SLO Golf Card Member Appreciation Event 2011 at Dairy Creek Golf Course

Our Appreciation event was our best so far; third time is a charm! The day started with a bag drop, a bag pipe serenade (compliments of Paul "Piper O' the Pines" Dunn), donuts, checking in, finding your cart, meeting your friends, range balls, and a chance to win free rounds of golf playing our miniature golf course on the putting green.

On the Course we had a few suprpises in store for our guests that differ from what they usually expect when they come to Dairy Creek! Some of the greens had mulitiple holes cut into them, one being the regulation 4 1/4" hole and one 6" hole. There was a straightest drive competition on #5, popcorn and wine on the 8th tee box, blackjack on the 10th tee to determine what tee you would hit from, closest to the pin on #13, three reverse shortened holes on #14, #15, and #16, and a chance to accept an aspiring pro's (Eric Olson) drive on #17.

All in all the day went exceptionall well with the culmination at the restaurant and bar with a fantastic buffet of tri tip or chicken masterfully prepared by the chef's alongside of a spring tossed salad, potatoes, steamed vegetables, rolls, and a plethora of cookies for dessert. The awareds were MC'd by Cody Van Dorn and went very well this year with great crowd participation. The winning gross and net teams each won 8 rounds of free golf and the 2nd place gross and net teams each won $100 gift certificates for the restaurant and bar. Over all nearly $3000 worth of merchandise and free rounds of golf were given away at the event! If you did not get a chance to play this year put the event on your calendar for next year as will not want to miss out again, trust me!

Nick Price and his view of the golf course superintendent.

Nick Price was awarded the 2010 Old Tom Morris Award at this years' Golf Industry Show (GIS) in Orlando, FL. He is being interviewed here prior to accepting his award in front of the Show attendees. The GIS is comprised of Golf Courses Superintendent's, Golf Course Owners, Golf Course Architects, and various other industry professionals from around the world.

The Old Tom Morris Award is the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America's most prestigious honor. It is presented each year to an individual who "through a continuing lifetime commitment to the game of golf has helped to mold the welfare of the game in a manner and style exemplified by Old Tom Morris."

Morris (1821-1908) was greenkeeper and golf professional at the St. Andrews Links Trust Golf Club of St. Andrews, Scotland; a four-time winner of the British Open (1861, ’62, ’64 and ’67); and ranked as one of the top links designers of the 19th century.

Enjoy!

Contents of a new book!

I received an email the other day that may be of interest to all of you golf fanatics! Within this blog post you will find the table of contents and probably a chapter that has caused you much anguish or discussion with your regular foursome or at home with your wife ;) Read on and enjoy!


Chapter 1 - How to Properly Line Up Your Fourth Putt.
Chapter 2 - How to Hit a Nike From the Rough, When you Hit a Titleist From the Tee.
Chapter 3 - How to Avoid the Water When You Lie 8 in a Bunker.
Chapter 4 - Ho to Get More Distance Off the Shank.
Chapter 5 - When to Give the Marshal the Finger.
Chapter 6 - Using Your Shadow on the Greens to Maximize Earnings.
Chapter 7 - When to Implement Handicap Management.
Chapter 8 - Proper Excuses for Drinking Beer Before 9:00 a.m.
Chapter 9 - How to Rationalize a 6 Hour Round.
Chapter 10 - When Does a Divot Become Classified as Sod.
Chapter 11 - How to Find That Ball That Everyone Else Saw Go into the Water.
Chapter 12 - Why Your Spouse Doesn't Care That You Birdied the 5th.
Chapter 13 - Using Curse Words Creatively to Control Ball Flight.
Chapter 14 - When to Let a Foursome Play Through Your Twosome.
Chapter 15 - How to Relax When You Are Hitting Five Off the Tee.
Chapter 16 - When to Suggest Major Swing Corrections for Your Opponent.
Chapter 17 - God and the Meaning of the Birdie-To-Bogie Three Putt.
Chapter 18 - When to Re-Grip your Ball Retriever (Must Read for Every Golf Course Marshal).
Chapter 19 - Throwing Your Clubs: An Effective Stress-Reducing Technique.
Chapter 20 - Can You Purchase a Better Golf Game?
Chapter 21 - Why Male Golfers Will Pay $7.00 a Beer from the Cart Girl and Give Her a $3 tip, but Will Balk at $4.50 at the 19th Hole and Stiff the Bartender.

This book is available in fine golf stores everywhere and can be located right next to the sleeves of golf balls that refuse to listen and are afraid of the dark. Enjoy your next round!!

"The only thing you should force in a golf swing is the club back into the bag."

~ Byron Nelson, former PGA Tour player

An interesting tib bit of information.

When I worked at the 2001 US Open players were complaining about some of the pin locations on Saturday, particularly the 18th. Tiger was asked about the fairness of the pins and he answered, "how can they be unfair if everyone is playing to the same hole?"

I have been asked numerous times about fair pin locations and my view is the same as the USGA's with similar guidelines. Please read below about how we try to manage our putting surfaces taking into account pace of play and that not everyone is a PGA Tour player., That being said oftem times the greens in the morning are not nearly as fast as later in the day after they have dried out and an extremely diffult pin can occassionally surface. We do our best to try to minimize these situations, but nobody is perfect because if we were there would be many more pars and birdies out there right ;) Enjoy!

Question: I've played a lot of golf courses and have seen hole locations all over the place. What is the USGA's recommendations regarding hole locations?

Answer: The USGA frequently receives requests for guidelines with respect to selection of hole locations on the putting greens, particularly during competitions. There are no rules regarding hole locations, so there is no such thing as an "illegal" hole location. However, we do have some guidelines.

Many factors affect selection of hole locations. The first and most important is good judgment in deciding what will give fair results. Do not be tricky in locating holes. There should be enough putting green surface between the hole and the front and the sides of the green to accommodate the required shot.

In any case, it generally is recommended that the hole be located at least five paces from any edge of the green. If a bunker is close to the edge, or if the ground slopes away from the edge, the distance should be greater, especially if the shot is more than a pitch.

An area two to three feet in radius around the hole should be as nearly level as possible and of uniform grade. A player above the hole should be able to stop the ball at the hole. Consider the condition of nearby turf, especially taking care to avoid old hole plugs that have not completely healed.

"When he gets the ball into a tough place, that's when he is most relaxed. I think it's because he has so much experience at it."

~Don Christopher, caddy for Jack Lemmon

Golf: It's not just a game

Click on the link below to see how the golf industry is an important player in our nations (world) economy as well as briefly touching on how golf courses can contribute to environental sustainability.

Golf Course Industry : Golf: It's not just a game

"Eighteen holes of match ply will teach you more about your foe than nineteen years of dealing with him across the desk."
~Grantland Rice, sports columnist