In golf construction art and utility meet; both are absolutely vital; one is utterly ruined without the other. GEORGE THOMAS
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.
Has Tiger Lost His Biggest Fan?
/Compton In At Riviera
/We lose Ernie Els to a ""sore neck"" (note the double quotes) and Graeme McDowell ended up not entering after committing to recharge his batteries one more week, but I'm more than happy to see Erik Compton Monday qualify to the Northern Trust Open along with Pepperdine great Jason Gore. Randall Mell reports.
Even better, the qualifiers all go from the putrid Eisenhower Course at Industry Hills to the splendor of Riviera!
The Pit: Pinehurst #9?
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It's rare that a course takes a step up in class going to a numerical name, but a case could be made that the Dedman's purchase of The Pit and the potential for it becoming a member of the Pinehurst would be a huge branding upgrade.
Ted M. Natt reports on the sale from Austin Adams to the Dedman family.
"I hope it happened in time, because I don’t have a whole lot of time left."
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Sean Martin posts a Q&A with Frank Chirkinian on the CBS producer/director's Hall of Fame induction.
Q: What is your thought on golf on TV today?
A: I’m ambivalent about that. I think that there are too many graphics on the screen today. They miss an awful lot of live golf shots. That was my forte. I showed a lot of golf shots live, and therein lies the difference. My only problem is that it looks like they’re all doing the same thing. They all look alike.
"The contrast between Tiger's behavior and that of Rory McIlroy and Alvaro Quiros is more than marked."
/John Huggan and Steve Elling play two Federer-Nadal style sets with Tiger as their ball. Warning, it's a lively Pond Scrum.
Finding An LA Marketing Groove?
/Too bad the forecast for this week's Rain Dance Open at Riviera stinks, because we probably won't know if PGA Tour Championship Management's stepped-up marketing efforts are paying off.
First there was the Groupon ticket buy that sold 252 "Weekender" passes, and then (below), the super-cool plastic wrap around Sunday's LA Times featuring a free ticket offer and a Northern Trust Open-logoed green Sharpee.

Golf In Tinseltown, Rancho Park Edition
/Saltman Drops Appeal: "I hope that I can be allowed to put this deeply unhappy, and in my view unfair, episode behind me and get on with the rest of my career."
/BBC's report on Eliot Saltman dropping his three-month suspension appeal, but going out with a few jabs and word that he passed a polygraph.
Take That PGA Tour: Euro Tour Confirms Pending Tiger Loogey Fine
/"I had a putt to make the cut, and just as I lined up over the putt, some guy in the stands says, 'You're Carl.'"
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Doug Ferguson on D.A. Points and Bill Murray winning at the AT&T Pro-Am, which also lead to the unthinkable: a Bill Murray press conference. (Check out Jeff Labreque's Entertainment Weekly look at just how difficult it is to get Murray talking on the record.)Ouch: Members Grab Desert Mountain At Bargain Bin Price
/Alert Child Services? Mickelson To Pass On Family Vacation For Match Play
/Doug Ferguson reports on the Mickelson clan's loss becoming the PGA Tour's gain.
2011 AT&T Final Round Open Comment Thread
/Now that the Dubai Desert Classic is out of the way and most of the most important people on the planet have checked out of The Lodge, maybe it'll be about just golf and promoting the Grammy's during today's final round telecast from Pebble Beach.


