19th Hole
Are simulators and urban golfers really the future of the game?
Luke Kerr-Dineen filed an interesting piece for Golf Digest suggesting simulators ought to be recognized as golf’s best grow the game initiative
After sheepishly raising his iPhone-wielding hand as a stereotypical millennial, the 29-year-old takes issue with the idea that his generation is contributing to the decline of golf.
As a New Yorker (presumably a Manhattanite, more specifically), Kerr-Dineen details the uphill battle that playing golf with any regularity is. Planes, trains, automobiles. Hours in transit. All that stuff.
He then discusses an experience playing at The Bridge Golf Center in Harlem (which is also a free after-school center for local youth), the offerings of Golf & Body (New York’s simulator stocked, TrackMan-abundant high-end private indoor country club), with a nod to Topgolf’s explosion in the United States and Golfzon dominating Asia.
Specifically, within the Big Apple, and generally across the globe, there’s a lot to be excited about in golf…indoor golf, that is.
If you think what Kerr-Dineen is suggesting only applies to major cities, that’s kind of the point. Golf in the United States is largely a suburban and rural pursuit. However, as he writes,
“America’s cities have become the driving force of the U.S. economy unlike ever before. Urban areas account for just 3 percent of the country’s land area yet encompasses more than 80 percent of the U.S. population, according to recent Census data, a phenomenon that consistently grows. Just in the last 10 years, large metro areas and their suburbs have grown almost 20 percent, with medium and small metro areas contributing a further 7 percent.”
“U.S. cities also boast rises in practically every other positive economic indicator: Large cities host an ever-increasing share of U.S. businesses (32.8 percent, jumping to 58 percent when you include those based in their suburbs), which attracts not just more people but a more educated workforce (35 percent have bachelor’s degrees, 69 percent including suburbs), and have seen medium incomes rise at a faster rate as a result.”
And of course, the majority of money-making young professionals live in urban habitats. Thus, Kerr-Dineen contends, in order for golf to thrive and shore up its future, it needs to embrace both simulators and cities in a way it thus far has not.
Certainly, Kerr-Dineen’s full piece is well worth a read, but what say you to his central claim (that of the primacy of simulators and cities), GolfWRX members? Let us know what you think.
image credit: TrackMan Golf
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19th Hole
Butch Harmon reveals what he worked on with Rory McIlroy during visit earlier this year
While speaking on the “Son of a Butch” Podcast, legendary swing coach Butch Harmon revealed what he worked on with Rory McIlroy when the four-time major champion went to visit him after the Players Championship this season.
Butch Harmon on what he worked on with Rory:
“The work I did with him wasn’t a tremendous amount of changing what he did, it was his attitude and the way he played certain shots. From 150 yards and in he made a full swing like he was hitting a driver and I wanted him to make…
— Matt Vincenzi (@MattVincenziPGA) May 15, 2024
“The work I did with him wasn’t a tremendous amount of changing what he did, it was his attitude and the way he played certain shots. From 150 yards and in he made a full swing like he was hitting a driver and I wanted him to make more 3 quarter swings and chop the follow through off a little. He’s a very high ball hitter, but with short irons high balls aren’t good, it’s hard to control, we wanted to bring the ball flight down.”
The work certainly seemed to help McIlroy, as he went on to win the Zurich Classic alongside Shane Lowry and the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow in back-to-back starts.
Rory will now tee it up at Valhalla for the PGA Championship, which is the site of his most recent major victory in 2014.
More from the 19th Hole
- Phil Mickelson drops big retirement hint; Says LIV will grow the game “on a much more global basis”
- 2-time major champ announces shock retirement from the sport at age of 33
- Tiger explains why golf has “negative connotations” for daughter Sam
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19th Hole
Brandel Chamblee says this technological development was key to Phil Mickelson winning major championships
While speaking with GolfWRX, Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee shared that he believes the solid core golf ball helped Phil Mickelson win major championships.
“One of the consequences of the solid core golf ball coming around was it put the straightest of hitters in the rough.
“Phil started winning majors in 2004, I don’t think that’s any coincidence. I think he started winning majors after the solid core golf ball came along and put everybody in the rough.
“And so [Phil] is like ‘I got you in the rough, I’m going to kick your a**. This is my game. I’ve been in the rough my whole career. I can go over trees, through trees, around trees.’
“Because he’s got that amazing creativity and Phil is an underrated iron player, phenomenal iron player. Great, great great out of the trouble. If you put the top-40 players on a list and ranked them in terms of accuracy, he would be 40th.
“So, I think that was one of the consequences of the solid core golf balls was it allowed Phil to win major championships.”
Mickelson went on to win the Masters in 2004 as well as five additional majors from 2004-2021 including three total Masters, two PGA Championships, and an Open Championship.
Check out the full interview with Chamblee below:
More from the 19th Hole
- Phil Mickelson drops big retirement hint; Says LIV will grow the game “on a much more global basis”
- 2-time major champ announces shock retirement from the sport at age of 33
- Tiger explains why golf has “negative connotations” for daughter Sam
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19th Hole
Former Augusta National employee pleads guilty to transporting stolen Masters memorabilia; Arnold Palmer’s green jacket among stolen items
The document was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
Since then, more details have emerged about the case.
According to Darren Rovell of Cllct, one of the items that was stolen was Arnold Palmer’s green jacket.
The Chicago Tribune also reported that Globensky was able to steal the merchandise due to his role as a former warehouse coordinator at Augusta National who oversaw the Masters merchandise that was sold.
Rovell states that “A source with intimate knowledge of the case said an Augusta National member, who knew the jacket was missing, contacted a well-known collector who had gained a reputation for tracking down rare items. The member’s goal was to return the jacket to Augusta under the guise of purchasing it in a private sale.”
The plan worked, and the man agreed to sell the jacket for an agreed upon price of $3.6 million. After the sale was complete, the FBI swarmed the house of the thief.
Cllct also reported that Globensky pled guilty in a federal court in Chicago on Wednesday and now faces up to 10 years in prison.
The Chicago Tribune adds that Globensky’s plea deal includes an agreement to provide the government a cashier’s check for $1.5 million in the next few days.
More from the 19th Hole
- Phil Mickelson drops big retirement hint; Says LIV will grow the game “on a much more global basis”
- 2-time major champ announces shock retirement from the sport at age of 33
- Tiger explains why golf has “negative connotations” for daughter Sam
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