Month: April 2023

Categories
PGA Tour

This Week on the PGA Tour – 2023 Zurich Classic of New Orleans

By Scott Messner

In the PGA Tour’s sole team event, Davis Riley and Nick Hardy shot a 65, the second lowest final round, to win the 2023 Zurich Classic of New Orleans with a final score of -30. Davis hit his tee shot on the 207 yard par 3 14th hole to within a few inches setting up a tap-in birdie and holed a 33 foot putt from off the green on the par 3 17th hole for another birdie. It was the first PGA Tour win for both Davis and Nick and includes a two-year tour exemption.

The host course is TPC Louisiana in Avondale, Louisiana. The course opened in 2004, has hosted the Zurich Classic since 2005, and is yet another course designed by Pete Dye. Going back to the Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass, five of the last seven weeks on the PGA Tour have been on Pete Dye designed courses. It is a testament to the incredible golf course designer that Mr. Dye was.

Tournament host Fore!Kids Foundaton and title sponsor Zurich Insurance Group have raised over $18 million for over 40 charities in southeastern Louisiana. Fore!Kids Foundation provides healthcare, education and hope for over 200,000 children each year. Checkout the volunteer opportunities at this year’s Zurich Classic and prayerfully consider donating your time at next year’s tournament!

By switching to a team format in 2017, the tournament has built up excitement in a format the players enjoy. The players play fourball in the first and third rounds, with each player playing his own ball and the team taking the lowest score of the two players for each hole. The players play foursomes in the second and fourth rounds, with the players playing one ball as a team and alternating shots.

Does team golf sound like fun to you? A great team event that high handicap and beginner golfers can join in on are golf scrambles. Almost all golf charity events and golf business outings are in the scramble format. Each person plays his own ball for each shot with the team taking the best shot of the foursome on each shot. There is a decent chance the team will take one of your shots, no matter what your skill level.

ESPN+ on course commentator John Maginnes made the comment that the first and third rounds of the tournament, the fourball rounds, are like the honeymoon of a marriage. You’ll see a lot of birdies and not many bogies being recorded for the team. The second and fourth rounds, the foursome rounds, is marriage when the kids are sick, and your mother-in-law is coming to visit. For the record, I love my mother-in-law. 😊 These rounds are much more difficult to score in, as the team is playing one ball instead of two, so both players need to be on their game every shot.

When playing fourballs, with each player playing his own ball and taking the best score, one player can carry the other for quite some time if they are playing well. In foursomes, players need to be there for each other, picking each other up from the other’s mistakes. You’ll see the real character of the teams when neither player has their game during foursomes.

Marriage is a lot like that. It will be filled with many good times. At times you may have a season of struggles, but Jesus tells us in the Gospel of Mark that God has joined husband and wife together as one.

Mark 10:7-9
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 “For this cause a man will leave his father and mother, and will join to his wife, 
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 and the two will become one flesh, so that they are no longer two, but one flesh. 
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 What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” 
Categories
PGA Tour

This Week on the PGA Tour – 2023 RBC Heritage

By Scott Messner

Tied for the lead after regulation with Jordan Spieth at -17, Matt Fitzpatrick hit his 9-iron approach shot to within a foot on the 17th hole, the third playoff hole, winning the 2023 RBC Heritage with his tap-in birdie. It was his first regular PGA Tour event victory and backs up his major win at the 2022 US Open. Matt has been vacationing with his family to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina since he was six years old. He first appearance at the RBC Heritage was in 2014 where he made the cut and finished tied for 23rd as still an amateur.

This was the 55th playing of the RBC Heritage Presented by Boeing and has been played at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island since Arnold Palmer won the first tournament in 1969. The list of other past champions contains some of the greatest names in golf including Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Nick Faldo, Greg Norman, and 5-time winner Davis Love III.

The tournament is hosted by the Heritage Classic Foundation. Since its inception in 1987, it has donated $50 million dollars to over 80 charities in South Carolina, supporting education, emergency housing, food insecurity, animal shelters, and much, much more. If you live in South Carolina, one of the unique ways you can support the foundation is through the purchase of Heritage Classic Foundation vanity license plates for your vehicle. Will you be within one and a half hours of Hilton Head during the tournament week? If so, sign up to join the waiting list to volunteer at the 2024 RBC Heritage!

A bridge allowed automobile traffic to Hilton Head Island beginning in 1956. Soon after, real estate developer Charles E. Fraser developed Sea Pines Resort. The resort has four golf courses including the Harbour Town Golf Links. Pete Dye designed the course along with the help of Jack Nicklaus. It is a classic Pete Dye design with plenty of risk/reward holes, narrow fairways and one of the smallest average green sizes on the PGA Tour, second only to Pebble Beach. The development of Sea Pines Resort, and the several other resorts that followed, cemented the South Carolina Lowcountry as a tourist destination.

Maybe surprising to some, I had never heard of the geographical area around Hilton Head Island referred to as the Lowcountry before this year, where it was mentioned several times on the coverage.

Photo by MoodyGroove at the English Wikipedia

When I hear RBC Heritage and specifically Harbour Town Golf Links, I always think lighthouse. The circular Harbour Town yacht basin, inspired by a harbour in Portofino, Italy, is home to the Harbour Town lighthouse. It was built during the first RBC Heritage, with its frame being up behind the 18th green to see Arnold Palmer’s winning putt, and was completed in 1970. The red and white striped icon is 93 feet tall and has 110 steps.

Some dismissed the need for a lighthouse, yet it has become the most recognized landmark on Hilton Head and serves as a private aid for navigation.

God’s living word of the Bible serves as a guide helping us to navigate our lives.

Psalm 119:105
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 Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light for my path. 

Read the Bible and allow its wisdom to lead your life.

Categories
Feature Golf Equipment

Used Premium Golf Balls

By Scott Messner

I’ve written a lot in the past regarding the best golf balls for beginners. When we’re just beginning, depending where we play, we may lose balls on a regular basis, so the cheaper the ball the better.

Cheaper golf balls offer many other benefits for high-handicap and beginner golfers. Through their construction and cover, they have less spin off the clubface, which is generally a good thing for beginners. Less side spin can translate into a less severe slice. Also, the cover material of cheaper golf balls is more durable than that of premium balls, which means it will better resist getting cut on mishits.

As our skill level progresses, our ball striking will improve. We eliminate our slice, and our overall ball flight improves.

It’s at this point that it may be beneficial switching to a more premium ball. The spin we try to avoid in golf balls as beginners becomes our friend, especially with the wedges and putter. The urethane cover of premium tour balls provide spin and feel that is hard to achieve with other cover materials.

I’ve received Titleist Pro V1 balls as a Christmas gift, and since it is a popular ball, I find many of them in the woods. Pro V1’s and other premium tour balls do have a spin and feel around the green that a cheaper ball cannot match. Still, almost every course in my area has tight, wooded fairways, balls still get lost, so spending $55 for a dozen Titleist Pro V1 balls would break my golf budget.

There are a lot of articles online about used golf balls having the same performance as brand new. Of course, much of this information is shared by the sellers of used golf balls, and the performance will degrade at some point. All used golf balls can have player markings or logos. After that their condition is graded on a scale.

5A or AAAAA or Mint
This is the best available grade. These balls will have their original color and sheen, looking brand new. The bad news is they will also cost near brand new.

4A or AAAA or Near Mint
These balls may have small cosmetic blemishes or slight discoloration, but their performance is not lessened in any way. They will look like they have been played a few holes. 

3A or AAA or Good
These balls will show some wear and would look like they have been played for a round. Their big advantage is their price.

There are lower grades but balls in these grades are best suited for practice.

I decided to play Titleist Pro V1 grade 4A used balls this upcoming season. I found a great deal for four dozen of them at Jerry’s Golf Balls eBay store. $48 shipping included. One dollar a ball! For less than the cost of one dozen brand new, my hope is that four dozen balls will last me the season.

These used golf balls were once lost but are now found. In the Parable of the Lost Sheep, Jesus tells us there is more rejoicing over one repented sinner than ninety-nine who do not need repentance.

Luke 15:6-7
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 When he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ 
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 I tell you that even so there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance. 

Are you lost? Jump into the Bible and grow your personal relationship with Jesus.

Categories
PGA Tour

This Week on the PGA Tour – 2023 Masters Tournament

By Scott Messner

It’s something that golf fans look forward with anticipation to every year, the Masters Tournament. For me, in addition to being a major and one of the greatest tournaments in golf, the Masters signifies that, where I live, golf season is here if we’re lucky, or at worst right around the corner.

Since the Masters Tournament began 1934, it has been hosted at the private Augusta National Golf Club. It’s the only major played on the same course every year. Jon Rahm won this year’s tournament with a score of -12, 4 strokes better than runner-up finishers Phil Mickelson and Brooks Koepka, who both finished at -8. With the win, Jon returned to the number Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR). Phil Mickelson became the oldest player to finish in the top 5 of the Masters, firing a 65 for the lowest score of the final round.

I enjoyed watching the LIV Golf players in action that were invited to the tournament, especially the fine play of Phil and Brooks. I watched one round of the first LIV Golf tournament, and while I thought the format is innovative, I have not watched any since. I feel those that fund the organization allow persecution of my Christian brothers and sisters.

While being a private for-profit organization and not having to disclose financial information, Augusta National Inc. does a lot to grow the game of golf and invest in the Augusta, Georgia area. The Masters Tournament Foundation has co-founded the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, the Drive, Chip, and Putt Championship, the Latin America Amateur Championship, and has made significant monetary contributions to The First Tee. Augusta National Golf Club, with matching funds from its corporate sponsors, has donated millions into local Augusta communities. Make a difference in your community and volunteer at your local PGA Tour event!

The Masters Tournament is unique in so many ways. Like its catchphrase says, it is certainly “a tradition unlike any other”.

Past green jacket winners are invited to the Champions Dinner the Tuesday before the tournament, with the menu decided by the current defending champion. The annual Wednesday Par 3 Contest, with the field made up of current Masters participants and non-participating past champions, has become a family affair with family members caddying and even taking shots.

The most expensive item at the concession stand is white wine at $6. Beer follows at $5. There are no sandwiches on the menu over $3. Unless you win tickets in the ticket lottery, it’s going to cost you a lot of money to attend the Masters. It’s nice to know that once you get in you can eat and drink at extremely fair prices.

Finally, the enforcement of fan etiquette makes for an enjoyable viewing experience from home. I can only imagine how much more enjoyable it is in person. There is no running, cell phones, or idiocy allowed. Scream “mashed potatoes!” after a shot and promptly be shown the exit.

The Augusta National Golf Club course was built in 1932, when professional golfer Bobby Jones, along with his friend Clifford Roberts, a New York City investment dealer, purchased a 365-acre site. The site was a former nursery named Fruitland, which started in 1853, and grew peaches, other fruits, trees, and shrubs. Hence, all the holes at Augusta National are named after trees or shrubs. A few examples are the 1st hole “Tea Olive”, the 12th hole “Golden Bell”, and 18th hole “Holly”. Watch any of the coverage, you’ll hear the holes named in each fly through.

Jesus, the Good Shepherd, knows our name, and we know his voice.

John 10:3-4
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 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 
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 Whenever he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 

Let Jesus go before and lead you. Follow in his ways.

Categories
Golf Tips

Own Your Own Swing

By Scott Messner

Tiger Woods made an interesting comment at last December’s Hero World Challenge. He said he told his son Charlie “Don’t copy my swing. Copy Rory’s. I don’t move like that anymore, but Rory does. Have you ever seen Rory off balance on a shot? No.”

Sure. Charlie Wood’s and Rory McIlroy’s swings are similar, but Charlie Wood’s swing is Charlie Wood’s swing.

I watch a lot of streaming of the PGA Tour. I watch for things that almost every professional player does that may help me in my game. Many times, that boils down to positions of the club or hands at various points in the swing.

The most important clubface position is at impact with the ball. There are a multitude of different ways that professions golfers get the clubface in the correct position. While many professional golfers will have similar swings, many others will have different swings, vastly different swings.

Jim Furyk has one of the most unorthodox looking swings, with an extremely upright backswing, but Mr. Furyk’s swing is very repeatable for him. It allows him to consistently get the clubface in a great position at impact. Jim Furyk’s swing has produced the only 58 round in the history of the PGA Tour and over $70 million in career tournament earnings.

Watch any tournament today and you’ll see very different swings. Victor Hovland has a more vertical backswing and stands farther away from the ball than most other players. Jon Rahm has a short backswing and stands close to the ball. Tony Finau also has a short backswing. Matt Fitzpatrick has a longer backswing. They all repeatably put the clubface in a great position at impact. They all also, as of this writing, are ranked in the top 15 players in the world according to the Official World Golf Rankings. 

We all have different bodies. Our bodies are different ages and sizes, with different strengths, weaknesses, and capabilities. It’s not practical to watch another golfer’s swing and copy it 100% as your own.

Find ways to get your body in certain positions you see the pros in, especially properly positioning the clubface at impact on a consistent basis. This starts with having self-awareness of your own swing, knowing what causes your mishits, and being able to work on correcting them on your own. This process is made so much easier with the help of a golf teaching professional.

Own you own swing. While we can incorporate successful parts from others’ swings into our own, our unique bodies make our golf swings uniquely ours.

Isaiah 64:8 states that God molds each of us as a potter does a clay jar. Just as each clay vessel made by the potter is unique, God molds us into unique individuals according to His plan.

Isaiah 64:8
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 But now, Yahweh, you are our Father. We are the clay and you our potter. We all are the work of your hand.

Are you moldable?

Categories
PGA Tour

This Week on the PGA Tour – 2023 Valero Texas Open

By Scott Messner

Canadian Corey Conners won the 2023 Valero Texas Open on April 2nd with a score of -15 for a one-shot victory over second place finisher and PGA Tour rookie Sam Stevens. It takes a solid final round to win a tournament. With four birdies, three of which were on the front nine, to go along with no bogeys, Corey fired a final round 68. He also won the 2019 Valero Texas Open. Both of his PGA Tour victories have come at this event.

The Texas Open was first played in 1922. It is the sixth oldest professional golf tournament in the world. Having always been played in the San Antonio, Texas area, it is the longest running tournament held in one city. There are several notable champions from past and present including Walter Hagen, Byron Nelson, Sam Snead, Arnold Palmer, Zach Johnson, and Jordan Spieth to name just a few.

The tournament has been known as the Valero Texas Open since Valero Energy Corporation became the title sponsor in 2002. The Oaks Course at TPC San Antonio has been the host course since 2010.

Where would the Valero Texas Open rank on your list of PGA Tour tournaments with the biggest charitable contributions? With all due respect to the great state of Texas and the Valero Texas Open, I’m guessing it wouldn’t make most people’s top ten. The 2022 Valero Texas Open raised $22 million in charitable donations, bringing the tournament’s grand total of charitable giving to $209 million. Hundreds of organizations are beneficiaries. $209 million is a staggering number. Would you be surprised that the Valero Texas Open was the 4th PGA Tour event to surpass $100 million in charitable giving?

All this from a tournament that has survived cancellations due to the Great Depression, World War II, and the Covid-19 pandemic. All this from a tournament that has called eight different venues home. All this from a tournament that has been bounced around the schedule, has been an alternate event to Ryder and Presidents Cups, and recently has been played the week after or the week before arguably the most anticipated event of the year – The Masters.

The tournament has faced a lot of adversity in its rich history. It appears that may continue as this year’s tournament was not a designated event, so it struggled to attract big names. 2024 and beyond still holds many questions, but if its history is any indication, the Valero Texas Open will continue to prosper and support the many beneficiaries of San Antonio for years to come.

We will all face adversity in our lives. In Deuteronomy, before the Israelites entered the Promised Land, Moses reminded them to be strong because God is with them.

Deuteronomy 31:7-8
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 Moses called to Joshua, and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land which Yahweh has sworn to their fathers to give them; and you shall cause them to inherit it. 
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 Yahweh himself is who goes before you. He will be with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be discouraged.”

God is with us as we lead our families, build our careers, and serve others. Be strong and courageous in His name.

Categories
Hit More Fairways

The Tee Shot – The Most Important Shot

By Scott Messner

We do not have to stripe every drive 300 yards down the center of the fairway to be a good golfer. In fact, not even the best golfers in the world on the PGA Tour do that. 

However, the tee shot is the most important shot of the hole.

We have a perfect, flat lie for the first shot of every hole. We even get to place the ball on a tee. We need to take advantage and put ourselves in a good position for our second shot.

We can also get in the most trouble with our tee shot. The big clubface of the driver lends itself to wild shots when we mishit. The length of our drives also makes it easy to reach danger on either side of the fairway.

Many beginner and high-handicap golfers have the dreaded slice with their driver. It’s important to know the ball flight laws that cause a slice so we can have the self-awareness to know the cause of our shot shapes. You could watch the large amount of YouTube video dedicated to helping golfers fix their slice. While you do get a great deal of satisfaction in correcting swing issues on your own, the fastest and easiest way to correct your slice is with lessons from a PGA Teaching Professional. 

While keeping our drives out of trouble should be the priority, we need to be getting the most distance that we are capable of off the tee. There is no substitute for distance off the tee.

There is an old saying in golf – “Drive for show and putt for dough”. Putting has long been seen by many in the golf community as the most important area of the game. All areas of the game are important. However, strokes gained stats have shown that distance off the tee is the biggest contributor to success on the PGA Tour. Maybe surprisingly, distance off the tee is even more important in the amateur game.  

Increasing your clubhead speed is the way to increase your distance. You gain 2.5 to 3 yards for every mile per hour you increase your driver clubhead speed. That add up to 12 to 15 yards on a 5 MPH clubhead speed increase. That’s a significant difference on the course.

Work on improving all areas of your game but focus on accuracy and distance off the tee. It is the quickest way to shave strokes off your scores. The first shot of each hole is so important to give you an opportunity of scoring well on the hole. 

Similarly, the first hour of your day sets the tone for the rest of it. While you can read your Bible at any time, first thing in the morning works best for many. You’re giving the first part of your day to God, reading His living word. 

David prays in Psalm 143 that he trusts God and asks God to show him the way.

Psalm 143:8
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 Cause me to hear your loving kindness in the morning, for I trust in you. Cause me to know the way in which I should walk, for I lift up my soul to you.

By being with God through prayer and scripture to start our day, we are setting ourselves up to walk out the day according to His will.