Russian super-rich build their own golf courses

FROM THE TELEGRAPH.CO.UK WEBSITE
By ANDREW OSBORN in MOSCOW
Their penchant for super-yachts and owning football clubs is well known but Russia's tycoons are now shopping for a new rather larger status symbol: their own custom-built golf course.
Shrugging off concerns about Russia's long snow-bound winters and the fact that many of their fellow compatriots can barely afford a set of golf clubs let alone a golf course, some of Russia's richest business people are pouring their millions into a pastime whose aristocratic overtones made it taboo in the Soviet Union.
"Only the super rich can afford golf courses," says Chris Weafer, a strategist at Moscow's Uralsib bank who keeps a close eye on how the oligarchs spend their wealth.
Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich is one of the tycoons taking the plunge in the country where he made his fortune. His spokesman said a sprawling course beyond Moscow's outer ring road is already "in the planning stage."
Metals tycoon Oleg Deripaska is ahead of the curve. He already has an exclusive £18.5 million Jack Nicklaus-designed championship course in Moscow. The initial membership fee is a cool £185,000 and the club says it is extremely picky about who it allows to join.
Vladimir Potanin, who made his money from Russia's vast nickel reserves, is also in the process of building a course, as is Elena Baturina, Russia's richest woman. But it is Andrei Komarov, a senator in Russia's upper house of parliament whose wealth comes from steel pipes, who seems to be the most committed. He is ploughing £370 million into a chain of golf clubs in three Russian regions.
It is an unlikely trend for a country that has little history of golf. Modern Russia's first course only appeared in 1989 in the twilight of the Soviet Union and even now the world's largest country only boasts 14 courses and around 15,000 golfers. Vladimir Putin, the prime minister, prefers judo and the sport was so alien when it first appeared in the 1990s that some wealthy Russians had to be asked not to park their cars on club fairways.
But in a country where status is king and the pursuit of exclusivity a national sport, associating oneself with golf is seen as a way to buy cachet and something that Russia lost when the Bolsheviks came to power in 1917: class.
"It is just an extension of the 'I've got the biggest yacht' mentality," says Mr Weafer. "It is a question of status and a toy. Many of these clubs appear to have no commercial purpose. They are trophy assets."
It is also a handy way for an oligarch to burnish his patriotic credentials. With golf set to become an official event at the 2016 Olympics, the Kremlin wants Russia to field a decent team. In Russian eyes, the Olympics, as in the Soviet era, are a global platform to flex the country's geopolitical muscles through sport.
The fledgling Russian Golf Association has a Soviet-style five-year plan to ensure Russian shines at the games. It wants to boost the number of golf enthusiasts to 100,000 players by 2014, to increase the number of golf courses to 100, and for Russians to start winning both professional and amateur tournaments.
+Scotland's former British amateur champion Stephen Dundas is Russia's national golf coach.

*You can E-mail the Editor, Colin Farquharson, with your view on any golfing topic. Send your message to colin@scottishgolfview.com

The man who hit the 515-yard drive

FROM THE GOLFWEEK.COM WEBSITE
By James Achenbach
LA QUINTA, California – In the end, golf is all about friendship.
It is New Year’s Eve in the desert, and Walter (Smiley) Jones, 70, is thinking hard about old golf friends. One of his dearest, Mike Austin, rests here in an urn.
Austin, an iconic figure on the West Coast, died in 2005 at the age of 95. “It will get us all,” mused Jones, determined to be the guardian of Austin’s reputation as well as his remains.
In the 1974 US National Seniors Open, the precursor to the US Senior Open that was first played in 1980, Austin hit a measured drive of 515 yards that still stands in the Guinness Book of Sports Records as the longest drive ever hit in competition.
Austin was 64 at the time. He used a Wilson 43.5-inch, steel-shafted persimmon driver and a 100-compression Titleist balata golf ball.
The drive came on the par-4 fifth hole at Winterwood Golf Course in Las Vegas (now called Desert Rose). Former US PGA champion Chandler Harper, paired with Austin that day, later called it “the damnedest thing I ever saw.”
With a tailwind of about 20 miles an hour, Austin launched a drive that carried more than 400 yards, bounced onto the green and kept rolling. When it stopped, it was 65 yards past the flagstick.
Later that day, tournament officials used a measuring wheel to determine the exact yardage. When they passed 500 yards, they knew they were recording a piece of golf history.
“It was like God hit it,” Austin said to golf writer Andy Brumer. “Who can hit a ball that far? No one. I feel like I got some assistance from God.”
At the Studio City (California) Golf Range, where he taught, Austin could be a loud, cantankerous, intimidating taskmaster. Regardless, he was an early fixture on Golf Magazine’s list of top 100 instructors.
Austin received a doctorate in kinesiology from the National Academy of Applied Science in 1946. His weekly television show in Los Angeles was the first regular golf instruction series on the air. He often dressed in a skin-tight skeleton suit to illustrate how the human body moved and functioned.
Austin was in his early 70s when Jones met him. They were paired together in a money game. On the first hole, one drive was considerably longer than the other three in the group.
“I figured I hit it better than I thought,” recalled Jones, who was a journeyman touring professional. “But, no, the long one was his. When we got to mine, he said, ‘Yeah, that’s yours, sonny.’ He was very proud of his strength.”
They became fast friends, and Jones would see Austin frequently during the next two decades, often driving him to appearances at Southern California golf courses.
By Austin’s count, he won 128 golf tournaments, although he never played regularly on the US PGA Tour. He remained a legendary golf hustler and long-drive specialist until he was nearly 80. Driving his car on a Los Angeles freeway at 79, he was struck by another vehicle. Shortly after, he suffered a stroke and lost control of the right side of his body. He kept teaching at Studio City for another 15 years.
Austin was a powerhouse of a man – big, strong and flexible. It was sad to see him physically debilitated, but his combative, personality never changed.
From an early age, many of us were taught to appreciate and serve our elders. This attitude motivated Jones, and it became a matter of respect and duty that he would selflessly help Austin.
“He wanted some of his ashes spread at Studio City,” Jones said, “but he wanted the majority scattered in the ocean. I made a promise I would do that.”
Jones has been told he cannot legally deposit the ashes at the Studio City facility, but the ocean part is easier. He plans to transport the ashes to Tahiti, where an elaborate ceremony will be held. For several years, Jones has been collecting old golf clubs and balls and distributing them to junior golfers in Tahiti.
It is New Year’s Eve in the desert, and Smiley Jones is feeling the importance of his mission, which is to safeguard the legacy of his close friend. Golf and life have taught him this valuable lesson.

Soren Kjeldsen added to Euro team for Royal Trophy match

FROM THE AOL GOLF NEWS SERVICE
Denmark's Soren Kjeldsen has been added to the European team for this month's Royal Trophy.
Seve Ballesteros and European captain Colin Montgomerie chose Kjeldsen for the tournament in Thailand, and hope he will help the team reclaim the trophy from the Asian side who triumphed in 2009.
Ballesteros said: "Soren is a very talented and consistent player who has clearly proven his worth in the European Tour over the past seasons."
Henrik Stenson, Robert Karlsson and Simon Dyson are also on the European side, and Royal Trophy founder and chairman Ballesteros hailed the latest addition.
He added: "I have also been impressed by the way he has performed at the highest level this year, contending in majors and World Golf Championship events, and I am sure he will make a strong impact in the match against Asia."
Kjeldsen's biggest win came at the 2008 Volvo Masters at Valderrama, and he also triumphed at this year's Andalucian Open.
The Dane said: "Seve and Colin have chosen a powerful-looking team, and it is a great honour to be included. It is a very nice reward to how well I have been playing for the last couple of years."
The Royal Trophy will be played at Bangkok's Amata Spring Country Club from January 8 to 10.

'African-American golf hero'

Bill Powell dies at 93

Bill Powell, the first African-American to build, own and operate a golf course, died yesterday. He was 93.
Powell died at Aultman Hospital in Canton, Ohio following complications from a stroke.
“Bill Powell will forever be one of golf’s most unforgettable American heroes,” PGA of America president Jim Remy said. “Bill made us appreciate the game and each other that much more by his gentle, yet firm example.
“He was born with a fire within his heart to build on his dream. In the process, he made golf a beacon for people of all colour. The PGA of America is better today because of individuals like Bill Powell. We will miss him dearly. We extend our thoughts and prayers to his family as we remember a wonderful man.”
In August, Powell received the US PGA Distinguished Service Award, the association’s highest annual honour. In November, he was inducted into the Northern Ohio PGA Hall of Fame and honoured as the Person of the Year by the Ohio Golf Course Owners Association.
The Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce also recently presented the Powell family with its Community Salute Award.
“My father made a mark,” said daughter Renee Powell, the second black player to compete on the LPGA Tour. “And, I believe that God wanted people to know the mark that he made on this nation.”
The grandson of Alabama slaves, Powell created Clearview Golf Club after returning home following World War II. While serving in Europe, he earned the rank of Technical Sergeant in the U.S. Eighth Air Force Truck Battalion.
Powell worked 18hr days to support his family and build Clearview. Denied a GI Loan, he found funding from two African American physicians, and his brother took out a second mortgage on his home.
Powell went on to carve Clearview out of former dairy farmland in 1946, clearing the land himself. In the process, Powell broke down racial barriers without fanfare by developing female and youth golf leagues.
Clearview opened its initial nine holes in 1948. Powell eventually repaid his benefactors to gain full ownership, and nine more holes were completed in 1978. Clearview is on the National Register of Historic Places, and nicknamed “America’s Course.”
“I didn’t build this course for any of the recognition,” Powell said in his 2000 autobiography, “Clearview: America’s Course.” ‘’It was a labour of love. Golf is a part of society and I wanted to be included. I want you to be included, too. I’ve always felt that each individual should leave something behind of meaning. It feels good to know that I have done that with Clearview, at long last.”
In 1992, the Powells were honored by the National Golf Foundation as the Jack Nicklaus Golf Family of the Year. That year, Powell was awarded the “Cornerstone of Freedom Award” from the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission.
Powell was inducted into the National Black Golf Hall of Fame in 1996, and became a US PGA Life Member in 1999. Powell also received honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees from his alma mater, Wilberforce University, and from Baldwin-Wallace College.
Powell also played a role in The First Tee, which has distributed more than 1,100 William J. Powell Scholarships that allow youngsters to attend The First Tee Life Skills and Leadership Academies conducted on college campuses.
Powell was preceded in death by wife Marcella and son William. In addition to daughter Renee, he’s survived by son Larry, who has served for more than 30 years as superintendent at Clearview Golf Club, and twin sisters Mary Alice Walker and Rose Marie Mathews.
+Picture of Bill Powell by courtesy of Associated Press.

Royal Montrose opens bi-centenary celebrations

FROM THE SCOTSMAN WEBSITE
By Martin Dempster
Today marks the 200th anniversary of Royal Montrose Golf Club and, while the snow and frost has forced a seven-hole hickory competition planned for tomorrow to be put back until February, the celebrations are already underway.
Over 100 members attended a Hogmanay party, during which Ian Harley, the club captain, and Janet Henderson, the ladies' captain, unfurled a bicentenary flag. The club was also first footed by members of Montrose Mercantile and Montrose Caledonia.
Founded as the Montrose Golf Club and then known as Royal Albert Golf Club, Royal Montrose is the ninth oldest continuous golf club in the world. It received its Royal Patronage in 1845, only the third golf club to receive the honour after Royal Perth and the Royal & Ancient.
Royal Montrose was one of the original 24 sponsors of the Amateur Championship Trophy. It has also played a significant role in the evolution of the Rules of Golf while its professionals have made their mark around the world.
Alex Findlay, for instance, emigrated to Nebraska in 1887 and, after creating its first golf course consisting of six holes, and promoted golf widely, became known as the grandfather of golf in the States.
He was affiliated with over 210 clubs worldwide and an honorary member of almost every club in America. One of Findlay's brothers, Fred, emigrated to Australia in 1910 to become professional at the Metropolitan Club before joining his brothers in America, where he became a renowned course architect.
Among the events being held to celebrate the bicentenary are a 25-hole Open to mark the only Open for professionals and amateurs played over that many holes in 1866 and a week-long programme of events at the end of August to which Royal golf clubs around the world have been invited to send representatives.
"So far we've had a positive response from more than 40 of the 63 clubs," said the club's vice-captain, Brian Ritchie.