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Gulf Shores Golf

Gulf Shores Golf

By ED TRAVIS

 

When it comes to golf in the state of Alabama there are many fine courses from which to choose but on the peninsula running across Mobile Bay south of Mobile golfer's will find three good reasons to visit.

 

Kiva Dunes Golf Club in Gulf Shores and the nearby Peninsula Golf Club are worth a special trip to play and the Beach Club, located in between is the place to stay.

 

The peninsula splits the Gulf of Mexico and Mobile Bay and at Kiva Dune designer Jerry Pate used this location which has to deal with ever present wind, to build a really fun and challenging layout. Large fairways gradually narrow as you approach the green complexes whose putting surfaces only can be described as immense.

 

A good example is Kiva Dunes' par-4 finishing hole. Tee shots have plenty of room between the trees on the left and bunker on the right (with water further right to get a really sprayed tee ball). A couple of trees to the left of the green makes you want to favor the right with your second shot but caution is needed since the bunker your tee shot contended with runs all the way to the green. So like the other holes here, a good test of your skill and fun regardless of the outcome.

 

Kiva Dunes is a very nice course and at 7,092-yards from the back tees it's more course than most can handle. However, since there are three other tee sets, there are yardages to match anyone's game down to a very friendly 5, 006-yards.

 

At the Peninsula Golf Club adjacent to the Bon Secour Wildlife Preserve, designer Earl Stone built three nine-hole layouts and head pro Mike Weiler says visitors comments are very favorable. "They like a lot of things. Each nine has its own character but I know almost everybody talks about our course conditioning and the greens especially."

 

There are ample scoring opportunities offered by the greens and greens complexes as on the Lakes course par-4 ninth where being on the left side off the tee while avoiding a fairway bunker is a must to have the best line for your second shot. Then you'll have a middle iron to the large three-tiered green framed by bunkers but a miss left feeds into a chipping area while a miss to the right may be bunkered. So, as is often the case, hitting to the middle of the green will mean a reasonable putt for a birdie.

 

Between Kiva Dunes and Peninsula is the Beach Club resort. A special place for sure and one people return to year after year for the convenience of the location and quality of the accommodations not to mention the first class service. There are plenty of activities for everyone but our focus was on the beach and the dining.

 

Staying in one of the gulf front condominiums puts the beautiful sand of the Gulf beach close by and whether you're in to long walks next to the water or sand castle construction this is the place to indulge yourself.

 

Food at the Beach Club is memorable and the responsibility of Brody Olive the Executive Chef at the resort. His talents are certainly on display at the Coast Restaurant with its lovely view of the Gulf. Guests rave over Chef Brody's Grilled Snapper caught right in the Gulf as is the grouper which he also grills with a red pepper Aioli sauce you have to try to believe.

 

Dinnertime is also sunset time so the experience of enjoying one of Chef Brody's entrée creations and watching the sun's end-of-the-day spectacular is something you will never forget.

 

The combination of golf at Peninsula Golf Club and Kiva Dunes Golf Dunes with a stay at The Beach Club is a trip sure to build lasting memories.

 

 

ED TRAVIS | Golf News & Opinion

Adams Golf means to really change iron performance

By ED TRAVIS

Adams Golf means to really change iron performance for less skilled golfers with their New Idea Hybrid Irons that are shipping now to a golf shop near you. The basis of this change is a wraparound slot that Adams says gives the ball higher speed, i.e. more distance, and added forgiveness for impacts that don’t quite catch the center of the clubface.

Research showed that golfers with handicaps over 15 hit the ball one-half inch forward of the sweet spot most of the time. So Adams engineered these New Idea super game improvement irons to help them, the golfers who need it the most.

"With a concentration on developing technology that golfers really need, we created these industry-first wraparound slots on the toe to compensate for a very common mis-hit,” said Justin Honea, Senior Director of Research and Development. “New Idea irons are definitely our easiest to hit, with measurable improvements in ball speeds and forgiveness where players require it most."

The new slot design creates a spring-like effect across the face so the sweet spot is made larger. Adams testing showed compared to Adams Idea a12 OS Hybrid Irons, the New Idea Hybrid Irons give 44% additional ball speed on off-center hits and 24% more ball speed on center impacts because of increased flex from the unsupported faces.

A standard set of the New Ideas will include 3-, 4- and 5-hybrids Adams designed with sole slots that help to get the ball in the air.

“These are our easiest to hit hybrids ever, period, as we continue to expand the sweet spot,” said Honea. 

Nike VR Forged Pro Combo Irons

Nike Golf found professionals and low handicap amateurs like irons that give them high trajectory with lots of forgiveness and Nike is bringing to market the VR Forged Pro Combo Irons ($1,000 November 1) to fill that wish.

As an update to the previous irons of the same name the new ones have a pocket cavity in the 3 through 6 and split cavity in the shorter irons. The long iron pocket cavities help to produce a higher ball flight that means more control on distance. There is a polymer in the cavity that Nike says makes for better sound and feel and helps create a softer feel.

“Our Tour athletes wanted higher ball flight and better gapping in the long irons,” says Tony Dabbs, Nike Golf Global Product Director, Golf Clubs. “We added the polymer to create a Tour-caliber set with long irons that are easier to hit, and players still see the profile they want at address without compromising on look, feel and sound.”

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Big Box In Golf In A Big Way

By ED TRAVIS  A report from Longitudes Group on the “Sporting Goods Channel” Golf Market was recently released and reveals some interesting data. For those questioning what a Sporting Goods Channel is, it is what everyday people call “big box” stores selling sports equipment from badminton to wake boarding. According to Longitudes sporting goods stores account for 17% of golf industry sales. In addition the 10 largest sporting goods chains in the U.S. have more than 2,100 retail locations, over twice the number of traditional off-course golf retailers. Coraopolis, Penn. based Dick's Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS) sells to 9.8 million golfers or about 40% of all U.S. players. They also own Golf Galaxy outlets and as of last June had 523 stores. Sports Authority with 450 stores serves 43% of the U.S. total golf retail market value with its individual stores covering over $2.2 billion worth of the total golf retail market. Dick's is making up ground though narrowing a $500M gap in golf sales in 2011 to just over $200M this year. The opening of 72 new Dick’s stores in parts of the country with more playable days for golf is a prime factor. Sports Chalet has the highest number of golfers per store at 28,136 presumably due to its strength in densely-populated urban Southwest locations. Academy has the 2nd largest growth in golfers served since 2011 with a 34% increase in stores for a current total of 168 stores. It now has the ability to serve 1.6M golfers within a 15 minute trade area. The product categories with the most dollar value in sales sold in the Sporting Goods channel are golf apparel with $240M in sales followed by woods (drivers, fairways) at $193M. In one way this recitation of research data shows little that is new and merely highlights a continuation of the switch away from green grass and small off course retailers. However in terms of golf course operations it shows the further eroding of an important revenue stream, one that every golf course depends on, in some cases to merely keep the doors open and the bulldozers off the fairways.   ED TRAVIS | Golf News & Opinion Golf Illustrated

Mizuno JPX EZ Forged Irons

By ED TRAVIS Mizuno Golf first announced new iron designs for players with handicaps up to 12 and those with handicaps up to 4 and now is showing their new JPX EZ Forged irons for the rest of us. Designed specifically for 10 and up handicappers, the new JPX are a “game improvement” design made by forging, the process usually thought of as being reserved for pure blade irons used by professionals. "During ideation, development and creation of the JPX EZ Forged iron we knew it would be in a class all by itself, which, in the golf industry, is difficult to claim and something we are extremely proud of," said Dick Lyons, Vice President and General Manager, Mizuno USA, Inc. "The distance and forgiveness screams game-improvement, but we've been able to channel those characteristics in a grain flow forged iron that'll change the way golfers look, think and feel over the golf ball. We're excited to receive consumer feedback as we believe the new EZ Forged appeals to a wide breadth of golfers." Specifically JPX EZ Forged irons offer a face with a higher coefficient of restitution, i.e., more flex and rebound at impact, for added distance. Mizuno also uses their Harmonic Impact Technology (H.I.T.) to make the frame of the back cavity stronger and that, says the company, allows them to make the face thinner and more reactive. An eight iron set (4-GW) with steel shafts carries a suggested retail price of $899.99 and with Fujikura Orochi graphite shafts $1,099.99. Street prices are $700 and $900 respectively.   ED TRAVIS | Golf News & Opinion Golf Illustrated