Viktor Hovland’s Struggles: A Tough Year for the Young Golfer
Viktor Hovland has been open about his struggles this year, describing it as a challenging period. Despite decent weekend scores at the Olympic tournament, he didn’t find it confidence-building due to inconsistent ball control.
Last year, Hovland had significant achievements, including tying for seventh at the Masters, finishing runner-up at the PGA, and winning multiple championships. However, this season has been less successful, with only one top-10 finish and a ranking of 57th in the Tour’s regular-season standings.
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Hovland experienced issues with his swing pattern, which affected his ability to predict ball flight. He attempted to adjust his swing in the offseason but ended up disrupting a crucial relationship in his swing mechanics.
Playing without knowing where the ball will go has been mentally taxing for Hovland. He expressed frustration over not being able to control his shots and feeling like playing golf was a waste of time under those conditions.
Despite current struggles, Hovland is optimistic about learning more about his golf swing and making progress. He reunited with swing coach Joe Mayo around this year’s PGA Championship and believes they are on a path to improvement.
Hovland is focused on controlling what he can and working on areas that need improvement. He remains hopeful about returning to form and achieving great things again.
Turnberry Golf Course: Set to Have the Highest Green Fees in 2025
The Turnberry Golf Course is set to have the highest green fees on the planet in 2025. This famous golf course, owned by Donald Trump, last hosted the Open in 2009 before Trump’s purchase.
Despite not hosting major championships, Turnberry is regarded as one of the best golf courses. It reopened to the public in 2016 after renovation under Trump Organization ownership and is ranked No.8 in Golf Digest’s World’s 100 Greatest Golf Courses.
The peak green fee for Turnberry’s Ailsa Course will be £1,000 starting in 2025, which is approximately $1,276.52. This is slightly higher than Shadow Creek’s $1,250 price tag.
Shadow Creek requires staying at an MGM property in Las Vegas for access. The £1,000 fee applies only to non-hotel residents playing before 1 p.m. during peak season. After 1 p.m., the price drops to £545, and hotel guests pay less overall.
This pricing strategy encourages more people to stay on-site and provides hotel guests better tee time opportunities. Staying at the hotel and playing costs under £1,000 for a full five-star experience.
The Ailsa Course has hosted the Open Championship four times, including the famous “Duel In The Sun” won by Tom Watson over Jack Nicklaus in 1977 and Watson’s near-win at age 59 in 2009. This sets a new bar for the most expensive green fees globally, posing a challenge to Shadow Creek.
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Veterans Bond and Heal Through Golf
The PGA HOPE (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere) program introduces golf as therapy for Veterans and active-duty military personnel. The program enhances physical, mental, social, and emotional well-being through a six to eight-week curriculum led by PGA professionals trained in adaptive golf and military cultural competency.
The program is partnered with Ralph H. Johnson VA in Charleston and has been described as life-changing and stress-relieving by participants like Harold Hill, a PGA HOPE Carolinas ambassador and Coast Guard Veteran.
The Carolinas Section covers North and South Carolina with 26 chapters. The Charleston chapter will celebrate its 100th clinic in September, having graduated over 2,000 Veterans since its inception in 2015. Josh Wagaman, PGA head golf professional at Cougar Point, has been teaching PGA HOPE since 2017 and runs sessions twice a year with around thirty Veterans per session. He emphasizes relationship-building among participants.
Veterans like Reggie Williams, a Navy Veteran, enjoy the camaraderie with fellow Veterans through the program.
The partnership with VA enhances reach, and VA doctors can refer Veterans to the program as therapy. Golf provides physical activity, mental focus, and social interaction beneficial for those dealing with injuries or PTSD.
All PGA instructors are trained in adaptive-golf methods suitable for those with mobility issues or PTSD, and some locations have para-mobiles for wheelchair-bound participants.
David Stam, an Air Force Veteran, shares his positive experience as both a participant and peer mentor in the program. Harold Hill encourages hesitant Veterans to join PGA HOPE for camaraderie at no expense.
New Mini-Golf Experience at Mandalay Bay
A new adults-only mini-golf experience is coming to the Las Vegas Strip. The venue, named Swingers Las Vegas, will open at Mandalay Bay on Friday, Nov. 8.
The destination spans 40,000 square feet and features four “crazy” golf courses, multiple bars, and eateries, and includes a carnival arcade concept. The design is described as an English country estate, and each course has its own layout with obstacles such as moving windmills, carousels, jumps, and loops.
Matt Grech-Smith, co-CEO and co-founder of Swingers, emphasized that Las Vegas is ideal for the next chapter of Swingers. He highlighted the blend of friendly competition, exceptional food, and superb cocktails as key elements of enjoyable moments. Swingers aims to bring whimsical golf courses, a carnival atmosphere (Swingers Carnival), vibrant bars, and an electric party scene to the Strip.
Swingers can transform into a nightlife venue. The Sunken Garden area will feature a cocktail lounge, DJ booth, and two private rooms for parties and events.
Indiana Community Fights to Save Golf Course
The Heartland Crossing neighborhood in Camby, Indiana, is fighting to save its golf course as developers plan to build 600 homes. The community, located 16 miles southwest of downtown Indianapolis, consists of various subsections with different styles of residences, from starter homes to senior living houses.
The Links at Heartland Crossing golf course has been a central feature of the neighborhood for nearly three decades, providing a peaceful environment and employment for local youth. Mooresville high school’s golf team practices on this course.
Developers have proposed rezoning the golf course land for residential use to build 600 homes on the 200-acre property. This proposal marks the first time a rezoning petition for this land has been submitted to Morgan County. Residents quickly organized against the rezoning petition due to concerns about increased density and loss of green space. Kari Mann, a resident, emphasized that such development should not proceed without proper consideration.
Ron Overton, who bought the golf course in 2018 after retiring from manufacturing, acknowledges the financial challenges of maintaining it. Overton is open to selling the property if developers receive proper approval from Morgan County.
Maintaining the golf course costs around $600,000 annually, with total operational costs nearing $1 million. Despite an increase in demand for golf during the COVID-19 pandemic, sustaining profitability remains difficult.
The Links at Heartland Crossing opened in 1998 and was designed by renowned architect Steve Smyers. There was a boom in new golf courses in Indiana during the late ’90s and early ’00s; however, many courses closed due to lower demand before experiencing a resurgence during the pandemic.
The rezoning petition will be reviewed by the commission on September 9 after multiple delays from its original July meeting date. Overton plans to sell regardless of whether rezoning is approved but understands homeowners’ concerns about losing green space.
Glow Golf: Engaging New Audiences
Alex Johansson, an award-winning experimental designer, educator, and game maker, emphasizes the need for the gaming industry to engage new audiences. Johansson is the creator of Glow Golf, a minimalist sports game designed to be approachable.
The game involves completing randomly generated golf courses using a bespoke controller. It is being tested in care homes and special needs centers to explore how video games can become more accessible by defying convention.
Johansson has been grappling with how to create experiences for new audiences that don’t fit the narrow definition of ‘gamer.’ He has decided that gamers will no longer be his primary audience moving forward.
Engaging new audiences offers lower expectations and allows designers to challenge what is considered intuitive. Johansson suggests ditching conventional interfaces and controllers that are inherently hostile to those unfamiliar with widespread inputs. He advocates for actively conversing with new audiences to understand what interfaces work for them.
An example includes designing a racing game interface with an elderly woman who had never played a video game before. They settled on dragging a coin between two contact points, reminiscent of removing foil from a scratch card. Johansson stresses the importance of engaging marginalized, overlooked, and underserved audiences.
He highlights that as people who grew up with arcades age, there will be an increasing need to cater to older demographics.
With the industry in dire straits commercially, taking chances on new audiences might be necessary for sustainability. Johansson advises designers to keep design scope small and avoid outdated inputs like keyboards, mice, and gamepads.
Designers should ask themselves how they can reach one new person who has never experienced games before. This could indicate being on the right path.
In conclusion, the world of golf is filled with both challenges and exciting developments. From Viktor Hovland’s struggles and Turnberry’s high green fees to the healing power of golf for veterans and new mini-golf experiences, there is always something happening in the golf community.
As the industry continues to evolve, engaging new audiences and preserving cherished golf courses will be crucial for its future.
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