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Zac Blair announces plans for The Buck Club
If you follow nearly anyone in the golfing community on social media, you have probably at least heard of The Buck Club. For those not in the know, The Buck Club represents PGA Tour player Zac Blair’s mission to craft what he sees as the gold standard for what a golf course should be. He unveiled his plan over the weekend during a kickoff event called “The Ringer” at Sweetens Cove Golf Course in South Pittsburg, Tenn.
Blair has identified and is in the process of securing a 347-acre site in Morgan, Utah, (about an hour north of Salt Lake City) for the course. He has also selected King Collins Golf (crafters of the aforementioned Sweetens Cove) to co-design the golf course with him and oversee its construction. The team of Blair and King Collins Golf have recently completed a design layout that adds up to a 7,400-yard par 71 from the championship tees. In the words of Blair and Collins
“The architecture will be rooted in the fundamental lessons of The Old Course at St Andrews and the great courses of the classic era of architecture in the United States. Strategic decision making, variety, alternate playing routes, and a bold, quirky flair will be the hallmarks of the playing experience. The legacy of Zac’s favorite course, National Golf Links of America, the brainchild of C.B. MacDonald, weighs heavily on the concept of The Buck Club. Using the teachings of history’s greatest architects and C.B. MacDonald as inspiration, every hole at The Buck Club will provoke thought and force players to make decisions on each shot. Alternate routes of attack will be available for golfers of all skill levels, thereby providing ‘pleasurable excitement’ and ‘the greatest pleasure to the greatest number’ in the words of Alister Mackenzie.”
Preliminary Scorecard for The Buck Club
Apart from the golf itself, the club’s atmosphere is equally important to Blair and Collins. The intent is to provide a laid back vibe with an emphasis on camaraderie among people who share a love of the game and the shared experiences it provides. To encourage that, the course will include features such as one complex that encompasses the 18th green, practice green, and first tee as well as multiple bonus holes (Numbers 6.5, 9B, 18B, and 19 are included in the current routing).
Routing of The Buck Club by Zac Blair and King Collins Golf
If the experience at The Buck Club is anything like what transpired at The Ringer, golf enthusiasts should be in for a real treat. Some highlights include a 50-man free-for-all down the first fairway during the three-man derby, multiple alternate holes such as No. 4 tee to No. 6 green and No. 8 tee to No. 9 green, and a stripe show of a closest to the pin challenge. 100 percent of the attendees were encouraging to each other and engaged in every nuance of the experience. It was a refreshing change from the innocuous rounds of golf found at many courses across America today.
Artist’s rendition of the 8th hole named “Mega Redan.” Credit: Josh Bills (@jrbgolfs on Instagram)
The timeline for The Buck Club’s completion depends heavily on securing funding for the project, but it’s conceivable they could start moving dirt in 2019 if the fundraising process continues gaining momentum.
Stay in the know as the process unfolds by following The Buck Club on Twitter and Instagram.
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Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from a piece our Andrew Tursky originally wrote for PGATour.com’s Equipment Report. Head over there for the full article.
…The Jailbird craze hasn’t really slowed down in 2024, either. According to Odyssey rep Joe Toulon, there are about 18-20 Jailbird putter users on the PGA TOUR.
Most recently, Akshay Bhatia won the 2024 Valero Texas Open using a broomstick-style Odyssey Jailbird 380 putter and Webb Simpson is switching into a replica of that putter at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship.
Now, Fowler, who essentially started the whole Jailbird craze, is making a significant change to his putter setup.
Fowler, who has had a couple weeks off since the 2024 RBC Heritage, started experimenting with a new, custom-orange Jailbird 380 head that’s equipped with a standard 35-inch putter build, rather than his previous 38-inch counter-balanced setup.
According to Fowler, while he still likes the look and forgiveness of his Jailbird putter head, he’s looking to re-incorporate more feel into his hands during the putting stroke.
He told GolfWRX.com on Tuesday at the Wells Fargo Championship that the 38-inch counterbalanced setup “served its purpose” by helping him to neutralize his hands during the stroke, but now it’s time to try the standard-length putter with a standard-size SuperStroke Pistol Tour grip to help with his feel and speed control.
Although Fowler was also spotted testing standard-length mallets from L.A.B. Golf and Axis1 on Tuesday, he confirmed that the custom Odyssey Jailbird 380 is the putter he’ll use this week at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship.
Head over to PGATour.com for the full article.
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Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from a piece our Andrew Tursky originally wrote for PGATour.com’s Equipment Report. Head over there for the full article.
So, with a couple of weeks off following his latest start at the 2024 RBC Heritage, Thomas sought to re-address his driver setup with the remote help of Titleist Tour fitting expert J.J. Van Wezenbeeck. About two weeks ago, Thomas and Van Wezenbeeck reviewed his recent driver stats, and discussed via phone call some possible driver and shaft combinations for him to try.
After receiving Van Wezenbeeck’s personalized shipment of product options while at home, Thomas found significant performance improvements with Titleist’s TSR2 head, equipped with Thomas’ familiar Mitsubishi Diamana ZF 60 TX shaft.
Compared to Thomas’ longtime TSR3 model, the TSR2 has a larger footprint and offers slightly higher spin and launch characteristics.
According to Van Wezenbeeck, Thomas has picked up about 2-3 mph of ball speed, to go along with 1.5 degrees higher launch and more predictable mishits.
“I’d say I’d been driving it fine, not driving it great, so I just wanted to, honestly, just test or try some stuff,” Thomas said on Tuesday in an interview with GolfWRX.com at Quail Hollow Club. “I had used that style of head a couple years ago (Thomas used a TSi2 driver around 2021); I know it’s supposed to have a little more spin. Obviously, yeah, I’d love to hit it further, but if I can get a little more spin and have my mishits be a little more consistent, I felt like obviously that’d be better for my driving…
“This (TSR2) has been great. I’ve really, really driven it well the week I’ve used it. Just hitting it more solid, I don’t know if it’s the look of it or what it is, but just a little bit more consistent with the spin numbers. Less knuckle-ball curves. It has been fast. Maybe just a little faster than what I was using. Maybe it could be something with the bigger head, maybe mentally it looks more forgiving.”
Head over to PGATour.com for the full article.
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The 2024 golf season is in full swing with the warm weather settling in and those long summer days right around the corner, but what if we told you that you should be thinking about golf this fall? While it may seem to be a ways away, now is the perfect time to start putting together your end-of-season fall golf trip.
Courses are in great shape, the weather is more enjoyable as temps cool off, and your golf game is in peak condition after playing all summer! The best part about fall golf trips is that there are some great deals to be found at golf destinations across the country! Additionally, you can get away to the Caribbean on an all-inclusive trip or travel across the pond for some links golf in the UK or Ireland before the end of their golf season in October.
If you are happy to stay stateside this fall, here are the best golf destinations you should book for your fall trip.
Myrtle Beach, SC
Commonly known as the “Golf Capital of the World”, this coastal destination is home to over 200 golf courses making it the ideal location for a golf trip! If you’re looking for golf and accommodation onsite, choose from a wide range of resorts including favorites like Barefoot and Legends. Alternatively, you could rent a house or stay by the beach and play top tracks like Caledonia, Grande Dunes, Pine Lakes, True Blue, TPC Myrtle Beach and many more! With a plethora of options, you will be able to customize your trip to stay within budget! Fall in South Carolina is a golfer’s paradise with minimal rain, sunny skies, and temperatures in the low 80s (dipping into the 70s in later fall with lower humidity), the perfect combination for a golf trip.
If you’ve never played golf in the desert, fall is the best time to do so and there is no better selection of desert layouts than Scottsdale. With a wide variety of golf resorts, courses, and attractions, it is easy to see why many professional golfers call this place home. Enjoy a golf and city trip with a stay close to the nightlife in Old Town and a tour of the local courses like Raven, McCormick Ranch, and Ocotillo. Head north of the city with a resort stay at The Westin Kierland or Hyatt Regency and play some Championship courses like TPC Scottsdale, Troon North, or Grayhawk. Or head out to the fabulous We-Ko-Pa Resort and Golf Club and indulge in the ultimate desert golf experience. The weather in Scottsdale will be very warm (mid to high 80s), with cloudless skies and green grass contrasting the desert landscape.
The golf mecca in the state of Florida, Orlando is a great golf destination any time of the year, but fall is really where it flourishes. Course conditions are impeccable, the weather is warm with fading humidity, and there are a multitude of off-course activities for the whole family. Stay & play at some of the best golf resorts like Reunion and Omni Championsgate or tick off a bucket list course when you visit Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill. A few other reasons this destination is so popular is the wide variety of rental houses throughout the area, perfect for a large group and the quality courses to choose from including Waldorf Astoria, Celebration, Shingle Creek, and the three Disney courses! With easy accessibility through the MCO Airport, Orlando is a no-brainer for a fall golf trip.
PAIUTE GOLF RESORT – LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
A destination often overlooked when it comes to golf, Las Vegas in the fall is a wonderful treat! A stay on the iconic Las Vegas Strip gives you a wide range of 3 to 5-star hotel options within walking distance to the city’s biggest entertainment venues, casinos, restaurants, and more! For golf options, you will need to travel outside of the city (roughly 20 mins) to play some incredible desert layouts like Rio Secco, Revere, Cascata, and the trio of courses at Paiute Golf Resort. If you fancy a longer day trip, you can always take the hour-long drive up to Mesquite and play Wolf Creek and Conestoga for a pure desert golf experience.
Alabama – Robert Trent Jones Trail
If you’re a golf nerd (like me) and you’re looking for something a little different for your trip, look no further than the incredible RTJ Trail in Alabama. The Trail spans 11 different locations across the state with over 400 holes of golf all designed by legendary course designer Robert Trent Jones, Sr. The more popular courses on the trail are in Birmingham, Montgomery, and Auburn, making it perfect for an extended trip. Some of the best courses on the trail include Ross Bridge, Grand National (2 courses) and Capitol Hill (3 courses).Weather-wise, fall is the best time to hit the trail with average temps hovering around 80s (dipping into the 70s as fall goes on) with a limited amount of rainfall. The summer months are usually where the pricing is the highest so you can find the best deals in the fall with courses still in good condition.
There has already been a huge uptick in fall golf trip bookings, so make sure to start planning now to get the travel dates and tee times you want for your group!
Editor’s note: This article is presented in partnership with Golfbreaks. When you make a purchase through links in this article, GolfWRX may earn an affiliate commission.
RELATED: 7 PGA TOUR courses you need to play
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John Krug
Oct 28, 2018 at 12:21 am
How long is the golf season in Utah?
kevin
Nov 2, 2018 at 11:19 am
you can play year round in parts of UT. do you even know where utah is on a map? its south of canada, which has some fantastic courses.
Johnny Penso
Oct 27, 2018 at 3:34 pm
Can you say 7 hour rounds of golf? ???? ???? ???? ????
George
Oct 27, 2018 at 2:15 am
I’m tired of private courses being built. If you really want to make a spectacular golf course it can only be good if it is open to the public. Golf in Scotland is way better than the US because of this. You can play anywhere
Chris Epson
Oct 26, 2018 at 2:55 pm
Zac is from Utah, and we are fortunate to have so many city and county owned courses, kept in terrific shape, and affordable at $50 (with a cart) or less. 9 hole rounds are not just allowed, but encouraged. We have some fun part 3 courses, as well as a few high end country clubs in Salt Lake and Park City. Point is…Zac gets it. His family has been involved in public golf there for many years, so I give him the benefit of the doubt in this venture. And Morgan, Utah in a beautiful venue. Don’t tell anyone, but affordable great quality golf is Utah’s best kept secret
Zebediah (OG of the OT)
Oct 26, 2018 at 10:56 am
It’s never getting built. Zac has been busy designing swag and doesn’t have land or money, and is clueless on the development process.
Nice guy with some interesting (but hardly novel) points of view, but he isn’t putting in the hard yards.
JR
Oct 26, 2018 at 1:22 pm
What is the point of being so negative here? Why even comment?
Jamie
Oct 26, 2018 at 1:45 pm
So brutal honesty is outlawed now, Snowflake?
Zebediah (OG of the OT)
Oct 26, 2018 at 2:06 pm
Only positivity allowed?
So you don’t dispute what I wrote, you just don’t like it?
Zachary was on twitter yesterday asking for someone to help him navigate land development in Utah. He doesn’t have the land. He doesn’t have the cash. He sells hats and tees, and he expects to break ground in May?
Why should I be positive that this will happen?
JasonHolmes
Oct 26, 2018 at 11:31 pm
Well if people keep buying $25 bags of TBC tees – he’ll have the money raised in no time.
Blake
Oct 26, 2018 at 5:14 pm
“Zac has been busy designing swag and doesn’t have land or money”
He sold the swag to get the money and the land. But your wrong bc apparently he has the land now.
Zebediah (OG of the OT)
Oct 26, 2018 at 5:50 pm
“He is in the process of securing the land” – translation, he doesn’t own the land and hasn’t “secured” it, which is something less than owning it.
You think he soft enough hats and belts to by the land? His GoFundMe was seeking $5,000,000.00. He “secured” $155.00. I’m guessing he didn’t make up the shortfall at the Ringer. He is approaching this project like a teenager. “Check out my dope pop up store” followed by “anyone know anyone who has developed land in Utah”.
Explain to me how you know he has the land when this article explicitly states he doesn’t.
I hope he pulls it off, but he has done absolutely nothing to make me think he will.
Peter Schmitt
Oct 26, 2018 at 10:39 am
Lots of people commenting on price, membership structure, etc. Folks, all I know to say there is that nobody knows yet. It’s not that it’s a closely guarded secret. No one knows. As such, I’m going to resist diving into circular discussions over hypotheticals because it’s not going to help any of us. Hope that’s received in the spirit it’s intended.
JasonHolmes
Oct 26, 2018 at 11:34 pm
As a business owner, what you are describing actually frustrates me more than anything. He seems to just be sort of winging it. Make some cool hats and hole layout maps first – figure out the business part later. How did he not start with a solid business plan and then approach investors with a copy of that plan in his hand? Instead he’s doing what you are describing – he’s winging it.
scott
Oct 26, 2018 at 10:03 am
Never heard of this until now. I love the architecture styles discussed. However, if this is going to be a private course, the success or failure will never truly be known until it goes out of business. What I get from reading this article is that if this is a private course 1) Zak clearly doesn’t get it and 2) without a ton of funding, the course won’t resemble the current layout.
SV
Oct 26, 2018 at 9:17 am
I agree it will probably be a high-end, private club with limited access. What I would like to know is why in an article like this it is always the the longest tees yardages that are shown? Why not show what normal people will play, even if they will have no chance to actually do it? Your answer Mr. Schmitt?
Peter Schmitt
Oct 26, 2018 at 9:39 am
Let’s not forget that Zac is almost doing this backwards from the standard convention. There’s a lot of details that just plain aren’t sorted out yet. All of that will come in time but you have to start somewhere. How often does the general public get to watch a project unfold like this? Let’s all enjoy the ride.
JasonHolmes
Oct 26, 2018 at 9:55 am
“How often does the general public get to watch a project unfold like this? Let’s all enjoy the ride.”
Is the general public really going to care if it turns out they are watching a PGA Tour pro build a high end private hangout for him and his crew? I doubt it. All the talk and press he’s getting about how “different” this project is going to be – thats all going to fall completely flat if it turns out this is just another high dollar private joint none of us will ever get a chance to play. Golf has enough of those kind of places already.
CrashTestDummy
Oct 25, 2018 at 8:53 pm
It looks like a great design and concept. Hopefully, it makes money and is successful, but it is at a time where many golf courses are closing which makes any new golf course risky.
Caroline
Oct 25, 2018 at 6:27 pm
Such a great article about something 90% of golfers in California know nothing about…all we have is public courses closing all the time because water is to expensive and courses cannot not make a nickle…so sell the land and build warehouses for Amazon and others or like by me build more houses…..cost 30 million or more to build a public course, cost 3 or 4 million to buy one that will make nothing after paying for maintenance..let course run down force city to allow zoning change and close course build houses….same thing is happening in Las Vegas they close a course let the area turn to weeds, home owners that bought near a golf course fight to keep land a golf course but end up giving in to owners of land to build rather then look out over the desert weed patch…
Jeannie Bragg
Oct 25, 2018 at 6:46 pm
Trust me the same thing happens in the Grand Strand area of SC
Peter Schmitt
Oct 26, 2018 at 9:13 am
Fair comment and I think I would address it and CrashTestDummy’s above you by saying that a big reason a lot of courses are struggling is that, in my humble opinion, they’re all really kind of the same. Throwing together another rubber stamped golf course design and dressing it up with pretty water features is what gets you another course that struggles. They all just kind of taste like chicken after a while.
Sweetens Cove is the antithesis of that and I would imagine The Buck Club will be something like SC on steroids. I have pretty high hopes personally. Admittedly, it may or may not be for everybody (it’s not even built yet so who knows), but I would imagine those looking to go deeper down the golf rabbit hole will be head over heels…
T. Harris
Oct 25, 2018 at 6:03 pm
So glad to see King Collins on this project. Rob Collins is an incredibly inspired and talented designer…the final result will no doubt be spectacular!
JasonHolmes
Oct 25, 2018 at 4:48 pm
ZB still wont answer the question as to whether or not the public will even be allowed to play at his course. Is he raising money on the backs of people buying $100 shirts – all so he can build some exclusive hideaway?
Or is this going to be a course people can actually play?
Because it seems disingenuous as hell if he’s going to keep pumping out hats and shirts to his followers on Twitter – only to turn around and make a completely private club.
Any time anyone asks him, he says something like he’s trying to “figure it out”. What does that even mean? If he can’t even answer that simple question, to me that says it all. Why cant someone in the press actually push him on this? Otherwise you are doing exactly what he wants – providing more free marketing.
Doug
Oct 25, 2018 at 8:48 pm
On a recent podcast he said there would be rate levels for local, national, and international memberships. He also thought that it would be pretty open for guests to get to with a member with the thought that people will like it so much they might just become a member.
Typically national memberships are much more affordable than local clubs because they know you can’t use them much. But then you have to pay for travel.
I, and I suspect you, would much prefer a mixed option that would include a higher priced daily rate – eg Bandon Dunes – but how many people would buy even a “cheap” national membership at $3k if you could play 18 for $275?
Rick
Oct 26, 2018 at 12:56 am
Nice, very sad there are plenty of high level courses for people that can pay $275 or more…as golf is becoming more and more a game of kings (rich) as they want it to be. What is sad is there are so few courses under $40 dollars that the average Joe and jill can play..Biggest joke in the Country is the First Tee…thousands of kids learning to play with free clubs, range balls and even rounds of golf…then they turn 16-18 and are ask to pay a $40 green fee or $10 for a bucket of range balls and 99.9% of them are through with golf….
Peter Schmitt
Oct 26, 2018 at 10:48 am
I agree good golf that’s affordable is hard to find, but I will submit that there are options if you’re willing to look hard enough and have an open mind in the process. There’s a Pete Dye muni here in KY that costs me $12 to walk 18 on the weekends as a veteran. Sweetens Cove has an all day walking rate on the weekend for $60 to play as much golf as you can stomach in one day. I’m not saying TBC will be in that ballpark (or that it won’t for that matter). Just that good, affordable golf isn’t dead yet…though I’ll admit it isn’t going to be served up on a silver platter.
Peter Schmitt
Oct 26, 2018 at 9:35 am
I think the reason he hasn’t explicitly stated a response to that is because he honestly hasn’t decided yet. Simple as that. Could go in a bunch of different directions and last I heard he was still batting ideas back and forth. FWIW, I trust him. We don’t go way back or anything. I just met him last weekend and have talked to him for probably less than an hour total, but I came away thinking (1) he “gets it” and (2) I genuinely think this could be special. YMMV of course. Just one man’s opinion…
Blake
Oct 26, 2018 at 5:15 pm
He literally said there would be a way for the public to play this