John Holmes's blog

Fanny Sunesson, the most successful female caddie in modern golf history, has turned in her bib for the final time. She’s retiring from caddying, and plans to focus on growing her career as a coach and advisor, according to the Swedish golf website golf.se.

The Spring 2013 collection from Tommy Hilfiger Golf is inspired by the preppy heritage and spirit of the Tommy Hilfiger brand.

"Golf represents the ultimate prep lifestyle," said Tommy Hilfiger. "Our golf collections are inspired by the integrity and tradition of the sport. We've added a twist to the classics through an innovative use of fabrics and details, delivering performance, comfort and style in golf sportswear that can be worn on and off the course."

The collections for men and women include three different lines:

The new Idea Tech V4 hybrids and irons represent the latest generation of Adams Golf’s Velocity Slot Technology, which adds slots to the clubheads to help make the clubfaces springier and propel the ball farther.

Escalante Golf has acquired the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, Dove Mountain, company officials have announced. The club will be renamed "The Golf Club at Dove Mountain," and will continue its relationship with the Ritz-Carlton hotel, The Residences and the PGA Tour.

Dove Mountain opened in 2009 in Marana, Ariz., and has hosted the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, the only match-play event on the PGA Tour schedule, ever since.

Rory McIlroy is doing whatever it takes to try to win the money titles on both the PGA Tour and the European Tour this year – and what it takes is playing a whole bunch of tournaments. He won’t be trying it again anytime soon, though.

McIlroy has played 21 tournaments so far this season, and that doesn’t count the Ryder Cup. He’ll probably play four to six more times before the end of the year – meaning he’s on the course about every other week. Next year, he’s planning to knock that number down.

You knew this was coming -- it was just a matter of time: Loudmouth Golf has released its first collection of custom-made knickers.

"Knickers are a golf staple and our customers have been asking for them since the beginning of time," said Loudmouth Golf CEO Larry Jackson. "We finally pushed this product to market because we don't want our customers to get their knickers in a wad."

Several golf ball makers offer colored spheres these days, but the Acushnet Co.’s Pinnacle brand is taking color to a whole new level. When you buy a dozen-ball box of Pinnacle’s new Bling balls, you get four sleeves of three – and each sleeve is filled with a different color of balls.

The four shades – which Pinnacle calls High Optix colors – are orange, yellow, pink and violet, and they most definitely are high in optics.

For most of us wanna-be (but never gonna be) tour pros, playing the courses that the PGA Tour plays is a powerful draw. One place where you can do that this fall is at CordeValle, which has just hosted the Frys.com Open.

Now that the tournament has ended, golfers can take advantage of CordeValle’s Ultimate Golf Package, which runs through the end of the year. The package provides each golfer with a PGA Tour-like playing experience, as well as access to the facilities and amenities at CordeValle in either a one-night deal or for multiple nights and rounds.

When it comes to golf, Branson, Mo., is developing into a mini-Myrtle Beach, with a variety of golf courses mixed in with its wide variety of other family-friendly entertainment activities. And like Myrtle Beach, there are some very attractive autumn golf deals available.

Green fees at most of the dozen or so Branson-area courses easily start under $100 per round through October, while temperatures are still in the 60s and 70s, and some are well below the $100 mark. Here are some examples of fall green fees:

Sad news was announced on Saturday after Doug Brecht, 62, a longtime rules official and vice president of competitions for the LPGA, passed away near his home in Oklahoma Friday night after battling West Nile Virus for two months.

Brecht contracted the virus in Toledo, Ohio, while working the Jamie Farr Classic. He was hospitalized there and later transported to another facility in Oklahoma City.