Video: Flipped (Over) Trick Shot

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What else is there to say but brilliantly conceived and executed by Ryan Rustand of the Virginia Golf Center with help from Pat Graves, gymnast and flip expert!

Nine Days Of Christmas: Seamus Tartan Ties And Special 20% Off Discount Code

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As we near Christmas day the gift recommendations are now strictly about buying yourself something Rusty the dog, who drew you in the family pool, would never buy.

Last year the craftsmen and women of Seamus Golf kindly offered a Christmas discount to readers of this site. And after noticing their dapper new ties I reached out to company co-founder Akbar Christi who kindly offered a holiday discount for all purchases. Enter code RUSTICCANYON to get 20% off.

Everything by Seamus is made with care, thought and class, but I'm digging their new ties in fabrics sourced from the best (Loch Caron, House of Edgar). They come in both skinny and regular sizes and the website notes the lineage of the patterns so that you can do your best Smails impersonation at your next cocktail party.

Personally, I love a good tartan tie because nearly all look good with a navy blazer, they are guaranteed to liven up an otherwise cookie-cutter outfit, all while giving you a fun story to tell about the tie's inspiration.

Pictured to the right is the granite, cream and black Dornoch Tweed Tie that harkens to the ancient days of the Scottish Highlands, home of the great Royal Dornoch (whose club tartan is a colorful design invoking all colors of the course in its gorse-blooming days).

So head to Seamus and scoop up a few ties or headcovers at 20% off (code: RUSTICCANYON) and encourage them to keep making cool stuff.

Also, this way I can lobby for a much-needed Musselburgh tie!

Roundup: Tiger's Mac Daddy Pic Spawns No Shortage Of Glorious Mocking

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I'm picturing agent Mark Steinberg, staring out the window at Excel headquarters listening to a pitch for Tiger, when a nervous assistant barges in and points at a cell phone, only to remember the boss is a Blackberry man. Just as Steiny had pushed back on the price to get Tiger into a new blue chip product endorsement deal, the assistant swipes off the dust on Steiny's desktop and brings up Tiger's Twitter account.

"Uh, I need to call you back, whoever I was just talking to," says Steiny.

There the image sits. For no rational reason, a stern, shirtless Tiger Woods is wearing a Santa cap, invoking his children and referencing Mac Daddy, a phrase Merriam-Websters defines as "a conspicuously successful pimp." Or option two, "a slick womanizer." The Urban Dictionary also weighs in (gloriously).

Steiny sighs nervously.

"At least it's the Thursday before Christmas, the Internet is on vacation, right?" he asks as the young assistant mumbles something about Grayson Allen just texted to tell Tiger thank you.

So in the interest of sparing that poor Excel intern the pain of presenting a roundup of Tiger's bizarre attempt at humor/coolness/something, here is the Busted Coverage roundup/slideshow, Des Bieler's take at the WaPo, and the GeoffShackelford.com favorites:

 


 

McGinley Not Bullish On Tiger Making It Back

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Most former players were suitably impressed by Tiger's initial impressions this month after a long layoff. But put Paul McGinley as skeptical Tiger will reach a level that motivates the 14-time major winner to grind.

Talking to The Mirror's Mike Walker, McGinley says he understands excitement surrounding Tiger's Hero Challenge appearance but...

“Personally, I think the reaction to the way he played in the Hero World Challenge was over the top. - his performance level was here (waist-high) and the reaction was up here (above the head).

“He has further to jump if he is to get back to the top level, where he was, and can he do it at 41 years old? Nobody has ever done it before at his age – there have been sporadic performances, like Jack Nicklaus winning the Masters at 46, but it’s not as if he was dominating the game then.

“Tiger’s a little bit like a footballer who reaches 32: He can still play the odd great game, as Steven Gerrard did at Liverpool, but can he do it day after day? That’s the big hurdle."

Indeed it is a hurdle and I respect McGinley's view.

Perhaps the bar was set low after so many mid-round walk-offs, but given where Tiger's game had sunk to, his Hero performance was most admirable. Should he at least get back to a level of contending in tournaments while picking off a few here and there, that would allow him to wind down his career on a positive note. Given where Tiger's been, that would change how he's viewed and how he's remembered. No insignificant accomplishment.

Look Out Sir Charles: MJ's Been Working On His Swing...

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Kyle Porter of CBSSports.com says "Michael Jordan's golf swing is nearly as bizarre as Charles Barkley's."

Way harsh Kyle!

That said, it's always fascinating to see what a world class athlete is doing to conquer the game and while MJ hasn't developed the, uh, swing fluidity issues that Charles Barkley is world famous for, he does appear to be working on something...something.

Nine Days of Christmas: The "Swing The Club" Glass Tray

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After listening to Sam Weinman and Marty Hackel discuss the classification of gifts on the Golf Digest podcast, procrastinators may have a little more last-minute holiday gift buying-clarity.

I was especially glad to hear Marty single out a multi-purpose gift from Digest.com's annual slideshow of products: the Golf Sketch Swing The Club Decoupage Glass Tray from BensGarden.com.

Besides the cleverness, originality and versatility of this tray subversively laden with every swing thought imaginable, this classy piece could serve as an intervention tool. A glass tray that saves lives!

Hear me out.

We all know the golfer who carries a list of swing thoughts in their back pocket. Or, in more 21st Century fashion, typed into a Notes file on their mobile phone. These troubled souls wils stop total strangers and ask them to record a swing. Or worse, ask the stranger to analyze before putting headphones back on to listen to Bob Rotella.

But who wants to tell these sufferers that they need help? Especially when you can do it passive-aggressively in the form of a gift?

This six-by-six-inch decoupage tray is a tad steep at $56, but this could save lives! Or paper clips.

Trick Shots Of The Year...And Two Late Entries

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Last week on Morning Drive we narrowed the finalists down to three and picked a winner, and while I feel confident the Academy got it right, I'm wondering how two entries might have impacted voting. Here's the segment with Gary Williams:

These two entries fascinate because of their seeming simplicity, but the performances are actually quite layered on repeat viewings. (Hey, it's awards season here in LA, this kind of talk just naturally seeps in.)

Back with another gem is Indonesian pro golfer Rinaldi Adiyandono, he of the shirt pocket shot that still mesmerizes.

 

White ball, right pocket! #golfgods #indofreestylegolf #golf #trickshot

A video posted by Indonesia Freestyle Golf (@indofreestylegolf) on Dec 20, 2016 at 3:53am PST

 

 

 

Costco Golf Ball Insanity: Website Jammed, Sells Out In Two Hours And Going For Silly Prices On Ebay

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Bidding more for a dozen of Costco balls than the top-priced ball on the market?

America the beautiful!

The ebay prices are giggle-worthy. However it's mostly the notion that Costco, which sells a lot of vice-worthy items in bloated sizes, had its website bog down Tuesday as golf junkies jammed the servers trying to order the new low cost ball that has tested well.

Reader Guy reports that the 11 am-to-1 pm ET sales window today did offer the opportunity to buy the ball, but as many noted below, the website was lagging badly. Imagine that, bogging down a site that sells almost anything, only larger.

Who says golf is dead? 

 

 

@costco "Due to inventory changes, item 1081660 in your cart is no longer available" been trying all morning. Kirkland Signature Golf Ball

Nine Days Of Christmas: Simpson & Co. Golf Architects

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Some of this year's suggested gifts are personal items (here and here) that Santa will never leave under the tree. Others in the non-Santa category support worthwhile golf causes (here and here) while also making a great gift.

So while the new Simpson & Co. biography published by Rhod McEwan is one that you can proudly gift, I'm fairly certain that golf architecture aficionados will be placing this stunning production alongside their collection of classics. Scoop up a copy while they last!

Written by the late Fred Hawtree, the book is embellished by Donald Steel's foreword and afterword along with a long list of contributors featured in the Acknowledgements. The resulting sense of finding a fun visual or factual surprise on every page is befitting of Simpson's rich-but-mysterious life.

McEwan has put together a sturdy volume which, as with his other golf publications over the years, will age gracefully. Best of all, we have a highly readable, visually engaging tribute one of golf architecture's least understood characters.

The book is £28.00. Shipping is £4 in the UK, £10 in Europe and £15 for the rest of the world. Simpson & Co. is a limited printing of 750 copies, each numbered.

Here is the purchase page.

There is also a limited (50 copies) leather bound edition for £180.

Behind The Scenes: Little Billy's Viral Interview Of Rory McIlroy

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If you didn't catch "Little Billy" grilling Rory McIlroy as part of the child actor's European Tour series, it's still a keeper.

Because it went viral and because of interest in Little Billy (currently playing a young Prince Charles in The Crown), the European Tour has produced a behind-the-scenes video: