Bambi Joins Us
At Woodloch Springs
Bambi and some of her running mates joined us recently at the
beautiful Woodloch Springs Country Club for 18-holes of challenging
golf.
The wildlife and particularly the many deer that roam this
facility are seemingly never bothered by the golfing activity and this one deer
we called Bambi watched us tee off and let us walk up fairly close to her. We
encountered many deer throughout the course.
The
Country Club at Woodloch Springs is located near Hawley, Pa. and is a short
hop and skip from Narrowsburg and the New York State border.
This
outstanding golf facility in the Pennsylvania Pocono's has received national
acclaim in many of today's leading golf magazines and
publications.
This
golfing columnist and three other New York State golfers traveled to this course
recently to take on the par 72, 18-hole course which winds over 6,579 yards of
lush wetlands, fern-carpeted forests and broad upland meadows. Joining me were
Roscoe Twin Village Golf Club members Dean Winters, George Labouseur and Charles
Winters.
Woodloch Springs offers four sets of tees and easily accommodates all levels of
play.
Sculptured bunkers and water holes, bridges and miles of cart paths reflect the
strict attention to detail for which Woodloch is famous........and wait till you
get to the 14th "signature" hole which requires a dramatic carry over "Hell's
Gate Gorge" which is carved from the rugged mountainside by a rushing stream
some 200 feet below. We will outline this hole next week when we detail the back
nine.
In
1988 the resort of Woodloch Pines (Woodloch), owned and operated by the
Kisendahl family since 1958, unveiled an ambitious project to add an exclusive
golf community as the perfect complement to their resort.
Four
years in planning and 438 acres later, the community and golf course were
completed and today more than 400 exquisitely detailed homes surround this
challenging 18-hole championship golf course designed by Rocky Roquemore of
Atlanta, GA.
The
golf staff is headed up by PGA Professional Director of Golf John E. Pillar,
Sr., Jared Cottell, is the Head PGA Golf Professional and Eileen Pillar is the
Golf Retail Associate. Jeff Hugaboom is Golf Course Superintendent,
Tee
times for outside guests is available on a limited play based on availability 4
days in advance. Proper golf attire is required, no metal spikes, and hours of
the golf course is 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. with spring and fall hours depending on
daylight savings time. Eighteen-hole golf rates
including a cart and practice facility balls 7:30 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. $75, and 1
p.m. to closing $55. For the same times on Saturday and Sunday the rates are $90
and $70. The Country Club at Woodloch Springs offers a variety of club
memberships.
Golf lessons are available from the staff of PGA professionals at their 16-acre
practice facility located just minutes from the clubhouse.
Golf
shop tee times can be made by calling 570-685-8102 and dinner
reservations at 570-685-8002. The website is
www.woodloch.com and John Pillar's
e-mail is john.pillar@woodloch.com
Golf
Magazine and Golf Digest calls Woodloch Springs "one of America's best
courses." We found the greens fast and the fairways as smooth as your living
room rug.
We
will outline the first nine holes this week and the second nine with additional
information about the resort in next week's column.
From
the gold tees this is the way the front nine is played.
Hole
No. 1 is a 400-yard par 4 and this tough starting hole requires a tee shot
favoring the left side of the fairway as there are fairway traps on the right
side. Add one club for your uphill second shot to a long green with traps on the
left and right and rear.
Hole
No. 2 is a 380-yard par 4. This is a straight shot fairway and a fairway bunker
on the left comes into play....found this green to be one of the flattest on the
course with bunkers on the left and left rear.
Hole
No. 3 is a 558-yard par 5 with a dogleg to the right on the second half of this
hole which is labeled as one of the hardest holes on this golf course. Off the
tee there are trees on the right and a fairway trap 229-yards off the tee on the
left. Best to take a lay up off the tee of approximately 190 yards. Depending on
the golfer there are wetlands on the second or possibly third shot if you lay up
on the second shot. The next shot is to a 2-tiered green that slopes from left
to right. Getting a par here puts you in as leader of the pack. Green traps are
to the left and right and left rear.
Hole
No. 4 is a 167-yard par 3 and club selection and a straight shot is important as
there are bunkers to the left and right sides of this green. The deep raised
green makes holding your shot difficult.
Hole
No. 5 is a 316-yard par 4 and presents a slight uphill dogleg to the right. A
fairway trap is 239-yard our on the left as you make the turn to the green. This
two-tiered green requires leaving a second shot below the hole. Many golfers put
off the green from above the pin.
Hole
No. 6 is a 408-yard par 4 and is a dogleg left which requires a tee shot left of
a fairway bunker on the right. Small pond short left of the green may come into
play for long hitters.Take one less club for downhill second shot to one of the
firmest greens on the course.
Hole
No. 7 is a 499-yard par 5 and this downhill tee shot should be taken to the
right of the fairway bunker. There are wetlands located 280 yards from the tee
and lay up for long hitters.Second shot should be played to landing area to set
up short third shot to an angled green that slopes left to right. Traps on upper
left and fright front sides of the green.
Hole
No. 8 is a 162-yard par 3 with four traps fronting the green and traps upper
left and right. Club selection important here. This hole can play one-half club
longer depending on the wind condition.
Hole
No. 9 is a 396-yard par 4 and requires a long tee shot left of the fairway way
bunker on the right. This uphill fairway gives way to a deep green and club
selection on your second shop is important here for scoring that par. Stay below
the hole for more success with your putting.
Next
week the back nine.
Additional photos of this facility are available at http://bght.blogspot.com
The Golf Tip
By Robert
Menges
Lacking Strength In My Hands....Let's take a look at the
lack of strength in golfers hands. What's an easy exercise that will help to
build up strength?
Your
hands and forearms play a big role in releasing the club head through the ball.
And the faster you can do this while staying in control the further and
straighter you'll hit the ball.
Here's a simple exercise that will help to improve the strength in your hands.
Grab your sand wedge and hold it with one out stretched hand at the very top of
the grip.
Now
try to work the club up through your hand with your fingers and thumb. And made
sure your arm is outstretched all the time while doing this.
This
sound easy but once you try it you'll discover how difficult it can be. Keep
doing this exercise regularly until you can raise and lower the club through
your fingers five times. And after this keep doing it often to retain your newly
found strength. If you do this exercise regularly then you will hit the ball
longer.
Robert Menges is a golf pro at the Swan Lake Golf &
Country Club, Mt. Hope Road, Swan Lake. He is available for private lessons and
if you have a question or subject you would like covered, he can be reached at
292-0323 or via e-mail at menges@hughes.net
The Putting
Tip
By Joe
Bermel
Practice your putting only on days that end in
Y.
Absolute key to consistent practice repetition
sessions.
That's how we build Confidence so when we play a round, we can perform with
absolute competence and skill.
Practice (30-minute sessions) is an every week
process.
We
need to keep 3 key areas sharp, MIND, EYES,
HANDS.
Joe Bermel is available for private lessons, group, corporate, organization and
golf-shows-tournaments. His special edition DVD :How To Putt Well" is available
by calling 631-589-1384, at his Web Site
www.ThePuttingDoctor.com or by email at
joe@theputtingdoctor.com
Please Insert Golf Calendar here..................
Ed's
Outlook
Make
room......the Chinese are coming.....
Mainland China's Shanshan Feng's June 10 victory at the Wegmans LPGA
Championship makes her the first player from mainland China to win a major
championship--male or female. It was just 14 years, in 1998 at Blackwolf Run,
that Se Ri Pak won the U.S. Women's Open and jump started a golf tsunami in
South Korea.
South
Korea has a population of 50 million, China has 1.4 billion people.....you
extrapolate and decide how the future of golf might play
out.
Ed's Outlook & this column are written by Ed Townsend,
a consultant to the amateur-professional sport of golf and to several golf
writers associations. If you have a topic that would make good reading, or have
golf scores, standings or tournament information, Ed can be reached at 845-439-8177 or
via e-mail at edwardctownsend@hotmail.com and by fax at 845-205-4474. We
are also on Facebook.
Identification of above photos, top to bottom
We
named this friendly deer "Bambi" as she watched us tee off on the fifth tee at
Woodloch Springs. -
Sullivan County golfers joining Woodloch Springs Head
PGA Golf Professional Jared Cottell are from the left, Golfing Highlights Columnist Ed Townsend, Cottell, Dean Winters, Charles Winters and George
Labouseur.
-
Golfers
are greeted with a challenging tee shot over this gorge onto the 396-yard ninth
fairway at Woodloch Springs near Hawley, Pa.
No comments:
Post a Comment