June 24, 1999
LIBRARY / GOLF SITES
Virtual Golf, Without the Caddies or Carts
By VERNE G. KOPYTOFF
f all sports, golf has a reputation for being among the most
averse to change. While tennis and basketball players compete
with fluorescent clothes and shaved
heads, many professional golfers
wear the long pants and polo shirts
that have been worn since before the
turn of the century. As if to emphasize the conservatism, Payne Stewart won the United States Open this
month wearing navy blue plus fours.
But golf has not been so reluctant
to throw tradition aside and expand
onto the Web. The sport is flourishing
there, with hundreds of sites that focus on the best courses, firsthand accounts of holes in one and what to
look for in equipment.
Among the sites that generate particular interest are those devoted to
topics like the Open, the Masters, the
Professional Golfers' Association
Championship and the British Open.
On-line magazines, fans sites and
sports television sites chronicled
each round; the P.G.A. site provided
updates every few minutes.
Reading about the competitors
may inspire some weekend players.
Dozens of sites offer tips on driving
(go for the middle of the green),
putting (keep in balance) and practice (do it as much as possible).
But people who are looking for information about equipment and resorts may have a harder time finding
it on the Web. There are ample articles about golf courses and new
equipment, but they are often so positive that they might as well have
been written by a publicity agent.
As George Plimpton once observed about sports writing, the
smaller the ball, the better the prose.
Though little on the Web approaches
the quality of the golf writing found
elsewhere, there is plenty on line to
keep the enthusiast glued to the computer screen -- at least until the
game starts on television.
Here are more sources of golf-related information and entertainment.
UNITED STATES GOLF ASSOCIATION: www.usga.com
Features one of the
most complete rule books on the Web.
BAD GOLF MONTHLY: www.badgolfmonthly.com
A comforting destination
for golfers with a big handicap.
GOLF ONLINE: www.golfonline.com
Offers a comprehensive selection of
playing tips, tournament reports and travel articles.
TIGER WOODS OFFICIAL GOLF WEBSITE: www.tigerwoods.com
A fan site
for those who believe that Mr. Woods should win every tournament.
MR. GOLF ETIQUETTE: www.mrgolf.com
Includes a primer on how to
behave on the course.
CADDYSHACK AND HAPPY GILMORE ARCHIVE: www.bushwood.net
Features pictures, trivia and sound clips from ""Caddyshack,"" perhaps one
of the most popular golfing films ever.
AMATEUR GOLF ADVISOR: www.tagagolf.com
Gives tips on a number of
topics, including driving and what to look for when buying clubs.
TRIVIA GOLF COUNTRY CLUB: www.triviagolf.com
Tests of knowledge.