Who has played the top 10 longest courses in the world?
Golf Chats is a website to encourage discussions on various subjects relating to the game of golf. I am Mel Sole, Director of Instruction of the Mel Sole Golf School and SAPGA Master Professional. I invite you to enter into a discussion on this or any article on the golfchats.com website. The input is for the entire subscriber base to learn something new each time! Please post your comments below. Keep it clean and tasteful. We are here to learn from one another!
The longest golf course I have personally played was just north of Myrtle Beach, at Eagles Nest Golf Club in Little River, SC. At 7900 from the back tees, it is a monster even for local hero Dustin Johnson. A close second is the Grande Dunes Resort Course, in Myrtle Beach, at 7617 from the tips. But these pale compared to the top 10 longest golf courses in the world presented by Swing by Swing.
Comment below if you have had the privilege of playing any of these monsters!
10. The Prairie Club, Dunes Course – Valentine, Nebraska
Looks a lot like a links course to me. It just needs the ocean!
Length: 8,058 yards
The par-72 Dunes Course at The Prairie Club, designed by Tom Lehman and Chris Brands, is laid out along the Sand Hills of Nebraska. It makes for a most picturesque setting with elevated tees, undulating fairways, and a rolling landscape of prairies grasses. It’s also the shortest course on this list. Strap in.
9. The Shoals Golf Club, Fighting Joe Course – Shoals, Alabama
Looks very serene!
Length: 8,092 yards
The first of two Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail courses to make the list is the Fighting Joe at The Shoals. This par-72 super-long links-style course looks out over the Tennessee River and Lake Jackson and makes some spectacular scenery. It offers generous fairways and holes that follow natural topography along the river, making a pleasurable experience the whole way through.
8. Promontory Club, Painted Valley – Park City, Utah
Certainly looks like a painted valley.
Length: 8,098 yards
The Jack Nicklaus-designed par 72 is arguably one of the toughest in the state of Utah. Located smack dab in the middle of 3 major ski resorts, this lengthy course offers spectacular views while demanding your full attention. The front nine plays down and up a valley and starts with an eye-popping 718-yard par five, the longest hole on the course. The back is laid out more along meadows and features plenty more long holes, including the par-5 12th, which clocks in at 673 yards.
A fun shot to learn – Create a backspin on your pitch shots!
Golf Chats is a website to encourage discussions on various subjects relating to the game of golf. I am Mel Sole, Director of Instruction of the Mel Sole Golf School and SAPGA Master Professional. I invite you to enter into a discussion on this or any article on the golfchats.com website. The input is for the entire subscriber base to learn something new each time! Please post your comments below. Keep it clean and tasteful. We are here to learn from one another!
My good friend Adam Bazelgette of Scratch Golf Academy and former co-worker at the Phil Ritson Golf Studio in Myrtle Beach back in the early ’90s have certainly come a long way in the teaching world. Being named twice, Florida Teacher of the Year is no small accomplishment! Here Adam explains in great detail how the conditions need to be to create backspin on your pitch shots so you can impress your friends.
The 4 golf chip shot tips in this video will help teach you to understand more clearly what is required to learn better how to get backspin with your chip shots and will show you the best way to get more backspin with your pitching and chip shot.
Loft.
The more lost you have, the more spin in created.
Contact.
Contact with the bottom of the ball with only a slightly downward blow.
Speed.
The more clubhead speed, the more spin. If you don’t have far to go, open the clubface to add more loft.
Grooves.
Worn grooves will not spin the ball. Relace your wedges more than your clubs.
Flight your short irons lower to be a better iron player!
Golf Chats is a website to encourage discussions on various subjects relating to the game of golf. I am Mel Sole, Director of Instruction of the Mel Sole Golf School and SAPGA Master Professional. I invite you to enter into a discussion on this or any article on the golfchats.com website. The input is for the entire subscriber base to learn something new each time! Please post your comments below. Keep it clean and tasteful. We are here to learn from one another!
If you want to become a good short-iron player, learn from Travis Fulton and Callaway Golf to fly your short irons lower for better control and accuracy. Turning your lower hand down as you move through impact is one of the big keys to learning this shot!
If you struggle to keep that angle of the lower hand through impact, there is a training aid on the market that will help. It’s called “The Secret” and was based on Ben Hogans’s move through impact. Many instructors thought this was Hogans Secret to becoming a phenomenal iron player. Certainly something worth looking into. Here is the link.
When you first start working on this drill, I suggest the backswing and follow-through are even shorter than Travis suggests. Build up your confidence slowly, then build up the pace as you get better!
PGA Professional Travis Fulton shows you how to take dead aim with your short irons and ensure you’re making solid contact.
Golf Chats is a website to encourage discussions on various subjects relating to the game of golf. I am Mel Sole, Director of Instruction of the Mel Sole Golf School and SAPGA Master Professional. I invite you to enter into a discussion on this or any article on the golfchats.com website. The input is for the entire subscriber base to learn something new each time! Please post your comments below. Keep it clean and tasteful. We are here to learn from one another!
You just have to see a product with an umbrella on it, and you know immediately Arnold Palmer has put his stamp of approval on that item! Branding has become a big business worldwide, and an outstanding logo will definitely set you apart from your competition. My Favorite? Gary Player’s “Knights Head” logo. Simple but says it all about the man. Which is your favorite logo on the PGA Tour? Comments, please.
If you’re not building your brand in today’s world, what are you really doing? Well, as it turns out, golfers are their own brands and some of the most iconic names in the sport are synonymous with bears, umbrellas, or in Phil’s case, themselves. Here’s a look at the 10 of the best Tour pro logos over the years.
Air Phil
Representing Phil’s masters Win!
Phil threw his hat into the logo game ring at the start of his 2017 season by introducing us to “Air Phil.” By far one of the most hilarious on this list, it’s of course, a tribute to his 2004 Masters win. Thumbs up, Phil!
The man, the myth, the legend John Daly uses this lion as his logo. It screams business in the front and party in the back, kind of like Long John himself. Grip it and rip it!
The Shark has been a longtime favorite in the logo world. Its sleek design and unique colors always stood out, especially when Greg Norman wore that phenomenal straw hat.
The Golden Bear
A Lasting Image.
via walczy.com
The Golden Bear is a timeless classic. Jack Nicklaus was truly the man to carry that name. With his golden flowing locks and ferociousness on the course, it just was perfect.
Jordan Spieth
A Very New Image
via golfdigest.com
Jordan Speith unveiled this logo not too long ago, but you already see grown men wearing the initials of 23-year-old’s initials on their caps. What a world! It is pretty sweet looking though.
How do you play those shots that are in between Clubs?
Golf Chats is a website to encourage discussions on various subjects relating to the game of golf. I am Mel Sole, Director of Instruction of the Mel Sole Golf School and SAPGA Master Professional. I invite you to enter into a discussion on this or any article on the golfchats.com website. The input is for the entire subscriber base to learn something new each time! Please post your comments below. Keep it clean and tasteful. We are here to learn from one another!
We have all experienced the situation where we need to hit a shot 165 yards to get the ball close to the hole, but our regular 7 iron goes about 160 yards, and our 6 iron goes 170 yards. Today Greg Hiller, an instructor with the Alamo City Golf Trail, walks you through the steps needed to play those shots between clubs and make this shot a success.
The two keys to selecting the right club are:
Take the longer of the two clubs and grip down an inch. This will take half a club off the shot.
Look at where the trouble is. It is short of the green most of the time, but occasionally you don’t want to go long. So take this option into consideration before you play your shot.
Take wind and elevation into consideration. If the green is above you, you need more club. If the green is below you, you need less club. So you might not be in between clubs after all!
Golf Chats is a website to encourage discussions on various subjects relating to the game of golf. I am Mel Sole, Director of Instruction of the Mel Sole Golf School and SAPGA Master Professional. I invite you to enter into a discussion on this or any article on the golfchats.com website. The input is for the entire subscriber base to learn something new each time! Please post your comments below. Keep it clean and tasteful. We are here to learn from one another!
I have personally put the Callaway Supersoft golf ball in my bag, and I am currently testing to see whether this ball will make a difference to my game. I certainly like the feel, but I am unsure if this ball is right for me with a 100 mph clubhead speed. When I visit the PGA Merchandise Show later this month, and will personally talk to Callaway to get their thoughts on the subject of the “Soft Revolution.” Watch this site for my report back in early February! Thanks to Andrew Tursky of GolfWRX for this interesting article!
The Calloway Chromesoft is just one of many softballs on the market today.
Everything you need to know about Callaway’s new SuperSoft golf balls
In 2014, Callaway launched its SuperSoft golf balls. The two-piece design had an insanely low compression, yet our testing showed it was not just another soft-feeling ball. “It could be one of the best non-premium balls for golfers with slower clubhead speeds,” our reviewer Kane Cochran said.
When Callaway did market research on what golfers thought about the feel and the greenside spin of its SuperSoft golf balls, the results showed that 74 percent of golfers thought the feel was “just right.” Only 58 percent of golfers answered the same way about greenside control, however.
That’s why the new SuperSoft golf balls are made with a new “Tri-Ionomer” cover, which Callaway says gives the balls both a softer feel and more spin around the greens.
How much more spin are we talking about? On a 40-yard shot, Callaway testing showed the 2017 version of the SuperSoft launched with 5035 rpm of spin, while the 2015 version launched with 4950 rpm of spin. It’s change that Callaway’s Senior Director of Golf Ball R&D Dave Bartels says golfers should notice.
Golf Chats is a website to encourage discussions on various subjects relating to the game of golf. I am Mel Sole, Director of Instruction of the Mel Sole Golf School and SAPGA Master Professional. I invite you to enter into a discussion on this or any article on the golfchats.com website. The input is for the entire subscriber base to learn something new each time! Please post your comments below. Keep it clean and tasteful. We are here to learn from one another!
Piers Ward and Andy Proudman of Meandmygolf are at it again, this time on a pretty chilly morning by the looks of their gear! Today’s topic is one that amateur golfers seem to struggle with fairly often, hitting the fairway woods solid. The big key is controlling the bottom of the arc because this is right where the impact takes place! Enjoy!
Trackman does not lie!
The numbers are given by Trackman on Piers Ward’s fairway wood shots. The angle of attack is negative. That means he is hitting slightly down on the ball. The bottom of the arc is 1.7 inches in front of the ball. This is great info for amateurs that think you should sweep the ball off the grass. NO! It is still a slightly downward strike, and the loft on the club (usually 15 to 16 degrees) will get the ball up in the air. If Piers’ angle of attack is -1.7, then the effective loft is 13.30 to 14.3 degrees. Plenty of loft to still get the ball comfortably in the air.
In todays Impact Show we discuss what is required to pure those fairway metals. The fairway metal is an important weapon in the arsenal of the amateur golfer and is often misunderstood on how to get the best out of it. In the show we use Trackman to get the all important delivery numbers and then give you an easy practical drill in how to hit that pure strike.
Learn how to play the Buried Lie in the Bunker with Hank Haney!
Golf Chats is a website to encourage discussions on various subjects relating to the game of golf. I am Mel Sole, Director of Instruction of the Mel Sole Golf School and SAPGA Master Professional. I invite you to enter into a discussion on this or any article on the golfchats.com website. The input is for the entire subscriber base to learn something new each time! Please post your comments below. Keep it clean and tasteful. We are here to learn from one another!
This is not how I teach the buried lie in the bunker, but who am I to argue with Golf Digest Top 100 Teacher Hank Haney? The key that both of us agree on is that you want the club’s leading edge to hit the sand first and hit DEEP! Those are the 2 keys to making this shot a whole lot easier!
I like to hood the clubface slightly. This moves the club’s bounce out of the way and guarantees that the leading edge will strike the ground first. The ball will come out slightly lower because of the closed clubface, and there will be no backspin on this ball at all! So swing a little softer to allow the ball to roll out a little more than normal.
Hank Haney offers advice on how to recover from a buried lie in the bunker.
Is the Shaft in your Driver the Right One for You?
Golf Chats is a website to encourage discussions on various subjects relating to the game of golf. I am Mel Sole, Director of Instruction of the Mel Sole Golf School and SAPGA Master Professional. I invite you to enter into a discussion on this or any article on the golfchats.com website. The input is for the entire subscriber base to learn something new each time! Please post your comments below. Keep it clean and tasteful. We are here to learn from one another!
The Right Shaft to maximize your Distance.
Trying to get the right shaft flex to maximize your driving distance and accuracy is a complicated business. However, we have launch Monitors like Trackman, FlightScope and GC2 to make our job a whole lot easier. Factors to consider. Clubhead speed, shaft flex, shaft type, shaft weight, shaft length, launch angle, ball speed and total carry distance. So to say I swing at 100 mph will not help. Unless I take all these other factors into consideration. Randy of Fried Eggs Golf tries to help, but you need to see a club-fitter in the final analysis and be prepared to spend a couple of hours testing to come up with something close to what you need. As this is a tiring process, you may want to split it up into two days instead of trying to fit in all in one day! Good hunting!
It’s experiment time… I use a Ping G driver and three Alta 55 shafts in Stiff, Regular, and Senior to see how flex affects ball-flight.
Ben Hogan’s Five Lessons presented by Kendra Vallone!
Golf Chats is a website to encourage discussions on various subjects relating to the game of golf. I am Mel Sole, Director of Instruction of the Mel Sole Golf School and SAPGA Master Professional. I invite you to enter into a discussion on this or any article on the golfchats.com website. The input is for the entire subscriber base to learn something new each time! Please post your comments below. Keep it clean and tasteful. We are here to learn from one another!
Ben Hogan’s Five Lessons on the Modern Fundamentals of the Golf Swing
This is the book that many professional golfers and I grew up reading. Hogan was the ultimate ball-striker, and despite a major car crash halfway through his career, he still managed to win 9 Major Championships. Thank you, Mr. Hogan, for these great lessons, which are still relevant today and thank you, Kendra Vallone, in conjunction with Cam Elkins, for sharing!
I think Kendra has got Hogan’s waggle wrong! If you watch Hogan as much as I have, the waggle is much more with the hands rather than the still shoulder movement Kendra shows. He also moves his feet while he is waggling, just to keep the motion fluid. I also noticed in her swings that she does not do the waggle. Either her way or Hogan’s way! Practice what you preach, Kendra!
Professional golfer, Kendra Vallone runs through the essentials of Ben Hogan’s Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf. This video includes “The Grip” and “The Waggle”.