Powell, the British Lions and Wales forward, was spotted by other motorists on the hard shoulder of the M4 behind the wheel of the 20mph buggy taken from his team’s hotel.

Cardiff magistrates heard the 6ft 4in player had decided to go to motorway services at 5.45am for “munchies” after a late-night party with team mates to celebrate a dramatic Wales victory over Scotland.

Wyclef Jean, Bruce Springsteen, Jennifer Hudson, Mary J. Blige, Shakira, and Sting
Will Appear in New York City;
 

The much talked about putter also represents the emergence of yet another ground breaking innovation from Nike Golf’s Research and Development center, The OVEN.  The Nike METHOD follows on the same game-changing trail blazed by square drivers and adjustable drivers, which were also created and developed at Nike Golf’s Fort Worth based facility. 
Inspired by the philosophy of the “scientific method,” the OVEN’s team of designers and engineers combined steel and polymer in multiple ways before discovering the unique polymetal groove technology. The revolutionary and visibly distinctive polymetal groove technology is influential in creating a faster forward roll after impact for the kind of accuracy and consistency that is demanded by Tour professionals.  While most traditional steel faced putters start the ball with backspin causing the ball to initially bounce a little higher, the Nike polymetal groove technology starts the ball with forward spin to minimize bounce and keep the putts on line. 

Check out the VIDEO as well.  Looks well beyond anything we have seen from today’s current putters

 

One of my favorite people in the golf industry (PR Superstar Mary Beth Lacy) recently reminded me of a great golf brand which I had almost forgotten about…Antigua!  Antigua was a popular brand when I was growing up but over the last few years when we think about golf clothing, Nike, Adidas, Under Armour tend to dominate our thoughts.  When Mary Beth contacted me about Antigua I went straight to their site and here is what I found:
-         Antigua is a preferred supplier of the PGA of America and a presenting sponsor of PGA Retirement Plus, the PGA Tour and the LPGA Tour.
-         Antigua sponsors golfers on the PGA, LPGA, Nationwide and Futures Tour
-         Antigua holds license agreements with Major and Minor League Baseball (MLB), the National Hockey League (NHL) and the National Basketball Association (NBA), along with numerous American universities and colleges.
 

The Downhill Lie

Carl Hiaasen is no longer the lean, spry fellow with a fine drive and a decent putter. Today he is a popular author of some 14 books of fiction and a widely syndicated columnist for the Miami Herald. He is at a point in his life with his career firmly established, but then a couple of years ago did a very foolish thing – he took up golf after a 32-year layoff. “I just wanted to be better at something at middle age than I was when I was younger.”

For those readers unfamiliar with Hiaasen, he holds a spot somewhere between Elmore Leonard and Jimmy Buffet, writers who have captured a slice of Florida’s quixotic criminal and reprobate culture. In this book, Hiassen brings along his signature irreverence with his reporter’s notebook. Readers can expect a realization or a solid laugh on each one of the book’s 207 pages.

More to the point, the book is an amusing archeological field study with a prodigious amount of research to frame the current culture of golf with the question:  How could someone who is completely alien to golf take up the sport?

Step by step Hiassen takes us through the lessons, the course design, purchase of equipment and gadgets galore. Hiassen, secure in his own right, is willing to ask all the dumb questions we’d like to ask. All this is infused with a sharp banter of a freshly minted golfer, but with a twist; he is also a highly regarded investigative columnist who has exposed criminal activity among many within Florida’s monied class who can afford to play golf and buy all the equipment they wanted. Not much evades his reporter’s eyes and ears. This means he often plays alone or with a close friend. It’s just as well, because Hiassen recounts his bouts with a Type-A temper that does not serve him well on a golf course.

Hiassen remains an objective observer of a game he has decided to reveal as much to himself as to his readers. With ample detail he writes about his selection of drivers, balls and putters and how he has attempted to trim his handicap - seldom breaking 90 and scoring a USGA handicap of 142 – all the while playing several times a week.

His frustration mounts as he must prepare for a true test: the club tournament.  Thrust into action he tries a variety of different hand grips, tries different forms of meditation to quell his need to toss a putter or driver into a pond with alligators. He reads every book on the swing and putt, takes first-class instruction and even talks to a mental coach. He ingests every potion pharmacology has to offer and just for good measure brings along vo-doo charms.

Pointedly, the author puts to rest that question many of us have: “How good a golfer could I become if I had unlimited time and money to devote to improving my golf?”

With aplomb, Hiassen delivers an answer most hackers could live with.

Eventually Hiassen is ready for the club tournament with the single aim of not embarrassing himself. As the pressure mounts he finds in a moment of epiphany that he is about the same age as his first teacher, his dad, when they played together. He also notes that his son’s game has surpassed a parent’s wildest dreams. Here, he finds, the tournament itself is but a metaphor. With candor Hiassen realizes he has reached a bittersweet maturity of being the father, the inheritor and teacher of lessons about golf.

—

Golfsmith and GolfTEC Giving Away $1 Million in FREE Lessons JULY 8, 2009.  Golfsmith is teaming with GolfTEC®, the world leader in golf instruction, to give avid and aspiring golfers an opportunity to get new golf equipment and improve their games with $1 million worth of free lessons from GolfTEC.

Starting today while supplies last, golfers who make a purchase of $299 or more at any Golfsmith store across the country will receive a FREE 30-minute GolfTEC Swing Diagnosis conducted by a GolfTEC Certified Personal Coach.  The swing diagnosis, valued at $85, is one of GolfTEC’s most popular lesson experiences as it isolates score-improving opportunities in any player’s swing.

“At Golfsmith our goal is to help golfers improve their games with great equipment and professional instruction through our partners at GolfTEC,” said Martin Hanaka, president and CEO of Golfsmith.  “This groundbreaking promotion is yet another example of how Golfsmith is helping to grow the game of golf by providing great value to golfers around the country.  More than 12,000 golfers will get free lessons with their purchase only at Golfsmith.”

Adds Joe Assell, cofounder and CEO of GolfTEC, “The timing is right for golfers who want to get past plateaus in skill and score – and who value the right equipment and Coach guidance.  I’d like to challenge players across the country to turn their on-course frustrations into positive action with this tremendous offer from Golfsmith.” 

June 27 - July 5th
Golf, Cart, Practice Facility and all you can eat - Only $142 per person + tax
Call 905-653-4653 to book