This Week In Golf – DP World Championship, Talisker Masters, OHL Classic at Mayakoba

Written by: Tony Korologos | Thursday, November 14th, 2013
Categories: European Tour • PGA Tour • Pro Golf • Rory McIlory
Tags: Ian Poulter • Justin Rose • Race to Dubai

European Tour
DP World Tour Championship, Dubai
Dates: November 14-17
Venue: Earth Course, Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Golf Channel Airtimes (Eastern):
Thursday 3-8 a.m. (Live) / 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (Replay)
Friday 3-8 a.m. (Live) / 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (Replay)
Saturday 3-8 a.m. (Live) / 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (Replay)
Sunday 2:30-7:30 a.m. (Live) / 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (Replay) / 9 p.m.-2 a.m. (Replay)

In the field: Henrik Stenson, Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell, Justin Rose, Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano, Matteo Manassero and Thomas Bjorn.

Talisker Masters
Dates: November 13-16
Venue: Royal Melbourne Golf Club, Victoria, Australia

Golf Channel Airtimes (Eastern):
Wednesday 9:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m. (Live)
Thursday 9:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m. (Live)
Friday 9:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m. (Live)
Saturday 9:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m. (Live)

Notables in the field: Adam Scott, Matt Kuchar, Vijay Singh, Brendon de Jonge, Peter Senior, Geoff Ogilvy, Marc Leishman, Richard Green, Nick O’Hern and Jarrod Lyle.

PGA Tour
OHL Classic at Mayakoba
Dates: November 14-17
Venue: El Camaleon Mayakoba Golf Club at the Mayakoba Res, Riviera Maya, Mexico

Golf Channel Airtimes (Eastern):
Thursday 2-5 p.m. (Live) / 5:30-8:30 p.m. (Replay)
Friday 2-5 p.m. (Live) / 5:30-8:30 p.m. (Replay)
Saturday 2-5 p.m. (Live) / 5:30-8:30 p.m. (Replay)
Sunday 2-5 p.m. (Live) / 5:30-8:30 p.m. (Replay)

Notables in the field: Alvaro Quiros, Darren Clarke, Ryan Moore, Davis Love III, Freddie Jacobson, Harris English, Tommy Gainey, Charles Howell III, Fred Funk, John Huh and Brian Gay.

Scottish Golfer Survives Wee Attack From Crocodile

Written by: Tony Korologos | Wednesday, November 13th, 2013
Categories: Golf • Miscellaneous

Scots are tough man. Here’s a great example.

A 58-year-old Scottish golfer named Dougie Thomson was in a bunker at Iberostar Cancun Golf Club in Cancun, Mexico. After hitting his bunker shot on the green, a 12 foot crocodile attacked him, latching onto his thigh.

“My ball was in the bunker around 10 to 15 feet from thick shrubbery. I didn’t even know there was water behind the bushes. I took a shot and it landed on the green. Then I heard this noise behind me and this huge crocodile snapped me by the thigh.”

Did someone say shrubbery?

Thompson’s golf buddies came to the rescue. His first buddy started whacking the croc on the head with a golf club. The croc didn’t let go. The other two buddies ran over the croc with their golf cart which finally prompted the reptile to let go.

Lessons learned:

Scots are tough bastards
There are no better buddies in the world than golf buddies

I suspect that after getting his 200 stitches, Dougie and his friends enjoyed a wee pint.

Hooked On Golf Blog World Tour Visits Coral Cliffs Golf Course in Kanab, Utah

Written by: Tony Korologos | Wednesday, November 13th, 2013
Categories: Golf Courses • HOG World Tour • Miscellaneous • Site News • Travel
Tags: Golf Utah • Utah

The Hooked On Golf Blog World Tour was rolling this past few days in northern Arizona and southern Utah, with stops at Bryce Canyon National Park, the north rim of the Grand Canyon, Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park and Kanab, Utah.

Coral Cliffs Golf Course – Kanab, Utah

Home base this week was at a pal’s place in Kanab, Utah. Kanab is just on the Arizona/Utah border, about 1.5 hours north of the north rim of the Grand Canyon, This small town of about 5,000 is in a fantastic location with the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon National Park and Zion National Park all from 45 minutes to 1.5 hours away.

Kanab has a small and relatively unknown 9-hole golf course called Coral Cliffs. Of course, the name comes from the red rock cliffs which serve as a beautiful backdrop. The fine managment at Coral Cliffs allowed me to ride the course on a cart and bring my photo gear, including my aerial imagery rig (toy helicopter). Here’s one shot of the 5th, 6th and 7th holes from above. I’m still working on processing the rest of my images, but for now enjoy this one.

For more on Coral Cliffs, visit the Kahab page at Utah Golf Guru, a Hooked On Golf Blog sister site. Utah Golf Guru provides a list of every course in the state of Utah with photos, course details and even playing tips from yours truly!

Veterans Day

Written by: Tony Korologos | Monday, November 11th, 2013
Categories: Golf Life • Life • Miscellaneous

A special post today for our veterans on Veterans Day. I’ve been lucky enough to make some very good golf friends who are veterans. Some long time pals of mine are veterans of several wars, primarily Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. Some of those friends are no longer here.

I have one special veteran friend, a purple heart recipient, who invited me golfing on his day. I was quite honored but since I’m traveling I had to decline. This particular gentleman has suffered greatly from a roadside bomb which blew up under his humvee in Iraq. I’ve watched this man deal with pain I will (hopefully) never be able to relate to, yet still has one of the most positive attitudes I’ve ever seen.

I have great respect for our veterans and I’m grateful for their sacrifices. Those sacrifices go way beyond their deployments and stay with them their entire lives.

Aerial Photos & Videos of Golf Courses Improving

Written by: Tony Korologos | Wednesday, November 6th, 2013
Categories: Golf • Golf Courses • Miscellaneous • Site News
Tags: DJI Phantom • Golf Course Photography

I’m only a few weeks into piloting my ~~toy helicopter~~ aerial imagery setup. I’ve been working on building up my flying skills and also working on my photo/video setup so that I can capture higher quality images and video. There are still some big pieces to the puzzle like a new camera and some stabilization gear. Below is a photo video from last night’s flight around sunset at one of my home courses, River Oaks.

River Oaks GC, Sandy, Utah – Hole 3 (right) and Hole 5 (left)

One item I’ve ordered and am anxiously waiting for is a camera “gimbal” which will keep the camera level, even when the copter is pitching any direction. This will make the flyover videos of the golf holes much more stable and pleasurable to watch.