Obviously, family and friends come first, but after that, golf and reading are right up there. Well, those two and either a vodka on the rocks or a glass of red wine can combine to make a good day.
I often couple golf and reading. That merger often means opening a book. Other times, however, I fire up my computer and go to my favorite golf blogs and websites. Below are the ones that I seem to go to most often.
Photo credit: Laurie Gaboardi
My favorite blog is My Usual Game (www.myusualgame.com), which is written by KC born and bred David Owen, who, by the way, will soon be the guest speaker at my club’s Men’s Opening Golf Dinner. First, David is a great writer regardless of the subject. He is a staff writer for the New Yorker and his long and impressive non-golf book credits include: High School: Undercover with the Class of '80; The Walls Around Us: The Thinking Person's Guide to How a House Works; The First National Bank of Dad: The Best Way to Teach Kids About Money; The Conundrum: How Scientific Innovation, Increased Efficiency, and Good Intentions Can Make our Energy and Climate Problems Worse.
The reason I always read his My Usual Game postings is because his topics are all over the map. (By the way, that’s a high compliment.) One week David writes about his Sunday Morning Group’s annual New Year’s Day round, next he is telling us about his buddies trip to Ireland, then why fairway woods should never be called fairway metals. If you like golf, fine writing and great variety, you will become addicted to his blog.
The Fried Egg is one-stop shopping for the golf nut:
- A three-time a week newsletter that focuses on the PGA Tour.
- PGA Tour player profiles area.
- Posts about college golf.
- Reviews of golf destinations.
- Articles about golf course architecture
- Podcasts about the world of golf.
Chicagoan Andy Johnson, who founded the site in December 2015, has built a site that both informative and entertaining. Go to: www.friedegg.co (NOT .COM).
(www.mygolfspy.com)
If you want the scoop on the latest and greatest in golf equipment, balls and bags, then head to My Golf Spy (www.mygolfspy.com). Its Mission Statement is:
OUR JOB IS YOUR GAME . . . YOU DESERVE THE TRUTH AND NOTHING BUT.
Our mission is to inform and protect the golf consumer. We want you to get the most out of your money, time and performance. That means providing you with reviews you can trust, as well as honest reporting on the latest issues affecting the game today.
For example, if you want the first take on the new Callaway Rogue hybrids (the standard Rogue and the Rogue X) with Jailbreak technology, this site will tell you everything you want to know about the development of this line as well as the specs. MYGOLFSPY gets an A+ for credibility.
The Sand Trap is an all-encompassing website (www.thesandtrap.com) that has forums on any topic you can imagine; commentary on all things golf; articles that range from etiquette to PGA Tour news; equipment reviews and discussions; instructional articles and videos, and a marketplace to buy and sell everything from clubs to books.
If you are want to know what your fellow golfers are thinking about a rule, a player, a course/resort or a new club, this is the site for you. Of course, if you have a question or opinion, this is the place to post your thoughts and ideas.
There are several blogs/websites that focus on course reviews. My favorite is golftripper.com, which has reviews from Bill Satterfield and Steve DeWalle, The Itinerant Golfer. Both men offer detailed reviews and observations about the courses they have played across the U.S., including almost all of the Top 100 Golf Digest courses. If you are planning a golf trip, this is a site well worth visiting.
Obviously, there are dozens of other well-done, entertaining and interesting golf blogs and websites. There are the big ones such as golf.com, golfdigest.com and pgatour.com; every tour player has his/her own website, and niche ones such as golfismentalblog.com and barryrhodes.com, which concentrates on the rules of golf.
In other words, writing, reading and golf go well together.
Play Away!
Allan (a 12)
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