It’s back!
Twenty years later Tatra Press has kindly allowed me to bring back Grounds For Golf now that golf architecture is of more interest to the masses. A new Introduction looks at what’s driven the interest growth and two new chapters I had a blast adding (plus a few edits to keep things up-to-date).
The Amazon purchase page for the book arriving June 15, 2026.
For you XM listeners, I'll be appearing on Peter Kessler's Pure Golf (XM 146) during the 8:40 a.m. slot. Yes, that's 5:40 a.m. my time. I'll try to make sense. Cancelled because of technical problems. I'm going back to bed now.
From the The Advertiser, file this one under: The same kind of spoiled mindset that ruined pro tennis.
If I knew how, I'd set this post to Schubert's Sting Quartet No. 4 (more maudlin the better):
Tiger Woods, ranked world No.1, Phil Mickelson (No.4) and Retief Goosen (No.5) have turned their backs on the $7.39 million tournament starting on Thursday at the Kapalua Plantation resort course on the island of Maui. The star trio have chosen to stay at home with their families rather than fight for the $1.48 million first prize. Only 28 players will tee off in the tournament featuring the winners from the 2005 US Tour.
"You can understand why guys who are married and have families would rather stay at home at this time of the year," Lonard said.
Oh sure, we can understand staying at home this time of year, when the kids head back to school and dad would have to go to dreary old Hawaii to pick up a guaranteed check that, I grant you, probably only covers a 20 hours on NetJets, but still isn't too shabby.
"It's their decision and I support them though if they want to go, they go and if they don't, they stay at home.
I'm sure there is some deeper meaning in that statement.
[Michael] Campbell said he was also tempted to remain in Sydney with his young family. "I'm not surprised guys like Tiger, Phil and Retief are not competing this week," he said."Obviously the sponsors are pretty disappointed but Phil's got a young family, so has Retief. I don't think Tiger has ever missed the Mercedes since first contesting the event in 1998 so you really can't begrudge him from electing not to play."
What's going to be Phil's excuse when the kids grow up?
Seriously, I know Campbell and Lonard are in a no-win situation here. If they blast the big names for not showing, it only causes headaches they don't need. But the whole family excuse is getting old (I suspect the Commissioner agrees).
Let's face it, they make a lot of money and only care about the majors, so there is no incentive for them to go to Kapalua. Plus, Phil doesn't like Bermuda greens. Tiger is on vacation. Retief lives too far away.
But spending more time with their family as the excuse for skipping Kapalua. Not buying it.
My postman must not have found Golf World's look at putting very interesting because I actually received the current issue a week ago. Well, he missed out on some good reads, because Nick Seitz takes an in-depth look at different putting philosophies, while Bill Fields uses ShotLink to illustrate why putting still matters on the PGA Tour.
For those interested, here's the decision on the USGA case. Nothing golf related (well, unless the case cleans out their war chest), so open only if you have time, a law degree and a shower available after reading this.
Jeff Silverman on Bernard Darwin.
If you don't have Jeff's compilation of Darwin's best, check out the Recommended Reading box on the left for the direct link to Amazon where you can read up on this must have book.
My final favorite story of the year was John Huggan's "Great Game's Long Goodbye" column, which summed up the state of championship golf. The Huggies were fun too.
I, being an eternal optimist unlike Huggan, ;), believe 2005 year was a wonderful year for golf. (Assuming you are hoping to see some change to the status quo or you aren't so wild about the antics that many have written off to "progress.")
2005 not only revealed that golf is still the greatest of all sports thanks to a few magical tournaments (Doral, Masters, Open Ch.), but it also revealed significant problems that have become obvious even to the casual observer. Thankfully, many of those issues were openly talked about after years of defeaning silence.
Legends of the game (Nicklaus, Palmer Woods) discussed the distance issue and we've see that the only ones who wheel out the "don't impede progress" nonsense are paid to do so.
Flogging made a mockery of super-narrow course setups and shined a light on the ominous nature of resorting to trickery to mask inefficient equipment regulation.
Performance enhancing drugs will be considered a possible problem in 2006, and there is only one reason that drugs are on the table for discussion: the shift to a power game brought on by optimization of launch conditions, all thanks to lax rulesmaking.
We had rankings that continued to show architecture moving in two distinct directions: corporate (cold, soulless) and minimalist (nature based, character rich), with minimalist accepted or even sought out by mainstream golfing audiences.
Slow play debacles were uh, impactful, on the PGA Tour and throughout the golfing world. Again, shining that big spotlight on the issues that affect all golfers. The governing bodies openly displayed a strong sense of self-interest and people noticed. Ah, the list goes on and on.
In 2006, golf publications will surely delve deeper into some of these issues and provide those of us interested in the finer points of this great game plenty of fodder.
We (well, I) will be here to interpret, rant and most importantly, try to have a few laughs at all the madness.
Happy New Year!
Another favorite story was Lawrence Donegan's Guardian exclusive titled, "'Trust me, life is much easier with a sand wedge than a four-iron."
Donegan watched Gary Orr play Loch Lomond with a ball mysteriously circulated by an anonymous (I wonder who?!) manufacturer with the stampings "Distance R.I.P" on one side, and "This is the ball Jack wants you to hit" on the other.
If you missed it, here's the original post and a November follow-up by Donegan checking in with the governing bodies to see if anyone submitted "rolled back" balls similar to the "Distance R.I.P."
Two more favorite stories from the year: Frank Hannigan's memories of Herbert Warren Wind, and (the sorely missed) Bill Scheft remembering his uncle Herb in SI. I could not find Scheft's piece online, unfortunately.
Mike Aitken follows up with David Drysdale on his mindset and plans after a bout with integrity cost him a European Tour card.
Bill Fields of Golf World wrote one of the best stories of 2005 ("Changing Times") when he looked at how Pinehurst played for the 1999 U.S. Open and compared the numbers to the 2005 event won by Michael Campbell.
Mark Rolfing had trouble with some of the numbers as they started to appear during Open week, claiming the GIR increased because the rough was tougher than in 1999 (ponder that one!). Meanwhile, Peter McKnight also posted some interesting 1999 v. 2005 numbers on GolfClubAtlas.com's discussion board.
I had some fun with USGA President, err... it just seemed like it...Vice President Walter Driver's press conference claims that the setup at Pinehurst was the same this time around and that the No. 2 was not that long (tied...the longest in U.S. Open history).
...and the world's golf writers rejoice because his birthday falls in late December when there is apparently is nothing else to write about.
Go to Golfobserver.com's notebook if you want to read about the big B-day and what it all means for Middle East peace and global harmony.
The Newark Star-Ledger headline: "Court says employer of kid-porn purveyor had duty to stop him."
Matthew Dowling writes:
Joseph Herrera's supervisors at the United States Golf Association headquarters in Bernards Township first learned that he was viewing pornography on a work computer as early as 1998.
He was twice told to stop, but the company did little to investigate further or monitor the extent of his Internet activity even after there were indications Herrera was looking at child pornography.
Herrera, now 42, was arrested in June 2001 and later convicted of secretly taking nude pictures of a 10-year-old girl. Investigators determined he used his work computer to share three of those pictures and download at least 100 other images of child pornography.
A state appeals panel ruled yesterday that the USGA could be held responsible for financial damages resulting from a lawsuit filed by the 10-year-old victim's mother, who claimed the organization could have investigated and stopped Herrera much earlier. The decision overturned a lower-court ruling in favor of the USGA.
And here's the legal precedent part:
The 31-page decision could potentially be a landmark ruling for corporations about how to handle Internet privacy issues in the workplace. The wide-ranging opinion clearly puts the burden on employers to investigate reports of Internet abuse by workers.
"It sounds like this might be the first time this type of case has been dealt with," said Kevin Kovacs, the attorney for the 10-year-old girl, identified only as "Jill Doe" in the lawsuit. "I could find no other case like it in the country."
The decision does not name the USGA, but lists the corporation as "XYC Corporation." The decision also does not name Herrera, referring to him as "defendant" and "employee."
Did you know that emails with obscenities will be rejected by usga.org servers (don't even think of asking how I know this...), yet this guy could use a computer at Far Hills headquarters and do what he did?
During the U.S. Open, NBC ran an infomercial-like piece on technology that allowed USGA officials to tout their ball research program. Naturally, segments like this one are probably envisioned by a lobbyist who believes they are "branding" the USGA's position.
But they usually just end up providing fodder that will come back to haunt the organization.
In this case, it was David Fay's televised mention of the 2002 "Joint Statement of Principles" and calling it the benchmark for future analysis and discussion of changes in the game. The key line:
...that any further significant increases in hitting distances at the highest level are undesirable. Whether these increases in distance emanate from advancing equipment technology, greater athleticism of players, improved player coaching, golf course conditioning or a combination of these or other factors, they will have the impact of seriously reducing the challenge of the game.
The statement itself is thoughtful and very clear, which is why the USGA and R&A may devote much of 2006 to revising it, or falling back on Clintonian spin to suggest that the meaning of significant has significantly different meanings to a significant number of significant people.
Here was my take on the "significant" changes in the game as they relate to the Statement of Principles.
The real problem this time around for the USGA/R&A: the numbers don't lie. Check out these numbers since 2002 for a reminder how much has changed since the statement drew the line. This year's final driving distances stats for the Nationwide, Champions and PGA Tours are impressive considering the early season rains, while ShotLink's revelation of 2059 drives over 350 yards was first reported here (thanks PGA Tour communications for digging up that number). Though comparing it past "longest drives" would be tough.
But not as tough as it will be for the governing bodies to weave their way around the Joint Statement of Principles.
Though the coverage was a bit skimpy, particularly at the Walker Cup, we were able to enjoy Merion during the U.S. Amateur and Chicago Golf Club during the thrilling Walker Cup. Neither disappointed (well...about those fairway contours at Merion...).
The Amateur marked the farewell of Tom Meeks, giving us a chance to celebrate his career highlights while giving jovial USGA press officer Craig Smith a chance to claim that Sunday's raining sky was "sad for Tom."
They started the week off talking Open, but after Sunday's 7 birdie scorching by eventual winner Eduardo Molinari, Merion looks like it's a permanent member of the Amateur-Walker Cup rotation. Nothing wrong with that.
The Walker Cup's down-to-the-last-match finish was thrilling for those of us who turned away from the PGA to catch it.
Still, the real treat was seeing Chicago Golf Club.
Geoff Shackelford is a Senior Writer for Golfweek magazine, a weekly contributor to Golf Channel's Morning
Copyright © 2022, Geoff Shackelford. All rights reserved.
