-Basking Ridge, NJ

Part II

For those who may not know, Basking Ridge/Bernards Township is situated in the Pharma belt of Somerset County- which is also the second wealthiest county in New Jersey.

The Bernards Twp/Basking Ridge area is home to the corporate offices of AT&T, Verizon and The United States Golf Association. Basking Ridge boasts its own country club as well, with an 18 hole PGA golf course.

Ridge High School, one of the best rated in the state was ranked second overall in 2007.  There is no doubt that Basking Ridge is a much sought after, desirable community and a nice place to live- just ask any of its 26,000 residents.

Quick Stats

Bernards Township is one of the most expensive boroughs to reside within Somerset County, as well as the state. The cost of living is 68.66% higher than the national average.

The median house value is approximately $685,000, with median property taxes just over $9,500 and the median household income above $128,000.

The public school budget rings in at a hefty $84,007,764. The cost per pupil is over $11,000 (24% higher than the state average) with a total student cost of approximately $68,500,000. Which leaves approximately $17,000,000 for expenditures. Salaries, vehicles, athletics, etc. A very healthy budget indeed.

The general tax levy in Basking Ridge has increased a massive 110% in 10 years. Rising over 11% annually, (more than double the cost of living) from $30,128,190 to $66,837,438.

The only aspect that keeps the very beautiful and historic borough from being an exclusive bedroom community is the four thousand plus condominium units throughout the township.

Those 4,000 units have a median price in the neighborhood of $300,000. These more affordable options (evidently to the chagrin of some locals) are approximately half the cost of most single family homes in Basking Ridge.

Who invited you to the party?

The Ricola Race has the distinction of being the only professional sporting event to take place in Basking Ridge and immediate surounding area (excluding the Somerset Patriots Baseball team). This alone should be a fantastic draw for the fast-paced, excitment filled event.

You want reality? The race is the best reality show around, happening real-time, up close and in your face. No other sport allows the spectator to get so close to the athlete- while he or she is competing! Cycling offers unique perspectives and unprecedented access.

Interestingly enough the only other two other major annual events that take place in Bernards Twp., are the Far Hills Race Meeting Steeplechase and the Music at Moorland Farms Summer Symphony. Both of which get a lot of attention and exposure from the local media, surounding townships and presenting sponsors.

It seems as though the bicycle race may not be perceived in the same vein as the equestrian, golfing and symphonic events. But a look at the social and sporting statistics of bicycling tells a different tale.

FYI

Cycling is the second most popular recreational activity in the United States.

Cycling demographics cover three areas of interest. Recreational, Racing and Spectator Events. Like most professional sports the race participation is male dominated. Though unlike most sports, cycling has a very large female recreational and spectator base.

Demographics

• Cycling is the #1 fitness and health activity among doctors and lawyers over the age of 40.  
• Cycling is the second most popular recreational activity behind sport walking.
• 17-million bicycles are sold in the United States each year.  
• The mean price for a professional racing bike is $3,500.  
• Household income for 45-49 year old licensed racers. ($95,940)

  Source: Simmons, MRI, USA Cycling Membership, Bicycling Magazine

There is no doubt that the sport of cycling is very popular and attracts a wide array of participants who take part in one way or another.

Since it was first put online, sport betting has increasingly become a popular betting sport for online gamblers. Sports betting is actually done by putting a wager on the gamblers predicted result of a sport. Sports involved in online sports gambling simply are almost all sporting events being shown online like the Major League Baseball (MLB), basketball’s NBA, football’s NFL and many other important sports such as hockey, soccer, etc. Sports betting can be done through the sports betting lines made available by a huge number of websites that can be accessed through the internet. No need to go to Las Vegas, since sports betting is not allowed in most states but Nevada. You only need a computer and an internet access and you are already on your way to a possible lucrative livelihood.

Online sports betting lines are one-stop-shops not only for sports bettors but also for other gambler who may prefer to play poker, horse betting and other casino games. A sports betting lines for MLB NBA, NFL, PGA, US Open, etc. do not only act as a sportsbook but also gives many important information that a bettor may need in deciding on his bets. These sports betting lines even offer cash bonuses, discounts, rewards and other incentives to its new and loyal subscribers. They also allow for user friendly sites that makes it easy for the bettor to know what to do or which icons or buttons to click to go top their desired pages. Most sports betting lines accept all types of credit cards for gamblers to fund their accounts. Some of the sports betting options found in a sports betting line are the Live In-Game Betting, Cross Sport Parlay Bets, Up to 10 Point Teaser Bets, Unique Exotic Wagers, Hundred of Daily Pros, If Win and If Action Bets and a whole lot more. A sports betting menu would consist of sports odds feed, live sports odds, sportsbook demo, banking services, handicapping tools, parlay calculator, news releases, sportsbook affiliates, house rules, free sports statistics and many more useful information.

Success came early to Nicklaus when he carded 51 in the first nine holes he ever played and won the Scioto Club Juvenile Trophy at the age of ten. At the age of twelve he won the Ohio State Junior Championship and continued to win this tournament for the following five years from 1952 to 1956. Aged seventeen he qualified for the US Open for the first time and at the age of twenty he came runner-up to Arnold Palmer in the US Open by two strokes and in the process established a record 282 for an amateur entry.

Since joining the PGA Tour in 1962 he has established himself as the most successful golfer ever. His impressive array of Professional Titles include 6 Masters (1963, 1965, 1966, 1972, 1975, 1986), 5 PGA Championships (1963, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1980), 4 US Open Titles (1962, 1967, 1972, 1980) and 3 British Opens (1966, 1970, 1978). He won on his debut in the US Senior Tour (over-50) in 1990 and continued to win the title. He is the only player in history to have won each of the games majors at least twice and is the only player to have completed the career “Grand Slam” on both the regular and senior tours.

Arguably his finest hour in golf came in 1986 when he won the Masters by playing the last 10 holes in seven under par. He was then aged 46 and regarded by many as “past it”. In summary his major championship statistics comprise of 20 wins, 19 second place and 9 third place which is a truly remarkable career history.

Jack Nicklaus has also enjoyed huge success as a Golf Course Architect and has gained a number of honours in this field including: Architect of the Year 1993 (Golf World), Environmental Recognition Awards 1996 (John James Audubon-Links Magazine), Environmental Leaders in Golf Award 1998 (Golf Digest), ING Achievement in Golf Course Design 2000-2001 (International Network of Golf), Donald Rossi Award 2001 (Golf Course Builders Association of America) and the Donald Ross Award 2001 (American Society of Golf Course Architects). He has been involved in the design of 243 courses worldwide, some of the highest calibre including Muirfield Village and Glen Abbey. His business “Nicklaus Design” has 294 courses open for play around the world.

Jack Nicklaus played his 38th and final British Open in 2005 and to commemorate his incredible career achievements the Royal Bank Of Scotland issued a £5 Bank Note bearing his image and recognising his Open Championship victories at St Andrews in 1970 and 1978. Two million Jack Nicklaus Bank Notes were issued into circulation in Scotland on July 14th 2005, the first day of the Open Championship. Apart from Her Majesty The Queen and the late Queen Mother, Jack Nicklaus is the only living person ever to have appeared on a Scottish Bank Note.

In November 2005 after leading the United States to a victory in The Presidents Cup he was honoured by President Bush at the Whitehouse with the Presidential Medal Of Freedom – the highest US honour given to any civilian.

Jack Nicklaus lives in North Palm Beach, Florida with his wife Barbara. They have 5 children and 19 grandchildren.

]]> http://golfgamesecret.com/80/pga/the-new-tour-swing-the-stack-and-tilt-golf-swing/feed/ 0 http://golfgamesecret.com/129/pga/golf-gifts-guide-2009-4/ http://golfgamesecret.com/129/pga/golf-gifts-guide-2009-4/#comments Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:45:35 +0000 Todd Marks http://golfgamesecret.com/129/pga/golf-gifts-guide-2009-4/ Looking for the newest, coolest off-course and on-course golf gifts, whether it is for your own holiday list or for someone else?  Well, it’s that time of year again for gift giving and most golfers are just looking for an excuse to find the new products that will give them an extra edge.

We have selected some of the newest and best performing products to that end that not only will help your golf game, but are great gifts.

Bettinardi Golf

Bobby Bettinardi, the putter designing and manufacturing genius, has also introduced the ultimate in a belt buckle, now quite the “in” accessory on the Tour. The Buckle is an extension of their superior metal craft from the function of golf putters to the fashion world of golf. You’ll find The Buckle being worn by Rory Sabbatini, Lee Westwood and Darren Clarke.

The Buckle begins as a solid block of high-grade, double-aged stainless steel (DASS) and passes through a series of 12 processes before it can be a Bettinardi Buckle.

CNC milling gradually cuts the metal, creating the form of The Buckle. It is then further honed, engraved, buffed, polished, and hand-painted with an enamel finish.

The Buckle is available in two sizes: Standard (1-¼”) & Large (1-½”). And, like its putter counterpart, can be customized to your taste and specifications, including 3-letter initialing, design engraving, and hand-painted elements.

All Bettinardi Buckles come with Herman Oak Bridle Leather Belts. These high quality belts are dressed and finished with oils and tallows to make them strong and flexible to prevent cracking around punch holes, and tanned, so as not to tarnish the hardware.

Yet, these leathers also maintain their body in use and have very little stretch. All finishes are fully aniline for a natural look, just like stained wood.

Belts are available in black, brown, white, blue, green, orange, red, and turquoise.

Bushnell Yardage Pro XGC Golf GPS

The XGC is the most user- friendly of all the GPS distance finders that we have tested to date.  It is elegant, simple, sleek, and accurate and backed by the Bushnell name.

FYI, Bushnell pioneered the golf laser rangefinder in 1995, and with the introduction of PinSeeker Technology in 2005, quickly became the brand of choice for 90% of pros on the PGA tour.

The unit features a 2.2″ hi-resolution, sunlight readable, color screen that displays an easy-to-use interface for “hole up” tracking, “down the fairway” perspective and scorekeeping and statistics.

Its ability to store up to 20 courses, including custom color course maps, is a definite UPS (Unique Selling Proposition). This simply is a great gift for any golfer but more importantly, it is a wonderful tool that will help your game in many ways, especially for measuring distances you hit with your clubs.

A belt clip and storage case is included and the rechargeable Li-Ion battery provides up to 16 hours of use.

Graphite Design Shafts GDS Tour AD Shafts

We all know that the shaft is the engine in any club. The very best shafts that I have ever tested and what I use in my clubs are the Graphite Design Tour AD – UT shafts.

This is the shaft, that in my opinion, every golfer who is not on Tour should be using, even though Tour players such as Kenny Perry and a host of Champion Tour players are themselves playing the GDS Tour AD models.

GDS has just introduced their new GDS Tour AD D-1 7X this past week and the response on the PGA and Nationwide Tour has been amazing. Players drove the ball 20 – 30 yards further with perfect trajectories.

Both the UT and D-1 models are special orders, and now I understand why they are “special”. They are phenomenal and have, according to my playing partners, improved my driving ability both with the driver and hybrids.

Both of these shafts are very expensive, but you get what you pay for – longer distance and a big smile on your face – $385 per shaft.

adidas Tour 360 4.0 Golf Shoe

One of the most critical pieces of equipment in the golfer’s arsenal is good fitting shoes for the hours spent walking the golf course ( Top 10 Strangest Golf Courses ). Any shoe from addidas comes with high expectations of comfort and performance and the Tour 360 4.0 fits the bill to a tee.

The Tour 360 4.0 contains, within its beautifully designed sleek body, the latest technology in the uppers, insole and outsoles. The full grain leather shoe features a unibody construction that connects the heel counter and 360WRAP technology to the outsole creating the most stable adidas golf shoe ever, while X-STATIC silver filament fibers woven into the lining helps regulate temperature of this fully waterproof shoe.

The Tour 360 4.0 has a new re-engineered POWERBAND CHASSIS that wraps up higher on the lateral forefoot and AdiPRENE cushioning which provides enhanced impact absorption. The shoe features a newly designed and exclusive THiNTech Cleat. This is a great look performance shoe that is extremely comfortable and functional.

Antigua Desert Dry Shirts

Antigua’s new Desert Dry™ Xtra-Lite is a  weightless, light fabric.

The three-dimensional construction is what makes the fabric extremely light without being sheer or see-through. In addition, Desert Dry™ Xtra-Lite wicks away moisture even faster that Antigua’s proprietary Desert Dry, a performance fabric the company created several years ago when it introduced its performance category for golf.

This new technology can be found in both the men’s and women’s lines of golf apparel.

Antigua apparel is routinely tested under the hottest conditions of the Arizona Desert to insure that it meets the high standards of moisture wicking performance.

Not only do the Antigua Desert Dry Golf Shirts look great, but they feel even better. The Proper style is shown in the photo above.

The Whole Golf Gifts Guide 2009 Series

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Golfleading.com

]]> http://golfgamesecret.com/79/pga/swing-whisperers-andy-plummer-mike-bennetts-stack-and-tilt/feed/ 10 http://golfgamesecret.com/78/pga/golf-championships-that-have-most-value-for-professionals/ http://golfgamesecret.com/78/pga/golf-championships-that-have-most-value-for-professionals/#comments Tue, 23 Feb 2010 22:29:08 +0000 Todd Marks http://golfgamesecret.com/78/pga/golf-championships-that-have-most-value-for-professionals/ Golf is an outdoor sport played by men and women all over the world. Annual tournaments are conducted in various parts of Europe and US. There are four major men’s golf championships played during April, June, July and August.

Masters Tournament starts on 2nd Sunday in April at Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia, USA. This men’s golf championship was founded by Clifford Roberts and Bobby Jones in the year 1934. The Augusta National Golf Club has a yardage of 7,445 with 72 Par three holes, designed by Alister MacKenzie. This tournament is an official paid event on the PGA, the PGA European and the Japan Golf Tours. The prize money for this prestigious men’s golf championship is $7.5 million. The winner of the 2008 Masters Tournament is a South African professional golfer named Trevor John Immelman.

The US Open Golf Championship is organized by the United States Golf Association. This annual open golf tournament is played during the month of June with the final round played exactly on the 3rd Sunday. This tournament is on the schedule of the PGA and the European tours. This men’s golf championship was established in 1895. This tournament will be played in June 2009 at Bethpage State Park which measures 1,476 acres. This golf course is located in Nassau County on Long Island. The prize money of this prestigious golf tournament is $7.5 million. This tournament will have 70 Pars and yardage 7,214 in 2009.

The Open Championship is the oldest major golf championship started in 1860 July played in Scotland and England. The tournament is conducted during the weekend of the third Friday of July every year after the US Open and before the PGA Championship. This tournament has been played once in Northern Ireland. The prize money for this men’s golf Championship is $8.64 million. It is different from the other three majors in that the Open Championship offers a four hole playoff for all the participants tied at the end of regulated time and if the players still tie after four hole playoffs, the game continues with playoffs into sudden death holes. The Open Championship will be played at the Turnberry Golf Course with 70 Pars and yardage 7,250 in 2009. This tournament is on the schedule of the PGA, the PGA European and the Japan Golf Tours.

The US PGA Championship is conducted in mid-August in US by the PGA of America every year. It was first conducted in the year 1916. The prize money for the men’s golf championship is $7.5 million. This Championship will be played at the Hazeltine National Golf Club with 72 Pars and yardage of 7,685 in the year 2009. This tournament is on the schedule of the PGA, the PGA European and the Japan Golf Tours. The format of the tournament until 1957 was of the match play type and after 1957 till today, it is of the stroke play type. An Irish golfer named Pádraig Harrington is the current champion in this tournament. When a professional golfer wins all the four major events, he is destined for many privileges making his career more secure and he becomes one of the elite golfers.

But let’s just take a step back for a moment. Is distance the ultimate way to become a better golf player, or are we deluding ourselves because we just want to out-drive our friends. It might just be the latter, and this could be the reason why we never improve to the best of our ability.

The top two ranked drivers for distance on the PGA tour are, Bubba Watson and Robert Garrigus, with driving averages of 310yrds and 309yrds respectively. Tiger Woods averages 294yrds and is ranked overall the #1 player in the world. Bubba Watson and Robert Garrigus overall rankings are #75 and #273 respectively.

I don’t want to bore you with statistics to get the message across, but I can tell you that Tigers driving accuracy is over 10% better than the two longest drivers on the PGA tour.

Accuracy is the best way to lower your scores and you get accuracy from a repetitive, smooth swing, which feels natural to yourself.

We all need to remember as golfers, that driving is part of the game, but not all the game, and that golf shot distance doesn’t win tournaments. It’s the person that gets the lowest score that wins and feels good about his or her-self.

Moving on from golf shot distance, we all need to think about our golf shot management also. You need to know what golf shots to play at the right times. If you can manage your shot selection correctly, then your scores will reflect the decisions you make.

Example:

So I have just drove my ball into the heavy rough and the ball is sitting down with about 200yrds to the green. I need to make a decision on whether to go for the green in one so I can hit the green in regulation, or whether to play down the fairway for an easy chip onto the green, with a chance to still save par. I know which shot I would take, but how many people do I know that go for the big shot. I can tell you, it’s a lot of people. You can often get into further trouble by taking this long shot on and still not be able to hit the green.

This is just one example, and this example is made all the more real when you remember, that one time, you actually did hit a 200yrd shot, from the rough, with the ball sitting down. We just seem to forget about all the other times that we either topped the ball or took a big chunk out of the golf course.

Golf shot management also comes into play when you are within distance to hit the green. Like par 3’s or within 200yrds on the fairway. To have good golf shot management you need to know how far each of your clubs will go. You can only have consistent distances if you have a consistent swing. Keeping your swing mechanics the same for each club, will give you an indication of the distance the ball will travel. There are other factors included, such as wind and what trajectory you are hitting to, but consistent distance is a major weapon on your side.

Just remember that the game of golf can be very cruel, and sometimes having the ball on the fairway and the correct distance from the green, is better than being closer to the green, but in a world of trouble.

]]> http://golfgamesecret.com/77/pga/stack-and-tilt-innovator-mike-bennett-continued/feed/ 6 http://golfgamesecret.com/76/pga/what-is-the-most-important-thing-to-work-on-to-lower-scores/ http://golfgamesecret.com/76/pga/what-is-the-most-important-thing-to-work-on-to-lower-scores/#comments Thu, 04 Feb 2010 03:41:21 +0000 Todd Marks http://golfgamesecret.com/76/pga/what-is-the-most-important-thing-to-work-on-to-lower-scores/ Yesterday I played a round with a Callaway Sales Manager at The Wisley Golf Club, Surrey, England. Our discussions confirmed to me one of the key premises of my mental game teaching.

With optimism, he informed me of Callaway’s latest technological advances in club manufacturing and how they are making the game easier for the average player. “Golf clubs today are very forgiving and the bounce that drivers have in the face means far longer drives, they are getting better and better.” So when I asked him whether he thought that golfers on average had improved their scores since Callaway released the first “Big Bertha” in 1991, he replied “probably not.” This seems like a crazy revelation. Despite all the hundreds of millions of dollars golfers have spent on new clubs during the past twenty or so years, the manufacturers have ultimately not delivered on their promise – to lower our scores and make us better players. So if the latest innovation in golf club design allows us to hit it straighter and longer, why has this not led to lower scores? The most logical explanation is that our focus on the long game and becoming better off the tee, has reduced our focus on the area that ultimately makes up our scores – the short game.

Perfecting the swing and seeing the ball fly 300 yards down the fairway seems to be the most important thing to work on when we are practicing. But results tell us that where we really lower scores is in the “scoring zone”, or within 50 yards. PGA Tour players only hit an average of 64% of greens (roughly 2 in 3). But the fact is they get up and down almost all of the time. This is because they know the importance of practicing the short game and developing touch and feel on and around the greens. This is what I teach my students through my coaching and the Golf State of Mind mental game audio session .

So even if we were good enough to hit the ball straight enough to hit the PGA Tour average in greens in regulation (GIR), we would still have to get the ball up and down a minimum of 6 times a round. If we have not practiced this area, we are going to have a hard time doing so.

The closer you get to the hole, the more mental the game becomes. The short game is about experimentation, visualization and feel. We need to ingrain the feelings associated with different shots in our practice, so that we can rely instinctively on them when we are on the course. The number of possible shots you can have around the green is infinite. You are rarely faced with the same shot. It is important to practice from a complete variety of lies and distances. Practice opening and closing the club face and moving the ball around in your stance. See how the ball releases out of different lies. Start to visualize and feel shots. Pick targets to aim at on the green and have the ball roll over. The key is to have a very clear picture of the shot you want to hit and start to learn the feelings associated with that shot.

Putting could be considered an almost pure mental game. If you can learn to hit the ball out of the center of the putter, the rest is about visualization and feel. You need to see the ball follow a line and disappear into the hole. Always commit to a line, whether you think it is the right one or not. The more you practice a visualization and feel routine when putting, the more you can rely on these senses and score better on the golf course.

The short game is where we are rewarded most for our practice, more so than on the driving range. If we want to lower our scores we have to spend more time learning this part of the game. Instead of hitting a bucket of balls on the driving range, go and use the chipping green. With more practice like the session I have described above, you will heighten your senses and give you greater confidence in your ability in the scoring zone.

For more information on how you can learn mental techniques to improve your game every time to you play or practice, please visit www.golfstateofmind.com