From the category archives:
Seabrook Golf
A recent weekend trip with some old friends to Seabrook Island, S.C., approximately 30 minutes south of Charleston was very illuminating. Seabrook Island sits alongside Kiawah Island at the end of a 12 mile long two lane road. I first visited Seabook Island in the early 1980’s and over the years it has had it’s share of financial challenges and I have long considered it the poor cousin to neighboring Kiawah Island.
{ 1 comment }
Golf at Tortuga Bay in the Dominican Republic, a Leading Golf property
I was delighted that we were able to announce a new partnership with one of the most respected brands in the lodging industry, Leading Hotels of the World. Leading Hotels are currently embarked on a Leading Leisure initiative to grow their resort business as it historically has been more reliant on it’s city hotels aimed at the business traveler. LHW launched Leading Spa’s last year and the Leading Golf program is the next step for them. We have been helping them conceive, design and implement this plan for the last several months and have very exciting ideas as we move ahead in the coming months.
{ 1 comment }
A few years ago I travelled for the first time to Nebraska to play Sand Hills. Designed by the team of Ben Crenshaw & Bill Coore I had extremely high expectations….and they were surpassed The story of Sand Hills is worth reading in the above link. Quite simply, the topography in that part of the USA is remarkable for building golf courses. The recent article in the Omaha newspaper similarly caught my eye as another fine venue is built, even during these challenging economic times. I am not for one moment suggesting that Nebraska replicates the overall experience of golf in Scotland, however, based on my time at Sand Hills, for 4 hours, if you focus solely on the golf course at hand and ignore the surroundings, you could be a thousands of miles away. This region of Nebraska where sand hills were formed is very similar to the sand hills of North Carolina (home to Pinehurst amongst others) and the sand belt in Melbourne, Australia (home to Royal Melbourne, Kingston Heath, etc). Possibly golfers are one of the few groups who find value in sand hills!
{ 0 comments }
One of the many enjoyable aspects of the golf industry, is that there are so many good guys who work in it. A recent article in Golfweek about Peter Millar only touches on the success of this company. The article does not dwell on the people involved who are truly some of the best you will find…anywhere. The company was founded by Chris Knott who remains the chief designer and inspiration for all things color. Whereas I remain as the safe blue blazer and white shirt dresser, Chris defines fashion sense. He can take stripes, solids, paisley prints and polka dots and make it look perfect, while I would take the same basic elements and come across as coco the clown. Chris sets the tone for a hard, but fun work ethic at Peter Millar….a tip of my (plain khaki) hat to you and everyone at Peter Millar.
{ 0 comments }
The Machrie
I will never forget some of my trips to the Machrie, off the west coast of Scotland. Situated on the island of Islay, the Machrie is a classic links course in the truest sense of the word. I recall 10 blind shots to greens over towering sand dunes. The details on this golf experience can be enjoyed at LinksMagazine.com While the golf is memorable I will never forget the trip, in 1986 when my brother and I played 9 holes in fierce weather only to return to the clubhouse and an extended lunch break. Indeed, the lunch continued to dinner as were joined by the manager of one of the local distilleries with a new bottle of his product. Golf is a wonderful sport, but more often then not it is the people and life experiences which make it so special.
{ 0 comments }
I attended Thursday afternoon at the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando. It is a sizeable event where the golf industry and most everyone associated with it congregates annually. During the afternoon I had a number of short discussions with various industry contacts about the state of their membership. The conversations cut across most lines, generally higher end private clubs, old and new, and spread across the country. Most clubs face challenges; some reported bucking the trend…as a result of creative marketing and pricing without damaging their brand, some clubs even reported an historically strong financial position!
{ 1 comment }
