University of Michigan Golf Course Review

Written by: Tony Korologos | Wednesday, August 13th, 2014
Categories: Course Reviews • Golf Courses • Golf Lifestyle • HOG World Tour • Travel
Tags: Michigan Golf

University of Michigan Golf Course

I was just entering the 2014 college football schedule into my calendar for my Utah Utes. Tough go for us being fairly new in the Pac-12, but I digress. The 3rd game on the schedule this season is at the “Big House,” also known as the University of Michigan’s football stadium. The place holds something like 12.2 million fans. A few weeks ago I was across the street from the big house playing golf at the University of Michigan Golf Course. What a fantastic place. The course is not quite publicly accessible, but there are several ways one can get a round in on this wonderful layout. If you get the chance, do it.

The course is the home of the Michigan golf teams and is closed for play during competitions. The course is also closed on football days, where it doubles as a parking lot.

Design

Ever heard of Alister MacKenzie? He designed the University of Michigan Golf Course, which opened in 1931. He’s the same golf course architect who designed Augusta National Golf Club (home of the Masters Tournament) with the help of Bobby Jones. One other highly ranked architectural masterpiece he created was Cypress Point.

Having visited Augusta National many times, I could definitely get the feel of MacKenzie’s style and creativity at the University of Michigan course. The way he utilized the rolling hills, angles, and elevation changes on the property is magnificent.

Arthur Hills performed a restoration on the course in 1994, which according to the University of Michigan, “restored the grandeur of the University Golf Course to the ranks of MacKenzie’s other classics.”

Total yardage for the golf course from the tips, also known as the Wolverine Tee, is 6687 yards. The course rating is 72.0 and slopes at 135. These numbers translate to a strong challenge, but not over the top in terms of difficulty. There are three other tee sets for players of varying age, gender, and ability level.

Tee

I’m not sure which club I prefer the most on the tees at the University of Michigan Golf Course, my driver or my Nikon. The framing of the holes from the tees is fabulous.

Tee – click to zoom

Tee shots are not extremely difficult, but with the movement of the course, trees lining the fairways, and some deep native grass areas, errant tee shots are one-way tickets to bogey land.

Fairway

Like Augusta National, the fairways at U of M roll with the hilly terrain. Challenging lies await, producing approaches which are a fine test of shotmaking. The fairways are not overly narrow, but due to the movement of the holes, proper placement is a big advantage on approach shots.

Fairway – click to zoom

There are many “course management” scenarios. On some par-4 holes and even one particular par-5 (3rd hole) driver may not be the perfect club to hit off the tee, but is still an option.

Green

The greens are very fun and unique at the U of M course. First, they are not terribly large so hitting them in regulation is a solid accomplishment.

Green – click to zoom

There are very large undulations and tiers in the greens which can break those medium to small sized greens into even smaller areas. If an approach finds the wrong one, two-putting is a challenge but not impossible.

The shaping and framing of the greens on this course is very pleasing to the eye.

Facilities

Full supporting facilities in the form of practice areas, pro shop, and dining are offered at U of M.

Conclusion

Playing the U of M golf course was a fantastic experience. I loved the layout, the flow, routing, scenery, and especially the conditioning. I strongly recommend playing the course if you get the chance. I cannot wait to get back and take another shot at it.

Related Links

Hooked On Golf Blog University of Michigan Golf Course photo gallery.

Other Hooked On Golf Blog Michigan golf reviews.

Get Ready for a Deluge of Crappy Golf Course Drone Photos

Written by: Tony Korologos | Wednesday, August 13th, 2014
Categories: Boneheads • Miscellaneous

Since October of last year I’ve been a “UAV pilot,” so to speak. UAV is short for unmanned aerial vehicle. These are small remote control helicopters which some are also referring to as “drones.” The word drone has a bit of a bad reputation, associated with remote killing machines used by the military, or perhaps used for spying. Rest assured, I’m not interested in the spying aspect or seeing your wife sunbathing in the back yard. I’m much more interested in getting good aerial golf course photos and aerial golf course videos. Good photos NOT like the two below.

My eyes! I’m falling off the earrrrtttttthhhh!

Drones are becoming more and more popular as the affordability of them increases. Most of the little drones are only big enough to carry GoPro cameras. GoPro’s have their place and have exploded in the action video world. But their still image capability is pretty bad. The lenses on GoPros are super-wide for great HD action video, but that does not translate to decent photos. The lens distortion produces photos that are quite fisheye looking. Now that more and more of these drone/GoPro setups are airborne, we are going to see a lot of crappy artifacted fisheye distorted JPG’s of golf courses.

This green slopes back to front. You need mountain climbing gear to scale it!

I spent a lot of time with my smaller setup and GoPro. I’ve been able to produce much better images with little to no distortion as compared to images like the ones above. Check it out:

Sand Hollow Championship Course - Hole #10

In this photo you don’t feel like the earth is a the size of a beach ball and that you’re going to slide off!

My second, bigger setup has gone beyond GoPro. This bird is a much bigger vehicle and can put far better camera in the air. No lens distortion (unless wanted) and far superior photo quality. I’m still tweaking this setup, but you can be sure I’ll be posting some photos and video from this beast soon. Check out the big bird:

My Bigger Drone for Aerial Golf Photos/Video

Club Championship Poachers

Written by: Tony Korologos | Tuesday, August 12th, 2014
Categories: Boneheads • Golf • Hackers • Miscellaneous

Ask anyone who has taken on the position as club president of a golf club’s men’s association and I’m sure they can tell you all sorts of bizarre and crazy stories. As president of my men’s association for seven LONG years, I saw more strange stuff and heard more bizarre whining and sniveling than one could ever imagine. Reality is truly more bizarre than fantasy.

The Problem

One thing I encountered in my time as pres, and which I had to create countermeasures for, is what I call “club championship poaching.”

A few years ago, as we did every season, we held our club championship. It was an 18 hole gross tournament and the winner collects the championship prize money, trophy, and plays in the state’s “tournament of champions.” Quite an honor.

One week prior to this club championship a stranger joined the association. The association always needs new members, right? That player shot the low round of the championship, winning the trophy and collecting all the spoils that went along with it. It took one time for me to figure out the gig. A very good “plus” handicap golfer like this guy joins every men’s club the week of the club championship. They win, collecting the prizes, and also gaining points in the state’s amateur ranking system.

The Solution

The following season, knowing that this guy or other guys like him would try to poach the championship, I instituted a “minimum rounds played” setup. In order to qualify for the club championship a member must have played a certain number of rounds in the league that season. I set the number at eight.

Sure enough at the end of the season during the week of the championship, this poacher and a couple of others signed up for the association! They also entered the club championship. Following the tournament they did not find themselves on the leaderboard, despite shooting what they thought was the winning score.

I informed them that the were not eligible and that any player who had been there for the majority of the season would have seen the minimum requirements for eligibility in the championship posted on the association’s bulletin board.

Thanks for chipping in some cash into the league’s coffers and adding to the championship prize fund buddies!

See you next year?

When I resigned as president and the new president took over the league, I warned him about these poachers. He put into place an even more strict policy, a minimum of 11 rounds to qualify for the championship. This year the club had three new signups the week of the championship and they played in it! I’m sure they’ll be thrilled when they find their names missing on the leaderboard.

2014 PGA Championship Commentary – Choo Choo! Hop on the Rory McIlory Bandwagon!

Written by: Tony Korologos | Monday, August 11th, 2014
Categories: PGA Championship • PGA Tour • Pro Golf • Rory McIlory • Tiger Woods
Tags: Bubba Watson • Phil Mickelson • Rickie Fowler • Tiger Woods

I have now watched TV for a third time this year, during the PGA Championship. The first two times were the Masters and the Open Championship. I live a sheltered, golf blogger life I suppose.

I’ve considered the PGA Championship to be the red-headed stepchild of the major tournaments, but the finish this year was more exciting than the other three majors. All that despite a hoaky golf course in Valhalla which seemed to strictly dictate playing strategy on many holes, leaving no room for creativity by the players.

Choo Choo! Hop on the McIlory bandwagon!

Hop aboard the Rory McIlory bandwagon with me! I’m a fan! The McIlroy era has begun. Watch the golf media go all ape gaga over Rory now as Tiger fades. They’ll latch onto him like a baby monkey latches onto its mother. Soon we will be reading all the “will Rory break Jack’s major record?” drivel from the scribes. Quote me on it. Book it. So predictable.

The 2014 PGA Championship was a great major win for Rory because he found himself behind by two shots midway through the round. He found a way to come back and win by two shots. A different win than his previous front-running style wins.

Hard not to like this kid. He is still a kid, but growing up fast. There’s something authentic about Rory. He’s not a mercenary robot like Tiger Woods was. He has a human quality to him and an open, perhaps slightly naive quality to him. This makes him much more likable than Tiger ever was. Time will tell if the endless stupid media questions and taking what he says out of context will sour that likable human aspect. I hope not.

Rickie Fowler

I’ve poked fun at Rickie Fowler for quite some time now. For a few years now, this kid has been more well known for his apparel style than his golf game. That has changed as has my opinion. In EVERY major this year Fowler has been right there, even had a chance to win. I respect that. He’ll get one.

Phil Mickelson

Phil has had a very lackluster season so far. I was pleased to see Phil bring it this past weekend and he produced some great drama, even tying for the lead for a bit. Ironically it was his short game failing him on the 16th hole Sunday, which led to a bogey which put him one back of McIlory.

Henrik Stenson

Henrik Stenson had a share of the lead for a bit. When he three putted I ducked, and I’m 2,000 miles from Valhalla. Stenson is a ticking time bomb and I wonder what he destroyed after yesterday’s round. Still, he’s an amazing player. Just ask his accountant.

Lee Westwood

I like Lee Westwood. He had the lead after the first round. But I’m not sure he can get over the hump and win a major championship. Maybe he hung around too much with Colin Montgomerie?

Bubba Watson

I missed much of this. Apparently Bubba Watson had some not-so worthy f-bombs which fell in earshot of not only the TV microphones, but small children. His behavior was enough to warrant many articles and commentary, and an apology on Twitter.

Dustin Johnson

DJ took a leave of absence before the PGA to work out personal issues. Many rumors and articles cited a suspension for drug use but the PGA Tour denied DJ was suspended. Sounds like a self-imposed suspension.

You are a reflection of who you hang out with. ‘Nuff said.

Will Tiger Break Jack’s record? I might break your jaw if you ask that question one more time…

Tiger Woods

Last but not least Tiger Woods. After withdrawing from the WGC Bridgestone the previous week and almost crawling to his courtesy car, Tiger was back at the PGA and was there to “win.” He did not win. He did not make the cut after shooting consecutive rounds of 74.

Many pundits are theorizing that he came back from back surgery too soon. Tiger insisted he was 100% healthy. Sounds to me like he’s floating down the river of de-Nile.

I’m not sure what to make of Tiger these days. Part of me thinks he should retire now, or at least take the rest of 2014 off and get healthy.

Final Thoughts

The PGA Championship marks a little bit of a sad day. It is symbolic of the golf season winding down. Summer is more than half over and soon here in northern Utah the snow will be flying and the golf clubs will be shelved for months.

I’ve been thinking of quitting golf lately, but if I’m going to I’d like to do it on my own terms, when I’m pissed off at it!
Right now I’m suffering from a bad case of golfer’s elbow. That injury may bench me before the snow flies.

2014 PGA Championship Final Leader Board

Written by: Tony Korologos | Monday, August 11th, 2014
Categories: PGA Championship • PGA Tour • Pro Golf • Rory McIlory • Tiger Woods
Tags: Bubba Watson • Jason Day • Phil Mickelsn • Rickie Fowler

POS	PLAYER	TO PAR	R1	R2	R3	R4	TOTAL
1	Rory McIlroy	-16	66	67	67	68	268
2	Phil Mickelson	-15	69	67	67	66	269
T3	Henrik Stenson	-14	66	71	67	66	270
T3	Rickie Fowler	-14	69	66	67	68	270
T5	Jim Furyk	-12	66	68	72	66	272
T5	Ryan Palmer	-12	65	70	69	68	272
T7	Jimmy Walker	-11	69	71	68	65	273
T7	Ernie Els	-11	70	70	68	65	273
T7	Victor Dubuisson	-11	69	68	70	66	273
T7	Hunter Mahan	-11	70	71	65	67	273
T7	Steve Stricker	-11	69	68	68	68	273
T7	Mikko Ilonen	-11	67	68	69	69	273
T13	Brandt Snedeker	-10	73	68	66	67	274
T13	Kevin Chappell	-10	65	74	67	68	274
T15	Charl Schwartzel	-9	72	68	69	66	275
T15	Marc Warren	-9	71	71	66	67	275
T15	Brooks Koepka	-9	71	71	66	67	275
T15	Lee Westwood	-9	65	72	69	69	275
T15	Adam Scott	-9	71	69	66	69	275
T15	Graham DeLaet	-9	69	68	68	70	275
T15	Jason Day	-9	69	65	69	72	275
T15	Louis Oosthuizen	-9	70	67	67	71	275
T15	Bernd Wiesberger	-9	68	68	65	74	275
T24	Justin Rose	-8	70	72	67	67	276
T24	Jamie Donaldson	-8	69	70	66	71	276
26	Joost Luiten	-7	68	69	69	71	277
T27	Jerry Kelly	-6	67	74	70	67	278
T27	Kenny Perry	-6	72	69	69	68	278
T27	Bill Haas	-6	71	68	68	71	278
T30	Thorbjorn Olesen	-5	71	71	70	67	279
T30	Alexander Levy	-5	69	71	68	71	279
T30	Danny Willett	-5	68	73	66	72	279
T33	Cameron Tringale	-4	69	71	71	69	280
T33	Daniel Summerhays	-4	70	72	68	70	280
T33	Nick Watney	-4	69	69	70	72	280
T36	Vijay Singh	-3	71	68	73	69	281
T36	Hideki Matsuyama	-3	71	72	70	68	281
T36	Richard Sterne	-3	70	69	72	70	281
T36	Jonas Blixt	-3	71	70	68	72	281
T36	Sergio Garcia	-3	70	72	66	73	281
T41	Koumei Oda	-2	74	68	71	69	282
T41	Jason Bohn	-2	71	71	71	69	282
T41	Brendon de Jonge	-2	70	70	72	70	282
T41	Luke Donald	-2	70	72	68	72	282
T41	Brian Harman	-2	71	69	69	73	282
T41	Ryan Moore	-2	73	68	67	74	282
T47	Shane Lowry	-1	68	74	74	67	283
T47	Robert Karlsson	-1	71	69	74	69	283
T47	Graeme McDowell	-1	73	70	71	69	283
T47	Marc Leishman	-1	71	71	72	69	283
T47	Pat Perez	-1	71	71	71	70	283
T47	Fabrizio Zanotti	-1	71	70	71	71	283
T47	Matt Jones	-1	68	71	72	72	283
T47	Scott Brown	-1	71	70	70	72	283
T47	Geoff Ogilvy	-1	69	71	71	72	283
T47	Edoardo Molinari	-1	66	73	71	73	283
T47	Branden Grace	-1	73	70	68	72	283
T47	Chris Wood	-1	66	73	70	74	283
T59	Brendan Steele	E	71	70	73	70	284
T59	Gonzalo Fdez-Castano	E	71	70	72	71	284
T59	Francesco Molinari	E	71	71	71	71	284
T59	Ian Poulter	E	68	73	71	72	284
T59	Patrick Reed	E	70	71	70	73	284
T59	Billy Horschel	E	71	68	69	76	284
T65	Bubba Watson	+3	70	72	73	72	287
T65	Chris Stroud	+3	70	73	73	71	287
T65	Kevin Stadler	+3	71	70	72	74	287
T65	J.B. Holmes	+3	68	72	69	78	287
69	Shawn Stefani	+4	68	75	72	73	288
T70	Freddie Jacobson	+5	72	69	73	75	289
T70	Colin Montgomerie	+5	70	72	72	75	289
T70	Zach Johnson	+5	70	72	70	77	289
73	Brendon Todd	+9	70	73	75	75	293
74	Rafael Cabrera-Bello	+10	69	71	74	80	294
CUT	Charley Hoffman	–	70	74	–	–	144
CUT	Erik Compton	–	71	73	–	–	144
CUT	Gary Woodland	–	72	72	–	–	144
CUT	Scott Piercy	–	73	71	–	–	144
CUT	Martin Kaymer	–	70	74	–	–	144
CUT	Tommy Fleetwood	–	73	71	–	–	144
CUT	Tim Clark	–	70	74	–	–	144
CUT	Padraig Harrington	–	73	71	–	–	144
CUT	Ryan Helminen (CP)	–	73	71	–	–	144
CUT	Russell Henley	–	69	75	–	–	144
CUT	Anirban Lahiri	–	72	73	–	–	145
CUT	Tom Watson	–	72	73	–	–	145
CUT	Davis Love III	–	72	73	–	–	145
CUT	Seung-Yul Noh	–	68	77	–	–	145
CUT	Johan Kok (CP)	–	78	67	–	–	145
CUT	Ben Martin	–	74	71	–	–	145
CUT	Russell Knox	–	75	70	–	–	145
CUT	Brian Stuard	–	71	74	–	–	145
CUT	Matt Every	–	73	72	–	–	145
CUT	Kevin Streelman	–	69	76	–	–	145
CUT	Ryo Ishikawa	–	72	74	–	–	146
CUT	Rory Sabbatini	–	75	71	–	–	146
CUT	Stuart Deane (CP)	–	75	71	–	–	146
CUT	David Hearn	–	74	72	–	–	146
CUT	Y.E. Yang	–	75	71	–	–	146
CUT	Keegan Bradley	–	74	72	–	–	146
CUT	Chris Kirk	–	74	72	–	–	146
CUT	Hideto Tanihara	–	74	72	–	–	146
CUT	Paul Casey	–	74	72	–	–	146
CUT	Kevin Na	–	74	72	–	–	146
CUT	Steven Bowditch	–	74	72	–	–	146
CUT	Roberto Castro	–	73	73	–	–	146
CUT	Jamie Broce (CP)	–	74	72	–	–	146
CUT	Ross Fisher	–	73	73	–	–	146
CUT	Harris English	–	74	72	–	–	146
CUT	Eric Williamson (CP)	–	74	73	–	–	147
CUT	Webb Simpson	–	73	74	–	–	147
CUT	Chesson Hadley	–	74	73	–	–	147
CUT	Charles Howell III	–	73	74	–	–	147
CUT	George Coetzee	–	73	74	–	–	147
CUT	Stewart Cink	–	72	75	–	–	147
CUT	Stephen Gallacher	–	70	77	–	–	147
CUT	Darren Clarke	–	79	69	–	–	148
CUT	Pablo Larrazabal	–	79	69	–	–	148
CUT	Jordan Spieth	–	71	77	–	–	148
CUT	John Daly	–	76	72	–	–	148
CUT	Tiger Woods	–	74	74	–	–	148
CUT	Hyung-Sung Kim	–	73	75	–	–	148
CUT	George McNeill	–	73	75	–	–	148
CUT	Scott Stallings	–	71	78	–	–	149
CUT	John Senden	–	75	74	–	–	149
CUT	Rod Perry (CP)	–	74	75	–	–	149
CUT	Miguel Angel Jimenez	–	72	77	–	–	149
CUT	Bob Sowards (CP)	–	75	75	–	–	150
CUT	Will MacKenzie	–	76	74	–	–	150
CUT	Steve Schneiter (CP)	–	72	78	–	–	150
CUT	Thongchai Jaidee	–	71	79	–	–	150
CUT	Thomas Bjorn	–	75	75	–	–	150
CUT	Shaun Micheel	–	72	79	–	–	151
CUT	Michael Block (CP)	–	77	74	–	–	151
CUT	K.J. Choi	–	72	79	–	–	151
CUT	John Huh	–	78	73	–	–	151
CUT	Jason Kokrak	–	78	73	–	–	151
CUT	Brian Norman (CP)	–	78	74	–	–	152
CUT	Rich Beem	–	74	79	–	–	153
CUT	Rob Corcoran (CP)	–	76	77	–	–	153
CUT	Matteo Manassero	–	80	77	–	–	157
CUT	Jim McGovern (CP)	–	83	74	–	–	157
CUT	Mark Brooks	–	78	79	–	–	157
CUT	David McNabb (CP)	–	77	80	–	–	157
CUT	Dave Tentis (CP)	–	79	79	–	–	158
CUT	David Hronek (CP)	–	81	77	–	–	158
CUT	Jerry Smith (CP)	–	80	78	–	–	158
CUT	Frank Esposito (CP)	–	83	78	–	–	161
CUT	Aaron Krueger (CP)	–	84	77	–	–	161
CUT	Dustin Volk (CP)	–	81	82	–	–	163
CUT	Matt Pesta (CP)	–	79	89	–	–	168
WD	Ben Crane	–	–	–	–	–	–
WD	Kiradech Aphibarnrat	–	–	–	–	–	–
WD	Boo Weekley	–	–	–	–	–	–
WD	Angel Cabrera	–	–	–	–	–	–
WD	Jason Dufner	–	–	–	–	–	–