A short film that tells the story of Bill Powell and his triumph in building Ohio’s Clearview Golf Club, in East Canton, Ohio, the first and only public golf course in America designed, built, owned and operated by an African-American. Today, over seven decades later, the course still survives. Now headed by Powell’s daughter, Renee Powell (PGA/LPGA) and his son, Larry (course superintendent), together they have accomplished the nearly impossible. (Published on Feb 22, 2014)
This golf group, family-friendly Ciudad Cariari hotel is located near the airport, within 1 mi (2 km) of Plaza Real Cariari, Ultrapark Free Zone & Business Center, and Global Park Free Zone and Business Park. Metro Free Zone & Business Park and Cafe Britt Coffee Farm are also within 6 mi (10 km). So, getting there will be a breeze. Once you’re settled in, there are some terrific sightseeing opportunities nearby, in every direction.
From the moment you check-in, your realize the wonderful guest service and at tentativeness of the staff.
This hotel features 4 fabulous restaurants, 3 well-designed outdoor pools, and a full-service spa. Free WiFi is convenient and available in public areas, free self parking, and a free airport shuttle is also provided. Additionally, you can try your luck at the in-house casino, wash down some tasty burgers, fries and pizza in one of the 4 onsite bars/lounges, and then work it all off the next morning (or whenever…) at the onsite a fitness center. Wyndham will keep you pleasantly surprised during your stay in this resort hotel.
All 230 rooms boast deep soaking tubs and offer free WiFi and Select Comfort beds. Free wired Internet and 24-hour room service are standard, as are plasma TVs with cable channels. The guest room television channel guide will easily help you locate English-speaking channels on the swivel-tv, that comes in very handy when you want to watch for another area of the room, other than just the bed itself.
Available in all rooms: Free WiFi , Free wired high-speed Internet
Available in some public areas: Free WiFi , Free wired high-speed Internet
Free self parking
You’re a straight-A graduate of an elite business school, with references, connections and experience for days. You’re young, gifted and Black, and ready to put in work.
So, how come you’re not getting promoted, or even hired? Racism? Sure, but maybe you’re not in the swing of things – the golf swing of things.
This is where DC-based entrepreneur, author, philanthropist, lecturer, adjunct professor and global events planner Rose Harper drops her science. “Golf is the number one inclusion and diversity tool in the world,” she says. “This game is played by just about every head of state in the world, [because] it’s a safe place. It’s a private place. It’s where you can talk business and do business without the world scrutinizing it.”
Harper should know. The former spouse of the pioneering African American golfer Lee Elder, Harper has worked with the world’s best players – from Arnold Palmer and Gary Player to Tiger Woods. She was instrumental in the founding of the PGA Tour Wives Association, initiated the Golf Digest Minority Golf Summit, restructured PGA player credentials, established a minority joint venture golf course design team, was the first person of color to run a full concession eighteen-hole golf complex for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and she organized the first multi-racial sporting event in the history of South Africa.
“My company, The Grass Ceiling, was founded in 1995 to share my knowledge with women and minorities,” she stated. “After spending twenty-five years on the PGA Tour circuit, I recognized the business side of the game. I knew there was a need to have people exposed to the business side of this game.”
Read more by Ada Babino at GolfMatters
Fulfilling several roles successfully as husband, father, entrepreneur, concerned citizen and avid golfer George Webber has an interesting life full of opportunities and challenges. Webber is the Founder and President of FindMyGolfBuddy.com, an online interactive recreational/sports website whose social platform unites golf playing partners from around the country, and around the world. The mission: “To find golf partners one buddy at a time.”
Photo: Webber Atop the Arc de Triomphe, Paris, France.
Webber launched the innovative company online earlier this spring season. The website displays a clean, fresh design that is both beautiful and engaging. It is very easy to navigate and does a lot more than just look good; it provides a long, much-needed service of conveniently connecting individual golfers who seek a playing partner— at compatible skill levels. Membership to the website gives golfers the opportunity to connect with others and arrange for a round of golf together. Thus, eliminating the frustration (and misfortune) of randomly being paired with a player whose skills—and/or golf etiquette— is not compatible with what one may be looking for in a golf buddy. Findmygolfbuddy.com solves these problems splendidly. And the best part, its free for registrants to use.
HOW IT ALL STARTED
When his regular playing partners were not available and he was teamed with three players on the first tee at his local golf club, the foursome weren’t a good match. Right from the start “there was a wide gap in handicaps, lots of drinking and swearing during the round…. It wasn’t a good experience,” says Webber. The situation left him feeling that there had to be a better way. Thus, FindMyGolfBuddy.com was born. Today, golfers can go to the site, create an account, log in, and begin to utilize features to find the perfect golf buddy.
Webber, sole owner of the company and its Chief Golfing Officer (CGO), says the aim of FindMyGolfBuddy.com is in “bringing the game to more players and increasing the frequency of play among all golfers.” The Canadian-based Corporation has created the ideal means for doing so. “Golf allows me to relax and have fun with my friends,” says the former Human Resources corporate executive who recently retired and works from home.
Photo: Webber enjoys visiting Philadelphia, Pa., the City of Brotherly Love.
Several colleagues serve as shareholders within the business and the independent firm prides itself in being based on a sound technological foundation. A primary partner/shareholder is Janka Mifsud, the owner of BrainyYack, a software development firm in Oakville Ontario. “She and I work closely together to ensure that we have a viable and state-of –the-art website,” says Webber. “And we have many plans for future development,” he adds.
Another shareholder is colleague Deb Eldridge, a PGA of Canada Class A Teaching Professional. Eldridge is a graduate of Indiana University a former playing professional who brings her golf expertise to the enterprise by contributing articles and answering members questions.
Webber enjoys a relaxing day in Philadelphia, Pa.
Currently, the FindMyGolfBuddy fan page reigns in popularity and has over 3,000 likes on Facebook and 75 members/registrants have already joined on the site.
Members have signed on from far-and-wide including golfers in Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada, to Missouri, USA. As the membership continues to grow, the custom designed back-end of the system is expansive, capable of handling a massive amount of registrants without lag. Webber is excited about continuing to develop the website and soon plans to introduce a single sign-on system which will make the site mobile enabled.
Photo: Webber takes in the sites at Sainte Chapelle, Paris, France.
Webber, admittedly a high handicapper, participates regularly in a men’s league at the Oakville Executive Golf Club, in Oakville, Ontario, Canada. Standing tall at 6 feet, 200 pounds, Webber, age 63, is a formidable opponent, yet, he considers himself a gentle giant with strong ambitions. He attended Ryerson University in Toronto and graduated with a degree in Business Administration. He believes that his time investment on the golf course has to be fun.
Residing just outside of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Webber and his lovely wife Audrey have three adult boys, two grandchildren and another on the way. The family golfs together, casually— when time permits, and relish quality family time. “I enjoy golfing with my boys, however, they aren’t as free to golf these days, as they each have their own families and career responsibilities,” says the proud father.
Webber and his wife enjoy traveling and they both keep fit and healthy by enjoying–in moderation–the native dishes of Trinidad in the Caribbean where he was born. “It’s a treat when we are able to indulge,” he chuckles.
“I have had many lessons over the years with golf professionals and I have learned not to take advice from anyone other than a teaching professional. Your friends are well-intentioned, but unfortunately, may cause more harm than good to your game.”
Photo: Webber in Philadelphia visiting the Liberty Bell.
“The biggest challenge with the game is to remember that you are playing against yourself. As an amateur golfer your objective should be to improve your own game, and to have fun in the process.”
I play recreational softball and have been for the past 40-years. I play with my oldest son who is a wonderful player.
I admire professional golfers such as Lee Elder, the lates Calvin Peete and Charlie Sifford. And many others who really endured so much, so that players like myself could enjoy this wonderful game.” FindMyGolfBuddy is sure to keep this camaraderie of the game going for a long time.
For more information visit http://www.FindMyGolfBuddy.com or email [email protected]
(L-R) Errol Blake, Eli White, Donald Rucker
The New Jersey Ball Strikers golf club enjoyed their golf Season Opener on April 16, 2016, with play at the Ash Brook Golf Course in Scotch Plains, New Jersey. There, 32 club members reigned in the clear spring day after coming out of a long, cold winter. The group enjoyed themselves by getting into the swing of things with a match play format 2-person team best ball (4 ball), while looking forward to playing many more rounds together during the golf season. “We do it without overdoing it,” says the organization’s website, bursting with cool jazz sounds and images of members having fun on the greens.
(L-R) Herbie Lewis, Jesse Branson
The mens golf organization is based in northern New Jersey and host most of their events in the area on either a Saturday or Sunday.
Founded out of the vision and foresight of retired attorney Mr. Althear Lester, called “Al” by his friends, the former member of the Weequahic Golf Club (Weequahic Park, Newark, New Jersey), felt that the Weequahic course could support two golf clubs based on the number of golfers patronizing the course. In addition, Al wanted to bring more prestige to the Weequahic Golf course and the community by establishing positive and realistic goals for the newly formed golf club. “We meet all challenges with honesty and fair play,” continues the club’s website.
The club was organized in November 1997 and was originally called The Weequahic Ball Strikers Golf Club. The charter members were Leon Harris, Althear Lester, Blease Greene, Leonard Simmons, William Walker, Coleman Holmes, William Wright, Jesse A. Bell, Harry Robinson and Darryl Jeffries.
Photo (L-R): Garrick Bell, Donald Rucker
Another founders meeting was held January 7, 1998 at the home of Morris Billingslea and the name of the club was changed and chartered as ”The New Jersey Balll Strikers Golf Club.”
The newly signed charter was signed by Leon Harris, Coleman Holmes, Morris Billingslea, William Wright, Brian O’Reilly, Zinnerford Smith, Jesse A. Bell, and Althear Lester. The trade name was approved for filing with the U.S.G.A. and the New Jersey State Golf Association. The first officers elected at this meeting were Leon Harris, President; Morris Billingslea, Vice President; Al Lester, Secretary; Zinnerford Smith, Treasurer.
The goals and objectives of the newly formed club were as follows:
| Officers: | Trustees: | |
| President: Thomas E. Culp | Cal Beatty(12) | George Weekes(13) |
| Vice President: Ray Woolfolk | Melvin Knight(12) | Garrick Bell(14) |
| Secretary: Michael Conrad | Melvin Lusane(12) | Greg Ward(14) |
| Treasurer: Edward Cosby | Edward Cosby(13) | Greg Whitaker(14) |
| Golf Director: Melvin Knight | Darryl Jeffries(13) |
The New Jersey Ball Strikers Golf Club in it’s first year boasted over 75 members. The current membership, though not quite that high in number, remains strong in character and deep in community involvement. Our club is well respected and well received in the city of Newark, New Jersey and the surrounding communities.
The golf club participates regularly n competitions (home and away) with local golf clubs throughout New Jersey, New York, Connecticut and Pennsylvania. Our membership is diverse and includes golfers of all ability levels.
(Photo credit: Darryl Jeffries)
In 2003, Coach Bobby Andrews was a recipient of the Outstanding Leaders in Golf Award that was presented to him by the African American Golfer’s Digest on September 23 at the Upper Richmond Community Center, Columbia, S.C.
Talk about a long drive.
Amid the pageantry of the Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia, Velodyne LiDAR today announced its collaboration with SMART, the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology, on an experimental deployment of fully autonomous golf carts, guided by the company’s 3D real-time VLP-16 LiDAR Puck, the most cost-effective LiDAR sensor on the market.
As reported in MIT News late last year, SMART conducted “an experiment over six days at a large public garden in Singapore, in which self-driving golf carts ferried 500 tourists around winding paths trafficked by pedestrians, bicyclists, and the occasional monitor lizard.” SMART is a partnership between MIT and the National Research Foundation of Singapore.
For the experiment, researchers from MIT and Singaporean universities enlisted two modified Yamaha electric golf carts, each equipped with a webcam and Velodyne’s 16-channel real-time 3D VLP-16 LiDAR Puck, which replaced earlier 2D sensors. The carts transported passengers along the paths while autonomously navigating and watching for such obstacles as pedestrians and animals. The golf carts jockeyed for position along with everyone, and everything, else on the paths.
Carts cruised at a top speed of about 15 miles per hour, relying on a “dynamic virtual bumper” – in effect, a cylinder surrounding the vehicle’s planned trajectory – rather than GPS. The cylinder’s width and length changed in response to the vehicle’s velocity. When an obstacle entered the cylinder, the vehicle’s onboard computer modified the cylinder to exclude it — altering the trajectory, reducing the velocity, or both.
According to MIT News, the experiment also tested an online booking system through which visitors could schedule pickups and drop-offs at any of 10 stations around the garden, routing and redeploying the vehicles automatically to accommodate requests. When surveyed about the experience, 98 percent of passengers said they would like to ride the carts again and 95 percent would return to the garden if the carts became a permanent attraction.
“We [took] a minimalist solution to the self-driving-car problem,” Daniela Rus, a professor in MIT’s Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, told MIT News. “The vehicles are instrumented, but they are not as heavily instrumented as the DARPA vehicles were [or] as, say, the Google car. We believe that if you have a simple suite of strategically placed sensors and augment that with reliable algorithms, you will get robust results that require less computation and have less of a chance to get confused by ‘fusing sensors,’ or situations where one sensor says one thing and another sensor says something different.”
“SMART’s experiment points the way toward future passenger shuttle-type operations, especially those that don’t require build-out of an extensive infrastructure,” said Wei Weng, Velodyne Asia Sales Director. “Velodyne LiDAR has become the de facto standard for autonomous vehicles and we’re delighted to have assisted SMART in its rigorous test, in an environment that was as ‘real world’ as it gets. Whether on an actual golf course, a park with pathways or the open road, LiDAR technology is consistently reliable, whatever the lighting or weather conditions.”
About Velodyne LiDAR
Founded in 1983 and based in California’s Silicon Valley, Velodyne LiDAR Inc. is a technology company known worldwide for its real-time LiDAR (light detection and ranging) sensors. The company evolved after founder/inventor David Hall competed in the 2004-05 DARPA Grand Challenge using stereovision technology. Based on his experience during this challenge, Hall recognized the limitations of stereovision and developed the HDL-64 Solid-State Hybrid LiDAR sensor. Velodyne subsequently released its compact, lightweight HDL-32E sensor, available for many applications including UAVs, and the new VLP-16 LiDAR Puck, a 16-channel real-time LiDAR sensor that is both substantially smaller and dramatically less expensive than previous generation sensors. Market research firm Frost & Sullivan has honored the company and the VLP-16 with its 2015 North American Automotive ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance System) Sensors Product Leadership Award. Since 2007, Velodyne LiDAR has emerged as the leading developer, manufacturer and supplier of real-time LiDAR sensor technology used in a variety of commercial applications including autonomous vehicles, vehicle safety systems, 3D mobile mapping, 3D aerial mapping and security. For more information, visit http://www.velodynelidar.com.
Get Golf Ready continues to introduce thousands of adults to the game of golf each year with a record number of 107,485 men and women participating in programs in 2015 (a nine percent increase from the 98,919 participants in 2014). In addition, Get Golf Ready had success in retaining golfers with approximately nine out of 10 students continuing to play golf in their first year. More than 465,000 students have participated in Get Golf Ready since its inception in 2009.
Now in its eighth year, Get Golf Ready is an industry-supported, fun and affordable program designed to introduce golf to the millions of adults who have never played or have minimal golf experience. Get Golf Ready offers a series of lessons in a group setting that focus on basic instruction on chipping, putting and full swing techniques, as well as information on how to navigate the clubhouse and golf course, etiquette and rules of golf.
“PGA Professionals nationwide are offering Get Golf Ready to their communities as a fun, affordable and accessible entryway to golf,” said PGA President Derek Sprague. “Get Golf Ready has a proven track record of welcoming newcomers to the game and helping participants feel comfortable on the course.”
Furthermore, the program continues to diversify the game and introduce newcomers who may not ordinarily seek traditional lessons from a facility. Last year, 66 percent of participants were women; 24 percent were people of multi-cultural backgrounds; and 39 percent had never picked up a club.
Golf’s health, social and professional benefits help draw beginners to the game, which can be enjoyed by people of all ages and skill levels. It’s a healthy activity that provides for quality, uninterrupted time outdoors – health and fitness experts advocate taking 10,000 steps per day, which is the equivalent of 18 holes or five miles walked. Golf also provides an outlet to strengthen relationships with friends, family, or colleagues. In a recent survey from Sports & Leisure Research Group, both men and women executives ranked golf as the most effective networking activity with clients and co-workers, and nearly 60 percent of business men and women have closed deals at the golf course.
Additional statistics on Get Golf Ready’s impact on the industry include:
Get Golf Ready continues to prove successful in retaining golfers: in 2015, 87 percent (or approximately nine out of 10 Get Golf Ready participants) continued playing in their first year, an increase from 81 percent in 2014.
Consumers can learn more and find a local participating facility at GetGolfReady.com.
Two New Sites will Host the 2016 LPGA Leadership Academies
After a successful pilot program in 2015, AXA Financial Group is sponsoring two LPGA Leadership Academies!
Forty, special young women, ages 14 – 18 will be selected to attend this two-day academy with LPGA’s finest teaching professionals!
The LPGA Leadership Academy will provide the tools for teenage girls to discover how they envision their unique leadership potential through team-building activities, communication development, and, of course, golf!
Participants will enjoy a free, two-day academy in an idyllic environment while developing their golf skills with the help of some of the nation’s best LPGA Teaching Professionals and female executives. Utilizing golf as the medium, key life-lessons will be addressed throughout the Academy, which will ultimately unlock each girl’s true potential.
How do you get selected?
First step is to complete an application for the site that you would like to attend. Once all of the applications are reviewed, forty girls will be selected to attend the academy. You must be between the ages of 14 -18 with golf experience and equipment to be considered. For more details about the academies at each location, see below:
July 12 – 13, 2016
Riverwalk Golf Club
1150 Fashion Valley Rd
San Diego, CA 92108
Click here to apply for this location
August 22 – 23, 2016
Glen Arbor
234 Bedford Center Road
Bedford Hills, NY 10507
Click Here to Apply for this location
The application deadline is Friday, May 6, 2016.
In August 1996, Tiger Woods turned professional and set about changing the game of golf forever.
Over the intervening 20 years, he’s set records on the course and off it with his prodigious talent and immense marketability.
And it’s over the greens and fairways of Augusta National that the now 40-year-old Woods has cemented his legacy.
Of his 14 major triumphs, four have come at the iconic course.
Although he won’t be gracing this year’s tournament — the second time in three years Woods has missed the Masters — his presence is always felt when the year’s first major comes around.
As he prepares to enter his third decade as a pro athlete, CNN reporters recall the times they met one of the history’s most fascinating sportsmen.
“I have long been a sports fan and followed Woods’ amateur career. When CNN asked me if I would like to meet Tiger and interview him, I jumped at the opportunity. I believed he would likely become the best golfer to ever play the game.
“People were very excited to meet him. There was a buzz on the boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey where this all took place. People knew he was a young man who was likely to make history.
“Woods was polite, thoughtful, and considerate. I remember thinking to myself that I hoped he would always stay that way because I was so certain he would be immensely successful and so many people who become rich and famous don’t keep the values they had when it all began.
Read more by By Tom McGowan, Gary Tuchman, Don Riddell and Shane O’Donoghue, on CNN.com
“For the sixth year in a row, I am honored to declare April as National Black Golf Month. The 30-days in April offer a tremendous benefit to golfers who wish to get out on the course and play the game, and an opportunity for those who are curious about playing, to learn more” said Debert Cook, CMP, publisher of the 13-year-old, national magazine. The featured event for National Black Golf Month is the New Orleans Jazz and Golf Masters Tournament & Achievement Awards. “We hope that golfers, and non-golfers, will flock to New Orleans for this exciting program that we have been promoting for several months, honoring some of the best in golf and jazz.”
Celebration the sixth year of National Black Golf month, the African American Golfer’s Digest is openly inviting golf clubs, organizations, and industry and community leaders nationwide to join in championing the effort that is geared to raising awareness of the game among African Americans.The designated month has received support from several U.S. mayors, who have declared their patronage by proclaiming a “National Black Golf Month” and “National Black Golf Month Day” in their respective cities including: Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg (New York, NY); Mayor Mayor Kasim Reed (Atlanta, GA); Mayor William A. Bell, Sr. (Birmingham, AL); Mayor Jim Suttle (Omaha, NE) and Mayor Buddy Dyer (Orlando, FL). Others are also expected to join the campaign throughout the month. A resolution was also introduced into the Louisiana Legislature by Senator Karen Carter Peterson.
We are reaching people this April at the core of Black communities—in inner-city schools, churches and at public courses, referring them to our National Calendar of Golf Events and our list of African American Golf Trainers, all to help Black Americans to become involvement in the game,” says Cook.
According to the National Golf Foundation (NGF) research report, Minority Golf Participation in the U.S, 2015 edition, Twenty years after Tiger Woods stepped before a microphone in Milwaukee on Aug. 28, 1996, and with the words “Hello, World,” touched off the most meaningful golf industry growth since Arnold Palmer and President Eisenhower jump-started it 40 years earlier, there are reasons to be confident about the stability of the game.
While the latest NGF participation numbers show a slight dip in 2015 to 24.1 million (over the age of 6 who played at least once) from 24.7 million the two previous years, numbers remained strong in several crucial areas: among committed golfers, beginning golfers and in the number of people interested in taking up the game. While the total drop in golfers from 2014 to 2015 was within the national study’s statistical margin of error, the results do suggest that a slow leak in overall participation persists. However, NGF analysis continues to show that attrition is confined mainly to those who never really got into the game.
“It has always been the mission of our publication to grow and expose the game to as many Black people in America as we possible could. Golf has so many benefits socially, health-wise and it is a wonderful game that can be played for a lifetime,” said Ms. Cook. “Golf is one of the fastest growing sports among our demographic, and by declaring April as National Black Golf Month, it is our desire to see citizens, young and old, in all of our communities, at all income levels become involved in this game that is filled with influential leaders.”
Previously, Cook has mentioned the fact that Black people are becoming genuinely concerned about what they eat, how much they work out, their overall health, and many are now seeking to engage in activities where they feel accepted and comfortable. “National Black Golf Month is what this is all about.”
“Many people have been surprised to learn that this monthly designation exists; they had no idea there are free golf programs for their youth, scholarships for their students, and more….this is all great news to spread” says Cook.