What golf related items would you buy off the Internet?
posted in Golfing Articles | 9 Comments
posted in Golfing Articles | 9 Comments
The cities of this valley have made good use of irrigation water piped in to transform the harsh desert environment into a cornucopia of luxury resorts, golf courses ‘ some 120 at last count ‘ upscale shopping boulevards and palm trees as far as the eye can see. The fertile green lawns are carefully overseen by an army of landscapers and a drive through the neighborhoods of places like Palm Desert and Indian Wells is a window into the “good life” enjoyed by well-to-do retirees as well as upwardly mobile professionals.
Yet never far away from these meticulously maintained homes and estates is the raw desert ‘ a place where you can finally put space between yourself and other people, and enjoy what passes for a back-to-nature experience, even though minutes later you’ll most likely be luxuriating in modern, upscale accommodations designed to pamper you from head to toe.
On our most recent trip to the desert we based ourselves a few miles east of Palm Springs in Indio, a comfortable neighborhood, but perhaps less extravagant than some other parts of the valley. Out on the eastern edge of the Coechella Valley cities, this area is now undergoing a major transformation with several new housing developments that feature modern, spacious homes set alongside man-made lagoons and canals, all five minutes from the freeway. It is in this same area that a major new resort complex ‘ the Resort at Indio ‘ was built just in the last few years.
There are 453 condo units altogether and they’re built around a waterpark full of sprinklers, canals, ponds, pools and even a man-made river for inner-tube floating. The largest of two swimming pools is a gigantic 5,000 square feet. If you’re anxious to get some exercise, check out the backetball court, tennis courts, gym and recreation center. Golfers need go no farther than the Terra Lago golf course adjacent to the resort.
Given the recreational opportunities, it’s not surprising that the Resort at Indio is especially popular with families. During our visit on an unseasonably warm spring weekend, family groups large and small were taking full advantage of the pools and other facilities. Families were spending hours on the spacious deck poolside. Come mealtime, many would walk the short distance back to their condo units and fire up the barbecues available on their decks and patios. As you might expect, the accommodations are really vacation rentals, not hotel rooms ‘ each unit comes with a complete kitchen, multiple bedrooms, living and dining room areas. Since the resort is almost brand-new, everything’s in top shape with the latest appliances, colors and d?r.
As tempting as it was to just laze by the pool all weekend, we did want to get out and experience the desert. With daytime temperatures reaching mid-90’s, we headed out early in the morning when temps were more in the mid-70’s to mid-80’s. Our objective was the Pinkham Canyon Trail, within the Joshua Tree National Park, only a 20-minute drive from the resort. Our desert activity: geocaching.
For those who are not yet enlightened, geocaching is a relatively new activity in which you use your hand-held GPS unit to find “caches” or boxes of trinkets hidden in various locations. There can be caches in remote areas, or in developed areas, or even in amusement parks such as Legoland near San Diego. What it really comes down to is a kind of Easter Egg hunt for both kids and adults and, from what we’ve discovered, it is great family activity.
If you have a Garmin GPS, it has nifty software that interfaces with a major website - www.geocaching.com ‘ to make finding these caches relatively easy. Prior to heading out to the Pinkham Canyon Trail, we went to the website and found a dozen or so caches that were located in that particular area. The Garmin software enabled us to download the longitude and latitude of those caches into our GPS so that we could see where they were on our GPS map. Once we got in the general area of the caches, we just let our GPS lead us right to the locations of the caches.
Some caches are easy to find in easy terrain; others can be quite challenging and located in terrain that is hard to traverse. It was going to be a hot day, so we chose the easiest option - driving the 4-wheel-drive trail and finding caches along the way. We eventually found about two-thirds of them and, of course, our grade-school-aged kids were thrilled with each find ‘ even though nothing of real value was to be found. The idea is to take a trinket and leave a trinket of your own; it’s “treasure” only in the sense that you’ll treasure this activity with your kids. And it gave us the illusion, anyway, we had gone “into the wild.”
Another 15 miles east from the Pinkham Canyon Trial on Interstate 10 there is a great place to see some military history first-hand: the General Patton Memorial Museum at Chiriaco Summit. The museum is a testament to General George Patton, one of the military heroes of World War II, and also to his specific involvement with creating the Desert Training Center, a vast desert landscape set aside for tank training when U.S. troops needed to prepare for warfare in North Africa. While Patton only ran the center for four months when it opened in 1942, he was instrumental in choosing the site where it was located.
The museum tells the story of the training center, but it also is a collection of artifacts from several wars including World War II. It’s not in a fancy building and doesn’t compare, for example, with the World War II Museum in New Orleans, but it is a fascinating group of exhibits that brings visitors closer to the realities of war. Through its collection of photos and documents, the museum offers a historical account of Patton and his contributions to the U.S. military. There is a large assortment of items actually used in war, from German Lugar pistols to machine guns to gas masks to uniforms and gear worn by our troops in several past wars.
It’s as if someone put up a sign that said “Bring us all of your war memorabilia and leave it here.”
Outside the museum are several tanks and other Army vehicles that help visitors envision what tank warfare must have been like in World War II. And it was easy to imagine hundreds of these tanks doing mock battle in these miles and miles of open desert a little more than a half-hour away from today’s glitzy Palm Springs.
AT A GLANCE
WHERE: Indio is located in the Coachella Valley, about 20 miles east of Palm Springs. The Resort at Indio is next to the desert foothills at the northern edge of the valley and adjacent to Terra Lago golf course.
WHAT: The Resort at Indio is a condo-style resort in which visitors can reserve condos much as they would reserve a hotel room. During our visit there were no restaurants on property, but a deli and an on-site Domino’s Pizza were scheduled to open in late spring 2008.
WHEN: Prime time of the year is late fall, winter and early spring because daytime temperatures are moderate during those periods. However, we’ve enjoyed Palm Springs even in hot temperatures by planning early morning outings and spending a lot of time in the swimming pool. Rates are substantially lower in summer.
WHY: The desert is a great place to escape civilization and it’s where you can always count on sunshine.
HOW: For more information on the Resort at Indio, phone 800-867-2095 or visit www.greatpricedcondos.com/id/. Rates range from $99 in low-season for a one-bedroom unit to $310 in high season for a three-bedroom unit. Patton Museum info can be obtained by phoning 760-227-3483 or visit www.generalpattonmuseum.com.
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posted in Golfing Articles | 8 Comments
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posted in Golfing Articles | 11 Comments
Golf vacations in the Caribbean are a very rewarding experience even when you don’t get the scores you want. While you check a grip you’ll be enchanted by the waves crashing along the shores and you’ll remain all the time in the comforting shadow of the palm trees. These are the main features of a golf vacation in the Caribbean, and golfers make unique customers for local business. Marketing promotional techniques have come to involve all-inclusive types of resorts for the golf players who choose a golf vacation in the Caribbean together with their families.
A golf vacation in the Caribbean will give you a taste of the islands and the advantage of cherishing special tourist packages with discounted fees. For instance, you may get discounts on a golf vacation in the Caribbean for the most scenic eighteen holes you play. Moreover, the perfect climate makes a golf vacation in the Caribbean a year-round choice. Even if a quick shower gets you on the golf course, you’ll be dry by the time you get to the next hole. It is not uncommon to see the Caribbean golf courses in the list of the best in the world; therefore, a golf vacation in the Caribbean is like going to the Olympics.
You may choose to go on a golf vacation in the Caribbean in the Dominican Republic and stay in the famous all-inclusive golf resort The Teeth of the Dog. It is also true that this is perhaps one of the most expensive places on the island, but it is worth at least a day’s visit here. You can move to other great spots for your golf vacation in the Caribbean that provide all the courses necessary to satisfy any true golfer. At the end of the game, you’ll have a gorgeous beach waiting for you, soft drinks and an unparalleled exotic background.
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1. Grip Pressure. Grip pressure and arm tension is something that all golfers fight. On a scale of 1 to 10, feel like you’re holding the club at a level 3. Golf is hard enough to play relaxed; tighten up and you won’t have a chance.
2. Set Up. So many times students say there is a problem in their swing. 90% of the time the problem is in their set-up. This usually results in poor posture. Make sure that your back is straight to allow for proper trunk rotation.
3. Alignment. Alignment is so important. Make sure that the line of your feet is parallel to your target line. Then make sure your knees, hips and shoulders are parallel to your feet.
4. Tempo and Balance. Tempo and balance go together like peanut butter and jelly. When you have the proper tempo, you create good balance. If you can finish a swing on balance, you have a much higher chance of getting a good result than if you are falling off balance during the swing.
5. Take One Extra Club. Leave your ego at home. Take an extra club and swing it 80%. Your balance will get better and you will start hitting more solid shots.
6. Loosen Up Before The Round. Loosening up allows you to relax and get some of the bad shots out. It also allows you to get familiar with the speed of the greens. Most importantly, it loosens up your body to prevent muscular injury.
7. Make An Aggressive Swing At A Conservative Target. Follow this advice, it really works.
8. Swing The Club; Don’t Hit The Ball. Amateur golfers hit the ball. Swing the club through the ball to a picturesque finish.
9. Don’t Keep Your Head Down. Where is your head when you finish your golf swing? Keep your head up through the swing and let your body turn through to the target.
10. Spend 70% Of Your Practice Within 50 Yards Of The Pin. This is not the fun part of the game to practice but this is the fastest way to cut strokes off your game.
If you have any further questions, consult your local PGA Professional.
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A store sells the Red Dot golf balls for 60 cents each, the Black Dot balls for 94 cents each and the Gold Dot ball for $1.10 each. A golf pro bought two dozen more Red Dot than Gold DOt balls and three times as many Black Dot as Red Dot balls. If the golf balls and one dollar’s worth of tees cost 140.50, how many gold balls of each kind were bought?
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Before examining the benefits of Hawaii vacation golf packages, you may want to take the time to learn more about them, namely what they are. After a close examination, you will likely see that Hawaii vacation golf packages are just like traditional vacation packages. Essentially, the only difference between a traditional Hawaii vacation package and a Hawaii vacation golf package is the fact that golf is involved. For instance, instead of booking a stay at a traditional resort, a vacation golf package will likely include overnight accommodations at a resort with an onsite golf course. These Hawaii vacation resorts are sometimes referred to as Hawaii vacation golf resorts. It is also common for free or discounted golf cart rentals and games to be included.
Now that you know exactly what Hawaii vacation golf packages are, you may be thinking about whether or not you should buy one. Honestly, whether or not you can benefit from the purchase of a Hawaii vacation golf package will all depend on your hobbies. For instance, if you enjoy playing the game of golf, you could definitely benefit from the purchase of a Hawaii vacation golf package. The whole point of a Hawaii vacation golf package is to make sure that you enjoy your vacation. If you enjoy playing the game of golf, there is an excellent chance that you could benefit from the purchase of a Hawaii vacation golf package.
In addition to you benefiting, there is a good chance that the rest of your traveling party could also benefit from the purchase of Hawaii vacation golf packages, especially if those that you are traveling with also love the sport of golf. The good news is that it is possible, often with a small amount of research, to find vacation golf packages that even accommodate to those who don’t enjoy golfing. For instance, if you are traveling with your family, there is a chance that some of your family may go for a game of golf, but others may prefer to do something else. In Hawaii it is possible to find Hawaii vacation golf resorts that offer discounts for guest who will not be enjoying the extra golf benefits. This may help to save you, your family, or the rest of your traveling party money.
As previously mentioned, it is possible to save money on your next Hawaii vacation with the purchase of a Hawaii vacation golf package. All vacation packages, including golf packages, are known to save travelers money. However, with a Hawaii vacation golf package, you are given even more chances to save money on your next Hawaii vacation. As it was stated above, there are a number of Hawaii vacation golf packages that include free or discounted golf games and golf cart rentals. If you are planning to spend the majority of your vacation golfing, a vacation golf package can save you a fairly large amount of money. In many cases, you will find that the more you golf, the more money you will end up saving.
If you would like to not only save time, but also save money on your next Hawaii golf vacation, you are urged to, at least, look into Hawaii vacation golf packages. You can easily do this yourself, online, or with the assistance of a travel agent.
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