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Golf in Paris – What Ryder Cup?
Golf in Paris – What Ryder Cup?
Part 3 of Edward Keirsh’s adventure to France during Ryder Cup Week.
Golf in Paris? Tiger is back. The Ryder Cup is ready to start on Friday outside Paris. The weather is sublime for golf, in the mid-60s and sunny. Magnifique!
But here in this glittering city that many people fear, or often disparage because of some nonsensical feelings about the French, few people care about Tiger or the Cup. It’s as if it was being played on a different planet.
Forget golf. Eat pastries.
Take my favorite baker for example. I expected to see a few little cakes decorated with the European logo. But she would have none of that. Her only interest was serving me a heavenly cup of coffee and a wondrous pained chocolate. Yum! But there was spectacle that did delight her made her even talkative.
Paradise Found – Chateau de Chailly France
Paradise Found – Chateau de Chailly France
Part 2 of Edward Kiersh’ s travels to France during the Ryder Cup week
Not touching a golf club for days, and about to go mad, I finally arrived at Golf de Chailly sur Armancon, a 16th Century castle turned inviting resort. Along with offering a seductive hammam spa, tennis, swimming, gorgeous suites, and two restaurants, the course is both bedeviling and a delight.
Golf de Chailly sur Armancon
While most of the fairways are wide open, and perfect for relaxed rounds, there are several holes that present taxing challenges, mainly due to cavernous bunkers, dramatically contoured, elevated greens and numerous water hazards. It’s also visually exciting, set amid rich farmlands, and popular with beautifully attired, highly serious French female players. Stay at Chailly for two days. It’s a paradise for finding vineyards, la cuisine Francaise, and several fun holes that will long be remembered.
How to Survive Without Golf in France
Published September 24, 2018
in France
How to Survive Without Golf in France
By Edward Kiersh
Though the hillsides are covered with vineyards, and not golf courses, the scenery in this rich part of France is captivating especially if the traveler makes it a point to visit small, 16th and 17th century hill towns. One must-see gem is Flavian-Sur-Ozerain, not far from Dijon. Here the aging buildings and cobble-stoned streets seem to be relics of a long-vanished past. All is tranquil, a perfect escape from time.
Flavian-Sur-Ozerain
Once I left here it’s on to Dijon and the road of Burgundy’s Grand Crus. There are so many caves or wine producers along the road side it’s impossible to determine where to stop.
L’Albenza Golf Club in Bergamo Italy
Saying a Few Prayers Might Just Slay This Devil
by Edward Kiersh
Bergamo Italy – 3378 yards, extremely-tight fairways, and countless blind shots to microscopic greens all add up to pure deviltry, a par-seeker’s Hell.
So how does one prepare for the undulating fairways, sharp doglegs, and Alpine streams that complicate and doom even the best of shots?
Before heading to Bergamo’s L’Albenza Golf Club, once home to famous European Tour player Constantine Rocca, extreme measures might be necessary.
Walls Psgiacomo – Courtesy of Visit Bergamo
In intriguing Bergamo, an often-ignored, medieval-walled, “upper city” between Milan and Venice in northern Italy, that may well mean invoking golf’s gods—praying to them and asking for a blessed touch on L’Albenza’s dauntingly-slick, treacherously-sloped greens.
It’s unknown if Rocca, a runner-up at the 1995 British Open at St. Andrews believed in such saintly intervention, but before tackling L’Albenza’s 27 holes it’s best to get a good night’s sleep in the “upper city’s” boutique Gombit Hotel—and to find some heavenly inspiration in the towering Santa Maria Maggiore church.
Grape Discoveries – Touring Tuscany Vineyards
Grape Discoveries
While touring the Tuscany vineyards Jane Finn may have discovered the meaning of life!
As published in the July issue of Planet Golf Review Magazine
by Jane Finn
I love my wine … sometimes a little too much … especially on a Friday evening after a long week of too much work and too little fun but a ten day Tuscan golf and wine vacation has taught me not only how to swirl, sniff and sip a fine glass of Chianti but even more importantly, how to be in the moment and savour the entire experience.
Every month in Tuscany offers endless possibilities to indulge your passion for golf and wine but if you are as fortunate as we were to visit in September, every corner of the region is a whirlwind of festivals dedicated to the celebration of the grapes. The medieval village of Greve sits at the epicentre of the verdant Chianti valley that lies between Florence and Siena and I can’t think of a better place to start your own personal nine and wine odyssey.
The Greve Wine Festival
Jetsetting with Jack and the Kennedy’s at Frankfurter Golf Club
Hurry out of the Airport and Meet Jack, John Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe
by Edward Kiersh
Jet lagged?
Forget all the hocus pocus remedies about overcoming this malady. There is a cure—and it’s not found in pills, sleeping strategies, or the “Jet Lag Rooster” app.
What’s the secret fix, rejuvenation after a TransAtlantic flight?
Villa Kennedy – you can envision John F. playing here.
If flying to dynamic Frankfurt, Germany, the gateway to Reislingland, charming Heidelberg and the Black Forest, wonder-working renewal comes in a curious mixture. Part John F. Kennedy at his boyish, flamboyant best; a sun-soaked, hotel atrium where relaxation means watching blond-haired frauleins; and a golf course where it’s easy to unwind.
Only 15 minutes from the clamorous airport, the Frankfurter Golf Club offers the perfect parkland course to get back into the swing of your natural rhythms.
Founded in 1913, and a genteel bastion in a city known for its energetic financial scene, the course has challenged the likes of Jack Nicklaus, Seve Ballesteros and Bernhard Langer.
Risks and Rewards on an Italian Hillside – Villa Castagnola
Risks and Rewards on an Italian Hillside
by Edward Kiersh
Villa Castagnola Italy – The adventure begins by first snaking past long-abandoned border outposts, into and out of Switzerland and Italy every few miles. Houses and small hillside farms also seem to be forsaken, and that’s understandable. The one lane roads here, twisting and turning, are mean and harrowing, edging precariously close to cliffs dropping off into oblivion.
Grand Hotel Villa Castagnola Terrace and Garden
It wasn’t easy leaving the comfortable confines of the five-star, Grand Hotel Villa Castagnola, an 1880-built getaway once home to a noble Russian family that sits wondrously right on Lake Lugano. Instead of braving “mad” Italian drivers hurtling through hairpin turns, it would have been far less blood-curdling to sit at one of the Villa’s bars smoking a Cuban cigar, dining in the Michelin-starred Gallery Arté al Lago restaurant, or simply watching the world go by in the Castagnola’s sculpture garden.
So why risk life and limb (and a rental car) for golf’s caprices?
Hickory Heaven – LinkedGolfers World Hickory Golf Festival Scotland
Hickory Heaven Scotland
by Dave Finn – as published in the December 2017 issue of “The Jigger”, the official newsletter of The Golf Historical Society of Canada.
As a member of The Golf Historical Society of Canada, I’m sure you’ve dreamt about playing in your 19th century regalia, using hickory-shafted clubs while plying your skills on some of the most historic links golf courses in the world.
Trust me – Dreams can come true!
Last month, I had the unforgettable opportunity of not only participating in the 13th annual LinkedGolfers World Hickory Open Championship in East Lothian, but I also won the two-day Stableford event at Kilspindie!
Not only was this my first visit to Scotland – the “Home of Golf” – which has taken on a whole new meaning for me: it was also my first time playing with hickory clubs that were graciously provided by local collector Chris Homer. I should also mention that Chris was instrumental in organizing a 10-day hickory golf event on the Plains of Abraham to celebrate Quebec City’s 450th birthday!
After a horrendous practise round, Chris consoled me when he said that “every hickory club has its own personality. You have to get to know them individually” but it wasn’t until our official starter Allan Crow, placed his hand on my shoulder and told me “low and slow laddie, low and slow” that I finally caught on. It also didn’t take me long to learn how to hit a bump-and-run shot since nothing would hold on those Scottish greens.
Green Miles – Wales Golf Courses Live Up….Travel Life Magazine
Green Miles – WELSH COURSES LIVE UP TO THE COUNTRY’S WORLD-CLASS REPUTATION
By Dave Finn as published on pages 60 and 61 in the Summer 2017 Issue of Travel Life Magazine
Croeso i Gymru (Kroy-sore ee Gum-ree) – Welcome to Wales
It’s hard to imagine that Wales was once voted the Undiscovered Golf Destination of the World, but no more – the secret is out! After hosting the Ryder Cup at the Celtic Manor in 2010 and The Senior Open Championship at Royal Porthcawl in 2014, quiet Wales has asserted itself as a world-class golf destination and yet, it remains the place to go if you’re seeking an unspoiled, unpretentious, unhurried golf vacation.
Escaping from the hustle and bustle of London, it took us slightly over two hours to reach the Wye Bridge and cross over into Chepstow, home to what is considered the oldest surviving stone castle in Britain and our first stop in in Wales. Shortly after crossing the border we found ourselves driving through the 400-acre, former deer park that surrounds the St. Pierre Marriott Hotel and Golf Club, a Marriott unlike any I’ve stayed at before. Impressive was the word that sprang to mind when we first saw the 14th-century manor house and 11th century church that sits at the heart of this resort. Within minutes, we were escorted to our room overlooking the 9th green and the 10th tee box of the ‘new’ course, and I felt like we had ‘arrived’.
Tee & Sea – Royal Porthcawl Golf Club Wales
Porthcawl, Wales – On July 24th Wales will welcome their first ever major golf Championship when the 2014 Senior Open takes place at the Royal Porthcawl Golf Club. Wales has hosted many national and international events including the Walker Cup, four European Tour Welsh Classics and The Amateur Championship six times, but a Major has always eluded them, until now.
Porthcawl dates back to 1891 and comes with a fine pedigree. It is currently ranked #1 in Wales and #86 in the world according to the Top 100 Golf Courses of the World. From the clubhouse, you can see the beachfront views to the south and across the Swansea Bay to the rugged coastline of the Gower Peninsula to the northwest.