Heads up, all you Rush Limbaugh critics, those of you who complained that a BadGolfer.com story on him promoted his racist and sexist views: Liberal spokesman Al Franken has responded. TravelGolf conducted a question-and-answer session with Franken this week, and his responses were both hilarious and illuminating. And while he admitted frankly that he didn’t know enough about Michelle Wie to comment on Limbaugh’s opinion of Wie as a marketing invention, he did have a lot of other things to say, about Limbaugh and other topics. From golf, to wrestling to the Civil Rights Act. Like his comments on Limbaugh’s prescription drug abuse. ... full post »

Angels Trace Golf Links in Brunswick County, N.C., in the norternmost reaches of the Grand Strand, is closing its North course for renovation April 17, but club officials said they can’t say how long it will be closed. Director of Golf Bill Long said he didn’t believe the course would be closed for good, though a source told TravelGolf.com the North course would close permanently to be redeveloped. “We’re going to re-do all the greens and all the sand traps,” Long said. “It’s an on-going process. As far as the final outcome, nobody really knows what that’s going to be.” A number ... full post »

Hooters Air is pulling out of Myrtle Beach. The company, whose owner, Bob Brooks, lives in Myrtle Beach, will no longer have public charter flights as of April 17, according to company officials, though it will continue to fly private charters for big groups. The move doesn’t come as a complete shock. The airline pulled direct flights from Pittsburgh to Myrtle Beach earlier this month, and there had been rumors of the airline’s plan to leave Myrtle Beach. The move is obviously a blow to the Grand Strand’s tourism-based economy. The airline was averaging 1,000-1,200 passengers into Myrtle Beach a week, Myrtle ... full post »

I wonder, is there a conservative out there who does not blame the media for … whatever. Whenever they say something ridiculous or outlandish, which is about 90 percent of the time, they blame their favorite whipping boy, the media. They can get caught red-handed, with their hands in the cookie jar, and it’s inevitably the media’s fault. No matter that the media is as conservative as they are. Rush Limbaugh, more conservative than Mussolini, is only the latest. He blames Time magazine for taking out of context comments he made in a TravelGolf story by Chris Baldwin. Limbaugh said the Wie ... full post »

Michelle Wie the third-ranked player in the world? Unbelievable. There’s no way! It’s a travesty! She absolutely should be No. 1. Wie is MUCH better than Annika Sorenstam and Paula Creamer, the two no-names ranked above her. True, Sorenstam and Creamer have produced far better actual results, but look at the contract Wie signed with Nike! You think Nike would give that much money to Sorenstam and Creamer? No way! Sorenstam looks way too masculine and Creamer is too pudgy! Look at that sparkly new watch Wie wears! Look at those long legs! All of us Wie Warriors see through the Rolex Women’s ... full post »

I was pulling for someone – anyone – to do something Sunday at The Players Championship at the TPC Sawgrass. No one did, of course, and Stephen Ames won in a walk. I was also pulling for Ames to win, even as I was pulling for others in the field to make for some drama, because I know how hard it must have been for a guy from Trinidad to become a pro golfer. Like Ames, I used to live in Trinidad. It is probably my favorite place in the Caribbean, but as far as golf, it’s nowheres-ville. The island loves its ... full post »

So you’re stuck at your work computer, wishing you could be at the TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach to watch the pros hit it into the lake at No. 17? Well, you can do the next best thing. The PGA Tour is bringing live coverage on Live @17. Click here to see live action at probably the most famous, or infamous hole in golf. It’s hilarious. full post »

Back when I used to only write about golf as a sportswriter, as opposed to play golf for this publication, I used to cover The Players Championship in Ponte Vedra, Florida every year. And every year, rain or shine, I would have to write about the issue of the whether or not the tournament was a major and, if not, when the hell would it become one? I’d sigh, think “here we go again,” and somehow get through it. It’s now an issue again, mostly because it’s being moved to May next year. I don’t know how this logic works, but supposedly ... full post »

We’ll let anybody in here at TravelGolf.com. Or as my grandmother once said – to me, in fact – “Look what the cat dragged in.” Doesn’t matter what political persuasion you are, or what crazed golf notions you have – even on Michelle Wie – you’re welcome to express your beliefs here. Chris Baldwin is to be congratulated on his BadGolfer.com Q&A session with Rush Limbaugh, the Third Reich radio commentator. I don’t know how he did it. I don’t think I could have sat through an interview with Limbaugh without saying, to paraphrase Al Franken,” You really are a big, fat ... full post »

Greg Owen is my new hero. After one of the most spectacular and anguished chokes in the history of competitive golf, Owen had the guts to explain to the fans his three-putt from two feet – two feet! – on No. 17 to blow his chance of victory at the Bay Hill Invitational, and his first victory in two years on the PGA Tour. If Phil Mickelson had done that, all fans would have heard was a vast wind of silence and all they would seen was his broad backside heading toward the parking lot. Mickelson would have most likely skipped ... full post »

What fan of Michelle Wie isn’t looking forward to the HSBC Women’s World Match Play Championship in New Jersey this July? For that matter, what non-fan isn’t looking forward to it, hoping she’ll get trounced in a face-to-face matchup with Annika Sorenstam or Paula Creamer? Wie recently confirmed that she will play, and she will probably still be looking for her first win. This could be a great chance for her; she’s done well in match play so far in her controversial career. She reached the semifinals of the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links when she was 12 and then won ... full post »

GolfWeek’s latest top-100 list has some surprises, for those who like to follow rankings. Cypress Point edged out Pine Valley for the top spot in the classic (pre-1960) category, marking the end of Pine Valley’s 10-year reign at the top. Pine Needles in the Carolina Sandhills region jumped 10 spots to No. 75. The Dunes Golf and Beach Club held steady at No. 92. Other notable changes in the modern (post-1960) category include Jupiter Hills in Florida falling 10 spots to No. 72, Old Memorial in Tampa falling dramatically from the No. 71 to No. 98 and Caledonia Golf and Fish Club ... full post »

The Old Tabby Links on Spring Island should have made it into my top-10 list for Hilton Head. Sometimes omissions like this happen, and it’s a shame because the course deserves it. It’s on Spring Island, a little slice of paradise off the South Carolina coast, about a 25-minute drive from Hilton Head. The island is being developed, but they’ve done an excellent job of preserving what is an absolutely gorgeous piece of land. The homes that are located around the course are set back even further than the homes at most courses at Hilton Head, and never intrude. It’s an Arnold ... full post »

Jack Nicklaus has made sort of a second career railing against the changes in the modern golf game, from improving technological advances in equipment to lengthening of golf courses to keep pace. Now, he’s blasting Augusta National again, where he was a six-time Masters winner. Augusta has lengthened the course again, for the second time in five years, and Nicklaus says the old club is taking light to medium-length hitters out of contention. “All I want is for Augusta to be Augusta, because it’s such a great tournament,” Nicklaus told AP. “But, when you take a golf course and limit the number ... full post »

I found an under-rated gem in Hilton Head. Actually, it’s in Bluffton, just before you get to the bridge that takes you on to Hilton Head Island. The Crescent Pointe Golf Club is a hoot, as fun as it is challenging, if I may use a word marketers over-do. It’s the only public course around with Arnold Palmer’s name on it – Palmer Course Designs created it – if you like Palmer layouts. Crescent Pointe has many of Palmer’s personal design characteristics, including his well-known penchant for sugar-white, beach bunkers. It isn’t long at 6,673 yards, but it is the kind ... full post »

Anybody else see through that charade in the latest Big Break V Hawaii on the Golf Channel? You would have thought Divina Delasin had broken both legs, instead of just suffering from shin splints. I’ve had shin splints; they’re painful, but hardly debilitating. She sure as hell used every occasion to bring it up when she was eliminated, becoming the fourth contestant to be forced to leave the paid-vacation on the islands. Everybody – the announcers, the other contestants, etc – raved about her brave stoicism in the face of agony. They carried her off the golf course, for heaven’s sake. ... full post »

Hilton Head is full of fancy restaurants, but for my money, if you want great barbecue, try Jim ‘N Nick’s Bar-B-Que in Bluffton. I tried a few Hilton Head restaurants, and they were all pretty good, but when I felt like having me some barbecue, I pulled into Jim ‘N Nicks’s and got me a mess of chicken and baked beans and whoooee, it was SOMETHING! Best barbecue chicken I’ve had in a long time, and they were about as friendly folks as you’ll find in the Carolinas. They’re s small chain with places all over the South, but I ... full post »

As reported last week, the Wild Wing Plantation’s new owners plan to close three of its four popular courses, leaving Myrtle Beach golfers with only 27 of the plantation’s current 72 holes. The Avocet will be the only course left, and another nine-holer will include parts of two other courses, though it isn’t expected to open until next year. The Wood Stork and Hummingbird courses are expected to close in June and the Falcon next year. The plan became official when it was presented to the Conway planning commission. The commission recommended to the Conway city council the plan be approved ... full post »

A couple of readers have asked about good deals in Myrtle Beach, good courses to play for cheap and generally how to hit the Grand Strand without breaking the bank. Well, there is good news. There are some half-price specials at some of the better courses, even during peak season, in April. Those courses include Pine Lakes, Grand Dunes, Tidewater, Farmstead, Palmetto and Pine Hills. You can get four nights and five rounds for $450, which is a heck of a deal. Tidewater is one of the better courses in Myrtle Beach, as is Grand Dunes. I also recommend underrated courses like ... full post »

Most of our greatest athletes were at least partly defined by their great rivals, and the most dramatic sports stories of our time involved heated, compelling rivalries. Where art thou, rivals of Tiger Woods? Once again, the field bowed down to Tiger Sunday at the Ford Championship at Doral, allowing him another PGA Tour notch in his belt. Woods has proven to be as human as the next guy when the pressure is on. Once again, he opened the door Sunday, bogeying the last two holes, but no one had the guts to enter. Phil Mickelson fainted early, after his earlier matchups with ... full post »

Phil Mickelson had some interesting comments after his opening round 65 Thursday at Doral. He basically said he wanted a piece of Tiger Woods on Sunday. Maybe he feels if he goes head-to-head with Tiger often enough, he won’t be so intimidated and likely to choke. Or maybe he meant he just wanted to be in the final hunt, and Woods was most likely to be his closest opponent. Mickelson said the PGA Tour should do a better job of letting it be known which big-name players would be in which tournaments. The reasoning is that the big-name players would gravitate ... full post »

Heading to Myrtle Beach, or just thinking about it? It might be a good idea to plan to be there for the week of April 12-19. There are half-price specials at some of the better courses, like Pine Lakes, Grand Dunes, Tidewater, Farmstead, Palmetto and Pinehills. You might want to play Pine lakes, the grandaddy of Grant Strand Golf, before it’s changed forever, and they start construction on housing units at the course. Grand Dunes has always been considered one of the top courses in the area, and Tidewater is one of my personal favorites. Farmstead, of course, has that great ... full post »