By DR. BARRY LOTZ, Inside Golf

This is the time to plan your gift giving for your favorite golfers to unwrap this year. These gifts are useful and different from just a generic sleeve of balls. They reflect your thoughtfulness and appreciation of the recipient.

Ashley & Dave Zibrik Have Risen To The Top Of Their Profession While Forging A Life Together At The Same Time - Image Credit Brad Ziemer/BC Golf

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Before they fell in love with each other, Dave Zibrik and Ashley Hogg had already fallen in love with golf. It was the summer of 2005 when they met -- at a golf course, naturally.

Ashley had come home for the summer after completing her junior year at Boise State University, where she played collegiate golf, and had landed a summer job at Swaneset Bay in Pitt Meadows. Dave had just turned pro, was also working at Swaneset and was in the midst of completing the golf management program at Camosun College. Both were 21 and soon they were in love with more than just golf.

The folks at Titleist are very excited about the introduction of their new T-Series Irons and feel golfers will be as well when they get a chance to try them and be properly fitted at the same time.

The best place and time to have that experience is on one of the scheduled 'Titleist Thursdays' coming up in BC during August & September.

Courtesy Colin Weston/ModGolf

In Larry Gilhuly’s opinion, the three biggest issues facing the game of golf are pace of play, player enjoyment and economic sustainability. Larry believes he has the solution for all three: “The answer for all of these, in my opinion, are properly placed forward tees.”

This week host Colin Weston speaks with Larry Gilhuly, who is an Agronomist with The United States Golf Association and a passionate advocate of the TEE IT FORWARD program.

Former Coach Of Tiger Woods, Hank Haney Had A Lot Of Very Intriguing Thoughts To Share During The Callaway Golf Learning Summit At Morgan Creek GC - Image Credit Bryan Outram/BC Golf

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Hank Haney figures he knows a thing or two about golf instruction. “I feel like I am uniquely qualified,” Haney told a clinic at Morgan Creek Golf Course in Surrey this week. “I am really the only instructor who has taught arguably the greatest player in the history of the game in Tiger Woods and the worst player in the history of the game in Charles Barkley.”

That line drew lots of laughs from clinic participants -- mostly Vancouver-area club pros -- who had gathered at Morgan Creek to hear four of Callaway Golf’s heavy hitters talk golf.

British Columbia Golf CEO Kris Jonasson And New President Of BC Golf Michelle Collens Hold The Signed 'Women In Golf Charter' Endorsed By The British Columbia Golf Board - BC Golf Image

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Kris Jonasson, the longtime Chief Executive Officer of British Columbia Golf, knows from personal experience about the challenges of bringing more women into the game.

At British Columbia Golf’s Annual General Meeting at Tsawwassen Springs Golf Club, Jonasson told a story about his daughter, who is not a golfer, and his granddaughter, who is on her way to becoming one. “It’s an easy statement to make, it’s not an easy thing to do,” Jonasson said of the challenge of welcoming more women to golf.

“In certain ways, I failed as a father because I didn’t get my daughter involved in golf. I am doing a much better job with my grandchildren. And I can say with a whole lot of pride I am doing a very good job with my granddaughter, who is 12, and likes to go out and play with me.”

This week host Colin Weston speaks to the USGA's Senior Director of Research, Science & Innovation Matthew Pringle.

Beginning in 2016, Matt has led a new team at the USGA called Research, Science, & Innovation with a mission to, "Create innovative tools that help golf facilities improve the golf experience and reduce the consumption of key resources".

In this episode Matt and Colin refer to the Lean Startup approach to quickly experiment with and validate ideas/products/services. The USGA has embraced Lean Startup's ability to, "Apply entrepreneurial management to drive innovation in any size organization or sector. We’re now up to a team of five and we like to think of ourselves as a scrappy startup within The USGA".

CP Women's Leadership Summit (Golf Canada)

Courtesy R&A and Golf Canada

The R&A’s drive to increase the number of women and girls participating in golf and to encourage more opportunities for women to work within the sport has been reflected in early success for the new Women in Golf Charter.

Launched last May in London, the Charter set out to inspire an industry-wide commitment to developing a more inclusive culture within golf globally. It is designed to encourage actions that enable more women and girls to flourish and maximise their potential within the golf industry at all levels.

This month we feature the two most recent episodes of The ModGolf Podcast as part of our effort to bring you golf’s best innovation and entrepreneurship stories.

(Delta, BC) - British Columbia Golf is pleased to announce the addition of Doug Hastie to their staff as the new Manager Field Operations/Tournament Director for BC Golf.

Doug will officially assume his role with British Columbia Golf commencing on Friday, March 1st, 2019.

Doug's primary role will be to organize and conduct all British Columbia Golf Amateur Championships. The Manager Field Operations/Tournament Director supports this function through the negotiation, setup and delivery of each event. This individual also acts as a resource available to golfers and member facilities providing interpretations and answers related to the rules of golf and rules of handicapping.

By PGA OF AMERICA

Doug Ferguson, whose three decades with the Associated Press have made him the most-read golf journalist and one of the game’s most respected chroniclers of professional golfers, has been named the recipient of the 2019 PGA Lifetime Achievement Award in Journalism.

The BC Sport Leadership Conference brings together a diverse collection of organizations, teams, and individuals with the singular purpose of improving their craft.

The conference also provides opportunity to share previous experience, successes, and best practice with those of a familiar mindset.  Speakers are entrusted with delivering engaging content in their areas of expertise. They’ve also been asked to present you with usable material and key takeaways.

Partners have enriched the BC Sport Leadership Conference experience by planning additional sport specific symposiums, clinics, and educational opportunities.

By John Gordon (Courtesy Golf Canada)

If asked the question “How has technology impacted your game?”, most golfers automatically think of their adjustable driver, game-improvement irons, a ball that promises both distance and accuracy, foul-weather gear and footwear that protect them from the elements and, perhaps, a distance-measuring device that takes the guesswork out of approach shots or an electric trolley that saves wear and tear on their bodies during a round.

But we got some revealing and unexpected answers when we asked experts from various sectors of the Canadian golf industry what technology they thought was most impactful on golfers.

British Columbia Golf is proud to announce our support of The ModGolf Podcast. We encourage you to listen to these unique golf innovation stories that align with our vision to grow the game.

Host Colin Weston (who works and lives in Vancouver) speaks with industry influencers, innovators, disruptors and entrepreneurs who are shaping the future of golf.

Launched in May 2017 and now 50 episodes in, The ModGolf Podcast shines the spotlight on a diverse range of golf industry guests who share their engaging stories.

A New 'Flagship' Golf Town Store Will Open At Brentwood Mall In 2019, With Others Planned To Come In B.C. Including Richmond, Also In 2019 - Image Courtesy Golf Canada

Courtesy Golf Canada

TORONTO – Sporting Life Inc. and Golf Town Limited have announced they will merge to become Sporting Life Group Limited (“SLG”).

Sporting Life is a premium sports and lifestyle retailer that provides an assortment of high-end sport and lifestyle brands coupled with a focus on premium customer service.

It currently has 11 locations operating in Ontario, Alberta and Quebec, following the recent opening of a 27, 500 square foot store last week. In 2019, it will open another flagship store in the new “Amazing Brentwood” Mall in Vancouver.

LIBERTY CORNER, N.J. AND ST. ANDREWS, SCOTLAND (Sept. 18, 2018) - A global online questionnaire and data-gathering exercise on distance in golf has been launched by the USGA and The R&A today as part of the Distance Insights project.

The detailed questionnaire is open to all interested participants in golf until Oct. 31, 2018 and is available in 10 languages. Administered independently by Sports Marketing Surveys Inc., it can be accessed at both usga.org/distanceinsights and at randa.org/distanceinsights.

In an informative and inspirational video, the golf course superintendents of Ontario explain what tremendous benefits we derive from golf course properties both for our physical and mental well-being and as a caring and safe environment for several species of plants and animals.

British Columbia Golf Director Michelle Collens (Inset) Has Been Named As A Council Member Of The Newly Formed Minister’s Tourism Engagement Council - Image Courtesy (flickr.com)

BC Government News Release

A new Minister’s Tourism Engagement Council (MTEC), with a diverse membership to help guide government's tourism policy, strategy and program implementation, has been announced by Lisa Beare, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture.

Beare made the announcement to media and tourism industry stakeholders prior to the first official gathering of the council last Friday (June 1st).

“This council brings a fresh approach to tourism industry discussions in B.C., drawing on expertise from a wide range of sectors, across all tourism regions of the province, and giving arts, culture and sport a greater voice,” Beare said.

Golf Canada President Leslie Dunning With Distinguished Service Award Recipient Cam Cole - Image Credit Chuck Russell/Golf Canada

By Brad Ziemer/British Columbia Golf (Special To Golf Canada)

Cam Cole seems to have this retirement thing down pat.

“I am playing way more than I ever have in my life,” he says over the phone between rounds at his new home course, The Harvest, in Kelowna. “I am probably playing three or four times a week. The game has not become less a part of my life after retirement. It has become even bigger. I am enjoying that.”

For many years, so many Canadians enjoyed Cole’s beautifully crafted columns from golf’s major championships. By his count, Cole covered 66 majors, along with seven Ryder Cups and six Presidents Cups, nine (RBC) Canadian Opens and several (CP) Canadian Women’s Opens before retiring in December 2016 after an exemplary 41-year career as one of this country’s top sportswriters.