16
April
2009
Your credit score is a good way to determine what interest rate you can get on a loan or if you can get financing at all. It’s the same all over the United States, even in Honolulu, Hawaii. If you have a good credit score (over 700), banks will compete to give you the best rate. If you have a score lower than 600, its time for you to go back to the drawing board and try to get your credit back on track.
Whether you’re looking for a home loan, a vehicle loan or small business financing in Honolulu, banks will ask to see all three of your credit reports. They will look to see if you have any outstanding debt or debt that is in collections. They will weigh your debt to credit ratio as well as equity and income to see if you have the means to handle your debt responsibly.
Your credit score will follow you where ever you go, and if it’s a poor score, it’s like having a rain cloud over your head. Some employers request a credit check as part of the interviewing process. You don’t want your credit score keep you from employment. It is important to be responsible when considering taking on a loan. Only borrow what you can repay, and do not live outside your means. If you do find yourself in trouble of defaulting on your loans, contact your financing agency they can work with you so you can meet your financial obligations.
Posted: Finance Web
16
April
2009
Algebra depicts relationships between things that diverge over time. These variables include matters such as the relationship between supply of an a product and its price. Math is not an easy subject for a large percentage of students. Many software programs are available with a assortment of subject area demonstration so students of whatever intellect level can find the way that works for him/her. It also serves students to comprehend usefulness of Algebra in real life as well as within industry solutions. Larger functions employed in algebra include Graphing linear inequalities, Solving compound inequalities , Solving quadratic inequalities, Adding and Subtracting matrices etc.
Algebra is an important course but students can be disheartened initially if they do not work hard enough in early stages. This makes elementary math skills important to help students successfully pass algebra and move on into graduate math with self-confidence.
How to Successfully Deal With Algebra
Facilitating algebra software applications offer more than what can be found in the students practice books, such as homework assistance, interactive lesson plans, games and a worksheet tool or graphing calculator. The high quality software will have all these features as well as easy usability and coverage of wide area of subjects.
The instruction tools are always useful for methods like text, audio, animation, video and games are put in to use. Schools and colleges require that students complete algebra courses from pre-algebra to algebra II. Important topics in these courses are: Finding complement of an angle, inverse of functions, finding degree of polynomial, determine if line is Factoring sum of cubes, Simplifying radical expressions , Solving exponential equations and Solving system of equations by addition etc.
How to Utilize Algebra Software
Some algebraic software would only show results, while some other (most suitable for elementary use of algebra) give away techniques and ‘how-to’ guides on math basics that are in use. For students, ease of use of the software is the number one requirement. Thus, the software ought to be bundled with value added components like high quality and timely user support, enclosed help options, and easily laid out algebra tutorials.
Posted: Great Science Tips, Schools + Colleges, World Of Mathematics
12
April
2009
It is well known in professional golf how integral golf fitness exercises are for success at the highest level of golf. Men on the PGA Tour and women on the LPGA Tour understand the benefits of golf fitness exercises in achieving success. Outside the circles of professional golf many questions exist about golf fitness exercises. Questions such as; what are the best exercises to improve golf fitness levels, are flexibility exercises and stretches better than other forms of golf fitness exercises, and what are the benefits of golf fitness exercises for the woman golfer?
These and many questions surround the topic of golf fitness. This article is to provide some answers for you on the topic of golf fitness exercises for woman. It has been well documented in magazines and television how LPGA women such as Annika Sorenstam utilize golf fitness programs to benefit their play on the golf course. Is there a difference between the LPGA player and the amateur woman golfer in relation to golf fitness training? The answer is no. Yes, the women on the LPGA Tour are the best women golfers in the world, but the physiology of the LPGA player and amateur are the same. The skeletal, muscular, and neural systems are the same. The professional golfer has the same number of muscles in their bodies as the amateur. The woman’s professional golfer has the same skeletal structure as the female amateur, and nervous system as well. Granted the LPGA player has more refined and efficient swing mechanics, but the body is the same.
As a result of the body being the same, the principles and structure of a golf fitness program for any woman is similar. Before discussing the specifics of a golf fitness program for women it is necessary to understand a few important principles. The first principle to understand about a golf fitness program is sports specific. Sports specific is a term describing the type of training utilized in a golf fitness program. Sport specific training simply states the program utilized by the woman athlete is geared towards improving them in their chosen sport.
A second principle closely related to sports specific training is cross specificity training. Cross specificity training is the utilization of exercises to develop the woman golfer in the positions, movements, and actions incorporated in the golf swing. The goal of cross specificity training is a transfer of training effect to the field of competition. Simply stated, a transfer of training effect is the ability of exercises utilized to train the female golfer having a direct benefit on their performance during a round of golf.
For example, golf fitness flexibility exercises will attempt to improve the flexibility within the woman golfer. As the woman golfer improves her flexibility parameters in relation to the golf swing. She may be able to create a bigger shoulder turn, which may increase the distance of her drives. This benefit is an example of a transfer of training effect onto the golf course. In summary, the three principles that assist in the development of a golf fitness program for women are; sports specific, cross specificity training, and transfer of training effect. Many additional principles exist that are used as guidelines in the development of a golf fitness program, but these are three essential ones.
Outside of the guidelines governing the development of a golf fitness program for woman. Specific physical components within the body are needed within the body to execute the golf swing correctly. Remember, it is the body performing the biomechanics of the golf swing. In order for the golf swing to be executed correctly and efficiently certain levels of flexibility, balance, strength, endurance, and power are required. These are the actual physical components within the woman golfer a golf specific fitness program looks to develop and enhance in relation to the golf swing.
The golf swing requires the body to move through a long range of motion for an efficient movement to occur. Much of this is contingent upon the ability of the core to coil and uncoil during the swing. In order for these two biomechanical actions to occur efficiently, the development of proper flexibility in the core is necessary.
We utilize flexibility exercises that are cross-specific to the movements in the golf swing to develop flexibility. The majority of these flexibility exercises are rotational and dynamic.
The golf swing is a dynamic movement, indicating that the body is in constant motion. It is crucial to develop a range of motion for the swing in a dynamic rather than a static (not moving) method. The goal of these exercises is to create a range of motion in the core for the golf swing. Flexibility is the first physical component requiring development within the woman golfer.
One needs to maintain, dynamically, a stable body throughout the entire swing. We have all hit balls at the range and know what happens when we do not stay balanced during the swing. Improving the balance and stabilization capabilities of the core translates into a better golf swing. Better Balance equals a Better Swing. Even subtle movements are consistency killers; thus we need to develop and maintain balance for a consistent swing.
Balance is connected to the efficiency of the nervous system and strength of the muscular system working together. The development of greater balance in the core and swing is the result of two types of specific exercise. The first challenges the nervous system creating greater efficiency. The second are exercises that create increased strength in the core. The combination of these two types of exercises permit for the body to maintain posture, promote efficient weight transfer, and create power in the swing. The result is a more consistent, accurate, and powerful swing. This is the second component included with a golf fitness program for women
Remember that the golf swing is a repetitive movement. The mechanics of the swing repeat with each stroke. This process can be repeated hundreds of times in a round of golf. Ever go to the range and hit two buckets of balls? At some point the body starts to tire, and shots scatter.
Proper endurance training enables us to repeat a sound swing. We produce this through a series of exercises developing endurance in the entire body. This nets us a consistent swing through eighteen holes. Increasing endurance leads to lower scores. This is the third physical component of the golf fitness program for women.
Club head speed is a function of power. The more power generated by the body, the greater speed at which a club head impacts the ball. More power to the ball equals longer drives. Developing higher levels of power within the muscular system of the body is achieved through the implementation of power exercises. These types of exercise assist in creating higher power outputs of the muscles involved in the golf swing. Power training is the final component found in a golf fitness program for women.
In summary a golf fitness program for the LPGA or amateur woman golfer is relatively the same. Golf fitness exercises for the woman golfer are sports specific. The exercises contained within the golf fitness program are cross-specific to the movements, positions, and requirements of the golf swing. The exercises within a woman’s golf fitness program induce a transfer of training effect onto the golf course. The golf swing requires certain levels of flexibility, balance, strength, endurance, and power to execute correctly. A golf fitness program for women will look to enhance these physical components of the body. The end result is an improved golf swing equating to lower scores and more enjoyment on the golf course.
Sean Cochran is one of the most recognized golf fitness instructors in the world today. He travels the PGA Tour regularly with 2005 PGA & 2004 Masters Champion Phil Mickelson. He has made many of his golf tips, golf instruction and golf swing improvement techniques available to amateur golfers on the website http://www.bioforcegolf.com To contact Sean, you can email him at support@bioforcegolf.com.
Posted: Sports For All
11
April
2009
You would normally hear novice golf players complain that golf is quite frustrating. This is because the game is rather difficult to play. Not because of the nature of the golf game itself but mainly because players need to achieve a certain level of mastery over the game.
Golf is such that one needs to work for it. One really has to toil for it and most of the time, get frustrated along the course. This is almost natural and majority of golf players runs through such circumstances. However, once the difficult part of training is done, the comforts of playing the game are incomparable.
Golf gives the satisfaction that may not be found in other sports. This often comes from personal accomplishments. The combination of intellectual and physical talent is necessary to achieve the certain degree of success. Remember that the ball is just there to wait for your hits. And you should know how to hit it accordingly. And next to knowing the how is your ability to actually execute the knowledge. And this combination of physical and intellectual capabilities are two things that make the golf game unique.
What most golf players miss out is the principle that golf games are actually a competition within themselves and not competition with other players. Given that this position is taken improvements may be gained through combining proper attitude towards the games and the ability to put on the best play.
Listed and discussed in the following paragraphs are some guidelines that may help you improve your golf games.
- Consider taking golf lessons with a professional golf instructor. This probably is the best investment you may have in playing golf. Having better foundations from a professional would help you raise to upgraded level without discovering everything by yourself. This may be quite expensive. If you would want to cut back on your expenses, you may try group sessions and other forms of golf instructions at your local facilities.
- Assure yourself of having completed the entire golf course instructions before going out into the field. It certainly would not be fun for you and the golfers who are watching you repeatedly missing and dribbling the golf ball in the same spot.
- At all rate, you must know the rules and the fundamentals of the game before attempting your first hits. Also try to catch the slang of the sports so you may have better connections with other players. Or else, you might find everything to be Greek in your ears. Like for instance, the term “you’re away” means you’re next.
- Drive yourself to learning. Hogan once quoted that he did not teach because nobody was willing to learn. What he meant by this is that golfers want to improve their golf games yet they are never willing to go through the pains and frustrations. Yes, the majority of players would say that they want great swings and lower scores but some way or another, none are willing to lift themselves from the level they are presently in. Most only borrow the temporary cure of the band-aid approach, which only hides the symptoms of the conditions away, instead of walking down the path of self-improvement.
- You need to develop decisive decision-making. This is often the pitfall for most golfers. This is comprised of the ability to decide on what golf club to use, what type of hit, and what form of set up is needed to make the shot.
In the end, you need not be a genius to play excellent golf. You only have to avoid doing the unnecessary and impractical things.
Robert Thatcher is a freelance publisher based in Cupertino, California. He publishes articles and reports in various ezines and provides golf game resources on http://www.about-golf-games.info
Posted: Sports For All
11
April
2009
Fitness training for golf has become so popular recently, with many of the big names like Tiger Woods and Anika Sorenstam crediting it for their performance. While a golf fitness and conditioning program should be tailored for the individual golfer according to his or her current physical condition, it must also follow some sort of logical sequence too. Using the Functional Fitness Pyramid model as a guide to your golf-conditioning program will have you booming your drives and draining your putts – guaranteed.
What is the Functional Fitness Pyramid (FFP)?
The FFP is a highly effective model for designing any sport specific or functional training exercise conditioning program not just for improving golf fitness. The FFP is so effective for exercise program design because each conditioning tier builds on the adaptations achieved in the tier below it – allowing for functional progressions that produce incredible results.
Tier 1: Flexibility and stability
Flexibility and stability form the base or foundation of the golf fitness pyramid. This tier involves stretching and exercises to develop your core as the foundation on which you will build your “golfing machine” body. Attempting to strengthen your body for any sport without first developing core strength and flexibility will only lead to frustration for the trainer and the athlete.
A good tip is to remember is that “You cannot fire a cannon from a canoe.” – that is the strength and power of your limb muscles can only be as strong as the core “anchor” to which they are attached.
Flexibility is the ability for a joint to actively and passively move through its full range of motion. A tight muscle is often an overactive muscle resulting from compensation or substitution for muscle weakness somewhere else in the body. These are what is commonly referred to as muscle imbalances.
To improve flexibility, you must restore muscle balance by stretching the tight muscles and strengthening the weak ones. Muscles that are frequently tight are the hip flexors, adductors (front and inside groin muscles), the low back, hamstrings, external hip rotators (deep butt), posterior neck and pec (chest) muscles. Muscles that are frequently weak are the abdominals, glutes (butt), middle back and deep neck flexor muscles.
Stability can be thought of as the ability to control your center of gravity. Static stability is what we commonly associate with our sense of balance while not moving the arms or legs; for example, your ability to stand on one foot with your eyes closed. Dynamic stability is the ability to remain stable while generating force with the arms and legs like in the golf swing.
It is crucial that you develop static stability first and then progress to dynamic stability. This makes sense since if you don’t have static stability, then how is it possible to have dynamic stability?
So a well-designed golf exercise program will initially concentrate on static core exercises using a stability ball and progress to free weight and cable column exercises while maintaining “neutral spine and pelvis” (neutral spine and pelvis are synonymous and comparable to a person with good posture standing upright).
The Supine Swiss Ball Bridge is an example of a static stability exercise and the cable wood chop is an excellent example of a dynamic stability exercise.
Tier 2: Whole-body strength
The second tier of the FFP builds on the foundation of stability and flexibility to develop whole body strength. Strength is the result of an improved communication of the muscles with the nervous system, that is, the brain is able to activate more nerves and more muscle fibers – increasing force generation.
Initially, you may start doing general machine-type exercises like shoulder presses, lateral pull downs, leg presses, chest presses and rows to build strength, but it is important that you progress toward exercises that closely mimic the golf stance and swing too.
Sport-specific exercises require the brain to form a motor plan. A motor plan is the sequence of nerve firing that activates muscles to work in a certain pattern to cause a particular movement. Exercising this way provides what is known as transfer or “carry over” to your sport. Isolated muscle strength is good, but to really smash your competition, you need strength in the motor pattern that most closely mimics the golf swing. Exercises such as the cable wood chop and reverse cable wood chop are two very effective examples of exercises that mimic the swinging and throwing movements in many types of sport and especially golf.
It is also essential that the technique you use to perform sport-specific exercises is perfect. Should you perform the exercises with bad technique, the brain remembers and reinforces the faulty motor pattern, thinking that it is actually normal and correct. Your brain is like a computer and a motor pattern like a program. If the program is full of “bugs” then the computer will not work effectively. The adage JUNK IN = JUNK OUT is very applicable to all three phases of functional fitness and conditioning.
Tier 3: Whole-body power
The third tier of the FFP takes the newly acquired strength developed in tier 2 and converts it into power. Power is essentially a measure of how quickly you can generate muscle force. So high power is the ability to generate high force or torque at fast speeds – allowing you to generate higher club head speeds and “bomb” your drives.
Most golfers are confused when trying to improve their power and assume that if they swing a heavier club they will increase rotary coil power. Unfortunately this is unlikely to happen since muscle contraction speed is directly dependent on force. A muscle will contract much faster lifting little to no load compared to lifting a heavy load. Using a heavier club may slightly increase torque, but it sacrifices club head speed – reducing power output.
A tried and tested method to train muscles to generate high power regardless of sport is to use plyometrics. Plyometrics manipulates the nerve physiology of muscle to greatly increase the force and speed at which the muscle contracts by pre-stretching the muscle first.
Exercises using rubber medicine balls are ideal for developing explosive coil and swing power for example, the medicine ball swing slam, the wood chop and reverse wood chop. The elastic recoil force of the rebounding ball stretches the muscles of the trunk and back and eccentrically “preloads” them for the next side throw.
The golden rule of power training is that it must be explosive, and the movements are quick and precise. It is essential then when doing plyometrics that the movements are not slow as this defeats the plyometric effect.
In closing, this article has provided some basic pointers for the golfer or athlete looking to improve their game with exercise. Following the Functional Fitness Pyramid model to a “tee” will have you well on your way to a lower handicap and possibly even “taking on Tiger”.
David Petersen is a Personal Trainer/Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) and golf fitness specialist and the owner and founder of B.O.S.S. Fitness Inc. based in Oldsmar, Florida. More articles and exercise video clips can be found at http://www.bossfitness.com
NOTE: You’re free to republish this article on your website, in your newsletter, in your e-book or in other publications provided the article is reproduced in its entirety, including this note, author information and all LIVE website links as above.
Posted: Sports For All
10
April
2009
If you watch the Golf Channel or read any of the magazines and books on golf, it will be very hard for you to miss the basic theme that “There is a perfect swing and you will do the most for your game by trying to get it”. Even when you watch a tournament on TV, you see the commentators participate in this conspiracy by showing us frame-by-frame analysis of the pro and critiquing his/her every move. Now, maybe we can give the TV guys a break because they are just trying for some entertainment value and let’s face it, most of us are interested in the details of the swing because we’ve been brainwashed by years of this theme.
For many years, I too was a “swing zombie” in my quest to improve my golf game. I even participated with a group of golfers that all had our swings videotaped and then we critiqued each other in a classroom setting. The feedback I received from all of us watching my swing ran from “very smooth” to “way off-kilter”. Everybody had a differing opinion of many of the swings that we watched and at least for me, it only confused me more.
In my younger years, I had a typical amateur slice swing that obviously came out of my years of playing baseball and softball. In those days, I would just aim for the left edge of any fairway and I could count on the ball moving left to right, at worst ending up in the right rough but usually hitting the fairway. I enjoyed playing golf those days but I always felt that something was missing. So when I could finally afford it,I decided to take a set of lessons from a pro. Of course I told him that I wanted to get rid of my slice swing and he asked me back “are you sure?”. This answer kind of shocked me but he was a very good instructor and by the end of the lessons, I was able to hit the ball out of bounds both ways, left and right. I figured that it would just be a matter of time until I “dialed” in to hitting it straight. To make the story short, 5 years later and I was still “dialing” and getting wrong numbers (ob, jail, water,no score improvement, etc.).
Looking back, I honestly believe now that if I had stuck with my old left to right swing and just used the rest of what I learned from the pro, that I would have improved significantly. Why? Because I was a typical golfer and not a 12 handicapper trying to become a single-digiter (a good golfer trying to become a great one). Studies have shown that the overwhelming majority of amateur golfers shoot in the 90’s or above for men and it’s over 100 for women. If you are in that group, then you really should be working on parts of your game that will give you far more efficient score improvement for the time and effort spent. This would primarily be in the area of the short game and the mental game.
This is absolutely true for the average golfer but it may be true for all golfers as well. There is loads of evidence on the pro tours that the ones making the money are those best at chipping and putting. The golf research guru himself, Dave Pelz, actually followed tour players around for years taking detailed statistics and he proved it (see his book, My Short Game Bible). In addition to that, there are too many pros to list that admit that their swing is not “technically correct” or maybe not even very good…BUT THEY WIN TOURNAMENTS! Look at Jim Furyk, 2003 U.S. Open winner. He actually has a big loop in his backswing. Lee Trevino always told people that they should not copy his swing. Even Jack Nicklaus says in his books that he wasn’t a very good ball striker. Bruce Lietzke has won tournaments on the PGA and Senior tours playing his left-to-right shot his whole career – And he says he rarely practices! On top of that, the tours are littered with past champions that totally lost their game AFTER they tried to change it for the better. And now they are begging their sports psychologist to help them “find” their old swing.
I have talked to PGA golf instructors that say it’s their clients that want the swing advice (just like I did) even when they recommend working some other part of their game first. So maybe it’s our own fault in creating the current situation where average scores of amateurs have not dropped one stroke in the last 50 years despite the advances in equipment technology. Now don’t get me wrong, if you are a total beginner, maybe you should start out with learning the basics of the golf swing with a lesson. But if you’re hitting it solid most of the time, you are good to go for a real scoring quest as more swing advice is not the quickest way for you to drop your score. There is just so much more that you can do, on and off the course, that will pay you back in saved strokes for far less time spent than “fixing” your swing. Most of us have precious little free time that we can work to improve our games so why not work on that which will give us the greatest bang for our (time) buck?
And so, let me be the first to make a pledge to the golf spirit inside me (I always thought that golf is like religion):
“I for one, do solemnly swear that I will not pay attention to any swing advice of any sort until I can score in the 70’s consistently with the swing I have (and maybe not even then)”.
Visit Craig Sigl’s website at: http://www.break80golf.com It is dedicated to score improvement for golfers with little time to practice. Download free ebook “How you can play better golf using self-hypnosis”. Sign up for ezine “The Very Busy Golfer.” Ecourse with golf instruction tips from a major pro, articles on golf equipment and free golf games.
Posted: Sports For All
9
April
2009
Hair Drug Test
Drug screen has become a common problem around the earth. Numerous companies perform drug exams on newly employed individuals or existing employees to insure a drug-free environment at workplace.
Insurance agencies and courts carry out drug tests on a frequent basis on distrusted individuals. The serious question that comes to your head, when you go for some test is how to pass a drug test?
Cyber websites such as Drug Testing In Schools offers up the current detoxification products including permanent cleaners, synthetic substance weewee products, and saliva clean products, detox drinks and home drug test kits.
Random Drug Testing In High School
Pass The Drug Test offers up professional support for every product, with support allowed by drug test persons which are extremely knowledgeable with diverse types of drug testing methodologies and effects. Support is available by email and phone. Transportation is immediate, with complete privateness assured, using plainly and discrete packaging materials to preserve absolute client secrecy.
Hair Drug Testing
Embedded on the new site is a full order of products for detoxification and examination intents. Permanent cleaners are offered in 3, 5 and 7, 10, 14, 21 and 30 day formulas, with a variety of herbs, roots, barks and minerals that are experienced lipids destroyers which process to break down fat cells and eradicate toxins entirely. Simulated piss is offered, which contains all elements ordinarily seen in weewee, particularly balanced for pH with specific gravity, creatine and other piss characteristics. A saliva cleansing mouthwash is proposed will remove toxins from your mouth with merely 3 minutes of use. We provide a range of detoxification drinks, each bearing the best working herbs and fiber to help free the body of toxins that may have accrued.
If you use MSN to hunt the net for us here are 10 Wonderful words to apply to find out our site.
Athlete Drug Testing
Hair And Urine Drug Testing besides offers drug testing kits including saliva, hair and weewee based tests to verify that detoxification efforts are effective. For more information, visit Passing A Weed Drug Test If you have any questions, please call us at: 866-649-7277
Posted: Consumism, Great Lifestyle Tips, Health + More
4
April
2009
At present, as a great number of firms and directors are looking at web video sites as a terrific place to distribute content to grab the interest of their potential viewers, it’s fundamental to be acquainted with the main benefits of using online video promotion websites.
Here are one or two indispensable items you must be acquainted with prior to you beginning to distribute promotional videos on internet video channels.
At all times try hard to use professional videos that offer useful content to your potential consumers – Lots of business people wrongly assume you can simply add any kind of advertisement on a video portal, but nothing could be any closer from reality. Each and every video ought to give some valuable info to the target market, or start topic of talk. Click here to find more info regarding video production, distribution and marketing services offered by Vidify.
Undertake some sort of market research on the video websites prior to you uploading your very 1st video – It’s an outstanding idea to allot some considerable time typing your market’s important keywords into MSN, in an endeavour to learn what similar promotional videos are presently on the World Wide Web. Next make sure you have written down the profile names of the most important users in your market. Possibly somewhere down the line you can become involved in a joint venture or have some type of association with these firms.
Take into consideration that every video website has a society built into it – With this in mind you should respect the other members and it’s advised that you distribute positive remarks about your rivals’ videos. First & foremost you need to be a member of the community, offering advice, ideas etc. And only then should you regard yourself as being a marketer & start to broadcast your very own 1 and firm.
Commit yourself to making numerous promotional videos – You ought to have a clear strategy for making and posting several videos. Or else, your profile page on the video websites will give the idea of being bare if it merely has one video on view. So, spend time organising the making of a series of short format videos, instead of one lengthy video.
Online video marketing is one of the best & fastest ways of promoting your company at the moment.
Posted: Great Video Tips, Hall Of Marketing, Online Publishing Resources
3
April
2009
“What If You Could… Have the perfect group golf vacation, save money and have a sensational time setting it up?”
You’ve waited all year to get together with your friends for your annual golf vacation. It was supposed to be perfect, but you bought “the package” and your outing turns out to be simply adequate.
You all had such high hopes, but you had to take what you got.
Sound familiar? Have you been on the receiving side of a less than perfect golf vacation that you have been waiting for all year? In all fairness, most golf packages are good. Some are great. But they truly are packages designed for the mass market with little flexibility and no individual flair.
A standard golf vacation package provides lodging and one round of golf per day, including a cart. The lodging usually means motel or hotel accommodations with two people per bedroom. In most cases, you can choose from several different courses, and select your advance tee times. They will even throw in a continental breakfast. The prices are fair.
Again, this yields a good or great vacation, but we need to discuss the perfect vacation. Envision:
-A beautiful vacation house with a separate bed or bedroom for each person.
-Gourmet dining each evening.
-As much or as little golf as you want, where you want and when you want.
-Evening entertainment.
-Maximum camaraderie.
I have been setting up this type golf vacation for my old high school and college friends every year since 1988. Over those 18 years, we have refined Our Event to what we think is the perfect annual outing. Our first few years were terrific even though we had to keep the costs down. Despite inflation, the cost has been fairly stable for the last four years. We have settled on a full seven days, Saturday to Saturday.
In general, we plan for 36 holes per day, and modify that in situ to wind up with an average of about 27 holes per day. We buy most of the food and beverages the day of arrival to support breakfast, snacks, sandwiches between rounds, and gourmet evening meals for the week. Our smallest group was five gents one year, and the largest group was sixteen. The perfect size is anywhere from eight to twelve.
The above is our perfect golf vacation, not necessarily yours. For yours, look at the general goals below for the ideal golf outing:
- Get the ball rolling early.
- Have everyone stay in the same house that has a full kitchen.
- Get the shopping list together ahead of time.
- Have a general schedule and loose assignments.
Get the ball rolling. Pick out a window of time and get the word out to everyone you think might be interested OR not interested (next year, they may be). I send a fun, whimsical email about five months ahead of a proposed block of time. It is written such that the wives enjoy the comedy as much as the guys. If you are not a writer, there are examples in my upcoming free Ebook. It will take you through setting up and conducting the whole event from scratch.
Follow up emails get commitments and solicit recommendations and special requests. Armed with all this, you will select the ideal house, set up tee times, and arrange rental vehicles. Further emails from you will ask what food, snacks and beverages they will want during the outing. Here is a good timeline:
-5 months: Announce.
-3 months: Receive all commitments and solicited recommendations.
-3 months: Let everyone know when to fly in to coordinate travel.
-2 months: Arrange house, tee times and rental cars.
-1 month: Receive all food, snack, and beverage requests.
-1 month: Confirm house, tee times and rental cars.
-1 week: Finalize food and beverage list.
Zero hour: Have the time of your life.
House with a full kitchen. This allows several things:
Preparing your own evening meal. Every group has at least one “chef”.
Rehashing the day as a group (yes, this includes an appropriate amount of trash talk and begging for strokes on upcoming rounds.)
Having evening entertainment as a group. We watch a sports event on TV, watch videos, play cards, tell tales and get caught up, or all of the above.
Getting sandwiches, snacks and beverages ready for the next day.
You will have almost as much fun setting up this event as you will have during your vacation. I set up a little eight page website with history, photos, schedule, past scores, etc. to hold everyone’s interest and attention throughout the year. I will provide that in my free Ebook.
You can think about bringing a laptop and uploading each day’s results on your website so that the unfortunate people that did not make the trip can live vicariously by following the daily action. An idea that our group has not yet acted on is to have a masseuse come in one evening later in the week to help our aging muscles.
Building your own special vacation not only allows you to really tailor your outing to your group’s taste, but also allows you all to get together as a true group for a great week of camaraderie. As a bonus, it should wind up being less expensive!
Randall Ulbricht is a retired Nuclear Submarine Officer. He currently works from home sharing information via several web sites such as:
http://www.ezpromotes.com
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Posted: Sports For All
2
April
2009
My list is not authoritative, it lists my top skiing areas in the Alps. You could list Les Houches, La Plagne and Chamonix however this list are my best ski fields. And given the current financial situation you may be able to find graet ski holiday deals.
1. Les Deux Alpes, France ” Brilliant for all standards and infamous for its combination of summer and winter skiing with an excellent snow record. It is one enormous skiing resort where you’ll feel at ease.
2. Kitzbhel, Austria ” the 5 main skiing areas around the resort have plenty of slopes catering to the needs of everyone – this ski resort is one to try out. Contrary to the easy going nature of most of the courses Kitzbhel contains one of the most challenging world cup circuit courses in the world,the Hahnenkamm.
3. Sestriere, Italy ” Friendly family skiing resort renowned for its pistes that are connected to the Milky Way. A great place to visit with fantastic snow reliability and a range of slopes with some tougher pistes for the more experienced skier.Val dIsere, France ” One of the most famous resorts in Europe for the experts, it is no surprise that its often a busy place. However, even beginners can find something here as they have pistes for all standards and abilities with the huge area linked to Tignes.
4. Wengen, Switzerland ” This beautiful ski resort exudes charm from the moment you arrive. It’s an easy going place; with many of the ski pistes having gentle runs leading up to Grindelwald.
5.Flims Laax Falera, Switzerland ” Is famous for its 3 connected mountains: Flims, Laax and Falera making up one of the most popular skiing areas in Switzerland. It is more for the intermediate skiers and beginners, with over 130 miles of slopes to satisfy all skiers.
Posted: Great Recreation Tips, Travel Portal
