Golfing News & Blog Articles

A winner in the season opener in Orlando last week, Kang birdied her final two holes Friday for a 4-under 68 to catch good friend Lydia Ko (70) in the Gainbridge LPGA at Boca Rio.

Tommy Fleetwood and Shane Lowry were given 50 shots apiece to make a hole-in-one on a 149-yard par 3. The frustration builds with each close call.

Prince Andrew has given up his honorary membership at St. Andrews as he fights allegations of sexual abuse that have led to him retreating from public life.

The post New For 2022: Poppy Points Program appeared first on Northern California Golf Association.

South Africa's Justin Harding took a two-shot lead after Day 2 at the Dubai Desert Classic after carding a 4-under-par 68 on Friday.

Former NBA player J.R. Smith, who is now a freshman golfer at North Carolina A&T, has signed with Excel Sports for NIL representation.

Top-ranked Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas made the birdies they needed to keep pace on the easier North Course at Torrey Pines on Thursday and shared the lead with hard-charging Adam Schenk after two rounds of the Farmers Insurance Open.

Lydia Ko shot a 9-under 63 to take a 2-shot lead over Danielle Kang in the Gainbridge LPGA at Boca Rio.

Koepka, the four-time major winner, revealed a new Eminem-inspired look on social media -- and confusion ensued.

Denmark's Joachim Hansen took a one-shot lead in the opening round of the Dubai Desert Classic after carding 65 to finish at 7 under on Thursday.

Ten years ago, Japanese shaft manufacturer Nippon debuted the N.S. PRO MODUS line of golf shafts. Now, with the addition of MODUS Tour 115, the resumé is starting to feel more complete.

And while MODUS gets the preponderance of attention, it’s not the product that garnered it attention from other elite shaft manufacturers.

In 1999, Nippon pioneered the first sub-100 gram steel iron shaft —the N.S. PRO 950 GH which set a new standard for lightweight iron shafts. Is a 23-year-old product still relevant today? Absolutely. Just ask Danielle Kang who won her sixth LPGA Tour event (Hilton Grand Vacation Tournament of Champions) this past weekend with … yep, you guessed it … Nippon N.S. PRO 950 GH iron shafts. Likewise, Miguel Angel Jimenez won the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai for the third time on the PGA Tour Champions. Jimenez, a PING staff member, plays Nippon MODUS 105 shafts in his irons.

The point of this brief tangent is to illustrate a small but vital point. Nippon isn’t a volume-hungry, market share at all costs sort of operation. It has a rich history of producing high-quality shafts and it has product in play every week on every major professional tour around the world.

Hitting Greens in Regulation (GIR) is by far the most important shot that you need on every hole, but it may not be the best strategy for YOUR GAME. Driving and Putting perfection are critical to be a good golfer but hitting more greens in regulation can cut 1 stroke on every hole. As a mid to high handicap player you may be far better off hitting to a safe location for an easy shot to the green near the hole.

To improve your GIR, golfers with a handicap over 10 should focus on improving the consistency of your approach shots and also use STRATEGIES TO ELIMINATE BLOW-UP HOLES. You can’t afford to play by the strategies used by the pros who can pretty well hit what they want to hit. STOP PLAYING IN THEIR WORLD.

Strategies to Score in the 70’s or 80’s
1/ Move Up to the Right Tee for Your Game: We all know that shorter irons are easier to control than your driving clubs and that’s exactly why you need more distance with your driver OR to drive from a tee that allows you to reach the green in regulation.
2/ Use Your Irons to Get back on the Fairway: If your drive land in the rough on a par 4 or 5, DON’T TRY FOR THE MIRACLE SHOT. Hitting out of the rough with a 3 wood, 5 wood or hybrid is not the easiest shot. Your irons are designed to be hit down and through the rough to dig out your ball. It is so much better to hit your 6 iron 100 to 150 yards out of the rough and up the fairway than topping your ball 10 yards further along the rough with the wrong club. TAKE YOUR MEDICINE.
3/ Hit Short of a Trap or Water Hazard Near the Green: When you know that you need the perfect shot to miss a hazard, just lay-up. Your short chipping and pitching irons are much easier to hit over a hazard and possibly stick one close for a 1 or 2 putt hole.
4/ Plan for Rollout and the Break on the Green: Whatever club you are using to target the green, consider the depth and slope on the green. If you know that you can’t hold the green, just lay-up on a safe side of the green and enjoy your chance to pitch your next shot for a 1 putt green.
5/ Record Your Greens Hit in Regulation: I mark my score card with a 1 in the upper left corner of each hole when I land my drive in the fairway (or on a green for par 3’s) and a 1 in the upper right corner for GIR’s. You will quickly learn that those 1’s will drive your your pars or birdies up. The pros typically hit 13 to 16 GIR’s per round. Challenge yourself to keep improving your GIR’s.

You will never improve your GIR’s if you don’t plan for draws, fades and straight shots. Reducing the bend in your leading arm and your wrists for every shot will help you hit straighter shots and get more GIR’s. Practice with GOLFSTR+ for 6 swing fixes. Buy one today at www.GOLFSTR.com

Golf Truism #93: Golf is like marriage: If you take yourself too seriously it won’t work, and both are expensive.

Top-ranked Jon Rahm closed with an eagle on the tougher South Course at Torrey Pines for a 6-under 66 on Wednesday, trailing leader Billy Horschel by three strokes after the first round of the Farmers Insurance Open.

The post Winter 2022 appeared first on Northern California Golf Association.

2022 Srixon Q-STAR Tour Golf Balls – Key Takeaways

The new 2022 Srixon Q-STAR Tour is the fourth generation of what started out as a very intriguing ball. When it came out in early 2017, the Q-STAR Tour was a bit of a unicorn. It was most definitely on the soft side but it was a urethane-covered ball that was originally priced to move at less than $30.

It didn’t have the speed of a firmer Tour-level ball. But for the target golfer, it was plenty fast enough. And while it didn’t have quite the spin of a Tour-level ball, for the target golfer, it was spinn-y enough.

The category itself—a soft-ish ball with a urethane cover for under 40 bucks—is popular with consumers. It may not have the same pizzazz as your Tour-level balls but golfers seem to like them.

And if you liked the 2020 Srixon Q-STAR Tour, you’ll be happy to know Srixon followed the ball maker’s Hippocratic oath: First, do no harm.

2022 Srixon Q-STAR Tour: What’s New?

In a word: not much. Well, that’s two words but you get the idea.