July 2010: Editors' Blog: Golf Digest

Your sentiments on Seve

Friday, July 30, 2010 Comments

Since his July 12 Golf World column in praise of Seve Ballesteros, John Huggan has continued his campaign to honor Seve before it's too late. In the Scotsman this week

, Huggan suggested that when Seve decided he could not attend the champions' challenge at St. Andrews, it meant that golf--its leaders, its leading players--ought to go to Seve in Spain. An interesting suggestion. Meanwhile, many of you have sent reactions to Huggan's column (and to some letter-writers), mostly supporting Seve--but not necessarily Huggan.

John Huggan must have a huge European-induced inferiority complex to claim that Americans never appreciated Ballesteros' "shot-making genius." American accolades are numerous and documented. We simply didn't care for his prideful arrogance and immature antics, which Huggan might call gamesmanship. As for "peerless charisma" nobody, but nobody, can touch Arnold Palmer. The tragedy isn't that Americans never recognized Seve's charisma; it's that he never parlayed that charisma into commendable behavior on and off the course. These opinions aside, all golf fans wish Mr. Ballesteros the very best with his health issues.

Jim Johnson, Scottsdale, AZ

The opinion article by John Huggan in the July 12th edition is interesting, at best. As an American who has been playing golf for over 50 years, I have the utmost respect for Seve and his accomplishments. Golf is an international game. John demeans American golfers, and Seve, by stating that "the US does not join the rest of us in recognizing the peerless charisma of the senor from Pedrena." Personally, as a golfer who does not always hit from the center of the fairway, I have been honored by fellow golfers who sometimes say -"great Seve shot."His further comment that this lack of respect "is surely the greatest tragedy of Seve's professional life" is rather shortsighted. The real tragedy of his life, and ours, will be if we lose him in the near future.

Jim Mahern, Pacific Grove CA

John Huggan should be careful when making such general statements about Americans. I played college golf when Seve was at his prime and marveled at his shot making and desire to win. I played Sounder irons, because that's what Seve played, and routinely, along with many others, followed him religiously when we went PGA events. Seve made the modern Ryder Cup. We hated losing and seeing the cup go across the pond but I would venture a guess that the majority of Americans would give Seve big thumbs up and a lot of credit for making the Ryder Cup the exciting match it is today. God Bless you, Seve! Get well soon!

Ted Kozikowski, Mesa, AZ

We've also begun to get reactions to the reaction, like this one today: Jim Johnson is talking about a completely different Seve Ballesteros than the kind, fan-pleasing person I observed at Oakmont CC in 1983. He came off a very bad round and his handler was hustling him through the crowds to the locker room. Seve ignored the man and spent a long time talking to kids while signing shirts, hats, etc. He was so gracious, while in despair about his lousy round that he earned my life-long respect.

Sue Golier, Pittsburgh, PA

In every sport there are warrior-competitors you hate when as opponents and love when they're on your side. Seve is one of them. But if you're side is golf, the sport, the game, than Seve has always been your guy.

--Bob Carney

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Corey, Tiger and the Ryder Cup

Wednesday, July 28, 2010 Comments

Corey Pavin announced during the Senior British Open that he will ask Tiger "if he wants to be on his Ryder Cup team." After publicly announcing that "Tiger has to earn his way into the team", Pavin received some negative reactions to this statement, one of which came from Jack Nicklaus. Knowing Tiger's pride and his present professional and personal status, Pavin is making sure that he can save face if Tiger is not on the Ryder Cup team. By the way, it is not his team. It is the United States Ryder Cup team, of which he happens to be the leader. His actions and his words indicate he only wants Tiger in the Ryder cup team half-heartedly.

Luzviminda G. Veloso, Ridgewood, NY

You are a prescient observer, Luziminda. But whether Pavin is half-hearted, cold-hearted, full-throated or surreptitious about it, he'll have Tiger if Tiger feels like playing, and we're betting he will. Based on Woods' reception at the British Open--fairly cordial, I thought--you'll see him in Wales. Did you see the story about him still being No. 1 (tied, now with Kobe Bryant) among sports fans? He's the draw he always was.

--Bob Carney

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Hot List: What about lesser-known brands?

Friday, July 23, 2010 Comments

We got this anonymous comment/question the other day whether our Hot List judges might try a less well-known brand.

Not much of a question here but I read your annual Hot List every year and often refer back to it when trying to make a choice of a piece of equipment. I was just wondering if it was possible to get your testers to try out one of the Krank drivers. Maybe the Rage. I know its not a big brand but I have heard good things and would like to get your testers thoughts.

Golf World's Mike Johnson, one of our judges, replies:

We invite all club manufacturers to submit clubs for the Golf Digest Hot List regardless of the size of the company. The only requirements are that the clubs are readily available for purchase by consumers and that they will be in the marketplace for at least the first half of the year. And in some years we have had some clubs from smaller companies not only make the Hot List, but do well (see Scratch wedges earning a gold medal this past year). Hopefully Krank will see fit to submit their drivers this year so we can evaluate them.

--Bob Carney

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All-time best caddie responses?

Wednesday, July 21, 2010 Comments

Golf World reader and longtime golf executive Skip Eikleberry forwarded this list of "all-time best caddie responses." Pretty good, some better than others, some more authentic than others. Add yours in the comments section.

10. Golfer: "I think I'm going to drown myself in the lake." Caddie: "Think you can keep your head down that long?"

9. Golfer: "I'd move heaven and earth break 100 on this course." Caddie: "Try heaven, you've already moved most of the earth."

8. Golfer: "Do you think my game is improving?" Caddie: "Yes, sir, you miss the ball much closer now."

7. Golfer: "Do you think I can get there with a 5-iron?" Caddie: "Eventually."

6. Golfer: "You've got to be the worst caddy in the world." Caddie: "I don't think so, sir. That would be too much of a coincidence."

5. Golfer: "Please stop checking your watch all the time. It's too much of a distraction. " Caddie: "It's not a watch. It's a compass."

4. Golfer: "How do you like my game?" Caddie: "Very good sir, but personally I prefer golf."

3. Golfer: "Do you think it's a sin to play on Sunday?" Caddie: "The way you play it's a sin on any day."

2. Golfer: "This is the worst course I've ever played on." Caddie: "This isn't the golf course. We left that an hour ago."

1. Golfer: "That can't be my ball. It's too old." Caddie: "It's been a long time since we teed off, sir."

Here's one I heard from a caddie at Gleneagles in Scotland. My friend Dave had experienced a miserable stretch of holes and finally, exasperatedly, turned to his caddie, John, and said, "John, do you play golf?" "No," came the reply. "I've wasted my life fishing."

Or the story about the member who took a caddie under his wing and offered him a job at the member's home to supplement his income. "I'm not going to be there, but while I'm at work I want you to paint the porch in the back of my house. I'll leave the paint and the brushes." The member saw the caddie later at the club. "How did it go?" he asked. "Fine," said the caddie, "All done. But it wasn't a Porche; it was a BMW."

--Bob Carney

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Paula Creamer's Victory

Friday, July 16, 2010 Comments

My husband and I had the good fortune to be able to attend the 2003 Women’s Open outside Portland, Oregon at Pumpkin Ridge. At the tournament, I made a point to try and obtain the autograph of all of the “stars” featured in the program. After obtaining one of their autographs, a young woman, clad all in pink, approached me and said “Don’t you want my autograph?” She spent a few minutes chatting with me and it’s a moment I treasure. After signing my program with her signature pink Sharpie, I thought what a refreshing young girl, only 16 at the time, wanting to make sure this future fan didn’t miss an opportunity to obtain the autograph of the amazing young woman who, seven years later, would win that very same tournament. Congratulations, Paula, you are a class act all the way. Thanks for your thoughtfulness in making sure that I didn’t miss out on a rare chance to actually meet a “star.”

Karen Stroder, Twin Falls, ID

Couldn't agree more. Our club hosted the 2003 U.S. Girls' Junior Championship and Creamer, though she did not make the finals, stayed for the ceremonies afterward and stood to thank the club, its volunteers and the USGA for a great event. A thank you note cam later. She was 17, close to 18 then, remarkably poised, and already a champion. It was great to see her overcome injury and a brutal set-up to win the U.S. Open. As we said back then, "Great kid!"

--Bob Carney

Equipment IQs: They're rising

Saturday, July 10, 2010 Comments

On Thursday night at the RBS Achievers dinner in Pittsburgh Jack Nicklaus and RBS gave financial awards to 12 First Tee kids who had overcome particularly difficult personal situations. These included the loss of parents to illness or death, divorce, abuse, addiction, poverty. With the help of family, mentors like the ones they met at the First Tee and some great teachers, these teenagers are now succeeding in golf, school and life. They have dreams that range from playing golf on the PGA Tour to being the first one in their family to attend college. They have hope.

Nicklaus was terrific, staying for every minute of the dinner, posing for as many photographs as the winners and their parents wanted, and movingly congratulating the group from the podium. Jack only did the right thing; he seemed to be enjoying it as well. It's an annual dinner that makes one proud to be a golfer and proud that Golf Digest supports RBS in its recognition of these kids.

At our table sat Tyler Clem, from the First Tee of Fort Smith, Arkansas, a soft-spoken 17-year-old, who has overcome abuse and depression and fallen in love--with golf. He plays for his high school golf team and wants to play in college. Years ago, I think Tyler would have asked only about tour pros or teachers or great courses we'd seen. But Tyler wanted to talk equipment. And he knew a lot about it. He'd recently changed the shaft in his driver and the ball he was playing "because the spin rate off the driver was 5,000" and he knew that it should be somewhere between 2-and 3,000. He knew he needed a low kick point on his driver. He demonstrated why. He took me through his bag and some specs on his irons, mentioned that he had changed them recently (from one forged brand to another) to get more control and a slightly lower trajectory.

A few years ago, I would have said that Tyler was precocious in his knowledge of equipment, a special case. But not now. Your letters, our web traffic and the kinds of questions we get from readers--the kind that Tyler asked me--are more and more about equipment--and more and more sophisticated. Online, the most popular topic on our web site is golf equipment. Our Hot List and other equipment stories, more detailed information from manufacturers, as well as the swing trackers and launch monitors that are now standard at golf shops and ranges, have made you, our readers, much smarter about the kinds of equipment you play and how--whether--it fits your game.

At one table the other night was the champion who had won 18 majors, mostly with a ball, the Tourney, that by all accounts was inconsistent from one to the next. And here was Tyler talking about spin rates and kick points like a club fitter.

The moral: Juniors experience golf far differently today than the way Jack did growing up, not only in the way the swing (and fitness) is taught, but in the way they see equipment as part of the game-improvement package. Credit the Big Bertha, the Ping Eye-2 or the invention of Surlyn, but kids are more gear-oriented than we ever were. These kinds of advancements, along with much more sophisticated testing and tracking, have raised the "equipment IQ" of the whole sport, especially among kids, I think. Today's young golfers, Tyler among them, look to their equipment as much as to their golf lessons as the path to a better game.

--Bob Carney

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More evidence that Golf Digest instruction works!

Wednesday, July 7, 2010 Comments

Fan letters, we'd like to report, come daily in droves. We'd like to report that, but at Golf Digest we're sworn to accuracy. So scratch the droves part. When fan letters do come, though, they make our day. The most recent:

Last week, I read Jim McLean's tip, in the August issue of Golf Digest, about picturing firing a gun in order to achieve the proper right hand grip. I tried it out at the range a few days ago, and today on the course for the first time. Lo and behold, I shot my first ace! Thanks for all of your instructional articles and tips. Some "stick" and some don't, but this one scored big time!

David Sales, Northbrook, IL

David, congratulations. For a golfer, there's nothing more thrilling than a hole-in-one. For an editor, there's nothing more thrilling than a tip that helped someone make a hole-in-one. Jim is terrific with these kinds of images. I recommend more of his tips on golfdigest.com and on his web site, as well as the "Golf Digest Book of Drills," which he produced. It's full of great images and practice drills.

I was in the car yesterday and my son, who is 3, started to get fussy, so I gave him my husband's Golf Digest and he sat there for a good half hour "reading" it. I was able to snap a cute shot.

Melissa Small, Haverhill, MA

Thanks, Melissa. In the 60 years of our existence, people have used our magazine for many things--game improvement tool, sleep aid--but babysitting, that's a first. We're especially pleased with the photo because like all magazines we seek to demonstrate to advertisers that we appeal to a younger audience. What better proof. Alex, I think you're going to love the July issue.

--Bob Carney

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How to make Golf Digest instruction articles better!

Monday, July 5, 2010 Comments

The heart of Golf Digest, when all is said and done, is instruction. You come to us to improve your games, score lower and one hopes enjoy the game more. It's fun to hear your comments on how we're doing in that department.

As always, your instructional articles were great. Here's my problem: Now that I can HIT IT GREAT ALL THE TIME!...and can DRIVE THE BALL 15 YARDS FURTHER!...and I NEVER MISS A FIVE-FOOTER!...golf has gotten, well, boring. Can I suggest a theme for your next issue? "DRIVE EVERY GREEN (AND THEN MAKE THE PUTT)! Are you tired of scoring in the low-60's? Our instructors show you how to break 55 consistently...using only three clubs!" Just kidding. :) Keep up the good work.

Steve Vidmar, Albuquerque, NM

I hope they like those jokes on the moon, Steve, because that's where you'll need, "HOW TO HIT IT IN REALLY THIN AIR" AND "SPIN IT OUT OF SUPER DUSTY LIES!" by Butch Harmon with Neil Armstrong. Now get back to work on your game.

I am an avid golfer and I really love Golf Digest. I look forward every month to reading the swing tips from the teaching professionals. I just completed reading the "Hit it great all the time" by David Leadbetter. One issue is all the swing tips in this article and all other articles for that matter are for right handers. It's not difficult to convert a tip to the opposite side for my left handed swing, it's just annoying. Could you include a conversion section within the article for us left-handed players?

Lon Sanchez

Lon, we do from time to time (and have done periodically for the two decades I've been here) switch to neutral instructions, substituting "forward" foot for "left" foot, and so on, and it never quite sticks. Most of the instructors are right-handed and they naturally describe positions and movements from that point of view. Are we too lazy to translate that into "neutral" language? No, it's just that when we make those changes we end up forcing all of our readers, right- or left-handed, to convert the words into what's natural for them, which isn't much of a solution. So we have chosen to make it easily understandable for the majority. We apologize, though, and can appreciate your annoyance. In the meantime, the best conversion I can offer is, change every "left" to "right" and every "right" to "left". Just kidding. Thanks for your letter and for reading--and converting--our tips.

--Bob Carney

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Max Adler's coming home party

Thursday, July 1, 2010 Comments

It was the ultimate assignment—and challenge: Over 60 days, travel the country and write 60 stories about the Golf Digest subscribers who've made history--and our pages--during our 60 years of publishing, accomplishing feats as remarkable as making 51 holes in one, winning 47 club championships, making a 500-plus yard hole in one, or playing 18 holes of golf in the time it takes most of us to limber up.

For an assignment like this, you need the perfect editor, preferably a young one. We picked a Renaissance man named Max Adler, an associate editor known to equipment aficianados as one of our Hot List judges, but who is also an accomplished fiction writer, an expert skier, a musician, a painter and a generally affable fellow who puts scratch players and high handicappers alike at ease on the course: The perfect Golf Digest de Tocqueville.

Sixty odd days, 14,176 miles, 791 holes of golf, 29 states later and 60 stories later, Max finished his travels on June 11. But it was Wednesday night at the Waldorf Astoria in Manhattan when the Golf Digest Road Trip officially ended. Max took a audience of 85 on a video tour of the 60-day trek—guitar accompaniment provided by his equally talented brother Dave--answered questions and generally made all of us jealous as hell.

“As good as you imagine it, ” Max told the audience, “it was 10 times better than that.”

One could argue that by definition a trip beginning at Pebble Beach will be good, but to Max, Pebble, as fine as it was, was not the highlight. It was the people—the readers-- he met along the way:

“Pebble was great. But what you learn is that a great day of golf depends on the friends you play with…and the way you play,” said Max.

Of those playing companions that most affected him, it struck me as interesting that Max pointed to two doctors: Pulmonary specialist Doug Hanzel of Savannah, who topped Golf Digest’s list of best golfing doctors and despite a brutal workload continues to be rank as one of Georgia’s leading amateurs; and Dr. Lucian Newman, an Alabama vascular surgeon who lost his left arm in a hunting accident and nonetheless maintains a 2 handicap—and still does surgery.

“It’s one thing to talk about visiting someone like Dr. Newman,” said Adler. “But when you do it, and see how good he is and what he's overcome, it’s very special, very moving.”

Adler talked about old friends who visited him on the road—his brother, a few fellow editors and his girlfriend (who drove while he wrote on his laptop)--but it was the new friends he met along the way who seemed to make the most indelible impressions--those golfers and most of the courses he played with them. Adler said he would make a poor course critic because he found something to love in almost every course he played.

In fact, there was just one aspect of his trip that left him truly disappointed. “All over America, I discovered, most courses are set up to ride. To go against this grain generally poses problems with the pro shop and/or your playing partners," Adler wrote in his concluding post. “I think it’s terrific that carts permit the elderly and infirm to enjoy golf, but I’m unimpressed by the multitudes of physically capable that choose carts by default. For so many reasons, it’s not how the sport is meant to be played.” Amen.

Adler said his body handled the combination of playing, driving and late-night writing sessions (fueled by loads of coffee) amazingly well. (He acknowledged that the automobile supplied by Mercedes and 55-plus hotel beds provided by Hilton, the trip's sponsors, helped). Despite rounds of speed golf, hickory-shafted golf ("I shot a thousand!"), golf on little sleep and golf with some less than expert amateurs, Max’s game also survived. Upon his return, and with some trepidation, he followed through on plans to qualify for the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship at Bryan Park Golf & Conference Center in Greensboro, NC. At Woodbridge C.C. in Connecticut he shot 75-65 to capture co-medalist honors and qualify for the championship.

Two weeks from now Golf Digest’s most prominent chronicler of public golf will see if he can’t become its most accomplished practitioner as well. On the road again.

--Bob Carney

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