Speaking Easy With The Big Easy

Ernie Els was at the Magna Golf Club in Aurora, Ont., on Monday along with fellow Callaway staff player J.J. Henry to take part in the third annual Golf Town Invitational, with all proceeds going to the McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine.

Els was fresh off his tie for second at The Barclays, the first tournament in the FedEx Cup playoffs which turned out to be Els’ best finish of the season, although he has had six top-10s so far in 2009.

It put him that much closer to his first win since the Honda Classic last March, a long wait for a guy once ranked No. 1 in the world, so Els was in fine form as talked about his game, the FedEx Cup and the way he deals with his son Ben’s autism.

Here are a few excerpts from his discussion yesterday with the media:

Read more

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Will You Be An Adventurous Buyer?

For some reason, likely the weather, I’m having trouble comprehending that the Canadian buying shows are only about a month away and that the 2009 golf season will soon be winding down.

Of course, many of us will be hoping in the meantime that September is glorious to help salvage what is generally considered a so-so year due to the staggering economy earlier this season and the weather, but there is an upside for at least half of us.

Last week’s GNN Poll asked if the second half of 2009 has been better than the first half and it was a 50-50 split among those who responded. Either way, finishing this year on a high note takes priority, at least for now, over the buying shows.

Stop and think for a minute, however. Considering your business this year, how likely are you to bring in new brand names in golf equipment, apparel or accessories? That’s the subject of this week’s poll. Read more

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Dunning Offers Vintage Look For Spring

Slim Fit tops, with close-cut, vintage 1960s tailoring, highlight the spring 2010 golf and sportswear collections from Dunning Golf.

Four colourways include red/white/navy, surf/pink, marine/orange/steel and black/yellow/charcoal.

“At the green grass level, a huge opportunity exists for merchandisers and PGA professionals to engage their members with brands that have tremendous value and versatility built into each garment,” said company founder Ralph Dunning.

In addition to the interface stretch, interface pique, stretch performance, interface compression and tour stretch fabrications, highlights of the new collection include the Dunning Tour Slim Fit for those seeking an athletic fit.

The Dunning Tour label offers close-cut, vintage 1960s inspired tailoring that is narrow in the shoulders and torso, while featuring a mid-bicep sleeve length and tour logo detail.

Meanwhile, the Dunning Classic Trouser is offered in flat front or classic pleat, with an unfinished hem for custom tailoring. The trouser is designed for this golf, business or fashion-lifestyle and features a proprietary blend of wool, polyester and lycra.

Dunning’s Internface Thermal is designed for golf, sporting or leisure activities and to keep men warm and comfortable, while layering without bulk.

Crafted to be worn with a close-to-the-body fit, they are available in fine merino wool, cotton, stretch thermal and Thermolite®, a fabric offering insulation without added weight, along with freedom of movement and moisture-wicking properties.

Heritage Classic Mercerized Polos are designed to offer not only a luxurious hand, but also a modern cut with shorter sleeves and a trimmer silhouette. Drawing from a traditional color palette, these shirts are offered in a variety of striped and solid options.

Performance Woven Sportshirts feature a proprietary blend of cotton, Invista Coolmax and polyester and offer wrinkle resistance, breathability and moisture-wicking.

Cotton Coolmax Shorts and Pants are designed to wick moisture and dry instantly. Boasting a lightweight construction and soft hand, these prep pieces are available in a variety of classic fabrics and prints including seersucker, tattersall and gingham and come in pleated and flat front styles.

The spring 2010 collection ranges in sizes from XS to 2XL in tops and 30 to 40 inches in bottoms.
For more information, see the website www.dunningsportswear.com.

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Unk’s Seaforth Win Is One For The Books

Brian Unk fired a bogey-free 64 and set three Canadian Tour records on his way to capturing the $125,000 Seaforth Country Classic in Seaforth, Ont., by three strokes over James Hahn.

Unk’s score of 28-under-par 256 set tour records for lowest cumulative score and lowest score in relation to par. He also set the 54-hole mark for lowest cumulative score on Saturday.

Ryan Yip shot 66 to finish alone in third at 23-under 261, three ahead of Jason D’Amore, who matched the tournament low 63.

Jae Woo Im shot his third consecutive 66 to grab fifth spot at 265, while Scott Gibson’s 66 left him in solo sixth at 266.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve won anything of this magnitude,” said Unk. “The guys out here are so good and anyone can win on any week.

“This was just my week. It’s hard to win golf tournaments and a lot of it is confidence.”

Unk came out flying on a raw and windy day with three consecutive birdies to move into a commanding lead, but Yip began to chip away at Unk’s lead with four birdies of his own after the eighth hole. He played the final seven holes at four under, but it wasn’t enough.

With birdies on seven and eight, Unk appeared to be in command, but he began to play conservatively, making six straight pars, and gave his pursuers a glimmer of hope.

Unk overshot the ninth green and faced a treacherous downhill chip from thick, tangled rough that rolled 15 feet past the pin. Facing an uphill putt with left to right break, he rammed home the putt.

“That turned out to be huge,” said Unk. “I had a big lead, but who knew that James (Hahn) was going to shoot five-under on the back side. It was a really big putt in terms of momentum.

“James really got it going on the back nine,” added Unk. “He birdied 12 and 13 and then I watched him stuff it in there to a foot on 15 for eagle.

“I hit it in the rough off the tee and was forced to lay up, but I answered him with a birdie.

With Hahn hitting his approach to a foot for birdie at No. 16, Unk knew he needed his 12-footer to match his playing partner. He got it.

“I had to keep answering him on the back nine just to keep pace,” added Unk. “I knew he was going to make those putts and it was up to me to respond.I’m proud of the way I kept my composure today and how I just played my own game.”

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Nature’s Fury Strikes Golf Courses

The past month or so has offered at least a couple of examples of how nature’s fury can mean more than just the inconvenience of a barren tee sheet.

I haven’t heard of any damage to golf courses by the fires that have been burning throughout British Columbia, but you have to wonder about the possibilities in the future, especially with the mountain pine beetle infestation turning trees into kindling in the summer months.

In Ontario, the Muskoka Bay Club near Gravenhurst is back in business after being hit just over a week ago with an apparent F0 tornado that that can produce wind speeds of between 60 and 110 kilometres an hour.

According to reports, hundreds of trees came down, roofs were ripped off golf carts and patio furniture and other objects were found as far as a kilometre away, forcing the club to shut down for a few days to clean up. [ Here’s a first hand description ]. Read more

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Antigua Introduces D2XL

Antigua is celebrating its 30th anniversary with the introduction of its Desert Dry Xtra-Lite (D2XL) fabrics in its men’s apparel line for spring, 2010, in Canada.

D2XL combines Antigua’s Desert Dry moisture-wicking with specially constructed light fabrics for maximum wicking performance and comfort. D2XL is designed to be more lightweight, with more rapid wicking, less heat trapped on the body and less restrictive movement.

“We feel there is a consumer who will really appreciate the Xtra-Lite product and we have developed a special logo and hangtag for these garments,” said Ron McPherson, president of Antigua.

Distributed in Canada by Tournament Sports, Antigua will feature D2XL in a rich, sophisticated colour palette with clean, updated styling details in 2010.

“Our target audience is the weekend golfer who expects their apparel to perform,” said McPherson. “When golfers began demanding performance apparel several years ago, we not only continued to excel as a genuine golf brand, but we easily shifted to performance apparel.

“Our Desert Dry moisture-wicking fabrics showed we were serious about creating the industry’s best performance apparel, and now our Desert Dry Xtra-Lite is another breakthrough fabric we know consumers will embrace.”

For more information, see the website, www.tournament-sports.com.

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Nike GM Settles Into Tough U.S. Market

Mike Francis had no illusion that it would be a cakewalk through a tough American economy when he took over as U.S. general manager for Nike Golf at the beginning of December, but he is surprised at how quickly things have changed since then.

“The U.S. market is far more complex than people think it is. That comes from working around the world,” said Francis, who spearheaded the formation of Nike Golf Canada and headed up the company’s European operation before taking his current position.

“This is a very large, very complex marketplace,” he said, using the sheer size, different markets, geographic locations and multiple trade channels that go with the American marketplace as examples.

“Here, you have that many more available golf courses, you have management groups that manage multiple golf courses, you have sporting goods channels, you have multiple off-course people that are very large, so it’s a complex place,” said Francis.

“It’s a tough market here. It is the market in the world that everyone follows. Everyone needs to win in this market to be successful,” he added. “The first nine months (of his tenure) have gone quite well. The economy certainly hasn’t changed at all. Read more

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Women’s Open Field Announced

The top 50 on the LPGA Tour money list and 20 of 24 players from the recent Solheim Cup will be on hand at Priddis Greens near Calgary for the CN Canadian Women’s Open, Sept. 3-6.

Players include defending champion Katherine Hull, world No. 1 Lorena Ochoa, Michelle Wie and current LPGA Tour money leader Cristie Kerr, who won the 2006 CN Canadian Women’s Open.

Other past champions who will be in attendance include Ochoa (2007), Meena Lee (2005), Meg Mallon (2000, 2002), Laura Davies (1996), Julie Inkster (1984) and Karrie Webb, who won the last time Priddis Greens hosted the LPGA Tour in 1999.

The following is the final field with four exemptions remaining to be handed out at Monday qualifying:

Shi Hyun Ahn
Helen Alfredsson
Beth Bader
Kyeong Bae
Marisa Baena
Erica Blasberg
Minea Blomqvist
Heather Bowie
Audra Burks
Nicole Castrale
Silvia Cavalleri
Irene Cho
Jeanne Cho-Hunicke
Chella Choi
Hye Jung Choi
Na Yeon Choi
Il Mi Chung
Paula Creamer
Diana D’Alessio
Eva Dahllof
Laura Davies
Dorothy Delasin
Laura Diaz
Danielle Downey
Meredith Duncan
Moira Dunn
Mollie Fankhauser
Shanshan Feng
Allison Fouch
Meaghan Francella
Louise Friberg
Katie Futcher
Sandra Gal
Sophie Giquel
Kate Golden
Julieta Granada
Anna Grzebien
Natalie Gulbis
Russy Gulyanamitta
Sophie Gustafson
Kim Hall
Hee-Won Han
Marcy Hart
Rachel Hetherington
Maria Hjorth
Katherine Hull
Jamie Hullett
Amy Hung
M.J. Hur
Pat Hurst
Vicky Hurst
Karine Icher
Juli Inkster
Becky Iverson
Jeong Jang
Eun-Hee Ji
Young Jo Hee
Lorie Kane
Jimin Kang
Soo-Yun Kang
Cristie Kerr
Christina Kim
In-Kyung Kim
Joo Mi Kim
Mindy Kim
Song-Hee Kim
Young Kim
Carin Koch
Candie Kung
Brittany Lang
Jee Young Lee
Jeehae Lee
Meena Lee
Sarah Lee
Seon Hwa Lee
Stacy Lewis
Brittany Lincicome
Leta Lindley
Carolina Llano
Stephanie Louden
Teresa Lu
Meg Mallon
Catriona Matthew
Charlotte Mayorkas
Jill McGill
Kristy McPherson
Ai Miyazato
Mika Miyazato
Anja Monke
Janice Moodie
Becky Morgan
Johanna Mundy
Liselotte Neumann
Anna Nordqvist
Lorena Ochoa
Ji Young Oh
Shiho Oyama
Jin Young Pak
Se Ri Pak
Angela Park
Hee Young Park
Inbee Park
Jane Park
Mikaela Parmlid
Suzann Pettersen
Stacy Prammanasudh
Morgan Pressel
Reilley Rankin
Anna Rawson
Michele Redman
Jennifer Rosales
Giulia Sergas
Alena Sharp
Jiyai Shin
Ashleigh Simon
Sarah Jane Smith
Louise Stahle
Angela Stanford
Lisa Strom
Karen Stupples
Kris Tamulis
Yani Tseng
Momoko Ueda
Wendy Ward
Karrie Webb
Michelle Wie
Leah Wigger
Lindsey Wright
Amy Yang
Eunjung Yi
Sung Ah Yim
Sun Young Yoo

Tournament Exemptions

Amanda Blumenhurst
Maria Hernandez
Ashli Bunch
Taya Battistella
Amber Prange
Sara Brown
Ashley Sholer
Sue Kim
Hannah Jun
Jennifer Kirby
Maude-Aimée LeBlanc
Nicole Vandermade
Kira Meixner
Stephanie Sherlock
Jessica Shepley
A.J. Eathorne

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