Golf Empire

Blue Hill Golf course in Rockland, New York is a friendly little course; can’t wait for it to open.

Who says golf is boring? Not us especially after seeing these unusual golf courses.

1. Brickyard Crossing, Indiana, USA – This is mostly an average golf course EXCEPT that four of its 14 holes are located inside of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway 2.5-mile track. You’ll even find a water hazard in the shape of a lake within the boundaries of the track. Address: 4400 W 16th Street, Indianapolis, IN 46222-2512 USA, Telephone: (317) 492-6570

2. Coeur d’Alene Resort Golf Course, USA – The 14th hole here is the site of the world’s only floating green, hovering 150 yards offshore. The putting surface is 15,000 square feet and can only be reached by taking the Putter Boat shuttle. When golfers finish the hole they receive a certificate of achievement. Address: 900 S Floating Green Dr, Coeur D Alene, ID USA – Telephone: (208) 667-4653

3. Coober Pedy Opal Fields Golf Club, South Australia – The grassless golf course here has small patches of grass planted at the tees but beyond those places, the 18-Hole Coober Pedy Opal Fields Golf Course is one seemingly endless sand trap. Address: Lot 1509 Rowe Dve, Coober Pedy, South Australia, 5723, Australia, Telephone: 08-8672-5353

4. Hans Merensky, South Africa – This par-72 golf course sits smack on the edge of Kruger National Park, an environment teeming with all sorts of exotic wildlife. Golfers encounter giraffes, elephants, zebras and more while making their way down the fairway. Address: 3, Copper Street, Phalaborwa 1390 South Africa, Telephone: +27 15 781 3931

5. Joint Security Area, Korean Demilitarized Zone, South Korea – In 1988, this course was named the World’s Most Dangerous Golf Course by Sports Illustrated. Situated in the Korean Demilitarized Zone, this single, 192-yard, par-3 hole is bordered on three sides by mine fields. When you arrive at the course, golfers are urged not to retrieve balls that have gone off course. Address: Camp Bonifas, Panmunjom, South Korea

6. Legend Golf & Safari Resort, South Africa – The 18 holes at this golf course distinguishes itself as being the longest golf course in South Africa, but it’s the optional 19th hole that makes it remarkable. Golfers need to ride a helicopter to get to the tee at this par-3 course, which is 1,410 vertical feet high. Four video cameras and tracking equipment allow golfers to track the flight of the ball. The green is in the shape of Africa in honor of the African Renaissance. Address: Block D, IL Piacere Office Park, 49 New Road, Midrand Gauteng, South Africa, Telephone: +27 11 729 6700

7. North Star Golf Club, Alaska, USA – America’s northernmost golf course and the only golf course in the world that includes an animal checklist on the score card, is great for more wildlife gazing. Tee off in the early morning or late afternoon to see the animals that wander near and on the course. You may rub elbows with eagles, mooses, waterfowl, muskrat, foxes, hawks and coyotes. Grizzly bears and lynx have been seen on the course, too. Address: 330 Golf Club Drive, Fairbanks, Alaska 99712, Telephone: (907) 457-4653

8. Nullarbor Links, Australia – This golf course is the longest in the world, being 850 miles in length! There is one hole in each participating town along the Eyre Highway from Kalgoorlie in Western Australia to Ceduna in South Australia; the average distance between each hole is about 50 miles.

9. Uummannaq, Greenland – North of the Arctic Circle, golfers gather at the course created in Uummannaq for the World Ice Golf Championship. The event is a 36-hole competition played over the course of two days, but competitors get a feel for the course via a “Ryder Cup”-style tournament held the day before the championship begins. The creation of the nine-hole course is dictated by the weather, sea, and ice, and only good weather and safe ice conditions determine whether the championship will be played each year. Address: DK-3961, Uummannaq, Greenland, E-mail: info@icegolfgreenland.com

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Well, another year is almost over and there has been a lot of snow recently on the East Coast. All of us here at Golf Empire would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and hope that you were able to hit the links. Sadly, due to the snow and cold, we are in the “offseason” but that doesn’t mean we stop thinking about golf! Here is a video of a golf course in Northern New Jersey covered in snow. Better get a neon colored ball and a pair of warm gloves. Happy Holidays.

Many wonder where the game of golf started in the US. It is common knowledge that the game was invented in Scotland somewhere near the oldest official golf course in the world, St. Andrews, but many do not know the history after that. The United States was fairly late in adopting places to play the game, as Oakhurst Links in West Virginia became the first place to hold an official tournament in 1884. But wait, wasn’t The Country Club in Brookline (traditionally known as the oldest country club in the US)established in 1882? That is correct, however, golfing was not introduced to the club until 1893 some nine years after Oakhurst. This course, originally designed as a nine hole backyard course was the first, yet it fell into disrepair and eventually ceased to be used by the mid twentieth century.

In 1994, the course was reopened to the public and has since been added to the National Register of Historic Places. What makes Oakhurst Links so special is the way the game is played. Instead of using fancy new clubs and using the technology of the past one hundred or so years, the game is transported back to the way it was in the 1880s. Players play with wooden clubs and old gutta-percha balls. Sheep graze in the fairway and the tees are made of sand (oh the irony). Although not a place where the US Open will ever be held, Oakhurst has a special game that protects the history of a great and wonderful sport.

Now, the course is up for sale. The previous owner has decided that he has to retire and is selling the course and the museum for $4.5 million. What a bargain! So now if you have a spare million dollars or so laying around, get your Sunday foursome together and buy yourselves the golf course that started it all.

Don’t take my word for it, hear it from the British Open Champ (Stewart Cink) and some of his collegues about how tough a course Firestone Country Club is. Besides the challenge, the tournament has produced a long and rich history of good golf from Jack Nicklaus back in 1976 to 1980 where a 24 year old Jose Maria Olazabel shot a 61 to the most famous 1999 Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson duel to the very next year where Tiger won the tournament in the dark. But like I said before, don’t trust me, watch the video!