Blog

Kathy Whitworth has been selected by the Banner Health Golf Council to receive the Linda Vollstedt Award for Service and Leadership in Women’s Sports. Whitworth will be honored at the Heather Farr Pro-Am, an official event of the Safeway International LPGA Tournament on Sunday, March 30. … Arthur Jeffords reopens Lighthouse Golf one year after closing down its Website and eliminating outside client management and consulting services. The firm, now based in Prince Edward County, Va., has a strategic relationship with the Atlanta-based entrepreneurial firm, Herberton Group, and its Virginia destination resort golf community, The Manor Resort. … The course architects at Golfplan-Fream, Dale & Ramsey breaks ground on a new 18-hole course in Bodrum, Turkey. The project is slated for a spring 2009 opening. Bodrum is commonly referred to as Turkey’s St. Tropez, its Mediterranean climate, upscale shops and quiet location on the Aegean having served Istanbul’s old money elite for many decades. … The Golf Course Builders Association of America more than doubles the number of line items for the 2008 construction and renovation costs guide. The new guide will feature average prices for more than 50 line items. Some of the new items featured in the guide include tee boxes, greens, bunkers, irrigation, grading, grassing, cart paths and drainage. The guide is available on a CD-ROM and features information in (four or six) reports. Copies of the GCBAA cost guide can be purchased by calling 402.476.4444 or by visiting www.gcbaa.com. …

Rain Bird Golf announces the availability of Version 6.0, the latest generation of its dynamically-adaptive central control software, which is designed to help superintendents optimize water management in real time. … Adams Golf has its application for listing approved by The NASDAQ Stock Market. The company’s common stock will now be traded on The NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol “ADGF.” … Mike Schmidt launches his own wine labels with other members of the exclusive 500 Home Run Club – Ernie Banks and Eddie Murray – with 100 percent of player proceeds going directly to the charity of the player’s choice. These 500 Home Run Club wines – Mike Schmidt 548 Zinfandel, Ernie Banks 512 Chardonnay and Eddie Murray 504 Cabernet – are produced Eos Estate Winery out of Paso Robles, Calif., and will be available to the general public in May. Expected retail is $17 per bottle. … Crown Sports Management retains the services of Thomas Jordan as vice president of player relations. … Golf Magazine celebrates the 20th anniversary of its “Best Resorts Awards,” an honor bestowed upon the 75 greatest destinations in North America which appears in the April issue. … The Western Golf Association elects four new directors from Colorado in 2008 – Kyle B. Herren, Brent LaBier, Rupert O’Neal and Robert Polk.

Entries will close on March 19 for the Georgia State Golf Association‘s inaugural Georgia Super Senior Championship, set for April 16-17 at Cherokee Town and Country Club in Atlanta. This event is open to male amateur golfers age 65 and older as of April 16, who are GSGA members and Georgia residents. For information, call 770.955.4272 or 800.949.4742, or e-mail at info@gsga.org. … The Golf Club at Fiddler’s Creek will host the fifth Florida State Golf Association Senior/Mid-Amateur Four-Ball Championship on April 26-27. Entries are now being accepted online at www.fsga.org with a deadline of March 26. Also, the FSGA’s 65th Club Team Championship will be played at Golden Hills Golf and Turf Club and Juliette Falls in the Ocala area on May 3-4. Entry deadline is April 2. … Gary Player commits to make his Ginn Championship, March 24-30 in Palm Coast, Fla. … The Farms Golf Club in San Diego will host the 2009 Callaway Golf Collegiate Match Play Championship. The event, previously staged during the fall season, will be played March 29-31 and feature a new format taking into account proposed changes to the NCAA Division I championships. … Alison Whitaker of Duke earns a sponsor’s exemption to the Ginn Tribute by winning the University of Central Florida Challenge at RedTail Golf Club in Sorrento, Fla., on March 11. … Tournament Golf Foundation and Safeway Inc. announce that this year’s Safeway International will mark the conclusion of Safeway’s sponsorship of the Phoenix-area LPGA event. Safeway also sponsors the LPGA’s Safeway Classic in Portland, Ore. “However, both tournaments have rapidly grown to the point that we feel that, in order to maintain the quality experience for the players, fans and other sponsors, we need to consolidate our sponsorship and focus on our event in Portland,” said Mike Minasi, Safeway’s marketing president. Also, TGF and Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in North Plains, Ore., announce an agreement in which the Safeway Classic will be played at Pumpkin Ridge beginning in 2009. … Atlanta Junior Golf announces its summer tournament schedule with 90 events beginning May 28 for junior golfers ages 7-18. For information, go to www.atlantajuniorgolf.org.