Vintage Ping Ad

A member over at GolfWRX (biscuity) posted this scan of an Ping ad for their putter line at the time. It was taken from a 1971 US Open official program. Now tell me that isn't a cool piece of golf memorabilia even if you don't own a Ping Putter.

Online University Could Be For You

For most people my age (over 40) the thought of going back to school pretty much seems like a far off not attainable goal. From doing a bit of research just over the last few months I realized it's not only attainable but can be affordable and flexible as well.

I first got the idea to do a bit of research on courses related to my golf interests and was very surprised at how many courses and programs were available online. It seems many universities have realized that not everyone can go to school 9 to 5 and some need a greater flexibility with course time and of course price. Maybe an online degree is the way to go after all for some people.

Western Governors University is one such online university that has its priorities rooted with the student learner. Their online degrees offer tuition that is substantially lower than most other online universities because they are a non-profit organization. So rather than having huge fees they can keep most programs at under $3000 for a 6 month term. Because they don't have to answer to any shareholders so the student benefits with lower fees.

You don't have to worry about Western Governors University not being accepted by employers either as it's accredited by the top organizations including the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) and the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities.

If your thinking seriously of an online degree or just have questions regarding an online university education be sure to check out Western Governors University huge article pool it can help you make those decisions a little easier.

Follow Western Governors University Twitter feed

So Jack Nicklaus Walks Into a Bar....

Well it wasn't quite like that but close as the Golden Bear, Jack Nicklaus passed through Southern Ontario recently and surprised a bunch of workers at a local restaurant. He even posed for a picture with the workers from Maria's Restaurant in Amherstburg. Can you believe the owner wasn't there, a huge golf fan was on vacation in Florida. Can you say large bummer. Nice one Jack hope the hunting was good North of the border.

Photograph by: Handout from Sherry Drouillard, Special to The Star

Go! Canada Go! Day 1 World Cup Of Golf Video

Canadians Graham Delaet and Stuart Anderson are not the best known golfers in Canada but they're certainly making a name for themselves after the first day of the World Cup of Golf. Here`s an eagle and a birdie from the early part of Canadians Graham Delaet and Stuart Anderson Day 1 round at the World Cup of Golf at Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzhen, China. They ended up at 8-under 64 to stand in a tie for fourth a few back of the leaders Team Ireland who are at -14.

Happy Thanksgiving To Our American Friends

How can this be it's Nov. 26th American Thanksgiving and the temperature is rising to 11 degrees today in the Ottawa area, golf courses are still open. I'm thinking more of golfing and what clubs I'm going to tinker with this off season than shopping for Christmas gifts. Call me crazy but are we going to have a green Xmas. it almost seems like we're behind a month here.

It's not that I don't enjoy the snow and Christmas time, I did put up our Christmas lights the other day. It's hard to believe we haven't had any snow yet and the ground still isn't frozen. It's just hard to think of Christmas without as well lately the talk around my house has been around the H1N1 flu lots of different sicknesses, a colon cleanse here and there and an irregular heartbeat to boot. I just want everyone healthy for Christmas. I'm sure the snow will come.

So enjoy your turkey today our cousins to the south and any good weather your sending keep it coming.

Congrats To Puma Golfer Anna Nordqvist

Belated shout out to Ottawa Golf Blog`s favorite Puma Golfer Anna Nordqvist for shooting a 7 under 65 to win the inaugaral LPGA Tour Championship the final event of the LPGA season.

She beat out World #1 Lorena Ochoa by two strokes. Great way to cap her rookie season after winning her first LPGA event in June a Major no less.

Bettinardi 2010 Putter Line-up Exclusive Interview & Pics - PrimeTimeGolf.com

In my never ending quest for a new putter I stumbled upon a golf forum I actually wasn`t a member at yet which is rare for me. PrimeTimeGolf.com seems to have a great loyal following but what got me really interested was there exclusive interview with Keith Webster, the Vice-President of Golf Operations for the Bettinardi Putter Company talking about the NEW 2010 Line-up. Here`s a few pictures of some of their new putter line.







Become a member and check out the interview. Looks like a very nice line of putters from Bettinardi I especially like the black finish.

Lee Westwood Emotional Interview

Lee Westwood with his win on Sunday not only becomes the #1 player in Europe but rises to #4 in the World. Here's a great emotional interview after his win in Dubai. This guy almost gave up golf entirely. Good thing for us he didn't!

Westwood Wins It All With Course Record

As some commentators mentioned Lee Westwood played quite Tiger-like during his final round of the Dubai World Championship. It's funny how they always seem to have to mention World #1 but this day was meant for Lee Westwood as he played another suburb round, a course record 64 and capture not only the tournament but the Race to Dubai over Rory McIlroy. Westwood again had a awesome iron and putting day. He made some putts over the four days that we as amateurs could only dream, the slopes on most of those greens were sick. Westwood's driving was great as usual his game is looking pretty nice going into next year but I'm sure Westwood is only thinking about taking in the victory and having a few pints.

Lee Westwood Wins The Race To Dubai

Lee Westwood's Putter Gets Him To The Top In Dubai

Lee Westwood looks cool, calm and collective going into Sunday's final round of the Dubai World Championship. Oh ya his putter is hot too. Check out the video below of some of his great putts from his third round 66. He looks poised to win it all in Dubai as Rory McIlroy's round fizzled with 3 bogeys on his last 3 holes. Others are still in the chase as well to win the Dubai event like Padraig Harrington, Ross McGowan, and Geoff Ogilvy. Will Westwood continue his good play or will we see chinks in his armour on Sunday. He defintely has the Blue Advantage in my mind.

Canadians Advancing To Final Stage Q School

Looks like Keven Fortin-Simard of Quebec City has moved a step closer to advancing to the final round of the PGA Tour's qualifying school with a 68 today to end up 2nd during qualifying at the Brooksville, Fla., competition (Southern Hills Plantation Club). So he'll advance to the final stage in December.

Also in Brooksville Jon Mills of Oshawa, Ont., had a round of 71 and that was also good enough (T14) to get him through to the final stage as there were 21 qualifying positions.

At Pine Mountain, Ga.(Callaway Gardens-Mountain View Golf Course), Ian Leggatt of Cambridge, Ont., shot a final round 76 and won't be advancing but Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask., had a great round of 67 and was T13. The top 20 plus ties advance.

At Kingwood, Texas (Deerwood Golf Club), David Hearn score still isn't in but it looks like Brad Fritsch of Manotick,Ont., final round of 73 won't be enough to get him in to final stage. The top 19 plus ties advance at Kingwood.

So now we just have to cheer on the Canadian golfers trying to qualify on the West Coast: David McKenzie of Victoria and Barrett Jarosch of Edmonton are in Beaumont, Calif., as well as Toronto's Seung Lee. The top 20 plus tied advance.

Play Wentworth Now At Tiger Woods PGA TOUR Online

Tiger Woods PGA TOUR Online has opened up another course you can play. The Wentworth Course (West Course) is the newest course you can now play.

After everyone completed the Multiplayer Community Challenge the Wentworth course was opened up to the massed and so far after playing a few rounds I love this old school course. On my first round I even got 3 eagles. There are a lot of trees so be warned where your lined up and always be careful of the elevation gains especially uphill. There are a few good ones. I really just want to play a few more but I have to get back to figuring out how to use my new Ladybug vapor steam cleaner otherwise I'll be doing that instead of watching the hockey game tonight.

Course Details

Wentworth Club is located in Virginia Water, Surrey, southwest of London, UK. The Club is a keystone in professional golf, housing the headquarters of the PGA European TOUR. The West Course in particular hosts the annual BMW PGA Championship as well as the HSBC World Match Play Championship. Since it's opening in 1926, the West Course has been a premier European golf venue. This par 72, 7,308 yard 18-hole golf course was designed by Harry Shapland Colt and more recently refined in 2005 & 2007 by Ernie Els. Wentworth's West Course also hosted the World Cup in 1956 as well as the Ryder Cup in 1953.

The West Course at Wentworth is set in rolling, heavily wooded terrain about 25 miles south west of London. The landscape is populated by pine, birch and oak trees that line the fairways and greens. On the first hole you can find the Millennium Oak growing alongside the fairway. The Signature Hole at the West Course is hole 17, a long par 5 which doglegs sharply to the left. Expect a difficult drive here due to the out of bounds left and dramatically sloping fairway to the right. Many tee shots end up in the deep rough or trees to the right side of the fairway.

The West Course is a classic yet challenging course which exemplifies great European course design. Get ready to explore 80 years of golf history and take on your next big challenge at Wentworth.

WIN a signed Camilo Villegas J Lindeberg Golf Bag At TrendyGolf.com

Who doesn't like a good golf giveaway. I especially like them when everyone can enter and they don't discriminate. I hate being told if your from Canada your not eligible. So here's a good one from our friends at TrendyGolf.com

How does a signed Camilo Villegas J Lindeberg Golf Bag sound as a prize, check out the pictures here. That would definitely look good here in Canada.

Rory McIlroy's Scotty Cameron Fastback Prototype

I love watching late night golf action especially with what's on the line this week at the Dubai World Championship. Guys fighting for the #1 spot on the money list as well as the lucrative prize money of the Dubai event. Using the PVR is great for fast forwarding through all the bad adipex diet pill commercials and what not.

I love all the closeups of the various putters the pros play. Especially because I'm putter less right now so I''m scouring eBay for a nice flat stick. One of my favorites this week is the Scotty Cameron Fastback Rory McIlroy is playing this week. of course its a Scotty Cameron Fastback Prototype but if you check out the video you'll see why this putter is on a lot of peoples lists.

Rory McIlroy's Scotty Cameron Fastback Prototype

A Golf Movie I Can Relate Too Somewhat

When I first saw the trailer to Handicapped: A Documentary About Bad Golf I definitely shook my head and had a bit of a laugh. In some way this movie for those of us who are golf handicapped can relate.

Here's a few tidbits about the movie:

Gary McCord has offered an enthusiastic endorsement of the film, saying “I loved every bit of this nonsense.”

Spalding Smails from the original Caddyshack makes an appearance. It’s true. John Barmon, who played Spalding in Caddyshack, participated in the tournament we documented.

The movie chronicles the third annual Albert J. Doermaet Average Man Invitational, a tournament created explicitly for bad golfers by an over competitive former football coach turned portable toilet magnate who’s made hundreds of millions of dollars.

The movie won awards at the All Sports Los Angeles Film Fest and Naperville Independent Film Fest.

Check out the trailer and you be the judge.
The DVD will be released on November 24. On sale at IndieFlix.com.

Rory McIlroy Making Shots And Chasing Some Serious Prestige

Apparently Rory McIlroy is glad he won't be in the same group as Lee Westwood today as the Day 2 of the Dubai World Championship will start in the next hour or so. After the first day Rory was apparently feeling a bit of the heat of being in the marquee match up with Westwood and the Race to Dubai. Westwood came out the better, shooting a 66 while Rory had a 68. While others his age are worrying about their next acne treatment Rory has a chance to win the money race, huge ranking points and whole lot of millions. Will the pressure get to Rory or will he still be able to pull off shots like the one he did out of the bunker on #7 on Day 1. Absolutely amazing.

Rory McIlroy Amazing Bunker Shot

Scratch Golf Features Ottawa Golf Blog's Ryan Moore HSBC Champions Video

Things have been good for the blog lately, not to long ago Ottawa Golf Blog was featured in a press release for Sumi-G now we've been featured on the front page of Scratch Golf, a video we compiled of highlights from Ryan Moore's final round of the HSBC Champions Tournament. Be sure to check it out and while you're there check out the Custom Wedge Studio under the Tour Department where you can design your very own custom wedge. Check out my latest creation, now I just have to come up with $299.

Jesper Parnevik Files Lawsuit Against J.Lindeberg

One of my favorite golfers Jesper Parnevik just recently filed a lawsuit against J.Lindeberg. Jesper has long been the sole frontman of J.Lindeberg and at one time also a shareholder in the company.

Parnevik believes that he has not been paid by the company for the use of him in their marketing, while J. Lindeberg argue that there is no valid contract, according to business website E24.

It is sad that it has been like this, but his contract was in 2008. It is not true that we have used him in our marketing. Jesper has been valuable for the company and built up the brand, but our primary Name the last five years is a Colombian player Camilo Villegas, "says Stefan Engstrom to E24.

It will be interesting to see how the over 1.3 million lawsuit pans out in the end. For Jesper fans we only hope his recovery is going well from hip surgery. Apparently he plans on playing all 6 rounds of Q-School coming up hopefully to avoid using his use his position on the list of the 50 players who have recorded the most money in his career.Good luck JP.

Michelle Wie Gets Her First LPGA Win -Video Highlights

It was finally nice to see Michelle Wie win her first LPGA Tournament after so much hype over the last couple of years. I'm sure the new LPGA commissioner is quite happy Wie won as well.

Michelle Wie Wins Lorena Ochoa Invitational For Her First LPGA Victory

Tiger Throws Driver Into Crowd On Saturday Lightens Up For Win On Sunday

Tiger wins in Australia but what was he thinking on Saturday when his driver lands into the crowd on the 13th tee. It didn't slip out of his hands he slammed it down and it veered into the gallery. Luckily no one was hurt. Does Tiger need to lighten up. Definitely in my eyes.

Tiger Woods Throws Driver Into Crowd At Australian Masters

Did Rory McIlroy Make The Right Decision?

This week Rory McIlroy made the decision to join the PGA Tour next year. In his words this is his reasoning:

"I just feel that I will become a better golfer if I also play in America. I will be playing in world-class fields with more world ranking points on offer, and the only way for me to get better is to play alongside better players."

He's still going to play the European Tour. Apparently Rory has a no worry attitude. It will be interesting to see how many tournaments he plays in Europe next year. I'm sure his tournaments will be down but that remains to be seen.

"My decision is not that much of a big deal and besides, I am only adding a couple of more events, and besides the European Tour is still my home tour.I can't thank the European Tour enough but I am just in a privileged position where I play wherever I want, and besides I earned enough money in US Tour events to get my card so I have taken out membership. I want to become a better player and the best way to develop my game is to be playing more in the States, and playing a worldwide schedule."

I've probably watched every event he's played on the European Tour this past year so I've seen a lot of his game it will definitely hold up to the better fields in the States. People who haven't will love to see him in action. If Rory is truly committed to getting better the obvious choice is the PGA Tour with more World Ranking Points and higher purses. As a fan seeing more of him is good, it will be interesting to see how he does and will the travel takes its toll on the young McIlroy or will he flourish on the big tour. Stay tuned.

Scratch Golf Clubs Peak My Interest

It was interesting seeing the latest issue of Golf Digest with Ryan Moore WITB which after this past week is now incorrect with Moore signing with Scratch Golf. An interesting union to say the least Scratch Golf, the Golf Club company that prided itself with not paying players to play their clubs with Ryan Moore who had no sponsorship deals up until this Scratch deal which sees him play Scratch's SB-1 iron and 1018 series wedges. The results are good 3rd last week at the HSBC Champions Tournament as well as a T7 and T8 at Moore previous tournaments. There definitely must be something to these golf clubs manufactured in Oregon. They definitely take customization to a new level, I love the fact each of Scratch's 1018 wedge wedge is ground by hand to one of 6 specific grinds designed to fit one of our 3 swing types.

Check out the video below after last weekend I had some dark circles around my eyes recording video footage from tournaments overseas (HSBC Champions). Sure puts my sleep out of whack although I did get some great video of Ryan Moore's new Scratch clubs in action.

Ryan Moore Final Day HSBC Champions

Buy A Shirt Now - 50% off 2009 Triple Bogey Apparel

Earlier this year I had the chance to review some golf shirts from Triple Bogey Golf well if your thinking of updating your golf wardrobe or you're looking at getting some early Christmas gifts then be sure to use there Promo Code Soap to get 50% off their 2009 gear. I highly recommend the "Feelings" polo. Everyone can relate to the image on that shirt. And remember these guys are from Ottawa so buy a golf shirt today. Who doesn't like getting a deal right?

Which Tiger Will Show Up Down Under?

It will be interesting to see which Tiger Woods will show up in Australia this week as Mr Woods is playing in this weeks Australian Masters. This past week at the HSBC Champions Tournament yes Tiger ended up in a T6 but by any one's standards Woods was just mediocre. Watching on TV he just seemed out of sorts and shooting even par on the final day not what we're use to seeing from Tiger Woods.

Tiger is receiving a $3 million dollar appearance fee to play in the Australian Masters this week lets hope he doesn't let down the fans who'll be there to see the dominating #1 player. I know I'll be tuned in to the Golf Channel to see how things will unfold on what Geoff Ogilvy calls a real old school course (Kingston Heath) sure beats watching those crazy electronic cigarette TV ads and other TV ad filler on the Golf Channel. By the way the betting line on Tiger winning this week is 11/10.

Kingsway Park Golf Course From Above

A few weeks back while hiking with my family in Gatineau Park I spied a golf course while hiking high atop Kings Mountain Trial. Here's some pics. I haven't done a lot of golfing on the Quebec side and I initially didn't know what course it was until recently. With a little help from Google Maps I now know it is Kingsway Park. It was a great view from high a top Kings Moutain must be a a pretty good view down there I figure.

Mickeslon Wins, Tiger Fades, Ernie Puts One in the H2O

It definitely had the feel of a Major the HSBC Champions tournament this past weekend with the cream of the professional golf ranks coming to the top of the leaderboard it made for a great final day. Phil Mickelson was able to pull out a win after making some clutch putts. He was solid all 4 rounds. Tiger struggles out of the gate and could never claw back. Ernie had one of the best rounds only to put a ball in the water on #18 to end any hope with a bogey. Great late season golf entertainment with the Race To Dubai fast approaching. I'm sure most players after the round were on their cell phones either making plans to get to this weeks UBS Hong Kong Open or maybe like Tiger trying to get to Melbourne for the JBWere Masters. Either way there still lots of golf action to come in the next few weeks.

Moore Signs With Scratch Golf

Well according to Jason Sobel at ESPN.com "Mr. No Logo" Ryan Moore has signed a deal to not only play Scratch Golf Clubs but also own a portion of the small but emerging company from Oregon. Ryan can be seen in the above photo debuting with Scratch Golf from the HSBC Champions World Golf Championship where he's actually in the hunt after rounds of 66 and 69.

While Sick I've Improved My Play On EA Sports Tiger Woods PGA Tour Online

Well it seems you can improve in some areas when sick looking at my numbers on the second go around as a Beta tester for Closed Beta 4 for Tiger Woods PGA Tour online you might say I actually don't suck anymore with a scoring average a little over 67 and already 5 aces after a little over 30 rounds. I've really gotten into strategies to maximize money while accomplishing objectives. This Beta graphically looks way better so maybe that's helping my play as well. Some other new features into an enhanced Pro Shop along with Simultaneous Multi-player as well as Golf live. See people you know and don't know while playing your favorite course. I also posted my lowest score last night a 56 which betters my low round by 4 strokes. I am part of an OttawaGolf group as well but don't really know where that will lead.

Out Of The Flu Abyss

Over the last week or so I've had the unfortunate pleasure of getting the flu. I'm trying to get back to normal but it seems slow going. One suggestion for everyone, get your flu shot you don't want this. I knew I was real sick because I wasn't even worried I'd miss maybe the last few days of golf around here as Winter may rear it's ugly head soon'. I'm trying to gain back the weight I lost, no fat burner needed here but it's hard because my energy is still low and the appetite still not great. So I'll try to get posting regularly and keeping up with all things that are golf. :)