Andrew Rice Golf

Archive for the ‘Golf Travel’ Category

Each year my wife and I have the pleasure of escorting a group of travelers to my home country of South Africa for an amazing twelve day luxury experience that includes golf, safari, premier wineries and sightseeing.  If Africa is on your bucket  list you may want to ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’ …reading that is….

Makanyane Safari Lodge

Our group departs the US on January 4th bound for Johannesburg. From here, we take our private charter flight to the spectacular Makanyane Safari Lodge in the malaria-free Madikwe Game Reserve.  Makanyane is one of South Africa’s premier game lodges with five-star accommodations, excellent service, and an incredible food and wine list. The lodge has recently hosted both the Bush and Obama families! The game viewing is some of the best in the country and features the elusive Big Five – lion, leopard, Cape buffalo, elephant and rhino. You will also have an opportunity to sleep out under the African stars and participate in a thrilling game walk. Recently, thirteen African Wild Dog pups were born on the Makanyane (which is Tswana for ‘Wild Dog’) property and guests are enjoying sightings on a regular basis.  With stunning rooms directly on the river, game can also be viewed from your chalet – elephants, hippos, and monkeys often visit the river.

Close encounters...

Following our stay at Makanyane, our group travels to the majestic city of Cape Town.  Here we will stay at the luxurious Cape Grace Hotel located in the heart of the V&A Waterfront.  Rooms all have a view of the harbor and stunning Table Mountain.

The Group at Ernie Els Winery

While in the Cape we will play three rounds of golf at: Arabella Golf Club; De Zalze Golf Club; and Pearl Valley. Following golf each day, we will tour and taste at some of South Africa’s top wineries: Hamilton Russell; Ernie Els; Guardian Peak and Fairview are all on our list.  We will also spend a glorious morning touring Table Mountain, where you will get a panoramic view of one of the world’s most beautiful cities.

The View from Table Mountain

The cost for the trip is $9950 per person for golfers and the dates are January 4-17, which include travel days.  We currently have space available for 3 additional couples and are open to customized itineraries for your group to South Africa or New Zealand. Please feel free to visit our website for more details syncexcursions.com.

Here is a video collage from a few of our previous trips:

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The finish at Kiawah's Ocean Course

Next up for the 2012 major championships is the PGA Championship at the Ocean Course at Kiawah.

I played the course during the summer of 2009 on a perfect day and still left feeling like it was a ‘two sleeve’ golf course – and that’s only if you’re a fairly accomplished golfer.

Take a look and see what the PGATour’s best are in for…

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For the best possible viewing please take a minute to download PicLens here.

The approach to Sixteen

Have you ever played the Ocean Course? Thoughts…..?

The 17th at Royal St. Georges

My favorite tournament of the year is finally here.  If I had one event I could win it would be the Open Championship – I just love the effects of the weather and the truly brilliant golf courses on the Open rota.  

Ben Curtis and The Claret Jug

Last time at St. Georges Ben Curtis was the grateful recipient of Thomas Bjorn’s untimely demise in a greenside bunker.  By the way – has anybody seen or heard from Mr. Bjorn since that fateful day?

This year I really like the chances of the young guns and were I a betting man I would have a hard time going against these five:

Rory McIlroy – Golf’s new golden boy.  He simply must be on everybody’s shortlist of champion golfer candidates.  After the dominant showing at Congressional and last years showing at St. Andrews and this year at Augusta…you get the picture.

Louis Oosthuizen – Not sure why I like him as he hasn’t done much in the year since holding the Claret Jug (top 10 at the US Open), but I just feel he’ll be inspired to be playing major championship links golf.

Rickie Fowler – a stellar showing at last years Open Championship after a horrible opening round.  He is due for something good to happen…

Dustin Johnson – he’s got to show up at some point this year in a major right?  I believe he’ll come from out of nowhere to challenge this week.

Charl Schwartzel – okay I know I have two young South Africans on my list, maybe I’m biased, but who can argue with this pick.  A win and a top 10 in majors thus far this year…..I look for the bantamweight to be there come Sunday!

We can only hope for similar weather to last year – firm, fast and a stiff breeze off the Dover coast.  I love it!

Tee Times and Pairings

Royal St. Georges

What fabulous terrain for a golf course! Just watching the Open Championship inspires me to take a golf break and get out and play some links golf. There is no better style of golf to play.  Enjoy!

If you are interested in playing a few of the Open Championship courses check out – Golf Breaks UK

Read more about the Open Championship….

The Closing Hole

CB Macdonald is a genius. If golf is to be played for the purpose of enjoyment then surely the course a golfer plays should elevate the potential for that enjoyment.  The National Golf Links of America is beyond question, the most fun and interesting golf course I have ever played.  Having not played the course before I have heard numerous reviews from fellow golfers fortunate enough to have played the course that there are too many blind shots, it’s too short, the greens have too much movement, essentially it’s just okay.  What?  If I could only play one golf course for the rest of my life it would unquestionably be this one.

The 1st Fairway and Windmill

The course was designed by Charles Blair Macdonald and opened in 1911.  Many of the holes were patterned from famous golf courses in Britain and adapted to fit the lay of the land:

• The 2nd hole, named Sahara, is a par four modeled after the 3rd hole at Royal St. Georges.
• The 3rd hole, named Alps, is a par four that requires a blind approach shot to the green, similar to the 17th hole at Prestwick.
• The 4th hole, named Redan, is a par three that copied the 15th hole at North Berwick, the site of the original Redan hole.
• The 7th hole, named St. Andrews, is a par five that was designed based on the 17th hole (Road Hole) at St. Andrews.
• The 8th hole, named Bottle, is a par four that resembles the 12th hole at Sunningdale Golf Club.
• The 13th hole, named Eden, is a par three that replicates the 11th hole at St. Andrews.

Some of the other holes were original designs, the most notable of which is the par four 14th hole. It was named Cape because the green was located on a small peninsula that jutted into a bay. The green was later moved during construction of Sebonac Inlet Road but is now surrounded on three sides by a large bunker.  A unique feature on the golf course is a windmill located between the 2nd and 16th holes.  A member once remarked that a windmill would make a nice addition to the course so Macdonald purchased one when he was in Europe and sent the member the bill.

The 16th Punchbowl

The golf course is a perfect site for a matchplay event and when it playes host to the 2013 Walker Cup there are bound to be some thrilling matches. The reason for this is due to the fact that there are so many holes that play either a half stroke lower or higher than par. For example the 1st and 2nd holes are driveable to the long hitter and birdie is a real possibility, yet the 3rd, Alps, is a long and blind par four where there’s a real chance for bogey.  The course now plays to a par 72 as the 5th Hog’s Back has been converted into a long par four….and a half.

#15 Narrows

If you are ever in Ottawa, Canada and are looking for another excellent course to play try Loch March Golf and Country Club – you will not be disappointed!

A Loss of Angles leads too....

Have you ever struggled with shots that just don’t seem to go where they should? The ball always seems to leak right or hook left. Today’s post strives to get at the root cause of why your golf swing is so reliant on timing.

One of the more frequent mistakes I see golfers make is to stand up or lose their body angles through impact – the “stand and deliver” move! The loss of body angles or posture causes the body to stop rotating and as a result the hands now assume the responsibility of squaring the clubface. Remember – if the body does not rotate to clubface square, then the hands will help out. This move is very difficult to time, especially under pressure, and often leads to the hands overworking or flipping through impact. If the hands rotate the clubface too early the shot misses left and if they’re a touch late, then the shot misses right.

...Overly Active Hands through Impact

Consistently straight shots are achievable only when the clubface is being squared via the rotation of the body through impact.

An indicator that you are losing your body angles through impact is that your divots (if you are even taking any) are always deeper on the outside than the inside. They are toe deep. (A big reason why an “active” fitting is not always the best way to go!)

A good method to ensure that the body continues it’s rotation through the hit is to work on maintaining your posture or spine angle that is established at address. Hit little pitch type shots with an eight iron trying to feel that your torso stays down over the ball while clearing through the strike. A good feel is to try and sense that the hands are low through impact – they should feel like they are actually lower at impact than they were at address. You may even have the sense that the toe of the club is higher at impact than the heel. Try this DRILL

Maintain Posture Angles through Impact

This is something that all of golf’s greatest ball strikers have in common – Nick Price, Lee Trevino and Ben Hogan all did a fantastic job of maintaining their posture through impact. This allowed them to take the hands, and timing, out of the equation – a recipe for consistently good golf shots.

Passive Hands

Body Angles | Andrew Rice Golf