Fairway Rewards

The Bob Hope Classic
While fierce winter winds prohibit golf in most of the United States, the PGA Tour enjoys warm weather every January in California’s Coachella Valley. Part of the tour’s early season West Coast swing, the Bob Hope Classic is famous for its celebrity pro-am and unique format. Currently “The Hope” is the third event on the Tour’s annual schedule, and is also part of the FedEx Cup competition.
This PGA event, so rich in tradition and golf history, will be played in the winter golf mecca of La Quinta, California for the 52nd consecutive year. This tournament, a 5-day format played on 4 desert courses, features 128 top PGA professionals and 383 amateurs and celebrities. Most importantly, since its inception in 1960, “The Hope” has donated 49 million dollars to local charities.
The Classic’s biggest draw is the celebrity Pro-Am competition which attracts each era’s biggest celebrities. Past participants include:
Yogi Berra
Pres. George H.W. Bush
Hoagy Carmichael
Alice Cooper
Bing Crosby
Kirk Douglas
Pres. Dwight Eisenhower (first US President to play in the Pro-Am)
Pres. Gerald Ford
Wayne Gretzky
Bo Jackson
Burt Lancaster
Sugar Ray Leonard
Evan Longoria
Kurt Russell
Frank Sinatra
Bruce Smith

Fun Facts about the Bob Hope Classic:
- Arnold Palmer won the first classic when he shot 22 under par 338 to win $12,000.
- The winner of this year’s Bob Hope Classic will earn $900,000, which is more than the total of all the purses from the first decade of the event.
- Phil Michelson ($2,029,861) is the Classic’s all-time leading money winner.
- Left-handers won “The Hope” three years in a row (2002-2004).
Former Hope Champion Bill Hass enjoys recommending this favorite of national tournaments. “If somebody asks me, ‘What do you think of the Bob Hope?’ I say, ‘Go!’ This is a place I will always play…And I would tell people it’s hard to find a place that’s better for golf!”

The champion of the Masters Tournament is traditionally presented with a green jacket. The “Green Jacket” has been awarded continually since 1949. It is the most coveted award in all of golf. The winner of the previous year’s tournament presents the Green Jacket to the new winner. When a golfer wins in consecutive years (such as Jack Nicklaus repeating in 1966 and Nick Faldo in 1990) the Chairman of the Augusta National Golf Club presents the jacket.
Facts from Augusta National:

Aptly named “Amen Corner” (holes #11, 12, and 13) was given that moniker by “Sports Illustrated” magazine in 1958.

One of the most famous sights on this famous course is seen looking at the 12th Green – Hogan’s Bridge.

Best First Round Ever = 63, Greg Norman 1996
Best First Round by a Winner = 65, Raymond Floyd 1976
Best Second Round Ever = 64, Mike Barber 1979 and Jay Haas 1995
Best Second Round by a Winner = 65, Cary Middlecoff 1955
Best Third Round Ever = 63, Nick Price 1986
Best Third Round by a Winner = 64, Jack Nicklaus 1965
Best Fourth Round Ever = 64, 5 times
Best Fourth Round by a Winner = 64, Gary Player 1978
There have been 13 tournaments decided by a playoff.
There have been 18 holes-in-one (10 of them on Hole #16, and 4 of them on #6).

Fairway Rewards in partnership with Costco will be selling gift cards at select Costco locations in California, Oregon, Washington, and Arizona for Father’s Day.

Come join us as we continue creating a nationwide network, or national brand of golf courses, all with one end in mind: when people think of golfers on their gift list, they think of Fairway Rewards and the gift of playing golf.  Redeemable only at our member golf courses~ no golf retail stores, online golf equipment or supplies.

This is however just the beginning.  In coming months Fairway Rewards Gift Cards will be available at a variety of retailers, both in stores and online:

Costco nationwide, holiday season 2010

Grocery Stores

Our Google first page listing, link to your courses.

Greeting Card Stores

Corporate Incentives Distributors

Online Gift Card Providers

Look out holidays, here we come!

Last year over $16 billion, that’s right16 billion dollars in gift cards were sold through national platforms.  Isn’t it about time golf courses are adequately represented?

Please take a look at our attached presentation for further details.  A member’s form has also been attached for your convenience. We welcome your questions and comments.

Feel free to contact me directly at any time.

Fairway Rewards is putting together a nationwide network of choice golf courses throughout the US. Our goal is to create a branded name that golfing and non-golfing clientele will recognize as the “the premier network of US golf courses” with gift cards available for these golf courses only.

With the return of Tiger Woods to the golfing spotlight, many contradictory emotions have arisen. Many golfers are glad to see him back, but the majority are in disagreement. Give us your thoughts! leave us a comment telling us how you feel about Tiger Woods returning to golf and playing in The Masters.

For more information on the topic follow some of these links-

The 2010 Masters:

http://www.masters.com/index.html

Golfers reaction to Tiger Woods return to golf:

The Masters Tournament, commonly known as “The Masters”, is one of the four major championships of professional golf. Scheduled for the first week of April, it is the first of the majors to be played each year. Unlike the other major championships, the Masters is held yearly at the same location, Augusta National Golf Club, a private club in Augusta, Georgia. The tournament was founded in 1934 by a native Georgian, the great Bobby Jones. The tournament is an official money event on the PGA Tour, the PGA European Tour, and the Japan Golf Tour. The field of players is smaller than those of the other major championships because participation is by invitation only by Augusta National Golf Club.
Many decisions made in the early days of the Tournament remain today. Among these are the four-day stroke play of 18 holes daily instead of the then customary 36 holes on the third day, thereby eliminating qualifying rounds. Commercialization of the Tournament in any form remained severely limited.
The Masters immediately grabbed the world’s attention, but when Gene Sarazen fired a 220-yard 4 Wood over the water and into the hole on the 15th for an incredible double-eagle, the tournament had a fascinating history in only its second year. Soon fans from all over the country looked forward to seeing Bobby Jones once again play the game of golf. Cars with license plates from 38 states filled the parking lot, many of them doubling as sleeping accommodations since every hotel room in Augusta was booked. The fascination and audience greatly increased by the advent of television. The annual broadcast is completely controlled by the club to hold down commercial interruptions, and has made the Masters one of the most watched sporting events in the world. The heroic deeds of Palmer and Nicklaus, and the dazzling beauty of the azalea, magnolia and dogwood are scenes held dear by many. Watching it has become a national tradition for all golfers.
The Masters itself has a number of cherished traditions. A green jacket, perhaps the most coveted award in all of golf, is awarded to the winner of each tournament. The champion of the previous year’s tournament presents the green jacket to the new winner. The Champions dinner, inaugurated by Ben Hogan, is held on the Tuesday before each tournament, and is only open to past champions, and board members of the Augusta National Golf Club. Beginning in 1963, legendary golfers, themselves often past champions, have hit an honorary tee shot to begin the first round. Such greats as Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, and Arnold Palmer have fired this coveted opening drive. Since 1960, a semi-social Par 3 Contest has been played on Augusta National’s grounds the day before the inaugural round of each Masters Tournament.
Bobby Jones’ shadow was a constant presence at The Masters up until the last years of his life. When his failing health made visits to the course impossible, he watched the tournament he started on television from his small white cottage beside one of the greens. Long after his death, Jones’ legacy lives on as The Masters continues to be one of the most celebrated and important events in all of sports. The Masters will stand forever as his monument.

Shortly after retiring from competitive golf in 1930, the great Bobby Jones turned to fulfilling one his long- held ambitions: designing the ultimate golf course. After playing the best of the world’s existing championship courses, he had developed his own thoughts of an ideal course that would be both a good test of golf and fun to play as well. Jones was convinced that such a course would increase the popularity of the noble game.
For assistance, Bobby turned to the game’s greatest golf architect, Dr. Alistair MacKenzie. The Scottish designer had already developed Jones’ favorite course, California’s fabled Cypress Point. With the scenic beauty of the Monterey Peninsula as a backdrop, Cypress Point became known as “The Sistine Chapel of Golf”.
With MacKenzie willing to help, Jones then set out to find the piece of natural, rolling land he had dreamed about for so long. He wanted his ideal course to be located in his native Georgia, not far from his Atlanta home. But where? Enter Clifford Roberts, an investment banker who was one of Bobby’s most ardent fans. When the golfer confided his problems in locating the course, Roberts enthusiastically recommended that superb winter getaway resort – Augusta.
Roberts had just heard that Fruitlands, the South’s first commercial nursery, was on the market. It was a plum piece of choice land with a pine forest, shrubs and plantings galore. Jones and Roberts investigated it, and Bobby made a simple, on-the-spot decision: “Perfect!” And so was the price – 365 acres for $70,000!
Jones requested the banker assist with the plans for financing the purchase and organizing the club. The golfing great conceded years later that it was one of his best decisions ever. The well-connected Roberts, with his Wall Street background and a host of friends who were corporate executives, captains of industry, and enthusiastic golfers, was the perfect choice to help Jones realize his dream. And the game’s most spectacular joint venture was born – the Augusta National Golf Club.
With MacKenzie at his side, Jones tramped over every yard of the land making suggestions and giving directions. And when the designs were done, he went out with his clubs and personally tested the layout before the grass was finally planted. Jones’ and MacKenzie’s meticulous efforts paid off handsomely. The resultant Augusta course compares favorably with Cypress Point, and is perpetually named in every poll as one of the best courses in America. Dr. Mackenzie himself would later call Augusta National his “bet opportunity and, I believe, my finest achievement”.

What golfer has not received a bad gift related to his favorite pastime? How many of us considered giving up the game just to keep from receiving any more cheesy presents? Alas, this grand, noble old game inspires the worst in gift giving. What’s the worst golf gift you ever received? Here’s hoping it wasn’t as awful as these: (more…)

Who says golfers aren’t athletes? Make no mistake – good golf requires a great deal of athleticism! We all know that golf requires coordination and concentration, but those who seriously seek to improve their game acknowledge the need for strength, power, flexibility, core stability , and endurance as well. Physical fitness enhances athleticism which in turn provides consistency in any golfer’s game. During the winter doldrums, prepare for your spring campaign by starting a golf-specific fitness program. (more…)

For all its majesty and dignity, golf is still a funny game. It boasts much tradition and pomp but never pomposity. This great game humbles and builds character even as it tickles the player’s humorous instincts. Somehow laughter can take the sting out of a double bogie. Whether you’re a weekend hacker, touring professional, or somewhere in between, one thing is certain: Golf is a funny game. (more…)