Miniature wargaming. I have dabbled with this in the past and have always been vaguely interested, but not quite enough to become fully obsessed. The civil war battle in Twin Peaks nearly did it for me; maybe this blog can. I get to the site and it’s… golf. The name was a misnomer. I’m not sure if my first impressions were those of disappointment or not. Golf’s not so bad.
The design is straightforward. Very green, like the greens themselves I guess. There are two side panels chock a block with links. Golf links. There are the usual archives, a calendar that chips you from post to post. A list of recent posts and comments and a list of post categories which I like. There is also a tip jar, where through the use of Pay Pal and the Amazon honour system, you can fund this golf-athon. I didn’t.
There is an about me section which introduces Mr Retzer and nothing much more except to note another interest, miniature wargaming. Perhaps there is another web log out there devoted to such. However back to the subject at hand, Mr Retzer wishes to become a gizmodo of golf… a Svengali perhaps? So how does he fare?
There is a comments facility, a good use of pictures and links from the posts to articles and helpful tips and advice. He makes an extensive use of the BBC Golf and PGAtour.com sites.
The archives only date back to March this year but I get the feeling the author has been writing a tad longer than that. He covers a wide spectrum of the golfing universe in his posts. He hits the greens, bunkers, fairway and rough in a hotchpotch of golfing related subject areas. His writing style is uncomplicated and effective.
He regales us with tales of his own experience of both playing and preparing for the game. He wants to score under eighty. Good luck to you sir. He also avails us of news and reviews of new, good value and innovative golfing products. There has been an ongoing Saturday serial where he posts a chapter from a golfing related book. At the moment we are being treated to P G Wodehouse. Not entirely to my taste and I do prefer to read books for long passages.
We are also kept up to date with latest major championships news and the trials and tribulations of some of the world’s more famous players. He champions the case of John Daly, a fellow traveller, which I applaud whole heartedly. Some of the historic links don’t work as the links he uses move on to the current tournament.
On the whole I think the author is playing off a good handicap. I enjoyed my unexpected foray into the world of golf. It is a well written and well presented web log. Golfing enthusiasts will love it. A four out of five.