 yards. That’s almost 2,000 yards less than the main course at the facility.

“How do we get people to play alternative courses, like short courses or par three courses?” asks Bernard. “It isn’t easy.”

There are options out there for those golfers who don’t feel the need to be tested by 7000 yard monsters. Turnberry Golf Club in Brampton, Ont., for example, offers the challenge and intrigue of a longer course, but maxes out at 3,400 yards and can be played in less than three hours. But even at Turnberry, where several par threes have forced carries, playing the appropriate tees is important to a player’s enjoyment.

“For some people, distance isn’t their key issue – it is accuracy,” says Jamie Trenholme, head pro at Eagles Nest, Turnberry’s sister course.

He’s right – which is another reason for golfers to try to play the appropriate tees.

One course that has tried to capitalize on the tee it forward concept is Granite Golf Club, in Uxbridge, Ont. Three years ago, Granite, a private club, instituted “family tees,” that were aimed at engaging more junior golfers. The tees are split by age and ability and range from 1,100 yards for nine holes to 2,500 for junior golfers who are age 11 or older.

“For us, it was a way of showcasing the club as a family facility that really engages the junior golfer,” says Walter Cheung, Granite’s general manager. “The goal was to change the way people think about where they play from. You’ll see families out playing the course together now.”

Since then Granite has made other adjustments to its course to make it friendlier for its membership. “The message is that it is okay to play from tees that suit your game, which is difficult enough to start with,” says Cheung.

At Cabot Links, Cowan-Dewar thinks the tee it forward concept is catching hold. Though his course is only 7,000 yards from the tips, it can be exceedingly difficult when the wind blows off the sea. Cowan-Dewar says a golfer’s goal should be to enjoy themselves, as opposed to struggling around a course that is too long in some sort of masochistic endeavor.

“Golf isn’t about losing six balls and punishing yourself throughout your round,” he says. “Why would anyone want to do that when they can move up and have fun?”

Why indeed.

This article was originally published in Golf Canada magazine.

Check out the top 10 double eagles on the PGA Tour (excluding majors), featuring Hunter Mahan, Carlos Franco, Ernie Els and others.

Get to know Fred Couples

Get to know World Golf Hall of Fame honoured member, Fred Couples, in this vignette shot at the 2014 Shaw Charity Classic in Calgary.

Tom Doak is likely most familiar to Canadians for the integral role he played in the reconstruction of St. Georges Golf Club in 2014.

Recognized as one of the preeminent golf course architects in the world, the Pete Dye disciple has designed some of the world’s most famous golf courses including Ballyneal in Colorado and Pacific Dunes in Oregon.

Recently, however, it was one of Doak’s lesser-known tracks which has made headlines in the golfing world.

Featured in a golf.com article was the Bally Bandon Sheep Ranch, an unconventional and minimalist course that, to this day, remains a secret to many of the game’s biggest fanatics.

Just north of the Bandon Dunes Resort, overhanging the Pacific coastline, the track has undergone various aesthetic modifications since its design in 2002, but remains true to the character and vision that Doak and co-founders Mike Keiser and Phil Friedmann has initially intended.

“A simple idea, with complicated results, that had to be executed simply,” said Doak, describing the Sheep Ranch’s construction to golf.com in a recent interview. “It reshaped my idea of what was possible in golf course design.”

The course can be aptly described as a hybrid between a gigantic, all-encompassing practice facility and a leisurely round of golf that emphasizes choosing one’s own adventure.

Dubbed by those who have played it as golf’s “Area 51”, the design consists of 13 greens — labeled A through M — that are scattered across the property.

(The Sheep Ranch’s “J” green, tucked away on a cliff-side peninsula)

There is no clear instruction of the proper order to tackle the course, other than a haphazard array of arrows on the Sheep Ranch’s scorecard.

“The suggested routing is something I argued strongly against,” said Doak in the above mentioned interview. “We only wanted to give people a ‘mileage chart’ from every green to every other green, and turn them loose, with possibly a few suggestions as to what were the better holes.”

(Most of the track overlooks the Pacific coast)

Pacing issues do not exist at the Sheep Ranch because patrons always have the course to themselves. According to the article, there are usually between one and two groups slated to play the track on any given day.

To arrange a tee time, one must contact caretaker Greg Harless, who handles both the greens keeping and pro shop duties on the premises, including letting golfers onto the grounds and directing them to the first tee’s general whereabouts.

Unlike every other golf course in history, the Sheep Ranch is intentionally closed during the summer months to save on irrigation and maintenance expenses.

CARLSBAD, Calif. – TaylorMade has announced R15, its most technologically sophisticated, high-performance metalwood franchise ever. The family includes a driver, fairway and rescue club and reintroduces to the market the company’s successful “R” series – a brand mark synonymous with more than a decade of heroic, game-changing metalwood products.

The R15 driver, available January 9, 2015, aims to deliver for golfers both in stores and on the tee box. It will be offered in both black and white and features a desirable, playable pear-shape in two head sizes – 460cc and 430cc. Available in four lofts – 9.5°, 10.5°, 12° and 14° – golfers can pre-order R15 starting December 12. TaylorMade expects R15 to become its No. 1 played driver on top professional tours in 2015.

“R15 harnesses our world-class portfolio of technological advancements engineered over the last 15 years,” said Brian Bazzel, Senior Director of Product Creation for Metalwoods. “It performs incredibly in a package that looks great, sounds great and can be easily fitted to any player. Everything we know about the metalwood, we’ve put into R15; golfers will see that, feel it and sense it with every swing. It’s a special driver.”

Adjustability

Empowering the golfer to adjust weight in a driver head is a landmark innovation that TaylorMade brought to the golf industry more than 10 years ago with its r7 Quad driver. Through the years, company engineers have increased the amount of weight that can be distributed while also simplifying the process to enhance the golfer’s experience.

With its new Front Track system in R15, adjusting a TaylorMade driver has never been quicker or easier: Inside the track system are two sliding split weights that weigh 12.5 grams each (25g total). The R15 club head has 5 grams more discretionary mass to maneuver and is 4 grams lighter than the popular SLDR.  Using the torque wrench, golfers can loosen and slide the weights to the heel for a draw, to the toe for a fade or split for maximum stability.

Additionally, R15 incorporates the company’s most adjustable loft-sleeve, giving golfers the ability to alter their face angle, lie angle and loft preference to affect side-to-side trajectory. A simple rotation of the loft-sleeve system allows you to choose from 12 distinct settings that makes incremental changes in the lie and the loft/face angle (range is 4°).

Together, the sliding split weights and loft-sleeve enable golfers to adjust their R15 driver with extreme precision.

Engineered for Distance

Key to the performance of the R15 is the low and forward centre of gravity – a strategic placement of weight first seen in SLDR which promotes faster ball speed with less spin.

R15 has an even lower and more forward centre of  gravity thanks to the Front Track system, which is 12mm closer to the leading edge with 40 more grams of weight forward. In total, 75% of the mass is in the front of the driver.

Low forward CG in combination with the more forward track and redesigned sliding weights in the R15 helps to reduce spin by about 100 to 200rpm and increase launch by 0.5 to 1.0deg compared to the SLDR 460.

Size and Colour Detail

The larger, 460cc version of R15 is for the player seeking maximum forgiveness and confidence on the tee, while the R15 430 has a shape that strongly resembles some of the most coveted drivers from the company’s past. The address size is noticeably smaller to appeal to players who prefer a smaller address view. The R15 430 is also the lowest spinning driver offering.

The R15’s crown comes in a very appealing satin white finish, with a contrasting black PVD face and sole. The strong contrast between the crown and face make it easy to align the face accurately at address. TaylorMade expects the majority of its tour players to play R15 with a white crown.

A gloss black version will be offered exclusively in R15 460.

Available in four lofts– 9.5°, 10.5°, 12° and 14°, the R15 460 ($499.99) is offered in a white or black crown and is equipped with Fujikura’s Speeder 57 Evolution shaft (X, S, R and M flexes). The club also features Lamkin’s (Non-Cord) 48 gram Performance grip. Also $499.99, the R15 430 has a Fujikura Speeder 67 Evolution shaft (X, S, R and M flexes) and is offered in a white crown only. The loft options for the 430 are 9.5°, 10.5°, 12°.

Fairway & Rescue

Available in four lofts – 15˚, 16.5˚, 19˚, 20.5˚, the R15 fairway ($299.99) is the company’s most adjustable fairway to date. Featuring the same Front Track system as the driver, the R15 FW utilizes a single 25-gram tungsten weight that can slide easily to promote a draw or fade using a TaylorMade torque wrench. The Front Track also performs like a Speed Pocket, increasing the sweet spot and decreasing the spin rate. Like the driver, the R15 FW comes with a 4° loft sleeve for maximum loft adjustability.

The R15 fairway and rescue clubs have been refined by extensive input from TaylorMade touring pros to be suitable for the best players in the world. Similar to the original rescue club from TaylorMade, the new R15 ($239.99) has a “peanut” head shape, commonly preferred by Tour Staff professionals. The smaller shape (99cc) offers more versatility than a conventional size hybrid and is preferred by players who like to shape their shots.

TaylorMade has also incorporated an open channel Speed Pocket into the R15 rescue, which promotes more ball speed and reduced spin. Built with the new Fujikura Speeder 77 Evolution shaft, the club also features a 3-degree loft sleeve allowing the golfer to customize distance gaps between fairways, rescue clubs, and longest long iron.  TaylorMade engineers worked to ensure this club has a more neutral biased ball flight which guards against left misses that can sometimes occur with hybrid clubs designed for higher handicap golfers.

For more information, visit taylormadegolf.ca.

BELFOR has announced that it will once again partner with PGA Tour rookie Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C.

BELFOR first partnered with the 2014 Web.com money list winner in 2009 when Hadwin was making the jump from amateur to professional.

Hadwin had a stellar 2014 campaign, capturing wins at the Web.com Tour’s Chile Classic and Chiquita Classic and securing full status on the PGA Tour for the 2014/2015 season. With four events already under his belt, Hadwin is making the most of his rookie season on the PGA Tour, having placed in the top-10 at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Las Vegas last month.

The financial burden of playing professional golf for a living often becomes a distraction for young golfers, as expenses for travel and tournament entry fees tend to outweigh what players earn from week to week. BELFOR’s support helped eliminate this distraction for Hadwin when he began his professional career.

“When BELFOR stepped up to support me in 2009, I was able to play with a level of security and confidence, knowing that I had the financial support I needed to go out and focus on winning at the professional level, a luxury most young pros do not have,” said Hadwin. “For this reason, I consider BELFOR a special part of my team and a major contributor to my success thus far. I can’t thank Sheldon, Will and the entire BELFOR team enough for the faith they put in me and I’m thrilled that they will be joining me on the PGA Tour.”

The renewed partnership, now in its sixth year, will continue to see the BELFOR logo positioned on Hadwin’s chest.

“Adam is a very driven, determined and talented young man who represents many of the core values that we represent corporately and individually,” said Will Cook, President of BELFOR Canada. “We are so incredibly proud of everything he has accomplished in his still very young career, and are equally proud to be associated with him professionally and personally. He represents the future of Canadian golf, and that future is very bright with Adam leading the charge.”

What began in 2004 with a few shoe styles, personalization and colorful leathers has evolved into a global program with more than 14 million ways of customizing the golf shoe.

To commemorate 10 years of custom shoes, FootJoy is introducing a premier line of leathers to the MyJoys program.

The outstanding Premier category allows customers to design their shoes to include the finest Snake and Lizard print Italian leathers. Available in a bicycle toe pattern in cleated FJ ICON and FJ ICON Boa styles, as well as the spikeless FJ Professional, the Premier line offers black, brown and red snake prints in addition to pearl and charcoal lizard print leathers.

Since FootJoy’s custom MyJoys program was introduced in 2004:

• 184 different leathers have been offered
• Shoes have been shipped to 53 countries
• 67 different shoe upper patterns have been available
• 2,980 logos have been used
• Each pair has been made from scratch

Today, golfers can choose from 23 different upper patterns across cleated and spikeless outsoles on the largest size chart in golf. Sizes range from 4 extra narrow to 17 extra extra wide – which equates to 138 different size options. Consumers even have the opportunity to order different sizes for each foot, if necessary.

Customization options, including choices in leathers, continue to evolve on a regular basis. Currently, MyJoys offers 21 smooth leathers in a wide variety of colors, 3 metallics, 20 limited edition animal prints (blue iguana, lilac lizard, banana croc, etc) and 10 patent leathers.

In addition, golfers can personalize their MyJoys shoes and choose to add a name or message up to six characters in length and can select from a library of logos, including 114 novelty logos and 90 country flags. All personalization is embroidered on the shoe for a premium appearance and maximum durability.

“MyJoys enables FJ to uphold its commitment of creating golf shoes for every type of player,” said Rita Lepage, MyJoys Marketing Manager. “No matter what you’re looking for in golf footwear – whether it be men’s or women’s, cleated or spikeless, a size that’s difficult to find or a truly unique color combination – you are likely to find it in the MyJoys custom program and our constantly evolving menu of custom options.”

Adams Golf new Tight Lies products are now available at retailers across Canada.

Featuring new Ghost Slot Technology that masks the crown slot on the club face in addition to the club’s signature “upside-down head shape”, the Tight Lies hybrids and fairway woods provide both performance and forgiveness from any lie.

Adams is also introducing its new Tight Lies Titanium fairway wood.

The combination of a titanium face with a stainless steel sole has resulted in the lowest CG ever for an Adams fairway wood that has optimized the USGA limit on spring-like effect.

Tight Lies fairway woods (14º, 16º, 22º) and hybrids (17º, 19º, 22º, 25º, 28º) come stock with KuroKage graphite shafts by Mitsubishi Rayon, while the Tight Lies Titanium fairway woods (13.5º, 15º, 18º) come with Mitsubishi Bassara Eagle Series graphite shafts.

Phil Mickelson has re-listed his Rancho Santa Fe estate for a sixth time.

The Mickelsons are purportedly asking for $6 million for the five bedroom, 9,000+ square foot mansion.

Built in 1999 and originally purchased by the two-time Masters champion in 2001, the manor was originally put on the market in 2008 when the Mickelsons reportedly moved to a larger house in the area.

Amongst other luxurious amenities, the 4.5 acre property boasts a putting green, two guest houses, seven fireplaces and a coffee/juice bar.

Runaway Golf Cart:

Worried about finishing your round in less than four hours?

Plum Quick Motors has set the new Guinness World Record for fastest golf cart with its “Bandit” engine.

The cart recorded a speed of 118.76 miles per hour last Friday at Darlington Dragway in Hartsville, S.C., shattering its former record of 103.65 mph.

COBRA Golf has announced the release of its new Fly-Z family of products.

The Fly-Z lines of drivers, fairway woods/hybrids, and irons includes a new Speed-Channel technology that will add club head speed across the face resulting in more distance when the ball is not struck square.

Additionally, Crown Zone Weighting has been added to the Fly-Z family, removing weight from the top of the club and redistributing it lower on the face for a deeper and more forgiving centre of gravity.

”While these internal technologies are not visible to the golfer, performance gains can be easily noticed and easily attributed to the Speed Channel face,” said Jose Miraflor, Director of Product Marketing for COBRA Golf.

In addition to the regular Fly-Z line, COBRA is also introducing:

a)  Fly-Z XL (for super game improvement)

c)  Fly-Z + (with Flip Zone weight technology)

Flip Zone weight technology allows mid-to-lower handicap players to adjust the weight of the club face to better suit one’s game. A front setting results in a lower and more piercing ball-flight, while setting the weight in the back allows players to experience maximum control and feel.

The Fly-Z XL series will be in stores starting on November 14, 2014, while the Fly-Z and Fly-Z + lines will be available for purchase in February 2015.