Hooked On Golf Blog

I can barely walk right now. On the 4th hole today I stepped into the cart with my left foot. I put my weight on that leg and then my foot slipped out completely, throwing all my body weight into the cart. My right shin took the entire force of my body weight as it hit the side rail of the cart. My shin hurt like hell and then went numb. Then it felt like it was frozen. In fact, from my mid shin down, my entire leg felt like it was frozen.

My playing partner looked at it and said he saw a dent in my shin. OMG I dented my freakin’ shin. Thrilling.

I’m gimping around and on the 14th hole I look down and my shin had swollen. It looked like it had a half a baseball under the skin. My skin had no felling at all. I could touch the welt and felt nothing. It felt like I’d been to the dentist and had a local anesthetic on that area.

I’m icing it now, with a frozen pack of guacamole.

MEMO TO GOLF COURSES: DON’T ARMORALL THE FREAKING FLOOR OF THE CARTS. I MAY BREAK MY NECK AND SUE YOU INTO THE NEXT SOLAR SYSTEM.

Tony Korologos a.k.a. mediaguru Life, Miscellaneous

If you are traveling to Lake Tahoe and need a place to stay, here’s my take of the Embassy Suites on the south shore.

Location

There are two major casino resorts on the south shore, Harrah’s and Harveys. They’re the center of the gaming and shows, along with Bill’s casino, The Horizon and the Montbleu. I remember years ago the Montbleu was Little Caesar’s (not the pizza version).

Right next to Harrah’s and kiddie corner to Harveys is the Embassy Suites. You can’t see much from the road but the property is quite large for Tahoe. The Embassy Suites is so close to Harrah’s that I bet some of the rooms there are closer to Harrah’s casino floor than rooms actually in Harrah’s. In fact, I paced it off at 50 paces.

A short walk can get you to other main attractions on the south shore like shopping, Heavenly Ski Resort and Edgewood Golf Course.

Read more…

Tony Korologos a.k.a. mediaguru Golf Lifestyle, Golf Reviews, Travel

What a spectacular day today at Edgewood Tahoe. The weather was flawless and the usual afternoon winds didn’t kick up. Unlike yesterday, I had time to warm up. I even had quite a lengthy putting green and driving range practice session. Note to self: practice more. It helps. I played very well today, shooting one over on the front and even on the back for a glorious 73. I’m still glowing.

I’ve created an Edgewood Tahoe photo gallery and added well over 100 photos, with close to another 100 on the way. Below is a shot of the beautiful 18th green, with Lake Tahoe to the left. Click here, or the photo below to go to my new Edgewood Tahoe photo gallery.

Tony Korologos a.k.a. mediaguru Golf Courses, Golf Lifestyle, Travel

Man.  Edgewood Tahoe is a beautiful golf course.   Lake Tahoe is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited.

So far my favorite holes at Edgewood are the 15th, which I made birdie on, and the 17th which is pictured here in this post (par).

I’ll have a full review of the course on the way and of the very nice Embassy Suites in Tahoe soon.  Until then, enjoy this pic.  I’ll be playing tomorrow and posting a ton of pictures soon.

Tony Korologos a.k.a. mediaguru Golf Courses, Golf Lifestyle, Travel

Quick note from the runway. I’m heading to Tahoe to play Edgewood today and tomorrow.

More after the round.

Tony Korologos a.k.a. mediaguru Golf Courses, Travel

Last couple of days the first joint in my right hand pinky has been hurting pretty bad. Even if I touch it lightly there’s pain. It is seriously inflamed. I don’t feel any bumps or lumps so I think (hope) it is just some tendonitis.

I’m starting a three day golf marathon today. Day one is here in town and the next two days are at a fam trip at Edgewood Tahoe. Time to hit the ibuprophen, gold bond and medical tape.

Tony Korologos a.k.a. mediaguru Life, Miscellaneous

Golf clubs with laser beams on them. Odd contraptions you hook to your arms, legs, feet, head. Glasses and contacts with special lenses which help you hit better golf shots. Computer programs, iPhone GPS tracking systems… I’ve seen everything known to man in golf. I’ve got a pile of golf inventions guaranteed to take strokes off my game in my living room just waiting to be reviewed on this site. Little did I know that the true way to play better golf doesn’t lie in gadgets and technology. It is sausage.

Golf and sausage?

I’m writing a review on sausage? I can’t believe it myself. What possesses a company to send a golf blog sausage for review is beyond even the deep, dark, twisted contents of my cranium. What’s next? Gourmet chocolate sauce? Oh, wait… never mind.

Kountry Boys Sausage

Well I’m doing it. I’m writing about sausage. I got some boxes the other day and inside were dozens of samples of Kountry Boys Sausage in many flavors. I couldn’t help laughing. I received two types of sausage. The first was more of a dried “jerky” type like a Slim Jim. The 2nd was a more moist and thicker kind for cooking on the BBQ or putting in pasta or many other applications. I threw the jerky sticks in my golf bag and forgot about them.

On the course

I always do an “on the course” section in my golf equipment reviews so here goes.

Last week I’m playing with my buddies when I ran across the sausage sticks in my golf bag. I was cruising along at three over par, playing some middle of the road uninspired golf. On the 6th tee I busted the sausage out and introduced Kountry Boys to myself and my pals.

Man this stuff is tasty! I hit a huge drive down this par four while practically still chewing on a bite, slight draw, lots of roll. My pals and I laughed. “Haha. Nice drive. You’ll have to hit all your shots while eating sausage.”  That’s just what I did on that hole.

I hit a gap wedge to the green while chomping. The shot never left the flagstick and finished about eight feet below the hole. When it was my turn to putt, I took another bite. I lined up the putt and poured it in for birdie. No doubt.

I shot -2 the rest of the round, post sausage. Proof positive that Kountry Boys Sausage lowers my golf scores.

I’ve since cooked up the bigger sausages on the barbie and enjoyed every last bite. I chopped some up and made a nice spicy pasta too. Man this stuff is good.

Conclusion

Whether you are a golfer or not, Kountry Boys Sausage is super tasty and there are many flavors and styles to choose from.  If you do golf, your game will certainly improve while eating KBS.

Tony Korologos a.k.a. mediaguru Golf Lifestyle, Golf Reviews, Miscellaneous

I’ve said here many times there’s nothing better than having clean balls. Clean balls inspire confidence, increase performance and can lead to better scores. BallBrite is a ball cleaning pouch which hangs from your golf bag or your belt loop, which does a great job insuring just that.

How it works

You wet the inside of the pouch and slide your golf ball inside. Once inside you can rub the outside of the pouch, working the ball around inside. The ball comes out clean, leaving the dirt and grass inside the pouch. The pouch is waterproof so it doesn’t leak onto your clothes. When you get home, you can wash the pouch with your laundry.

On the course

Rather than spitting on my ball and rubbing the grass and dirt with my hands, increasing bacteria and dirtying my hands, I use the BallBrite.

I’m not big on carrying a large golf towel to the green. And I’m not big on having items attached to my waist when I’m playing. So I’ll hook my BallBrite with the attached loop to my putter cover, which has a hole for attaching small towels. That way I have the unit with me on or near the green.

I love putting with a perfectly clean and shiny ball and I often wonder how my performance on full shots can be effected if the ball has dirt or grass debris on the surface. The BallBrite cleans the ball very well and assures me of top performance. Being waterproof, the unit allows me to have clean hands and clean clothes.

Conclusion

The BallBrite is a nice accessory which is simple, effective and well made. The unit will last a long time and provide many years of clean balls. For less than $20 I can be sure my balls are rolling and flying true. That $20 can be made up quickly in prize money and bets!

Tony Korologos a.k.a. mediaguru Golf Accessories, Golf Balls, Golf Reviews

I’m back on the grid.  I spent the weekend camping in one of the most amazing places I’ve ever seen.  I’ll post about that later.

Upon my return I was happy to hear that the USA Ryder Cup team finally pulled off a victory.  In fact they won by a farily large margin too.  Why the win, especially without the world’s best player Tiger Woods?

Why Tiger may not be good for the USA Ryder Cup team

Flame me if you want but I’m going to comment on why it may be possible that the USA Ryder Cup team is better off without Tiger.

Exhibit A:  Tiger’s Personal Ryder Cup Record

It is well documented that Tiger doesn’t have the greatest Ryder Cup record.  The table below shows his results.  He’s sub 50% total, won 30% of foursome matches, won 40% of his fourball matches and won 60% of his singles:

Exhibit B:  Ryder Cup Results

Just looking at the years since Tiger started playing in the cup is exhibit B.  Tiger has played in five Ryder Cups, four of which the USA Team lost.

Exhibit C: 2008

In 2008 the USA Team wins without Tiger.

Assuming I’m correct then WHY?

I can think of a few reasons why the USA Ryder Cup team is “less effective” with Tiger on board:

First, Tiger is an “individual” player, used to working hard and excelling on his own.  Having to “depend” on other players or play in a “team” situation may not be his comfort zone or forte’.  It must be frustrating for Tiger to have to put up with partners who may bring him down.  It also must be frustrating to have his game and results not 100% dependent on HIS performance.

Second, I think other players feel pressure as Tiger’s teammate. Many players who Tiger has partnered with don’t perform very well.  The pressure of playing with Tiger must get to them.

3rd, camaraderie.  Many say that the European teams have camaraderie that the USA team doesn’t.  They eat dinner together, drink beers together etc.  Many USA team players, Tiger especially, have their own private worlds and may have less of a “locker room” vibe.

Tony Korologos a.k.a. mediaguru PGA Tour, Tiger Woods

To get you into the spirit of the Ryder Cup, here are some Ryder Cup themed accessories for you.

Golf Pride makes Ryder Cup golf grips for the European or USA Ryder Cup teams:

Q-Link makes golf performance enhancing bracelets.  Their bracelets are “infused with proprietary sympathetic resonance technology which enhances wellness and overall performance.”

Tony Korologos a.k.a. mediaguru Golf Accessories, Golf Equipment, Golf Reviews, Life, Miscellaneous