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 January 19th, 2012 - NAPLES, FLORIDA – Wyndemere Country Club’s 25th Annual Charity Golf Tournament was successfully held this past Monday, January 16th, 2012. The tournament raised more than $85,000 for Youth Haven, Southwest Florida’s residential emergency shelter for abused and neglected children and adolescents. The success of the 2012 event brings the total amount of funds raised for Youth Haven since the inaugural event in 1987 to $1.1 million dollars. 
More than 135 friends and supporters of Youth Haven hit the links for a fun-filled day of friendly competition. An engaging golf tips clinic led by E.J. McDonnell, Head Golf Professional at Bonita Bay Club and three-time long drive competition finalist, $1,000 cash prize putting contest, silent and live auctions, and an awards reception rounded out the day’s activities. PGA Tour Professional and Golf Channel Analyst, Mark Lye made a special appearance serving as the event’s celebrity Master of Ceremonies.
“Our great appreciation goes out to all the sponsors and players involved in this remarkable event,” said Dr. Rosanne Winter, Executive Director of Youth Haven. “They have helped provide Youth Haven with the means to carry out our mission to protect children and strengthen families in Southwest Florida. To top it off, we all had a great time playing on a phenomenal golf course.”
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 For the past several months, the PGA of America has been promoting a program that they call “Tee it Forward." What prompted this was a study done on how far a golf course would play for most normal amateur golfers compared to how far the courses play for the average PGA Tour player. It is a fascinating study on distance, ability, and ego.
The basic premise was to encourage golfers to play a course yardage that was in alignment with their driver distance. For example: If your normal tee shot goes 250 yards, you should be playing a yardage of 6200 – 6400 yards. If your normal tee shot goes 200 yards, you should be playing a yardage of 5200 – 5400 yards.
 The official chart can be found at www.pga.com. Trying to get the amateur golfers to play a similar golf course as the PGA Tour pros, means that after you both hit your drive on a par 4, you would both be hitting the same club in to the green. For so many golfers who play a course in the 6700 yard range, it is similar to a tour pro playing a course that is in the 8100 yard range. That is 700 to 800 yards longer than almost all of the longest courses that they play. The game will certainly be more fun when people are hitting 6, 7, & 8 irons into some of the greens at their local club, as opposed to 3, 4, & 5 hybrids.
At LaPlaya Golf Club, we have couple players who decided that they would have more fun playing a shorter golf course, so they moved up to the green tees. It took a few weeks for their handicaps to level out and come down by a couple of strokes, but most importantly, they were enjoying the game much more than they were playing a longer golf course. They were hitting more greens in regulation, they were using more of their clubs throughout their round, and they felt less pressure to hit a perfect drive just to have a chance to reach the green in regulation.
One of the Pros we have on staff here at LaPlaya is Laurel Kean, who played on the LPGA Tour for 18 years. When we have a chance to play a quick 9-hole match in the afternoon, I usually play the back set of tees and she will play the members set of tees. This keeps us reasonably close in regards to what irons we are hitting into the green on most of the par 3’s and 4’s. We would have some really great matches if her putting wasn’t so good or mine were a little better.
Why are people reluctant to Tee it Forward? I think it is mainly ego. They don’t want to play a different color tee marker, or they have a certain yardage in their head, or all of their buddies are playing from a different tee. After seeing how much more fun golfers can have playing from the proper distance, I am jumping on the bandwagon. Try it for your next round and Tee it Forward.
Scott Richardson, PGA
Head Golf Professional
LaPlaya Golf Club
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 NaplesGolf.com is pleased to announce a new instructional series provided by local golf instructor, Wes Smith. This week Wes takes a look at grip and pressure. We all can't wait to head out to the course and grab those clubs. But how should you grab them? That is the question...
 Part I - Grip Position
Everything in golf starts with the grip. How you hold the club determines what swing motion you need to produce the ball flight you want.
A neutral position grip is formed by pointing the creases formed by the thumb and forefinger of each hand which should to be pointed toward the right shoulder. This grip position allows the hands to work as one unit during the swing. This is very important because if the creases are not parallel with each other, the hands will fight each other during the swing and you will develop a one hand one arm swing.
Part II – Grip Pressure
In the forty years I’ve had the privilege of helping people learn this wonderful game, one thing they all have in common is that they grip the club to tight. As they anticipate impact their grip tightens, locking their wrists and preventing the release and rotation of the club. This is the single most reason why everyone slices the ball as a beginner. Reduce your grip pressure (3 on a scale of 10 is perfect) this will lower your score and stop your hands from hurting.
Wes Smith, PGA Golf Instructor - (239) 289-7994
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 Naples, FL – Over 800 volunteers are needed for The ACE Group Classic tournament officials announced recently. The annual Champions Tour golf event will celebrate its’ 25th anniversary when play begins at the Twin Eagles Club February 13-19 in Naples.
“Our volunteers are pivotal to the success of the tournament year after year,” said Lesley Baker, The ACE Group Tournament Director. “Anyone who’s interested in golf, enjoys the outdoors, or wants to see a world-class event from behind –the-scenes can be a part of this very special year as we celebrate the 25th anniversary; golf knowledge is not required and families and friends are encouraged to participate.”
Volunteering can be a great way to connect with people in the community, have fun and watch the legends of golf both in and out of competition. There are a number of different committees that have unique responsibilities, including: Golf Channel support, player services, walking scorers, standard bearers and hole marshals. Training will be provided for committees requiring specific knowledge.
The volunteer fee is $75 and includes a golf shirt, headwear, volunteer badge valid for week-long tournament access, two weekly grounds tickets for guests of the volunteer’s choice, two invitations to the annual volunteer appreciation party and meals and beverages during assigned shifts. All volunteers that work three or more shifts will receive a golf voucher good for one round at the Twin Eagles Club for $25 which includes access to a cart and practice facility. Volunteers can register at www.theacegroupclassic.com.
For more information on the The ACE Group Classic, visit www.theacegroupclassic.com
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Men's Club - 
On looking at the tall screens along Collier Blvd. on their way to Marco Island, one might assume that simply a driving range is tucked away along the four-lane route. But the 
On-site golf instructor Scott B. Moser (named after Byron Nelson) has been the primary instructor at Coral Isle for eight seasons. Moser's thirty plus years as a golf professional inlude time at Naples, Imperial Golf Club, 18 years at Oakwood Club in Cleveland, Ohio and Golf Director of Paradise Golf Schools from 1994 through 2002 has given him a perspective on teaching all levels and all kinds of golfers.
Florida Memory Project - floridamemory.com
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