Some things never change, they are simply transformed in the next era.

That is exactly what has happened at La Costa where the final touches of a $50 million renovation by owner KSL Resorts are being completed.

That's on top of an earlier $150 million upgrade.

Needless to say, La Costa has reinvented herself into the impressive, sophisticated, all-encompassing resort of the future.

Whether you are visiting as a single, a couple, a family or a corporation, everything is there for you at La Costa.

Not too far from Los Angeles or too close to San Diego, this is a special place.

Redesigned and well-appointed guest rooms, suites and villas are your new home.

The family friendly Bistro Legends and the signature Blue Fire Grill are two highly-acclaimed restaurants. The Diversions Sports Bar is another dining option, as well as outside pool and spa cafes.

The Coastal Events Center has 110,000 square feet of flexible meeting and banquet space, while the Coast Costa Del Sol Ballroom is the largest in North San Diego County.

With two championship golf courses, 17 clay and hard surface tennis courts and one of the best spas in the world, once you come on site you will never want to leave.

Plus, there is Splash Landing waterslides, Kidtopia children's programs and the Vibz Game Lounge for kids of all ages. La Costa is a guaranteed better experience for your kids than any cruise ship that you have ever been on.

Shopping is abundant and unique with Coastal Dunes and Audrey's Closet to explore. The golf and tennis shops carry all the top brands and are well stocked.  

La Costa has a village atmosphere that is well accentuated with three large water fountains, majestic palm trees and an ambiance of restorative peace and tranquility.

Fire atop the water fountains once the sun sets brings additional warmth to a serene setting.

Her Las Vegas desert heritage and Hollywood flair seem to be present as the gentle breezes of the not too distant Pacific Ocean envelop you in a sense of well being.

Golf, namely professional golf, came to La Costa from the desert for the first time in 1969 and stayed for the next 30 years.

Like the resort, known as "the best of the best," the golf tournament's mission was to determine "the champion of the champions."

Gary Player won the first Tournament of Champions at La Costa, and Phil Mickelson in 1988 won the last, both for their second time.

In between, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson won it three times on the famed original 1965 Dick Wilson designed "tournament" course.

Lanny Wadkins, Steve Elkington and Tom Kite also won the prestigious event at La Costa.

Johnny Miller's triumph there in 1974 was one of eight PGA TOUR victories that year, the year after a Sunday 63 won him the U.S. Open at Oakmont CC.

Tiger Woods won in 1998 when it was known as the Mercedes Championship.

As Player said in his inaugural win, "this is golf."

Golf continued at La Costa in 1999 with the very first World Golf Championship.

Never before in the history of the game had the world's best 64 golfers come together and compete in head-to-head single elimination match play to determine the best golfer in the world.

In the premier event, Jeff Maggert beat Andrew Magee and won $1 million in a 36-hole final that went two extra holes.

The next year, Darren Clarke showed early signs of his recent Open brilliance by defeating Tiger Woods in the final match 4&3.

The WGC Match Play continued at La Costa through 2006, with the exception of 2001 when it went down under to Australia.

La Costa is located near the childhood backyards of Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods. Like San Diego, Phil is closer, but Tiger enhanced his legacy at nearby Torrey Pines with a Monday playoff over Rocco Mediate in one leg in the 2008 U.S. Open.

Tiger also owns the modern golfing legacy at La Costa.

Woods won back-to-back WGC Match Play Championships in 2003 and 2004.

Who can forget the "9&8" drubbing Tiger put on Stephen Ames in a first round match in 2006? Mind you it was an 18-hole match. Mathematically, only "10&8" could have been worse for the outspoken Ames.

Remember the 6-iron to 10 inches in 1998 on the par-3 16th hole to beat Tom Lehman in the first hole of a sudden-death playoff?   

In 2010, golf came back to La Costa with South Korea's Hee Kyung Seo winning the season-opening LPGA event by six strokes.

The LPGA will be back in 2012 with the Kia Classic in mid-March.

With 45 years of tradition and a superb renovation of 18 holes of championship golf now called the Champions Course, who knows what the future of hosting professional golf tournaments will be for La Costa?

All that is known is that the Resort, Spa and Golf at la Costa have been transformed into the next era and are ready for your visit and the perpetuation of professional golf championships.

Damian Pascuzzo and Steve Pate formed 2P Pascuzzo & Pate Golf Course Design in 2006.

Pascuzzo worked for and became a partner with famed designer Robert Muir Graves right out of college.

The John Goodman look alike brought in Jeffrey Brauer out of Texas to assist with the La Costa project. Both architects, like Graves, are past Presidents of the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCS).

Steve Pate, a veteran of 553 PGA TOUR events and a winner of six, finished in the Top Ten of two majors this year as a rookie on the Champions Tour.

A California native and UCLA graduate, Pate's biggest career victory came in 1988 when he opened with a pair of 66s and won the MONY Tournament of Champions at La Costa.

To say La Costa is a special place for Pate is probably an understatement as it was also the place where he came as a child to see his first professional golf tournament.

Pate's most recent win came last year on the Nationwide Tour in Columbia as he prepared for his May Champions Tour debut.

Needless to say, the design team to renovate La Costa was superb!

Interestingly, the scope of the project was not a renovation of the original Dick Wilson "tournament" 18.

Instead, the scope was to renovate the North Course- the original Dick Wilson tournament front nine and the back nine added by his design partner Joe Lee in 1984.

With new Bent grass greens, the upgraded holes can no longer be combined into a tournament course with the original Bermuda greens.

No longer the North Course, it is now known as the "Champions' Course."

Also renovated were four holes of the South Course where Lee added the front nine to Wilson's tournament back nine in 1973.

The four South holes renovated were the first and last of each nine, all clearly visible from the elevated resort and clubhouse area.

The project significantly improved water flow and drainage of both golf courses by raising fairways and dredging lakes.

Playability under all weather conditions is a key criteria for hosting professional golf tournaments.

Even in Southern California where the song goes that it seems like it never rains but when it does it pours man it pours.

The exciting part of the golf course renovations were the changes to the routing and the bunkers.

The 16th is now a dramatic short par-4 with the green perched out into a lake. This is the ultimate risk-and-reward hole with sand and water hazards guarding the reachable green.

The par-3 17th was shortened from a middle/long iron to a relatively short iron, an 8-iron for this amateur golfer. With an elevated tee, a lake to carry and a shallow green, this hole like the 16th is simply fun to play.

Fairway bunkers that originally were opposite one another in the landing area are now strategically staggered and very appealing from mostly elevated teeing grounds.

The design team used historical deception techniques such as a hidden fairway between seemingly connected bunkers and oversized distant bunkers that appear to be in play but are not unless you are Tiger Woods. This makes for an engaged golfing experience at The Next La Costa that is here now for you to enjoy.

The upgraded green complexes are difficult yet fair to play and incorporate all the latest design techniques and course setup features such as run-off areas and tight and guarded hole locations to test your short game finesse.

The classical uphill par-5 6th  hole is now a fairer hole to play with visible and built up landing and layup areas.

This is a golf course that fits your eye with dramatic, magnificent elevated tee shots on par-4 holes Nos. 1, 7, 10, and 13, the par-5 11th and the par-3 16th.

Pascuzzo and Pate, along with Brauer, took two nines built years apart and created a unique and special flow of a golf course as it meanders through canyons to the north and then comes gently back to the resort.

There is no higher acclaim for a golf course than for it to be in tune with the land it is built upon. This graceful feeling is there for all to experience on the Champions Course at La Costa.

My only recommendation is not addressed to the golf course or resort renovation but rather to the LPGA's decision to play the March 2012 Kia Classic on the South Course rather than the newly christened Champions' Course.

While it is understood that the South is more central to the resort and convenient for the patrons and contains the famous "Longest Mile" finish, the Champions Course is deserving of its first professional golfing event.

It's a beautiful stroll to the far eighth  green/ninth tee and an opportunity to view the 40 acres of new native grasses. The viewing areas for patrons are outstanding on the Champions layout.

Granted, there is little growing season even in southern California in the next three months, but the greens are rolling true and fast and the fairways seem free of any lingering sod lines.

Just cut the rough, give it a go and let the girls play!

These girls can play and deserve to play on the best tests of golf, including the newly-renovated Champions Course at La Costa!

Well okay, I do have a second recommendation...let's get 2Ps & B (Pascuzzo, Pate & Brauer) started renovating the remaining 14 holes before Pate gets healthy and too successful on the Champions Tour.

Then we will have our course for professional golf at La Costa and be able to play it, too.

The new and dramatic Champions' holes Nos. 16 & 17 as the tournament front nine with the "Longest Mile" finish determining future champions at la Costa.

One thing for sure is that they got the names right—"Champions" Course and The "Next" La Costa!

Some things never change, they are simply transformed in the next era.

Here are more articles in Golf Writer Andy Reistetter's exclusive "Play-Write" series:

1.   TPC Four Seasons (Las Colinas, TX): Home of the HP Byron Nelson Classic.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/400754-play-tpc-four-seasons-experience-byron-nelsons-legacy

2.   Greenbrier's Old White Course (White Sulphur Springs, W VA): A Charles Blair Macdonald Masterpiece enveloped with the essence of Slammin' Sammy Snead at America's Resort.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/422692-pga-tour-the-greenbrier-americas-resort-takes-center-stage

3.   Scioto Country Club (near Columbus, Ohio): Scioto CC: The Bridge from Jones to Nicklaus and Beyond.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/423359-scioto-cc-the-bridge-from-jones-to-nicklaus-and-beyond?

4.   Orlando's Grand Cypress to Host 2010 LPGA Championship.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/521768-orlandos-grand-cypress-to-host-2010-lpga-championship

5.   Puerto Rico's Royal Isabella Golf Links.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/650676-play-royal-isabela-in-puerto-rico-be-inspired

6. Reynolds Plantation, Greensboro, Georgia

 http://bleacherreport.com/articles/826675-golf-vacation-reynolds-plantation-is-your-destination

7. Golden Horseshoe Golf Club, Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/916526-historic-golf-discovery-in-williamsburg-virginia

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a Spotter, Research and Broadcast Assistant for The Golf Channel, NBC and CBS Sports. He spends time on all four major American golf tours- the PGA TOUR, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA TOUR headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

A lifetime golfer, Andy enjoys volunteering at the World Golf Hall of Fame and THE PLAYERS while pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached by e-mailing him at AndyReistetter@gmail.com

Read more Golf news on BleacherReport.com

We expect it from our golfing idols—to become true legends, they need to do legendary things that matter—even to those outside the game of golf.

Palmer was the king of professional golf as the 1960s began.

With his "Go for Broke!" playing style, he won his second Masters and his first and only U.S. Open in 1960.

Arnie's "Army" and "the charge in golf" were born that day at Cherry Hills when Palmer drove the first green and went on to shoot 65 and win by two strokes.

We loved Arnie; he made us fall more in love with golf and watching golfers on television.

But what did he do next?

The legendary thing—he went across the pond to play in the (British) Open Championship. The pilgrim and golf devotee finished second in 1960, but won the championship the next two years.

All in all, Palmer had 52 PGA Tour victories, including seven majors, in a Hall of Fame career.

Nicklaus, like Palmer, won the U.S. Amateur Championship.

Unlike Palmer, he won the Amateur twice—the years before and after Palmer's heroic 1960 season.

"I am the King; try and unseat me if you can"—this is the childhood game we all played on a hill.

But Nicklaus did it to Palmer on the golf course, beating him in a playoff at Oakmont CC in the 1962 U.S. Open.

The "Golden Bear" was on the loose.

Nicklaus did the legendary thing when, at age 46, he won the 1986 Masters with a back nine 30.

All in all, Nicklaus won 70 times on the PGA Tour, including a record 18 major championships.

Though we tend to compare them, these two legends are truly incomparable and their contributions to the game of golf and beyond are immeasurable.

The names Nicklaus and Palmer are synonymous with charity, humanitarianism and philanthropy.

Along with 11 other golf legends, both entered the Hall of Fame in 1974.

Deane Beman, PGA Tour commissioner at the time, brought the worldwide golf industry together in support of building a more viable World Golf Hall of Fame in St. Augustine, Florida.

By then, 69 other members from Pinehurst, along with Palmer and Nicklaus, were grandfathered into the new Hall as it celebrated its first induction class in 1998—Johnny Miller and Nick Faldo.

Before the time of "Together, Anything's Possible," Palmer and Nicklaus came together and did the impossible—they teamed up to design and build a golf course that would enhance the World Golf Hall of Fame operation.

The King & Bear is another truly legendary act for the good of the game.

Perfectly named, this picturesque golf course opened for play in May 2000 with a Shell's Wonderful World of Golf match between the two golf icons.

Only a few miles from the Tower of the Hall, one feels as though he is "across the pond," as rustic Irish landmark fences lead you to the clubhouse.

The "Walk of Aces" leads you into the clubhouse, where you can see the golfers, dates and holes of past brilliant endeavors.

When you play it—and you must play it—you'll find the King & Bear to be a beautiful blend of holes designed around the "low drawing" and "high power fade" games of the designers.

Holes four and five clearly demonstrate the strategic one-two punch.

Palmer's hole, the fourth, is called the "Gambler's Temptation."

Playing only 309 yards from the white tees, you can gamble, as the name implies, and try to drive the green. The ideal tee shot is a low draw over the right bunker which will catch the down slope and encourage the ball to roll up onto the green.

The three lobes of the green make it feels smaller than its actual size.

With slopes everywhere and bunkers left and right, the green complex itself is the real challenge of this remarkable hole.

Immediately following the gambling hole is Nicklaus' "Fader's Delight," a reachable dog-leg-right par-five playing only 498 yards from the white tees.

A couple high power fades and you will have an eagle putt.

Mere mortals are challenged with water all the way down the right side and the signature Nicklaus bunker in the middle of the fairway, just inside 100 yards.

There is no place on earth quite like the King & Bear golf course.

While located in Florida, this is certainly not your typical Florida course.

The gently rolling topography, the expansive views framed by loblolly pines and old oak trees and, of course, the design itself make it a "must-play" on any golfer's list.

Of course, the other "must-play" is to visit the World Golf Hall of Fame and see some of the Nicklaus and Palmer memorabilia for yourself.

While their own personal exhibits have already come and gone, their presences are still widely felt within the walls of the Hall.

Palmer hosts the opening monologue for the incredible Bob Hope exhibit "Shanks for the Memories."

Nicklaus and his 18 major victories permeate the Hall of Fame, along with unique exhibits featuring his boyhood idol, Bobby Jones.

Nancy Lopez's "Passion, Personality & Pride" exhibit opened earlier this year.

Lopez is the first woman to be honored with her own exhibit at the Hall of Fame, joining Jack, Arnold, Bob Hope, Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson, Bobby Jones and Gary Player.

There are also extensive displays for the newest members of the Hall, who are inducted on the Monday in May before The Players Championship—President George H.W. Bush (No. 41), Frank Chirkinian, Doug Ford, Ernie Els, Jock Hutchison and Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki.

Look for Phil Mickelson to be inducted next year, now that he has reached the required age of 40.

Who can ever say that these two men, Mr. Palmer and Mr. Nicklaus, haven't given their all to benefit the game of golf and society in general?

The King is now 82 and the Bear is almost 71…

Love live both the King and the Bear—inside the Hall of Fame and outside, on their golf course.

Read more Golf news on BleacherReport.com

"Together, Anything's Possible."

That's the tag line for the PGA Tour's charitable initiative.

An initiative that has given approximately $1.7 billion to charities since its inception in 1938.

An initiative with a goal to reach $2 billion by 2013.

At TPC Sawgrass, the home of The Players Championship, a record $5.9 million was raised for local charities this year alone.

"Together, Anything's Possible," isn't simply a tag line with a patriotic ribbon tied around it.

But who is included in the "together"?

PGA Tour golf professionals, tournament sponsors and the millions of volunteers at events all over the country are visible and surely included.

But there are others that helps make everything possible at TPC Sawgrass.

"Beverage cart attendants," or who are more commonly referred to as "cart girls."

In fact there is much to learn about these predominantly young women.

We all know most beverage cart attendants have a pretty smile and an outgoing personality.

What we may not realize is how hard they work.

They toil tirelessly to stock their carts, collect our trash and hustle to serve us in an efficient, exemplary, and personal manner.

After all, it is all about the golfing experience when you play a TPC course.

Marci Menaged, one of the 16 Sawgrass sisters will tell you, "It's not all glitz and glamour."

There are adverse conditions at times- heat, rain and even cold but thankfully in Florida for only two weeks of the year.

There are mosquitoes, bugs and even the occasional raccoon trying to obtain some free food.

Fortunately no cart girls have been hit at TPC Sawgrass with our errant shots though we have dinged a few of the beverage carts.

Bari Bowman, another Sawgrass beverage cart attendant, will tell you, "It's my favorite job… ever… I come in to work happy and leave even happier."          

TPC Sawgrass, like other golf-based businesses, has felt the effects of the 2008 economic downturn and its lingering effects.

Like every other operation at TPC Sawgrass, General Manager Bill Hughes challenged the on-course folks to increase their revenues.

According to Kellie Ivey, who was responsible for the on-course operations at the time, the collective thought was to put on a new community face, build goodwill and impact revenues in a positive manner.

Translation: the likeability factor to the nth degree!

While playing golf, people do more business and buy more things from people they like and admire.

We all know that but may not have realized it applies attendants and their beverage cart sales as well.

What did the ladies, who quench our thirst and satisfy our hunger when we are in the midst of the Valley or the Stadium, do to become more recognizable in the community?

They volunteer as a team.

Teaming up with the acclaimed culinary staff at TPC Sawgrass, they helped prepare and serve dinner at the Gabriel House of Care.

This is home to people who come for organ transplants or cancer treatments at the Mayo Clinic.

As a team they conducted a school supplies drive for the Daniel Kids supporting the foundation's goal of "improving the odds for kids" who are at-risk in the Jacksonville area.

As Tasha Larson, Dining Room Captain and acting On-course Food and Beverage Manager, said, "It's not something we have to do, it is something we like to do…it's lots of fun and rewarding."

All would agree the beverage cart attendants fulfill Bill Hughes' definition of a team both on and off the golf course:

"T.E.A.M- Together Everyone Activates Magic"

Teams like this are the last to be affected by and the first to recover from the impact of outside agencies like the economy.

Another thing we may not realize is what these ladies do when they are not working or volunteering.

Over two-thirds of the ladies are enrolled in college.

The professional golfers who compete in The Players Championship walk past a sign in the tunnel leaving the Sawgrass clubhouse:

"Through this tunnel pass the greatest golfers in the world competing for the right to be called THE PLAYERS Champion."

Only a few feet away the beverage cart attendants drive out of the cart storage facility beneath the clubhouse.

These special people have earned the right to be a unique part of that "Together."

"Together, Anything's Possible."

Next time you are out golfing at TPC Sawgrass have a look at the beverage carts themselves… they are high powered customized vehicles with real rims, not your ordinary golf cart.

Then take a look at the attendant, thank them for their volunteerism, and have another round of drinks to celebrate a great golfing experience.

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a Spotter, Research and Broadcast Assistant for The Golf Channel, NBC and CBS Sports. He spends time on all four major American golf tours- the PGA Tour, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA Tour headquarters and home of The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

A lifetime golfer, Andy enjoys volunteering at the World Golf Hall of Fame and The Players while pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached by e-mailing him at AndyReistetter@gmail.com

Read more Golf news on BleacherReport.com

Dye's Valley of Opportunity.

What is a valley anyway?

This is Florida. Doesn't there have to be mountains for it to be a valley?

Not necessarily true.

Yes, the first definition of a valley is an elongated depression between uplands, hills, or mountains, especially one following the course of a stream.

And there's definitely water in Dye's Valley.

But the second definition makes more geographical sense—an extensive, more or less flat, and relatively low region drained by a great river system.

The nearby St. Johns River is the longest river in the state of Florida.

But it seems like Dye's Valley doesn't drain to anywhere in particular.

Water from above seems to seep down into the sandy soil quite nicely without any runoff to the river.

The third definition of a valley (as provided by Dictionary.com) is any depression or hollow resembling a valley.

Now I am confused. Are we talking about a relatively big valley like the ones you feel off the tees on Nos. six, seven, and eight on the front or Nos. 12, 13, 16 and 17 on the back?

Or perhaps the name of Dye's Valley refers to the miniature valleys, bumps and hollows surrounding nearly every green.

So much for playing "if, ands, and buts." Let's get to the opportunity side of Dye's Valley of Opportunity for you and me.

Well, let's start with them—those that are more proficient at the game of golf than you or me.

Back in 1988, Dye's Valley hosted the Senior PLAYERS Championship.

Billy Casper, a dedicated family man with peculiar eating habits, won on a Sunday in June that year.

20 years earlier, he dedicated his book, The New Billy Casper, More Important Things in Life than Golf, to his daughter Linda.

That cute little girl once said, "I guess Sundays are for mommies and their little girls to go to church while daddies go to the golf course."

Things change in life and golf, I guess—now, families go to church on Saturday evenings and play golf together on Sunday mornings.

When kids grow up and leave the nest, it is time for "senior" golfers to head to the golf course.

In 1989, on Dye's Valley, it was Orville Moody winning the Senior PLAYERS crown.

Moody was the first guy to win consistently with the long putter, or what was known as the" broomstick" back then.

Orville who?

The Army sergeant from Killeen, Texas. The guy who met a Marine from Dallas for the first time in Okinawa, Japan.

Moody then dusted his little Texas brother, the Merry Mex, in the Far East All-Service Championship.

Moody shot a 64 on Saturday to win by two strokes Sunday over Charles Coody and won $105,000.

Another golfer by the name of Gavin Hall shot a 64 on Saturday on the same course on his 17th birthday.

He went on to win the 2011 Junior PLAYERS championship. What will be his destiny?

Hall, one of the top rated junior golfers, earned a spot in the field in the Nationwide Tour's Winn Dixie Jacksonville Open on Dye's Valley.

The AJGA star shot 75-73 and missed the cut by five strokes.

Another Gavin shot 64 in Round Two and held on down the stretch to win the same tournament.

Gavin Coles, the only player in PGA Tour history to earn a tour card for a fourth time this year, won $108,000 for his fifth career Nationwide Tour victory.

Coles, who made $3,000 more than Moody did 22 years earlier, moved to No. 15 on the Nationwide Money List and a PGA Tour card for 2012.

There is opportunity for ranked amateur and professional golfers on Dye's Valley.  

What opportunity awaits us mere golfers on Dye's Valley the day after?

An opportunity to play and experience the same challenge as the professionals faced while competing in a pivotal tournament on the Nationwide Tour schedule.

This was to be no ordinary round of golf.

I was more than excited after four days and nights of Dye's Valley.

During the day, I was assigned to do provide yardages for Golf Channel's on-course reporter, Kay Cockerill.

At night, I would watch the DVR replay of the tournament.

It's fun, exciting and revealing to watch a tournament on television being played on a golf course you are familiar with.

You see the golf course and its challenges from a different perspective.

Listening to expert analysis, you learn the secrets to its design.

Hope emerges even for the amateur that knowing it better, you can understand it better and enjoy the challenge in a more intimate and fulfilling manner.

I was mesmerized by the beauty of Dye's Valley—the shadows in the valleys giving tone and texture to her beauty.

The reflections of the tall pine, hearty oak and graceful palm trees in the body of her waters caused me to see her in another light.

Being on course with the feature and final groups, one realizes it isn't all fairways and greens with putts dropping left, center and right.

Coles's victory came from perseverance, especially on the final day with difficult hole locations and the ever-present, changing ocean breezes.

The 43-year old veteran would hack it out of the rough on 16, then get it up-and-down to save par. A birdie on the par-five 16th  and another on the converted par-five to par-four 17th by virtue of a heroic putt brought him to the 18th with a two-stroke lead over playing partner Jonas Blixt.

Playing the home hole safely and smartly was enough, even with a three-putt for victory by the slimmest of margins.

Could I do this with my own game?

The course setup is there for everyone to see, so it follows that it is fair and a good competitive test.

Gavin Cole commented on the eighth and 17th, both par-five made par-four holes: "It's just a number (they say), (it) doesn't matter how difficult the green (complexes) are."

There are valleys around those greens.

The day after, the par on the eighth and 17th was five.

Were the fairways made narrower for the tournament?

I am not sure, but perhaps the 15th was the only one with a significant difference.

I am not sure if the five-foot, first-cut collars emerged from the fairway or the rough.

I do know the fairways, and especially the greens, were firmer and faster than I had ever before experienced.

The rough was definitely higher.

My latest competitive thought to follow the flight and path of all the golf balls I hit came in handy in terms of search and rescue missions when my balls flew in unintended directions.

Playing the same Sunday hole locations was definitely a treat and added to the re-enactment of a wonderful tournament week.

Skill level and scoring proficiency excluded from the above comment, of course.

I know myself and my location better than ever on the expertly designed golf course.

With two loops in different directions—the front nine being clockwise and the back nine being counter-clockwise, it is easy to get disoriented.

Throw in the relatively flat topography spread out over a very large area, and one is as lost as Gilligan, Skipper and his compatriots.

Which wind direction do you believe?

The grass clippings dropped in front of your eyes, the tops of the towering pines or the overall, predominant and verified wind direction?

It takes a compass to know where you are heading. Even through a valley, there are no mountaintops to see and gauge location.

The results of my endeavor to play Dye's Valley the day after the pros did?

Not my best round ever, though only three strokes off it.

I managed to hit the first five greens, six of the first seven and suffered only three three-putts.

The driver got me into trouble on three holes—way left on six, ditto on eight and water right on No. 10.

With only five fairways hit, nine greens in regulation and 35 putts, I would keep my day job if I had one.

My lone birdie came on the 17th, and it was a score of four-par for them, birdie for me.

It was a magical round on a perfect day in my life.

As one often does at TPC Sawgrass, I made two new golfing friends—two snowbirds named Dan and Bob.

After this week and this round, I also realized I am in love with Dye's Valley.

Now what do I tell the Stadium?

To read more articles in Golf Writer Andy Reistetter's exclusive "Play-Write" series, here is a sampling of five more:

1. Daniel Island Club (Charleston, SC): Home of the Nationwide Tour Championship and the Charm of Charleston, South Carolina

2. St. Johns Golf & Country Club (St. Augustine, FL): On the Road to the PGA TOUR

3. TPC Four Seasons (Las Colinas, TX): Home of the HP Byron Nelson Classic

4. Cog Hill Dubsdread (Lemont, IL): Deserving of a Future U.S. Open

5. Greenbrier's Old White Course (White Sulphur Springs, W VA): A Charles Blair Macdonald Masterpiece enveloped with the essence of Slammin' Sammy Snead at America's Resort

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a Spotter, Research and Broadcast Assistant for The Golf Channel, NBC and CBS Sports. He spends time on all four major American golf tours—the PGA TOUR, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA TOUR headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

A lifetime golfer, Andy enjoys volunteering at the World Golf Hall of Fame and THE PLAYERS while pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached by email at AndyReistetter@gmail.com.

Read more Golf news on BleacherReport.com

The PGA TOUR has their playoffs for the FedEx Cup.

The state of Florida, on the other hand, has its second season starting this week.

Districts, regionals and the state high school golf championships are right around the corner.

The area around the PGA Tour headquarters at TPC Sawgrass has seen more than its fair share of state boys golf championships—both team and individual.

In fact Nease, the original high school in the area, has won a record six state team championships in boy's golf.

Nease is also tied for the most individual champions with five since the state championships began in 1927.

Two-time PGA Tour champion Len Mattiace, while at Nease High School, won the individual state championship in 1984.

Legendary coach Lewis "Bud" Beech and the Nease high school team won five of those six state championships in a seven-year period.

The last championship won under Bud at the beach was in 2001, the year after Bartram Trail H.S. split from Nease.

Coach Pete Molinaro led Nease to its most recent state championship in 2007.

Coach Pete Peaver led Bartram Trail to a state championship in 2008.

Ponte Vedra High School split from Nease in 2009 with Molinaro coaching the new Sharks team.

While for the American players the Ryder Cup alternates years, members of Peaver's Bear and Molinaro's Sharks' teams play in a Ryder Cup style match to finish the regular season.

Last week the Sharks out swam the Bears 14-4 on the Ocean Course at the Ponte Vedra Inn & Club.

What's nice about the event is that all players on both teams compete, with everyone's performance counting.

To keep the format simple there is no alternate shot, only better ball and single match play.

With the regular season completed, the tough part of the season begins with the coaches.

"The only thing I hate about coaching golf," Molinaro explained, "is that the regular season is too short and you can't take all members of the team to the postseason."

State high school rules mandate a selection of five players and an alternate for the three tier state championship season.

For the Sharks this means the season is concluded for Andrew Ullmann, Hanks Massey, Jack Bishop, Matthew Plunkett and Tommy Anderson.

Anthony Scolapio, Chase Berlin, Kevin Slayden and Co-captains David Novakoski and Marcus Plunkett will make up the five person competitive team, with Taylor Funk as the alternate.

Time off from high school to play golf may be as good as it gets for these kids.

As good as making money playing golf on the PGA Tour?

Not exactly, as the student-athletes are responsible for insuring they make up the work missed in class.

Coach Molinaro has made one special request to his school administrators.

In the event that the team makes it to the state finals, all members of the Sharks' team will be able to attend the final day of competition.

Stay in school come Wednesday, November 2, or travel to Mission Hills Inn & Club outside of Orlando for the Boys 2A High School Golf Championship?

Of course, Bartram Trail and the other high schools may have something to say about that.

Let the state high school golf second season begin!

Additional Note:

Bolles Head Golf Coach Rick Root, coming off a runner-up finish in the 1A State Championship last year, is hoping to go the final step this year.

Senior A.J. Crouch finished T7 at the prestigious Jr. PLAYERS at TPC Sawgrass over Labor Day weekend.

As a junior Crouch won his district tournament and shot five-under par 139 in the Class 1A state tournament at Silver Springs Shores in Ocala, before losing on the first playoff hole to Collin Englehardt of Winter Park Trinity Christian.

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a Spotter, Research and Broadcast Assistant for The Golf Channel, NBC and CBS Sports. He spends time on all four major American golf tours- the PGA TOUR, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA TOUR headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

A lifetime golfer, Andy enjoys volunteering at the World Golf Hall of Fame and THE PLAYERS while pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached  by e-mailing him at AndyReistetter@gmail.com

Unless otherwise noted, all quotes were obtained first-hand.

Read more Golf news on BleacherReport.com

Ben Crane triumphed in the PGA Tour's McGladrey Classic on the Seaside Course. Along with the Plantation and Retreat courses, Sea Island Golf Club is a premier golfing destination.

But there is more to the story. Play along with Reistetter as he discovers a truly unique, world-class golfing experience at Sea Island.

There may be five oceans and seven seas, but there is only one Sea Island.

What defines a golf course?

Eighteen holes?

What defines an ocean or a sea?

It gets complicated, isn't it all salt water?

What defines golf in the southeast United States?

I grew up north of the Mason-Dixon Line, playing on golf courses with bent grass greens and Kentucky bluegrass rough.

After four years of living in the Southeast, Bermuda grass continues to challenge me.

How does one play a shot from the rough around the greens?

Why is it harder to read the break on Bermuda greens?

But isn't Kentucky south of the Mason-Dixon Line?

Why does bluegrass, but not Bermuda grass, grow well up north?

Here's the answer to the rub…

Play the Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club on St. Simons Island in Georgia.

Sea Island defines southeast golf… golf nestled in the salt marshes in the coastal plains of the Low Country.

There is a reason Sea Island has hosted the SEC golf championship since 2001.

Sea Island's pedigree goes back to 1927, with Walter Travis designing the original nine holes of the Plantation Course.

Harry Colt and C.H. Alison designed a second nine in 1929.

In 1999, Tom Fazio redesigned Colt and Alison's work, as well as Joe Lee's Marshside nine (1973), to form the Seaside Course as it is known today.

Seaside is a design masterpiece.

The first nine goes out and back in a counterclockwise fashion, while the second nine follows a clockwise direction.

Each of the four par-3s faces its own unique direction.

In essence, the layout complicates the gauging of the ocean breezes.

Red wicker baskets are the norm on the Seaside Course.

The golfer is left in quiet isolation to feel the direction and strength of the wind without the aid of a flag on the stick locating the hole on the green.

The PGA Tour thinks this is unfair for its players, so during the McGladrey Classic there are flagsticks on the greens.

Golfers with exceptional talent and a desire to have that talent challenged have always come to Sea Island.

Bobby Jones first played there in the summer of 1930, just before completing the Grand Slam at Merion Cricket Club in Pennsylvania.

Merion has wicker baskets but no crickets.

World Golf Hall of Fame member Louise Suggs has been a member of Sea Island since 1955.

Whether it is a sponsor's product or a golf club affiliation, Suggs never associates herself with anything other than the best and something she personally believes and trusts in.

Sea Island was the place where the best golfers would come for instruction by Davis Love Jr.

His son Davis Love III heads up a growing list of professional golfers who make Sea Island their home.

Hosted by Davis and his foundation, the McGladrey Classic is a family affair. His brother Mark is the executive director of the tournament.       

Davis grew up at Sea Island. This is where his heart is.

To bring a PGA Tour event to his hometown must be as satisfying as winning the 1997 PGA Championship with Mark on the bag.

Every golf shot Love takes has something to do with his father.

When he sank the winning putt for his first major championship, a rainbow was present.

It was as if his father, who had died nine years earlier in an airplane accident, was there smiling his approval for a course well played, a job well done.

The golfing face of McGladrey is bigger than only Davis Love III. It includes Chris DiMarco, Natalie Gulbis, and another Sea Island resident, Zach Johnson.

While I have been trying for four years to understand how to play golf on Bermuda grass, it took me one round at Sea Island to understand Southern golf.

We all know that the lie dictates the shot.

Play shots from greenside Bermuda rough like bunker shots. Open the blade up, aim an inch or two behind the ball and blast it softly onto the green.

On the green, look for the grain at the edge of the hole cut and play one-third less break than you think you need.

We all know that the truth dictates one's life experience.

Play Sea Island and enjoy a truly remarkable golfing experience!                

To read more articles in golf writer Andy Reistetter's exclusive "Play-Write" series, go to the following links:

1.   Daniel Island Club (Charleston, SC): Home of the Nationwide Tour Championship and the Charm of Charleston, South Carolina

2.   St. Johns Golf & Country Club (St. Augustine, FL): On the road to the PGA Tour

3.   TPC Four Seasons (Las Colinas, TX): Home of the HP Byron Nelson Classic

4.   Cog Hill Dubsdread (Lemont, IL): Deserving of a future U.S. Open.

5.   Greenbrier's Old White Course (White Sulphur Springs, WV): A Charles Blair Macdonald masterpiece enveloped with the essence of Slammin' Sammy Snead at America's Resort

6.   Scioto Country Club (near Columbus, OH): The bridge from Jones to Nicklaus and beyond

7.   Orlando's Grand Cypress (Orlando, FL) to Host 2010 LPGA Championship

8.   Puerto Rico's Royal Isabela Golf Links (Isabela, PR)

9.   TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course (Ponte Vedra Beach, FL)

10.  Sawgrass Country Club ((Ponte Vedra Beach, FL): Original "Home" of THE PLAYERS

11.   Bayonet Golf Course (Seaside, CA) on Monterey Bay

12.   The Golf Club at Quail Lodge (Carmel, CA)

13.   En Joie Golf Club (Endicott, NY): Home of the Dick's Sporting Goods Open on the Champions Tour.

14.   Erin Hills Golf Course (Erin, WI): Site of 2011 U.S. Amateur and 2017 U.S. Open      

15.   Reynolds Plantation (Greensboro, GA)

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a Spotter, Research and Broadcast Assistant for The Golf Channel, NBC and CBS Sports. He spends time on all four major American golf tours: the PGA, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA Tour headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

A lifetime golfer, Andy enjoys volunteering at the World Golf Hall of Fame and THE PLAYERS while pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached by e-mailing him at AndyReistetter@gmail.com

Read more Golf news on BleacherReport.com

Go out and shoot a 64 on your 17^th birthday.

Enjoy a family dinner at Ruth's Chris Steak House to celebrate.

The next day, play strong down the stretch and win the Jr. PLAYERS Championship.

Exciting and priceless, but this is no MasterCard commercial.

Perhaps the world should get to know the newly minted Gavin Hall.

Hello, Gavin Hall.

The tall, smiling left-hander has an unmistakable presence like that of Phil Mickelson.

But unlike Mickelson, he was steady and conservative down the stretch on the renowned back nine of the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass.

Hall started the day with a three-stroke lead over Jim Liu after a Saturday 64 on the "other" Pete Dye gem, the Valley Course.

The next nearest competitor was a further three strokes back of Liu.

Like the PLAYERS, the junior version has one of the strongest, if not the strongest field in all of junior golf. It is made up 78 players, including the top 60 from the United States and the top 18 from around the world.

What looked like a battle of New Yorkers—Hall from upstate Pittsford near Rochester, Liu from Smithtown on Long Island—turned into just that.

It could have been Choi vs. Toms, Garcia vs. Goydos or "Phil the Thrill" vs. O'Hair in the professional PLAYERS.

After failing to get up and down from short of the green on the 9^th hole with a putter in his hand, Hall held the slimmest of leads over Lui at the turn, with just one stroke separating the two players.

The battle with Lui was fierce and magnified with two-stroke swings on Nos. 11, 13 and 17.

After a pair of pars on No. 10, Liu went for the green on the par-5 11^th. His second shot found water right, missing the safety of the bulkhead green complex by only inches.

Hall reached the green safely in two and two-putted for a birdie, while Liu made a testy six-footer for bogey.

After more pars on No. 12, Liu made a 12-footer for a deuce on the par-3 13^th, while Hall played conservatively away from the water and failed to get up-and-down and walked away with a bogey.

Hall's one-stroke lead evaporated on the difficult 14^th. Liu hit a strong iron shot from the right rough and made a two-putt par.  Hall missed the green right from the fairway and failed to get up-and-down from one of Dye's treacherous bunkers.

Liu bogeyed the 15^th after being blocked by a tree from the right fairway bunker. This put him back to one stroke behind as he entered TPC Sawgrass' three water-laden closing holes, known as "the Water Closet," at least to this author.

Liu's drive was only feet from the fairway with what looked like a playable lie. It turned out that it wasn't all that playable. His layup iron shot squirted right a bit and found the water after hitting ground first.

If players don't flush their iron shots coming home on the Stadium Course, the Water Closet will surely flush them down the leader board.

Guarding his lead, Hall once again played conservatively with his second shot left of the green. Though the chip was a tricky one, he drained a 15-footer for birdie to increase his lead to four strokes over Liu,  who made double bogey on the always pivotal 15th.

With the traditional Sunday hole location on the right of the famous 17^th island green, the 17-year-old Hall played cautiously to the middle of the green.

While Hall was comfortably ahead of Lui, Jonathon Garrick playing two groups ahead had eagled the 16^th and was on his way to closing out an impressive four-under 68 and posting a two-under total in the clubhouse.

Hall's lag putt on the 17^th green was difficult. It was flat at first with a severe downhill slope at the end. His first putt was skillfully struck, but stopped five feet short and left a difficult par putt.

Hall made the putt and went to the 18^th tee knowing he had a two-stroke lead with one to play.

He again bailed out conservatively into the right rough, avoiding an untimely flush in the Water Closet.

His iron shot cleared the trees and safely landed on the green.

Having three putts to win, he took them all to edge Garrick by a stroke at the end of a draining experience in his first Jr. PLAYERS Championship.

Hall, in this the fifth edition of the Jr. PLAYERS, joins Morgan Hoffman (2007, now a senior at Oklahoma State and ranked No. 12 in Golfweek Sagarin Rankings), Evan Beck (2008, a junior at Wake Forest and ranked No. 31), Bobby Wyatt (2009, a sophomore at Alabama and ranked No. 37), and Michael Johnson (freshman at La Salle, named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week after being a medalist in team's spring opener) as champions of the prestigious Jr. PLAYERS.

Entering his junior year at Pittsford-Mendon High School, Hall will be the first to have the opportunity to defend his Jr. PLAYERS title.

Hall's win also comes with an invitation to play on the Nationwide Tour in the Winn-Dixie Open on the Valley Course in October, where he shot a 64 on Saturday to set up his breakthrough victory on the Stadium Course.

Hello, Gavin Hall, welcome to the world of golf, TPC Sawgrass-style!

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a spotter, research and broadcast assistant for The Golf Channel, NBC and CBS Sports. He spends time on all four major American golf tours—the PGA TOUR, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA TOUR headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

A lifetime golfer, Andy enjoys volunteering at the World Golf Hall of Fame and THE PLAYERS while pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached through his website at www.MrHickoryGolf.net or by e-mailing him at AndyReistetter@gmail.com

Read more Golf news on BleacherReport.com

Fleck is the oldest living major champion and one heck of an interesting person. Take yourself back to the Ben Hogan era and meet Jack Fleck in the third article of Reistetter's exclusive "Meet Golfers the Write Way" series.

So you think Tiger Woods beating Rocco Mediate in a Monday playoff at Torrey Pines in the 2008 U.S. Open was big?

Go back to a different time in golf and think about what it must have been like for little known Jack Fleck to defeat the hero of golf, Ben Hogan, in a similar Monday playoff at Olympic Club in 1955.

Now nearly 90 years old with 70 years experience as a golf professional, Jack is alive and kicking in Fort Smith, Arkansas. In addition to sharing his love for the game he continues to share his insights into playing golf through his books and website:

www.jackfleckgolf.com

Who inspired him to do this?

Self-help advocate, author and lecturer Wayne Dyer inspired him.

"Don't die with the music still in you," is what Jack whispered in my ear on that glorious day at Pebble Beach.

"I am at this age now and that is why I am..."

Jack was there for the 55^th anniversary of his famous win over Hogan.

I hope to see him again when the U.S. Open returns to Northern California in 2012 at the Olympic Club in San Francisco.

It wasn't "one fleck and you're gone" with this man, the Jack of all Flecks.

Fleck won twice more on tour and then two times on the Senior Tour.

When Arnold Palmer shot that final round 65 to beat Nicklaus by one stroke at Cherry Hills in the 1960 U.S. Open, he beat Jack Fleck by two strokes.

In fact, he played and beat Palmer by three strokes for the first 36 holes and told Palmer "to relax" a bit going into the final 36 holes on Saturday.

That's golf and life, I guess. You compete, you want to win but you also want to win and beat your opponents when they are playing their best golf, so helping the enemy is considered par for the course in golf.

Fleck told me an interesting story whereby Ben Hogan actually helped him beat Hogan in the 1955 U.S. Open.

At the St. Petersburg Open earlier that year in Florida, Fleck came across Skip Alexander, the club pro with possibly the first set of Hogan irons.

The clubs didn't match one of Skip's customers.

Fleck asked if he could see them and even offered to pay the postage for the return trip.

Fleck loved the clubs and asked Skip if Hogan would be interested in making some clubs for him.

The response was "don't bother Hogan," but he did anyways.

He wrote Hogan a letter and the response came back for Fleck to "send in his specs."

Then Hogan made two wedges for Fleck—one called an Equalizer Wedge and the other a Sand Iron.

Hogan personally delivered the two wedges to Fleck on Saturday before the practice rounds at Olympic Club.

So Hogan actually equipped his competitor with the latest and greatest technology at the time, and Fleck beat Hogan with Hogan's own wedges.

Fleck became the first player to play Hogan's clubs.

Their relationship was based, as so many in golf are, on trust, friendship and a handshake—there was no contract.

Fleck takes care of himself practicing or playing golf every day.

He came to the game as a caddie in Iowa at Davenport CC when he heard you could make a little more money—way back when he was 15 years old.

More money back then was 45 cents per round.

He volunteered to pick up balls, and every once in a while the pro Tom Cunningham would give him a dollar.

Fleck declared himself "a pro" the day he graduated high school in 1939.

He served his country in the Navy in WWII.

He saved a few bucks and hitchhiked south to the winter tour, heading to San Antonio to escape the cold of winter.

Once married, his wife agreed he would go and play for two years "to get it out of his system."

Something stayed within young Jack Fleck as he beat Hogan in the U.S. Open.

Fleck would tell you it was faith and fate that would help him reach the pinnacle of the golfing world.

An elderly gentleman came into the pro shop early one morning. Fleck was lacquering his woods and re-gripping his clubs.

The gentleman said "I see you qualified for Open, are shooting good on tour, but haven't come close to winning."

"Do you pray?"

"No," Fleck replied, "not for winning golf tournaments, I only pray in times of sickness or illness for family and friends."

The man walked around the shop for a few minutes and came back to Fleck with some wise words.

"I want you to pray for the power and the strength to compete."

Fleck did and while shaving the morning of the Saturday final 36 holes he heard a voice coming back to him out of the mirror.

"Jack, you are going to win the Open."

Jack looked around and again the same words came back to him.

Fleck would tell you "I don't know how it happened but it happened to me."

"I was calm through the whole thing (playing in the 1955 U.S. Open); the Lord had a part in winning that tournament."

Given the growth and prosperity in the game of golf in recent decades, Fleck would also tell you that "we were born too early."

But that is not true; his victories in life were greater than that 1955 U.S. Open win over Hogan.

One thing is for sure…Fleck has shared his music.

If you get the chance drop by his golf course in NW Arkansas that he calls "Li'l Bit of Heaven."

Sharing and hearing the music is a good thing in golf and life.

Other articles in the "Meet Golfers the Write Way" series:

1.   Robyn James, "The Only Women in the Field"

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/779617-the-only-woman-in-the-field

2.   Annika Sorenstam

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/781544-meet-annika-sorenstam-the-write-way

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a Research and Broadcast Assistant for the major golf broadcast companies. He spends time on all four major American golf tours- the PGA TOUR, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA TOUR headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

A lifetime golfer, Andy enjoys volunteering at the World Golf Hall of Fame and THE PLAYERS while pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached through his website www.MrHickoryGolf.net or by e-mailing him at AndyReistetter@gmail.com

Read more Golf news on BleacherReport.com

I have three distinct memories from meeting Annika that day in late January at the PGA Show.

The first is the rock star sort of atmosphere surrounding the interview. A packed Cutter & Buck booth, which was not small until you had hundreds of folks showing up, held the interview with one of the top headliners in golf today.

Getting in and out was difficult for me, let alone the pregnant celebrity mom with her 16-month-old daughter Ava (who delivered son William two months later).

Though the food and drink were good and plentiful, the show attendees were here to get a glimpse of Annika. How many other people do you know that are known simply and thoroughly by their first name?

My second recollection from those 30 minutes six months ago is how much there is to know about women's clothing. I know that sounds funny coming from a man, especially one with 25 years of manufacturing management experience.

In this case, technology, materials and design criteria raised to the 3^rd power is a little mind-boggling to me, but for Annika, it’s a simple layup to the right yardage, an easy up-and-down or a tap-in birdie to shoot 59 or to win one of her 93 professional championships around the world.

Cutter & Buck has been in business for 20 years and has partnered with Annika for the last 10. At least now I know what a "skort" is, and thanks to Annika, I know that "it feels like wearing shorts" to a women but "looks like a skirt" to us men.

My third thought is that all we know of Annika is not all there is to know about Annika.

Since the 10-time Major champion stepped away from competitive golf at the end of the 2008 season, she may have been cloned to keep up with all the initiatives she has going on.

While we think of her first and foremost as a champion golfer, that is only the tip of the iceberg, or as they say in Sweden, "toppen av ett isberg."

Daughter, sister, wife, mother, entrepreneur, golf course designer, owner of the ANNIKA Academy, founder of the ANNIKA Foundation, and United States ambassador for the Make-A-Wish Foundation are roles Annika has filled without a lot of fanfare to the general public.

She is the ANNIKA brand and her statement is to "Share my Passion."

Her passions beyond family include promoting junior golf, improving the health of children, wine, and cooking to name a few.  

For those of you who know me, I asked my fair share of questions during the interview session.

And for those of you who know me really well, my first question centered on a personal perspective and led into a question about my initiative "corporate leadership inspired by the game of golf."

My Christmas present to myself was fresh on my mind. I watched all Twelve Days at the Academy on Golf Channel to prepare myself and my game for the best year ever in 2011.

Annika's tip was the best of the season for me.

She visualizes a three-foot box around the ball and disciplines herself to do all the thinking, analyzing and decision-making outside the box.  Once she crosses the line it is all about execution and performance. She is in the moment, confident and plays the game with vigor and determination.

On the golf course so far this year, this tip has definitely taken a few strokes off my game.

More importantly, her tip has a direct application to leadership and can become a key principle for successful dynamic companies.

One of the problems in corporate America today in the matrix organization is a plethora of ideas, plans and expectations to the extent that some if not most associates are frozen in an unproductive, going-through-the-motions state of mind resulting in subpar business performance.

To achieve successful outcomes, there must be a difference between ideas and plans in corporate life.  Annika's golf tip demonstrates the power of its application.

Inspirational leaders clearly distinguish ideas from plans and designate the time and process of transforming ideas into plans. When done properly, the organization responds and naturally executes the plan in an efficient manner.

Have we not all experienced this government debt crisis gridlock right outside our office and down the hall in the conference room?

My question to Annika from my high stool:

"Annika: I think your tip is awesome and that it can be applied to leadership in Corporate America; do you do any leadership consulting?"

"No, I am not a consultant (but I do) run my business based on experience and my experience is golf, 16 years as a professional and I see a lot of similarities."

OK, this is a "Meet Golfers the WRITE way" article and not a "Corporate Leadership Inspired by the Game of Golf and Annika" article… though I think it could be a new ANNIKA brand!

Next question please…

"Your thoughts on your bid to design the golf course for the 2016 Olympics with Jack Nicklaus?"

The five-time course designer responded that "I have never worked with a player of Jack's caliber so I look forward to working with him and learning his approach."

Annika grew up playing golf with many types of golfers, including her mom, dad, and sister Charlotta. Her design philosophy is influenced by that experience.

"I have the (Olympic) championship in mind but also to leave behind a golf course that is playable by everyone."

Since the interview, a site called Riserva Uno in southwestern Rio de Janeiro has been selected and R&A Chief executive Peter Dawson said at the Open that a course designer decision would be made soon.

I am thinking that these two Hall of Famers would be a good selection and good for the game.

One final thought about meeting Annika is that she is exactly what you would expect her to be. That's not true of all celebrity athletes but in her case her public persona is the same as her personal persona. She is a real person and a natural leader.

What you see on Thursdays on Golf Channel's Morning Drive is the real thing. What you will see on her upcoming "Golf A La Carte" TV series will be the real thing.

A few other tidbits from the interview…

"I don't know a lot about (golf course) drainage but I surround myself with experts."

"When you play you don't want to be ironing (your clothes) the night before."

Her taste in women's clothing has evolved: "When I played (it was) what looks good holding a trophy. Now (it is) what looks good holding a diaper bag."

Annika is tenacious when it comes to the quality, service and promise of her Cutter & Buck clothing line. In golf she would "never guarantee a 68 everyday" but in business she can guarantee you will be a happy customer.

One final insight into Annika: she does not play much social golf these days, but if you happen to be paired up with her:

"I want every female golfer to wear my clothes and if they are not I want to know why."

There are 91 items in the Annika Collection.

Don't be surprised if Annika is a leadership consultant someday.

Make your decisions before getting into the box…

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer as well as a Research and Broadcast Assistant for the major golf broadcast companies. He spends time on all four major American golf tours- the PGA TOUR, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA Tours.

Reistetter resides within two miles of the PGA TOUR headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

A lifetime golfer, Andy enjoys volunteering at the World Golf Hall of Fame and THE PLAYERS while pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached through his website www.MrHickoryGolf.net or by e-mailing him at AndyReistetter@gmail.com

Read more Golf news on BleacherReport.com

Featured Columnist Andy Reistetter continues his exclusive "Play-Write" series for the Bleacher Report with one of American golf's true treasures- the Scioto CC. Having the opportunity to play shortly after this year's Memorial Tournament was a spiritual sojourn for the author. Here is his sixth article in the series including his thoughts on how vital Scioto CC is to what we now know as the modern game of golf and our fascination with its legacy.

Twelve different British golfers won the first 16 United States Opens.

By the time Scioto Country Club hosted the U. S. Open in 1926, only 15 years had passed since John McDermott became the first American-born golfer to win the prestigious title.

Then, McDermott defended the title in 1912.

The very next year, Francis Ouimet did the unthinkable at Brookline CC not only by beating the British for a third year in a row but by doing so as an amateur.

Another lifetime amateur American golfer, Bobby Jones, would win that 1926 U.S. Open at Scioto CC in the middle of the Roaring Twenties.

It was surely a period of growth for American golf, even more so than what we experienced in the 1980's and 1990's with the boom in golf course construction. This was the era for seeing golf for the very first time, and for wanting to learn how to play it.

At the 1922 U.S. Open, spectator tickets were sold for the first time at Skokie Country Club, just outside Chicago.

By 1924, the U.S.G.A. was forced to introduce sectional qualifying because there were more golfers that wanted to compete for the title of our Nation's Champion.

Bobby Jones started his seven year conquest of majors with a victory in the 1923 U.S. Open at Inwood CC just outside Manhattan on Long Island.

His amazing streak of winning 13 of the 20 majors he entered ended with his retirement from golf after his win in the U.S. Amateur at Marion- the final leg of his 1930 Grand Slam.

In fact, that British dominance in the U.S. Open would transition to an absolute amateur authority. Jones himself would win 4 of 8 by the time he was done playing golf.

Beginning with Ouimet in 1913 and ending with Johnny Goodman in 1933, amateurs would win 8 of 19 National Opens.

In the city named for the man who discovered our country Jones would win and go on to do something in 1926 no other golfer had even done: bridge the large pond and win both the U.S. and British Opens in the same year.

Perhaps it was a foreshadowing of what occurred in 1930 when he possessed the amateur and professional titles on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.

In any account, Jones had a dramatic impact on the game of golf, though potentially his biggest impact came though a man named Jack Nicklaus. The link between Nicklaus and Jones began at the Scioto CC in that U.S. Open in 1926.

The man who would take the golf baton from Arnold Palmer and pass it on to Tiger Woods was not even born in 1926. His father Charlie, however, was there at Scioto. At age 13 he watched as the 24-year old Jones won his second of four U.S. Opens.

After graduating from Ohio State University with a pharmacology degree, the man who would later become Papa Bear though the golfing exploits of his son bought and managed several pharmacies.

That success led to a family membership at Scioto CC where less than two decades earlier he was inspired to play golf on the very same grounds by the greatest amateur the game of golf has ever known.

Son Jack took up golf when he turned 10 years old and shot a score of 51 at Scioto CC for the first nine holes he ever played. In those formative years he not only heard stories about the great Bobby Jones from his father, but also other members with firsthand knowledge of Jones' triumph on their golf course.

The inspiration of Bobby Jones was not only responsible for getting Jack started in the game of golf but for what drove him to succeed for the next 60-some years until he retired in 2005 at the Open at St. Andrews.

Nicklaus will likely go down as the all-time greatest player in the game of golf with 73 PGA TOUR victories, including 18 major championships. Even Tiger Woods acknowledged the greatness of Nicklaus when he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the PGA TOUR in 2008.

"No one I can think of is more deserving."

"Your impact on golf has been incredible to say the least and I count myself among the millions of fans who consider you to be the greatest of all time."

"Your record of 118 (worldwide) tournament victories (including 73 sanctioned by the PGA TOUR) and 18 major championships alone is reason enough to receive this honor."

"However equally important are your commitment to philanthropy, your skill as a course designer and your steadfast dedication to family."

"These values insure your contribution to golf will forever be unmatched and make you the man whose path we all seek to emulate."

"Thank you for being such a tremendous mentor to me and so many others."

"Congratulations Jack."

From Jones to Nicklaus to Woods and back to Nicklaus- the light will continue to shine on Jack all because of that bridge formed at Scioto CC nearly a century ago.

Famed golf course architect Donald Ross' prized design gem has a legacy all of its own as a world class golf course. After the Jones' Open came the 1931 Ryder Cup, and then the 1950 PGA Championship won by Chandler Harper.

Bruce Fleisher won the U.S. Amateur in 1968 and Dale Douglas the U.S. Senior Open in 1986 on the course named for the nearby river.

Jack Nicklaus and Mike Hurdzan restored the course to its original Ross mastery in 2007. False fronts, subtle contours and bunkers partially hidden from view challenged this amateur golfer.

Scioto CC is a golf course in which you remembers every hole and every shot, even if you only play it once in your lifetime. For example, the 516-yard par-5 8^th hole is memorable for both its beauty and design. Its island green was one of the very first in America. My birdie on this magnificent hole is forever etched in my mind.

This round of golf seemingly played with the game's legends on a legendary course ended as my 35-foot birdie putt disappeared into the hole on the green of the par-4 446-yard home hole.

Astonishingly for this golfer, the scorecard numbers for all 18 holes added up to 78.

Scioto CC is a fun course to play. Whether you are an amateur playing from 6,500 yards or a pro playing from 7,000, you will use every club in the bag. The course is in as fine a shape as any and is ready to once again host a major championship.

Who knows what bridges will be built, if and when that happens again.

Perhaps lightening will strike twice, and golfers in the 22^nd century will look back at Scioto as we do with firsthand admiration and gratitude for the inspiration received.

When you play Scioto CC,, you feel the presence of Bobby Jones.

The spirit of Jack Nicklaus the boy is here.

Two young lads played behind me with vigor, determination and knowledge of the rules and etiquette of the game.

The spirit of Jack Nicklaus, the legendary, man is here as well.

His Memorial Tournament is orchestrated nearby in honor of all the greats of the game of golf.

Millions of golfers continue to be inspired by Bobby Jones through Jack Nicklaus, and now through Tiger Woods.

Scioto CC is the bridge from Jones to Nicklaus and beyond!

To read more articles in Featured Columnist Andy Reistetter's exclusive "Play-Write" series go to the following links:

Greenbrier's Old White Course (White Sulphur Springs, W VA): A Charles Blair Macdonald Masterpiece enveloped with the essence of Slammin' Sammy Snead at America's Resort.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/422692-pga-tour-the-greenbrier-americas-resort-takes-center-stage

Cog Hill Dubsdread (Lemont, IL): Deserving of a Future U.S. Open.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/406212-pga-tour-jemsek-family-cog-hill-deserving-of-2017-us-open

TPC Four Seasons (Las Colinas, TX): Home of the HP Byron Nelson Classic.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/400754-play-tpc-four-seasons-experience-byron-nelsons-legacy

St. Johns Golf & Country Club (St. Augustine, FL): On the Road to the PGA TOUR.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/301493-st-johns-golf-country-club-on-the-road-to-the-pga-tour

Daniel Island Club (Charleston, SC): Home of the Nationwide Tour Championship and the Charm of Charleston, South Carolina.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/281587-the-charm-of-charleston-the-daniel-island-golf-club

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer. He follows the PGA TOUR volunteering and working part time for CBS Sports, NBC Sports, and The Golf Channel.

He resides in Jacksonville Beach, Florida near the PGA TOUR headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

He enjoys pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached through his website www.MrHickoryGolf.net or by e-mailing him to AndyReistetter@gmail.com

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