2015 River Oaks Hell Day – Halloween Golf Tournament

Written by: Tony Korologos | Thursday, October 29th, 2015
Categories: Golf • Hackers • Miscellaneous

Here are some highlights from the Hell Day tournament at one of my home courses, River Oaks. I introduced this format to the club when I was club president and I’m glad to see that legacy carrying on years after my reign ended. One might call this format a Halloween golf tournament (for those of you googling that term…) Below is a highlight video from my group, showing some of the very tough putting conditions and below that are some photos.

Teeing off on the par-3 12th

Not really sure what is going on here…

This is AWESOME. Halloween pumpkin painted next to the 17th tee

16 tee, carved out of the bushes WAY right of the fairway

Pumpkins are immovable objects

Lasering a yardage on #15 tee

Trophy for LAST place is a guy bending over and blowing a snot rocket on his ball

For a few more photos visit the HOG 2015 River Oaks Hell Day photo gallery.

Jordan Spieth Mosaic in Dallas is Made From 24,152 Golf Balls

Written by: Tony Korologos | Wednesday, October 28th, 2015
Categories: Jordan Spieth • Miscellaneous
Tags: Jordan Spieth

I don’t normally post items from PR companies which are less newsworthy/informational and more advertorial in nature, but this registered high enough on my cool-o-meter to warrant posting. It’s a mosaic of Jordan Spieth which is on display at Main Street Gardens in downtown Dallas, TX. Here’s the video timelapse below of the constructions, and under that is some text describing it.

FROM AT&T:

Here are all the details about this unique work of art:

· The mosaic is of Jordan’s likeness
· 24,152 golf balls are used (placed on tees) with the grass acting as negative space; a team of 25 individuals worked to set up the mosaic
· The golf balls will be donated to the Dallas chapter of The First Tee, as well as the Northern Texas PGA.
· There will be a national ad campaign congratulating Jordan with this mosaic across TV and print starting Nov. 4
· The mosaic will be open to the public for up-close viewing on Wed., Oct. 28 and Thurs., Oct. 29; deconstruction of the mosaic will take place that evening
· There is a viewing platform so that the public can see the mosaic from above

Since signing a multi-year deal with AT&T in May of 2014, Jordan has helped AT&T promote the dangers of distracted driving by appearing in an “It Can Wait” commercial that aired during the 2015 Masters. Jordan’s golf bag also carries the AT&T logo. We’re looking forward to a another great year in 2016 and more collaboration with this bright star on the TOUR.

SpiethMosaicOverheadHOG

I wonder when AT&T is going to sponsor a Hooked On Golf Blog mosaic in a major city? #snubbedagain

Tribute to My Little Guy Who Turns Three Today

Written by: Tony Korologos | Wednesday, October 28th, 2015
Categories: Miscellaneous

Three years ago today this photo below was captured. It was a day which changed my world; the day little Seve was born. Yes, Seve. Cool name eh? This morning my heart melted a thousandth when I wished him a happy birthday and he ran to me for a big morning hug.

“Drive for show. Putt for dough, son. But don’t be afraid to let the big dog eat!”

I’ve very much enjoyed the last three years, barring a few (hundred) sleepless nights and a few (hundred) messy diapers. Those lowlights are few and far between now.

sev-football-sm I was skeptical about having an offspring at such a late age, but thankfully my lovely bride talked me into it. I’ve enjoyed discovering the world with this little guy, who is very inquisitive and interested in all things mechanical. Wheels, hinges, latches, tracks, trains, locks, water, sand, are all things that Sev has intense focus toward. He can roll a drawer back and forth hundreds of times analyzing how it moves. He loves watching physical interactions between objects like wheels on tracks, or sand/water going from one cup to another. My guess at this point is he will be some kind of mechanical engineer or designer.

I’ve enjoyed how playful and silly he can be, and wrestling around with him as he laughs so hard he can hardly stand it. We enjoy hiking, walking, hitting balls in the backyard, going to football games.

You can tell, even at this young age, that he has a kind soul. His innocence is so fun and I hope to hell I can keep him that way as long as possible.

He is a completely stubborn individual, just like mom. Mom would say he gets that from me. Double whammy I suppose.

Hats off to my little guy Seve. Happy birthday son. I can’t wait to see what your third year has in store for you.

This Week on Tour

Written by: Tony Korologos | Wednesday, October 28th, 2015
Categories: Champions Tour • European Tour • LPGA Tour • PGA Tour • Pro Golf • Rory McIlory
Tags: Ian Poulter • MIguel Angel Jimenez • Rory McIlory

PGA TOUR
CIMB Classic
Dates: Oct. 29-Nov. 1
Venue: Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club (West Course), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Tournament Airtimes on Golf Channel (Eastern):
Wednesday 10:30 p.m.-2:30 a.m. (Live) / 2-6 p.m. (Thursday replay)
Thursday 10:30 p.m.-2:30 a.m. (Live) / 1-5 p.m. (Friday replay)
Friday 11 p.m.-3 a.m. (Live) / 1-5 p.m. (Saturday replay)
Saturday 11 p.m.-3 a.m. (Live) / Noon-4 p.m. (Sunday replay)

Broadcast Notes:
Tournament format: The field consists of 78 players including 60 players from the 2014-15 FedExCup standings, 10 from the Asian Tour Order of Merit, and eight sponsor’s exemptions, competing in a 72-hole no-cut format.
Moore defends: Ryan Moore won by three strokes over Gary Woodland, Kevin Na and Sergio Garcia to successfully defend his 2013 title.
Headlining the field: Henrik Stenson, Hideki Matsuyama, Sergio Garcia, Adam Scott, Ernie Els, Patrick Reed, Anirban Lahiri, Daniel Berger, Justin Thomas, Branden Grace and Kevin Na.

EUROPEAN TOUR
Turkish Airlines Open
Dates: Oct. 29-Nov. 1
Venue: The Montgomerie Maxx Royal, Antalya, Turkey

Tournament Airtimes on Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 5-10 a.m. (Live)
Friday 5-10 a.m. (Live)
Saturday 5-10 a.m. (Live)
Sunday 3:30-8:30 a.m. (Live)

Broadcast Notes:
Final Series begins as McIlroy looks to maintain Race to Dubai lead: Rory McIlroy headlines the field as the Race to Dubai leader in the first of four events a part of the European Tour’s Final Series. Each of the four events features a field of 60-78 players with no cut, totaling a combined purse of $30.5 million.
Headlining the field: Rory McIlroy, Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood, Graeme McDowell, Charl Schwartzel, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Shane Lowry, Victor Dubuisson and Matthew Fitzpatrick.

CHAMPIONS TOUR
Toshiba Classic
Dates: Oct. 30-Nov. 1
Venue: Newport Beach Country Club, Newport Beach, Calif.

Tournament Airtimes on Golf Channel (Eastern):
Friday 5-8 p.m. (Live) / 3-5 a.m. (Saturday replay)
Saturday 5-8 p.m. (Live) / 2-3:30 a.m. (Sunday replay)
Sunday 4:30-7 p.m. (Live) / Midnight-2 a.m. (Monday replay)

Broadcast Notes:
Three continue to battle for Charles Schwab Cup title: This is the final event prior to the Charles Schwab Cup Championship, with Colin Montgomerie, Jeff Maggert and Bernhard Langer still in the race to win the Charles Schwab Cup, with only 66 points separating Montgomerie (first place) from Langer (third place). At week’s end, the top-30 in the season-long Charles Schwab Cup race will advance to next week’s season-culminating Charles Schwab Cup Championship in Arizona. Players on the bubble hoping to advance to compete in next week’s field include: Fred Couples (No. 28); Miguel Angel Jimenez (No. 29); Duffy Waldorf (No. 30); Stephen Ames (No. 31); Rod Spittle (No. 32); Rocco Mediate (No. 33); and Fred Funk (No. 34).
Couples defends: Fred Couples defeated Colin Montgomerie, Bernhard Langer and Steve Pate by one stroke for his 10th career Champions Tour victory.
Headlining the field: Colin Montgomerie, Jeff Maggert, Bernhard Langer, Fred Couples, Jay Haas, Vijay Singh, Mark O’Meara, Rocco Mediate, Marco Dawson and Tom Lehman.

LPGA TOUR
Blue Bay LPGA
Dates: Oct. 29-Nov. 1
Venue: Jian Lake Blue Bay Golf Course, Hainan Island, China

Tournament Airtimes on Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 2:30-5 a.m. (Tape delay) / Midnight-4 a.m. (Streaming on Golf Live Extra)
Friday 2:30-5 a.m. (Tape delay) / Midnight-4 a.m. (Streaming on Golf Live Extra)
Saturday 8-10:30 p.m. (Tape delay) / Midnight-4 a.m. (Streaming on Golf Live Extra)
Sunday 8 p.m.-Midnight (Tape delay) / Midnight-3 a.m. (Streaming on Golf Live Extra)

Broadcast Notes:
Pace defends: Lee-Anne Pace defeated Caroline Masson by three strokes for his first LPGA Tour win in a 54-hole shortened event due to heavy rains.
Headlining the field: Lydia Ko, Inbee Park, Stacy Lewis, Shanshan Feng, Hyo Joo Kim, Amy Yang, Suzann Pettersen, Sei Young Kim, Anna Nordqvist and Brittany Lincicome.

Coming Up…

East Lake Cup
Dates: Nov. 2-3
Venue: East Lake Golf Club, Atlanta, Ga.

Airtimes on Golf Channel (Eastern):
Monday, Nov. 2 Semifinals, Match Play 2-5 p.m. (Live) / 7-10 p.m. (Replay)
Tuesday, Nov. 3 Finals, Match Play 2-5 p.m. (Live) / 6-10 p.m. (Replay)

Broadcast Notes:
Format: The four NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships semifinalist teams will reconvene to compete in the inaugural East Lake Cup collegiate match play championship from East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Ga., home of the TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola. The event will benefit the East Lake Foundation. In addition to live tournament coverage on Golf Channel, the network will provide pre-and-post event news coverage on Golf Central, with live reports and interviews from on-site at Eat Lake.
Participating Universities: The four participating men’s teams include: reigning National Champions Louisiana State University (LSU), the University of Southern California (USC), who lost to LSU in the championship match; the University of Illinois, who has won three of their last four fall collegiate events and is currently the top-ranked team in the country according to the GCAA Coaches Rankings, and the University of Georgia (UGA), two-time national champions (1999 and 2005). The women’s division features three of the top-four ranked teams in the current Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings including 2015 NCAA Women’s National Champion Stanford University. The remaining field includes Championship runner-up Baylor University; the University of Southern California (USC), currently the top-ranked team in the country in both the Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings and Golfstat Relative Ranking; and six-time national champions Duke University.

Review: Bridgestone Golf J15DF Driving Forged Irons

Written by: Tony Korologos | Tuesday, October 27th, 2015
Categories: Golf • Golf Clubs • Golf Equipment • Golf Gear • Reviews
Tags: Bridgestone Golf • irons

This product review of the Bridgestone Golf J15 Driving Forged Irons came at a critical time in my golf game and my attitude. Anyone who follows this blog and/or my social networks knows of the frustrations I’ve had of late with this beautifully infuriating game of golf. More on the timing and attitude later. First let’s take a look at the J15 Driving Forged Irons.

Bridgestone Golf J15DF Irons – click to see more

Construction

The J15 Driving Forged Irons are designed for golfers from the professional level to mid-handicap players. I fall somewhere in that range as a player who varies from a 1-4 handicap, depending on the time of year. So they should be a good fit.

The J15DF features a two-piece premium forged carbon steel design. For those of you readers who don’t know what “forged” really means, it’s one of two primary manufacturing processes irons are typically made from. The other process is called casting, producing “cast” clubs. In my opinion forged clubs tend to have a softer feel and provide more “feedback” to the player than cast. Feedback would be the feel and sound translated to the player from the club. Feedback gives the player great information with regards to the quality of contact and where it occurs on the club face. Better players can translate this feedback into how they need to adjust for better contact. Cast irons on the other hand, don’t often produce this feel. Most shots, regardless of where they happen on the club face, feel about the same.

These irons feature a “hidden” cavity between the front and the rear of the club head. This design employs “FAST” technology, or Flex Action Speed Technology. The cavity and design allows the club’s weight to be moved out toward the perimeter. Perimeter weighting (another buzz term in the golf industry) provides more forgiveness.

The sole of the club is a little narrower than game improvement clubs (clubs which are meant for higher handicap players). “Mid Sure Contact Sole” design allows the club to be consistent in the way it interacts and bounces off of the ground.

Bridgestone Golf J15DF Irons

Specs

Iron	Loft	Lie Angle	Length	S/W	Offset	Bounce
3	20°	60.5°	39″	D3	3.5 mm	2.0°
4	22.5°	61.0°	38.5″	D3	3.5 mm	2.0°
5	25°	61.5°	38″	D3	3.0 mm	2.0°
6	28°	62.0°	37.5″	D3	3.0 mm	3.0°
7	32°	62.5°	37″	D3	3.0 mm	3.0°
8	36°	63.0°	36.5″	D3	2.5 mm	4.0°
9	41°	63.5°	36″	D3	2.5 mm	5.0°
PW	46°	64.0°	35.75″	D4	2.5 mm	6.0°

This club is available in right-hand only. Sorry lefties. You’re missing out. While the specs above show a 3-iron, the set I tested is a 4-PW.

Options

A club fitting would help in the setup decision making process without a doubt. I recommend making sure your shafts, lofts, lengths, and lies are all set for your swing. If you already know your specs, you can actually order your exact setup online at the Bridgestone Golf J15 page.

There are well over 20 shaft options available. I ended up with the True Temper Dynamic Gold Pro S300, the stock shafts. They’re fantastic.

The J15DF online configurator offers a choice of 14 grips. The model I’m gaming is the Golf Pride Tour Velvet. While they seemed a bit hard at first, I’ve grown to really like them. I’ll be reviewing the grips in a separate article later.

On The Course

From the first club I hit on the range (still remember it was a 7-iron), to the last one I hit yesterday, I’ve been thrilled with these irons. I have the opportunity to play many of the world’s best irons from most of the major brands, many custom made. None of those other irons but the J15DF’s have come close to the feel and control I grew accustomed to with my hand forged set of Hogan irons from nearly 15 years ago. The feel is butter.

Unlike the old school irons though, these are easier to hit and much longer. I’ve enjoyed very solid iron length and accuracy since putting the J15DF in the bag. The control these irons offer is tremendous. Whether I want to hit a low driving punch 5-iron like I did a few days ago on the par-3 11th to eight feet, or hit a high fade with a 7-iron, these clubs respond.

That high fade with a 7-iron came yesterday, probably my shot of the month. It was my 2nd shot on the 510 yard par-5 7th. I was 184 out and needed to carry the shot over some front bunkers and have it release to a back-right pin. The shot was one of the most pure shots I’ve ever hit and the ball landed within inches of my intended landing spot over one of the bunkers. It released up a slope in the green and finished at 12 inches from the hole for a tap-in eagle. That came at a time when my partner and I had just been pressed on the front nine. #winner

There are many stories I could tell like the 7-iron above, and with the J15DF’s in the bag there will surely be many more.

Critical Timing

I mentioned the critical timing in my opener. You see, I’ve been struggling so much with my game I was close to quitting. Not just for a week or two, or for the winter, but forever. I’d had it. Then the J15DF’s came in for review. I was very close to declining the review and quitting. Out of respect for Bridgestone and how great they’ve been to HOG over the years I decided to do the review. The J15DF irons gave my game a badly needed spark. They talked me off the proverbial golf cliff.

Now that I’ve become excited about hitting quality iron shots again, winter looms unfortunately. I’ll be trying to get in as many rounds with these irons as I can until the snow flies.

Conclusion

Bridgestone may be better known for their golf ball products, but you’d be making a mistake if you didn’t check them out before making an iron buying decision. The Bridgestone Golf J15DF irons provide ultimate distance, control, and feel for golfers of mid-level handicaps and better. I know exactly where I’m hitting it on the club face because of their fantastic feel and feedback. I know if I execute shots well with these clubs, the results will be tremendous.

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