November 02, 2010
Golf Practice-zine Newsletter for October 2010
Thanks for signing up to receive the October 2010 issue (#26) of the Newsletter. The season is winding down but the drama continues as Q-School looms and we shift to the southern Hemisphere for televised golf to warm our cold northern hearts. Lots of Canadians (49) are trying to qualify, we talk about who and where. Sean Foley is making his mark as swing guru and coach to many pro stars. Player drug testing is expanding across more and more Tours plus we talk solar golf cart technology and some interesting news tidbits.
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1. World Golf Rankings
Lee Westwood is (finally) number one in the World Golf Rankings. What a great year for European Golf! Six of the top ten ranked players are from Europe; at last a better balance against American domination.
Given Tiger's forgettable year, awaiting the next number one was like a death watch. Nobody wanted it. Mickelsen gagged, Stricker faded and then Westwood re-injured his calf muscle. No contender was playing good golf. Good thing that doesn't matter; in the murky world of World Golf Ranking(WGR) calculus, what's relevant is the good golf history you've managed to put up versus everyone else.
The WGR awards points to players over a two year period as a "rolling" average based on points awarded for each event maintained for a 13-week period to place additional weight on more recent play. Ranking points are then reduced, to quote the Official World Golf Ranking methodology:
".. in equal decrements (of 1/92nd of the original amount) for the remaining 91 weeks of the two year Ranking period. Each player is then ranked according to his average points per tournament, which is determined by dividing his total number of points by the tournaments he has played over that two-year period.There is a minimum divisor of 40 tournaments over the two year ranking period and a maximum divisor of a player’s last 60 events."
Since Woods' did not play golf for most of 2010, somebody else was bound to step up.
Anyway, I'm glad it was Westwood. Nice guy, great golfer, most deserving. Pop the corks.
As of end of October, the latest rankings top ten are:
| Rank | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lee Westwood | 8.29 |
| 2 | Tiger Woods | 8.13 |
| 3 | Martin Kaymer | 7.98 |
| 4 | Phil Mickelson | 7.83 |
| 5 | Steve Stricker | 7.20 |
| 6 | Jim Furyk | 7.09 |
| 7 | Paul Casey | 6.14 |
| 8 | Luke Donald | 5.70 |
| 9 | Rory McIlroy | 5.44 | 10 | Graeme McDowell | 5.43 |
2. Sean Foley
Sean Foley, well-known in Canada as coach of Stephen Ames on the PGA Tour, is now officially coach to Tiger Woods. Let the next round of the Tiger Circus begin! Hopefully Sean gets better treatment than Hank Haney,.if you've listened to some of Hank's exit interviews, lately, you'll know what I mean.
Sean has super credentials. For someone at age 35, he is relatively young to be in the company of golf students at so lofty a level. His credentials are the kind you get from satisfied customers, the likes of:
- Sean O'Hair
- Hunter Mahan
- Justin Rose
- Parker McLachlin
- Greg Owen
- Lorie Kane
- Jennifer Kirby (Canadian Amateur who made semi-finals of U.S. Amateur this year.)
A native of Burlington, Ontario, Foley has been National Head Coach of the Canadian Junior Golf Assn. and Director of Player Developemnt for Clublink's Academy at Glen Abbey GC in Oakville.
Foley is known for his extensive knowledge of the technical side of the golf swing. He is analytical, articulate and well-versed in assessing what's wrong with a golf swing in front of him. In a recent Golfchannel interview, Foley described himself this way:
"...From that standpoint with myself, empirical,, conceptual, and kinesthetic learners, I'm very successful with. I struggle with visual learners and even highly kinesthetic learners. If they don't want to understand the concept or why things are wrong then -- and I've done this -- then I'll say that this teacher here will really be able to help you move forward."
Tiger Woods is known to be a very empirical, conceptual golfer. He wants to know, in detail, what his swing mechanics are, what he is doing right, what he is doing wrong and how to fix it. Hank Haney said so. In fact Haney described Tiger as knowing more about his own swing than any other golfer he had coached. So, this Foley-Tiger thing could be very beneficial for Tiger.
Hopefully, Foley can relate to Tiger. Things look promising; chances are good. After all, Woods has theoretically more free time on his hands to devote to therapy. Swing therapy, that is.
3. Tour Qualifying
PGA Tour
Graham DeLaet is in. He finished the PGA 2010 Edition at 98 on the Money List. Mike Weir should be back despite a dismal year financially. Mike has at least two options; he can apply for a medical exemption because of his elbow injury or can come back on his veteran status with a top 50 in career winnings. If Weir, rests and re-gains his health, he should breeze back to top 50 on the Money List no problem.
Top 125 status for DeLaet means he can can enter any PGA event except the Majors and World Golf Championship events. Best thing is he can plan his schedule the way he wants; play the courses he knows suit his game and make a schedule that keeps him rested and ready for his best golf. Veterans say that you make 80 percent of your earnings in 3-5 of your best finishes. Scheduling to take advantage of this comes with experience.
If you finish between 125-150 you can still enter PGA events but your schedule is restricted. You can Monday qualify during the week of an event or wait on a limited Alternate list, in case qualified players withdraw or become injured so you can take their place. Sponsor exemptions also permit individual players to gain entry through another side door to events.
Nationwide Tour
Nationwide Tour player, David Hearn had a solid year-ending tournament, scrambling to a top-25 finish on that tour so he is also on his way to a second try at the PGA. David is the only Canadian to make it through in 2010.
Hearn joins a good crop of alumni, including Jamie Lovemark who darn near earned his way on in 2009 through sponsor exemptions during the fall season last year. Lovemark topped the Nationwide money list. Also of note are Tommy (2 gloves) Gainey and Scott Gutschewski who should have won an event in 2010 if he hadn't gacked a drive into a water hazard on his way to an 8 on 18. Such are the winds of fate. To some of these guys, the Nationwide season must seem like the easy way out (or in, as the case may be). Out of the minors and into the majors.
Q School
Q School entry is three stages and of hell at courses scattered all over the U.S. Every year, about $1100 golfers enter
- First Stage: 13 Courses, Oct. 19 - 31 Entry cost $4,500
- Second Stage: 6 Courses, Nov.16 - 20 Entry cost $4,000
- Final Stage: Orange County National GC and Lodge, Dec. 1 - 6 Entry cost $3,500.
Here are the first-stage sites and Canadian entrants:
- Auburn, Ala.: Mark Leon, David Morland, Adam Short
- Kannapolis, N.C. :Jerome Blais, Rob Greenwell, Ryan Kings, Al McLean, Danny Sahl. Chris Ross
- Dayton Valley, Nev.: Darren Griff, Nick Taylor, Ryan Yip, Jeff Puska
- Santee, CA: Kent Eger, Andrew Parr , Adam Hadwin, ,Mike Mezei, Wes Heffernan, Matt Johnston, Grey McAuley
- Pine Mountain, CA. : Richard Scott, Vincent Dumouchel, Brennan Webb
- Beaumont, CA. : Brett Bingham, Mitch Gillis, Barrett Jarosch, Richard T. Lee, Darren Wallace, Ryan Williams
- McKinney, Tex. : Stuart Anderson, Cam Burke, David Markle, Ted Brown, Keven Fortin-Simard, Matt McQuillan
- Pinehurst, N.C. : Brad Fritsch, Derek Gillespie, Yohann Benson, Will Mitchell
- Lantana, Tex. : James Allenby, Jamie Kureluk, James Love, Craig Matthew, Roger Sloan, Adam Speirs
- Kingwood, Tex. : Devin Carrey
- Kahaku, Hawaii: Bryn Parry
- Port St. Lucie, Fla. : Matt Hill, Peter Laws
Only 30-35 golfers make it through the Final Stage onto the PGA Tour. Since every year, about 1, 100 golfers enter, that makes this a very low percentage ( 3%) proposition. The Dream dies hard. To follow the Canadians and all the action, you can track it all at the Q School website
4. Solar Golf Carts
Bonita Springs, Florida
The company, Gulf City Solar has a kit that permits electric cart operators to convert their battery-powered golf carts to solar power. The kit consists of a light, solar panel made of flexible, rollable film that can be attached to the roof of a golf cart with heavy duty, double-sided tape. The tape permits easiy removal of the panel without marring the cart's surface if necessary. So installation and maintenance are a dream.
Most kits on the market use heavy glass panels to capture solar energy and may require a golf cart roof to be replaced. Golf City Solar's kit also operates up to 30 percent more efficiently than other kits. Golf cart batteries run down in about 11/2 years on average -- it's a process called sulfation. With Gulf City's product, there is almost no sulfation and batteries can last as long as six years or so.
For a golf course operation with, say 50 carts, estimated savings are $60,000 to $90,000 (net) in the first three years, Gulf City says. Prices for Solar kits vary by type of cart and battery in exitsting carts, ranging from $1,550 to $2,250 U.S.
The advantages for clubs are obvious; a reduced energy bill, reduced recharge times and lower overall operating costs. Check out the Gulf City Solar website for images and more detail.
5. Player Drug Testing
Japanese Tour
Quoted from Japan's Kyodo News: Japan's pro golf tour will begin testing players for illegal drugs after Australian Wayne Perske was arrested on suspected cocaine possession. Tour presidentTadashi Koizumi said tests for illegal drugs such as marijuana and cocaine will begin at the Nov. 11-14 Taiheiyo Masters. Perske, 36, was carrying a packet containing 1.25 grams of cocaine in his pocket at a bar in Chiba prefecture on Friday and was later arrested, police said. In Japan, possession of banned drugs can carry a penalty of up to seven years in prison.
The Tour said that testing will continue through to the season-ending player award ceremony on December 6, 2010. Players will not be tested for performance-enhancing substances.
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour started testing for drugs in 2008. The policy covers any player in a PGA or Nationwide sanctioned event. Tests are administered by the National Center for Drug Free Sport who test every major sport in the U.S. (except the NHL). Tests occur without warning and can happen during or independent of any Tour event. Players can apply for a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) for banned substances in cases such as prescription drugs they are taking for purposes that do not enhance their performance or where there is no known alternative substance available.
So far, golfer Doug Barron has been the only player suspended for violating the policy when he tested positive in 2009. Barron sued the PGA Tour, claiming the drugs he administered were prescribed for a heart condition. He admitted that the prescribed drub was non-conforming but was attempting to switch to a conforming version but inadvertently may have weaned himself off the other form of the drug in time for testing. Barron's lawyers continue discussions with the PGA Tour.
For an more detail on the PGA Tour drug testing system, there's an interesting post by Ryan Ballengee and see also this 2007 memo from Tim Finchem.
6. New Tidbits
Other News bits of interest:
- Turning Stone Resort Championship, Atunyote GC, NY will not return to the PGA Tour schedule in 2011. Turning Stone, which is owned by the Oneida Indian Nation of New York, wanted a better date for their tournament.
Originally held in September, the event was moved to August in 2010. The Oneida Nation wanted a stand-alone date in either June, July or August, two weeks before or after a major. Given existing contracts held by the Tour, such a date was not possible so the Nation opten to withdraw their support until a better opportunity presented itself. - All Hail Rod Spittle's win on the Champion's Tour! His victory at the AT&T Championship was a long-shot to say the least. In a play-off over Jeff Sluman no less. Spittle never played on the PGA Tour and shelved his dream of Tour membership to sell insurance. He camp back to play via Monday qualifying to gain entry to the hardest Tour in the World to get on and stay on.
Only 30 of the top money winners are exempt for a Champions Tour season. Only 5 players gain entry each year through their Q-School. The rest qualify. Now Spittle can play as a full member for 2011, playing as often as he likes. - Golf Business Reflections by European Golf Design Managing Director, Jeremy Slessor).concerning his views on the state of the industry and projects in Europe gave these insights:
- Traditional 7-day membership programmes are dying. People want more flexibility and wise operators are increasingly adopting membership structures similar to those in the health and leisure industries (that is, no initiation fees and monthly - as opposed to annual - fees).
- There is very little growth in the number of players.
- The national federations appear to be representing a decreasing minority of the golfers in Europe and have little, or no, success in attracting new people to the game which raises the question as to what they do with all of the revenue generated from the subscriptions.
- The slowing pace of play is killing participation.
- An increasing number of people are playing 9 holes rather than 18, to the point where some courses are now marketing themselves as having two 9 hole courses instead of an 18 hole course.
- Golf courses need to become mini-resorts with diverse leisure facilities catering for as wide a range of users as possible.
On project funding and development:
- Projects that are well located, well funded and well planned are moving ahead, despite the economic crisis.
- Developers with proven track records of delivering these type of projects are still able to source investment.
- Sales are slower than in recent years, but there is still interest for the right residential product(s).
- The economic situation is acting as an “idiot-filter” in that the speculative gambler attracted to property development by tales of easy money has disappeared from the marketplace, leaving only serious players, on all sides of the property development spectrum (investment, development, design and implementation).