Heritage Golf Course. Tucker GA. Sold to developers. Save the course!

 https://www.change.org/p/tucker-city-council-protect-tucker-heritage-links-from-overdevelopment?cs_tk=AnKfcHZmSupCNxQial8AAXicyyvNyQEABF8BvKYvXlo1aLqfIzVd54_Dbvw%3D&utm_campaign=fb6b9adb5d7949d5991311b4fd1dfe0c&utm_content=initial_v0_1_1&utm_medium=email&utm_source=petition_signer_receipt&utm_term=cs

Back in the day --only 30 years ago-- I moved to Atlanta. Fresh from the spoils of Florida with flat golf courses, I was ready to experience golf with hills. Heritage was in my sights from newly formed friendships and social golf leagues that were hot at the time. 

The location cant be beat if you live ITP. The best place for the money and by far the most challenging, Heritage was the golf course of the day. 

Currently, Heritage is the busiest public course in the Atlanta area. Where these golf maniacs will go if the developer gets his way is an unknown horror for these diehards?

If you live in Atlanta, please sign the petition link provided to keep the zoning as a golf course. I'm sure the owners of the golf course are happy to get out from under the pain of managing the course, and to reap the money from a choice location where space in Atlanta does not exist. I'm sure they want to sell...it is their right.

But is it not the right of the thousands of golfers that depend on golf for fellowship to keep the course as maybe a muni, or to a developer that will keep the course for the good of the sport?

Keep it in the short grass,

JFB

Ice golf in Siberia!...go while the dollar is strong!

My friend Pavel wanted me to know about a once-in-lifetime golf adventure that he is promoting thru his travel company for a truly unique experience at the far reaches of the Earth.

Although one might think going out to your local muni in New Jersey might offer the same experience...I don't think the trek would be near as awesome!

Irkutsk, Russia, February 2016. If people play grass hockey then why not play ice golf?

From March 15 to March 20, 2016 in the heart of Russia, on the land of mysterious Siberia, International Ice Golf Festival will be commemorating its 12th anniversary. The goal of Baikal Ice Golf 2016 is to provide golf players and travelers from all over the world with an opportunity to broaden their golf experience, challenge themselves to play golf on the ice and snow surface of the fascinating lake Baikal and draw the attention of the international community to unique recreational and sports opportunities available at lake Baikal.

Here, at lake Baikal, you can gain brand-new experience taking part in training sessions and an exciting golf tournament on the ice/snow golf course created by Nature herself. 

The festival's location is the bay of Maloye Morye and Olkhon Island.

Each training round takes place near a certain natural landmark of the lake. The participants of the festival will be able to evaluate the difficulty level of the golf course created by the unique nature of Baikal: ice-holes in ice grottos, ice cracks and hummocks and sandbars. The participants will have to overcome all of these natural obstructions. Besides all that, one of the training sessions will take place on the surface of the deepest spot of Baikal (1637 meters/5370 feet).

The doors of the festival are always open for golf beginners and for all those who dream to see the legendary lake Baikal.

For more information, go to: International Baikal Ice Golf Festival which 1will be held from March 15 to March 20, 2016. 

Keep it in the short...uh...snowflakes!

JFB

Think Sunny thoughts! Miniature golf outings Myrtle Beach

Book Review: A Difficult Par; Robert Trent Jones Sr and the making of modern Golf

I learned many things while reading A Difficult Par: Bobby Jones the golfer, is not related to the great golf course architect Robert Trent Jones Sr.; Having a long term relationship with a girlfriend in the early 1900's was nearly impossible, except...as detailed by author James Hansen regarding Jones's obsession with Ione Tefft Davis...and their 5 year courtship and many scribed love letter by Jones to her..... I have a new appreciation for the telephone.

The book is for someone who into landscape architecture, and for folks fascinated by how people interacted with each other in the early 1900's.The book follows Jone's like from the time he set eyes on the Statue of Liberty at 6, to when he was called on to develop the Jewels of Alabama which is the Robert Trent Jones Trail.

The book is full of detail of Jone's thought process as he laid out his courses from thought to paper to landscaping.

If you've ever played on a Trent Jones classic...like the Trails in Alabama ,then this would be a good book for you to read.

Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

Book review

It hits me on page 118, when The Golf Book sums-up my reading experience. In writing about Augusta National, author Chris Millard offers-up MacKenzie's Thirteen Principals of Golf Course Architecture.

As I review these principles, I realize...as will anyone fortunate enough to own this book, that The Golf Book is  parallel to MacKenzie's beliefs...transitioning from golf course to book.

The Golf Book is a time-capsule of the last 20 years of golf, as documented by The Golf Channel...a crazy idea born out of an unbending belief that a singular channel of 24/7 golf-on-the-tube, had a chance in the fertile, early days of cable.

The book grazes through events that sparked heavy interest in the viewing audience, and thus defined the legacy of what is today the 100-pound gorilla of golf-viewing.

The gem of this book...to me, is the pages dedicated to golf courses, and the architects who sculpted these masterpieces of today...and tomorrow. Page-turning scenes of the most beautiful courses come alive and spur an inner desire to place each nugget in my bucket list.

Treat yourself to a walk down memory lane, and relive what has been a memorable 20 years of Golf Channel coverage.

As I read #12 of the Principles list: "There should be sufficient number of heroic carries"...I realize this book is filled with hero's that were carried by a heroic network.


Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

Guest Post

Why You Should Golf in Ohio

Ohio is a state known for many things – the very first professional baseball team in the Cincinnati Reds, producing eight US presidents (more than any other state), and having a university that dominates in many collegiate sports. It is also known for its temperate weather and its golf; with 44,828 square miles of land, there’s plenty of golf courses in Ohio on which to tee off.

Golf is a highly popular pastime in the Buckeye State. This can often be seen in the many Ohio golf tournaments that take place as well as the variety of the local courses. Ohio offers both upscale options for the seasoned pro as well as laidback possibilities for the golfing novice. Muirfield Village, for instance, is a signature Jack Nicklaus course that is mirrored after Muirfield, Scotland. This is one of the golf courses in Ohio that caters to those highly serious about their game. Maplecrest Golf Course, on the other hand, offers a more casual atmosphere.  And, of course, there are golf clubs that offer something for players of all levels and attitudes.

Longaberger Golf Club is one of these clubs: it is the ultimate of all golf courses in Ohio. Not only does it offer the best golf in Ohio, but it also offers a bucketful of amenities. From the restaurant (The Overlook) to the clubhouse, the practice facility to the staff’s willingness to help coordinate overnight accommodations, this is one of the few golf courses in Ohio that offers the complete package. Longaberger is also known for its special events – it’s home to many of the golf tournaments in Ohio that occur each year and offers members of the public the opportunity to have their wedding at a golf course – that scenery makes for amazing photographs. As a golf course, Longaberger offers a unique experience in fact, the course has many accolades to back up this claim: it was rated the number one public course in Ohio by Golfweek magazine and rated number fifty-one on Golf Digest’s 2014 list of one hundred greatest public courses in America. Longaberger golf, Ohio locals know, has offered the public upscale, quality golf since its inception in 1999.  The course was designed by the famous golf architect Arthur Hills and features a majestic mix of beautiful scenery, 340 acres of rolling terrain, and parkland-style play. Centrally located only 40 miles from downtown Columbus, Nashport is the go-to place for players who are serious about having a nine iron experience that’s truly a ten.

Thinking of coming out to golf in Ohio? Plan it out and book a tee time at The Longaberger Golf Club. 

Keep it in the short grass,

JFB

Guest Post

What To Do After Experiencing the Best Golf in Ohio?

The Longaberger Golf Club is know all around the States to have the best golf in Ohio. The course is huge, beautifully maintained and famously scenic. However, after a long day golfing, there are many other places to visit for a full experience of Nashport, Ohio. Nature preserves, walking trails, horse riding and the worlds largest basket are all waiting to be enjoyed by tired sportsmen.

Blackhand Gorge State Nature Preserve

This gorgeous nature preserve is situated a fourteen minutes drive from the Golf course entrance. The main feature is a four mile gorge cut through the famous Black Hand sandstone formation by the Licking River. The calm waters are perfect for a canoeing excursion. Don't worry if you didn't bring your own canoes, there are well priced canoes for rent close to the parking lot.

If you prefer land to water, and enjoy the lush scenery at Longaberger Golf Club, there is a biking trail that rides through the forests. The plant life is rich and the path is sheltered by families of Oaks, Hickories, Virginia Pines and Mountain Laurels. On the northern exposures grow Yellow Birch, Cherry Birch and Eastern Hemlock colonies. In the spring it becomes an excellent site for those who love wildflowers.

Licking County Equestrian Center

Just eighteen minutes from the golf course lies an equestrian center. If golf carts and other form of non pedestrian travel are your style, try a lesson in horse riding. The Licking County Equestrian Center is a small farm surrounded on all sides by flat grasslands, and beyond them lush forested hills.

Are you already an avid horseman? Then bring your own horses and stable them for a negligible fee. The Nashport roads and countryside are famously horse friendly. 

Dillon State Park

If you are looking for a place to bed down and relax, Dillon State Park is the place to stop. A sixteen-minute drive from the Longaberger Golf Club, it offers clean facilities, a camp store and a place to do your laundry. Free Internet is available around the camp store for those who need it.

Activities are offered. Great fishing, free movie nights, stargazing sights with telescopes and a giant hill which gathers snow in the winter. Down this hill on homemade sleds fly the local children. Before the winter, however, are the fall leaves which rest throughout the wooded area and even onto the beach to serene effect.

T.J. Evans Panhandle Trail

A bare seven minutes from the course, the T.J. Evans Panhandle trail begins. Starting in the woods and winding its way through Amish country, the untouched path offers the most serene route back into town. The trail begins to track the Ohio Central Railroad and finds its way back into town where you will catch a glimpse of the world’s largest basket.

It serves as the seven story headquarters for the Longaberger Basket Company and is made from the same wood as the basket sold from it, only one-hundred and sixty times larger. Walk in to learn the history of David Longaberger, the man who kick-started the area's industry and gave his name to so many attractions, up to and including the home of the best golf in Ohio.

Planning to book a tee time at Longaberger Golf Club? See what else you can do while you’re visiting Ohio.

Keep it in the short grass,

JFB

Druid Hills Country Club

Georgia Airways for Fairways, an excellent tournament/fundraiser for the American Lung Association/GA Chapter was recently held here. Nestled inside Old Atlanta's Fernbank neighborhood, where the prestigious Dogwood Invitational is held,  Druid Hills Country Club offered up some fine golf that required exacting shots, and precision putting on some of the most challenging greens MyDailySlice has ever played.

It was nice to play inside the fences, instead of being on the outside looking in, to a gem of a private course.

Charlie Yates golf course

Tucked away in metro Atlanta is a gem of a course that I was able to play last week. Charlie Yates Golf Course is an idyllic 3/4 par course that is maintained suberbly by the same group that keeps up East Lake (home of the Tour Championship).

If you are traveling through Atlanta (or even live here) and have a couple hours to play this course, I would highly recommend it. I walked all 18 in under 2 1/2 hours and paid $29.00 on Sunday morning.

Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

Planking and Tebowing on the golf course

Played St Marlo today in Norcross GA. Beautiful layout...bring you A game...and your poses!

Disney's Winter Summerland Miniature Golf

We recently took a trip to DisneyWorld...you know the place where you freely open your wallet and say with the biggest smile you have: "Take more please!" Because you've just realized that your 4 year-old daughter actually is a princess while dancing and flirting with thee Cinderella...

The last part of our journey took us to their miniature golf course Winter Summerland. It is told that Santa, his wife and the elves moved to Orlando for a vacation spot. Wanting a minature golf course, Santa was undecided as to what to model his course after until he heard about Blizzard Beach water park. Then his inspiration became an unbelievable 36 hole course, split between summer Christmas themes, and winter Christmas themes. The following is a collection of photos from our incredible journey through a family-fun golf course.

...yeah, that's right....I was low score for the day and scored a certificate and collector golf ball!

Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

Golf Vacations with GolfTours.com

If you have kids, then you’ve probably done the family vacation to Disney World or Disneyland, and you might have taken a few trips to visit grandma and grandpa while trying to convince yourself that it was a “vacation.” But when was the last time you took a vacation that you really wanted to take? That’s right; we are talking about an ultimate golf vacation at some of the finest courses around the world. It used to be that you either had to spend hours of your time trying to make all the arrangements yourself, or pay a hefty markup for a travel agent to do it even if he or she had virtually no experience in setting up golf travel packages. But now with a company like GolfTours.com, you can get an expertly-planned golf package at a price that might be lower than you think.

When it comes to international golf vacations, there are literally hundreds of different options. Let’s start with the “Big Three” obvious ones: an Ireland golf vacation, a Scotland golf trip or an England golf travel package. You just can’t go wrong with any of those places, where the game of golf was invented and then developed over the centuries. You can play iconic courses like The Old Course at St. Andrews, Muirfield Golf Course, Carnoustie, The Old Course at Royal Troon, The K Club’s Palmer Course, Celtic Manor or Royal St. George’s among others. Just imagine how jealous your friends and colleagues will be when you tell them you are taking a St. Andrews golf vacation or that you just booked a Celtic Manor golf travel package.

If you’ve already done some golfing in the United Kingdom or just want to try something different, then you might consider a Valderrama golf vacation as part of a golf tour of Spain and Portugal. Or if you really want to rack up the frequent flier miles, you can reserve a South Africa golf travel package that includes courses like The Links at Fancourt and Royal Johannesburg.

If you don’t want to have to rummage through your desk to find that passport, you can also book plenty of great golf travel packages in the United States, like a Pebble Beach golf vacation including rounds at Spyglass Hill and the Links at Spanish Bay, or a Pinehurst golf trip or Bandon Dunes golf travel package. And if you want to spend some time on the beach when you are not on the links, then check out a Hawaii golf vacation with a couple rounds at the Plantation Course of Kapalua Resort. If it’s going to be your vacation, the choice of courses should be up to you.

Miniature golf courses

Here are some pictures of the best putt-putt courses my son and I visited this summer. Thank you Fiesta Falls/ St Augustine FL, and Rolling Greens/Hartville OH.

Enjoy!

JFB

Windows into your life

I love posters. Every since I was a little kid, I've had posters in my rooms...bedrooms as an adolescent: from Thurman Munson to Farrah Fawcett.
Pads as a young man on my own: from bikes to eagles...now in my office as a grownup...this picture from the www.USGA.org

Every step of the way, a little bit of my personality was handed out in these posters...as a conversation waiting to happen.

I love this latest one...the beautiful California surf pushing onto the one and only Pebble Beach.

It's going to be a great tournament...but even a greater memory.

....And that's why I love posters.


Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

Apocalypse

Sports Illustrated is my favorite magazine. The magazine has had a great effect on my interest in sports by exposing me to events that I could only imagine whilst growing up in my small town.

SI has changed throughout the years, but one thing has stayed constant...the writing and pictures...both are the gold standard when it comes to sports coverage.

Every week, they have an excerpt of an uncommon happening in the world of sports that is both head-shaking, and funny...it is called 'Sign of the Apocalypse'...and this week's is a topper. Leno and Stewart I'm sure will have some good comebacks for this one!

Leave it to the Japanese to come up with a new kink in the word kinky...no word yet on how the women will putt...but I'm guessing a man's putter will be involved. I can't wait to see this on YouTube!

Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

Dress code?...Psshaa!

A while back...(and for me, as fast as time flys...that is a long time ago) I visited a semi-private golf course to hit balls on their range. I was in a rush, so I didn't have the proper attire for this course...but, hay, I was only going to their range.

Nope.

"But sir, I just want to hit a bucket of balls...I'll even go to the far end behind where the ball retriever is sitting".

Nope. We require collared shirt, and no jeans.

Fast forward to today, that course is closed with empty homes on it, and I'm still golfing...

...with jeans.

With the rise of casual jeans in the inner social circles of the pure-breds, the dress-code is under assault.

The G20 convention in Pittsburgh this year was dotted with movers and shakers that looked like they should have been at a rodeo rather than at a world convention to determine the fate of the world.

Recently, this phenomena was covered in the WSJ noting the latest fashion...or a better word, comfort trend.

Golf courses that have strict dress codes will have to rethink their stance. Gone are the days when a $40 pair of Dockers slacks trumps a $150 pair of Diesal jeans. Golf courses need to put their dress code rules in relaxed-fit, lose the straight-legged verbiage, and get the 411 on the 501.

Last week I had the option of playing a lovely semi-private course on my day off. I picked up the phone to call for a tee time...then thought about how nice the Levi 560's that I was wearing felt...

...so I redialed and called the local municipal course.


Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

The hole-in-one

There are many reasons to golf: we go to relax, commune with friends or go just for the challenge. There is the beauty and serenity of the golf course that makes a round of golf a unique experience each and every time we go...and that's what makes the game of golf so easy to get hooked on.

So when my friends and I decided to go take a day off work to play The Echelon Club in North Georgia, we were going for all those reasons.

But one of my friends got way more than he bargained for.

When you hear of people hitting a hole in one, you listen with detached interest...because, I guess as it is with a lot of events, unless you're in the moment, you can't understand the passion of being there.

Well, I was there, and I now understand the moment.

It happened on the 3rd hole. At 160 yards on an elevated tee it looks inviting, but throw a sand trap the width of the green...10 mile an hour cross-winds, and a pin placement that made you wonder if the greenskeeper "got any" the night before, and you had all the makings of a snowman in 70 degree weather.

When the ball hit in front of the hole, took one bounce into the flagpole and dropped in, we all cheered as if we had completed an insurmountable task.

We are all part of that event now, forever will our names be on that scorecard that will soon be mounted on his wall...with ball. We four are part of something that we won't forget.

My friend has accomplished something that has odds of roughly 12000 to one. Forever and a day that we play, he will have that on me.

He could have shot 500 that day, but in the end...he was the one that got his ball to fly to the stick and go in.

Yes, passion is a big reason folks golf. But hit a hole in one, or witness one, and you'll be hooked beyond passion. You'll understand the essence of the passion...

...to hit the perfect shot.

Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

Cloudy...with a chance of...

Here in Georgia, we have been known for things like fried chicken and hospitality.

The last few years, however, we've been known for droughts, and as the state that has a lake that's 17' below level.

I'd be referring to Lake Lanier.

The last time that lake was level, was the same year my friend bought a pontoon boat, and berthed in on a slip in the marina....oops.

Both the boat, and slip are gone since those days. Nobody wants to boat on tree stumps, and you only had to walk out to pick up your fish, no need for trolling...no water.

But all that has changed recently with this years' H2O deluge...most recently last week's. Now the trees are green, no more drought, and the lake is full again...

...but so are basements , attics, and soccer fields.

And East Lake Golf Club.

...wait...scratch that...they have a full time maintenance crew that have the crazy task of making the golf course playable for this weekends FedEx Playoff, and they have succeeded...but will be tasked again this weekend as rain is coming.

With the advent of HDTV, greenskeepers' jobs have gotten ridiculously hard. Not only do the golf courses have to be pristine for the golfers, but also for the TV viewer. Gone are the days when the TV viewer couldn't discern a green from a..oh, let's say...brown.

Watching the golf tournament this week, I am amazed at the beauty of the course. especially the green greens. I mean, this area has had so many flash floods, that the DOT just decided to shut down major roads. I mean, my neighbor below me has a fescue lawn now, from the seed I planted in my yard the week before!

So, as we're following golf's season finale this weekend, please remember the men and women that made your viewing pleasure possible: the superindendant, and their crews...and the greenskeeper.

...I'm hiring him to do my yard next week.


Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

Smoke Rise Golf & CC

Ahh, the smell of Tea Olive wafting through the air...the sound of squirrels playing tag in-and-around the pine needles...the feel of my golf clubs as I wrap my hands around them...

...the joy of an unencumbered day off on a pristine country club setting.

...it is truly priceless.

If you're in Atlanta, I would highly recommend visiting this private golf club that, for a limited time, has open tee times on http://www.lastminutegolfer.com/ . It is a players course. I played from the tips and did not struggle with a distance issue. The course has many doglegs, but is tight and has postage stamp greens that require precision approach shots. Greens are slick and undulating...they are true to roll. This is a gem that should be played while it's open to the public.

I was glad to put my FootJoys on and get my feet on the green again!

Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB

The upside of a downturn

The last 10 years I've driven by a beautiful-looking golf course. At the most, I would only see one, maybe two golf carts shuttling lucky ball-stickers as they trolled through the hilly, pine-lined fairways.
The last 10 years I drooled at a course I could not play...

...because it was private.

Those last 10 years our country was getting drunk on Dom and CDO-squared loans...

...now the world is choking down 2-buck Chuck with a toxic dash of Alt-A that will give you the runs.

Among the increasing fallout of this downturn, private golf courses are now in the sights of foreclosure. Gone is exclusivity...here to stay is Affinity memberships where everyone knows your name.

Golf courses of all breeds...because of their dependence on vanishing disposable incomes, are re-reading How to Win Friends and Influence People.

So it was interesting to me when I logged onto www.LastMinuteGolfer.com to find a tee time for tomorrow at any local course that would accept my money...lo-and-behold, this ahem-private golf course that gave me years of angst-dreaming, is accepting tee times!

After confirming my tee time, and after a few "who's your Daddy now(s)?", I settled down to realize what I will be able to do come tomorrow...

No, it's not playing golf on a weekday...it's not the fact that I haven't played in 6 months...

no, it's playing a golf course I've previously had no access to...

...and that's a rush.


Thanks for reading. Keep it in the short-grass,

JFB