Improve Your Golf Swing » Open Championship

Wilson Golf

admin — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 07:06:52 +0000

Wilson Sporting Goods has long been known for supplying people with quality sports equipment. Since 1914, Wilson has been selling basketballs, baseballs, and footballs to the general public as well as organized sports. Wilson also recognized that golf was a very popular activity in the world and they wanted to present their unique products to the world that they felt would change the face of golf forever.
Wilson Golf knew they needed the backing of a professional golfer of the time to add credibility to their products, so they contacted one of the best. Gene Sarazen was the first golfer to become a member of the Wilson Advisory Staff and would have a 75-year relationship with the company, the longest-running contract in sports history. His career would earn him 39 PGA titles including two U.S. Opens, three PGA Championships, a British Open title, and a Masters victory on his way into the PGA Hall of Fame in 1974.
Over the years Sarazen was joined by such golfing greats as Sam Snead, Walter Hagen, Arnold Palmer, Nick Faldo, Payne Stewart, John Daly and Vijay Singh to name a few of the Wilson Advisory Staff over the years. This type of professional endorsement made Wilson Golf a household name.
Wilson golf was instrumental in participating in the introduction of some new concepts in the game of golf. They provided the financial backing for Patty Berg and Babe Didrickson Zaharias to found the new Womens PGA, now known as the LPGA.
Wilson Golf helped introduce the modern era of power golf with the introduction of the Wilson Staff ball, the famous long ball that springs off the club face 40% faster than the speed of the club head. From 1954 the Wilson Staff ball has helped win more Masters and U.S. Open Championships than any other ball.
In the 1980s, Wilson Golfs Staff irons were #1 on Tour. The Staff Tour Blade was introduced, as well as the Staff persimmon woods with an aluminum face insert. Wilson launched another landmark golf ball the Ultra and advanced sales far surpass any previous ball in the companys history.
Over the years, Wilson Golf has continued to pioneer the industry in club design as well as golf ball design. They have introduced some amazing new golf clubs along with long range balls that can increase the distance a golfer can hit the ball.
Their use of nanotechnology in manufacture of their clubs make Wilson Golf clubs some of the lightest and most reliable in the golf industry today. With ninety years in the business, they remain a powerhouse when it comes to golf equipment and supplies.

The British Open

admin — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 10:17:24 +0000

For amateur golfers, having an open tournament is a great opportunity to break into the world of professional golf. But the U.S. Open isnt the only open tournament theres also the British Open for the golfers across the pond. Open tournaments were designed to allow amateur golfers to perhaps break into the pro pool by winning one of these contests.

Many people think that the U.S. Open was the first open championship to be founded, but that just isnt true. The British Open was being played 35 years before the United States got in on the open tournament phenomenon. Since the turn of the century, the British Open has included amateurs from all countries. The U.S. Open is currently trying to make a move towards this trend, but for years, The British Open has been known as The World Open.

Originally designed as a way for unknown golfers to make a name for themselves, the opens have long been touted as the greatest chance an amateur has for worldwide fame and fortune as a professional golfer. The British Open was the first tournament to bring forth this amazing idea, and golfers all over the world became excited at the prospect of becoming a pro.

The British Open is one of the four major golf tournaments of the year and winning it is a great honor. Just as with the U.S. Open, it is one of the championships that tournament professionals strive to achieve and wear the honor with pride. However, amateurs should beware. Because the British Open is an open event, the pros can play too.

The last time an amateur won a British Open was back in 1930 when American legend Bobby Jones won with an overall score of 291. Since that time, there have been many amateurs who have made good showings, but as far as winning the open, that hasnt happened in quite some time.

To qualify for the British Open, you must strive for one of the 156 places that are available. Most of the field of players has achieved entry into the open through exemptions by playing well throughout the year on the tour. The rest of the field has won qualifying rounds in local events that lead them to the big show and perhaps the chance of the lifetime!

The British Open just like the U.S. Open is a wonderful way for excellent amateur golfers to break into the professional circuit by doing what they love playing the game of golf. The British Open has a long and storied history and while considered one of the major events in the PGA, still holds a bit of mystery and hope for those who dream of a life as a PGA professional.

St. Andrews

admin — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 03:42:26 +0000

St. Andrews is located in Scotland and is commonly thought of as the birthplace of golf as we know it today. St. Andrews is home to the Royal and Ancient Golf Club, founded in 1754, who exercises legislative authority over the game worldwide except in the U.S. and Mexico.

The beautiful golf links in St. Andrews (acquired by the town in 1894) is the most frequent venue for The Open Championship, the oldest of golf’s four major championships. Visitors travel to St Andrews in great numbers for several courses ranked amongst the finest in the world, as well as for the sandy beaches.

The St Andrews Links occupy a narrow strip of land along the sea. As early as the 15th century, golfers at St. Andrews established a customary route through the undulating terrain, playing to holes whose locations were dictated by topography.

The course that emerged featured eleven holes, laid out end to end from the clubhouse to the far end of the property. One played the holes out, turned around, and played the holes in, for a total of 22 holes. In 1764, several of the holes were deemed too short, and were therefore combined. The number was thereby reduced from 11 to nine, so that a complete round of the links comprised 18 holes.

There are six golf courses in St. Andrews including The Old Course which is where the game was first played. The clubs are open to the public as are the courses, but be prepared to wait! The Old Course has over 40,000 rounds of golf played on it every year. In fact, as of this writing, the official St. Andrews website reports that tee times for April through October of 2007 are completely booked.

You may have the best luck on one of the other courses, but you will need to make reservations well in advance. St. Andrews allow you to book tee times online, so check out their website and make a reservation as soon as you know when youll be there.

Be prepared to pay to play St. Andrews, however. Greens fees during the prime season between April and October are $235 for an adult on the Old Course. Of course, the other courses are slightly cheaper and youll save some money in the off-season as well.

There are plenty of places to stay when you want to golf at St. Andrews. There are over 500 hotels and numerous dining places nearby. There is easy access from local airstrips, so you wont have much problem actually getting to the links on your scheduled day to play. In the meantime, youll enjoy some of the most beautiful countryside in the world complete with old castles and historical sites!

You can visit the official St. Andrews Link website at www.standrews.org.uk.