Hooked On Golf Blog 10 Year Blogiversary

Written by: Tony Korologos | Friday, December 5th, 2014
Categories: Golf Media • Miscellaneous • Site News
Tags: Golf Blogs

Aerial Photo of New Mexico's Black Mesa Golf Club - © 2014 by Tony Korologos

One of the many HOG World Tour stops, Black Mesa Golf Club in New Mexico

As of today Hooked On Golf Blog is 10 years old. TEN YEARS. Back on December 5th, 2004 I posted my first golf blog, “You can only understand if you golf.” It was certainly not award winning material. I’d give it a D+ today, but I’m sure Tiger Woods didn’t hit his best shots when he first picked up a club.

I started blogging at the suggestion of my best friend Alan Nelson. Back in 2004 he told me blogging would be big, the next big craze on the internet. Alan is a wise man and when he has a suggestion I take it to heart. This was before Facebook or Twitter. When I asked what I should blog about, he said “something you love.” I had to choose between rock & roll, strippers, pizza, and golf. I chose golf, though I think if I chose strippers I’d probably be a millionaire by now. Thanks to Alan’s suggestion, HOG exists.

The 10 years I’ve been running this blog have been amazing. I’ve worked hard to build up about 5000 golf articles, over 20,000 golf photos, hundreds of videos, several other golf sites and associated social networks. I’ve played some of the world’s most amazing golf courses, many which had not even opened to the public yet. I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing much of the world’s best golf equipment, golf apparel, and golf accessories.

Stats

At about 2-3 million hits per month by anywhere from 5,000 to 15,000 unique visitors per day, it’s hard to count how many millions of hits and visitors the site has seen in the past decade. Rough guess I’d say the site has seen 100 million hits, and probably 15-20 million unique visitors.

The HOG Photo Gallery is now at 20,381. The HOG Twitter @HOGGOLFBLOG has 2,798 followers while my personal twitter @TheGolfSpace has 4,003 followers. The HOG Facebook is at 1,587 followers. My Google+ page has 415 followers and 742,996 views. On Google+ the HOG page is at 311 followers and 74,152 views. The HOG YouTube features 438 videos, 631 subscribers, and has 5,333,049 views.

In short, I have a reach to a large audience.

You can tell Miss Universe digs me. Just look in her eyes.

People

Because of this golf blog I’ve met some of the coolest people on the planet. A few notables include Jack Nicklaus, Chi Chi Rodriguez, Robert Duval (yes the Academy Award winning actor) and Miss Universe, Stefania Fernandez. Miss Universe is a lot better looking than Chi Chi, though not as entertaining. I’ve met many stars in golf and business, but the real people in the industry are the ones who have had the biggest impact on me. I’m talking about the people who run other golf sites, work at golf courses, design golf courses, work for golf manufacturers, work in PR firms, and even caddie. These people are the heart and soul of this industry and the game. I’m thrilled to have established so many relationships and friendships. I plan to mention many of you in my people post.

I had intended to recap the last 10 years in this 10 year anniversary post, but I’ve spent a good hour on just calendar year 2005. So I’m going to break it up a bit and post some look-back posts for the last 10 years.

Next up, the birth and first years of HOG. Look for the next post.

Special Announcement Tomorrow

Written by: Tony Korologos | Thursday, December 4th, 2014
Categories: Miscellaneous • Site News

Please be sure to tune in here for a very special announcement about this golf blog.

Majestic…

Golf Gifts Under $50

Written by: Tony Korologos | Wednesday, December 3rd, 2014
Categories: Golf Accessories • Golf For Women • Golf Gear • Miscellaneous
Tags: Christmas Golf Gift • golf gift • Golf Gifts • Holiday Golf Gift

Below is a Christmas gift guide, also known as “holiday gift guide” for those who are politically correct. Unlike my recent apparel gift guide and electronic golf gadget gift guide, this one focuses on a price point. All items in this golf gift guide are under $50. Each photo slide below can be clicked to view the full Hooked On Golf Blog review and get more information.
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First Look: 2015 TaylorMade Supreme Hybrid Golf Bag

Written by: Tony Korologos | Tuesday, December 2nd, 2014
Categories: Golf Accessories • Golf Equipment • Golf Gear
Tags: Golf Bag • TaylorMade

Played my first round with the 2015 TaylorMade Supreme Hybrid Golf Bag today. This is one of three bags TaylorMade is offering for next year. It is a stand bag which can be carried, or works great on a golf cart as well.

The bag is staying in the starting lineup since I shot an even-par 72 with it in play! Had to be the new bag…

TaylorMade Supreme Hybrid Golf Bag

Below is the description from TaylorMade:

Supreme Hybrid

Designed for a golfer who enjoys walking the course on occasion, but also enjoys cart riding, the Supreme Hybrid features the storage space of a cart bag with the mobility of a lightweight stand bag. The Supreme Hybrid is complete with two slots to accommodate oversized putter grips, double zippered garment pocket, a four-point shoulder strap with air mesh for ventilation, an anti-split stand system and a cart compatible base.

Additional features include:

14-way top with handle

4 full-length dividers

10 pockets

Crush-resistant construction

Glove tab

MSRP: $219.99

I’m now in the review process and will post my findings when I’ve had enough rounds to comfortably assess this golf bag. Stay tuned.

First Look: GolfBuddy WT4 Golf GPS Watch

Written by: Tony Korologos | Tuesday, December 2nd, 2014
Categories: Golf Accessories • Golf Equipment • Golf Gear
Tags: Golf GPS • GolfBuddy • GPS

I’m now in the midst of my testing phase for the GolfBuddy WT4 Golf GPS Watch. As you can see from the picture below, this is a very sharp looking unit.

GolfBuddy WT4 Golf GPS Watch

After a few more evaluation rounds I’ll be posting my completeGolfBuddy WT4 Golf GPS Watch review soon. So far I dig the look and how solid the GPS yardages are. I don’t wear watches often, so I’ve got it now attached to my golf bag.

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