Tour Shot Golf

  STONEHOUSE GOLF CLUB Toano, Virginia November 23, 2022 OVERVIEW FACILITY TYPE: Semi-Private YEAR OPENED: 1996 / 2019 ARCHITECT: Mike Strantz PAR: 72 LENGTH: 4,135 - 7,013 yards  USGA RATING: 61.3 - 73.6 USGA SLOPE: 115 - 143 TEE OPTIONS: 6 WEBSITE: https://stonehousegolfclub.com/ PHONE: (757) 250-3399   This was my second round at Stonehouse Golf Club. My first was July 4th, 2020, on the 1 year anniversary of the course being reopened. During that round two years ago, the greens were in poor condition, yet the course layout was so amazing that I went back anyway, and boy am I glad I did! The course was originally designed by legendary golf course architect, Mike Strantz. Opened in 1996, the course received high praise and accolades. This excerpt directly from Stonehouse’s website does a great job summarizing the history of the facility… When the course opened in 1996, Stonehouse was named “Best New Upscale Public Course in the Nation” by Golf Digest and “Top 10 ...

  THE SUBURBAN CLUB Pikesville, Maryland November 22, 2022 OVERVIEW YEAR OPENED: 1900 ARCHITECT: A.W. Tillinghast??? (R.B. Hyland & Peter Lees) PAR: 70 COURSE LENGTH: 5,434 - 6,542 COURSE RATING: 68.5 - 72.5 COURSE SLOPE: 121 - 127 TEE OPTIONS: 5 LOCATION: Pikesville, Maryland FACILITY TYPE:   Private Playing at Suburban is always a treat. Maybe I’m biased but I’m fortunate to call Suburban Club one of my Home Courses. From 2013-2015 I was the Assistant Professional at Suburban and returned in 2020 to help run their Junior Programs during the pandemic. Suburban has a rich history. Founded in 1900, this Private club has largely flown under the radar despite being one of the first clubs founded in the country and one of the first golf courses built in Baltimore. I often get asked “where’s that?” when I tell people I’m playing Suburban. Though listed in A.W. Tillinghast’s book as part of his portfolio, it is uncertain how much or how little involvement he really had i...

  CAMELBACK GOLF CLUB (AMBIENTE COURSE) Scottsdale, Arizona November 3, 2022 OVERVIEW YEAR OPENED: 1970 ARCHITECT: Jack Snyder & Jason Straka COURSE LENGTH: 5,538 - 7,225 yards COURSE RATING: 69.0 - 75.8 COURSE SLOPE: 124 - 138 TEE OPTIONS: 5 LOCATION: Scottsdale, Arizona FACILITY TYPE:   Resort Playing new courses is something that always gets me excited about golf. Sure, I definitely have my favorite courses that I frequent but discovering something new and having a new experience is to me what this game is all about. I recently played the Ambiente Course at Camelback Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona and it was definitely not what I was expecting! When I think of desert golf, I think of green fairways surrounded by brown waste. The Ambiente course was a little different. They recently underwent a $10 million renovation that changed the course from classic flat desert golf into a links-style course with subtle elevations, dramatic bunkering, tall grasses, and trees...

  It starts the night before... Going through the bag, making sure it’s fully loaded with balls, tees, ball marker, laser, a snack or two, and good to go Taking each club out, one at a time, and scrubbing it down, making sure it’s clean and feeling fresh Looking up the course, scoping it out, visualizing the shots, creating a gameplan It’s these little obsessions, rituals if you will, that fascinates me about golf Golf is the game of life And in many ways, the lessons we must learn and overcome to be successful are the same in golf as they are in life Play the ball where it lies Keep an honest score Call penalties on yourself Show up on time Help the group look for balls Keep up with pace of play I could go on and on but the reality is that golf parallels life so well because they follow the same rules They're played in nature and adhere to the laws of physics You cannot overpower the conditions, you must surrender If the wind is blowing or rain is coming down, you must respect mot...