Analysts: Callaway A Bargain

/

Bloomberg's Brooke Sutherland talks to analysts about the relative "bargain" Callaway appears to be as CEO Chip Brewer attempts to turn the company around.

Thanks to reader cpmy for the tip.

The Callaway brand and the Carlsbad, California-based company’s foothold in golf equipment could lure Nike Inc. (NKE), said Grace & White Inc., which also sees Kering SA, owner of the Cobra brand, as a potential buyer. Private-equity firms also may be drawn by the chance to carry out Brewer’s turnaround plan on their own, said Gilford Securities Inc.

In golf, Callaway is “the biggest, best-known brand name out there available for an acquirer,” Casey Alexander, New York-based director of equity research and a special-situations analyst at Gilford, said in a phone interview. Even after the rally, it “can still be considered quite a bargain today.”

2013 Golf Magazine World Top 100

/

Of all the rankings Golf's panel seems to select the fewest courses that make you pause and say, "Really?" Yes it's very America-centric and Trump International Scotland landing in the top 50 when it's probably not in the top 50 Scottish links you'd enjoy playing, helps distract from the strange infatuation the list has with South Korea's Seven Bridges.

Nonetheless, Golf presents a timeless architecture-focused list presented with images in gallery form, starting with the world 1-25.

And 26-50.

And 51-75.

And 76-100.

They've also posted the top 25 U.S. courses.

Snead's Claret Jug Brings In $262K At Auction

/

For Immediate Release...

Sam Snead’s 1946 British Open Claret Jug brings $262,900 to lead The Sam Snead Collection, Aug. 1, at Heritage Auctions
 
Offered by Snead’s family; “Slammin’” Sam Snead’s 1954 Masters trophy draws spirited bidding to realize $191,200; 14 featured lots total $1,106,868 for rare memorabilia Heritage’s Platinum Night Sports event at the National in Chicago
 
DALLAS – The name of Sam Snead, one of the greatest golfers to have ever graced the links, inspired collectors to “Major” heights as his 1946 British Open Claret Jug brought $262,900 as the heart of The Sam Snead Collection, offered as the centerpiece of Heritage Auctions’ Aug. 1-2 Platinum Night Sports Auction in Rosemont, IL, taking place in conjunction with The National Sports Collector’s Convention.
 
The first 14 lots of the Snead Collection realized an impressive $1,106,868 altogether.
 
Snead’s 1954 Masters trophy also provided considerable fireworks in Chicago, as the trophy rose to $191,200, finally selling to an anonymous collector bidding online.
 
“One smart and determined collector actually won The British Open tonight, or at least the trophy,” joked Chris Ivy, Director of Sports at Heritage Auctions. “Collectors recognized that this was not only a chance to win one of the rarest prizes in golf, but that it’s also associated with one of the greatest names to ever play.”

Inbee With Two Three Putts, Still Posts 69

/

Ron Sirak on Inbee Park's opening 69 at the Old Course in her quest to win a fourth straight major. The normally reliable putter had a few slip-ups on the way in.

"There were a couple of bad drives and a couple of bad putts on the back nine, but it's the first round and could have been much better," she said. "A little bit disappointing, but I'm glad that I've done that in the first round instead of the final round. I'm looking to improve the next three days."

Park blamed the back-to-back three putts on Nos. 16 and 17 -- something that happens for Park about as often as Yankees legend Mariano Rivera blows a save -- on the fact that she had faced no long lags putts until late in the round.

Park is, after all is said and done, perfectly positioned after 18 holes and perfectly prepared to deal with the mental challenge ahead.

The video highlights:

Bloomberg: As Golf Goes So Goes The Economy?

/

That's the premise of Bloomberg reporter Nikhil Hutheesing's story which says the economy is improving based on the numbers in golf.

Well, when people retire, some want a house on a golf course with open views and plenty of green, even if they aren't golfers. There’s your existing-home-sales data. When the economy is improving, golfers spend more on golf clothes, golf vacations, greens fees and the like (consumer spending). And as demand picks up, more golf courses, and homes, are built and old ones spruced up (housing starts).

Right now, golf is pointing to an economy that's out of the rough (click here for a closer look at the golf economy). Steven Ekovich, managing director of the National Golf & Resort Properties Group, a division of real estate investment firm Marcus & Millichap, says financing is returning to the industry. He estimates that the number of distressed assets has fallen by 65 percent since 2009 and says that investor sentiment is improving.

"As the economy heals, we expect to see course values go up this year for the first time in six years," he says.

One reason things are looking better: Lenders that were saddled with loads of distressed debt in golf courses when the housing market plummeted have unloaded much of that debt, in part by selling courses. The pace of sales of 18-hole championship-length golf courses slowed from 86 in the first half of 2012 to 55 in the first half of this year. That means the courses that made it through this period are financially healthier, Ekovich says.

LGU Sets Old Course Time Par At 4:30

/

Considering it took almost six hours the last time they played the Ricoh Women's Open at St. Andrews, this from Susan Simpson of the Ladies Golf Union seems optimistic.

Nick Rodger reports:

"This week is the only week we deal with the professionals and we've obviously got to deal with two other organising bodies too. But we have full support from the LPGA and the Ladies European Tour for our slow-play policies. The rules officials out there are under instruction to come down hard on any slow play. We've set four hours and 30 minutes and we think that's achievable."

Ok, So It's Not "Our Bobby Is Back" Enthusiasm In St Andrews...

/

Gene Wojciechowski showed Inbee Park's photo to the townspeople and Scots a couple of weeks ago and, well, she wasn't exactly well known or conjuring up the enthusiasm that Bobby Jones managed.

The first and last player to win four majors in a calendar year is Bobby Jones -- and that was in 1930. The first and last player to win four professional majors in a calendar year is nobody. So, yeah, this Inbee Park thing is a big deal. Plus, she could win No. 4 at the long-recognized home of golf, where everyone knows Park when they see her, right?

"Is it Nancy Lopez?" says a veteran Old Course caddie as I show him the photo of Park.
Uh, that would be a big negatory. Lopez won three majors in her entire career; Park has that many in the past three-plus months. But never mind that. The woman in the photo is clearly of Asian descent; Lopez is of Hispanic descent.

Regardless, Inbee's Grand Slam quest begins at 7:03 am Thursday.

Punters Note: Tiger Calls Oak Hill's Greens "Spotty"

/

The enthusiasm in his voice is pretty telling. Someone misses Muirfield!

Bob Harig reports:

"The greens are spotty, and it'll be interesting to see what they do because they were running just under 9 on the Stimp [Stimpmeter]," Woods said. "They don't have much thatch to them, so it'll be interesting to see what they do for the tournament and how much they're able to speed them up with kind of a lack of grass."

The video:

Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea And Its Mounds Land '15 Prez Cup

/

Look at those mounds! And that width!

The description from the press release announcing the 2015 Presidents Cup venue selected by the PGA Tour:

Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea features a par-72, 7,413-yard Signature Golf Course designed by the Golden Bear, and offers world-class amenities, including an award-winning, 60,000-square-foot clubhouse. For The Presidents Cup 2015, the course has undergone some minor renovations and the holes rerouted to accommodate hospitality and the match-play format. Songdo IBD is a joint undertaking by Gale International, POSCO E&C, and Incheon City and a model of international collaboration. Songdo IBD is globally recognized as the world’s foremost smart, sustainable city-scale development. In 2012, the Green Climate Fund (GCF) selected a site in Songdo as the home for the GCF Secretariat.  It is believed that many of the sustainable infrastructure and technological innovations being pioneered in Songdo will be applied to GCF-funded projects in developing nations. 

Price Tried To Get Presidents Cup Format Changed; Tim Said No!

/

Nick Price was probably a little more blunt about his attempts get the Presidents Cup format changed, all but saying the event will struggle if something isn't done.

An unbylined SkySports report was one of the few to report Price's comments that might have had Commissioner Finchem longing for a Greg Norman captaincy.

"When you've only got four pairings and you've got 12 guys to choose from, that's a lot easier because you take your best players.

"The Europeans put out the eight best players they can. It would be really interesting to see if the Ryder Cup was played under the Presidents Cup points system what the outcome would be."

Price and Ernie Els put the idea of a change of format to PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem, who has opted to retain the 34-match schedule for this year's contest.

"Initially Tim was receptive and then he phoned me back three weeks later and said he wasn't prepared to change," added Price. "He didn't think it needed a change. Ernie and I were really disappointed with the outcome.