“All developers sort of possess that similar sense of invincibility."

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Martin Kaufman profiles developer Lyle Anderson, who is remarkably frank about the project--Hokuli’a on Hawaii’s Kona Coast--that essentially brought his empire down, and also reports that the mastermind behind Desert Highlands, Desert Mountain and Loch Lomond is putting together financing for an "eco-friendly" development in Scottsdale.

Anderson says Hokuli’a was “outselling the market 2 to 1” when it launched in the late 1990s.

Hokuli’a was more than just another development to Anderson. Kizziar says the developer had a “spiritual involvement” with the land, immersing himself in the native Hawaiians’ history and traditions. There were numerous burial sites on the property, and Kizziar says Anderson made sure descendants had access to those sites, even building lava rock walls around some of them.

Then came a lawsuit from Kona residents claiming that the property, which was zoned as agricultural land, needed to be reclassified as urban land, a process that can take years. In 2003, more than five years after Anderson secured zoning permits to build Hokuli’a, state Circuit Court Judge Ronald Ibarra sided with the residents and ordered a halt to development.

By that time, according to the ruling, Hokuli’a already had sold 190 lots and poured $136 million into developing the site.

In 2006, Ibarra approved a settlement of the lawsuit, but the damage had been done.

“We won, but really (the activists) won because they took six years of the greatest market we ever had and we were (left) on the bench,” Anderson says. “That really hurt. It certainly ran up my debts with the bank. That was a difficult thing.”

Why Are People Still Betting Tiger At 8-1?

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I saw that the Las Vegas hotels did not change Tiger's odds after another mediocre performance at Bay Hill, which means people are still putting money on him at 7-1 or 8-1. Are they seeing something I'm not?

The folks at Today's Golfer report that a travel outfit is quite confident of Woods not winning next week.

No stranger to innovative promotions, one of Europe’s largest golf travel operators is promising to refund all holidays booked before The Masters, should Woods leave Augusta National on Sunday 10 April with a nap-hand of green jackets.

And if Tiger returns to form in Augusta, Your Golf Travel.com estimates it will be refunding holidays to the tune of £1.5 million.

The offer applies to anyone quoting ‘Tiger Masters’ for bookings made from Monday, March 28, until Wednesday, April 6, and golf travellers can choose from more than 2,000 Your Golf Travel.com venues and courses in the UK, Europe and worldwide.

Q&A With John Boyette

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Augusta Chronicle sports editor John Boyette is the only media member to have walked all 18 holes with Jack Nicklaus during the final round of the 1986 Masters.

On the eve of next week's event, you can listen to John talk to Rod Morri about his new book, The 1986 Masters. The book is not only a wonderful recap of the event but a beautiful production featuring excellent reproductions of 150 or so Chronicle images from the week.

Boyette answered a few of my questions via email about the book and what we can look for from the Augusta Chronicle next week.


Q: So you were an apprenticing journalist for the Aiken Standard with no assignment, no press badge and just a patron badge. And you decide to follow Jack Nicklaus around for the final round in 1986? Really?

JB: Yes. I know it sounds a little crazy, but it’s true! I was a Nicklaus fan from early on and I thought I would follow him around that day. Believe me, he didn’t have that big of a following after he bogeyed No. 4 and missed a short birdie putt at No. 6. By the time he made the turn, it was hard to get a good spot to see. I had been to the tournament plenty before 1986, but that was actually the first year I wrote articles that were published.
 
Q: When did you decide to create a book about the day and what did you do to flesh out  story that has been pretty well told?

JB: I guess I would think about it on significant milestones or anniversaries. When we got to the 20th anniversary, that’s when I started becoming a little more serious about tracking down some guys and interviewing them. But the bulk of the work was done in the last year. I had incredible cooperation from the Nicklaus family and several others associated with that day. My goal was to put all of the stories about that year – the article taped on the refrigerator, the oversized putter, why he wore the yellow shirt – in one volume. I hope diehard fans who know a lot about 1986 will learn something new, and I hope those who don’t much about it will enjoy it as the story unfolds.

I think the 1986 Masters is great for a number of reasons. Nicklaus winning at age 46 is the main story, but there are so many good subplots going on around it. Nick Price shooting 63. Seve Ballesteros feuding with Deane Beman. The rise of Europe. A lot of future major winners in the hunt that day. To top that will really take something special.

Q: The endsheets of the book features Nicklaus's scorecard. Where is that and other '86 memorabilia displayed these days?

JB: I really don’t have a clue. I know Augusta National keeps the scorecards. I would expect to see them do a display on 1986 in their exhibition area. The Response ZT putter, I’m told, is missing.
 
Q: There were so many goose-bump moments from that day, was there any particular point in the day that stood out for you?

JB: Everything from 15 in was pretty good, but I think my favorite moment was at No. 16. I used to work on the scoreboard at the sixth green that overlooks 16 green, and I had positioned myself behind the green. When Jack’s shot nearly went in the hole, the ground shook and the gallery went crazy. And, of course, the photo of him raising his putter on the 17th green is one of the all-time great shots.
 
Q: You write about the scene in the press center when Nicklaus came in and looked for Tom McCollister to have a laugh about the infamous column that motivated Nicklaus. It's rather remarkable imagining one of today's players taking getting such motivation from one column!

JB: Yes, I wish I had access back then to the old Quonset hut that served as the media center. What a press conference that must have been. I don’t think Jack gave the article much thought at the time, really, but it’s one of those things that has gotten bigger through the years. I can’t see any of the current players giving credit to something like that.
 
Q: What will the Chronicle be doing to celebrate the 25th anniversary and has there ever been any thought of reprinting the 1986 sports page as a commemorative keepsake?

JB: Of course, we’re selling the book on our Web site and at augusta.com. We’ve also got a story by me looking back at 1986 in kind of an alternative format. I try to point out how rare that charge was (no one’s shot that low on the final nine and gone on to win since Jack) and we also have some other goodies. Our special section will publish April 3. We have talked in the past about reprinting some pages, but we’ll see. For the last few years, we have offered a plaque of the front page featuring the Monday cover of our special section to celebrate the new champion.
 
Q: Augusta.com is a production of the Augusta Chronicle and is always a great place to view the tournament from afar, what can we expect this year?

JB: Thanks, we have a lot of great folks here who make our print and online products shine that week. Look for us to do more blogging with more of our writers and updates from the tournament each day. Also, we have launched apps for the Android and Apple iPhone, iPad and iTouch mobile devices. This should allow folks on the go to keep up with the tournament most anywhere.

Poulter, McDowell, Stenson Turn Into Wang On Their Augusta Day Trip**

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I wonder what the club thinks of the reigning U.S. Open champion, the reigning tour diva and the former Players Champion turning into auteurs for their drive up Magnolia Lane, the arrival in the locker room and their first glimpse of the course this year.

Naturally, all I could notice was how much the ninth hole fairway continues to be widened out.

Here's Poulter's Tweeted video. And McDowell going up Magnolia Lane and his balcony view, noticeably less Soderberghian in his camera gestures than Poulter.

Contest: The 1986 Masters, Where Were You?**

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**I'm moving the contest thread up to the top again just in case...

This one's simple: pen a post about your memories of watching the 1986 Masters on that epic event's 25th anniversary. It seems just about anyone in the game over the age of 32 remembers where they were when they watched or heard about Jack Nicklaus' sixth Masters win.

A few of the rigorous guidelines:

- Try to keep the posts under 500 words

- No fighting, gambling, bare feet and especially no swearing.

- Your words remain your property

- If you are a member of the media, please post your memories of that day, but you can't win a prize.

- Please post your email in the box a provided under your screen name. Aliases are fine, but you can't win if I can't email you your prize.

Ah, the prizes. A panel of esteemed three experts will select their favorite three entries Thursday and then you will get the chance to vote on your favorites Thursday through Sunday. The winner will be announced Monday, April 4, as the Masters kicks off.

First Prize: A copy of John Boyette's 1986 Masters, a DVD that any fan of the '86 Masters will love and, even though I know all of this website's readers already have one, a one-year subscription to Golf World.

Second and Third Prize: All of the above except Boyette's beautiful book, which they'll have to buy. (Boyette will be the subject of a Q&A later this week.)

So there you have it. Write away, don't be ashamed. This is about celebrating the greatest Masters ever and one of the iconic moments in the game that so often has people asking and certainly never forgetting where they were when Nicklaus won his sixth Masters.

"The best thing we can all do to make our golf game better is to at least practice with (and hopefully play with also) older smaller heavier golf clubs such as blade irons and persimmon woods."

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Yep, we have another treasonous threat to capitalism and his name is Bradley Hughes! The former PGA Tour player and Australian dares to out himself as no fan of what modern technology has done for the game. And while he has some excellent thoughts on how we should sticking up for our classic courses, I urge you to take a few minutes to read his thoughts on what modern clubs and lie angles have done to the average golfer's game. Hughes is teaching now and has lots to say.

Welcome Bradley to the vocal minority!

The Old White TPC It Is!

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We have the verdict. Gentlemen of the PGA Tour branding department, what say you?

In the sticky matter of trying to name a TPC course with the words Old and White, two words we try to stay away from here in Ponte Vedra for fear of conjuring up something we certainly are not, never have been and never will be, we the members of the PGA Tour branding staff have come up with...

Introducing The Old White TPC Course at The Greenbrier

Oh that one just rolls off the tongue!

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. –The PGA TOUR announced today that The Old White Course at The Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, is now part of the TPC Network of clubs as part of a licensing agreement for the property.  One of four championship layouts at the historic Greenbrier, the newly named The Old White TPC serves as host site of the TOUR’s Greenbrier Classic, which will be played July 25 – 31, 2011.   The announcement was made by PGA TOUR Golf Course Properties President and EVP, Championship Management David Pillsbury.

“We are thrilled to add this legendary layout to the TPC Network and look forward to continuing The Greenbrier’s tradition for superb golf, remarkable amenities and personalized service,” said Pillsbury.  “In partnership with The Greenbrier management team, PGA TOUR players and tournament fans, we also look forward to positively impacting the local community through the TOUR’s ‘Together, anything’s possible’ charitable mission.”

Included in the TPC relationship is management consultation from PGA TOUR.  As part of that, 30-year golf industry veteran Burton Baine has been hired to be on property to advise the owner regarding day to day golf course operations.  In addition to managing some of the country’s leading high-end private golf clubs, including TPC Piper Glen in Charlotte, NC, Baine is an accomplished player and Class A PGA of America golf professional – having been named PGA Northern Texas Section Player of the Year as well as PGA Northern Texas Section Golf Professional of the Year.

“We are delighted to enter into this agreement with the PGA TOUR and the TPC Network, two of the most respected brands in all of sports,” said Jim Justice, owner of The Greenbrier and West Virginia native.  “Together with the PGA TOUR, under the leadership of Burton Baine, I am confident The Old White TPC will regain its position as one of the most iconic golf layouts in the world and help restore The Greenbrier to its original glory as one of the most exclusive resorts on the globe.”

"But real stars are validated only when those tools consistently hold up in the heat. Anything decreed before that happens is hot air."

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Jaime Diaz is suggesting in a Golf World Monday item that the hype machine surrounding young Americans has not been justified. Blasphemy!

More telling was the play of those still around at crunch time. Steve Marino (pictured) had the most conspicuous collapse, giving the tournament away with a bogey on 15, a soft par on 16, and a stabbed five-footer (and a double bogey) on 17. Justin Rose was brilliant on the back nine until he faced a must-have seven-footer for par on the 71st, and Marc Leishman missed a 15-footer on the last as both fell to T-3. Eventual winner Martin Laird was as shaky as anyone, playing the first 11 holes five over par. The Scot rallied late to be the last man standing, but his 75 shouldn't have been enough.

There's no doubt the members of the would-be new order have flashy tools. But real stars are validated only when those tools consistently hold up in the heat. Anything decreed before that happens is hot air.

"BAY HILL'S BRUTISH BUNKERS"

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The SI/golf.com gang was joined by Davis Love and they talk about whether the buried lies at Bay Hill are intentional. Remember, the PGA Tour rules staff has a reduced role in how two tournaments a year are prepared: Bay Hill and the Memorial.

Herre: I was surprised to see so many balls plugging in the bunkers. I suppose that was by design. Anyone know if that was new, softer sand in the bunkers? It was an almost automatic bogey every time someone flew a ball either high or into the upslope.

Bamberger: Or the downslope! Arnold wants his course hard. He feels bunkers have been emasculated. He masculated them.

Love: Soft sand has to be a strategy there, that's the only knock on the course the last few years.