08 Tour Blog
Oct
23
2008
|
Written by Rob Peterson
|
|
Thursday, 23 October 2008 |
PARKING GARAGE GOLF/THE ELEVATED TEE BOX: We actually found this shot and began pioneering this new way to play golf when we were scouting for last year's Golf Channel commercial. We were looking for football fields to illustrate how high school golf teams can/are practicing on football fields (after school, during lunch etc. like shooting freethrows). But once we saw this amazing structure next to a field, the gears started to turn. What a cool series of shots. First you hit up onto the garage, then work your way down.
PARKING GARAGE GOLF. We quickly started to see how this was a whole new off-course artform. almostGOLF balls are made for this kind of play because they check up really well on concrete and they fly just the right distance of 60 yards on a parking garage or playing field is a perfect distance.
THE ELEVATED TEE SHOT. What I liked about this shot was how you had to hit the perfect landing area or your ball wouldn't hit the green. A little too far right on the ramp and you would hit a gutter ball, but the further left you hit the ball, the better chance you had to get on the green. The other cool thing about this hole and shot is that it's an almost-golf course designers dream. It's a shot no one in real golf has ever been able to create or hit. It was actually really hard figuring out how to set up the course...but that's a whole other blog entry.
A few notes about playing Parking Garage Golf:
PARKING GARAGE PUTTING. Key to Parking Garage Golf is that the ball checks up so you can putt out. Depending on the concrete's stimp, it can be really fast, or really slow. The stimp of a parking garage is generally pretty mellow, but the break is what will get you in trouble because parking garage manufacturers generally rake parking garage concrete to prevent skidding and spinning out when the concrete gets wet. So the new challenge is to read the rake of the concrete. Try parking garage putting and you will definitely improve your green grass golf game. No question.
CLUB SELECTION/STYLE OF PLAY. You can use any club you would like. It's your game, but I prefer an 8 or 9 iron at most. Parking Parking Garage Golf is really a game of accuracy, long chips & rolls and working the ball. It's more like billiards meet pool meets golf because accept for top floor roof shots, you are working your way down the garage and you are not hitting full golf shots. You are hitting knock downs and skill shots to place the ball so it can roll to the hole or the 'set up fairway' for the second shot of a par 4 or par 5. I would definitely say this form of the game falls under the category of 'street golf' and 'urban golf.'
GIVE US YOUR SUGGESTIONS: If you have any ideas for how to play PGG or any other form of the game, feel free to comment, sign up and give us your opinions.
|
|
Aug
28
2008
|
Written by Rob Peterson
|
|
Thursday, 28 August 2008 |
HOW TO CREATE YOUR OWN GOLF COURSE...Almost....anywhere
Last summer at the USC Open event, Perry Wright was our surprise second place finisher. The surprise was that he is only twelve years old and beat out almost the entire field of 20 something’s. After the event, I spoke with Perry and his parents about how they heard about the event and how he honed his almostgolf skills. His father told me that they bought a box of our golf balls about a year back and Perry has been hooked ever since, adding that his son is sometimes more interested in playing the almostgolf course through their neighborhood, which he and his buddies designed, then going to regular courses. The bottom line is that he has the opportunity to swing his sticks nearly every day , something most golfers of any age can’t do.
SANDLOT GOLF: Perry’s Manhattan Beach, CA couse is pretty tight. He and his friends designed their layout throughout their neighborhood utilizing everything from neighbor’s yards, fences, driveways, and sidewalks. As you can see, Perry did a pretty good job making his course fun, playable, and safe…something we recommend if you want your course to stay around for awhile.
If you have a course around your neighborhood, yard or park, send us some photos or videos of it and we will put it up for everyone to see.
RELATED LINKS
How to create your own almost golf course
|
|
Aug
08
2008
|
Written by Rob Peterson
|
|
Friday, 08 August 2008 |
THE ELEVATED PARKING GARAGE GREEN: Getting up onto the parking garage is the first step in learning how to play Parking Garage Golf. We found this field and garage as we were scouting our Golf Channel Commercial. Once we walked around it, we knew we had to try some cool shots.
YOUR ALMOST-GOLF COURSE DESIGN: As we looked at this playing field, track, grand stands and parking garage, it became clear that the garage was a showcase. We'd turn the track into both water hazard on one side of the course and an actual fairway on the other. But hitting up onto and off of the parking structure was key to creating an eye popping and very exciting almost-Golf course.
COURSE DESIGN INTEGRATION: Integrating the garage into your course to create impact wasn't easy. We chose to hit the 'between the uprights' shot for the course. (but they were replacing them the day we came in to shoot) We wanted to create the most dramatic entrance to the parking garage section of this course. So why not through the uprights.
SELECTING THE RIGHT PUTTING GREENS: Though we have a killer Astroturf putting green we've used at events like the USC Open and the LMU Tri-Delta Open last year, this course required a green that was fast to install and easy to hit. When and if we can use this location to do a full tournament, we will bring our best greens, but simple Home Depot indoor/outdoor turf does pretty well.
JUDGING THE DISTANCE: Key to creating such a dramatically elevated green is club selection and distance. Since you are choosing one club for the competition or golf tournament, you need to spec out how far you can hit shots to their apex and not total distance. Here we are just on the edge with a 7 iron. Any further and most players would not be able to make to the top level of the garage.
ANY SUGGESTIONS: If you have any comments, opinions, rules or suggestions, please join the AG Club or Youtube Club and tell us what you think. New golf games
|
|
Jul
28
2008
|
Written by Rob Peterson
|
|
Sunday, 27 July 2008 |
|
 Not many people have thought of using the non-course elements of a golf facility or even your neighborhood to host a golf event before...that is until the almostGOLF ball came along. Now there's a whole new way to utilize the practice greens, driving range and ancillary areas to create exciting, skill oriented events. You can create these courses for social and corporate golf events or as a fun junior ‘stepping stone' event for the kids who aren't necessarily ready for a full length course. The best part about this style of event is that they are social and everyone, even non-golfer can get involved without being intimidated or scared. When you take all the fun aspects of golf, combine them with a comfortable environment and no worries of anyone or anything being broken, you create a one of a kind event that everyone will remember.
KEY POINTS TO CREATING A SHORT COURSE GOLF COMPETITION:
MAKE IT SOCIAL: Since your playing around the club house...why not have a party...and everyone is within spectator range.
ONE CLUB IS ENOUGH: Key to short course competitions are that they are tight, fast and require you to be able to hit one club several different ways. Besides who wants to carry a bag full of clubs around all the time.
MAKE IT TIGHT: These events are not about distance, they are about shot making. So you make holes that require skill, not power. This form of competition is like combining darts and billiards with golf.
SCORING IS EVERYTHING: There are numerous ways to create scoring from circled targets to putting out as with traditional golf . you can even just designate targets like trees or tee box markets. It's really up to your own creativity.
HOW TO MAKE COURSES HARD: Since you can bend the almostGOLF ball a lot better than traditional golf balls, distance is not the only way to make a course hard. You can set up the tees and greens/targets where players have to draw and fade the ball to get into the 'fairway' or ‘scoring zone' and that is where players learn the craft of golf.
CREATE AWESOME SKILLS COMPETITIONS: Don't be afraid to throw in a sand shot or a flop shot over an obstacle as a hole. This is especially true for the junior events where you want the kids to learn all the skills of golf.
Check out both of our videos below: The first one "Las Vegas Shootout" is an event that we did in Las Vegas at The Badland Golf Course and used the practice areas to create a short course for the CGA Golf National Championship were 140 of the best recreational college golfers from around the country tested their skills during a practice day without going out on the golf course...no cocktails were served
The second is the highlight video of the " Meschewski Open". This event is put on by the Meschewski family and all their friends just outside of Chicago. They set up two 18 hole courses throughout their neighborhood and have one of the best golf tournaments I've ever seen, reason being is that everyone gets involved and has a great time playing. It doesn't matter if you are a weekend regular out on the links or a novice golfer who only dusts off your sticks a few times a year. Both videos should grab your attention and open up your imagination about where you can now hold an event.
COMMENT: Give us your opinion. We 'd love to hear your questions as well as what events you come up with . Learn more about how to get involved.
|
|
Read more...
|
|
Jul
10
2008
|
Written by Rob Peterson
|
|
Thursday, 10 July 2008 |
GOLF COURSE DESIGN: HOW TO CREATE YOUR OWN SYNTHETIC WATER HAZARD: Who says you have to be a Golf Course or landscape architect to create a stunning water hazard...especially if the water hazard is placed around your schoolyard, park or neighborhood. Here is a quick and easy primer on how to either use the existing water features you have on your almost-golf course or create your own synthetic water hazards to up elevate the course or competition.
USING EXISTING WATER FEATURES: Whenever I go to a campus or park to design a 'golf course' and see that they have build in water hazards like fountains and ponds, its always where my design ideas start. As you can see in the video, people love to both hit over and out of the water. Sometimes shots over water are very straightforward, but sometimes its too long of a shot to carry so we create a hole where you have to cross over part of the water. Then there are times when we just skirt the fairway along the left and right edge of the pond. This makes the hole super hard because even the good players are intimidated with side water. In these situations if we have a lot of first timers I place the fairway downwind of the water so that the wind is blowing back towards the fairway. This makes it more fun for the newbies because they have a better chance of keeping the ball in play.
KIDDIE POOL HAZARDS: A quick, easy and low budget way to doll up a playing field type course is to buy kid's swimming pools. They are a great low budget option to create a visual accent as well, especially for junior events. The street golf and urban golf crowd seem to like them too because you can put them anywhere in a snap. I like using a few of them to guard the greens. Also, when you protect a target or green with a swimming pool you are guaranteed to have a few people hitting out of the water and that always ups the energy of any competition.
CREATING YOUR OWN WATER HAZARD: Creating your own synthetic water hazard is actually pretty easy. We use blue plastic sheeting that comes in any size up to 50x150 feet. (That's a big water hazard.)
STEP #1: Find a depression in the ground or a flat area for your water hazard
STEP #2: If you are using a depression, just lay the plastic down, fill it with water, then when it fills to the desired height, take a mat knife and cut around the edges. When your event is over, take a nice swim, then cut a hole in the bottom and let the water drain out (see our LMU video great golf blogs).
STEP #3: If you need to create walls for your hazard I recommend going to your local mega-hardware store like Home Depot or Lowes and pick up those 10ft long irrigation tubes that snap together. At Home Depot, they are in the plumbing aisle. They are super cheap and give you a nice 6 inch high barrier. Once you've snapped them together you slide them under the plastic tarp, cut the plastic to shape and grommet the plastic to the ground. The tubing will then press up against the grommets as the hazard fills up.
Note that we will discuss this subject more as the sport of off-course golf evolves and grows. This fall should give us new and different ways to create hazards, so I look forward to everyone's tips, tricks and new ideas. Learn more about charity golf events and course design>
|
|
| |
|
