Before arriving in Scotland, Carnoustie was one of those courses I’d heard extremely mixed reactions about. On the one hand, it’s held the Open Championship multiple times, including most recently in 2018. John who has played all of the Top 100 Courses in the World ranked it was one of his very favorite courses – noting that it has one of the best finishing stretches in golf, as well as the best greens (alongside Augusta National). That’s saying something. Others have referred to it as the most “homely” of all the open courses. I’d heard that it wasn’t scenic, and…
Author: Sean Ogle
Sean Ogle
As the Founder of Breaking Eighty Sean has spent the last 10+ years reviewing the best golf products and golf courses in the world. He prides himself on only writing about products and courses he's experienced first hand, and helping others find exactly what they need to enhance their enjoyment of the game we all love so much.
I still remember the first time I saw a PuttView green. It was at a Top Golf studio in Atlantic City. PuttView technology essentially allows you to project anything you want onto an indoor green. For instance, the most common use is it will display your ideal line, with breaks and everything directly on your putting surface. This particular one was especially impressive, as it was a movable green. It could replicate famous breaks and putts from different greens across the world. And then if you wanted it to, it would show you the line. Imagine the putting aid from a…
An excellent “poor man’s Trackman”, or a poor attempt to be useful?
Over the last few years, there’s been a whole new product niche coming to market: the golf Bluetooth speaker. It’s becoming much more common to have some music on the golf course, and these are speakers that cater specifically to that. Some include magnets that attach to a golf cart, hooks to attach to a golf bag, and others have apps that pair with the speaker to give you distances to greens and hazards. The latest foray into this market comes in the form of the Blue Tees Player speaker. Blue Tees is most well known for their rangefinders, specifically…
There are few places I’ve played golf that carry the weight of Winged Foot Golf Club. Upon driving down the driveway for the first (or second) time my palms were a little sweaty. Sure, I was nervous about embarrassing myself (or my host), but more than anything I was just unbelievably grateful to have a chance to play two courses that to me represented the perfect marriage between championship golf, history, and architecture. In this post I’m going to share my experience in playing both the East and the West Courses at Winged Foot. I first played each of them…
When someone mentions the Ritz-Carlton, you likely get a certain image in your mind. For me? It’s the oceanfront Half Moon Bay Resort, or the towering Hong Kong Ritz Carlton. But you know what doesn’t come to mind (or at least didn’t until recently)? A sprawling summer camp-like resort on a manmade lake about halfway between Atlanta and Augusta, Georgia. But that’s exactly where you’ll find the Ritz-Carlton Reynolds Lake Oconee Resort. And while being from the west coast, this wasn’t the Ritz at the top of my radar of places to visit, I sure am glad I did. In this review,…
I’ll be the first to admit that before landing in Alberta for a week long golf trip, I wasn’t overly familiar with the golfing landscape in the region. In my mind there was Banff Springs, and well, everything else. What I wasn’t prepared for was just how spectacular, and unique, each of the courses near Banff, Canmore, and Jasper would be. Canmore Golf and Curling Club felt like an old school throw back that was similar to a course I might play back home in Portland – oh, except for the killer mountain views. At Jasper Park Lodge you feel…
Update: Unfortunately Nirwana Golf Club is now permanently closed. It’s too bad, as the beautiful setting and fun routing made it the best course in Bali while it was open. This was original written in October 2011. Before I even set foot in Bali, I knew I wanted to play at least one round of golf. Bali isn’t necessarily known as a world class golfing destination, but after I first heard about Nirwana Golf Club, there was absolutely no doubt in my mind that I would need to play it. You see normally I’m a bogey golfer who is perfectly…
It’s fitting that my first post about golf in the Canadian Rockies is about Banff Springs Golf Club. Why? Because for most people that aren’t from Alberta, this is the course that’s going to most likely get them to come in the first place. Banff Springs is a 1928 Stanley Thompson design, and it’s one of the most famous courses in Canada. It’s home to one of the most famous holes in golf, the par 3, 4th hole – dubbed the Devil’s Cauldron. To put it simply, Banff Springs is the single most spectacular setting for golf I’ve ever played. More than…
For my first visit to Shanghai, I knew I wanted to stay someplace special. We were going to be there for 4 nights, so figured we’d stay at 2 different places to have a couple unique experiences while in the City. For our first two nights we opted for the Banyan Tree Shanghai, or the “Banyan Tree on the Bund” as they call it. I’d never actually stayed at a Banyan Tree before, but after seeing photos of their “Bund Oasis” rooms with a pool in the room, I was immediately intrigued. When I booked they didn’t have any available during the…