2.James Lepp's New Shoes

3. Presidents Cup 2009

Matches consist of:

1. 11 Foursomes = alternate shot;
2. 11 Four-Ball = best ball;
3. 12 Singles

To Win

I like the Internationals to win overall. Here's why:

• Four-Ball: Internationals' record 34-20-7 vs U.S. 21-31-5 (W-L-H)
• Singles: Internationals' record 16-14-4 vs U.S. 14-15-3
• The U.S. has 7 of the top ten money winners but this is match play which is totally different.
• Ishikawa and Yang give Internationals stronger closers than O'Hair and Kim in match play singles.
• Tiger has never had a consistently successful partner in team play.
• The U.S. has three non-rookie players who have never had a singles victory.

Mitigating Factors:

• Norman's pick of Adam Scott sucks. No way should number of Vanity Fair or GQ covers affect the pick of President's Cup team members.
• The difference will be the performance of the rookies. They are unknown factors. Roll the dice, just like the captains.
• Home soil is a tremendous advantage for the U.S. The Internationals have not matched the European Ryder Cuppers in performance in away matches. They are due.

Loose Comments:

• Will Mike Weir get another crack at Tiger in singles?
• Will Tiger get a crack at Y.E.Yang in singles?
• I'd try Jim Furyk or Zach Johnson with Tiger in Four-Ball
• Biggest questions on Internationals for me are Vijay Singh and Robert Allenby. Vijay is having a bad year, especially putting and so is Allenby.
• Instead of Adam Scott, I would have taken Marc Leishman. He's 44 on the money list and played very well through the end of the FedEx cup. A potential rookie of the year. John Senden would also have been a more deserving choice.

U.S Team Record

International Team Record

4. Sponsors Light Up Golf Bags

Pro Bag Ads is offering innovative technology to attract sponsors to a new way to reach advertisers and consumers. It will definitely change player sponsorship and marketing opportunities in the golf industry.

Owners Joe Kirkpatrick (a former professional golfer) and James May, who owns a company that builds high-end residential audio-visual systems in Arizona, hit on their idea while attending the FBR Phoenix Open. They've come up with a built-in High-Def digital display that can be embedded into a golf bag. The HD screen is weatherproof and can show full color ads submitted in standard formats by sponsors/advertisers. The golf bag becomes a mobile billboard that gets up close and personal to a specific target market on the golf course.

At tournaments and other special events, this is a big deal for advertisers, organizers, businesses and local charities. The screens offer marketing professionals a unique way to access an untapped venue for ads.

Tour player Michael Allen debuted the bag in August, 2008. For players and tournaments, this is a way to show sponsors who are feeling the pinch of a slow economy, that they are able and willing to go the extra mile to reach audiences in new ways. The PGA Tour and LPGA tour are struggling to hold on to existing sponsors as well as tap new business partners. This type of technical innovation is key if they are to maintain or build event purses. Sponsors are re-assessing the return to their advertising dollar -- look at the car companies. Middle and lower tier players especially might be tapping this avenue. They can offer a potentially better level of exposure per player dollar if they provide sponsors with this low cost means of displaying their marketing message.

Compared to local TV and radio, never mind full network ad rates, the Pro Bag Ads can be price competitive. Plus, the message is seen as more creative, drawing more attention to expand the reach for sponsors. Screen clarity makes for a high quality image and high brand recognition for viewers. The PGA might even consider taking a cut for the right to "broadcast" to tour audiences across a number of player bags.

When Michael Allen first used the technology he promoted Wines and a children’s diabetes charity. As part of an agreement with the PGA Tour, players associated with the Pro Bag Ads were required to advertise a charity of their choice.

5. Directory Error

Inside Golf puts out a great directory (Canadian Golf Directory, Canada's Authoritative Golf Atlas, Vol.11 2009/10 Edition) which gives a province-by-province listings of great places to play. It comes with reviews, articles, course descriptions and maps of where they are located.

I stumbled on the magazine while driving through the Prairies on my Golf Tour as part of my retirement parade across the country during the summer of 2008. My first use discovered a glitch which caused me a minor misdirection. The Inside Golf reference map of the Regina Region is Saskatchewan indicated that Deer Valley GC was east of Regina along the Trans Canada Highway. I booked a phone reservation and started out next morning. Oops the course was not east toward the Manitoba border, but north of Regina near Lumsden, SK. I was 90-degrees off course. I phoned Deer Valley's pro shop and apologized, re-booking their course for the next day.

I was mildly discouraged but only for fifteen minutes because when I turned to go back to Regina, I passed the sign to Katepwa Beach GC which I had never heard of. I stopped and played there instead; turned out it was one of my favourite places to play during the whole trip.

Next day, I showed the Inside Golf Directory to the Deer Valley pro shop. They were disappointed and said they would make a point of correcting the mistake. They had paid good money to be in the Atlas and were not about to take this mistake lightly. Deer Valley was also a fantastic course; they treated me to excellent service. The course and scenery within the Qu'Appelle Valley equalled that of Katepwa.

So, all was well, or so I thought. Until last month, I'm passing a magazine stand and spy the 2009-2010 edition of the Inside Golf Directory. I turn to the Saskatchewan section and, you guessed it, same mistake. So, BEWARE, anyone driving to Saskatchewan. Make sure you know where your course is before you head out there. Katepwa is near Indian Head SK, and Deer Valley is in Lumsden (north of the city).

Meanwhile, I've notified the publisher, Mr. Jeff Sutherland of Inside Golf. I will also re-contact the Deer Valley GC to inform them that they might forward a link to their web-based map to the IG people.