Divot Mix

Shoot a lower score than everybody else. -- Ben Hogan (asked the secret of winning the U.S. Open)

NBC and Airplay offer live interactive game for U.S. Open

AirPlay, NBCSports.com and the USGA have announced an agreement to deliver an interactive game experience for the 2008 U.S. Open.

U.S. Open Live Challenge allows golf fans to compete live while watching their favorite competitors throughout the June 12 – 15 broadcasts from Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego.

"U.S. Open fans have already proven to be highly engaged across multiple mediums during the Championship," said Alex Withers, USGA director of new media. "Partnering with NBCSports.com and AirPlay for a live interactive experience now gives golf fans a real stake in the action during this marquee championship."

While the pros compete for the $7 million dollar purse, avid fans play along on the Web, predicting the action live for a chance to win an all expenses paid trip to the 2009 U.S. Open at Bethpage Black.

Players can predict the scores of their most-watched players, calling out live course action such as whether a player will sink a putt on the third hole or bogey on the next par 4. It happens in real time during the broadcast with immediate leaderboard updates, golf trivia questions,player-to-player chatand up-to-the-second opinion polls. To play, visit USOpen.com, NBCSports.com or AirPlay.com.

The cost of golf

The National Golf Foundation occasionally looks into the cost of golf to underscore the fact that the game is affordable, even in the face of a recession.

The average cost of "public" golf in the U.S. in 2008 is around $50. This figure represents the published "in-season," weekend green fees and golf car fee (rack rate) at 18-hole public golf courses. Because of the competitiveness of the market, this fee is rarely achieved and therefore the actual cost to play is less.

Daily Fee golf courses, which are privately owned but open to the public, charge on average about $10 more per round than their municipally-owned counterparts.

The cost to play at newer golf facilities is higher than at older ones. This is true for both daily fee and municipal courses and is due to the fact that newer courses cost more to build and therefore must charge more to pay off the debt associated with development.
9-hole facilities, which number around 4,500, are considerably more affordable. The comparable average cost is $29 vs. $51 at 18-hole facilities (or about 43 percent less.)

18-hole Public Green Fees by Year Opened

Labbance fundraiser set for June 23

A fund raising event for writer Bob Labbance will be held Monday, June 23, at Ekwanok Golf Club in Manchester, Vt.

Labbance, a golf course architecture and maintenance historian with over a dozen books to his credit is suffering from ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease). Registration for the event is now open.

The event will include golf and auction. Registration is at 9:30 a.m., with an 11 a.m. shotgun start. Brunch / barbeque buffet and auction will follow the golf. The event cost $500 per person, limited to the first 100 registrants. All checks should be payable to the Labbance Family Fund, Box 53,  Bloomfield, CT 06002

Auction items to include rounds at; Atlantic Golf Club, N.Y.; Boston Golf Club (with Gil Hanse); Canterbury, Ohio; Erin Hills, Wis.; Fox Chapel GC, Pa.; Glen Club, Ill.; Half Moon Bay, Calif.; Kingsley Club, Mich. (with Mike DeVries); Lake of Isles, Conn.; Long Cove, S.C.; Long Shadow, Ga. (with Mike Young); Mountain Lake, Fla.; National Golf Links of America; Norwood Hills, Mo.; Pacific Dunes, Ore. (with Tom Doak); Renaissance Golf Club, Mass. (with Brian Silva); Sanctuary, Colo. (with Jim Engh – or at any course of his to be arranged); Secession, S.C.; Sevillano Links, Calif.; Southern Hills Plantation, Fla.; Sugarloaf Mountain Town & GC, Fla.; Tobacco Road, N.C.; Wintonbury Hills, Ct.; Yale GC, Conn. and additional courses/architects to be announced.

In addition, there will be: a pair of tickets to 2009 U.S. Open, Masters memorabilia, Golf architecture books (signed), Caddie services by Tony Pioppi and Brad Klein for Ekwanok to be auctioned in advance. Live music will be provided by Lloyd Cole.

USGA awards 143 new grants

The USGA has awarded 143 grants totaling $2,650,935 to support golf programs across the nation for economically-disadvantaged juniors and individuals with disabilities. The grant funds will be used for instruction, golf course and range access, equipment, transportation and the construction of accessible golf facilities.

The association has awarded more than $62.5 million since the association implemented the Grants Initiative, "For the Good of the Game," in 1997.

The USGA Grants Committee reviewed a record 160 applications at its May meeting. "The USGA is pleased that there has been a growing interest in the Grants Initiative," said USGA President Jim Vernon. "There are hundreds of organizations nationwide working to grow the game of golf for juniors and individuals with disabilities. We are proud to support these remarkable programs with USGA grant dollars."

Additional information on the grants, including a complete list of the current awards, click here. For more information on the USGA Grants Initiative, contact the Grants office at (719) 471-4810 or visit the Supporting the Game section of the USGA Web site at www.usga.org.