Power Plate

How are Colin Montgomerie and Madonna similar?

The golfer and actress/singer utilize vibration training via a Power Plate machine, whereby a person simply stands on a vibrating platform for an intense workout. The new fitness method utilizes vibrations that transmit waves of energy throughout the body, causing muscles to contract 25-50 times a second.

The intensity has a multitude of  benefits from improvement in blood circulation to a variety of other positive results such as increased strength and flexibility, improved range of motion, decreased cellulite, increased bone mineral density, reduced pain and soreness and faster recovery.

A strong workout can be achieved in as little as 15 minutes, three days a week. Users as diverse as Clint Eastwood, Hilary Swank, Sting and golfers Rocco Mediate and Paul Stankowski all exercise with the new machine. Sting and The Police even brought a Power Plate on their international reunion tour.

“Power Plate is a fast and effective strength workout and I like it before a round of golf because it helps me be loose and flexible,” Eastwood said.

Prices for the machine range from $2,999 to $10,500 depending on the size, range of settings and other amenities. Tehama GC and the Pebble Beach Academy are two of several locations in Northern California that have a Power Plate.

Best Athlete Golfers

Following in the tradition of its best musician and best Hollywood golfer lists, Golf Digest released its ranking of the top 100 golfers from the world of sports. Using official USGA handicaps to compile the rankings, the magazine determined that former pitcher Rick Rhoden is the best athlete golfer. Rhoden has been the “Tiger Woods” of the Celebrity Golf Tour, wining more than 40 events while boasting a +2.5 index.

Other successful athlete-golfers include ex-Green Bay Packer Sterling Sharpe (+2.4), ex-Ravens quarterback Trent Dilfer (+1.5) and retired slugger Mark McGwire (+.7). Among non-retired athletes, quarterback Brett Favre (+.8) and Seattle Supersonic Ray Allen (1.2) are notables.

New York Yankee Derek Jeter’s 30 handicap is surprising. Jeter will likely follow in the footsteps of NCGA Golf Q and A subject (Bluebook 2007) Jerry Rice. The NFL legend, an NCGA member through Sharon Heights, has played to as low as a .8 index after not playing golf seriously until his playing days were over.

Who says golfers aren’t athletes?

Golfer Girl Magazine Debuts

A magazine dedicated to the junior girl golfer, Golfer Girl, published its first issue in the spring. As the women’s game has become dominated by younger players – witness the development of Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel – the lack of a forum for this growing demographic became glaring.

The 72-page premier issue will be distributed at many junior tournaments, including the Callaway Junior Worlds and the International Junior Golf Tour. It will also be given to thousands of girls participating in the LPGA-USGA Girls Golf programs as well as girls attending the David Leadbetter Golf Academy in Florida and the Stanford Golf Camp in Palo Alto.

“The primary reason we did this was to help grow junior girls’ golf,” said publisher Claude Hooton of San Diego. Together with his wife Michelle and daughters Libby (16), Courtney (13) and Chloe Belle (10), Hooton plans on publishing Golfer Girl quarterly.

The magazine has an annual subscription rate of $26. More information or a complimentary copy of the premier issue can be obtained at golfergirlmagazine.com.

Stanford Dominates NCAA Championship

The Stanford University Golf Team won its eighth NCAA championship and its first since 1994 at the Golden Horseshoe GC in Williamsburg, Virginia in late May. Firing an 11-under-par 1,109 in the format that takes the best four scores of five during each of four rounds, Coach Conrad Ray’s team finished 12 shots ahead of runner-up Georgia. The championship capped a strong regular season as Stanford claimed six tournament titles.

Junior Rob Grube led the Cardinal, turning in a six-under-par 274. Grube, a Stevenson School (Pebble Beach) graduate, finished third in the race for the individual title. 

Other team members included Joseph Bramlett (2005 California State Amateur runner-up), Daniel Lim (2005 State CIF champion), Zack Miller (2007 NCGA Four-Ball champion with Kevin Kobalter), Matt Savage and Jordan Cox (2005 California State Amateur medalist). Lim and Miller tied for 15th place, both at one-under-par 279. Bramlett was named to the NCAA Division I All-Freshman team for his performance the entire season.

All the Stanford golfers are NCGA members, either through their home clubs or through Stanford GC. Stanford’s female golfers are part of the Cardinal Golf Club, a new NCGA associate club formed for the team.
The Washington State and Pacific Northwest Golf Associations have acquired a new course in Dupont, Washington….The Running Horse Championship will move to Florida for 2007. The event will likely be played in Fresno in 2008…… KKR Financial contributes $100,000 to NCGA Foundation’s Youth on Course program
 

This article was filed under NCGA Golf Magazine, Shag Bag.
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