September 21, 2021

If a golfer playing in the Ryder Cup later this week tests positive for COVID-19, a contingency plan is set, following a rarely-used rule involving secret names placed in envelopes.

European captain Padraig Harrington said Tuesday that he and U.S. captain Steve Stricker agreed to have a “COVID envelope” in addition to an injury envelope — to be used in the event that the coronavirus takes one of their players out of competition.

Harrington and Stricker will place the names of three of their players into an envelope before Sunday’s 12 singles matches at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wis. If one team has someone forced out by COVID-19, the other team would then sideline the top player from the COVID envelope list to re-balance the matches, and the point would be halved.

“There’s an injury envelope and there’s a COVID envelope, so that’s two separate envelopes at this stage,” Harrington said. “Maybe the same name is in both envelopes. That’s as far as I’m aware at this moment.”

Harrington said the teams haven’t clarified “how many is too many” to call off the match in the event of a COVID outbreak among one team.

“You have to be prepared for these things, and as I said, (the envelope system) has been there all along, so it’s nothing really new,” Harrington said. “It’s obviously highlighted because of COVID, but there’s always been a name in the envelope for an injury, just like coming into this we were asked to be aware that having somebody as a reserve, somebody as a backup who you would bring along, and what happens if somebody pulls out because of COVID.”

Once the competition begins Friday, neither team will be able to add any alternate players.

The envelope contingency is only necessary for the singles matches that conclude the three-day event. During four-ball and foursome matches Friday and Saturday, only eight players are competing at a time for either team, so if someone were to be sidelined by illness or injury, the captain would choose one of his remaining available golfers to serve as a substitute.

-Original article at Field Level Media

Programs include Youth Track & Field Golf and Seniors Fitness in NYC Parks

September 22, 2021 – New York, NY – City Parks Foundation kicked off its free 2021 fall sports programs this fall for young people and seniors in New York City. City Parks Foundation provides free programs in a typical year to over 12,000 New York City youth and 1,000 seniors.

This fall, we will safely host over 500 youth and 150 seniors in neighborhood parks and recreation centers for participation in free programs in golf and track & field for youth plus yoga and fitness walking instruction for seniors. All programs will be taking place in-person with safety restrictions in place, such as limiting class size and keeping students safely distant. Registration for all programs are now open online at cityparksfoundation.org/play.

CityParks Track & Field, presented in partnership with L&M Development Corporation and supported by the Randall’s Island Park Alliance, held in two parks,gives New York City youth the chance to learn the basics of the sport, from hurdles and relay races, to long jump, shot put and javelin throw. The free Track & Field program runs in two sessions in Soundview Park in the Bronx – Session 1 from September 19 – October 10 and Session 2 from October 17 – November 7. The program is held once per week on Sundays from 10a-12p and available to youth ages eight – 14. 

The Jesse Owens fall track program introduces novice runners to cross country distance running through runs from East Harlem to Randall’s Island Park. The fall program will also incorporate a variety of track and field activities. This free weekly track & field youth program runs from September 18 – November 13 in Manhattan, and is held once per week on Saturdays from 10a-12p and available to youth ages eight – 14. Register online at CityParksFoundation.org/play.  

CityParks Golf sponsored by LACOSTE and The First Tee NYC makes it fun and easy for boys and girls, ages six to 17, to learn to play golf in two locations during the fall. The Junior Golf Center Annex in Flushing, Queens offers free lessons once a week from September 18 – October 30. The Junior Golf Center in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn offers free lessons once a week from September 7 – October 25. The program teaches youth the basics of the sport, and helps them develop self-esteem, discipline and sportsmanship. Dedicated players can ultimately try out for the CityParks Intermediate Program and Junior Golf Academy – specialized programs available at the CityParks Junior Golf Center, a facility in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn that also offers programming for beginners. 

CityParks Seniors Fitness returns to in-person instruction and will be held in neighborhood parks in Manhattan, the Bronx and Queens, giving New Yorkers 65+ the chance to participate in free yoga and fitness walking from September 20 – November 10. The program has served over 10,000 participants since it began in 2006 and encourages older New Yorkers to maximize their health benefits by staying active. All equipment is provided. Register online at CityParksFoundation.org/play.

A new Seniors Fitness walking program will be launching in Springfield Park, Queens which is managed jointly with Elizabeth Madison’s Weight Loss Transformation Center and supported by NYS Assembly Member Khaleel Anderson and Council Member Selvena Brooks-Powers. 

“I’m excited to partner with Assembly Member Anderson and City Parks Foundation to launch fitness and wellness programs to our seniors as we celebrate Senior Appreciation Month,” said Councilwoman Selvena N. Brooks-Powers. “This fall, older adults will enjoy eight weeks of plain-air exercise and nutritional advice, all in the company of other health-minded residents. We are looking forward to continue partnering with City Parks Foundation, to bring community beautification, park activities and sports programming to Southeast Queens throughout the next year.”

For more information and a full list of City Parks Foundation’s fall 2021 sports programs, please visit CityParksFoundation.org/play.

Generous private support for CityParks Track & Field is provided in part by L+M Development Partners, the Dick’s Sporting Goods Foundation, and The Venable Foundation. Generous public support is provided by the NYC Council under the leadership of Speaker Corey Johnson. In partnership with NYC Parks and Randall’s Island Park Alliance. Generous private support for the Junior Golf Center is provided by Lacoste and The First Tee, the Dick’s Sporting Goods Foundation, American Seniors Golf Association, and The Philip M. Waterman Foundation Inc. Generous private support for CityParks Seniors Fitness is provided by David B. Pinter and Zwicker Electric Co., Inc., The Linda B. and Howard S. Stern Family Foundation, and L+M Development Partners. Generous public support is provided by the NYC Council including Speaker Corey Johnson. Seniors Fitness in Springfield Park is managed jointly with Elizabeth Madison’s Weight Loss Transformation Center and supported by NYS Assembly Member Khaleel Anderson and NYC Council Member Selvena Brooks-Powers. CityParks Play is presented in partnership with NYC Parks.

About City Parks Foundation
At City Parks Foundation, we are dedicated to invigorating and transforming parks into dynamic, vibrant centers of urban life through sports, arts, community building and education programs for all New Yorkers. Our programs — located in more than 400 parks, recreation centers and public schools across New York City — reach 310,000 people each year. Our ethos is simple: thriving parks mean thriving communities.

About CityParks Play
CityParks Play has a central role in activating City Parks Foundation’s mission to create vibrant and healthy urban communities through dynamic programming in parks for all New Yorkers. We activate New York’s neighborhood parks with free sports programs for youth, including tennis, soccer, golf, track & field, street hockey, and multi sport instruction, as well as fitness classes for seniors. We help New Yorkers stay active and healthy, discover new sports, and make new friends.

Social Media
Facebook: @CityParksFoundation
Instagram: @cpfnyc
Twitter: @cpfnyc
YouTube: @cpfnyc

Fall 2021 City Parks Foundation Sports Schedule 

CityParks Golf sponsored by Lacoste and The First Tee

Brooklyn:

Junior Golf Center

8850 14th Ave.

September 5 – October 21 

Weekly

Queens:

Golf Annex 

Flushing Meadows Corona Park Pitch and Putt on Meridian Rd.

September 14 – October 27

Weekly

CityParks Track & Field

September 19 – October 31

Bronx:

Soundview Park

Lafayette Ave. & Morrison Ave.

Session 1 (September 19 – October 10): 

Sunday, 10:00am – 12:00pm

Session 2 (October 17 – November 7:

Sunday, 10:00am – 12:00pm

CityParks Track & Field at Jesse Owens presented in partnership with Randall’s Island Park Alliance

September 18 – November 13

Saturdays, 10:00am – 12:00pm

Manhattan:

Thomas Jefferson Park

E. 112th St. & 1st Ave.

CityParks Seniors Fitness 

September 20 – November 10

Bronx:

Soundview Park

Lafayette Ave. between Boynton & Colgate Aves.

Fitness Walking – Monday/Wednesday, 9:00am – 10:00am

Yoga – Monday/Wednesday, 10:00am – 11:00am

Manhattan:

Chelsea Park

27th-28th St. & 9th-10th Ave.

Fitness Walking – Monday/Friday, 10:00am – 11:00am

James J. Walker Park

Hudson St. & Clarkson St. 

Yoga – Tuesday/Thursday, 10:00am – 11:00am

Queens:

Springfield Park

Springfield Park & 181st St.

Fitness Walking 

Wednesdays 9:00am – 10:00am: Walking

Saturdays 9:00am – 10:30am: Walking and Nutrition (1 hour walking + 30 min discussion on diet/nutrition)

September 21, 2021 | BY AAGD STAFF

Tune in on Sunday, October 10 at 2:00PM ET to On Da Block Radio with host Vernel Bennet for The Black Golfers, Then & Now Show and gain insight into The Rise and Fall of the United Golfers Association (UGA) and their resurgence in 2021.

CLICK HERE TO TUNE IN

The UGA is said to have started in 1925 by Founding Member George Adams. The UGA hosted a separate series of professional golf tournaments for Blacks during the era of racial segregation in America and brought playing opportunities to legendary Black players such as Ted Rhodes, Bill Spiller, Pete Brown, Charlie Sifford, Lee Elder, and many others.

The show will discuss pertinent history about the UGA and share personal opinions as to what may have really happened to this historic organization. The radio show will also present provocative discussion and commentary on:

• The formation of the PGA, from 1916-1934 and the installation of their “Caucasian Only” cause in 1934 and it didn’t change until 1961.
• Ann Gregory (1912-1990) known as “The Queen of Negro Women Golf”
• Black women in golf and the LPGA formation in 1950
• Current news in the world of Black golf and golfers
• Carry Distance for your golf clubs (14)

Stay in the know of what is current in the news of Black golf by tuning in to this show on Sunday, October 10 at 2:00 PM ET On Da Block Radio Station at ODBRS.Com.

Show Host Vernel Bennett is president of the United Black Golfers Association, Inc. a Laurelton, Queens (NY)-based Association formed on March 3, 2014, as a 501(C)(3) not-for-profit corporation.

September 21, 2021

Tiger Woods is the latest to sell digital collectibles as NFTs. But how much are they going for nowadays? We’ll explain.

You’ve probably heard about NFTs, short for nonfungible tokens. But what exactly are they? It’s a new type of digital asset similar to cryptocurrency that can cost you a lot of money. The craze began in 2017, and since then, Twitter’s Jack Dorsey, rock legends Kings of Leon and even Tiger Woods have sold NFTs for a pretty penny (more below).

But what exactly are you buying when you purchase an NFT? It’s not a collectible that you can keep in your dresser drawer, like Pokemon cards, a comic book or paintings. They’re entirely digital and are tied to almost anything — a video highlight, a meme or even a tweet.

If this doesn’t make much sense to you, well you’re not alone.

In short, NFTs offer a blockchain-created certificate of authenticity for a digital asset or piece of art. The interest has created a digital market that boasted $250 million in sales in 2020, with NFTs reaching new levels of hype from Visa, Warner Music Group and Nike. Even toilet paper companies are in on the latest cryptocurrency wave. Still confused? We’ll break down what NFTs really are, how much they cost and how you can get in on the latest bidding wars. 

What’s an NFT? 

This is the part that takes a bit of open-mindedness. An NFT is a unique digital token, with most using the Ethereum blockchain to digitally record transactions. It’s not a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin or Ethereum, because those are fungible — exchangeable for another Bitcoin or cash. NFTs are recorded in a digital ledger in the same way as cryptocurrency, so there’s a listing of who owns each one.

What makes an NFT unique is the digital asset tied to the token. This can be an image, video, tweet or piece of music that’s uploaded to a marketplace, which creates the NFT to be sold.

Do I own the asset if I own an NFT?

Nope. 

That’s the real kicker to understanding the whole concept. The person who buys the NFT doesn’t own the actual asset. 

“NFTs challenge the idea of ownership: digital files can be reproduced infinitely and you do not (usually) buy the copyright or a license when purchasing an NFT,” said Jeffrey Thompson, associate professor at the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey. 

For example, the creator of the Nyan Cat meme sold an NFT of it for $590,000. The person who bought the token owns the token, but doesn’t actually own the meme. That still belongs to the creator, who held onto intellectual and creative rights. 

What the owner of the token has is a record and a hash code showing ownership of the unique token associated with the particular digital asset. People might download Nyan Cat and use it on social media if they want, but they won’t own the token. This also means they can’t sell the token as the owner can. 

Why are NFTs so expensive? 

As with physical collectibles such as Beanie Babies, baseball cards and toys, there’s a market for NFTs. The buyers tend to be tech-savvy individuals who understand the idea of wanting to purchase digital goods and likely made a killing this past year with cryptocurrencies. Ethereum, for example, went from just over $100 last March to a current price of about $3,400. In some cases, buyers are just flexing their digital wallets to show off how much crypto they have, but for others, there’s a deeper interest. 

22 million people tuned in for the final moments of @Beeple's historic sale this morning, which totaled $69.3 million. Relive it from the artist's POV in this link! #beeple #digitalart #digitalartist #artist #art #thefirst5000days #nft https://t.co/XaREV5Fdvu

— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) March 11, 2021

“Specifically for art-related NFTs, there is a huge surge in demand due to their novelty and creativity of early artists,” Jason Lau, chief operating officer of crypto exchange OKCoin, said in an email. “Whether it’s a physical work with an attached NFT (think of it as a digital autograph and proof of veracity), or an entirely digital work (where the NFT is the art), this new medium is opening new ways for collectors and artists to explore their relationship with the artwork itself.”

It’s also great for the artists, says Lau. By selling digital art directly to those interested, an artist can begin monetizing work without having to try to sell it in a gallery. 

Read more and learn where you can buy NFTs at CNET.com

September 21, 2021

From the “Concession” in 1969 to the “Miracle in Medinah” in 2012, memorable moments and the Ryder Cup come hand in hand.The biennial golf tournament which pits the world’s best golfers head-to-head in a Europe vs. US format kicks off on Friday, September 24 at Whistling Straits, Wisconsin.

Delayed a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the tournament will be composed of its usual foursome, fourball and singles format in front of a partisan US crowd hoping their players can return the trophy to American soil after Europe last won in 2018 in France.US captain Steve Stricker and Europe captain Pádraig Harrington have selected strong sides, stocked to the brim with major winners and current and former world No. 1’s and even an Olympic gold medalist.

So three years after “Moliwood” — the pairing of Francesco Molinari and Tommy Fleetwood, which took golf by storm and led to one of the sport’s most viral videos with the two of them in bed with the trophy — who will be the competition’s next break out player?Will Team USA reclaim the trophy or can Europe make sure it will be joining them on the flight back over the Atlantic?

Meet the teams

For the home team, Stricker had almost an embarrassment of riches to select from when it came time to make his picks.Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas and Patrick Cantlay all automatically qualified based on points earned from performances over the past two years.

That’s 10 major titles and three FedExCup titles between the six of them.In addition to those, Stricker selected Jordan Spieth, Xander Schauffele, Harris English, Scottie Scheffler, Daniel Berger and Tony Finau.That’s an additional three majors, 26 PGA Tour victories and one Olympic gold medal to add to the team.The biggest name to miss out for Team USA was Patrick Reed, the 2018 Masters winner, which was a “very difficult call,” according to Stricker.But finding the balance between rookies and veterans and players that fit the Whistling Straits course was paramount for Stricker and his assistant captains.

“We are looking to the best players to perform here at Whistling Straits, and these six guys that we picked, we feel like fit Whistling Straits to a T,” he told the media.”We have done some analysis of those rookies since 2008, and US rookies are a 40-29-17 record in Ryder Cup. So rookies fare very well in this type of form, and we’re excited to have these rookies.

Some of them aren’t really rookies. They have played in past Presidents Cup teams. Some of these guys have match play competition under their belt as well and other events that they played.”There is also the matter of rivalries bubbling inside the US team, most notably the frosty relationship between Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau.

There is little love lost between the pair with their minor spats often spilling over onto social media. The moment Koepka rolled his eyes when DeChambeau walked behind him at this year’s PGA Championship perhaps perfectly sums up their strained relationship.But both have previously said their rivalry is good for golf and Stricker does not anticipate it being a problem during the Ryder Cup.

“It’s a non-issue, really, for me and the team. We got together a few weeks ago, the six of us and I’ve had conversations with them both,” Stricker said. “They have assured me it’s not going to be an issue. I have no worries whatsoever.”

Ream more at CNN.com

September 20, 2021 | BY AAGD STAFF

Atlanta, Georgia – The Women In Golf Foundation, Inc. is pleased to announce its $25,000 contribution to the HBCU Women’s Golf Teams that participated in this year’s National Women’s Collegiate Golf Championship.

“This contribution was divided among: North Carolina A&T State University- 2021 -National Women’s Collegiate Golf Champions, Alabama State University, Delaware State University, Chicago State University, Savannah State University, and Texas Southern University,” said the organization’s press release, which continued, “Thank you to all of our sponsors and contributors for helping us to continue our work, supporting Collegiate Women’s Golf Programs.”

Under direction of Women in Golf Foundation Founder LaJean Gould the 2022 National Women’s Collegiate Championship was held April 25 – 27 at Eagles Landing Country Club in Stockbridge, GA.

The Women In Golf Foundation, Inc., headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, is a 501-C3 organization that promotes women in golf. The organization focuses on creating opportunities for females by implementing programs that develop leadership and life skills as they learn to play the game of golf competitively for business and recreational purposes.