PGA TOUR Golf — Page 12

2013 Week 2: SONY Open at Waialae CC

January 11, 2013 By admin

Merri Daniel and Andy Reistetter are partnering in 2013 to document their experiences on tour. Through their website “Outside the Ropes Entertainment,” they will cover a variety of story lines including growing the game of golf, travel golf, the people they meet, and the adventures they have along the way. Here is their chronicle at the SONY Open at Waialae CC in Honolulu. Enjoy the game; it’s the game for life!

It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World? Do you remember the 1963 epic comedy about a treasure buried “under a big W?” Well that “big W” is right behind the 16^th green at Waialae CC. Kind of like Seinfeld; people either completely get this reference or don’t get it at all. A madcap pursuit of what at Waialae? And by whom? The first place prize of $1,008,000 by 23 of the 30 rookies on tour this year, six of whom have never played in a PGA TOUR event? Or perhaps the treasure to be revealed is Merri & Andy’s new “Outside the Ropes Entertainment” venture. Stay tuned, we have the shovel… it is a FUN, FUN, FUN, FUN adventure!

There are moments of clarity in one’s life. Some profound, some interesting and others just a lot of fun. Or maybe they are known a “WOW” moment for you. So there I was in the men’s room washing my hands. The Golf Channel was playing on a television in the background and I was listening to Rich Lerner’s commentary. He said something like Waialae CC dates back to 1929 and that they still have Vitalis hair tonic in the men’s locker room. I looked over and there it was- Vitalis hair tonic. The Hawaiian Open dates back to 1929 when “Wild Bill” Mehlhorn won one of his 20 PGA TOUR wins.

Filed Under: Hickory Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

Memories of the 2012 US Open at Olympic Club Won by Webb Simpson!

June 15, 2012 By admin

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Filed Under: Hickory Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

Memories of the 2012 PLAYERS Championship won by Matt Kuchar!

May 4, 2012 By admin

A Players tradition with the champion Matt Kuchar coming into the Barn to thank the volunteers!

This was one of the all-time great Players with American Matt Kuchar triumphing in a close and competitive competition. Martin Laird and Ian Poulter shot 65 in Round 1 with Kuchar three strokes back. Zach Johnson, Kevin Na and Kuchar led at 8-under at the midway point with the cut coming at even par 144 and another six golfers within two strokes of the lead.

On the weekend Na nudged to a one stroke lead over Kuchar going into Sunday but faltered with a 76 as Kuchar posted a 70 to win by two strokes over four players—Ben Curtis, Rickie Fowler, Zach Johnson and Martin Laird.

This was a Players to remember meeting so many new friends and seeing old friends too! Over 100 pictures in this gallery to relive the memories of good golf, good friends and good times at TPC Sawgrass, Home of The Players!

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Filed Under: Hickory Golf, People in Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

2011: Dye’s Valley at TPC Sawgrass: Home of the Winn Dixie Jacksonville Open

October 25, 2011 By admin

Golf writer Andy Reistetter lives in the Golf Capital of the World- Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., home of the Nationwide Tour’s Winn Dixie Jacksonville Open on Dye’s Valley for the last two years.

Also, Florida’s First Coast is home to the PGA TOUR, TPC Sawgrass, The Players and the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Reistetter captures the spirit of this year’s tournament in this slideshow. Do you see a familiar face?

Welcome to Dye’s Valley…

Welcome to Dye’s Death Valley II. This is no half sister to the Stadium Course. It is a pure blood “Dye-abolical” designed golf course. You may need some simple “Dye-rections” to find Dye’s Valley, as it is a little more than driver distance from the iconic TPC Sawgrass Clubhouse.

Who Cares About Football Anyway?

Even Jaxson de Ville, the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars mascot, played hooky from work on Monday to catch the Junior Clinic with Nationwide Tour players and then a demonstration by two-time world long drive champion Jamie Sadlowski. Judged by how he hits the golf ball, Jaxson the Jaguar plays better golf than the Jaguars do football.

Winn Dixie Junior Clinic a HUGE Success!

THE best junior clinic I have seen in four years on tour. What made it so? Twelve instruction stations manned by dedicated NWT players (and one Champions player) where the kids got to hit the balls and apply what the professionals where telling them.

Local favorites included Len Mattiace, Frank Lickliter, III, Russell Knox and Champions Tour member and 2005 Players champion Fred Funk. Others giving of their time to promote the game of golf to juniors on a beautiful day were Ron Whittaker, Brendon Todd, James Sacheck, Clayton Rask, Matt Hendrix, Tommy Biershenk, Will Wilcox and Danny Wax.

Fred Funk Knows How to Teach Kids

Fred starts each kid without a club or ball. He works on posture, balance and then body movement, focusing on the triangle between extended arms and shoulders. He gives them a club and works on grip and rehearsing the swing without a ball. Then, he tees up a ball for them, and voila, the ball gets in the way of a good swing!

Son Taylor is a sophomore golfer on the local Ponte Vedra Sharks team which just won the district championship. Next up is the regions, and then hopefully, the state finals.

Jamie Sadlowski Hits it a Long Ways

Sadlowski (in black shirt) tries to “hit it as far as humanly possible.”

He says it’s easy. “Just count to eight seconds before it lands.”

Jamie readily admits being 23 helps! Hey, maybe Dye’s Valley is less than a driver from the Clubhouse. Note that Jaxson Jaguar dude taking notes…he’s a golfer dude for sure. Also note the number of Nationwide Tour players that hung around to watch and perhaps pick up a tip or two.

Guinness Book of World Records: TPC Sawgrass Stages World’s Largest Pro-Am

Not sure how accurate that is, but it is the largest pro-am on the world’s largest tour, so doesn’t that make it so?

Think about it: Two courses, morning and afternoon shotguns, five-hour rounds, 10 hours of daylight (OK, 12 hours) and over 400 golfers. Head professional Matt Borocz and his team should be coordinating the handling of all luggage at our nation’s airports. Takeoffs and landings too! WOW factor to the 18th degree.

Look Who’s Back in Town

… and playing the stadium course before his concert Wednesday evening: Florida’s own Jake Owen! Owen wanted to be a professional golfer, winning his first tournament at age 15. He went to Florida State University.

A wakeboarding accident and ensuing reconstructive surgery ended his golfing career.

The Stage is Set

… and fans of Jake Owen are getting settled in on the back lawn of the TPC Sawgrass Clubhouse for an evening of great fun and good music.

Inside the Truck

Golf Channel’s Karel Schliksbier gives the local Ponte Vedra Sharks high school golf team a tour of the behind-the-scenes action in golf broadcasting. With more than one ball in play at the same time and 18 fields of play, broadcasting golf is one of the more demanding of all sports.

Inside Another Truck…

Golf Channel Producer Keith Hirshland (black shirt of left) is the storyteller during the broadcast. Ponte Vedra Sharks Hanks Massey (yellow shirt in center) and Jack Bishop (red shirt with black vest on right) survey the activity in the main truck.

Get the Picture?

Golf Channel cameraman Randy saddles Hanks with a HD lite 25-pound camera. Try carrying running around with that on your shoulder all day with two hip replacements! Being a remote cameraman on the ground is not an easy job!

The Planters Peanut Mobile Came to Dye’s Valley…

But who is inside?

Well, It’s Mr. Peanut Planters!

(With volunteer Shelley)

We see this guy swim really fast in commercials. In Dye’s Valley, he not only parts the water really fast, but he walks on water as well. Did you catch him in the water at No. 9 and 13 on TV?

The Volunteers Are the Heart of Any Tournament on the PGA Tour

This is volunteer Kathy Hodges. She has more flair than Jennifer Aniston in the movie Office Space.

Sometime it Hurts To Be a Volunteer

Ask Sheila on the 15th hole, who got hit by an errant drive of Luke List. Peter Lynch, president and CEO of tournament sponsor Winn Dixie, happened to be driving by and went to get some ice for her shoulder. Note the ice back is a plastic glove, which I guess is the ultimate helping hand.

Team Tim Finchem?

NOT. Team Tim Wilkinson. The black shirts are for the Kiwi’s favorite rugby team that recently won the world cup. The silver fern only grows in New Zealand. Go TTW!

I Will Have a Jacksonville Double!

Winning caddie and local resident Michael Carrick (no, Stevie Williams does not win every event) has won the Jacksonville Double! On the bag with Tom Kite when he won The Players in 1989, Carrick is the only one to have won both of Jacksonville’s professional golf tournaments.

Charity Wins at TPC Sawgrass

Whether is it The Players with a record $5.9 million or the Winn Dixie Jacksonville Open with a strong $1.8 million, charity in the Northeast Florida and Jacksonville area wins. Champion Galvin Coles more than “stopped by” the volunteer’s party Sunday evening…he “came and stayed” to the delight of all the volunteers and Yours Truly! What an outstanding event: the 2011 Winn Dixie Jacksonville Open presented by PLANTERS.

Dye’s Valley…

TPC Sawgrass, Winn Dixie, PLANTERS, the Nationwide Tour…Dye’s Valley…it all seems to be truly “Dye-licious.”

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a spotter, research and broadcast assistant for The Golf Channel, NBC and CBS Sports. He spends time on all four major American golf tours- the PGA TOUR, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA Tour headquarters and home of The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

A lifetime golfer, Andy enjoys volunteering at the World Golf Hall of Fame and THE Players while pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached by e-mailing him at AndyReistetter@gmail.com

Filed Under: Hickory Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

October 2011: TPC Sawgrass: Home of High School Golf & PV Sharks!

October 8, 2011 By admin

Golf Writer Andy Reistetter lives in the golf capital of the world—Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida—home of the PGA TOUR, TPC Sawgrass and THE PLAYERS, with the World Golf Hall of Fame nearby in St. Augustine. A big supporter of amateur golf, Andy was excited to recently catch his first high school match of the local Ponte Vedra Sharks. Let him take you back to high school in this article. Recall and “en joie” the innocence and fun of life and golf at that time in our lives…

Freshman Kevin Slayden with Lauden Golf’s Banana Hybrid.

TPC Sawgrass: Home of the PLAYERS, where guys like Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods triumph on Pete Dye’s Stadium Course.

Guys like K.J. Choi and Sergio Garcia come through in the clutch to win a major-like tournament that can be a springboard in their careers.

Guys like Paul Goydos and David Toms lose in the clutch but come back the next week to win, or later go out and shoot a 59 on tour.

The Stadium Course is also home to the collegiate Jacksonville Invitational in late January, hosted by local golfer and 1988 PLAYERS Champion Mark McCumber.

Not too long ago, Galvin Hall went out and shot a 64 on his 17th birthday on Pete Dye’s Valley Course. The next day he conquered the Stadium Course, with its world famous par-3 17th to win the Jr. PLAYERS.

In a few weeks, the Nationwide Tour will come back to TPC Sawgrass and Pete Dye’s Valley Course in the second rendition of the Winn Dixie Open.

Strategically placed the week before the season-ending Nationwide Tour Championship at Daniel Island, the road to a top-25 finish and the 2012 PGA Tour comes right through the backyard of the PGA TOUR headquarters here at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.

But wait… high school golf on Pete Dye’s Valley Course?

What is that, and how does that tie into the world of golf?

When I was getting ready for high-school golf, my older brother “LP” (for Lawrence Peter) did a remarkable thing for me.

He gave me a book—Ben Hogan’s Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf.

Not remarkable? You are right.

What was remarkable was that he inscribed it with the following written words…

“Golf is a lot like life, the more you learn and understand about it, the easier it is to meet its challenges.”

Maybe that is why watching and supporting high-school golf is such a remarkable thing to do?

No matter the scores or the players, you will see it all.

The drama, the ups and downs and the storylines of emerging golfers and developing citizens of the world, not just the world of golf.

The day I watched was the day the Ponte Vedra Sharks hosted the Panthers of Palatka and the Yellow Jackets of St. Augustine.

The Sharks scored 149 and easily defeated the Panthers and Yellow Jackets.

Evidently, sharks are as fierce on land as in the sea and somehow can de-buzz the terrors of the air as well.

Palatka’s Michael Farley (L) and Ponte Vedra’s Anthony Scolapio (C) with St. Augustine golfer (R).

Scoring for the Sharks were co-medalists senior Marcus Plunkett and junior Anthony Scolapio (even par 36s), along with junior Chase Berlin (38) and sophomore Jack Bishop (39).

Their average score was 37, one over par on a course set up for the upcoming Nationwide Tour event.

As one opposing coach put it, “This is more golf course than we can handle.”

But that is not the story here.

I was a Panther and Yellow Jacket combined when I was in high school.

It was a big deal for this kid from the Ely Park, Binghamton, New York, municipal course to go over to Endicott and play the Union Endicott Tigers.

Their home course was En Joie Golf Course, home to the PGA Tour’s B.C. Open and now the Champion’s Tour Dick’s Sporting Goods Open.

En Joie’s slogan is “Play where the pros play.”

Sadly, I never played quite as well as a pro, but in a Section IV Championship at En Joie I did finish only five or six strokes behind Joey Sindelar and Mike Hulbert.

What is the story here?

Play golf and live life to the fullest!

The camaraderie of high school teams is exceptional.

They have fun with golf and life.

As Sharks’ coach Pete Molinaro puts it, “Individually they are competitive but they all like each other and cheer for their teammates.”

No wonder, because the coach is out there on the final green along with the boys congratulating each person as they finish… no matter what the score.

Parents and spectators look on as a school of sharks come off the 18th green.

Here’s the story lines I saw that day…

To know why the kids have so much fun, one needs only look to the supportive parents…

Mrs. Berlin is the snack lady extraordinaire for the day, driving a golf cart around with water, soda and treats for all days before Halloween.

Mother Nicole is the team mom, an amazing organizer, ensuring every parent gets a chance to drive the snack cart. She is also the team photographer.

Mother Elizabeth does scoring and communicates the results to the local newspapers.

But the kids—the kids are really cool.

Ponte Vedra Sharks junior Andrew Ullman and senior Tommy Anderson.

Junior Andrew Ullmann and senior Tommy Anderson were the first golfers that day.

At first, I thought Andrew had an exceptionally tough day out on the links because his team uniform was a bit tarnished and he looked a bit disheveled.

Turns out it was “Spirit Week” at school, with football homecoming on Friday night, and the appearance I saw was merely face-painting gone body- and clothes-painting as well.

As a testament to the course setup (that is. the rough being grown in for the Nationwide event), Andrew lost two golf balls. Balls he hit only a few feet off the fairways of the Valley.

Remarkably, he shot a 2-over 38 playing by the rules of golf.

One lost ball became a double bogey, the other only a bogey, which would have been a mulligan par and birdie to most social golfers.

Andrew, the birdie warrior!

Freshman Matthew Plunkett, known as “Little Matteo,” stands out for his tall, lanky build and almost knee-high white socks.

Reminds me a bit of myself at that age, sans my black shoes. It is Ponte Vedra Beach, after all.

“Little” must only refer to being Marcus’ younger brother.

Freshman Matthew Plunkett with “Amazing Grace” after draining a 50-footer on the 18th green.

Matteo drained a 50-footer with a belly putter for bogey on the 18th to card a 41.

The Name of Matteo’s belly putter?

“Amazing Grace.” An F-22-LONG prototype design by Bobby Grace.

Belly putters in high school?

Okay, 25-year-old Keegan Bradley started it by winning the PGA Championship with a belly putter.

Having seen Keegan win in Atlanta, I had just returned from the Tour Championship at East Lake.

I had Phil Mickelson’s group on Sunday and watched him struggle with the belly putter all day.

Phil—give it up.

Keegan, Matteo—keep it going!

Freshman Kevin Slayden navigated the rough with a special locally designed club by Jim Laudenslager of Lauden Golf.

The name?

Banana!

With a palm tree logo, though maybe that is a banana tree… not sure, new to Florida.

But the best story line came from Palatka’s junior Michael Farley, who described his experience on the tough Valley course with a series of hand gestures and a simple three-step story.

With hands outstretched to shoulder width, he began by noting the fairways were narrow… narrowing the separation of his hands to about the width of his nose.

Secondly, he pointed out with his hands outstretched over his head like he was commanding the pilot of a 747 on how to taxi his aircraft to a stop… the rough was UP, way UP!

Finally, with a hand gesture reminiscent of Jackie Gleason’s “away we go” and adding a verbal “swish,” the greens were FAST!

While one cannot predict whether or not one of these kids will go on to play golf on the PGA Tour, I would place a bet that one Michael Farley will become a great entertainer one day.

His is a good-natured, funny kid!

Living life large, isn’t that what it is about?

Other playing students of the shark school include senior David Novakoski, sophomore Taylor Funk and freshman Hanks Massey.

The Sharks are currently 10-2.

Maybe these storylines and others will comprise a book to be written someday: The Five Modern Fundamentals of Life.

TPC Sawgrass: Home of high-school golf.

Why not go out and support high-school golf at your local golf course?

Have the time of your life!

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a Spotter, Researcher and Broadcast Assistant for The Golf Channel, NBC and CBS Sports. He spends time on all four major American golf tours—the PGA Tour, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA Tour headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

A lifetime golfer, Andy enjoys volunteering at the World Golf Hall of Fame and THE PLAYERS while pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached through his website Andy’s Golf & Travel Diary or by e-mailing him at AndyReistetter@gmail.com

Filed Under: Featured People, Hickory Golf, People in Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

2011 Jr. PLAYERS: Gavin Hall Celebrates 17th Birthday with a Win!

September 3, 2011 By admin

Golf Writer Andy Reistetter lives in the Golf Capital of the World- Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida- home of the PGA TOUR, TPC Sawgrass and THE PLAYERS. Nearby is the World Golf Hall of Fame in St. Augustine. But wait there is more than just professional golf here. Whether the collegiate Hyatt Invitation at Sawgrass CC or this week’s Jr. PLAYERS at TPC Sawgrass all levels of golf call this part of the world home Relive this week’s impressive victory by Galvin Hall in the 2011 Jr. PLAYERS at TPC Sawgrass.

Galvin Hall (in red shirt) putting on the 18th green at TPC Sawgrass en route to the Jr. PLAYERS Championship (Photo courtesy of Jacqueline Davis)

Go out and shoot a 64 on your 17th birthday.

Enjoy a family dinner at Ruth’s Chris Steak House to celebrate.

Next day play strong down the stretch and win the Jr. PLAYERS Championship.

Exciting and priceless but this is no MasterCard commercial.

Tiger Woods may have introduced himself to the world.

Perhaps the world should get to know the newly minted Gavin Hall.

Hello Gavin Hall.

The tall, smiling left hander has an unmistakable presence like that of Phil Mickelson.

But unlike Mickelson he was steady and conservative down the stretch on the renown back nine of the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass.

Hall started the day with a 3 stroke lead over Jim Liu after a Saturday 64 on the “other” Pete Dye gem- the Valley Course.

The next nearest competitor was another 3 strokes back of Liu.

Like the PLAYERS, the junior version has one of the strongest, if not the strongest field in all of junior golf- 78 players, top 60 from the United States and the top 18 from around the world.

Gavin Hall completes his swing on a heroic second shot that reached the green safely on the par-5 11th hole on the Stadium Course. (Photo courtesy of Jacqueline Davis)

What looked like a battle of New Yorkers, Hall from upstate Pittsford near Rochester, Liu from Smithtown on Long Island turned into just that.

It could have been Choi vs. Toms, Garcia vs. Goydos or “Phil the Thrill” vs. O’Hair in the professional PLAYERS.

After failing to get up and down from short of the green on the 9th hole with a putter in his hand, Hall held the slimmest of leads over Lui at the turn- one stroke.

The battle with Lui was fierce and magnified with two strokes swings on Nos. 11, 13 and 17.

After pars on 10, Lui went for the green on the par-5 11th though his second shot found water right missing the safety of the bulkhead green complex by only inches.

Hall reached the green safely in two and 2-putted for a birdie while Lui made a testy 6-footer for bogey.
After pars on 12, Lui made a 12-footer for deuce on the par-3 13th while Hall played conservatively away from the water and failed to get up-and-down walking away with a bogey.

Mary Ellen and Bob Hall watch their son Galvin tee off on the famous 17th at TPC Sawgrass.

Hall’s one-stroke lead evaporated on the difficult 14th as Lui hit a strong iron shot from the right rough and made a 2-putt par. Hall missed the green right from the fairway and failed to get up-and-down from one of Dye’s treacherous bunkers.

Lui bogeyed the 15th after being blocked by a tree from the right fairway bunker to fall one stroke behind entering TPC Sawgrass’ three water laden closing holes known as “the Water Closet,” at least to this author.

Lui’s drive was only feet from the fairway with what looked like a playable lie that wasn’t all that playable. His layup iron shot squirted right a bit and found the water after hitting ground first.

“If players don’t flush their iron shots coming home on the Stadium Course, the Water Closet will surely flush them down the leader board.”

Guarding his lead Hall once again played conservatively with his second shot left of the green. Though the chip was tricky one he drained a 15-footer for birdie to increase his lead to 4 strokes over Lui who made double bogey on the always pivotal 15th.

Jim Lui’s second shot at the difficult par-4 14th. He nearly holed a long putt at the green to take the outright lead from Hall. (Phote courtesy of Jacqueline Davis)

With the traditional right Sunday hole location on the 17th island green, Hall the 17year old played cautiously to the middle of the green.

While Hall was comfortably ahead of Lui, Jonathon Garrick playing two groups ahead had eagled the 16th and was on his way to closing out an impressive 4-under 68 and posting a 2-under total in the clubhouse.

Hall’s lag putt on the 17th green was difficult- long, flat at first with a severe downhill slope at the end. His first putt was skillful and rolled out but stopped 5 feet short leaving a difficult par putt.

Hall made the putt and went to the 18th tee knowing he had a 2-stroke lead with one to play.

Again he bailed out conservatively into the right rough avoiding an untimely flush in the Water Closet.

With Gavin Hall the 2011 Jr. PLAYERS Champion at TPC Sawgrass.

His iron shot cleared the trees and safely landed on the green.

Having three putts to win he took them edging Garrick by a stroke at the end of a draining experience in his first Jr. PLAYERS.

Hall in this the fifth Jr. PLAYERS joins Morgan Hoffman (2007, now a senior at Oklahoma State ranked No. 12 in Golfweek Sagarin Rankings), Evan Beck (2008, a junior at Wake Forest ranked No. 31), Bobby Wyatt (2009, a sophomore at Alabama ranked No. 37), and Michael Johnson (freshman at La Salle named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week after being medalist in team’s spring opener) as champions of the prestigious Jr. PLAYERS.

Entering his junior year at Pittsford-Mendon High School Hall will be the first to have the opportunity to defend his Jr. PLAYERS title.

Hall’s win also comes with an invitation to play on the Nationwide Tour in the Winn-Dixie Open on the Valley Course in October…

… where he shot 64 on Saturday to set up his breakthrough victory on the Stadium Course.

Hello Gavin Hall, welcome to the world of golf, TPC Sawgrass-style!

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a Spotter, Research and Broadcast Assistant for various golf networks. He spends time on all four major American golf tours- the PGA TOUR, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA TOUR headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

Filed Under: Featured People, Hickory Golf, People in Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

2011 (March thru June) Year in Review- 60 Pictures & 60 Stories!

July 1, 2011 By admin

In Puerto Rico with The Golf Channel at Trump International in Rio Grande… working hard but enjoying every moment!
See Puerto Rico- a good tip!
Man hunting crabs off the fairways…
Like the hammock and tranquility of PR!
Now I know how to spell it I will visit again!
Able to spend some time with Chi Chi Rodriguez and hear some interesting stories!
Played Royal Isabela in Puerto Rico- amazing golf course! Aerial of par-3 17th hole.
Ground level view of tee shot at the 17th.
Sitting on the 12th tee. Profile of Taino Indian face in the cliffs.
View from the south end of Royal Isabela.

Note: Listed picture captions continue below the gallery:

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17th green, a bit windy!
Sod faced bunkers on the par-5 10th hole.
With my playing partners Miguel suarez (shot 5-under) and golf writer Mike Bailey.
With forecaddie Jose in front of the logo wind-swept native oak tree of Royal Isabela.
With owner Stanley Pasarell on the 17th green.
With friends Pedro and Bobby enjoying life my last night in PR.
With Elaine & John, owners of ‘Ola Lola” in PR.
With the “Ola Lola” gang in PR.
Pedro, me and Tony and the Fruit Loop dude!
Reading Lil Jordan’s book to Pedro Jr….
Graduation night performance at the Comedy Zone in Jacksonville… some more talented than otheres, all more talented than me! I think I need to keep my day job if I had one!
Back at Augusta for the third year in a row… a very special place!
A quick picture with Al Geiberger… he has a plaque on Championship Way at TPC Sawgrass… the original “Mr. 59.”
No. 12 at Augusta.
No. 13 at Augusta… I know it would be prettier if I stepped aside…
Ocean side dinner with friend Sir Walter at The Reef in St. Augustine after an afternoon at the World Golf Hall of Fame… note historic PLAYERS books… doesn’t get any better than this!
Sunset of my life… NOT… but awesomely beautiful… bring on the dawn I am ready!
Putting greens at the World Golf Hall of Fame… a very special place…
Can you guess where I am… Harbour Town Golf Links… Hilton head Island, South Carolina… love the Low Country!
This is me morphed in 20 years… not bad except for the double nose!
Okay back to the present loving the beach!
Love everthing about living at the beach!
Here’s my new but old motorcycle… same Volusia 805cc model but 2 years younger with only 2300 miles on it… convertible comes in handy for transporting my new Brazilian hickory floor!
Motorcycle fits in the condo… only for long trips away from home to avoid the sea air rust that attacked my previous ride…
My cousin Edward came to visit me at the World Golf Hall of Fame! quite the golfer and golf historian himself by the way!
At the Beach Hut for breakfast with other PLAYERS volunteers… guy on the right is my bossman Tommy!
My favorite job preparing for THE PLAYERS… washing the champions’ portraits along Championship Way… during breaks I read my books and relive each PLAYERS championship! Did I tell you I am a golf nut?
Tommy and I out at the 16th green at TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course… staking the back nine the Friday before tournament week… the red thing is heavy and is a great aid to pounding the stakes into the ground.
Two awesome women I volunteer with at the PLAYERS- Miss Marion on the left and Chris on the right!
Two great guys I volunteer with at THE PLAYERS- on the right the “one and only,” the real bossman of everyone Les and on the left well let’s just call him BUZZ the celebrity guy! BTW Les donated my free round of golf on the Stadium course to the Wounded Warriors… which is okay with me…
THE PLAYERS was enhanced this year by the World Golf Hall of Fame Inductions on Monday… which meant I was spent by Tuesday of PLAYERS week! Class of 2011 from left to right Doug Ford, JUMBO Ozaki, President George Bush (No. 41), Ernie Els, CBS’ Frank Chirkinian and Jock Hutchinson… total in WGHOF now stands at 136… you gotta come!
Here’s my 3 bosses at the WGHOF- Jane, Frank and Sandie and I love them all- so much much fun volunteering at the Hall of Fame even if you are not a golfer like…
Quick pic with Hall of Famer Louise Suggs in front of her bronze portrait in Shell Hall.
My NBC spotter friends all dolled up for the WGHOF Induction ceremony!
My NBC spotter friends- back where they belong on a golf course… why is it that they can locate the golf balls of professionals but have great difficulty (except Gary) finding their own balls?
I was lucky that day… didn’t make the A-List to play with the big boys and enjoyed a round with Sandie and Debbie!
My first Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) breakfast at the PLAYERS… my friend Garrett on the camera shooting an interview with Zach Johnson.
Enjoying the PLAYERS on Wednesday before the Darius Ruckers concert on Military Appreciation Day!
2011 United States Open at Congressional CC outside Washington D.C…. my 4th in a row!
First tee hanging out early in the week!
Familiar picture pose- 18th fairway with green and clubhouse in the background!
With cousin Em on Tuesday! — with Emery A Reistetter.
Photo opp with Nick Watney at the Lexus booth…
With brother LP on Saturday…
Practicing my yoga tree position with the real thing…
At the 18th green when Rory McIlroy wins a historic U.S. Open by 8 strokes and shooting 16-under par!
Visit to my sister Joanne in Long Island… she and her husband Bob spoil me- Strawberry Shortcake for breakfast!
Back at Augusta National for the 2011 Masters!
I found out I lost a dear friend today- Jimmy Davis (in blue shirt)- a volunteer extraordinaire at THE PLAYERS- someone who help make Jacksonville feel like home to me the first day I met him 3 years ago! Another reminder to enjoy each day of life to its fullest!

Filed Under: Featured People, Hickory Golf, People in Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

2011 DSGO: “En-Joie” Your Hometown Golf Course at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open!

June 22, 2011 By admin

Golf writer Andy Reistetter continues his exclusive “Play-Write” series with his hometown golf course: En-Joie Golf Club in Endicott, New York—site of the upcoming 2011 Dick’s Sporting Goods Open.

Loren Roberts edged out Fred Funk at the 2010 Dick’s Sporting Goods Open.

I guess maybe there are a few better places to call home if you are a golfer.

Perhaps growing up in Augusta, Georgia and playing the National where the world’s best golfers come each spring to play in the Masters.

Or the Old Course in St. Andrews, Scotland would be a treat.

Maybe Pebble Beach Golf Links would be a spectacular site.

But for this kid from the west side of Binghamton, which along with Johnson City and Endicott is known as the “Triple Cities” of the Southern Tier of New York State… there is no better place in the world than En-Joie Golf Club.

Born in 1959, I came of age the same time as the PGA TOUR.

The touring pros were a new, different and emerging business than the club pros.

Read former Commissioner Deane Beman’s book Golf’s Driving Force to understand why even a little triple play town like Endicott was a key component of that rising starship enterprise known as the PGA TOUR.

The Triple Cities with founder William Bingham and industrialists like Thomas J, Watson Sr. and George F. Johnson and his Square Deal was always a community like no other.

Like the tour, the Valley of Opportunity surrounding En Joie is about charity, hard work and helping one another even in the most difficult of times.

The B.C. Open tournament founder Alex Alexander was the “little engine that thought he could and did” starting with a one-day satellite event in 1971.

The now famous golf instructor “Butch Harmon” won that event, his only win in a short three-year playing career.

To his credit Alexander staged a PGA TOUR event for more than three decades without the benefit of a major title sponsor.

Though named after a comic strip written by Endicott’s own Johnny Hart the B.C. Open was never a joke—it was a world class golf tournament built upon the fabric of a golfing community.

When George F. wanted to build a course for his workers he wanted it to be flat so that while they recreated that did not become overly exhausted—he wanted them to “en-joie” their time away from the shoe factories.

So En-Joie was built on the flatlands along the Susquehanna River.

Along with that decision, flooding became a constant challenge for the golf course and tournament.

A flood in 2006 washed out parts of the golf course and what was to be the last B.C. Open was played at and presented by the Turning Stone Resort a hundred miles away.

Professional golf returned quickly to the Triple Cities and En Joie in 2007 with a Champions’ Tour event—the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open.

Dick’s first store was in Binghamton so now the tournament held at En Joie has a major sponsor with roots in the community.

The Champions tour event is a good fit for the community as well.

The Champions Tour golfers remember the Triple Cities, and the locals remember them as well.

Current Dick’s Sporting Goods Open Tournament Director Jon Karedes is carrying on in the tradition of Alexander and the En Joie tournament continues to benefit the Broome County Community Charities.

If you have the chance, go to the Triple Cities and “en-joie” everything good about life, golf and a great tournament!

Filed Under: Hickory Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

Memories of the 2011 US Open at Congressional CC Won by Rory McIlroy!

June 15, 2011 By admin

[Show slideshow]

Filed Under: Hickory Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

Sawgrass Country Club: Original “Home” of THE PLAYERS Championship

May 10, 2011 By admin

Doing a little research with the Sawgrass CC archives.

Golf Writer Andy Reistetter continues his exclusive “Play-Write” series recently playing the East-West nines at Sawgrass CC that hosted THE PLAYERS Championship (then known as the Tournament Players Championship) from 1977 to 1981 .

THE Players Championship is synonymous with the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass with its iconic island green on the par-3 17^th hole.

This year (2012) is the 30^th anniversary of the first PLAYERS held at TPC Sawgrass when in 1982 Jerry Pate won by two strokes and three architect Pete Dye and Commissioner Deane Beman into the lake and then dove in himself.

That would be Jerry Pate’s last win on the PGA TOUR but the first of annual PLAYERS Championships on the Stadium Course.

The Ed Seay plaque found near the first tee of the East Nine. He and Arnold Plamer designed more than 250 golf courses together.

The Ed Seay plaque found near the first tee of the East Nine. He and Arnold Palmer designed more than 250 golf courses together.

The story of THE PLAYERS began many years before when Beman became commissioner of the PGA TOUR in March 1974 and implemented, then improved upon the idea of the first commissioner Joseph Day.

Beman, the only modern-era professional player to become commissioner of his own sport staged the first PLAYERS, then known as the Tournament Players Championship in August in his first year at the helm.

Fittingly, Jack Nicklaus the player of the time and of the 20^th century won that first event played at the Atlanta Country Club.

Al Geiberger won the next one which was contested in the 100-degree August heat of Texas at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth.

The tournament came to Florida for the first time with a new date on the schedule but with a familiar champion. Nicklaus won the third edition at Inverrary Golf & Country Club in South Florida on March 1^st, 1976.

The first hole on the East Nine. A gentle start but then things get topsy turvy quite quickly.

While successful, the tournament had the feel of a traveling circus with no home or even a good spot on the schedule.

Beman had a dream to bring the PGA TOUR headquarters to the Jacksonville, Florida area and to have a permanent home for the tour’s marquee event.

His successor, current Commissioner Tim Finchem made the March-to-May schedule change four years ago and the “fifth major” rising star came into perfect celestial alignment with its more historical peers.

Now we are able to enjoy the top five tournaments with a sense of measured buildup and timing: the Masters in April, The PLAYERS in May, The United States Open in June, the British Open in July and the PGA Championship in August.

In between that traveling circus pitched in three different states and the tradition we now know as The PLAYERS on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass was a very important five year period.

It was then that the Tournament Players Championship, today’s PLAYERS was enacted at Sawgrass Country Club, its original “permanent” home.

The always dicey par-3 6th hole on the East Nine.

Beman brought the tour and the tournament to Ponte Vedra Beach in order to build upon the excellent volunteer organization support of the Jacksonville Open.

He found a golf course at Sawgrass Country Club that was a natural fit for a premium world-class golf tournament.

Sawgrass CC opened in 1974 and was designed by local golf course architect Ed Seay.

Seay went on to partner with golfing legend Arnold Palmer to design and build more than 250 golf courses worldwide.

Sawgrass CC is Seay’s masterpiece the same as Augusta National being the pride and joy of Alister MacKenzie.

Seay opens with a traditional short par-4 that lays there in its beauty all for the golfer to see including the flagstick on the green.

The ever present and difficult sawgrass, after which the club is named.after.

Then he begins to challenge the golfer by limiting the vision of what is in front of them by hiding the greens from the tee on the dog-leg right par-4 second, the par-5 dog-leg left fourth and the dog-leg-right par-4 fifth holes.

The presence of the ocean is introduced quickly with the roar of the surf clearly audible on the second tee. The fourth green is only a 9-iron shot from the sandy beaches of the Atlantic Ocean.

To befuddle the golfer even more amidst the unpredictable ocean breezes Seay routed the East nine in a counterclockwise fashion and the West nine in a clockwise fashion.

While each nine goes out and returns to the clubhouse area the golfer never arrives at a point of comfort with the magnitude or direction of the wind.

To get to that clubhouse the same large lake brings water into play right on the final three holes of the East and on the left of the final four holes of the West.

The variety and difficulty of Seay’s Sawgrass gem is evident in the champions it produced during those five years of hosting the TPC events.

Four of the five- Nicklaus, Lanny Wadkins, Lee Trevino and Raymond Floyd are World Golf Hall of Famers.

The first champion at Sawgrass Mark Hayes is the only exception.

The winning scores confirm the genius of Seay’s design and the impact of the ocean winds.

Both Nicklaus and Hayes won with plus-1 scores.

The shrubbery saws it all, Sawgrass Country Club.

Why were Beman and the PGA TOUR unable to purchase Sawgrass CC?

Perhaps the real reason is revealed in Beman’s recently released book Golf’s Driving Force.

Whatever the reason THE PLAYERS Championship moved another one-half mile inland on the golf course Beman conceived and with the help of Pete Dye had it designed and built.

Though still a shocker at times the new course snuggled within trees plays much easier than during the Sawgrass CC era.

David Duval’s minus-3 total in 1999 is the highest winning score on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass.

To fully experience the history of THE PLAYERS Championship at its original home, play the East-West routing at Sawgrass CC, if given the opportunity.

With my buddy Stokes Hill…

A real treat to be a guest at an ocean side club and play a historic course today with my buddy Stokes, host of 5 PLAYERS, completely renovating the West now, playing the East & South which will be renovated next 2 years, Trevino won here & at Merion, great Ed Seay design, 40th anniversary if club in 2014! (Facebook Post with 4 pics, Andy Reistetter, 6-13-13)

Filed Under: "Play-Write" Golf Courses, East Coast Golf Journey, Hickory Golf, PGA TOUR Golf