Cody Law, executive director of Golf Mesquite Nevada is thrilled to once again welcome golf’s longest drivers of the game to the Mesquite Sports and Event Complex Sept. 18-27, 2013.

“The RE/MAX World Long Drive Championship is one of the highlights of the golf season in Mesquite. We are thrilled that these powerful athletes will once again be teeing it up with us,” exclaimed Law. “Our Golf Mesquite Nevada partners, guests and our Mesquite residents, love watching the power and accuracy of these golfers.”

RE/MAX championship week, conducted for years in mid-to-late October, will move to September this year. World champions will be crowned in the Senior Division and five buy-in divisions during the 10-day golf event.

The RE/MAX WLDC Open Division finals, a showdown among eight elite power golfers that determines the longest hitter in the world, will take place on Wednesday, Oct. 30 in Las Vegas with live coverage by Golf Channel.

Art Sellinger, owner and chief executive officer of Long Drivers of America (LDA) said, “The LDA is delighted to be bringing the RE/MAX World Long Drive Championship back to Mesquite. For long drivers and long drive fans around the world, Mesquite is our Mecca. The championship grid at Mesquite Sports and Event Complex is our Pebble Beach, our Augusta National. It’s where we all want to be.”

Mesquite will receive unprecedented exposure as a golf-and-leisure resort destination. According to Sellinger, the LDA’s new broadcast partnership with Golf Channel/NBC Sports will be the catalyst for showcasing Mesquite as never before across the globe. Additionally, the RE/MAX WLDC Open Division finals will not only air live on Golf Channel, but a comprehensive “season-in-review” special will air on NBC, marking the first time the RE/MAX WLDC will be showcased on network television.

“It’s been impressive to see the whole community come together to help keep the event in Mesquite.” says Law. As a golf destination, it has been such a great event for us for many years; we are excited to be a part of taking the RE/MAX World Long Drive Championship to the next level.”

For more information click here: http://www.longdrivers.com

By: Randy Dodson

Putting is one of the fundamental parts of golfing but it is surprising how often players forget the basics of this essential game element. To help improve your game, the team here at Golf Mesquite has collaborated to create our list of five tips for putting.

Tip #1: Go Through a Routine for Consistency

Having a pre-hitting routine is ideal for the driving range and the same principles apply to putting. It is important for consistency in the putt to have a routine that check’s the line (tip number 4,) helps with stance and prepares you for the perfect shot. Just like professional basketball players have a routine before each free throw, the best of golfers have a pre-shot routine when they putt.

Tip #2: Remember Your Stance

The key to the perfect putt relies heavily on the stance of a golfer, so remembering your stance is very important. Golfers should keep their shoulders square and create a triangle with their squared shoulders and arms holding the club.  Right handed players should place their left hand below their right on the club and line up in the direct you want the ball to roll.

Tip #3: Find the Sweet Spot

Every putter has a sweet spot and it is important to the integrity of a putt to hit the ball in that area on the club. Most putters come with a marking on the top of the club’s head to indicate the sweet spot and hitting on points other than sweet zone can result in roll, over-spin and off course putting.

Tip #4: Read the Lines

The lines on the green are a great indicator of the speed the ball will go. Darker shaded grass is usually slower than lighter shaded grass and the lines from the course’s mower can indicate as such.

Tip #5: Don’t Forget Your Grip and Swing

While stance is important, it is also vital for a good putt to swing with control and have a good grip on the club. By a good grip, we mean clasping hands together with the palms facing each other before gripping the putter’s handle. Then take a grip, remember the triangle stance and hold the club softly. The left hand should follow through on the swing to indicate the line the ball will roll.

Getting the Ideal Putt

Putting is one of the fundamental parts of golfing and we hope our five tips will help you improve your game and get the ideal putt.

While conversation in the golfing world is often about good courses, how to improve swings and how to play a hole, inevitably the conversation will turn to which golfers are considered the best of all time. We thought we would join that conversation and we are proud to present our list of the Five Greatest Golfers of All Time.

5. Bobby Jones

Bobby Jones joins us as the fifth best golfer of all time on our list because unlike most golfers, Bobby Jones never turned pro. After winning several Championships, Opens and Amateur tournaments, he retired from competitive golf at the age of 28. In total, Jones won 4 US Opens and 3 Open Championships within 7 years of play. He also was a 5-time US Amateur Champion. He later designed the world famous Augusta National golf club and co founded the Masters. He officially ended his golfing career in 1948 due to ailing health and died in December of 1971.

4. Gary Player

Known as the Black Knight because of his all-black playing attire, Gary Player is one of the most celebrated golfers in the world and ranked number 4 on our list. Originally from South Africa, Player is the only non-American golfer to complete the grand slam and he has accumulated over 165 victories across six continents over the last 60 years. He played among other greats such as Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus and eventually ended his career with nine major victories. Among those victories he won 3 Masters Titles and 3 Open Championships. Player has also assisted in the design of over 300 golf courses and has authored several books.

3. Ben Hogan

Ben Hogan is the third greatest player of all time on our list because he is known to have the most perfect golf swing of any player who has ever played. He is also the famous golfer behind the 1953 “Hogan Slam” where he won 5 of the six tournaments he entered, three of which were major championships. Hogan also overcame being hit by a bus to continue playing golf, resulting in the Ben Hogan Award annually being given to a golfer who has remained in the sport regardless of a physical handicap or serious illness. Ben finished his career with 9 professional major championships and like a few of the other players on our list, Hogan also assisted in the design of courses, helping the Trophy Club Country Club course in Texas create 9 of their 18 holes.

2. Walter Hagen

Walter Hagen is known across the golfing community as one of the greatest golfers in the beginning of the 20th century. He won major championships throughout his career and was the first American to bring home a British Open Championship. Hagen’s major victories include winning the U.S. Open: twice, the British Open 4 times and the PGA Championship 5 times.

He began as a lower class caddy and then moved up to become one of the greatest golfers of all time as well as one of the 1st sportsmen to ever earn a million dollars in his career. Walter Hagen also designed clubs for Wilson Sports; the clubs were named either “Walter Hagen” or “Haig Ultra”.

1. 1. Jack Nicklaus

The Golden Bear, Jack Nicklaus is the widely acclaimed as the greatest golfer of all time. Some say that Tiger is quickly taking the title but thus far statistics and fans both say Nicklaus will always be the best golfer of all time. Nicklaus takes second in career all-time wins with an impressive 73 victories including 18 major championships. He’s won the Masters 6 times with 23 years of distance between his first win and his last.

For 24 straight seasons, Nicklaus made at least one top ten finish in a major championship and Golf Digest estimates that Nicklaus Design (Nicklaus’s Course Design Company) has created nearly 1% of all the golf courses in the world. He has also authored several golf instructional books as well as an autobiography and a book on his golf course design methods. Nicklaus continues to remain active in the game in one way or another, often announcing for ABC during their golf broadcasts.

Honorable Mentions

It is important to note that our honorable mentions include Tiger Woods, Sam Snead, Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson and Byron Nelson. Thanks for following along with Golf Mesquite Nevada as we display who we think are the best golfers of all time. We’d love to hear who you think should have made the list and why. Soon we will talk about the best golf courses in Nevada.

If you’ve ever been to a golf course,  you’ve probably noticed the several different tees littering the teeing ground. They come in a variety of colors and can be set at different distances from the green but what do they all mean? Many beginner golfers will start at the tees closest to the hole but as we progress in skill, it may be time to determine just how far back each tee is, what the colors mean and which “marker” a golfer should tee off from.

The Distance of Tee Markers

At each hole there will be a few tee boxes available for golfers to begin hole play, each box is usually marked with a uniquely colored tee marker and plague stating the exact hitting yardage from one color of tee to the hole. Most golf courses in Nevada have three tee boxes per hole with the distances varying based on the hole’s par.

The most experienced and skilled golfers will tee off from the markers (tee box) furthest away from the hole while average golfers or those who are above the beginner level will hit the ball from the middle tees. The tee markers closest to the hole of course are reserved for beginning golfers. The foremost tees are designated for beginner players because they usually offer the shortest distance to the hole and the least amount of obstacles, providing a good beginner game.

What Each Color Means

Some courses will have different colors to represent unique tee boxes but traditionally the colors of tee markers are represented as such:

• Blue Tees: These tee markers are usually for the most skilled of male players with low handicaps. These tee boxes that are the furthest yardage from the hole unless the course has black or gold tees. Blue tees are also often referred to as the “tips.”
• Black or Gold Tees: Black or golden colored tees are used in professional tournaments and the most skilled players in the world will usually tee off from tee boxes marked with these colors.
• White Tees: Reserved for male players with middle to high handicaps and called the “men’s tee,” the white tees are the middle tee between blue tees and the women’s tee which is traditionally red in color.
• Red Tees: Known as the women’s tee, the red tees are found in front of the men’s tees and are often the shortest tees to the hole. The only tee box that is closer in yards to the hole is the green marker tees which are reserved for junior and beginning golfers.

So Where Should You Tee Off From?

The next time you are at a Mesquite golf course, you will be able to know what each color tee and tee box means to you as a golfer. If you are a beginner, we recommend the green tees while for the more experienced players should golf from their perspective women’s and men’s tees.