Golf Magazine has published its list of the top 100 golf instructors. There is absolutely no chance that I will ever get a lesson with one of these guys .... unless I win a contest, or something.

Still, I wonder just how much better they are than my pro friend, or the pro at my club. Is it that these guys are really better at teaching, or that they have lucked into a few “A” list clients and thus have built a reputation?

We had a snow day from school here today, and I’m sitting at home looking wistfully out the window at the piles of snow. It makes me think that I would really like to take a mid-winter golf vacation. Midwinter break is coming up in about six weeks ... The question is where to go. I’ve never been to Myrtle Beach, but is sounds too commercial and contrived for my tastes. My brother tells me that you can’t throw a rock without hitting a course there. Friends who have been to the Florida golf areas tell me that it’s really expensive. On the other hand, I’ve got a couple of colleagues at school who go down to Alabama every year for a family beach vacation and really enjoy it. I’m thinking that doesn’t sound too bad. Its off the beaten path, and can’t be as expensive as Florida.

Anyone played winter golf in Alabama?

Golfweb has given out “awards” for the best of 2004 in golf equipment.

For me, the big story was the hybrid and the utility club.  Todd Hamilton put on a clinic with his
Sonartec at the Open Championship and for the rest of the summer, I saw more and more guys at the club with those not-quite-woods. It is, quite frankly, far too expensive for me. But it is pretty:

Several manufacturers (both component and OEM) have put out interesting-looking hollow-body hybrid irons, such as the Snake Eyes Quick Strikes shown below. Most of my clubs are homemade from Golfsmith Snake Eyes components and I don’t think you can go wrong with that brand.

From a clubmaker’s point of view, what interested me was the continued experimentation with materials. With clubheads, it was graphite and titanium combinations, new alloys and forging methods. Golfsmith had the Powerlink, which combined titanium and a graphite composite in the head. The lighter top allowed them to move more weight down and back.

There was also experimentation with combinations of graphite and metals in shafts.

Continuing the dominance of the hybrids theme, several manufacturers created shafts specifically for the new heads. UST had the Hybrid Long Iron Shaft and Fujikura had the Banzai Utility Shaft

Finally, it was the year of the big putter. You can check my earlier posts on this subject here and here.

For years, golf had its Big Three: Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player.  Then there was Nicklaus, Lee Trevino and Tom Watson.  And some of today’s golf pundits offer Vijay Singh, Phil Mickelson and Ernie Els as prime candidates. Or maybe Woods, Singh and Els.  Or any combination of the above. Still others offer  Retief Goosen as a candidate. After all, he’s won two US Opens.

Who said it had to be the Big Three? I think the Big Five is more like it. Singh, Woods, Mickelson, Els and Goosen all have the ability to take a major at any moment. I think the thrill of a generation would be to see all of them coming down the back nine on Sunday at Augusta this year with a chance to win.

Fox Sports has a nice slideshow of the year in golf. At first, I didn’t think it was such a memorable year, but a look at the slides make me think otherwise. For me, the big story was Vijay Singh’s toppling of Tiger Woods from his mountain. But there was also Phil Mikelson’s victory at Augusta, and his coming respectably close to multiple majors. Todd Hamilton’s Open Championship was a lot of fun. And I think we’ve seen the introduction of the next generation of great golfers. There’s lots more for you to remember as you look through the photos.

Here’s another article on custom clubfitting. If you’re in the market for new golf clubs you really should try it. Or you could take your clubs to a custom clubfitter for a retrofit.

Despite his recent rise to the top of the golf world, Sigh remains a relatively unknown figure. This article from The Telegraph sheds a little light on the subject. I’m still not sure whether he’s an admirable figure, though.