The 2020 PGA Championship occurred August 6-9 at TPC Harding Park, but this year it was a little different. There were no in-person attendees at the 2020 PGA Championship. With no fans in sight, Collin Morikawa made the golf tournament even more historical with his final send off to his maiden major title. But who exactly is Collin Morikawa, and how did he make history this past weekend? Learn more about the new golf champ from our golfing experts at our South Florida golf club.
Who is Collin Morikawa?
Collin Morikawa is the 23-year-old golfer who won the 2020 PGA Championship. In 2019, Morikawa graduated from the University of California-Berkeley with a degree in Business Administration.1 Morikawa is from Los Angeles, California, and turned pro in 2019.1 At only 23 years old, he is truly making history with his golf skills.
Collin Morikawa broke records last Sunday, August 9, when he shot the lowest closing 36-hole score. In fact, he posted the weekend with rounds of 65 and 64 being the lowest. Morikawa’s 129 total is being compared to legends like Tiger Woods, Nick Faldo, and Marc Leishman.2 Morikawa has already been compared to Tiger Woods several times this year with his nearly matched consecutive cuts, which kick-started his professional golf career.2
Winning the PGA Championship at only 23 years old has happened only a handful of times before. Gene Sarazen and Tom Creavy were PGA Tournament winners before they both turned 23.3. However, legends Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, and Rory McIlroy were all winners at the same age as Morikawa.3 Morikawa’s six-under-par 64 in the final round of the golf tournament helped him win the number one spot.
What’s Next for Collin Morikawa?
While the 23-year-old has just made history with his PGA Championship win, this is only the beginning for his career. Collin Morikawa has now qualified for the Tokyo Games in 2021.4 He went from being an alternate on the U.S. Olympic team to now landing a number two spot.4
Collin Morikawa’s career does not stop here, and it’s only the beginning point. The 23-year-old professional golfer will continue playing golf and taking each week as they come. According to Morikawa, “I love golf. I love every part of it. I love being in this position and I love just being able to come out here and play with a bunch of guys that love the sport, too.”5
While Morikawa’s career blossoms, you too can practice your skills with our golf membership deals. For almost 50 years, the golf course at Deer Creek has served the South Florida community and beyond with our state-of-the-art golf course. Brush up on your skills by checking out our golf tips for beginners. Contact us today at 954-429-0006 to book your tee time and experience our championship signature course.
To the beginner, golf may seem like a sport that requires many hours of practice to become good at playing the game. Though the game of golf does take a lot of discipline and practice, there is no need to spend hours obsessing on how to improve your golf game. If you are just picking up the sport or have been playing for a while and want to improve your golf game, our experts can share some ways to do so right from the comfort of your own home!
Quick Tips to Improve Your Golf Game
If you are wondering how to improve your golf game at home, the answer may not be what you are expecting. Improving you golf game comes from more than just working on your swing, it also comes from taking care of your body and learning more about the sport. Before putting that summer golf membership to use, check out these tips on how to improve your golf game at home.
Practice Yoga
It may sound strange but practicing yoga can really help to improve your golf game! Yoga helps you to become more flexible and lengthens your muscles, giving you a wider range of motion when you swing. This will in turn allow you to add more power to your swing, as well as control and precision. If yoga is a little too slow for you, try Pilates. No need to spend money on a yoga studio, YouTube has hundreds of free yoga tutorials for all levels that you can do from the comfort of your home.
Use a Golf Simulator
If you really want to improve your golf swing, the best way to do so is to work with a golf simulator. If you are very passionate about the game of golf and want to know how to improve your golf game with out having to go to a course to practice, you can purchase a golf simulator for your home. Prices for golf simulators vary to meet any kind of budget and the set up is very easy to install. Some simulators are just a screen and a mat, others require a full enclosure, regardless of how committed you are to your golf game, a simulator is worth the investment.
Core Exercises
Wondering what core exercises have to with how to improve your golf game at home? Your core is the heart of your golf swing. The stronger that the muscles in your core are, the better your swing will be. Enhancing your core muscles is just as easy as doing some sit ups or planks.
Watch the Pros
Before you try to tackle some of the best country clubs in South Florida, and when wanting to know how to improve your golf game, the best thing that you can do is to watch the pros. When we say watch the pros, this does not only mean watch golf whenever it’s on TV, it means to study the movements and techniques of the best players. Watching how the best players formulate their swings and take their shots can help to improve your golf game as well.
Practice, Practice, Practice
Another great way to improve your golf game is to practice in front of a mirror. Seeing yourself while you swing can really make a difference in improving your golf game because you can see exactly where you are off and give yourself a chance to correct those mistakes.
Practice Your Short Game
When playing golf, the easiest way to pick up the most strokes is to have a bad short game. If you really focus on how to improve your golf game while at home, you will want to make sure you include aspects of the short game, like putting and chipping. All you need is a smooth, flat, surface and a coffee cup or a putting mat. For your chipping stroke, take your pitching wedge into the back yard and perfect the motion and speed of your swing. If you yard is big enough, you can use a whiffle ball for practice, or just get a feel for the swing with no ball at all.
The global COVID-19 pandemic forced businesses and citizens to shut down and go under a lockdown. Since mid-March, Deer Creek Golf Club has been closed. However, as of April 29, 2020, our golf course in South Florida has reopened and is ready for you to play again.
Broward County has given the authorization to re-open golf courses for play, on a limited basis, and under very stringent requirements to maintain social distancing and strict sanitation protocols to ensure your safety and wellbeing, as well as that of the staff. These requirements and protocols will significantly impact what we can do as well as the services we can provide to you and will result in a drastically different experience than what we customarily provide.
To ensure compliance with these requirements, our entire staff is being rigorously re-trained and instructed to adhere to the new operating procedures. To remain open, we must follow these rules. We need your cooperation to do so. On the bright side, you will again be able to enjoy this most wonderful game and the great outdoors as our golf course reopens.
COVID-19 Rules and Regulations
Before you can jump back into the swing of things, please familiarize yourself with the golf course at Deer Creek Golf Club’s COVID-19 rules and regulations listed below.
Clubhouse and Check-in
Players will be responsible for bringing their golf equipment to a designated area. Our golf course staff will not be transporting any clubs or other equipment.
Signage outlining the required social distancing guidelines will be placed outside the pro-shop and clubhouse.
No indoor events will take place.
Clubhouse entrances will be closed with no public access.
Payment will be made by credit card only.
Staff will always wear masks and gloves.
There will be no locker room or bag storage. Only golf course restrooms will be available.
We will encourage only one person in each restroom at any time (signage placed).
Each cart and any rental equipment will be cleaned and disinfected before players’ usage.
All sand containers, scorecards, pencils, towels, or other shared materials will be removed from golf carts.
Driving-range hitting areas will be spaced at least 10-feet apart.
Note: Management reserves the right at any moment to limit play or close off sections of the golf course, including the short-game area or driving range, should players not comply with social distancing guidelines described above and/or other recommendations noted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention.
Golf Course Preparations
Cup Modifications:
The cup will be raised an inch above the ground to prevent the ball from going in the hole to prevent flagpole touching
All water stations will be removed.
All ball wash units will be removed or locked down.
All range-balls will be cleaned, with water and soap, after every pick-up before making them available for golfers. Baskets will be sanitized after each use.
New Local Rules
One player per cart. There will be no exceptions.
Carts will be assigned on a first-come-first-served basis.
Players may elect to walk if they do not wish to wait for carts.
Rakes in all bunkers and carts will be removed:
USGA suggests golfers “rake” with their feet instead
Players will be asked not to touch or remove flagstick from the cups at any time
Any putts that hit the cup or noodle will be considered holed
All players must always stay at least six feet apart; a course ranger or other staff member will monitor player compliance on the course. No Shotgun starts will be allowed.
Walking is allowed while maintaining social distancing requirements.
All golfers are required to leave the golf course immediately after playing to prevent congestion and gathering on the property or in the parking lot.
Food and Beverage
Restaurant entry will be closed.
No sit down-areas will be allowed for eating.
Staff will be required to wear a face mask and gloves.
Beverage Cart on the Golf Course:
Beverage cart staff will always wear face masks and gloves.
Signage will be placed on beverage carts stating that no player will be allowed to touch anything on the beverage cart.
Only the cart attendant will distribute items from the cart.
The beverage cart attendant will place purchased items on the opposite side of the player’s golf cart in order to comply with social distancing requirements.
For players that are walking, the beverage cart attendant will place the purchased items on the ground and the players will pick it up, per the social distancing requirements.
In addition to beverages, the cart will offer a limited food menu.
Players will be asked to pay with a credit card; the cart attendant will wipe down the credit card machine after each use.
Contact Our South Florida Golf Course
We understand there are a lot of new rules and regulations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These updated changes are not only to benefit you but also our entire staff. We must come together to overcome these times and collectively be safe. As our golf course reopens, we can’t wait to see you, from a distance, of course. Call us today at 954-421-5550 to begin making tee time reservations or contact us online.
This past Sunday at the Country Club of Charleston, South Carolina, professional South Korean golfer Jeongeun Lee6 won the 74th annual U.S. Women’s Open and the purse of $1 million – the largest cash prize of the Women’s Open in history. Lee6 – who turned 23 last week – has pursued golf as an amateur since the age of 4 years old, after her father became paralyzed in a vehicular accident after falling asleep behind the wheel.
“By looking at my family situation back then, I thought about wanting to play golf because I wanted to support my family no matter what,” Lee6 said through a translator. “I told my family that I wanted to play on the LPGA Tour for a long time. I want to thank my family, who are in Korea watching me on TV and supporting me all the time. I couldn’t imagine it without you guys, with all your support.” [1]
And, in case you’re wondering, Lee6’s name isn’t a typo – she’s the sixth professional golfer named Jeongeun Lee in KLPGA history. In regard to her surname, her fan club in South Korea is called “Lucky 6.”
During Sunday’s U.S. Women’s Golf Open 2019, Lee6 shot a 1-under 70, experiencing some turbulent moments after starting on a three-stroke lead with three to play to hold off third-round co-leader, Celine Boutier. Lee6 was in the lead by three after a birdie on the par-5 15th, however, received bogeys on the 16th and 18th, giving Boutier a chance over the last two holes.
In the end, Lee6 finished at 6-under 278 to win the U.S. Women’s Open purse of $1 million. The tears streamed down her face upon realizing her victory has made the tournament’s history.
Our staff of golf enthusiasts looks forward to more victory’s from Jeongeun Lee6 in the future to come. Stay up to date with our South Florida golf course for more golf news, tips, and more!
Among the uproar of applause and shouting, Tiger Woods punched his fist straight into the air on the 18th green of the Masters 2019 tournament in Augusta, Georgia. Woods had just finished with a 2-under-par 70 to win on 13, earning his fifth Masters title. The recent Masters victory was Woods’ first since 2008 and the well-informed staff of our South Florida golf course can go into further detail over the memorable Masters tournament.
The Road to Redemption
Tiger Woods has come a long way due to a number of misfortunes in the past. He has endured an infidelity scandal in 2009 which led to a loss in sponsorship deals along with DUI arrest in 2017. Woods also went through four back surgeries, which left him bedridden for an extended period of time and unable to swing a golf club. Surely, with much time taken off for rehabilitation, Woods was able to rise from the ashes to earn his 15th major, just three shy of the criterion set by Jack Nicklaus.
Back on Top
Sunday’s win started when Woods received help from Francesco Molinari, a fellow competitor with a 54-hole lead who was still above two shots proceeding into the heart of the Amen Corner. On the par-3 12th, Molinari’s tee shot never stood a chance as it hit the bank and tumbled into Rae’s Creek for double bogey. Before this shot, Molinari had never trailed into a round that began early in the groups of threes to finish before the storm approached.
Due to the threat of thunderstorms, tee times were scheduled to happen several hours earlier for the final round. Players were grouped into threesomes instead of the normal pairs and the forerunners teed off at 9:20 a.m., allowing the tournament to finish by mid-afternoon.
Once Woods made his final win, he walked off the course exchanging hugs with predecessors while fans screamed his name. Even Tiger Woods’ former caddy, Steve Williams raved about his victory: “Now that Tiger has come right back there again, winning a major championship, possibly putting Jack’s (Nicklaus) record in play again … it just re-energizes the game . . . It’s absolutely awesome. He’s the only guy who can energize the game like that. All those kids who were watching had to think it was fantastic. And so, what he’s done is a remarkable achievement. It’s so positive.” 1
There you have it: Tiger Woods is 2019 Masters victor and we couldn’t be more pleased when seeing a phoenix rise from the ashes. Have any questions about our golf course or our outstanding golf club memberships? Contact our friendly staff at the Deer Creek Golf Club for further assistance.
