The First Call 10-15-2021

FIRST THOUGHT

Dustin Johnson might not win a PGA Tour event this calendar year. That’s only happened one other time (in 2014) since his first Tour victory in 2008 at the gone-but-not-forgotten Turning Stone Resort Championship. Still, the 2020 Masters champ is the No. 2 player in the world and became the first American since Larry Nelson in 1979 to go 5-0 at the Ryder Cup. Johnson is in this week’s CJ Cup in Las Vegas, maybe his last chance to win in 2021. He’s paired with Xander Schauffele and Viktor Hovland — fellow Ryder Cup players who were 15 and 11 when Johnson won in 2008.

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READ, WATCH, LISTEN

> PGA Tour players welcome legal betting, even if they don't peek at their own odds
[Brian Hurlburt | SI.com | Read]

> This Icelandic golf course is one of the best in Europe
[Shane O'Donoghue | CNN.com | Watch]

> Butch Harmon talks teaching on Henni and Hally Can't Quit Golf
[Henni Koyack and Hally Leadbetter | Golf Digest | Listen]

Brothers flying high with unique carry bag idea

Josh and Matt Smith knew their upstart FlagBag Golf Co. had arrived when they received a shout-out from a legendary broadcaster

Fact of the Day

DID YOU KNOW?

The U.S. city with the most private courses is Naples, Fla., with 54.

INDUSTRY NEWS

PXG Founder Bob Parsons offers employees major incentive to get COVID-19 vaccine and flu shot

During a company-wide Zoom meeting, PXG Founder & CEO Bob Parsons announced he would not make vaccines mandatory for employees, but instead offered a rich incentive.

Golf Stay and Play package available at Pueblo Bonito Pacifica and the Towers

Enjoy multiple rounds of world-class golf at Quivira Los Cabos

Bayside Resort Golf Club welcomes new general manager

Brian Rashley will oversee all elements of the club from golf operations, agronomy, sales/marketing to food & beverage and fitness club operations.

Major champions and world’s top-ranked players among early commitments for 2021 Pelican Women’s Championship, Nov. 8-14

World No. 1 Nelly Korda, 2020 Champion Sei Young Kim and fan favorites Lexi Thompson, Lydia Ko, Jessica Korda, Brooke Henderson and Brittany Lincicome headline final regular season event of LPGA season.

Sacramento’s Rubicon Advisors becomes presenting sponsor of the Leap Celebrity Golf Invitational benefiting the Epilepsy Foundation

Hosted by award-winning actor John O’Hurley and baseball great Josh Beckett, the Leap Celebrity Golf Invitational presented by Rubicon Advisors Set for Oct. 24-25 in Las Vegas.

Podcasts

The PGA of America's big push to diversify golf

In this new episode, Chris Noble, PGA of America's manager for NextGenGolf's National High School Golf Association, discusses his work and the progress he's seeing around diversity and LGBTQ+ at the PGA.

ROUNDS AND WEATHER

> Rounds performance nationwide remains consistent with prior weeks, with total rounds played up vs 2019 by +90% and down vs 2020 by -17%.

> Warmer temperatures continued across the nation, helping to drive strong demand for play, with average temperatures up +2 degrees over the past week compared to prior year. In addition, we saw a decrease in average precipitation nationwide by -2% vs. last year.

> Florida and the Mid-Atlantic finished as the strongest regions of the country this week, with both areas outperforming 2019 and 2020 for total rounds played, up +2% for total rounds played.

> The next week is expected to remain relatively strong with average temperatures estimated to remain above prior year, with Florida and the Mountain Pacific expected to finish as the strongest two areas.

Q&A: Alex Urban

Alex Urban, executive director for the PGA Tour's Sentry Tournament of Champions, reveals what makes the year-opening event so successful and which legendary band he's a huge fan of.

#QOTD

"We must learn what customers really want, not what they say they want or what we think they should want."

— Eric Ries

TUNING IN

PGA Tour: CJ Cup
Site: The Summit Club, Las Vegas.
Television: Today-Sunday, 5-8 p.m. (Golf Channel).

European Tour: Estrella Damm Andalucia Masters
Site: Real Club Valderrama, Sotogrande, Spain
Television: Today, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 7:30 a.m. to noon (Golf Channel).

PGA Tour Champions: SAS Championship
Site: Prestonwood Country Club, Cary, N.C.
Television: Today, 2-5 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 2:30-5 p.m. (Golf Channel).

LPGA Tour: Idle. Next week at BMW Ladies Championship in South Korea.

CALENDAR

NOVEMBER
6: The RARE culinary event at Bear Creek Golf Club in Dallas, Texas. | Info
9-10: National Golf Course Owners Association Multi-Course and Resort Operators Retreat 2021, Monterey, Calif. | Info
21-24: World Golf Expo 2021, Hainan, China | Info

JANUARY
25-28: PGA Merchandise Show, Orlando, Fla. | Info

FEBRUARY
5-10: GCSAA Conference and Trade Show, San Diego, Calif. | Info

To submit events for the calendar, please include the event name, date, location and informational link to info@firstcallgolf.com.

LAST CALL

The long-awaited #OldMacdonald course camera is now live! Perched up near the turnstand, we can now enjoy live views of Old Mac, the Pacific Ocean, and the south end of #SheepRanch. Experience the Old Macdonald course camera here! → https://t.co/HzEFIWSlXx pic.twitter.com/pMGC9z8HZ6
— Bandon Dunes (@BandonDunesGolf) October 13, 2021