Golf Digest June 2009

May 31, 2009
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Artist Robert Grossman's sculpture of the Bethpage logo, The Caddie Boy, was built with clay. The Caddie Boy image adorned the shutters of the Bethpage clubhouse when it was dedicated in August 1935.

Villegas Photo by Dan Winters

FEATURES

Father's Day tribute: excerpts from Chicken Soup for the Soul

Six writers on their favorite golf getaways

__[20 PLACES EVERY GOLFER

MUST GO

](/courses/2009/06/bestattractions)__

The game's best off-course attractions

The man with three majors, a dinosaur head and a 300-pound meteorite is no dodo

Interviewed by Bob Verdi

LESSON TEE

He's not long, but here's what makes him so quick

Analysis by Mike Bender

My 3 keys when between clubs

Focus on your swing path to hit the high floater

My healthy knee has changed how I drive into the ball

Fix your slice before it starts

Par depends on the weather, as Byron Nelson told me

Picture Fred Couples' swing to fix an over-the-top move

HOW TO

Groove a good weight shift

The fine art of scoring: beating fear, tension and not yourself

By Camilo Villegas

How to find your touch on three short-game shots

By Stan Utley

My 10 rules on mental fitness

With Alan P. Pittman

To hit stronger, straighter shots, swing the other way

By Josh Zander

Tips and drills on iron play

By Darrell Kestner

U.S. OPEN PREVIEW

For all of Bethpage Black's strengths, its final hole isn't one of them. So the USGA considered using the Red's for a finish

By Ron Whitten, photographs by Stephen Szurlej

TV times, hole diagrams, the playing field, the Virtual Open contest, websites and more

A year later, Mediate reflects on his near miss against Tiger: "People act as if I won."

By John Feinstein

How hard will the Black play for our three celebrities and contest winner? The USGA says there's no need to fear

By Craig Bestrom

How the pros will work the driver -- and you can, too

By Jim McLean

Dan Jenkins looks back at covering 60 years of classics

Ben Hogan survived a crash to make history, but it robbed him of glory

By Jaime Diaz

EQUIPMENT

LATEST GEAR: Mallet putters

NEW LOOKS: Lightweight shoes

BOMB & GOUGE: Driver aerodynamics

WHAT'S IN MY BAG? Ernie Els

COLUMNS

JERRY TARDE: 18 questions for David Fay

TIM ROSAFORTE: Retief Goosen's putting fix

DAVID OWEN: Food for thought

DAN JENKINS: Report from the Masters

THE DIGEST

ON THE TEE: Nick Watney

GURU: Playing with family

FITNESS: Lightning myths

RULES: Stroke savers

BOOKS: 14 to check out

STYLE: Watches as investments

TRAVEL DIGEST

LONG DRIVES: Memphis to Little Rock

AMBUSH: Bratton brotherhood

__Q&A With John Smoltz: __The Boston Red Sox reliever talks about his aspirations of making it on tour and the golf course in his backyard