The Loop

More than golf at the ADT

November 22, 2008

If your favorite players failed to make the 36-hole cut at the ADT Championship and both Annika and Lorena were part of that group, there's still lots to do at Trump International.

Before you even set foot on the course, you'll be tempted by all the free food. A good start is the oven-roasted Blue Diamond almonds. Try both the cinnamon and brown sugar and sea salt coatings. Wash them down with a complimentary cup of chilled fruit-flavored Vitamin Water. Still hungry?

Visit the vendor offering bread samples soaked with a variety of Crisco olive oils.

After so much snacking, you might be sleepy. Among the special attractions at this event are Select Comfort beds. Both single and king models are set up for you to lie on. It felt pretty comfy before my personal comfort number

was dialed in. But after I got that adjustment, it took a major effort for me to move. And for all my trouble, I was given a 100 percent cotton tee shirt.

On a more serious note, skin cancer screenings are scheduled by local dermatologists. Along with the physical exam, sample products and informational pamphlets are available.

Although most of the gallery comes to watch the best women players compete, spectators can improve their own skills. Teaching Division LPGA professionals give 10-minute lessons on the same range where the contestants

practice. Lessons are in demand with waiting lines. A less time-consuming option is swinging in the golf simulator at the ADT tent and having your action analyzed by a professional.

For kids, there's a hands-on junior clinic and a performance by trick star golfer Dennis Walters.

The winner-takes-all prize is $1 million for this seaon-ending event, but you can enter a $1 million shootout for a chance at a big payout.

The odds of winning the shootout are slim, but you can at least feel what's it's like to be in possession of $1 million. Get your picture taken with the lucite box containing 10,000 crisp $100 bills that will go to the eventual winner of the ADT Championship. You don't get to keep the money, but you

will have your photo and bragging rights.

-- Topsy Siderowf