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Giant snake eats balls
Emergency surgery was performed to save a snake that swallowed four golf balls after mistaking then for chicken eggs earlier this year in Queensland., Australia. A couple discovered the reptile and the four bulges in its stomach. Then they realized it had eaten golf balls placed on nests in a chicken coup to calm broody hens.
Senior vet Michael Pyne safely removed the balls, “Without surgery, it certainly would have died. “You could clearly see the golf balls on the X-rays, so we knew what we were dealing with. Pyne said the snake, which is not considered dangerous to humans, was recovering well after the surgery and would soon be released back into the wild, near the property where it was originally discovered.
Finish season strong
Here are few great pro tips to help you finish the season strong:
If you’re hitting downwind play it smart. Instead of bombing a driver with the wind and losing control of the shot, club down to a 3-wood and get more height, more carry and more control. You will get about the same distance and increase odds off hitting the fairway.
When you’re chipping from off the green, why not try to sink it. Most golfers try to cozy the ball up close or in the immediate area. Watch how the pros try to sink the shot.
Uphill shots cause a lot of grief for golfers and they really shouldn’t. If it’s an uphill shot, just add a club for every 10 yards of elevation. So, for example, if you normally hit a 7-iron for a 150-yard shot, switch to a 6-iron.
The tee box is your friend on par-3s. Each tee box goes back two club lengths (your driver) from the markers and you are allowed to tee up anywhere in that area. The pros often hit back from the markers or hit from the corners to allow for a fade or draw.
Golf and Sex...Closer relatives than you think
Every now and then, like a frying pan to the forebrain, something hits me. Today, while watching an old episode of Three’s Company (time is a resource I value), I realized that golf and sex have a lot in common. And yes, I know, I’m treading on dangerous ground here.
No, I generally don’t have a hot dog and a beer halfway through "a session," but, believe it or not, there are many consistencies between the two. For starters, sex, like golf, has an aura about it that’s difficult to unpack and describe. But there are many other parallels and significant likenesses. For example:
- Both golf and sex can be played by complete idiots – and often are. Seriously, people, both "games" don’t require rocket-science degrees. I could get all bent out of shape and explain how simple and synonymous the objective is in each, but that would just prove my point much too convincingly.
- Both are enjoyed most when participants don’t fake their love. Just as golfers sometimes pretend to enjoy blisters and bogies and beating ball after ball into scum-filled ponds and waist-high rough, sex is best enjoyed between two people who, at the end of the day, just know that (through thick and thin) they really do love each other.
- Both can be physically exhausting. I don’t know about you, but after both games, I’m not much good anymore. A beer after one, a cigar after the other - and that’s about all I can handle in one day.
- For men, especially, golf and sex are "visual" experiences. Just as a man gets turned on with a woman’s "curves" (yes, I know, that’s a fairly courageous way to describe our fascination with a woman’s body), we also get the "tingles" when looking at a perfectly-groomed and shaped golf hole.
- Mirrors, videos, and other aides can be used for both – According to Sue, Ruth, and the other gurus, it’s OK to employ some "swing aids" if you need them. And, chances are, if you’ve had an experience on the lesson tee, some Tin Cup-wannabe golf pro (not me, though) will have zipped you in some kind of strait- jacket, got you swinging a household appliance, or hung you upside down by your shoelaces and asked you to balance a bucket of water on your forehead while mooing like a cow.
- Both games are equally enjoyed by masters and rookies alike. Sure it’s great to blast a 320-yard tee ball and stiff a wedge to win The Masters. But, strangely enough, it’s kind of fun to crack them off the ball washer, zing them into the azaleas, and make divots the size of area rugs, too. As for sex, well, the finish line is the finish line.
- Many of the popular phrases are interchangeable… "You the man. Go, baby, go. Be right, tonight. Be as good as you look." And so on.
- Both games can be cheapened and degraded. OJ Simpson, Happy Gilmore, George Bush, the list is long of people who have done the game no honour. On the flip side, sex has been mistreated, gee, only a few times over the years.
- It’s advantageous to have a short warm-up. For me (and 3 billion other men), short warm-ups are all that’s needed. Before a round, too, I don’t need much time. I figure I’m about a 5-ball guy: three with the wedge, one with the six-iron, and one lash with the driver. Good to go.
So you see, golf and sex are close relatives. You don’t think the Scots wore kilts because they looked good, do you?
Andrew Penner is a Calgary based CPGA Professional and author who writes for golf publications across North America and has written for Inside Golf for the past six years and periodically for SaskGolfer.com.
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Barbie arrives
Barbie/Mattel has teamed up with Cougar Golf to provide girls ages 4-8 with an innovative Barbie golf gear. The stylish yet high performance Barbie Golf sets, available in two different sizes, incorporate shorter shafts and girl-favourite features and detailing in their design. Sets include a driver, iron, putter and carrying bag with an illustration of Barbie on the bag, USGA approved golf ball, a visor, wooden tees and three ball markers, The golf collection includes girl-favourite colours pink, purple, blue and yellow and accents including flowers, hearts and butterfly designs. The sets are available from US Target stores and Wal-mart stores for $39.99. Second generation sets plans for a sound feature and a voice of Barbie saying, “Good shot.”
Lucky 13th Hole
One of the longest hole-in-ones in Saskatchewan history was made by the general manager of Aspen Links Country Club on Aug. 2. Ken Kukurudz, a scratch handicapper, sunk his drive on the 342-yard, 13th hole. He cut the corner over the pond with a 290-yard drive, helped by a 20-km-p-h tailwind.
Kukurudz, who was playing with two employees of the course, finished in the clubhouse with a 1-under-par 72. In the best tradition of golf, he opened the bar at the clubhouse and picked up the tab for $300.
Check the record books, there aren’t any odds published for getting a hole-in-one on a par 4.
How great golfers think
Bob Skura, a Kitchener-based golf buff, has made a respectable addition to the reams of self-help books for golf. At 191 pages, “How Great Golfers Think” has drawn from psychology, teaching, business, self-improvement and other disciplines to apply them to the mental side of golf instruction. Let’s face it, it’s a damnably difficult game and the mental approach in golf books is often neglected in favor of swing mechanics and so on.
The book is told through the fictitious voices of Kip, Jason, Andy and Frank, four golfers of varying abilities. Frankly, this “voice” can be a little trying at times, but it does allow readers to put themselves in their position and learn the concepts.
Skura breaks down the book into chapters on goals, segmenting, self-image, self-talk, body-talk, self-fulfilling prophecies, absorbing, imagining, and that elusive “zone.” While the mental skills that Skura talks about are usually something that Olympic elite athletes work with, amateur players can also benefit. Main points and ideas are highlighted throughout the $21.95 book. www.howgreatgolfersthink.com
Season too short!
By Bob Hughes
The trouble with the golf season in this province is, it’s too short. There are so many courses to play and so little time. When you have the short summers we do and mix them in with the dwindling amount of daylight, well, you get the picture. Just when you think you’ve got your game reasonably together, the leaves take on colour and the winter wind can be heard rustling through the trees. I am one of those golfers who will play as often as I can. There are so many great golf courses out there, you have to take advantage of the opportunities to play them.
This summer will rank as one of the best I have ever had golfing. No, not the scores, just the variety of courses I’ve had the chance to play. This summer ranks second to the one in 2006 when my wife and I went to England and Scotland. We watched the British Open at the Hoylake course just outside of Liverpool, won by Tiger Woods. You have no idea how good these guys really are until you watch them weave their magic in person. We also golfed the fabled Old Course at St. Andrew’s, Carnoustie (the site of the 2007 British Open) and a nice course in Inverness. That’s pretty tough to top.
This summer, it was one trip after another in Alberta and British Columbia. It began with a father-son adventure in Alberta when we shacked up in a condo at Canmore, and branched out from the year. We played a beautiful course called Stewart Creek, which is over-priced but busy, so what do I know. And we also played the Mt. Kidd and Mt. Lorette courses in Kananaskis, which are two of the best golf courses you will find anywhere in North America.
All three of those courses are in pristine shape and, unlike far too many Saskatchewan courses, they have real sand in their bunkers and they’re properly maintained. If you can’t put real sand in bunkers and keep them up, then get rid of them and go to grass bunkers.
A few weeks later, it was a week in the Okanagan Valley. In Kelowna, we played the Harvest, the Bear at Quail Ridge, the Vernon Golf and Country Club and Predator Ridge. On the way home, we stopped in Revelstoke and played the Revelstoke Golf Course. The summer tour ended with a return trip to Kelowna where we tried on Gallagher’s Canyon for size, and got our butts handed to us. It is some kind of golf course.
And, yet, Saskatchewan can hold its own with the golf courses we have here. There are such widely acclaimed courses as Dakota Dunes and the Riverside in Saskatoon, the historic Royal Regina Club and the ever-changing Wascana Country Club. Mainprize remains as one of the undiscovered courses in the province and Long Creek at Avonlea continues to hold a special spot in my heart as one of the most tranquil courses around. Madge Lake offers scenery and peace and quiet.
Deer Valley outside of Lumsden has awesome beauty and the toughest greens to putt in Saskatchewan. Waskesiu and Elk Ridge offer patrons to the Prince Albert National Park side by side golf courses that take the breath away. The trouble is, there’s just not enough time in a Saskatchewan summer to take them all in.
Bob Hughes is a retired sports writer and editor with the Regina Leader Post and a passionate golfer.
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Golf real estate still hot
A hot golf real estate market shows no signs of slowing done, as the Saskatchewan economy remains strong and aging Baby Boomers retire to the golf course. While some areas on the province have returned to a more balanced general real estate market, limited supply and increased demand continues to drive the golf real estate market.
From the native prairie, links-style courses of southern Saskatchewan to the majestic boreal forest and lake area of the North, there's a venue for everyone. With summer days away, now is the perfect time to check out real estate opportunities at such hotspots as Elk Ridge Resort, Northern Meadows Golf Resort and Candle Lake Golf Resort. MORE>>
Luxury at Elk Ridge Resort
Not only are golf course conditions the best in memory at this premiere four-season resort, Elk Ridge Resort has opened the new Elk Ridge Lodge featuring 34 deluxe guestrooms in June. Airline Hotels and Resorts Ltd. will oversee the operations of the golf course and of the new lodge in conjunction with all other accommodation options such as the chalet style cabins, townhouses and RV Park. MORE>>
Golf cart injuries alarming
Off-course golf cart injuries are increasingly a concern, according to a study by the University of Alabama at the Birmingham Center for Injury Studies. They found there were 48,225 golf cart related injuries in the U.S. between 2002 and 2005, with the highest rates in males 10 to 19 and those over 80. In many communities the vehicles have become residential runabouts.
It found golf carts have a high risk of rollover and the most common injuries are fractures and head trauma. It recommends golf cart users use seat belts and helmets, especially if driven on public roads. About 45 per cent of golf cart accidents still happen on golf courses.
Best golf deals in 2008
Gas prices going through the roof, food prices going up weekly and home heating costs about to skyrocket, it's time to look at your golf budget. Golf courses around Saskatchewan and other companies - not surprisingly, prices are inching up around the province this year - offer you a number of incentives to save a few dollars. Here are dozen great ways to stretch your golfing dollar a little further. MORE>>
Weekend getaway options
The annual list of Saskatchewan stay and play packages has started on SaskGolfer.com on Hole #10. More deals will be posted during the coming weeks, so check back again.
This year's special deals include packages at Spiritwood, the Outerbanks, Katepwa, Harbor, Elk Ridge, Evergreen, La Verendrye, Weyburn, the hawood at Waskesiu, Deer Valley, Golf Kenosee and White Bear and more - check it out at MORE>>
Amen Corner
"Every course should be a hard par and an easy bogey.”"
- Course designer Robert Trent Jones
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Graham DeLaet birdied the final hole of regulation and then repeated the performance on the first sudden death playoff hole to win the $200,000 Desjardins Montreal Open over George Bradford and Daniel Im.