lenz – Page 27 – Len Ziehm On Golf

Two-year hiatus is finally over for the Chicago Golf Show

For 37 years the Chicago Golf Show was considered the unofficial start to the Chicago golf season. And then the pandemic hit.

The show was cancelled in 2001 and 2022 because of pandemic concerns, but it’s back this weekend in full force at the Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont. It’ll feature Colt Knost, an on-course TV reporter for CBS, and Paige Spiranac, a prominent social media influencer on golf, sports and fitness.

Knost is one of the most decorated amateurs in golf history, having won the U.S. Amateur and U.S. Public Links and was a member of the U.S. Walker Cup team in 2007. He won the Public Links title at Cantigny, in Wheaton, then played on various pro tours before retiring in 2020.

Spiranac and Knost will appear together on the show’s Daily Herald Main Stage at 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday and Knost will also be there at 11 a.m. on both days.

Show visitors can also sign up for free rounds at the 13 Chicago area courses operated by SportsVisions and Illinois PGA professionals will be offering free lessons. There will also be deals available on equipment, apparel, shoes, golf bags and balls, swing aids, indoor putting greens and range finders.

Show hours are noon to 6:30 p.m. on Friday 9 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. on Sunday.

IPGA MAJORS ARE SET: The Illinois PGA has announced its 2023 schedule and its two oldest and biggest major championships will have major venue changes. The Illinois PGA Championship, first held in 1922, will make its first appearance at Thunderhawk, in Beach Park, Aug. 14-16 and the 74^th staging of the Illinois Open will be at Flossmoor July 31-Aug. 2.

The Illinois PGA was played at a first time venue last year, at Makray Memorial in Barrington, when player-of-the-year Brian Carroll edged 13-time winner Mike Small for the title.

Flossmoor hasn’t hosted the Illinois Open since 1984 when former PGA Tour player Lance Ten Broeck won the title. That south suburban club also was the site for Bob Harris’ victory in 1955.

First of the section’s four majors, the Match Play Championship, will make its second appearance in three years at Bull Valley, in Woodstock, May 8-11 and The Players Championship will conclude the big events Oct. 9-10 at Twin Orchard, in Long Grove.

HERE AND THERE: Thomas Pieters, who grew up in Belgium before starring collegiately at Illinois, will reportedly join the LIV Tour this week. He was the 2012 NCAA champion for the Illini and holds a No. 34 world ranking after spending most of his professional time on the European tour. The LIV circuit begins its second season on Friday in Mexico.

Arlington Heights’ Doug Ghim snapped a string of six straight missed cuts on the PGA Tour at last week’s Genesis tourney in Los Angeles. He finished in a tie for 62^nd place. Northbrook’s Nick Hardy missed his second cut in eight starts at the Genesis event. He’ll play in this week’s Honda Classic, the start of the PGA’s Florida Swing.

Four Illinois players were in the 78-man field in last week’s PGA Tour Champions Chubbs tourney in Florida where Bernhard Langer tied Hale Irwin’s record for most wins on the 50-and-over circuit. Mark Hensby tied for 18^th, Jeff Sluman tied for 25^th and Illinois Golf Hall of Famers Gary Hallbeg and Jay Haas tied for 66^th and tied for 70^th respectively.

Palatine Hills has landed a qualifying round for the U.S. Women’s Open. The qualifier, one of 26 nationwide, will be held on June 7 and the main event will be July 6-9 at California’s Pebble Beach.

Langer finally catches Irwin as winningest player on Champions tour

The Chubbs Classic fans were allowed to spill into the 18th fairway of the Black Course at Tiburon Golf Course as Bernhard Langer closed in on his historic 45th victory on PGA Tour Champions.

NAPLES, FL. – Bernhard Langer now shares the honor of being the winningest golfer in the 43-year history of PGA Tour Champions. This great accomplishment was a long time coming.

In winning the Chubbs Classic on Sunday Langer notched his 45^th win on the 50-and-over circuit to pull even with Hale Irwin. Irwin, who very rarely plays any more, won for the last time in 2007. That was the same year that Langer earned his first Champions win.

And more will be coming. The Chubbs was only the third of 28 events on the 50-and-over circuit this season so it figures Langer will have the cherished record all to himself in the very near future – maybe as soon as the next tournament. The Cologuard Classic is just two weeks after the Chubbs, and Langer has won that Arizona event previously.

“He continues to amaze us all,’’ said Steve Stricker, one of Langer’s top rivals in every tournament. “He just keeps going. He stays in shape, and he’s a nice person, too. That’s the coolest part; he’s a good guy.’’

That showed immediately after Langer’s final putt dropped at the Chubbs. It wasn’t just his playing partners, Steven Alker and Jerry Kelly, who were quick to give Langer their best wishes. Scott McCarron, one of Langer’s fellow ambassadors for Illinois-based club manufacturer Tour Edge, waited long after he had finished his round to congratulate Langer.

Also on hand was Langer’s wife, daughter and grandson and Bobby Clampett, the long-time tour player who introduced Langer to a Bible study group. The has had far-reaching positive effects for Langer.

Langer turned to Tour Edge clubs in recent years, and that contributed to his success.

The 36^th playing of the Chubbs, again at the Greg Norman-designed Black Course at Tiburon Golf Club, was like a home game for Langer. He has been a south Florida resident for over 30 years and he has won the Chubbs five times. He came into his record-tying victory as the event’s defending champion.

Moving ahead of Irwin is, of course, his next challenge but Langer wanted to savor win No. 45 first.

“It was extremely special because I never thought it would happen,’’ said Langer, who extended his record of being the oldest Champions Tour winner to four events. He was 65 years, five months 23 days old for his latest win.

Irwin got his 45 victories in 217 starts and Langer did it in his 319th. Though the latest was officially a wire-to-wire win, it didn’t seem that way. Fred Couples, Padraig Harrington, Alker and Dicky Pride all at least shared the lead before Langer wrapped it up with four birdies on the last five holes.

It helped that Harrington, Alker and Pride all made major mistakes down the stretch, though Langer wasn’t really aware of their problems.

Bernhard Langer’s latest win led to a family celebration for the golfer’s mother, daughter and grandson.

“We didn’t have any problems. We were just trying to make birdies, and we did,’’ he said. “I played solid, but didn’t set it on fire. All of a sudden I made those birdies coming in. That’s when you have to do it, when everything is on the line.’’

Langer was tied for the lead after the first round and led by one after the second. He bettered his age in posting a 64 on Friday and matched his age with a 65 on Sunday. His 17-under-par 199 score for the 54 holes resulted in a three-stroke victory margin but the historic win wasn’t that easy.

Couples knocked Langer out of the lead by making four birdies in the first six holes. When he cooled off Harrington shot 29 on the front nine to take the lead and Pride, in the field as a sponsor’s exemption, used a hole-in-one at No. 10 to also move into the top spot.

Langer wasn’t aware what was happening to them as the back nine unfolded, but it was to his benefit.

Harrington put his tee shot near a pond at No. 14 and needed three more shots to just get out of the hazard. That led to a double bogey that doomed Harrington’s chances. Alker threatened until putting a fairway bunker shot into the water at No. 13. That also meant a double bogey that stymied Alker’s hopes.

Pride hit his tee shot tee shot deep into the woods on No. 17 and finished bogey-bogey. That left Langer a stroll to the finish, where the gallery piled in behind him in appreciation of his accomplishment.

“My whole life has been an improbable story,’’ said Langer after the celebrating had died down. “I should have died as a kid when I had an extremely high fever. Doctors told my mother not to have a child, but she got pregnant anyway. They told her to abort me, but she decided not to take a chance of killing herself and me. We both survived.’’

Then came his start in golf.

“I was just a German kid from a village of 800 who started as a caddie,’’ he said. “Nobody started a career in golf in Germany. They thought I was crazy. Just to earn a living at it was incredible. Maybe some day we can make a movie about my life. That would be cool.’’

The movie may take a while, as Langer has no intention of cutting back on his tournament schedule any time soon. And, in the end, those who might watch that movie could well find it hard to believe. The Langer story might well seem too good to be true.

The thrill of victory was obvious when Langer’s last putt dropped.

Langer pulls even with Irwin in Champions’ wins

NAPLES, FL. – Bernhard Langer now shares the honor of being the winningest golfer in the 43-year history of PGA Tour Champions. In winning the Chubbs Classic on Sunday Langer notched his 45^th win on the 50-and-over circuit to pull even with Hale Irwin.

The 36^th playing of the Chubbs was like a home game for Langer, who has lived in nearby Boca Raton for over 30 years. Langer has won the Chubbs five times and came into Sunday’s final round on the Tiburon Golf Club’s Black course as the defending champion.

Moving ahead of Irwin could come as early as the next tournament, the Cologuard Classic in Tucson, Ariz., in two weeks. Langer has won there in the past, but he was savoring win No. 45 Sunday without looking past that.

“It was extremely special because I never thought it would happen,’’ said the 65-year old Langer, who extended his record of being the oldest Champions Tour winner to four events.

Irwin won the first of his 45 tournaments in 2007, the same year that Langer won his first. Irwin got his 45 in 217 starts and Langer has made 319.

Langer was tied for the lead after the first round on the Black Course at Tiburon Golf Club and led by one after Saturday’s second round. He bettered his age in posting a 64 on Friday and matched his age with a 65 on Sunday. His 17-under-par SCORE resulted in a three-stroke victory margin but the historic win wasn’t that easy.

Fred Couples knocked Langer out of the lead by making four birdies in the first six holes on Sunday. When he cooled off Padraig Harrington shot 29 on the front nine to take the lead and Dicky Pride, in the field as a sponsor’s exemption, used a hole-in-one at No. 10 to also move into the top spot.

Langer wasn’t aware what was happening to them as the back nine unfolded, but it was to his benefit.

Harrington put his tee shot near a pond at No. 14 and needed three more shots to just get out of the hazard. That led to a double bogey, and Harrington was done. Steven Alker, one of Langer’s playing partners, threatened until putting a fairway bunker shot into the water at No. 13. That also meant a double bogey and finished Alker.

Pride his tee shot tee deep in the woods on No. 17 and finished bogey-bogey. That left Langer a stroll to the finish, where the gallery piled in behind him in appreciation of his accomplishment.

Then came his start in golf.

That may take a while, as Langer has no intention of cutting back on his tournament schedule any time soon.

Tour Edge clubs help Langer approach Champions Tour history

David Glod has boosted the profile of his 36-year old Batavia-based Tour Edge golf club company in recent years by building an advisory staff around players on PGA Tour Champions, and none of Glod’s signing was more important than Bernhard Langer.

Eight competitors on the 50-and-over circuit are Tour Edge ambassadors, and they include former major championship winners in Langer (1985 and 1993 Masters), Mike Weir (2003 Masters) and Tom Lehman (1996 British Open).

The spotlight is only on Langer now, because he’s on the brink of a major historical accomplishment.

Hale Irwin holds the Champions record with 45 tournament victories from 1995 to 2007. Langer, with 44, could tie Irwin with a win at the Chubbs Classic, which begins its 54-hole run Friday (FEB 17) at Tiburon, in Naples, FL. Langer, 65, is the defending champion. He’s also won at least two times every year since 2011, so he could well pass Irwin during the 2023 campaign.

Still a full-time player, Langer believes he “has a few more wins in me,’’ and he’s quick to point out his Tour Edge equipment as a key to his success.

“I love it,’’ he said. “It’s a great company. I signed with them two or three years ago and just renewed for another two years. The company is phenomenal. They make a great product and it’s getting better. I just tested their new hybrids, and they brought out a new set of irons that Mike Weir immediately put into play. I loved just looking at his, so I’m getting mine hopefully in Naples.’’

Irwin was a frequent winner in Chicago (1990 U.S. Open at Medinah, 1975 Western Open at Butler National and three Champions Tour events – 1995 at Stonebridge and 1998 and 1999 at Kemper Lakes). The Stonebridge win was Irwin’s last on the 50-and-over circuit and came in the same year that Langer won for the first time on the Tour. He had 42 wins on the European Tour but only three on the PGA, including his two Masters.

He is off to a slow start with the seniors this year, with a tie for 10^th in Hawaii in January and a tie for 39th in Morocco last week. Langer, a Florida resident for over 30 years, feels more comfortable heading to Tiburon.

“I think I have a slight advantage living in South Florida, being used to the grasses, mostly Bermuda,’’ he said. “To me it feels like a home game.’’

Home game or not, he has no plans to reduce his tournament schedule.

“If I’m healthy, if I enjoy the game and have fun doing it and am somewhat successful, I’m probably going to continue,’’ he said. “ I do have my aches and pains, but I enjoy being out there with my colleagues, and I’m still fairly good at it.’’

Though Langer didn’t play well in last week’s Trophy Hassan II event in Morocco the event had some surprise results by Illinois players. Mark Hensby won the Illinois State Amateur in 1994 and the Illinois Open in 1996 shortly after arriving from Australia and then captured the PGA Tour’s John Deere Classic in 2004 after earning his PGA card. His career hasn’t been as promising since then, but Hensby finished second in Morocco – his best finish in 11 Champions Tour starts since he turned 50.

Long-time Chicago resident Jeff Sluman, basically retired from tournament golf over the last three years, showed up in Morocco and tied for 19^th in the 66-player field. Sluman won’t be playing in Naples but Hensby and Illinois Golf Hall of Famers Jay Haas and Gary Hallberg will.

HERE AND THERE: The 38^th Chicago Golf Show returns to the Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont Feb. 24-26. The show was cancelled due to pandemic issues in 2021 and 2022.

Three Illinois PGA members received national honors from the PGA of America at the recent PGA Merchandise Show in Florida. Jamie Nieto, of The Preserve at Oak Meadows, received the Deacon Palmer Award, Nick Papadakes of Onwentsia the PGA Professional Development Award and Cog Hill’s Kevin Weeks the PGA Teacher and Coach of the Year Award.

A $5.9 million renovation at Canal Shores, the 103-year old course that winds through Evanston and Wilmette, will begin in June. A youth golf facility and caddie academy will be created with architect Todd Quitno overseeing the project. Some of the holes will remain open until Aug. 1 with the project to be completed in the summer of 2024.

Check out these innovative products unveiled at the PGA Show

Mike Friedman’s Tall Order socks have a link with baseball star Aaron Judge.

ORLANDO, FL. – With 400 companies and 800 brands participating the PGA Merchandise Show was in full swing for its 70^th staging at the Orange County Convention Center.

Those weren’t quite the numbers in pre-pandemic years, but they underscored a good recovery for the golf industry’s biggest event and product innovation was at a particularly high level.

Here are three that particularly intrigued us. All had creators with a story to tell, and all three involved brothers working together.

TALL ORDER SOCKS – Towering twin brothers Mike and Dan Friedman are New Yorkers who, inevitably, had to think big. Mike is 6-11 and Dan 6-9.

“We were so big that we had trouble finding socks that would stay up,’’ said Mike. “I’d be wearing dress socks and walking to work in the snow, and my socks would fall down in my boots.’’

In the fall of 2017 they addressed not only that problem but also did something they felt was overdue.

“We started our business in honor of our Dad (Andrew),’’ said Mike. “He was killed in the World Trade Center in 2001. We wanted to do something that honored his legacy. We remember vividly giving out clean white socks to people who were rescue workers or first responders. At first we made our socks for just tall people. Now we make them for everybody. Our motto now is `Made for all, not just tall.’’

The socks have seamless toes, extra cushioning and arch support. They range in price from $10-18 for dress socks, $25-30 for ankle socks and $30 for a three-pack.

“We wanted to provide people with as much comfort as possible,’’ said Mike. “Plus, we donate a portion of what we see to give back to various organizations – families of first responders and rescue personnel. It’s important for us to give back.’’

The story doesn’t end there, however.

In 2020 the Friedmans got a call from an equipment manager for the New York Yankees.

“He said Aaron (Judge) is upset with his socks,’’ said Mike Friedman. “They were too tight and not comfortable. He asked if we could make him some socks, and we did. In Aaron’s first game wearing his new socks he went three-for-5 with four RBIs including a moonshot home run, and he’s worn them ever since.’’

Judge, of course, has gone on to greater things with his home run-hitting prowess and that’s not all. He’s also become an equity partner in Tall Order.

Tim Wright has found a way to combine hockey with better putting.

CALIBER GOLF –This company, based in Kenosha, WI., unveiled a putting grip and shaft with roots in a hockey stick. Other would-be golf inventors have worked with hockey sticks over the years but with little success. Caliber’s first version wasn’t a success, either.

Tim Wright, like his brother Chip, is a hockey devotee, and they played on a championship team at the University of Wisconsin. Tim started their creative effort in a one-car garage because he couldn’t make a four-foot putt.

“As a hockey player I could rip a slapshot in the net over a goalie’s shoulder from the blue line,’’ he said. But the seemingly easier four-foot putts rarely found the cup.

In desperation Wright cut one of his putters 7 ½ inches off the blade of the shaft. Then he took a hockey stick, hollow inside, inserted the putter blade and taped it up.

“I wound up winning my flight in an event at the Kenosha Country Club,’’ said Wright. “The pro there allowed me to play with it but the members were disappointed because the putter was non-conforming.’’

Wright went to the U.S. Golf Association for advice.

“I needed to get the hockey shaft to conform to the Rules of Golf, and I was told that, for 30 years, people have submitted the hockey shaft to try to get it to conform,’’ said Wright, “but a hockey shaft vs. a putter shaft doesn’t deflect equally from all angles. That’s written in the rules and regulations.’’

Wright beat that problem by inserting a tube into the hockey stick shaft, then inserting the putter head into the tube and glued it in so the head wouldn’t wobble.

“Then there was no vibration or movement (when putts were struck),’’ he said. “It didn’t matter what putter head wa suns used, and now it’s patented. A putter grip can be non-circular. Every other club has to have a round grip.’’

The Caliber Putting Grip & Shaft costs $199. The company can insert the putter head of choice but that task can also be performed by club professionals or players with some expertise in club construction.

Dan Sunseri (left) and Rodney Wilson are boosting the Brim Buddy for sun protection.

BRIM BUDDY – This is a hat attachment devised by another set of twins, Dan and Don Sunseri, who are from California’s San Francisco Bay area.

“We had skin cancer and our doctor told us to wear a big hat,’’ said Dan. “We tried a million of them and don’t like them. We prefer baseball caps.’’

Don was the brainchild for the Brim Buddy, a circular brim with a hole in the center. It fits on top of a traditional golf cap, thereby adding protection from the sun. The Sunseris had the product in development for four years before unveiling it in Orlando.

“It’s an easily affordable product that can always be in your golf bag and provides 360 sun protection,’’ said Dan Sunserie. “We have two models – one for average light and a heavier one that will hold up in the wind. The whole idea is about sun protection, to get a product out to people who love the outdoors. The response from the show was fantastic.’’

A local pro, Rodney Wilson, came on board after the Sunseris introduced the Brim Buddy. Its priced at $17 wholesale and can be personalized with player, club, outing or company names inserted.

Rodney Wilson, a golf professional, was quick to jump on to the Brim Buddy bandwagon.

Both PGA and LIV golf tours will visit Chicago this year

Top level men’s professional golf has been hard to find in the Chicago area in recent years. That won’t be the case this season.

The upstart LIV Golf League finally announced its schedule on Tuesday and it included a return to Rich Harvest Farms, in Sugar Grove. That means the top men’s players will be visiting twice in 2023.

The PGA Tour hasn’t had a tournament in the area since Medinah hosted the BMW Championship in 2019, though the sport’s premier circuit has had the annual John Deere Classic as a fixture in downstate Silvis.

This year, though, the PGA Tour will come back to the Chicago area with the BMW Championship, a FedEx Cup Playoff event, scheduled at Olympia Fields. Then that circuit won’t be back for any event until 2026 when Medinah hosts the President’s Cup team event.

LIV’s return to Rich Harvest wasn’t a surprise. It hosted one of the controversial Saudi-backed circuit’s most successful events in its inaugural 2022 campaign with Australian Cameron Smith winning the title. LIV held eight tournaments last year and will have 14, spread across the world, this year.

Tuesday’s announcement was delayed until a television contract was finalized, and that was accomplished when The CW Network agreed to terms last week.

There was also a question on Greg Norman’s status as LIV’s chief executive officer and commissioner. PGA Tour leadership, notably Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, wanted Norman out but his role has been expanded instead after former managing director Majed Al-Sorour was dropped down to a member of the board of directors.

The Olympia Fields and Rich Harvest events will be a month apart, setting up a big fall climax to the Chicago season. The BMW is Aug. 14-20 and the LIV stop in Sugar Grove is taking a new date, Sept. 22-24.

Both are well clear of golf’s four major championships, the British Open being the last to wrap up on July 23. The Rich Harvest event will be played opposite the PGA’s Sanderson Farms Championship in Mississippi.

One interesting scheduling issue surfaced with LIV’s announcement. LIV has a new event, at Orange County National in Orlando, FL., on tap a week before the first major, April’s Masters. There will be LIV players competing in the Masters against PGA Tour stars. Orange County National has been the regular host of the Demo Day at the PGA Merchandise Show and was in that position when the show teed off on Tuesday.

LIV again has three of its events scheduled at courses owned by Donald Trump, but that third – a climax to the 2022 season – has been scaled down to a regular event instead of the team championship, which will now be played Nov. 3-5 in Saudia Arabia.

Obviously LIV isn’t going away any time soon and its court battle with the PGA Tour figures to become an increasingly heated one.

The first LIV event of the year will be Feb. 24-26 at Mexico’s Mayakoba Resort. The stars that bolted the PGA Tour for the big money offered by LIV – notably Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Patrick Reed, Bubba Watson and Sergio Garcia – return to the LIV roster and more stars need to be added since the team competition has been expanded for the second season.

Henderson gets the LPGA season off to a good start

Oh, Canada! Brooke Henderson dominated the LPGA’s Tournament of Champions.

ORLANDO, FL. — Funny thing about the LPGA. The premier women’s tour in golf ended its 2022 season and started its 2023 campaign with Florida tournaments that were marred by some discontent.

The sponsor of last November’s CME Championship wasn’t happy that all the players competing for the biggest first-prize in women’s golf didn’t show up for the tournament’s gala banquet. The players weren’t happy when they arrived at Lake Nona Country Club last week for the season-opening Tournament of Champions and found out that they weren’t provided with lockers in the clubhouse and that their time on the practice range would be limited.

Still, the show — featuring 29 LPGA players who had won tournaments in the last two years and a concurrent co-ed celebrity event, conducted with a Stableford point format for 56 players from the sports and entertainment world — had to go on, and it turned out a good one.

Especially for Canadian Brooke Henderson, who led wire to wire in winning the LPGA event with a 16-under par score of 272 for the 72 holes and earned $225,000. She had a four-stroke advantage on England’s Charley Hull and Sweden’s Maja Stark, neither of whom were disappointed.

“It was a great way to start the season,’’ said Hull. “When I got here I didn’t know where my swing was at. Now I’ve got three weeks off (the next tournament is in Thailand next month).’’

“This wasn’t a normal competition, but if I keep going like this it could be my best year yet,’’ said Stark.

Henderson was the runner-up to Danielle Kang in last year’s Tournament of Champions. On Sunday she claimed her 13^th LPGA title in her first tournament after switching to TaylorMade clubs.

“I’m really happy I made the switch,’’ said Henderson. “I’m super-excited. This was a dream start, and I love this championship because it’s so unique.’’

The celebrity event was won by Mardy Fish, a former tennis star who had captained the U.S. Davis Cup team. Fish was also the celebrity champion in 2021.

This time that division turned into a unique sideshow because it featured a load of Chicago athletic stars, past and present. Jeremy Roenick, the former Blackhawks’ great, did the best of that lot. Paired with legendary golfer and Lake Nona member Annika Sorenstam, Roenick finished fifth – one point behind Sorenstam. Brian Urlacher, the ex-Bears’ star, tied for ninth. Baseballers Ian Happ, Jon Lester, Greg Maddux and A.J. Pierzynski were also in the celebrity field.

PGA Show triggers some big news by Chicago area golf companies

The par-3 seventh on the Blue Course is one of the most memorable holes at Streamsong. a unique Florida resort that just underwent an ownership change.

ORLANDO, FL. — The biggest week so far in the 2023 golf season is on tap, and – though the Ladies PGA Tour’s season-opening Tournament of Champions is being played nearby – the focus will be on the 70^th PGA Merchandise Show at the Orange County Convention Center.

The show has been the industry’s biggest event, having regularly drawn 40,000 visitors in pre-pandemic times. Attendance has been meager by comparison the last two years but most all the major manufacturers — there will be 450 companies and 800 brands represented — will return next week, and the event always triggers big news from throughout the golf industry.

This year one of the biggest developments has already been announced, and by Northbrook-based KemperSports to boot. The company, founded in 1978, just announced the purchase of Streamsong, one of the nation’s premier golf resorts.

Kemper had managed the three-course operation since the resort’s opening in 2012 and took over full management duties for owner Mosaic, a mining company, two years ago. Mosaic sold Streamsong, located in the town of Bowling Green near Lakeland, FL., to Lone Windmill LLC, an affiliate of KemperSports supported by Kemper’s equity members, for $160 million.

Kemper executive director Steve Skinner arrived early for next week’s show to check in at Streamsong – a 50-mile drive from Orlando — and he’ll be around for the start of the PGA Merchandise Show, which starts a busy three-day run on Tuesday. Kemper will present a survey “Teeing up the Future of Golf,’’ to show attendees in the aftermath of the Streamsong purchase.

“We’re very excited,’’ said Skinner, who has been with Kemper since 1998 and was involved in the creation of Streamsong since its opening in 2012. The purchase includes the three championship courses, two clubhouses, a lodge and other amenities on a 7,000-acre property. Only 2,000 acres are in use now so there’s plenty of room for growth.

Skinner said that construction will begin in March on The Chain, a 19-hole short course designed by the Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw architectural team, and a two-acre putting course.

“Down the road we’d like to build some cottages and then, if the demand requires it, a fourth big course,’’ said Skinner. “Golf has been the beneficiary of a new lifestyle coming out of the pandemic. We’ve seen a great demand, and there’s no place like Streamsong in the winter golf season.’’

Kemper has 140 properties on its management portfolio, owns 15 of those facilities and leases another 12. The company owns The Glen Club, in Glenview; and Royal Melbourne, in Long Grove; and Hawthorn Woods in the Chicago area. Streamsong is its fourth acquisition in Florida.

Mike Scully, who had been director of golf at Medinah when that club hosted the 2012 Ryder Cup matches, is in his second year as director of golf at Streamsong.

Other Chicago companies will have prominent roles when the Merchandise Show kicks off with 400 companies and 800 brands participating. Most interesting is Oakbrook Terrace’s Zero Friction. President John Iaconno came out with new tees, gloves, rangefinders and balls at previous shows, but now his featured product is more cutting edge models of golf bags and trolleys.

Iacono introduced his first bag at last January’s PGA Show, launching the Wheel Pro — a pushcart model that has removable wheels and weighs only 10 pounds. That makes it great for traveling but the launch didn’t go as smoothly as planned.

“We had a delay in getting them out,’’ Iacono said. “They were supposed to arrive in April but didn’t until late August. Supply issues.’’

Iacono is more optimistic about the model that he will unveil next week. Called the Wheel Pro Stride, it’s an electric golf bag that includes a battery life of 36 to 45 holes and weighs 15 pounds.

“It is like having your own private caddy that can essentially travel anywhere in the world with you,’’ said Iacono. “It even follows you around the golf course.’’

Chicago’s Wilson Sporting Goods just introduced a new line of clubs that is a throwback to the 1950s. The Dynapower equipment line, which made its debut in 1956, will be re-launched with adjustable drivers, fairway woods, hybrids and irons.

“Dynapower changed the game of golf seven decades ago, and it’s time for Wilson to do it again,’’ said Tim Clarke, president of Wilson Golf. “These powerful irons and adjustable drivers are built with our legendary history in mind as we continue to innovate and deliver top-of-the-line products that raise the confidence of golfers at all skill levels.’’

Wilson also adjusted its large professional advisory staff leading into the show, adding Kevin Kisner and Trey Mullinax after 2019 U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland switched to Cobra. Mullinax won the PGA’s Barbasol Championship last season while Kisner compiled five top-10 finishes and played on the U.S. Presidents Cup team.

Hardy will be more colorful when PGA Tour season resumes

Hardy brings a new putter, clubhead headcovers into the 2023 tournaments.

Northbrook’s Nick Hardy will be a more colorful player when he begins the 2023 portion of his second season on the PGA Tour at this week’s Sony Open in Hawaii. It’s the circuit’s first full-field event of 2023.

The 26-year old University of Illinois alum signed last week as the PGA Tour ambassador for Swag Golf, a five-year old company that produces putters and club headcovers. Its headquarters are also in Northbrook.

Swag has named the hand-crafted putter that Hardy tested in the final months of 2022 as the “Hardy Prototype.’’ It apparently works, as Hardy made eight straight birdies with it (one off the PGA Tour record) in his second tournament with the new blade at Mexico’s Mayakoba course in November.

His new clubhead covers, though, will be more noticeable when Hardy arrives at the first tee this week. Hardy has collected headcovers for years, now having about 60 over multiple brands. His new ones will be among the most colorful on tour and could be the most coveted among collectors.

Hardy will be rotating headcovers each week, and the first set will have an Hawaiian theme. Hardy’s favorite cover is one featuring former Bears’ coach Mike Ditka.

Swag’s founder, Nick Venson, focused on creating putters at first. He was a Scotty Cameron enthusiast before working at putter manufacturer Bettinardi. The headcovers, though, were an immediate hit when U.S. captain Steve Stricker ordered some for his winning team at last year’s Ryder Cup.

“I don’t switch things,’’ said Hardy. “I have the same driver shaft, same iron shaft and had the same putter for eight years before this one. Their putters are already great, and we’ve dialed in something I love even more. They make the best covers I’ve ever seen, and I want to make more of a collection.’’

Hardy needed a strong showing in a three-tournament, season-ending playoff series to retain his PGA Tour card, then made cuts in the first five events of the wrap-around 2022-23 campaign before missing in the final event.

HERE AND THERE

Jaravee Boonchant, the Thailand golfer who won this year’s Illinois Women’s Open at Mistwood by seven shots, has earned her LPGA card. The Duke University player earned her spot on the premier women’s circuit by finishing in the top 45 at the recent Qualifying School.

Jeff Sluman, a long-time Hinsdale resident and six-time winner on both the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions, has been nominated for a three-year term on the U.S. Golf Association’s Executive Committee. He’ll join Chicago’s Tony Anderson, who is in the process of serving his second term.

The Winnetka Park District has named Northbrook-based KemperSports to manage its nine and 18-hole courses, both of which will be closed in 2023 to facilitate an extensive renovation led by Libertyville architect Rick Jacobson. Both courses will re-open in 2024.

The Chicago District Golf Association has announced an 89-event schedule for 2023. The key dates are for the 92^nd Illinois State Amateur, July 18-20 at Bloomington Country Club, and the 103^rd CDGA Amateur, June 26-29 at Lake Shore in Glencoe.

Eagle Ridge Resort, in Galena, has announced that it’s all new Stonedrift Spa is now open at a new location, where the General Store had been located.

Florida’s Bonita Bay has completed an extraordinary course renovation

Bonita Bay Club, with five courses spread over two campuses, is a Florida golf landmark.

NAPLES, Florida – Most every golf course in south Florida was impacted when Hurricane Ian hit the area on Sept. 28. That included Bonita Bay Club, long recognized as one of southeastern United States’ premier facilities.

Bonita Bay, Florida’s largest private club, has five golf courses spread over two campuses that are 10 miles apart. The crowned jewel of those layouts, the Cypress Course, re-opened after a 14-month renovation on Oct. 14 but it took a while for the word to get out on just how elaborate the project was. Hurricane Ian had a lot to do with that, though relatively minor damage was reported at Cypress.

Two of the club’s courses – Cypress and Sabal – are at the Naples location and the other three – Creekside, Marsh and Bay Island – are in Bonita Springs, which was harder hit by the hurricane. The trio there are Arthur Hills designs created between 1985 and 1994.

Bulkhead walls were used for the first time in a Fazio design at Cypress.

The Tom Fazio Design Group created Cypress and Sabal in the late 1990s, Cypress opening in 1997. The Naples site is about 1,000 acres, and about 500 are donated to conservation projects. There are no homes around the property, a rarity for Naples area courses.

Not only does Bonita Bay have five golf courses, it has most everything else that might entice a prospective club member – as evidenced by the fact that the club has a long waiting list. When it was deemed time to upgrade its facilities the membership was all in, but it wasn’t a quick fix at Cypress.

“It took about a year to do the renovation but we needed three years of planning,’’ said Paul Fissel, Bonita Bay’s greens committee chairman. “Both of our courses there needed refurbishing to bring them up to a more modern era. Tom and his team delivered exactly what he said he would — a golf course that plays firm and fast in conditions now that normally are soft and wet.’’

The look of the bunkers at Cyypress has changed. Now they have `Augusta-like’ white sand.

There was no question about who would oversee the renovation project. Tom Fazio’s architectural firm was brought back with Tom Marzolf, a senior associate of the Fazio team and a member of it since 1983, directing the effort. Marzolf was well qualified, having done work on such nationally known courses as Oakmont, Merion, Winged Foot, Firestone, Oak Hill and Riviera.

At Cypress the entire course was raised by 12-18 inches to improve drainage. Six new lakes were created and four more expanded, resulting in 200,000 cubic yards of earth being spread over the property.

The fairways were widened, and 450 new catch basins added. Perforated pipe was laid underground to steer water away from playable areas and the tee placements were increased from five to seven per hole. One tee was added in front of the previous front set and another was added behind what had been the tips.

“We wanted the course to play shorter (to accommodate older players), plus the (Florida) section pros play a lot of their events there so we picked up yardage for the back tees,’’ said Marzolf.

Architect Tom Marzolf (left) and greens chairman Paul Fissel led Cypress’ renovation project.

Tee markers are now at 500-yard intervals – from 4,500 yards to 7,500. Cypress is the first Fazio-designed course to have a 3,000-yard spread between the front and back tees.

“From a club professional’s perspective we have a course that is championship-ready” said E.J. McDonnell, Bonita Bay’s director of golf.

“Our members enjoy the variety of playing options afforded by having five courses,’’ said Paul Nussbaum, chairman of Bonita Bay’s board of directors. “Cypress remains our most competitive but – with seven sets of tees –our golfers will find the right challenge for their games.’’

The number of bunkers was reduced from 70 to 50. “But now more are in play,’’ said Marzolf. The new bunkers also have a “cleaned up, Augusta look.’’

Greens and collared areas were also re-designed, resulting in more fun options to get the ball to the flagstick. Putting from off the green may now be more popular than chipping.

Work at Cypress created an exciting new layout at great expense to the membership. However, Bonita Bay’s other courses are already slated for major renovations, according to the club’s Golf Master Plan. Creekside will get special attention in 2023 and Sabal in 2024.

Among many projects discussed and pending approval are performance centers for both Marsh and Creekside and a renewed clubhouse at Naples.

Author: lenz