The 20th Hole

In both of my published books, I covered golf holes that I considered to be the most challenging and distinctive in my experience. In looking through my social media page, I noticed a request to submit the reader's hardest holes that they had ever played.  I combed...

We have a new episode of "The Apprentice" with the venue in the Oval Office of the White House. ("The Kids go to the White House).   The PGA Tour and LIV Tour have come to state their cases to the President of the United States and Club Champion of a number of private...

Ludwig Aberg shot 63 in the first round at Torrey Pines three weeks ago and he looked like he was going to run and hide to win that tournament.  On Day 2 of that event, he started to experience flu like symptoms and he was barely able to survive physically in his...

The PGA Tour moved from the Signature event at Pebble Beach to the Greatest Show on Earth at the Waste Management Open in Phoenix.  The modest, staid attendance at Pebble gave way to the circus like atmosphere at the TPC Stadium Course in Scottsdale.  Attendance for...

It was a golf tournament for 63 holes.  The leaderboard shifted to and fro continuously with as many as 10 players in contention.  The field endured all types of weather including rain, cold, significant wind in a very haphazard fashion.  Rory McIlroy was one of these...

The PGA Tour finally played a golf course that challenged the competitors' entire skill set at Torrey Pines.  Torrey Pines is the longest course on Tour but more importantly, it has rough, and this week a mixture of challenging winds to add to the test.  Par at Torrey...

When I first heard about TGL, for some crazy reason I went back to my childhood and recalled the made for TV event-"Home Run Derby."  Home Room Derby pitted the greatest sluggers in baseball in a pure home run hitting contest.  Willie Mays vs. Mickey Mante, Harmon...

As the PGA Tour kicks off the calendar 2025 season in Hawaii at the Sentry Open at the Plantation Course in Maui,  Hawaii, the state of professional golf is as unsettled as ever.  PGA viewership is down by double-digits as the schism with the LIV Tour enters another...

Mother Nature is indifferent and takes no prisoners.  I can recall when the cypress tree on the 18th hole at Pebble Beach died a natural death.  That tree had guarded the 18th for many a year and often prohibited players from reaching the closing hole in 2 shots....

Twas the Night Before Christmas Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house-not a creature was stirring not even a mouse.  The stockings were hung by the chimney with care in hopes that badges for the Masters would be there. The children were nested...

I used to love the Ryder Cup matches especially after the European professionals joined the GB&I players to join the competition.  The US dominated the matches throughout the history of the Cup but the addition of the European contingent evened things up.  The...

In the latter part of 2022, Andrew Larkin, Santa Clara University golf coach, approached me with the idea and plans for a golf facility on the Santa Clara University campus.  The idea was a good one but when I reviewed the plans, I thought it might not be a permanent...

We enter the Thanksgiving period and for my golf game, not much to be thankful for.  I've been diagnosed with a degenerating arthritic left hip, which makes golf an untenable experience.  I'm playing anyway but have had to move up to the forward tees as the body is...

I'm bored and injured, a double whammy as I haven't been able to play golf for the past four weeks.  I last played with the Santa Clara University (SCU) golf team and the Loyola Marymount University golf team (LMU) at Monterey Peninsula Country Club on two separate...

The State of Professional Golf The 2024 golf season is over and the new PGA season is in its infancy.  Players are competing to earn their tour card and enter the promised land of competitive golf.  It's interesting and actually sad that there have been no...