Golf Social Media: Are You Sociable?
Social Media Marketing is the latest buzz on the marketing front yet many business owners have little clue what it means and how it can impact their profitability. I recently connected with a golf media company who delivers top notch golf content for golfers and works with big name golf brands. Our conversation naturally led to social media and I asked “How are you growing your consumer base and subscriptions through Social Media?” There was dead air….
That’s not to say the business owner hadn’t heard of Facebook or Twitter. However, he never heard the term social media and had no clue as to how to grow greater market share by engaging consumers online. So what is social media and how does it relate to more business for your golf company? I will start by saying that social media has become the new method of selling and marketing your business, brand, and yourself. So in essence it has become Social Media Marketing.
Social Media Defined:
Social Media consist of a category of sites that are based on user participation and user-generated content. They include social networking sites like Twitter or Facebook (there are several big ones), social bookmarking sites like Del.icio.us (there are hundreds), social news sites like Digg or Reddit (again there are hundreds), and other sites that are centered on user interaction. Other powerful sites include review sites, niche social networks, blogs, and forums.
Does Social Media Work In The Golfing Industry?
In a short answer; yes, just go to Twitter of Facebook and type golf. You will get a myriad of people using social media for golf and golf business. Assuming you have a plan. Simply having a Facebook or Twitter account is not going to generate business. In fact, most companies abandon Social Media efforts because they establish a few social accounts and expect leads to drop in like a 1 ft. putt. The biggest mistake we see in assisting companies with their Social Media presence is 1) They talk to much about themselves 2) They have no research, rhyme or reason to their involvement 3) They have no goal for conversations 4) They set no revenue goals or lead objectives for involvement. But one only needs to ask themselves 3 simple questions.
- 1. Why haven’t I jumped on social media? -Know this, it is not a fad and is not going away anytime soon.
- 2. Why won’t I use it? Know this, all the golf businesses making money and growing there customer base are using social media.
- 3. Why am I still using traditional marketing? Know this, that soon the only people in the golfing industry NOT using social media will be the PGA and you.
So How Sociable Is Your Brand?
Before you begin to answer that ask yourself three simple questions. Am I a sociable person? Is my brand or website sociable? Are people talking about you? If not you are missing out on business. Go to these two websites and find out if your website is sociable.
www.socialmention.com www.howsociable.com
Stay tuned for additional marketing tips, advice, anything social media and golf in future issues of Golf Today Magazine.
Mike Rosas is the principal of AS Group Marketing/The Alternative Solutions, LLC. He can be reached at 425-742-3679, mike@thealternativesolutions, or visit www.thealternativesolutions.net for more information.
Don’t Be Afraid to Take a Divot!
Newer golfers and high handicappers are often afraid to take divots. This is due largely in part to the negative association with divots they’ve taken in the past. Most of these chunks of turf that they’ve dug out of the ground started before the ball, resulting in fat, ugly shots. Divots are good (and essential for proper contact), providing they occur after the ball is struck. Ideally, the clubface should contact the ball, then bottom out on its swing arc after contact and under the turf (thereby taking a divot). This is true for all clubs except the putter, driver, fairway woods off the tee, and when hitting short chip shots.
The negative association with taking divots leads the golfer to try and ‘pick the ball clean’ off the turf. This discourages the descending blow that is required to get the ball on the correct trajectory, and encourages a weak, wrist-y shot in which the golfer ‘lifts up’ at the ball rather than hitting down. Many ‘topped’ or ‘thin’ shots will result when using this method. Hitting down on the ball is the only way to achieve good distance and get the ball up in the air.
A divot should be taken with every iron, because every iron should be hit with a descending blow (a fairway wood should also be hit with a descending blow, but so minimally that a divot likely will not occur). The more loft on a club, the bigger a divot should be taken. This is because the more lofted the club, the steeper the swing plane (and more of a descending blow). As loft decreases, the swing plane flattens out and the strike on the ball becomes more of a ’sweeping’ blow (although still hit on the downswing).
One of the reasons I encourage practicing in the grass whenever possible (as opposed to off a driving range mat) is because this is the only way to get a true indication of how you are hitting the ball. A mat can be deceiving in that you can still hit a ball fat (contacting the ground before the ball) and get away with it to some degree because the club will sort of ‘drag’ along the surface before contacting the ball. When a fat shot is hit on the grass an ‘incorrect’ divot results (divot is taken too soon, the turf slows down the club head speed, and the clubface either does not contact the ball at all or it contacts the turf before the ball).
When addressing the ball, I believe the golfer should set their hands slightly ahead of the ball and club head for all clubs except the driver and putter. Again, more so with the more lofted clubs and less as loft decreases. This will assist in hitting down on the ball and taking an appropriate divot, because when you mimic your intended contact position at address you have a better chance of returning to the same position upon contact.
In addition to the other benefits, a divot will give you instant feedback about your swing. If your divot is very shallow (or non-existent) for a lofted club then you didn’t hit the ball on enough of a steep, descending blow. If your divot is huge for a fairway wood then you didn’t hit the ball on a flat enough swing plane. Is your divot pointing to the left? Your swing path was outside in and the club released to the left of your target line. Is your divot pointing to the right? Your swing path was inside out and the club released to the right of your target line. Is your divot pointing along your intended target line and the appropriate size for the club in your hand? Nice work.
Take a divot to play better golf, but please remember to replace it!
Derek ‘Jeff’ Mount is a USGTF Golf Teaching Professional who teaches at the King City Golf Course in King City, OR. He can be reached at 503-577-8807 or email djm8181@yahoo.com.
Re-Discover Your Natural Timing
by Brandon RichardsonWithin you already exists a natural timing; a natural tempo. It shows up when you intend to propel something forward towards a target and it happens with incredible consistency when you don’t have to think about it. This natural timing is generally buried, however, by a myriad of interferences accumulated over the years via golf magazines, television shows, and over verbalized instruction on technique and mechanics. All of that interference leads your body to behave in some pretty interesting ways, often leading to dramatically different and sporadic swings with inconsistent timing.
Rediscovering your natural timing requires only your awareness to develop. Once you fully experience your natural timing and can distinguish it from the learned timing which is jumbled with memorized swing tips, fear and doubt, you are on your way to re-discovering your natural timing and developing trust in your natural instincts.
One of my favorite exercises to develop awareness of natural timing is throwing golf clubs. Golf Professional Fred Shoemaker stumbled upon this while in the middle of a lesson years ago and went on to write about it in his first book Extraordinary Golf, The Art of the Possible.
What he discovered regarding timing was that there is a huge discrepancy when distinguishing the timing of a regular golf swing with the timing of a throwing swing. He also found with better players and tour professionals that this discrepancy was smaller or almost non-existent: Better players were closer to their natural timing. Period. He also noticed through many interviews and careful dialogue with his students that while they were throwing, they weren’t thinking about all the things they usually analyze when they were trying to hit a golf ball. As a matter of fact they weren’t analyzing at all! They were simply looking to the target with the clear intention to throw the club and make contact.
You can check out this club throwing for yourself, but proceed with caution. Start slowly, insuring sure you have ample room. Clubs tend to go in all directions, so please error on the side of safety!
Begin this exercise by identifying a target, roughly 10 feet away. Using your golf posture, gently throw the club while looking at a target the whole time. While keeping your eyes fixed on the target; notice the timing of the swing. How long does it take to start and travel back? To change direction and move back into the impact area and into the follow through? Start to alternate by hitting a shot with a swing equal in size to the throwing motion and notice if the timing is different. Whatever catches your attention that is noticeably different, keep checking it out! If they are about the same at that size and rate, go a little bigger. This is how you become more able to self-coach.
Timing isn’t something you have to count in your head or on a fancy watch or metronome, although if that works for you then fantastic. All I am presenting is a different possibility. Your natural timing isn’t something you have to go searching for “out there”. When you remove all the extra pressure-well intentioned advice like “take it back low and slow” or “pause at the top”– that you begin to experience how you are really swinging the club. You can then begin to experience your natural timing. It’s possible that you may be able to start to distinguish things like how fast the club is moving at particular points in your golf swing, the timing and feel of the club head changing direction at the top of your swing and the feeling of how the club naturally accelerates into the follow through.
The simplest way to re-discover your natural timing is to start with what feels right and work from there. Throwing clubs is one way to check it out, but really any throwing motion will do. It’s just a way to show you how YOU work. When you are connected to a target and you are present, you and your body are capable of amazing things…and that includes wonderful timing!
Practice and play Golf with Freedom. Brandon Richardson can be reached via email at: GolfwithFreedom@gmail.com or visit his website at www.GolfwithFreedom.Net.
The Golf Warehouse: TGW.com Launches Convenient Golf
The Golf Warehouse®, Golf’s #1 Online Retailer has gone mobile! Now, golf lovers searching for the latest golf club technology and highest quality golf equipment can quickly shop and buy directly from their Apple iPhone or iPod Touch device.
“We see the majority of our business coming via e-transactions, which means we need to remain ahead of the technology curve,” said Brad Wolansky, CEO of The Golf Warehouse®. “This easy-to-navigate application was innovated to meet the evolving demands of our customers.”
During the first week of release, the application was downloaded more than 850 times. Already, sales through the valuable e-tool have been streaming in, which is a testament to the loyalty and tech-savvy ways of The Golf Warehouse’s customers.
“We meet customers’ demands every day by supplying the best products in golf,” Wolansky said. “But meeting their demands on how they access it-now that’s what sets us apart. This is an excellent springboard for our next plans to develop mobile web and then BlackBerry and Android apps.”
The new application is available for download from Apple’s iTunes and can be used on any iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad device. Users can simply search for TGW or The Golf Warehouse in iTunes and install like any other app.
Millions of golfers have been turning to TGW.com to improve their game since 1998-as the brand continues to respond to customer feedback by featuring the most innovative golf equipment and apparel for every level of golfer to improve their game. And now, it has the iPhone application, powered by Digby, to match.
For more information, please visit www.tgw.com.
“Yes” – A Well-Used Word Among Volunteers At American Lake Veterans Golf Course
By Cheri Brennan
”No” is not part of the vocabulary around American Lake Veterans Golf Course. At this unique facility, the mantra is “can do.”
Just ask the two Ryder Cup teammates who said yes when asked if they could help with this haven for wounded warriors.
Ask the 160 volunteers (many of them retired military) who, since 1995 have operated and maintained all aspects of the course, from mowing grass to flipping hamburgers.
Ask retired teacher Pepper Roberts who formed a nonprofit organization in 2003 to raise money for improving playing conditions and facilities.
Ask the rehabilitation specialists about the healing power of golf.
Most importantly, ask the 25,000 wounded and disabled veterans and their families who play golf each year at American Lake Veterans Golf Course.
Longtime volunteer Ken Still said yes when invited to get involved. Now he says the word “yes” is heard a lot around the golf course. To him, an especially gratifying and gracious “yes” came from his Ryder Cup teammate, Jack Nicklaus.
Still, a Professional Golf Association member since 1953 and winner of three Tour tournaments played on the 1969 Ryder Cup Team with Jack Nicklaus. The Fircrest (Wash.) resident has been a dedicated volunteer since 2004 and currently serves on the board of directors for “Friends of American Lake Veterans Golf Course,” the facility’s nonprofit arm.
Still says volunteering at ALVGC has been more rewarding than any of his career accomplishments. That impressive list of achievements includes being in the top 60 on the Tour money list for eight consecutive years and being inducted into the Pacific Northwest Section PGA Hall of Fame in 1995.
At a 2009 board meeting when directors talked about adding nine more holes to the current 9-hole track, someone thought Jack Nicklaus should be approached about designing the new nine. Soon thereafter, Still made a call to his former teammate and cherished friend of 40 years, expecting his wife Barbara to answer. Not only did Jack answer the call, there was no hesitation before he declared, “Count me in.”
“We hear a lot of spontaneous yeses,” Still remarked in recalling the conversation, which marked the first time he had asked a favor of his former teammate.
Not only did Jack Nicklaus tell Still “yes,” he refused to consider any fee for his design services. “For what these guys have given to us, sacrificing life and limb for the freedoms we enjoy, there will never be a charge. Just to be asked to be a part of it is a privilege,” said The Golden Bear, whose charitable activities are as legendary as his achievements as a golfer and golf-course designer.
Together with his wife, Barbara, they epitomize volunteerism. They are the guiding light for the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation and countless other worthy causes.
Although perhaps best known for his four decades of charitable work with children, Nicklaus is admired as both a businessman and goodwill ambassador. Among accolades he has accumulated are The Woodrow Wilson Award for Corporate Citizenship, the Charles Bartlett Award from the Golf Writers Association of America (recognizing unselfish contributions to the betterment of society) and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest honor given to any civilian.
Nicklaus’ philanthropy for American Lake Veterans Golf Course deepened when he agreed to serve as honorary co-chair with retired General John Shalikashvili for the capital campaign to construct the “New Nine by Jack” and other rehabilitation facility improvements. In November, he led a clinic for disabled veterans and invited guests at BIGHORN Golf Club in Palm Desert as part of a weekend fund-raiser that netted more than $1 million toward a goal of $4.5 million.
Like other beneficiaries of the generosity of Jack and Barbara Nicklaus, the volunteers at American Lake Veterans Golf Course consider his involvement and gift of design services to be priceless. Pepper Roberts believes veterans from other states will travel to Lakewood (about an hour south of Seattle) just to play the “New Nine” designed by Jack Nicklaus.
The course, with its special accommodations for mobility-impaired veterans, is expected to become a model facility that can be replicated across the country as a much-needed recreational and rehabilitation outlet for the growing population of veterans.
Using the campaign theme, “A Course in Courage: Healing America’s Veterans through Golf,” American Lake Veterans Golf Course unites volunteers of all stripes. Some are young, some are in their 80s; some are wealthy, but many are of modest means; some are well-known, others less so; some have written large checks, others donate time. All are united as Friends of American Lake Veterans Golf Course and in saying “yes” to providing a more accessible and enjoyable golfing experience for those who have served and sacrificed in service to our country.
Friends of American Lake Veterans Golf Course
9600 Veterans Drive SW, Lakewood, WA 98498
253.589-1998 • www.veterangolf.org
Don’t Forget The Kids! Eye Protection When It Counts
If you are a parent like me, the health and wellbeing of your children always takes precedence over everything else! I recently discovered Baby Banz, a company that offers a range of products designed to protect the skin and eyes of our “lil ones”. Whether your kids are on the driving range or out hitting the links with Mum and Dad, remembering to provide eye protection is essential during the relentless glare on hot summer days. Baby Banz offers a range of wrap-around sunglasses and is a leader in the children’s safety market of head to toe protection for children ages 0-10.
Baby Banz original wrap around sunglasses are equipped with an embedded silicon nose and brow piece, making them a better fit and even more comfortable. The design has passed some of the most stringent standards on sunglasses in the world. Interestingly, Baby Banz was created by an Australian father worried about raising his kids in one of the harshest UV environments in the world. He is committed to developing solutions to protect kids on all of their adventures, as well as helping kids with ocular diseases and special concerns.
After ten years of providing quality child sun protection, it’s no surprise Baby Banz is endorsed by the Australian Cancer Foundation as well as the Melanoma International Foundation. Their products are all CPSIA compliant, meaning they are made from completely non-toxic materials and are safe for children. They are also the proud winners of the iParenting Media Award, the Toy Man Award of Excellence, and the Creative Child Top Choice of 2009. For more information about Baby Banz and where to buy their products, please visit www.babybanz.com.
For Your Junior Golfer, Make it THEIR Game!
Teaching juniors the game of golf is harder than you might think, but coaching them and getting them to learn the game is easier than you might think.
In the past, the mantra was always practice, practice, practice your golf swing on the range. Some even said practice until your hands bleed and legend has it Ben Hogan did exactly that. But then, what happens when you get on the course?
Rather than subjecting kids to endless drills and confining them to the range, here is what we need to do:
1) Under-teach rather than over-teach!
2) Make swing changes related to improved ball flight instead of model swing ‘corrections’.
3) Get kids to learn on the course instead of turning out ‘range rats’.
4) Use a Coaching philosophy of asking them what is right about their performance rather than telling them what is wrong with it.
Over-teaching is easy to do! Of course you want them to avoid mistakes and avoid bad habits, but with kids you must keep it simple. Keep your head down, your left arm straight, extend, swing inside-out, hit down on the ball, roll your wrists, extend through the ball, and finish the swing - and swing easy…It’s no wonder some kids don’t get it!
One of the few things we must teach them is how to hold the club. Beyond that, they learn visually. Instinctively, many kids know what the problem is: Even a great golf swing is going to fail on different lies unless they change it and adapt. Nevertheless, many pros and parents are forcing swing models upon them. This bases their performance solely on swing faults, which prevents them from playing the game.
Of course, we all know that a perfect swing is not all you need to play great golf, even though it helps. In order for kids to learn, we cannot and should not make swing improvements without relating to what it will do to the ball flight. If there is no relation to the ball flight, the instruction becomes meaningless.
In other words, a change in the ball flight should be the only reason for a change in the swing. For example, toward the end of a lesson a parent noticed that the player’s posture was somewhat ‘hunched’ rather than having a relatively straight back. Yet, the player was striking the ball well and hitting it straight without the posture change.
By introducing a posture change without a ball flight reason this player was confused and his performance suffered. This is an example of over-teaching. As soon as he was hitting it well, why make a change? Some would say he has to get worse before he gets better, but that is definitely the wrong way to go. Instead, make the improvement relate to better ball flight and then prove it.
Where is the best place for juniors to learn? On the course! Juniors will learn to play the game more effectively because they have the opportunity to learn to adapt to the course. The range and chipping/putting greens can’t provide the variations they face on the course - and it’s the variations that they will continue to face: Side-hill lies, uphill, downhill, different grass conditions, wind conditions, and different landing zones all contribute to results.
By encouraging juniors to be consistent in ball flight and distances, we are actually doing them a disservice. This philosophy is constantly working against the golf course. For example, when hit correctly, a ball above your feet goes lower, left, and farther than normal, and a ball below your feet goes lower, right, and shorter than normal.
If a solid and straight shot is struck correctly, and anything else is a mis-hit, these mis-hits are not failures or mistakes. Mis-hits should be filed under ‘alternative results’ or the ‘OOPS’ file. Even a topped shot is a learning experience: It may have been below your feet, or you were too far away from it.
Instead of telling kids what is wrong with their performance… ASK! Do not offer your opinion of the last shot. Ask them what they liked or didn’t like about the last shot, even if it is obvious! Then ask them how they would fix it. If they can fix it on their own, there is no reason to tell them how. If you do, you are getting in the way of their learning process.
This is the Coaching philosophy. Ask about their performance and don’t offer your opinion unless they ask you. Teachers can be invasive, whereas Coaches work with the player. Think about how you would want to learn: from someone forcing you into positions and telling you what was wrong with the last shot, or from someone who asks you for your opinion.
In the case of kids, take the easy way through: Help them learn by coaching rather than getting invasive by teaching. You’ll see a much happier junior golfer.
Bob Duncan is the Director of Instruction at Tetherow Golf Club in Bend, Oregon. He has custom fit over $1.6 million in golf equipment, and has given over 8,000 hours of coaching and instruction. Bob can be reached for lessons at bduncan@tetherow.com.
Warming Up to the Pace!
Do you remember the children’s song about how everything is connected? The neck bone’s connected to the shoulder bone, the shoulder bone’s connected to the chest bone, etc. Well keeping this in mind as you begin the new season of golfing as it may help you prevent injuries along the way.
Let’s start with the golf swing. To avoid golf injuries, it’s important that golfers get their swing technique as solid as possible. Amateur players are at increased risk of injury because their swing will often put excessive stress on the shoulder, arms and the back. Since golf is played at a slower pace a warm up is essential to help prevent injuries. Think about the song at the beginning and work your way down the body.
Warming up the neck. Start slowly and with purpose. Instead of the usual head circles, think about the position you put your neck in from presenting the ball to your backswing and downswing. Your head is in a neutral position. Then pull your arms into your backswing position, now look at the position of your head; it’s still facing forward, however, your shoulders have rotated so your chin is now touching your shoulder. For a warm up, stand facing forward and slowly turn your head to the right, then dip your chin and try to touch your collar-bone. Now repeat the other direction. This will warm up the muscles along the sides and back of the neck.
Let’s move on to the shoulders. This is where a lot of injuries can occur. With the large amount of torque needed on the downswing, it’s critical to warm up all the muscles in the shoulder. Start with small circles and work your way to med and then large. Make sure your hand positions change. This ensures you will hit each different muscle that makes up the rotator cuff; Thumbs up, palms down, & thumbs down. Rotate five times each set.
Now the back. Just saying “the back” doesn’t give you enough information. There are two specific areas that we want to warm up. First is the thoracic spine (upper back area). The thoracic spine starts just under your ribs and stops at your collarbone. This is also where you want the most rotation in your back swing and not in your lower back region. Taking your club and placing it on your shoulders and rotating from right to left is a good warm-up, but take care to lock your hips in place so you’re not rotating in your lower back. Sit down and squeeze your knees together, then place your hands behind your head and spread your elbows out. Now sit up straight and turn to your right, as if you were looking over your shoulder, now drop your right elbow and try to touch your right elbow to your hip. You should feel a stretch on your opposite ribcage (left side). This works the thoracic spine in the two ways it works best, rotating behind you and side-to-side. Complete eight times each side.
The second area of the “back” is the hips. Again, we don’t want to rotate through the lumbar spine. It might feel like that is what is happening, however, the hips are made to rotate and have a much better design for it. So stand tall and take your 5-iron or hold onto a pole or rail. Twist your hips in a circular motion as if you’re trying to take your front hipbones and touch the pole or 5 iron. Make sure you keep the upper body as still as possible. Also, keep your feet flat on the ground to get a bit of internal and external rotation. Rotate each side eight times.
Ok, so you are warmed up in the areas that get the most work in your golf swing. As you move your static warm up to a more dynamic warm up, a slow start as you hit balls will get you fully warmed up and help keep you from injury. The more conditioned you are for your golf swing is the best way to keep yourself injury free!
Diana Del Garbino is a certified golf fitness instructor through the Titelist Performance Institute and coaches beginner through advanced golfers at Muscles in Motion-Professional training studio in Lake Oswego Oregon. For more information about the program visit http://www.mymusclesinmotion.com/.
It’s Time To Dispel A Few Myths
I am a golfer with convictions and I am a golf instructor with convictions. I have learned a unique golf swing method that works. So, as a golfer, I practice this method and as an instructor I teach it. My conviction is this: Success on the course is not how you swing, but what you do with the club.
I am an advocate of this practice because it is logical and easy. My students come to me with the idea that as golfers we have to stand a particular way and move in an even more particular way, certain that there is only one way to effectively get your ball down the fairway. It is beliefs like this and many others that sometimes keep students from improving. Why can’t we treat this like any other sport? You don’t try to isolate different muscles when you throw a ball or swing a racquet. Golf is not any different yet we treat it differently.
So, my solution to this is to teach students what to do with the club, forgetting about locking an arm, twisting here, bending there and negotiating planes and angles. It is much easier and natural to respond to the motion made by an object than it is to try to move your muscles in a conscious way. A true swinging motion has everything moving at the same time in the same direction and at the same rate. Any restriction, like keeping your lower body still just interferes with the natural motion your body will make in response to the moving club. When you tell a golfer to restrict any part of their body, they lose their flexibility and the swing becomes less powerful or effective.
Still weary? Head outside with a few balls and a club and give it a try. Let go of the conventions you have practiced for so long. Your goal is to have your club make contact with the ball. Your body will respond naturally to what you do with the club, so figure out how to move the club!
Read more about this in Manuel de la Torre’s book “Understanding the Golf Swing”, or check out the DVD by the same name or my DVD. “Golfing with Erin”. Have fun out there and keep swinging.
Erin Szekely is an LPGA teaching professional. For more information, please visit www.golfingwitherin.com or call 425-398-0443.
Full Field Expected For Third Annual Golf Fore Red™ “Heart-Healthy” Women’s Tournament
Three years ago, two women decided to act on a conversation they had been having for several years. They were avid golfers, but belonged to different women’s golf groups. They shared a friendship that spanned nearly four decades. And they shared the loss of their mothers to heart disease.
Shelley French and Mary Robinson decided they could honor their mothers and bring their two associations together on a theme of education, friend-raising and fund-raising. Golf Fore RedTM was born.
Fast-forward three years. The Golf Fore RedTM name is now trademarked, but the event-being held this year on July 24-is still an all-volunteer endeavor to promote heart-healthy lifestyles. Bellevue resident Mary Robinson, a past president of Northwest Ladies Golf Association, continues as event chair.
“This tournament is all about women having fun and raising awareness of heart disease as the single leading cause of death for American women,” Robinson stated. She said the American Heart Association is providing information to all golfers on recognizing heart disease symptoms (and how they may differ than symptoms in men), along with practical tips for reducing their risk of heart disease and improving their heart health to enjoy stronger, longer lives.
Since its inaugural year, the event has gained traction and fans, Robinson reports. She said commitments are already made for about half the available slots for the tournament, which is open to women golfers of all abilities. Many golfers are returning for the third year.
The July 24 Golf Fore RedTM tournament will be held at The Golf Club at Redmond Ridge with an 8 a.m. shotgun start. The $125 registration fee includes a continental breakfast, range balls, green fees, golf carts, goody bag, lunch, program and prizes.
Registration may be made at https://tournaments.okigolf.com/Eventinfo.aspx?E=749249. Women may register as individuals, or as twosomes, threesomes or foursomes.
Net proceeds benefit the Pacific Mountain Affiliate (Seattle) of the American Heart Association, Go Red for Women campaign. Last year’s event generated more than $4,500 for AHA.
The tournament is presented with assistance from Northwest Ladies Golf Association. Various sponsorship opportunities are available; inquiries may be directed to GolfForeRed@yahoo.com or by calling Robinson at 425-462-3887.
