PEBBLE BEACH’S AMATEUR CHALLENGE
Pebble Beach Resorts has a rare opportunity for die-hard golf enthusiasts – playing some of the nation’s best courses at the same time as some of the world’s best up-and-coming golfers.
The inaugural U.S. Amateur Challenge at Pebble Beach will be held Aug. 16-19, a competition that coincides with this year’s U.S. Amateur Championship.
As the game’s top rising stars seek glory on the Monterey Peninsula, participants in the U.S. Amateur Challenge will compete in a two-person best ball net format, with one round at Spyglass Hill Golf Course and a second round at The Links at Spanish Bay. At the end of the second day, the low 60 teams advance to the final round at Pebble Beach Golf Links. The remaining 60 or so teams will play their final round at Spyglass Hill, the host of the stroke-play portion of this year’s U.S. Amateur.
Registration is now open, with an entry fee of $6,500 per player that includes three nights at The Inn of Spanish Bay, three rounds of golf at championship courses and a variety of other amenities and experiences. A portion of the entry fee benefits the Pebble Beach Company Foundation.
GOLF CHANNEL RECORD RATINGS
Golf Channel is coming off the most-watched January in its history, a month that finished with its most-watched PGA Tour telecast ever at the Farmers Insurance Open.
Golf Channel’s viewership for January was up 23% year-over-year, up 10% over the network’s previous high in January 2013, and follows up on its record-setting December. In addition, Golf Channel’s digital platform posted its best January in company history with 22.6 million minutes of streaming coverage and 78.5 million page views (up 34% and 19%, respectively, from a year ago).
The playoff between Jason Day and Alex Noren on Sunday, Jan. 28, was the No. 1 Nielsen-measured cable network for total viewers, 24% higher than second-place ESPN. The playoff, which eventually carried into a Monday finish, drew more viewers than any other PGA Tour telecast by Golf Channel.
FEHERTY RETURNS FOR SEASON 8
David Feherty is coming back for an eighth season of his Emmy-nominated original series on Golf Channel. “Feherty,” which topped 100 episodes last year, airs its season premiere on March 5, with guests that include Jack Nicklaus, Rickie Fowler and 16-time grand slam doubles champion Bob Bryan.
"Dating back to when the series first debuted, I've always tried my best to get out of the way and let the guest provide a glimpse into what separates them from their peers," said Feherty. "Whether in a one-on-one setting or in a group, unique insight and humor have always been in full supply with our guests, in spite of my high handicap as a host."
Before the upcoming season, Feherty will again serve as an Olympics correspondent for NBC at the Winter Olympics in South Korea.
KUCHAR EXTENDS WITH BRIDGESTONE
Matt Kuchar has always come off as a loyal sort. This week, the seven-time PGA Tour winner extended one of the longest equipment relationships in golf, signing a new multiyear endorsement agreement with Bridgestone Golf to play and promote the company’s clubs, balls and accessories.
Kuchar has played Bridgestone equipment in some capacity since 2000 and the length of the new deal will carry the relationship past 20 years, a definite rarity in the golf industry. Kuchar is part of a Bridgestone professional staff that also includes Tiger Woods, Brandt Snedeker, Fred Couples, Bryson DeChambeau and Lexi Thompson.
BILLY CASPER’S U.S. OPEN TROPHY FOR SALE
Heritage Auctions
Billy Casper’s trophy for winning the 1959 U.S. Open is up for auction and could sell for $100,000. The trophy – almost two feet high and seven pounds -- is part of a lineup of rare golf memorabilia featured in Heritage Auctions’ Feb. 24-25 Platinum Night Auction that’s now up for bidding.
Casper notched 51 PGA Tour victories in his career, including three wins in major championships. The 1959 U.S. Open represents the first of his major titles, won at Winged Foot Golf Club in New York. Winners didn’t receive trophies at the time, however this particular award (like others presented retroactively) was crafted by official U.S. Open trophy silversmith Nicolas Winton in 2014, with the approval of the USGA, and issued to Casper decades after the event.
Also up for auction are a replica of the Claret Jug made for John Daly in honor of his 1995 British Open championship -- a trophy that also could top $100,000 -- a 1923 trophy presented to Bobby Jones, and a pair of golf shoes worn in tournament play by Arnold Palmer in 1960.
COBRA’S F8 IRONS HIT RETAIL
Cobra Golf
Cobra Golf’s King F8 irons – with Arccos’ built-in shot-tracking technology – are now available at retail.
Cobra’s lineup includes variable and one-length irons, with all clubs in the King F8 line coming with sensors embedded in the grips that automatically track the distance and accuracy of every shot. The fully connected set works in conjunction with the Arccos 360 smartphone application, which also provides GPS distances for more than 40,000 courses.
K-MOTION PARTNERS WITH GOLF CHANNEL ACADEMY
K-MOTION
K-MOTION, which creates wearable human motion training applications for golf, baseball, fitness and physical therapy, has been named an official training partner of Golf Channel Academy.
The partnership includes a video distribution commitment with Revolution Golf, Golf Channel’s recently-added instructional platform used by almost 2 million golfers. Martin Hall, a member of Revolution Golf’s team of instructors and the co-host of School of Golf on Golf Channel, will showcase K-COACH, a coaching bio-feedback platform designed to help golf professionals coach and train players by better measuring and understanding a student’s movement.
OLLIE’S CAP HELPS YOUTH SPORTS
Callaway
If you thought something looked different about Ollie Schniederjans the other day at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, you weren’t alone.
Schniederjans is one of the top young golfers on the PGA Tour, collecting five top-10 finishes as a rookie last year, but may be most recognizable during tournament broadcasts for not wearing a hat or visor while on the course.
Schniederjans broke form at the famous par-3 16th hole at the Phoenix Open this week, wearing a Sports Matter hat to promote DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation initiative aimed at supporting youth sports. Having grown up playing organized sports with his little brothers, Schneiderjans spoke to the importance of the cause before stopping to autograph and hand out dozens of the hats to kids following his round.
A Callaway golf ambassador, Schniederjans also played the 16th hole with a special edition Sports Matter ball – Callaway’s distinctive Chrome Soft Truvis. A version of the ball is being sold exclusively at DICK’S, with a donation from every dozen supporting the Sports Matter initiative for youth sports. The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation has pledged more than $50 million for youth sports programs.
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