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TOP NEVADA COURSE JOINS GOLF CARD

Golf Card’s new ownership group is already making a difference, signing 12 new courses since April 1. Included in that group is Badlands Golf Club in Las Vegas (rated as one of the Top 10 courses in Nevada by Golf Digest).

Among the deep canyons and arroyos of Summerlin, just 20 minutes outside of Las Vegas, Johnny Miller designed three distinct nines, but all true desert layouts. That means generous fairways surrounded by sand, rock, bushes and other types of rugged outcroppings. It’s classic target golf which rewards accurate shots and punishes wayward ones.

The Golf Card fee is 50% off the regular greens fee. For more information or to schedule a tee time, call The Badlands at 702-363-0754 or visit www.badlandsgc.com

WHICH COURSES DO YOU WANT TO PLAY?

Golf Card is committed to adding new, quality courses to its nationwide network. If there is a course you would like to see accept The Golf Card, please let us know by e-mailing office@golfcard.com. We will do our best to contact these courses and enroll them. Or have the course call us at 1-800-321-8269.

REGISTER NOW FOR FALL MEMBER-GUEST @ WOODLOCH; GET $35 MID-WEEK ROUND

You can now register for the Fall Member-Guest Tournament to be held at The Country Club at Woodloch Springs on Wednesday, October 17. Just call 1-800-321-8269. The entry fee is $79 and includes golf, cart, dinner, prizes and awards. Any Golf Card member who registers before August 1 will receive one midweek round of golf for $35 at Woodloch to be used anytime this season.

The Woodloch tournament has been a hit with Golf Card members and guests since it began two years ago. The combination of a scenic 4½ star course dressed up in beautiful fall colors and the first-class service Woodloch is known for, adds up to a fulfilling day.

There is a 136 player limit so we encourage early registration.

COURSE SPOTLIGHT – GolfWeek touts 24 Golf Card affiliates in its 2012 Best Courses You Can Play

GolfWeek Magazine recently released its annual ranking of the Best Courses You Can Play and 24 Golf Card affiliates cracked the state-by-state list. The ratings are a compilation of 725 judges who evaluate various criteria, including aesthetics, playability, conditioning, fairness, service, total experience, etc.

The Links of North Dakota in Ray was the only Golf Card course to earn a No. 1 ranking in its state. Four courses were rated No. 2 and five came in at No. 3.

Here is a full list of Golf Card courses honored in GolfWeek’s Best Courses You Can Play 2012:

Arizona

11. Ventana Canyon/Mountain (Tucson)
23. Arizona National (Tucson)

Alabama

2. Big Creek (Mountain Home)
5. Stonebridge Meadows (Fayetteville)

Kansas

2. Colbert Hills (Manhattan)

Kentucky

3. Old Silo (Sterling)

Maine

3. Kebo Valley (Bar Harbour)

Massachusetts

3. Crumpin-Fox Club (Bernardston)

Michigan

4. Tullymore (Stanwood)
9. Black Forest @ Wilderness Valley (Gaylord)

Minnesota

10. The Preserve @ Grand View Lodge (Nissawa)

Mississippi

7. The Oaks GC (Pass Christian)
8. The Bridges GC @ Hollywood Casino (Bay St. Louis)

Nevada

19. Boulder Creek GC (Boulder City)

New Hampshire

3. Balsams Resort/Panorama (Dixville Notch)

North Carolina

8. Mid Pines Inn & GC (Southern Pines) – Stay and Play

North Dakota

1. The Links of North Dakota (Ray)

Oklahoma

5. Forest Ridge (Broken Arrow)

South Dakota

2. Hart Ranch GC (Rapid City)
4. Prairie Green (Sioux Falls)

Utah

3. The GC @ Thanksgiving Point (Lehi)

Vermont

2. Okemo Valley CC (Ludlow) 4. GC @ Equinox (Manchester Village)

Wyoming

5. Bell Knob GC (Gillette)

SHORT GAME

A few years ago, TaylorMade Golf surveyed hundreds of customers for an internal publication on the following question: Should PGA Tour players be allowed to wear shorts on Tour? Here were the results with some of the for and against comments :
56% -- PGA Tour players should be allowed to wear shorts
44% -- PGA Tour players should not be allowed to wear shorts

For Shorts

“I don’t think it would look any worse than a player with long pants drenched in sweat.”

“If a tour player can play his best golf in a space suit, he should be able to do just that.”

“Don’t forget tennis was once played with ties for men and dresses for women (as was golf at one time). The tennis “powers that be” have long since come to their senses. It’s about time for golf to get with the times.”

Against Shorts

“These guys are professionals, let’s keep it that way. I have not seen any man that looks good in shorts. That would have been like having the girls on Baywatch fully dressed on the beach. Who would have watched?”

“Just as in other professional sports, individuals and teams wear a uniform. Shorts would make the tour players look like short basketball players. They are already starting to look like human billboards.”

“Golf is about the last professional game that is played with dignity and respect. I think shorts would lower it some.”

COURSE REVIEW

Here are some Golf Card courses you might want to check out – by recommendation of your fellow Golf Card members.

New Jersey

High Bridge Hills Location: High Bridge
Phone: 908-638-5055
Website: www.highbridgehills.com
Golf Card fee: $40 (Mon-Thurs.)
Of special note: Rated the No.1 course in Golf Card’s Favorite 50 poll of members
Member comment: “Beautiful course, very tough but would play there again.”

Pennsylvania

MountainValley GC Location: Barnesville
Phone: 570-467-2242
Website: www.mtvalleygolf.com
Golf Card fee: $35 (wkdays); $50 (Sat.); $40 (Sun.)
Of special note: Rated the 4 ½ stars by Golf Digest
Member comment: “Excellent course, great value. Friendly staff!”

Split Rock GC Location: Lake Harmony
Phone: 570-722-9901
Website: www.splitrockresort.com
Golf Card fee: $35 (wkdays); $50 (Sat.); $40 (Sun.)
Member comment: “Tough course, love the layout, great Golf Card value!”

South Carolina

The Links at Lakewood Location: Sumter
Phone: 803-481-5700
Website: www.lakewoodlinksgolf.com
Golf Card fee: $20 (wkdays); $25 (wkends)
Member comment: “Love this place. Quiet, no hassle and friendly staff.”

We encourage all members to submit reviews of Golf Card courses they have played. Just go to golfcard.com, log on, go to Course Directory, select a specific course and go to the Course Review prompt. You will be asked to rate a course on playability, conditions, amenities and whether you would recommend it to a friend. You can also offer personal comments.

We will publish many of the reviews in this online newsletter.

JUST SAYIN’ – Ken Cohen

The Morgan Pressel slow-play penalty in the LPGA’s Sybase Match Play Championship certainly created controversy and debate in the golf world. Many believe the penalty was excessive and arbitrary while others felt it was about time a professional golf tour pounced on the slow play epidemic. Here’s what I think:

I have no problem with a penalty being assessed for slow play, especially since it’s part of the conditions of play and every player is aware there is a consequence for breaking the rule. In this situation, Pressel was warned after the 9th hole and told she was being put on the clock after the 11th hole. That means she had already exceeded the time limit twice and was now being given one final chance to speed up. She didn’t – taking 39 seconds too long to play the 12th hole and automatically invoking the loss-of-hole penalty.

I don’t see why there is even a discussion – Pressel broke Rule 6-7 and was penalized – the same as if she would have taken an unplayable lie or lost a ball. Slow play is part of the Rules – it is not something conceived by the LPGA, PGA or any other professional tour.

The issue I have with the penalty is that the actual timing of the player is not transparent. Only the rules official with the clock knows the actual elapsed time of the player. There is now way for the player to know where he or she stands in relation to the time until it’s too late. My suggestion is that whenever a player is being timed, a portable clock be displayed with the running time. This way the player knows his or her elapsed time and has a better opportunity to speed up or maintain pace. It also allows the viewers to see and understand what timing a player is all about.

My bigger problem with the penalty is its severity. I know the Rules call for loss of hole in match play for unduly delaying play, but in this case it was loss of two holes. Pressel actually won the 12th hole to go 3-up in the match. With the penalty, she lost the hole and was only 1-up. That’s a two-hole penalty and that’s excessive. My recommendation is a one-shot penalty to be levied at the start of the next hole. So in Pressel’s case, she would have stayed 3 up heading to the 13th hole, but would have been hitting two off the tee instead of one. That seems to be more reasonable and fair.

RULES SCHOOL – Relief from an immoveable obstruction

On the final hole of the Players Championship, Kevin Na parked his tee shot way right near a cart path. When NBC showed him taking a drop, the announcers said he was getting relief from the cart path. No problem there. Until we saw Na drop the ball, have it stay on the path and play it. Rule 20-2 says that when taking relief from an immoveable obstruction, if the ball is dropped and comes to rest in a position where there is still interference by the condition from which relief is being taken, the ball must be re-dropped. Na clearly didn’t do that and it appeared he should have been penalized.

But NBC had it wrong. Na wasn’t taking relief from the cart path but an abnormal ground condition caused by the gallery. As long as his drop from the abnormal ground condition came to rest outside of that condition, he could play the ball wherever it lied without penalty. Na had the option of taking additional relief from the cart path, but chose not to because of the angle of the shot.

MEMBER’S TEE – Learn from your Shadow

There are a lot of ways to check out your swing. You can visit an instructor, look in a full-size mirror, use a video camera or impose a friend. But one of the most expedient ways to inspect your swing is to examine your shadow. If you position your body correctly in relation to the sun overhead, the shadow you cast will expose almost any swing flaw. What’s more, it will show you how to make the correction.

Many swing problems are rooted in poor pre-swing fundamentals. Incorrect body position is among the most common. Amateurs frequently set up with the right shoulder too high, the right arm too straight, the shoulders aligned to the left. If this is true in your case, your shadow will form a reverse letter K when you look down at address.

The correct setup is just the opposite. Your right arm should be relaxed and bent slightly at the elbow. Your left arm should be straight. Your right shoulder should be lower than your left to accommodate your right-hand grip. When you look down at address, your shadow should resemble a natural letter K.

If you have a swing problem or other flaw with your game, e-mail us at memberstee@golfcard.com. Please include a brief description of what your tendencies are, what you want fixed and our Instructional Staff will consider your submission for response.