A few photos from our Puerto Rico golf vacation!

Two golf carts enjoying the day and the scenery at the 12th hole at Palmas Del Mar Golf Club

Members of our fivesome (?) on the 12th hole at the exquisite Palmas del Mar Golf Club include (from left to right):  Steve Ellis, Federico Diner, Stacy Solomon, Barry Solomon and Rob Hayashida

On board the exquisite Dinamar Yacht after a great lunch at the Yacht Club at Palmas Del Mar.

 There were so many great picture opportunities for Bahia Golf and Beach Resort (an ecological wonder) that I have selected a few here and will post the remainder on Flickr. A St. Regis Hotel is currently being built on the property (opening October 2010) and will only stand two stories high with great views and a southern feel!

The Gran Melia is a five-star luxury all-suite Resort located in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico. Views abound and for those vacationers who rarely see palm trees, you will never want to leave!

The pool at Gran Melia PR is one of the largest on the isla de encanta and the Wet Bar serves up an excellent mojito!

So many beautiful aspects to the Gran Melia Puerto Rico, from the Gardens to the Beach. Here are a few more pictures of this luxury resort!

The Gran Melia transforms at night and takes on a very romantic feel. I was told that there is a person who has the specific task each night of lamp lighter for all of the candles within the Resort that cast a magnificent glow!

A Grand View at Sunset from the Beach at Gran Melia in Puerto Rico. 

There are top quality, ecologically-friendly golf courses nearby: Bahia Golf Club, Palmas del Mar (I would mention Rio Mar in more detail but we played seven holes in a downpour) with Trump International PR as this Resort's next door neighbor. Although the Puerto Rico Open prevented us from playing here, the experience was well worth it!)

Delicious food (yes, I do have picture of some of the meals, just ask), sunsets like this and a warm welcome from the staff of the Gran Melia (and El Coqui) make you feel like Puerto Rico is truly the isla de encanta!

What makes the 18th hole at the Arnold Palmer Invitational a Kodak moment?

For the second consecutive year, Kodak selected the 18th hole of the Bay Hill Golf Club & Lodge as a participant in the $1 million Kodak Challenge competition.

What makes this final hole worthy of a Kodak moment?

According to Kodak, "the Kodak Challenge was created to celebrate the beautiful holes and memorable moments in golf."

Steve Powell, Director of Development for the Kodak Challenge added, " Number Eighteen at the Bay Hill Golf Club & Lodge is one of the most historic and exciting holes in golf and is the perfect example of what the Kodak Challenge is all about for players and fans."

The par-4, 485-yard finishing hole looks simple on paper. It's straight away to a wide fairway, but that's where simple ends. The large, kidney shaped green is fronted by rocks and water, requiring a longer carry to the right half. The bunkers left of the green await errant shorts of the hydrophobic.

Tee shots on this great finishing hole must find the fairway to give you a chance to get home in two. From the tee, favor the fairway's left side. Then take enough club to carry the lake. Shots hit over or left of this green will find a bunker or heavy grass. Take deep breath and fire away.

Renovation Notes

A back tee was added to increase the hole yardage by approximately 10 yards. The renovated green is almost a carbon copy of the old green with slight modifications in the green size to accommodate an additional front pin location and middle back pin location.

Despite Tiger Woods' absence from the Arnold Palmer Invitational, it was reported that ticket sales remained unaffected. Although the media questioned whether or not Woods would defend his title (which briefly raised sales for the event) the Masters will benefit from his return.

Look for Woods' image, removed from the top banner of the official Arnold Palmer Invitational web site after the scandal erupted, to be back on the site as the 2009 champion.

This event has now become glory's last stand for Phil Mickelson who has one chance remaining to make his mark this season before having to compete with a hungry Tiger Woods.

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Should golfers searching for a new putter try the Cleveland Classic BRZ?

Walking through to the rear of the local Golfsmith store, the putting green is surrounded by about a hundred different putters. Every big name and style of putter encircle the perimeter from Cleveland, Odyssey, Ping including belly putters, flat blades as well as two and three ball putters.

How many golfers that come upon this area in their local golf shop will walk away with just the right putter?

Some may simply walk over to a putter because of its look, pick it up, feel the weight and then take it into the putting 'green' to see how the ball bounces off of the clubface.

If a few golf balls find their intended target then 'voilà' the putter goes home with golfer to try out on the golf course. If the 'flat blade' works for a golfer out on the course then it gets rave reviews and pitched to friends, family, any one who will listen. If, however, your game suffers and your putts per round increase, that new putter either gets returned, exchanged or relegated to golf bag storage.

The above trial and error is one of the mainstays in which the amateur golfer can tell which putter works as putting is definitely based on feel.

I just received another email from a golf club manufacturer, Cleveland Golf, this time urging me to try the latest Classic 1 BRZ putter, "inspired by the classics, crafted for performance". 

The new Cleveland Classic BRZ 1 putters are designed with a copper infused face insert for a soft yet responsive feel at impact and comes with its very own oil cloth to help prevent oxidation. According to PutterZone.com, "oil cloths are typically associated with high-end carbon steel putters bearing “oil can” and black oxide finishes.

Putterzone.com continued with the fact that the "finishes are much more sensitive to the elements—such as water and fertilizer—than stainless steel or plated finishes. Rubbing them down with oil adds a protective barrier to rust and corrosion."

Great, more work trying to keep my golf clubs in optimum condition.

The soft feel at impact as well as heel-toe weighting, however, may provide interest to golfers who will benefit from added forgiveness.

As it is said, 'it's the arrow, not the Indian' so the question for me is whether or not the reward of placing a new putter in my bag to possibly see an improvement in my putting outweighs the risk? Also, shelling out approximately $100 for yet another putter when my Odyssey two-ball putter does the job doesn't necessarily seem worth the investment.

On the flip side, the Cleveland Classic line of putters have earned best buy honors from PutterZone.com for the past two years and are really great looking! However, with all of the many choices in putters, don't be too quick to grab a putter from your local golf store with the hopes of improving your stroke and lowering your score.

Take your time to research the different putters on the market, find a golf store where you can feel the putter in your hands, take more than a few putts and be sure to ask about a return or exchange policy.

With golf club manufacturers eager for your business, be aware that sales is their primary concern. It is up to you to understand the market as well as your stroke.