This Week at TravelGolf.com: Jan. 4, 2005

It feels like it's been months, but the PGA Tour's winter break lasts only 25 days. That's how much time will have passed since the end of the Target World Challenge to the opening round at the Mercedes Championships, which tees off this Thursday at the Plantation Course at Kapalua.

After the ridiculous Silly Season, I'm always fired up for the West Coast Swing, and this year is no exception. But every year about this time, I question the PGA Tour's marketing strategy. Do they purposely try to keep the season opener quiet? In other major sports, opening day is marked with concerts, celebrities, even parades. For some reason, the Mercedes Championships flies far under the radar until the final round, when people finally start paying attention. I'm not asking for much, but a little more pre-event hype wouldn't hurt.

With the new year, we're eager to move forward on several new programs, including the reader blogger plan, an extension of our popular TravelGolf.com Blog. Our first reader bloggers will be starting soon, and we're still looking for bloggers for several sites, including HawaiiGolfGuide.com, LasVegasGolf.com, and GolfNewYork.com. As always, your comments are welcome on any topic, including your thoughts on the PGA Tour's marketing efforts. Have a great week.

Emerald Dunes earns top
honors from Florida golf group

The Florida Golf Course Associations's course of the year is a Tom Fazio-designed layout that's been named in the "top 10 you can play in Florida" by Golf Digest, and was named one of the top five courses in Florida by readers of Florida Golf News. But as Tim McDonald reports, the real story at Emerald Dunes is owner Ray Finch.

Full story | Florida golf course guide

Leave the rat race behind
and become a looper

At many of the top clubs in America, private and public, there are caddies willing and anxious to pick up your sticks. No youngsters, but adults; grownups who have left behind "real" jobs as salesmen, truck drivers, and executives to be closer to the game they love; to carry someone else's bag, offer help and encouragement, and to leave the rat race behind for a life of looping.

Full story | In focus: Single-rider golf carts

A holiday wish list from
the Armchair Architect

Derek Duncan says there is much to be thankful for this year in terms of golf course architecture, but he doesn't want anyone to be content: "In architecture, like in any art, stagnation is recession." In the spirit of the holidays, Duncan's "Armchair Architect" column is devoted to his own Christmas-style wish list.

Full story | Why are courses getting longer each year?