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

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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In other news, former 49er, star dancer, and football legend Jerry Rice looks to expand his resume even more by joining professional golf. Now, Jerry is not going to be joining the PGA tour, but is entering a tournament in the Nationwide tour (not the NASCAR one) and hopes to make the cut. This is incredible for a couple of reasons. First of all, it is incredible that this man can dominate one sport and be good enough to compete with professionals at a completely different one. And secondly, and possibly even more impressive, is that the forty-seven year old only started playing golf when he was thirty. He used to wake up at 4 in the morning to go to the driving range before he had practice later in the morning. Now that is dedication.

That is Rice on the right and former Steeler great Jerome Bettis on the left, but I couldn’t pass up a chance to shamelessly plug a movie for one of my favorite actors (Don Cheadle, center). See Iron Man 2 in theaters May 7!

Despite that major story (no pun intended) there was another one that I was more than pleased to be witness to, and that was the official coming out party for Anthony Kim. Most people have heard of Kim, who is the currently the tenth best golfer in the world, but no one really considered him a threat at a major. This quickly changed on the back nine of the final round on Sunday. After a disappointing bogie on eleven, Kim went birdie, birdie, birdie, eagle, birdie on twelve through sixteen to pull into a tie for second at twelve under (by the time he finished). People were talking about Phil’s rise earlier in the tournament where he almost had three eagles in a row, but now Kim took the spotlight and showed his true potential. He will now begin to get some of the praise he deserves, plus a cool crystal trophy for posting the low score of the tournament (65).

Lurking close behind the Westwood and Mickelson are K.J. Choi and Tiger Woods who are both eight under for the tournament. These two guys started the Masters in the same group and look to play their fourth consecutive round together later Sunday afternoon. And just behind Woods and Choi is Fred Couples who appeared to be out of contention with a weak second round but rebounded nicely on Saturday with a four under 68 to return to relevance.

So who will pull it off? Will it be the wily Englishman Westwood who has been the consistant leader? Or Lefty who has overcome the hardest year of his life in search of his third green jacket? Or the fallen hero that is fighting to reassert his dominance in the sport of golf? Only one can win, hopefully we will be treated to a classic finish.

Now that the drama has ended, it is time to see what Tiger is going to do in the actual tournament. He had a solid day, shooting a 68 (his best opening round ever) and sits two shots behind the leader Freddy Couples. The most remarkable stat of Tiger’s day was his two eagles, which is the first ever at a Masters in one round. Despite that impressive feat, Tiger did have a couple bogeys that hurt an otherwise great first round back to golf.

Sitting in second place are a few big names. Phil Mickelson opened up the Masters with a five under 67 and is looking to continue his great play and win his third green jacket. Also tied is sixty years young Tom Watson, who took the world of golf by storm last year when he almost won the British Open only to choke on the last green. In addition there are a couple of South Koreans, Y.E. Yang (who won the PGA Championship last year) and K.J. Choi (who was partnered with Tiger today) who look to keep Tiger at bay. A final notable is Anthony Kim who is tied with Tiger for seventh, two shots off the lead.

There have been rumblings of bad weather in Augusta with a possible tornado warning. Today, the golfers were lucky with near ideal conditions. Hopefully the weather will continue to hold tomorrow and into the weekend. If not, we may be seeing some US Open conditions.

More fun to follow tomorrow!

In other Tiger news, Nike has released a new ad featuring the voice of Tiger’s late father and a very remorseful looking Tiger. At first watch, I was kind of shocked and confused as to why Tiger would allow such a commercial. I thought his last press conference was fine, he owes the fans and the media no other apologies. This campaign perplexes me.

1. Ernie Els. Quite possibly the hottest golfer on tour right now, Els has jumped out to a quick start on the year, winning the WGC-CA Championship at Doral and following that victory up with another at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. Both courses are historically two of the most difficult on tour, and to have Ernie playing his best so early is a good sign going into the weekend. Although he has battled injury and inconsistent play in the last couple of years, Els looks healthy and ready to take home the championship. One warning though, Els has never won at Augusta (even though he usually plays well) and his last major victory was back in 2002 at the British Open. However, I still think that Els will continue to ride his hot streak to at least a top 10 finish this weekend.

2. Steve Stricker. Who you may ask? Sticker is the number 2 golfer in the world and has a good chance to win it all this weekend. He may be the best putter on tour, and combined with his consistent play off the tee, makes him a scary opponent to fall behind. Stricker is also coming off his best season ever in 2009 with three wins including one at the Deutsche Bank Championship (held at the TPC Boston!) and one this year at the Northern Trust Open out in California. Steve is looking for his first major so expect him to play with a sense of purpose.

3. Phil Mickelson. After two positive contenders, I want to give credit to one of golf’s most visible names. Although Phil has not played well, especially when he was expected to step up in Tiger’s absense, don’t count Lefty out yet. Who is Rocky without Apollo, the Yankees without the Sox, Batman without Joker? Likewise, Phil needs Tiger to further fuel his drive to win his fourth major and third green jacket. After a difficult 2009, Phil should be able to channel his rivals energy and catapult himself back into the top 5.

That being said, this weekend should prove to be one of the most memorable Masters in recent memory, not only because of the Tiger saga, but also because of the great golf that will be played by many of golf’s brightest stars.

Honarable Mentions: Anthony Kim (won last week at Shell Houston Open and one second place finish), Camilo Villegas (beat Kim for a victory at The Honda Classic), Vaughn Taylor (hometown hero, finished tenth at Master in 2007).

Tomorrow is the Par 3 Challenge, which is quickly becoming a fan favorite event. Hopefully Chris Berman will not be announcing it again this year.

The only question that still remained completely unanswered in my mind was the possibility of a drug problem that Tiger had the night of the crash. When asked about Ambien being a factor in his impairment he immediately dodged the question and passed it off on the authorities, who fined Woods for destroying public property, but nothing else. This is completely unrelated to the accusations that were being made about possible HGH and steroid usage, which Tiger answered with a definitive no.

Tiger repeatedly address how he has grown in rehab and recognized how his behavior affected more than just himself. His regret stemmed further than the golf course and missing tournaments, going back to his personal life and how he had hurt his children and wife. Again, TIger did seem genuine and in this way won back a lot of respect that he has lost.

Finally, when asked about expectations, Tiger expected big things from this weekend. Despite having to take a few months off his rigorous training schedule, he has been working hard with Hank Haney to prepare himself for the Masters.

After all this publicity, hopefully the world can turn back to the importance of this weekend, which is the first major tournament of the 2010 PGA tour season. Tiger is no doubt expected to be a favorite to win it, but who else can step up and challenge him? Look for a preview of the rest of the field tomorrow.

In other news (i.e Tiger Watch 2010) Tiger Woods made his first public appearance on a golf course since his last tournament. Tiger played the back nine at Augusta with his old friend Mark O’Meara and about 20 security guards. The practice round was closed to the public, however reporters were able to watch Tiger at the practice range and greens. Despite being away from professional golf for more than a year, Tiger looked sharp, and of course had his swing coach Hank Haney there to do some last minute fine tuning. With only 4 days left until the first round, everyone is wondering what the reaction will be when Tiger takes the first tee. My guess, respectful applause for the disgraced legend.

This is all he needs to say, and we at Golf Empire support his desire for privacy and await his return to the game of golf.

As for the rest of the game, a new year means new goals and aspirations for all the golfers on tour. Of course we here at GE will be following everything that goes on, but will try and keep the “Tiger-gate” discussions to a minimum. After all, he is on an unspecified hiatus from golf and who knows when he will return. My personal guess is that Tiger will make a grand reentrance to the game right in time for the first major tournament of the year, The Masters.

Other things to look for this year would be a possible resurgence from Vijay Singh. After a dismal 2009, Vijay will look to put the past behind him and return to his former glory. Phil Mickelson, who also had a subpar 09, will look to gain some momentum from having a little more stability in his life. These titans of the game are far from finished, so look for more stories like these in the coming days and weeks.

Cheers and may your new year be filled with plenty of birdies (and eagles)!

With that said, golf will go on with or without Tiger Woods. There are so many stars in golf such as Phil Mickelson, Tom Watson, Vijay Singh, Anthony Kim, Stewart Cink and more. The game will still have exciting moments and plays. There are also new up and coming stars who will take the place of the older players. Golf will go on. Not only the men’s tour group but the women have a whole slew of exciting players. Some we need to mention are Michelle Wie, Lorena Ochoa and Paula Creamer. There are many more I have not mentioned but all deserve to be on the list of great players.

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Sports Illustrated will announce its choice for Sportsman of the Year on December 1, 2009. One of the SI writers thinks Tom Watson deserves this award. Even though Watson was defeated by Stewart Cink in the British Open at Turnberry in a playoff, this writer felt his grit, his spirit and his golf deserves recognition. There’s so many sports figures listed for this title that he’ll probably not get it, but it’s good to know that many people look past just winning and acknowledge good attributes of mankind.

Phil was able to win the $1 million purse and his first victory after a turbulent summer where both his wife and mother were diagnosed with breast cancer. Phil shot a five under 65 to cap the weekend and finish at nine under for the tournament. Even though Tiger would’ve had to finish in 8th place or worse for Phil to win it all, it was a good day for Mickelson and a good way to cap the year. He capitalized on a poor putting performance from Tiger and made some impressive putts of his own. What was most significant was how he was able to pull away down the stretch, something the rest of the field struggled with. Day 1 leader Sean O’Hair stayed in the hunt with Phil until a bogey on 17 dropped him out of contention. Another leader, Kenny Perry, played poorly after leading going into Sunday and fell way off the pace with a four over 74. Steve Stricker, who was second place in the FedEx Cup standings after Tiger, only needed to beat Woods and was unable to do so after choking on 16 and 17 with consecutive bogeys.

All in all, this was a good ego boost for the world’s two most popular golfers as one won the tournament and the other won the title. There is still plenty of golf to be played in the coming weeks, but as of now the 2009 PGA tour season is done and everyone is already looking to next year and what 2010 may bring.

As for the future, Singh looks to play in some of the tournaments in the fall following the Tour Championship. These events are recognized by the PGA but are not counted toward the rankings and money list that ends with the tournament at East Lake. Hopefully this tour favorite can right his ship and return to playing golf at the best of his abilities.

All this drama will be concluded in the Tour Championship which place starting September 24 at East Lake in Atlanta. This is the final event of the FedEx Cup and will ultimately determine the winner of the $10 million grand prize. Tour veteran Jim Furyk was able to secure the third spot with a runner up finish this weekend and places himself in a good spot to take the victory if he wins. Stricker fell to second, but is absolutely still in the hunt.

To clarify a confusing topic, the winner of The Tour Championship is not necessarily the winner of the FedEx Cup. For example, last year Camilo Villegas won the event, but Vijay Singh won the Cup. This means that although the 30 man field is exclusive, it does not mean that all have a shot at the Cup. I will elaborate on this tournament in the coming days, as I am still a little fuzzy on the details regarding points and whatnot, myself.

There has been some big news as of late, though. For the first time in the FedEx Cup’s existence, Tiger Woods will attend and play. Previous years Tiger has either refused to play, or was injured and unable to play. This is actually Tiger’s first non-major tournament in the New York area since the 2003 Buick Classic at Westchester CC. This is a great move for Tiger to help endorse golf’s playoff system, which still needs some work as was proof in 2007 (Tiger Woods skipped the first two events and still won the FedEx Cup by winning the last two, proving that the first two were unnecessary). Now that Tiger has not won any majors, he looks as if he is out to prove his number one ranking.

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.

After all, golf was invented in Scotland and had only become a worldwide phenomenon relatively recently for many nations outside of North America and Europe. Many Asian nations, like South Korea and Japan are relatively new to the sport, only being introduced to it by foreign soldiers stationed in their countries in the mid 20th century. Nowadays, golf has become an obsession for much of the Asian continent and Y.E. Yang breathes a fresh breath of air into a game that was predominantly controlled by Americans and Europeans. Now there is a growing number of Asian golfers on the tour (K.J. Choi, Anthony Kim, Ryo Ishikawa to name a couple) and who knows what the future holds.

Since Se Ri Pak’s victory at the 1998 Women’s US Open, Asian golfers have been slowly climbing the rankings and getting a good amount of respect for the way they play the game. Finally there is a face of a continent for the men’s game. That is the media proclaimed ‘Tiger Killer’, Y.E. Yang.

The bigger story is Yang’s impressive composure in the face of adversity. Knowing that history was against him, Yang was able to chip in from more than 60 feet away for an eagle on the 14th and the outright lead. After this, all he had to do was maintain, something that Tiger was unable to do. Yang held his own down the stretch and played a consistent back nine that culminated with a birdie on the 18th and a definitive win against the world’s top player.

As disappointing as this stretch of holes was for Tiger, it was nothing compared to Padraig Harrington’s disastrous antics that once again left him out of contention. The 2008 champion had a lot to prove after his fall-apart last week at Firestone Country Club, where he dropped out of the lead on the 16th hole after controlling the tournament for most of the weekend. Similarly, Paddy had a horrendous 8 on the par three eighth hole that sunk his chances once again. Maybe next time Padraig.

So after a strong weekend, the final major of the year is over. Now all we have to look forward to is the still fledgling FedEx Cup that is trying its best to become relevant. Personally, the only things that matter to most golfers are the four majors, but maybe in time the Cup can become something that players will want just as much as a green jacket or a claret jug. Look for first round action beginning August 25 in the great state of New Jersey at the Barclays.