OTL PHX Holiday Issue 2022

New York, the Big Apple is a city for all seasons. S. Laird

The name embodies the restaurant’s essence. T. Traverse

GIFTS

The holidays are here. If you’re searching for gifts to give your loved ones or yourself, we’ve got a few ideas for you.

T. Traverse

BOWL

More than just a game” The Fiesta Bowl focuses on giving back to the community. T. Traverse

GOLF

Ak-Chin Southern Dunes is a go-to venue for prestigious tournament play, serving as an annual U.S. Open qualifying site, The PING Southwest Section PGA Section Championship and more. C. Mickelson

FITNESS

Get hip to the best hip opener yoga poses for golfers.

PUTT FOR DOUGH

Golfers sustain injuries. Increasing strength can help you avoid many of them. Charitable Contributions from IRAs.

FOR SHOW

The new Ducati Panigale V4 SP2 easily stands-out from the crowd around the track and on the street.

Edel Golf’s putter technology and fitting system redefines “The Next Level”.

The Clubface myth. It is important that the golfer is educated to what, how, and why you missed the target.

Junior golfer does mre than just read greens. Sadie Westbrook is gifted and talented.

Napa Valley winery spotlight, Flint Knoll.

BUCKS TIPS ON YOUR GAME WINE CIGAR

Old vs. New: Choosing the right cigar. It’s your call.

From the Publisher

Happy Holidays. Where did the time go? It seems like only yesterday we were bringing in 2022. Now, we are about to say farewell to 2022 and welcome 2023.

In a moment of reflection, we are so thankful for what we have been able to do from the launch of OTLPHX to continuing to broaden our readership while cementing relationships with long-time part ners. The future is indeed hopeful.

OTL pledges to give you more in all facets of our publications. As we explore our content, there will be more candid and personal interviews and bigger and better travel stories. You will see in this issue, more remarkable dining experiences. In a recent conversation, a person noted how much they enjoy our auto features.

One thing remains clear, content drives the Inter net and print. As far as content, there is no shortage. Quality content is another matter. Just as informa tion or disinformation, content, negative or quality, all weigh the same.

OTL remains a place to immerse yourself and es cape to a better place.

Browsing through the magazine pages, there is no palpable negative energy. We don’t make that a secret. By the time a feature reaches the page, we have made sure it’s well worth your time. Not that we are gatekeeping, it’s as if your personal con cierge has done the homework and then delivered it to your doorstep.

At the time of this letter, there is an upcoming mid-term election. Rest assured, this won’t be the place to get results, nor will it be the place to convey thoughts and analysis…And that’s a good thing.

We cast our ballot for life, leisure, luxury, and an early morning tee time.

This is the Holiday issue, and we continue to come up big for you with great gift ideas that will bring a smile to a face. Teresa Traverse gives you numerous options to make a holiday memory last forever. From travel destinations to the car with a bow on top of it, before you decide on what to get, read this story for ideas. It could save the day in a big way.

Try to make this a guilt-free holiday. Spend it with those you care about. Give thought to those who may not have it as good as you. But by all means, do your best to make it memorable for you.

Lastly, I wanted to share with you something that has made my life a little better. No matter who we are, we have opinions and beliefs. They both can be fervent and sometimes stubborn. When we are confronted head-on with a situa tion to find that we may not have been right or it didn’t match up with our preconceived ideas, we have a choice.

We can dig in and try to bend the situation into what we want or think it should be, or we can incor porate flexibility and be open to how things actually are despite our long-held assumptions.

The choice is yours. It is a choice. It’s hard. Hold ing on to past beliefs leads to deterioration instead of growth.

Life means growth, deterioration only leads to death.

Life is always a challenge. Do your best and give yourself a chance.

Happy Holidays, see you in 2023.

PUBLISHER

Sedric Walker

ART DIRECTOR

Leticia Galarza

FEATURES EDITOR

Richard Arebalo

GOLF FEATURES EDITOR Carl Mickelson

TEACHING PROFESSIONAL Buck Mayers

PHOTOGRAPHERS Kevin Chin

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Mike Bailey, Teresa K. Traverse, Scott Laird, Jason Hill

Allison Loots, Leslie Stevenson, Art Stricklin, Nicole Pinter, Hunter Hamm, Marc Hall

INTERNET & DIGITAL Mario Rossi

STORY BY SCOTT LAIRD

There never seems to be any shortage of visitors, but it’s during the holidays, when shoppers hurry between world-famous department stores and luxury boutiques and local residents and visitors from all corners take in the unceasing spectacle of the city’s class-oftheir-own arts venues that the city takes on a special energy. Whether enjoying department stores and hotels with their halls fully decked with the spirit of the season, or braving New York’s famously breezy winter weather for ice skating, there’s no shortage of ways to enjoy the Big Apple during the holidays.

ravelers with a modernist aesthetic can take up residence at ModernHaus Soho – part of Preferred Hotels & Resorts. The hotel spe cializes in loft-style accommodations with in a chic minimalist style. Most guest rooms have views of Lower Manhattan and the Hudson River. The hotel’s 18 floor is host to JIMMY, a rooftop bar with a working fireplace for wintertime hygge and a pool deck with a view of One World Trade Cen ter for summertime frolics.

Also in SoHo, the AAA Five Diamond The Domi nick, part of the Preferred Hotels & Resorts Legend Collection, also has languid outdoor pool deck— along with oversized guest rooms with plush fittings. Certain Deluxe rooms have deep soaker tubs with views of the Empire State Building, while many other rooms and suites have views of the Hudson River and the exciting neighborhood surrounding the hotel.

The hotel’s soaring lobby gives all the flash of an arrival experience at a much larger property before wrapping guests in the quiet boutique-like intimacy of calm—there are only a few rooms on each floor, giving the hotel an utterly residential feel. It feels more like a temporary apartment than a grand luxury hotel.

The Dominick is also home to the Michelin-starred restaurant Vestry, where chef Shaun Hergatt turns out seasonal ingredient-driven global cuisine inspired by childhood memories of rural Queensland, Australia.

Across town in the East Village, visitors can dig into Ukrainian eats like hot or cold borscht, cabbage

rolls, and pierogies at Veselka (144 2nd Ave). It helps to go early, as sometimes there’s a line. The nearby Lower East Side is a haven for dive and cocktail bars, including the slice-of-South Florida gem Sally Can Wait (252 Broome St.) where the Pina Colada is made with house’s own blend of rum, and the bites menu skews a little Miami, and a little New York.

Travelers preferring to stay close to the attractions of Midtown Manhattan might try the Lotte New York Palace, which takes up residence in an 1882 mansion commissioned by banker Henry Villard. The Villard Houses served as the historic base for a modern tow er, constructed in the 1970s, when the residence was first converted to a luxury hotel.

The hotel has a variety of accommo dations from standard luxury accommo dations to the exclusive Towers level, a hotel-within-a-hotel with separate pri vate reception, but the hotel is perhaps best known for its 5,000 square foot Roy al Suites, one of which is the Jewel Suite by Martin Katz. The Jewel Suite contains some $1.5 million in jewels displayed in floating cases throughout, in addition to the feature two-story cascading crystal chandelier.

The city that never sleeps abounds in attractions around the clock, each day of the year, but the city often feels like a village, even though it’s one of the coun try’s most visited destinations. Broadway shows often fill with New Yorkers, and

visitors can eavesdrop for a bit of local gossip—even at some weekend shows. The city is filled with art lovers and theatre devotees, and the sense of community is often best highlight ed by visiting a Broadway production like a big, banner musi cal or a dramatic play with notable stage and screen stars.

Sardi’s (234 W 44th) is a Broadway institution, famous for caricatures of celebrities (mostly of yesteryear) adorn ing the walls, but also for consistent continental cuisine that evokes an earlier time – think hearty sauces, starched linen tablecloths, love-worn upholstery.

Off Broadway, at Lincoln Center, lovers of dramatic arias and vibrant coloratura can sate their need at the Metropoli tan Opera, one of the world’s premier opera companies. The dramatic set of theatres surrounding a central plaza are also home to the New York Philharmonic, and New York City Bal let, all of which have programming through most of the holi day season.

Nearby, Bar Boulud (1900 Broadway) is a relaxed Pari sian-style bistro with an impressive wine list, notable char cuterie and a faithful steak frites.

A top attraction for Manhattan visitors, particularly firsttime visitors, is the Empire State Building’s observation deck. While the 86th floor observation deck has played prominently in several TV shows and films, there’s a fuller attraction that will be new for many visitors. The Empire State Building Ob servatory recently completed a $165 million re-do that added a museum that celebrates the history and lore of the famous building in nine themed galleries (including one where King Kong’s paws appear to come through the exterior wall of the

skate can go with the holiday icon—the skating rink at Rock efeller Center (it’s smaller than it looks on TV), but for a more local New York experience skaters can head to Central Park. The Wollman Rink is a full-service ice rink with skate rent als and lockers, and opening hours late into the evening for nighttime skaters. Skating is also permitted at Conservatory Water when conditions permit for visitors with their own skates.

Tavern on the Green (W 67th St & Central Park West) is a Central Park institution since 1934, serving up a contempo rary American menu—it’s still a see-and-be-seen location for statement brunches and special occasion fests.

Holiday shoppers can get their fill at New York’s top de partment stores. Macy’s at Herald Square is the largest de partment store in the United States, and one of the largest in the world, with over a million square feet of retail space. Macy’s has long been noted for their elaborate Christmas dis play windows, and for the Santaland display where shoppers can pose for photos with Santa Claus. Shoppers in midtown can head to the subsidiary Bloomingdale’s at 59th and Lex ington, or Bergdorf Goodman, the 5th Avenue temple to high fashion, located right next door to the Plaza Hotel.

Downtown, a popular stop for many New York visitors is the 9/11 Memorial & Museum. The Memorial is free and open to the public seven days a week. The Museum, which documents the events of the 9/11 attacks, not only in New York but at the Pentagon and in Pennsylvania, is open six days a week (closed Tuesdays) with the last entry at 3:30 PM). One of the easiest ways to reach the site is via the subway to the World Trade Center Transportation Hub to take the notable

The best hip opener yoga poses for golfers

STORY BY NICOLE PINTER

Having proper hip mobility is an essential piece of any golfer’s game. A golfer who has tight hips can develop compensatory movements. It can also cause pain and injuries. Establishing and maintaining hip mobility allows for golfers to have a smoother turn in their backswing and down swing. It also helps increase power by allowing for the optimal rotation needed during the golf swing. Hip-opener yoga poses are essential for a better game.

Pigeon Pose

Make sure to do gentle hip openers and stretches before attempting the pigeon pose.

1. Start on your hands and knees with your knee aligned with your hips and your wrists aligned with your shoulders.

2. Bend your right knee and bring it to a comfortable position between your hands.

Try to make sure your right foot is touching your left hip. Keep your hips touching the ground.

3. Take your left leg and stretch fully behind you while tucking your toes under your feet.

4. Hold this pose for a few breaths. Change to the opposite leg.

The following yoga poses can help you to increase hip mobility.

Butterfly pose

A classic hip opener is the butterfly pose is suitable for all levels, so it’s a helpful addition to most yoga routines. Because the posture improves flexibility and reduces tension, it’s ideal for people who have tight hips.

1. Begin in a seated position.

2. Gently bend your knees and press the soles of your feet together.

3. Interlace your fingers around the pinkie-toe side of your feet or place your hands on your ankles or shins.

4. Lengthen your spine and broaden across your chest.

5. Stay in this position for up to 5 minutes.

Half child’s pose with internal hip rotation

1. Half child’s pose with internal hip rotation

Trains internal hip rotation; stabilizes and lengthens lower back muscles; stretches upper back and shoulders; en courages ankle mobility.

Reclining Butterfly Pose

It is a restorative pose that is an excellent hip and chest opener. Due to its reclining posture and relaxing effect, it is often performed toward the end of a yoga session.

1. Lie down on your yoga mat with your legs bent at the knee and feet grounded.

2. Keep the feet together and by externally rotating your hips, tilt both the knees sideways.

3. Bring the soles of your feet together, just like you would in the seated version of this pose.

4. Pigeon pose

Charitable Contributions from IRAs

STORY BY AUSTIN ASSET

Did you know that, if you are at least 70½ years old, you can make tax-free charitable donations directly from your IRA? By making what’s called a qualified charitable distribution (QCD), you can benefit your favorite charity while excluding up to $100,000 annually from gross income. These gifts, also known as “charitable IRA rollovers,” would otherwise be taxable IRA distributions.1

How QCDs work

In order to make a QCD, you simply instruct your IRA trustee to make a distribution directly from your IRA (oth er than SEP and SIMPLE IRAs) to a qualified charity. The distribution must be one that would otherwise be taxable to you. You can exclude up to $100,000 of QCDs from

your gross income each year. And if you file a joint return, your spouse (if 70½ or older) can exclude an additional $100,000 of QCDs. Note: You don’t get to deduct QCDs as a charitable contribution on your federal income tax return — that would be double-dipping.

QCDs count toward satisfying any required minimum dis tributions (RMDs) that you would otherwise have to receive from your IRA, just as if you had received an actual distribu tion from the plan. However, distributions that you actually receive from your IRA (including RMDs) and subsequently transfer to a charity cannot qualify as QCDs.

Assume that your RMD for 2021, which you’re required to take no later than December 31, 2021, is $25,000. You receive a $5,000 cash distribution from your IRA in Febru ary 2021, which you then contribute to Charity A. In June 2021, you also make a $15,000 QCD to Charity A. You must include the $5,000 cash distribution in your 2021 gross income (but you may be entitled to a charitable de duction if you itemize your deductions, a strategy that may be less beneficial now than prior to 2018 due to passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act). You exclude the $15,000 of QCDs from your 2021 gross income. Your $5,000 cash dis tribution plus your $15,000 QCD satisfy $20,000 of your $25,000 RMD for 2021. You’ll need to withdraw another $5,000 no later than December 31, 2021, to avoid a pen alty.

Assume you turn 72 in the second half of 2021. You must take your first RMD (for 2021) no later than April 1, 2022. You must take your second RMD (for 2022) no later than December 31, 2022. Assume each RMD is $25,000. You don’t take any cash distributions from your IRA in 2021 or 2022. On March 31, 2022, you make a $25,000 QCD to Charity B. Because the QCD is made prior to April 1, it satisfies your $25,000 RMD for 2021. On December 31, 2022, you make a $75,000 QCD to Charity C. Because the QCD is made by December 31, it satisfies your $25,000 RMD for 2022. You can exclude the $100,000 of QCDs from your 2022 gross income. 2

As indicated earlier, a QCD must be an otherwise taxable distribution from your IRA. If you’ve made nondeductible contributions, then normally each distribution carries with it a pro-rata amount of taxable and nontaxable dollars. How ever, a special rule applies to QCDs — the pro-rata rule is ig nored and your taxable dollars are treated as distributed first.

Assume you have a single traditional IRA with a current value of $100,000, which includes $10,000 of nondeduct ible contributions. Therefore, you have a taxable balance of $90,000 and a nontaxable balance of $10,000. If you were to make a $5,000 withdrawal from your IRA, ninetenths ($10,000/100,000) of your distribution, or $4,500, would be taxable and one-tenth ($10,000/100,000), or $500, would be nontaxable. However, if you make a $5,000 QCD, the entire $5,000 amount will be considered

to come from your $90,000 taxable balance.

If you have multiple IRAs, they are aggregated when cal culating the taxable and nontaxable portion of a distribution from any one IRA.

Assume you have two traditional IRAs. IRA One has a value of $50,000 and does not include any nondeduct ible contributions. IRA Two also has a $50,000 value but includes $10,000 of nondeductible contributions. For tax purposes, you are treated as owning a single traditional IRA with a value of $100,000 and a nontaxable balance of $10,000. If you were to make a withdrawal of $50,000 from IRA Two, nine-tenths ($10,000/100,000) of your distribution, or $45,000, would be taxable and one-tenth ($10,000/100,000), or $5,000, would be nontaxable. However, if you make a $5,000 QCD from IRA Two, the en tire $5,000 amount will be considered to come from your $90,000 taxable balance.

RMDs are calculated separately for each traditional IRA you own, but may be taken from any of your IRAs.

Your QCD cannot be made to a private foundation, donor-advised fund, or supporting organization [as de scribed in IRC Section 509(a)(3)]. Further, the gift cannot be made in exchange for a charitable gift annuity or to a charitable remainder trust.

Why are QCDs important?

Without this special rule, taking a distribution from your IRA and donating the proceeds to a charity would be a bit more cumbersome and possibly more expensive. You would request a distribution from the IRA and then make the contri bution to the charity yourself. You’d include the distribution in gross income and then take a corresponding income tax deduction for the charitable contribution. But due to IRS lim its, the additional tax from the distribution may be more than the charitable deduction. And due to much higher standard deduction amounts ushered in by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed in 2017, itemizing deductions may have become even less beneficial in 2018 and beyond, rendering QCDs even more potentially appealing.

QCDs avoid all this by providing an exclusion from in come for the amount paid directly from your IRA to the char ity — you don’t report the IRA distribution in your gross in come, and you don’t take a deduction for the QCD.

1 Beginning after 2019, if you make deductible contributions to an IRA for the year you reach age 70½ or beyond, this could reduce the allowable amount of your QCD.

2 Legislation passed at the end of 2019 raised the RMD age to 72 (from age 70½) beginning January 1, 2020. If you reach age 72 before July 1, 2021, you will need to take an RMD by December 31, 2021.

At Austin Asset, we are Fee-Only Financial Advisors. We seek to bring clarity and purpose to wealth through authentic and enduring relationships. For Life.

The New Ducati Panigale V4 SP2 has the essence of Ducati’s 2022 Mo toGP bikes. This ride brings technology, design, and performance to the table in a very impressive way. The “SP” in the name stands for Sport Production, a badge Ducati does not take lightly. The new Duca ti Panigale V4 SP2 easily stands-out from the crowd around the track and on the street.

Based on the 2022 Panigale V4 S, the new SP2 ambitiously incorporates a ton of techni cal improvements. The 1,103cc four-cylinder engine (81mm bore, 53.5mm stroke, 14.0:1 compression ratio) delivers 215.5 hp at 13,000 rpm and 91.2 pound-feet of torque at 9,500 rpm.

The Panigale V4 SP2 offers a STM-Evo SBK dry clutch in place of the regular oil-bath wet clutch. The STM-Evo unit is directly derived from Ducati’s World Superbike racers. The design en sures superior anti-hop performance, and rid-ers can further tune it with a selection from Ducati’s special parts list, allowing them to custom tailor the clutch’s spring preload. The bike’s final drive uses a lighter, 520-type chain.

Ducati engineers improved chassis settings and lightened the weight. Carbon wheels replace Panigale V4 S’s forged-aluminum equivalents. The carbon wheels also reduce gyroscopic effect, and of course, naturally add an extra touch of unique ness. Wheel sizes are 17 x 3.50 out front and 17 x 6.00 in the rear both mounted with Pirelli Diablo Supercor-sa tires, 120/70-17 in front and 200/6017 out back.

The Panigale V4 SP2 chassis remains unchanged,

with a cast-aluminum “space frame” using the en gine as a stressed member. Steering geometry is as expected: 24.5 degrees of rake, 3.9 inches of trail, 57.8-inch wheelbase. Special attention has been devoted to the swingarm pivot location to obtain a natural anti-squat effect for better acceleration out of corners. Dry weight is down to 381 pounds.

Ducati enthusiasts taking the Panigale V4 SP2 to the track will enjoy the ultimate track day bike, the mirrors and li-cense plate holder are all quick release. The clutch and brake levers are lightened and micro adjustable, as are the foot controls and pegs. All are machined from aluminum billet, as are the triple clamps. Instrumentation is specific for the V4 SP2 and includes a GPS module as standard equipment, enabling an automatic lap-time func tion as well. And for a touch of exclusivity Ducati provides each Panigale V4 SP2 with a serial number in a limited edition, that number is engraved into the top clamp.

There are plenty of other track goodies that include switching out the street-homologated ex haust and mufflers with a special Akrapovič system. Executed in titanium, the distinctive 4-into-2 is 11 pounds lighter and drops the dry weight to 370 pounds while bumping engine output up to 228 hp and 96.6 pound-feet of torque. All this helps make the Pani-gale V4 SP2 a legitimate street-legal trackready superbike you can grow with, as well as one of the most refined Ducati bikes available today.

The New Ducati Panigale V4 SP2 has a price tag at the $40,000 mark. However, the experience this super bike pro-vides is certainly priceless.

Driverside Vehicle Reviews

Ducati Panigale V4 SP2

STORY BY TERESA K. TRAVERSE

McCormick Ranch

o enter seafood restaurant Rockefeller you have to walk under tan-colored arches that practically signal that you’re in for a grand experience at this hot spot located in Scottsdale’s McCormick Ranch neighborhood. Designed by Brick & West Design, the restaurant has a contempo rary feel with an Art Deco edge. You’ll open an impressive oversized glass door that showcases a bar, orange booths on one side, tables on another and an expansive outdoor patio that’s enclosed by a short concrete wall. The décor is varied, but not overstimu lating. We loved the gold accents through out. Chair legs and heavy chains that cover the entrance to the bathrooms were nice gold touches. But the bar halo is the true focal point of the restaurant, which opened in January of 2022. The custom-made steel halo—essentially a gold cage—that extends from the ceiling to the top of the bar holds all the wine and liquor bottles. The bar itself is a nice matte black color and also features soft floor lighting.

“We focus as much on the bar as we do the food,” says Rockefeller owner Danny Quinn of F&F Concepts. “Rockefeller has definitely brought that craft cocktail vibe to the area.”

As far as the name, Quinn was discuss ing what he would call the restaurant with a designer and architect friend. Quinn said the restaurant would be serving oyster’s Rockefeller. His friend said, “There’s your name.” The name embodies the restau rant’s essence.

“We try to be what we call approach able lux,” says Quinn.

Rockefeller’s menu is admittedly small. It’s just a single page that includes four entrees, one dessert and is dominated by small plates, which is by design. When Quinn goes out, he tends to order five or so appetizers.

“I want to try everything,” he says.

Quinn has worked in the restaurant business for his entire professional career. He also owns Pubblico Italian Eatery, with

one location in Scottsdale and another in Phoenix. Quinn and the owner of The Village of Hayden where Rock efeller is located are friends. Another restaurant was supposed to go into the space, but the deal fell through. The owner asked Quinn what he thought should go in there. Quinn’s response? A seafood restaurant. Seafood is flown in fresh daily. The service is casual but smart.

“All my servers and my bartenders need to have a knowledge of the menu, “ says Quinn.

One of the restaurant’s biggest draws? The cocktail menu. When you’re in the restaurant, look up at the bar that holds all the bottles. You’ll find “things that are familiar with a sprinkle of cool,” says Edgar Garcia, beverage director for Rockefeller.

“It’s not the bar your dad has or your grandpa has. It’s the guy in your family that has all the tattoos,” says Garcia. “I didn’t turn away my core people, which is the Tito’s of the world and the Maker’s Mark of the world, but I also added a bunch of labels that no body would ever find or couldn’t find at your local Total Wine.”

Trendy beverages that you can look forward to trying include natural wines, a Syrah from Gramercy Cellars in Washington state, an Irish cream from Ireland, Chenin Blanc from South Africa’s Beaumont Family Wines and

other products from small batch com panies. Arizona beer from Wren House, Simple Machine Brewing Company and Phx Beer Co. alongside a red blend from Brigand in Sonoita also make an appearance.

The wine menu is broken down into three tiers: budget or by the glass that’s called “ballin’ on a budget” on the menu; by the bottle or “oh, you fan cy;” and newer, trendy items or “while they’re hot.” Descriptions of the drink options are whimsical. Descriptions like: “Not a hairband, but it sure is boozy line one” of a Tooth & Nail Tem pranillo from Paso Robles, California.

This whimsy is intended to “get people not to take some of these things so seriously and be able to try some thing new,” says Garcia. Samples are offered of anything that’s sold by the glass so diners can try a few sips before committing to an entire glass. Cocktails are a menu highlight too.

“We try to tackle a lot of the classics in very different angles,” says Garcia.

Take, for example, the restaurant’s Ms. Cosmo. Made with Ketel One blend, Cointreau, cranberry, lime and a madein-house lemon oleo saccharum. To make this, the staff puts sugar and lemon peels in a bag and all the air is extracted from it. The sugar extracts oils from the lemon to make an ingredient that tastes more like an actual lemon rather than an overly sweet lemon drop.

We kicked off our meal with a violetcolored Butterfly Daiquiri. The drink starts off sweet but has a bitter finish that made for one dynamic drink. For our first course, we had to order the Oyster’s Rockefeller. These six oysters were filled with a rich bé chamel sauce, spinach, bacon, Parmigiano Reggiano and bread crumbs. What we loved most about this decedent dish were the ba con pieces that added a savory, salty bite to this classic seafood dish. Next up was the crab cake. The meaty crab cake was topped with crunchy fried leeks and served on a round white plate with an artful dash of just-spicy-enough chipotle aioli that com plemented the crab cakes perfectly. For our entrée, we had the salmon beurre blanc. The flaky, tender salmon topped with a flavorful dill and lemon beurre blanc and perched on top of lobster mashed potatoes and asparagus. Our dishes were all rich, filling and seasoned just right.

Plans for brunch are in the works and may be served by the time you’re reading this. Like many Scottsdale restaurants, a live DJ spins tunes on Fridays and Saturdays. Rock efeller stays open until midnight on Friday and Saturday and even has a reverse happy hour—making it a lively addition to the area.

Overall, we appreciated the mix of old and new at this restaurant. From the classic Art Deco décor and oysters on the menu to the buzzy drinks, Rockefeller is where the Old World meets the new.

Edel Golf’s Putter Technology and Fitting System Redefine “The Next Level”

STORY BY CARL MICKELSON

It’s tough to name a club in the golf bag that is more personal, more sacred than the putter. My sense of loyalty to putters, through the years, has probably run deeper than even my loyalty to the people who cut my hair, dry clean my clothes or even the pediatricians who have thoughtfully and adeptly seen to the health and well-being of my kids.

Through my junior golf and high school days and early 20s, I ripped many a heart out with my trusty beryllium-copper Ping B60. It was an extension of my arms, the putter I was born to use. That put-ter was the Jerry Rice to my Joe Montana, the Lucille to my B.B. King. With that wand in hand, I could turn daunting misfortune into improbable magic. Some how, with my being in the golf indus-try for almost three decades and being endlessly fascinated with emerging technology, that de-pendable B60, brown and weathered like a long-lost penny, began to move far ther and farther to the back of the closet. If there’s been a trend in putters - face inserts, fancy finishes, innovative

alignment aids- I’ve probably dabbled and I eventually settled into blade-style putter guy, never really able to recapture the uncanny feel or confidence I got from my childhood putter.

So, when I saw the head design of Edel Golf’s EAS 2.0 putter model, with the look of a blade cou-pled with a concave radius on the back edge of the putter (essen tially humped shapes behind the heel and toe that coax your focus even more to club’s sweet spot), I was beyond intrigued. The head shape of my dreams in the hands of David Edel, one of golf’s most inventive, research-based and innovative club designers, had to be worth testing.

The first advantage you see in this putter head is its alignment properties. Interchangeable align-ment plates for the top and back of the putter head help personal ize the golfer’s alignment cues for optimal aim. Lines on the top help you focus forward and move your aim to the right while the lines on the bottom move your focus backwards and aim more left. In my fitting, Edel’s tal

ented son, Nico, an Edel Golf Master Fitter and Putter Crafts man, discovered that a single line on the top and another on the bottom helped my fuzzy brain set up square every time. The optimal alignment setup varies for all golfers, so the inter changeable plates make fitting and tinkering for optimization a breeze.

Meeting Nico at Edel Golf’s Liberty Hill HQs was a blast and extremely educational. In the words of Team Edel, its Torque Balanced technology “significantly reduces the negative effects of torque, promoting a smoother and more consistent motion and allowing the putter head a greater oppor-tunity to return to square at impact. Torque Balanced technology strategically removes weight from the toe of the putter, creating a “toe- up” balance point versus traditional toe-down or face balanced putters. With an optimally weight ed design, the Torque Balanced putter is less suscepti-ble to the forces of torque during the putting stroke. The Torque Bal anced technology is contained completely within the sole of the club, allowing the putter to maintain a sleek and tradition al look at address.” It’s an effortless stable and smooth putting experience once you’ve been properly fit with an Edel putter.

After Nico found the alignment combination that dialed in my square set-up, we started working distance control and consistency in my stroke. By adjusting weights inside the put ter’s shaft at vari-ous depths from the top of the shaft, Nico was able to fit the weight and momentum of my putter to match my stroke tendencies. The farther down the shaft the counterweight is insert, the heavier the putter head will feel and as the weight moves to the top of the shaft, the head feels lighter. The key is finding the optimal balance, tempo and feel. I’d never seen a fitting that included adjust-ing weights at var ious places INSIDE the putter shaft. The amount of control it gave the fitter - and me - was astounding.

Speaking of control – and leaving no stone unturned in the fitting process – Edel promotes a sym-metrically round grip, for solid reasons. Take a look at the flat, target-facing side of your putter grip. In theory, it’s great for alignment, but Edel’s research found that it causes golfers to struggle as they try to square both the grip and the putter face versus just focusing on the one variable - a squarely aligned putter face.

Now that the Edel EAS 2.0 putter is in my bag, let’s talk about the benefits. This putter’s patented alignment system moves mass away from the toe, into the heel and more evenly distributed across the face. I’m so much less inclined to feel like the face is open and I have to shut closed as I make my putting path.

My EAS 2.0 has been customized for my stroke tenden cies and tempo, so, now, my stroke is much squarer and purer through the impact zone. On top of that, my distance con trol is greatly improved because Nico took great care during my fitting to find the ideal spot to position weight inside the shaft so it is properly counterbalanced and in sync with how I struck putts. I never feel like the head of the putter is too far ahead or too far behind my hands, even when I’m making long lag putts with a lot of momentum.

Because I am striking putts with a pure, smooth tempo

that matches my natural rhythm, I’m making more strokes that come through right on the sweet spot. That gives sensa tional feedback in the form of confidence-inspiring feel. Every putt that comes off the face feels responsive and rolls about the exact distance and on its intended line, makes me feel that much more invincible over the ball. Confident putters are dangerous putters, and, with practice, I feel like I’m earning back hope of rediscovering that kind of talent on the greens. The Hex machined face pattern is designed to create friction and incite forward roll and I’m seeing more and more putts roll pure end-over-end, versus skidding then rolling.

I can’t imagine buying another putter without going through a fitting like my hour-long experience with Nico. The positioning of weight inserts inside the shaft was an eyeopener. The way Nico was able to move different weight ports to specific heights within the shaft so I could immediately see better control and tempo, was really an extraordinary experi ence. He was imparting the gift of pure feel with just a couple of quick mechanical adjustments.

We didn’t walk out of the fitting room until we had a put ter that felt like an extension of my arms.

If you’re lucky like me and you live around Austin (not far at all from Edel Golf’s Liberty Hill head-quarters), or if you live somewhere near an Edel fitter, take advantage of their talent and expertise. In an hour, I was able to rediscover the feel and confidence on the greens I’ve been chasing for more than two decades. Putting is fun and exhilarating again and I even feel like my mechanics are get ting better because I’m not wrestling with anything distracting in my equip ment that would impede my improvement.

To learn more more about Edel Golf’s innovative and customizable lines of put ters, wedges and irons, or to find an Edel Golf fitter near you, visit EdelGolf.com.

Perfect Presents Our favorite gifts for 2022

STORY BY TERESA K. TRAVERSE

The holidays are here. If you’re searching for gifts to give your loved ones or yourself, we’ve got a few ideas for you. From a luxurious chocolate advent calendar to a dreamy car, here’s our gift guide for 2022. Happy holidays!

The Great Getaway

If you’re looking to get away this holiday season, The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Nigel is a perfect reprieve. About an hour’s drive from Los Angeles International Airport, this pristine property is located on a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Rooms are spacious, luxurious and modern. Rooms feature marble bathrooms and beds topped with goose-down comforters and 400 thread count sheets. Most rooms have ocean views that you can enjoy from a private balcony or patio. Guests can look forward to two outdoor swimming and whirlpools, two tennis courts, a 12-treatment room spa, an eco-adventure center, an outdoor oceanfront lounge and a lawn with sweeping ocean views.

The best perk of all? The Monarch Beach Golf Links adja cent to The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Nigel. This course is down right dreamy. Enjoy sweeping beachfront views as you hit the links on this stunning course. The Swing and Stay package includes overnight accommodations and a round of golf for two including tee time, 18 holes of golf and a complimentary rental of premium golf clubs. This package is available until Dec. 31, 2022. Rates start at $799 per night. Visit for more information.

Looking to up your game? Then consider a custom Ready2Play golf shaft built exclusively for you. Penley Sports has just debuted a line of custom shafts including custom iron shaft sets, putter shafts and drivers. Each shaft will be individually numbered and labeled “custom built for” along with your name. Each shaft is designed, manufactured and meticulously tuned by hand by Carter Penley - who has over 35 years of golf shaft design experience with multiple PGA Tour and Long Drive wins. Penley has also worked with pro golfer Lanny Wadkins. Orders require four to eight weeks to complete. You may need to take a trip out to Southern California for a final fitting and tuning. Prices start at $1,000 Visit penleysports.com for more information.

Custom Swing Shoe Shine

When you’re flying out to your next destination, tote your golf shoes in this Athletico Executive Golf Shoe Bag with Luggage Tag. Made out of durable Denier ballistic nylon, this bag will protect your shoes from the elements. Side pockets can be used to store tees, golf balls and socks. Mesh panels let your shoes air out. If you’re giving this as a gift, Athletico ships the bag in a sleek black gift box with a magnetic close flap that’s enclosed in a white paper sleeve. The bag costs $27.99 at athleticogear.com

Beach Chic

This striking and chic cutout beach dress will make one bold statement as you stroll by the pool or on the beach. The dress also features a built-in bodysuit along with crochet sleeves and a flowy skirt that both billow in the air.

Available for $775 at Everything But Water’s brick-and-mortar locations (Scottsdale Fashion Square and Domain Northside in Austin) and on everythingbutwater.com.

Lux Beach Bag

Carry your beach essentials in this stylish blue and white striped Rive Gauche Saint Laurent canvas tote bag that’s made in Italy. The bag costs $1,750 at bergdorf goodman.com

Award-winning Bourbon

Born in the Texas Hill Country in 2005, Garrison Brothers is known for making high-quality bourbon. Garrison Brothers was the first legal bourbon dis tillery in Texas and was started by Dan Garrison. When Garrison found himself unemployed in 2001, he started writing a business plan for his own distillery after touring one in Kentucky. The company has flourished in those years and even counts pro golfer Lanto Griffin as a fan. The bour bon is made from a sweet bill mash and sits in American white oak barrels where it’s heat-forged in the powerful Texas sun. The end product? A dark, richer and fuller bourbon. Although the list of products is long, Cowboy Bourbon is one of the com pany’s most noteworthy offerings. Aged in Garrison’s favorite barrels, Cowboy Bour bon is aged for years and then bottled at cask-strength and is unfiltered. This process leads to a bourbon that’s 134.8 proof that’s also so sweet that it overpow ers such a high proof. Cowboy is peppery, warm and has a smooth finish.

Fran’s Advent Calendars

Seattle-based Fran’s Chocolate is renowned for its all-natural chocolates that are made using local and ingredients. Fran’s best-known creation? It’s salted caramel chocolates. Ideal for the holidays, the cham pagne box tied with a silk ribbon—your choice of red or champagne—is filled with Fran’s gray and smoked salt caramels. Each morsel features rich chocolate, soft, but tery caramel and a line of savory gray and smoked sea salts that make each bite irresistible. The award-win ning caramels are also certified organic and fair trade. A 160-piece box costs $275

Fran’s also crafts an assortment of other chocolate goods including truffles, candy bars, peanut butter cups and chocolate covered fruits and nuts. If you’d rather sample everything along with some seasonal surprises, consider the Fran’s advent calendar. The snowmanshaped calendar features original watercolor artwork and is filled with 25 gifts. The advent calendar costs $265 at frans.com.

Wine from Jordan Winery

Jordan Vineyard & Winery’s founders, Tom and Sally Jordan, set out to create an experience in Healdsburg, California, that rivaled France’s top wineries. So they founded Jordan Vineyard & Winery in 1972 and wanted to create a Bordeaux-style California cabernet sau vignon that aged well but was also approachable when young. They quickly realized that their red wine needed a sibling and also began planting Chardonnay grapes. In the decades since its inception, Jor dan has arguably set a gold standard for California wineries to aspire to. The winery’s slogan? Where Burgundy meets Sonoma. The quality of its wines has remained consistent in part because Jordan has only ever had two winemakers in its entire history.

Jordan offers a wooden gift box filled with its signature wines: three bottles of the 2020 chardonnay and three of the 2018 cabernet. Anticipate Chardonnay infused with Fuji apple aromas along with notes of Asian pear, lemon, persimmon and white flower. The 2018 cabernet includes aromas of black cherry, boysenberry and black fig along with rich tannins that last—making this a wine that will likely age gracefully. Jordan will even include a handwritten gift note in each order. The gift box costs $330

If you really want to go all out, consider traveling to the winery in Northern California to taste their wines and see where the grapes are grown on the sweeping 1,200-acre estate that employs sustainable farming practices. Jordan Estate rewards members who have gold or platinum status can even stay overnight in one of the winery’s luxe, French-inspired rooms. Learn more at jordanwinery.com.

Cashmere and Wool Equestrian Blanket

When those evening temperatures drop, reach for this luxuri ous and plush cashmere and wool equestrian blanket. The weighty throw will feel like a long, comforting hug at the end of a long day. Fabric is yarn dyed for lasting color and is finished by hand with whipstitching. This blanket costs $1,299 and can be purchased at williams-sonoma.com.

A Classic Car

When it comes to exclusive cars, it would be nearly impossible to top Range Rover’s Range Rover SV Carmel Edition. Powered by Range Rover’s 523hp V8 Twin Turbo engine, the car is inspired by the landscapes found in the coastline and coves located throughout Carmel, California. The exterior is in a Bespoke Satin Bronze. The interior is dominated by the console that spans the length of the cabin. The console features an electric Club Table, cuphold ers that deploy electrically and a refrigerator filled with SV-etch Dartington Crystal glassware. Lux exterior details include SV 23-inch Diamond Turned wheels finished in dark grey gloss with matching satin bronze inserts. Clients also receive Two Titleist Custom Club fittings at Titleist’s Performance Institute along with a full club set. The Carmel edition is just one of 17 vehicles made and costs $345,000. The vehicle is offered exclusively to guests of the Range Rover House. Visit landroverusa.com for more information.

Frette bathrobe

When you think luxury linens, think Frette. Since 1860, this Italian brand has employed skilled artisans to create the finest linens. Frette sheets and bathrobes are found in many world-class hotels including L’ermitage Beverly Hills and The St. Regis Rome. Bring that luxury home when you wrap yourself up in this light terry and linen crepe bathrobe. This robe is made out of 100 per cent cotton terry and features linen crepe detail. As the saying goes, the devil is in the details. You’ll love the wide cuffs, literal deep pockets and plush shawl collars that cushion the neck. Each of Frette’s bathrobes are soft and thick, and the entire bathrobe is finished with precise tai loring. This bathrobe costs $500 and can be purchased at frette.com

Perfumes

Marc Jacobs Daisy Ever So Fresh

Housed inside of Marc Jacobs’ signature Daisy perfume bottle with flowers studding the top, this Ever So Fresh bursts with lush floral scents that energize. Top notes include mango, pineapple and mandarian; middle notes include rosewater and orange blossom essence; bottom notes include cashmere woods to add warmth. A 4.20-ounce bottle costs $157 at macys.com

Burberry Hero

Perhaps best known for its ad cam paign featuring actor Adam Driver, Burb erry Hero Eau De Parfum is intended to evoke the hero within. Perfumer Aurelien Guichard drew inspiration for the fra grance from the Landes forest in France, where pine trees grow near the ocean. Hero’s base is made up of three warm ce darwood oils, and the rest of the scent is completed by pine needles, benzoin and incense. Together, this creates a sensual and vibrant scent. The angular bottle is in tended to be an abstract representation of a horse’s hoof. The 5-ounce bottle costs macys.com

Gucci The Alchemist’s Garden: AReason to Love

Part of Gucci’s The Alchemist Garden collec tion, A Reason to Love is a unisex perfume im bued with warmth, florals and spice. The sensu ality comes from the rose, oud accord and tolu balsam. While the rose, peony and cardamom lend the florals and spice. The 3.3-ounce bottle costs $352 at saksfifthavenue.com

How to Improve Your Clubface (Part One)

STORY BY BUCK MAYERS

It has been well documented that the clubface is more important than the swing path for ball flight control. There is also a myth that the ball will go straight at the target if the clubface is facing the target. Not so fast my friend… Now that we have technology to measure data, it is impor tant that the golfer is educated to what, how, and why you missed the target.

Here is a simple example. If your clubface is square to the target and your club path is 3° to the left, the ball would start straight but unfortunately curve to the right. Why? Because the face is 3° open/right to the path. To hit the tar get with a path of 3° to the left, the face would need to be 1.5° to the left of the target, or 50% to the path in the same direction. Therefore, this means the ball started slightly left and curved slightly right…Bullseye!

The first place to look for a club face problem is your grip. Your hands are the connectors to the golf club and a grip that is too weak or strong is the place to start. This fundamental is the most important, yet often overlooked. The next flaw to address is the takeaway. Your wrist condi tions hold the key to the proper clubface positions through out the rotation of the body during the entire golf swing.

Without getting into complicated verbiage on biomechan ics, your wrists can cock (up and down), bend (back-andforth), and roll (open and close).

To improve your takeaway, be mindful for the righthanded player, that the trail hand (right hand) should mim ic the club face with a neutral grip. Because most golfers slice the ball, more times than not, the rolling of the club face too open, in the backswing is the culprit. This often will affect the path and sequence of the overall swing.

Here’s your homework for Part One. Check your grip - a neutral position will work best for most golfers. Secondly, use a mirror from a down-the-line viewpoint and practice reviewing the club face in the backswing in its entirety. Your spine angle to your clubface is a good goal. Remember, there is no perfect, but there is better. The Clubface Control – Part Two, will be transition to impact.

Buck Mayers is an Emeritus Professional at Escondido Golf & Lake Club in Horseshoe Bay, TX and can be reached at 512-695-2270 or buck@buckmayersgolf.com

than just a game”

Fiesta Bowl focuses on giving back to the community

STORY BY TERESA K. TRAVERSE

While what happens on the field tends to be what gets the most press coverage when it comes to sporting events, many sports organizations also give back to their communities in many important ways. The Fiesta Bowl Organization is an exemplary case in that way.

“We are football, but really football for two months out of the year, and deep in the community 12 months out of the year,” says Brenda Puga, community relations manager, with an emphasis on nonprofit partnerships, for the Fiesta Bowl.

efore the Fiesta Bowl, Puga worked at Mattress Firm where she assisted with its foster care program and helped liaison with the Sacramento Kings. She also worked for Special Olympics Arizona.

In her current role, she assists with player outreach events and raffles, and oversees the organization’s grant cycle. This year, the organization re ceived more than 300 grant applica tions. A committee of 32, consisting of staff as well as Fiesta Bowl Board and Committee members (i.e. the vol unteer “Yellow Jackets”) reviews the submissions. Forty organizations were awarded grants this year.

In 2022 alone, Fiesta Bowl Chari ties donated $3 million in charitable giving to nonprofits located in Arizona that focus on three key areas: youth, sports and education.

“One of the most important things about our collective youth, sports and education pillars is that we real ize we’re in a great space to encour age and promote the next generation. Sports is one catalyst, providing us with a variety of opportunities to in teract and engage with different pop ulations,” she says. “In addition, we always want to make sure that we are supporting the leaders of tomorrow through education. The school years are so critical to individual develop ment, as students determine who they are, establish influential friendships and make choices regarding their fu ture career paths.”

Grants come in three tiers: Spir it of the Fiesta Bowl at $100,000; Touchdown Grant at $50,000; and the Field Goal Grant at $25,000. In this year’s grant cycle, the Chinle Plant

ing Hope Community Center is one of the recipients of a Touchdown Grant. Located in Chinle, Arizona, on the Navajo Nation, Chinle Planting Hope plans to use the grant money to start new projects, including a STEM pro gram, an imagination station where kids can experience hands-on play and a bookmobile.

Additionally, the Fiesta Bowl has the state’s leading teacher support initiative with the Palo Verde Fiesta Bowl Wishes for Teachers program. Arizona public and charter school teachers can fill out an online appli cation their specific classroom wish, with 400 teachers randomly selected to receive $2,500 to make their wish come true. One teacher used the grant money to purchase instruments to start a mariachi club.

“It’s recognizing all the hard work that teachers put into the students they serve and just helping them bridge that gap to provide even more resources for them to be successful,” says Puga.

In 2021, Fiesta Bowl grants fund ed 10 Ohmni pro robots for Phoenix Children’s Hospital. The Organiza tion is also building a 2,000 squarefoot playground (its 12th in the Grand Canyon State) in Fort Mohave, another way it aims to touch the lives of Arizona residents state-wide.

“We are doing a lot to make sure that we spread our wings all across the state to demonstrate that we’re More Than Just a Game, and we’re more than the Valley,” says Puga.

The Fiesta Bowl has been held in Arizona annually since 1971. This

year’s Fiesta Bowl will be played on New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2022, at State Farm Stadium in Glen dale. In this College Football Playoff Semifinal show down, two of the country’s top four college football teams will face off in the hopes of moving on to the National Championship. Complementing the game is the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl Parade presented by Lerner & Rowe in Central Phoenix on Dec. 17. Grant recipients and teachers are among the 85 entries that march down the two-mile parade route.

“I think the slogan ‘More Than Just a Game’ fits perfectly. Because whether it’s a memory I have of the football game, or if it’s someone I met who has a memory of the Fiesta Bowl Organization, we can all tie it back together and create relationships based on everyone’s different experience.” says Puga.

Sports isn’t just about the game on the field, and it’s not just for men, either.

Julie Atherton has spent most of her career work ing in sports. She’s the director of administration for the Fiesta Bowl, started her career with the Chicago White Sox and has also worked for the Arizona Coy otes and OB Sports Golf Management. She currently oversees the Fiesta Bowl’s human resources depart ment, handling benefits and payroll in addition to managing IT. She also supervises the Fiesta Bowl Museum and offices in Scottsdale.

On a personal level, she’s been a fan of the White Sox for years.

“When I started in sports, I became a fan of, obvi ously, the team I was working for, but that loyalty has carried on to this day. My baseball team is still the White Sox. I still follow them and want them to have a great season,” she says.

In her 20-plus year career, she’s seen more wom

en hold leadership positions in sports organizations. At one time, that would have been unheard of.

“Baseball finally has a female general manager in Miami. I was fortunate enough to work with Kim [Ng] at the Chicago White Sox and have seen her career grow over the years. She interviewed for that role with a lot of teams, and it finally took someone like Derek Jeter to give her that opportunity,” she says. “When I first started in sports, you just didn’t see a woman holding a director title. It was kind of a wow factor. Now, anyone shouldn’t even blink.”

She acknowledges that even though women have made great strides in sports, there’s still work to be done.

“It just goes back to the respect, and I think for women, you’re going to have to work yourself up to that point and have that respect at the table,”

she says. “It may seem intimidating, and it may seem out of reach, but there’s a lot of females who have broken that barrier. I’m sure earlier in their careers they were told, ‘Oh, you’ll only make it this far.’ And they’ve proven to the naysayers that they can continue to succeed. Sports is for anyone who wants it, who has the passion and enjoys a career in sports.”

Ultimately, sports teams couldn’t exist without the communities supporting them, which is why giving back is such a critical part of the Fiesta Bowl’s mission.

“It’s not just collecting the revenue that comes into a sports team and using it internally. It’s making sure that it’s paid forward,” she says. “Sports would not be as suc cessful or have the financial strength that it does without its community support. I think it’s about giving back and recognizing what is important in the community or the state where that sports organization is located.”

Sadie Westbrook: Gifted and Talented

STORY BY MIKE BAILEY

Golf can be a lot of things to a lot of different people. For many, it’s a chance to relax. For others it’s about the competition, or maybe just communing with nature. For 12-year-old Sadie Westbrook of Houston, it’s her sanctuary.

The golf course is where Sadie feels at home. It also helps that she’s pretty good at golf.

She has won more than 20 junior tournaments, often against girls much older than her. And she loves to practice, whether it’s at BraeBurn Country Club, hit ting balls in a net in the garage, or chipping and putting in the backyard.

ntroduced to the game when she was 5 years old by her father, Kris Westbrook, Sadie basi cally loves all things golf, though she excels at track and cross country, too, having run in the 2021 AAU Junior Olympics. She also was an outstanding softball catcher and switch hitter until she decided to focus more on golf. Most recently, she’s been working with renowned golf instructor Clay Edwards, who recognized her tal ent, work ethic, and grit.

“She’s not going to get outworked,” said her father, Kris, a near-scratch player himself and the CEO of a consulting firm, Revenew International. “If Clay says, ‘putt four-footers for 30 minutes,’ she’s going to do that, while most kids will quit after two minutes and go look for something else to do.”

While attending a junior golf camp run by the University of Houston women’s golf coach, Lydia Gumm, and some of her players, Sadie formed a

bond with them. Her current goal is to someday play on the Cougars women’s golf team, which is why she has a UH golf bag and wears a UH hat. Of course, given that her father is a UH alum doesn’t hurt either. She also has big dreams of one day playing on iconic courses such as Pebble Beach and St. Andrews. Her dreams don’t stop there either, she dreams of playing professional golf or being a golf coach.

“Whether she hits a good shot or a bad shot, it’s really hard to tell,” said Coach Gumm, who took over the UH program a couple of years ago. “Her demeanor is really steady. You never know whether she is playing good or bad. She’s very ma ture for her age. And she comes from a phenom enal family. Her parents have done a great job.”

On the golf course, Sadie seems to have all the confidence in the world. She doesn’t take much time over the ball, pulling the trigger quickly to hit one wonderful shot after another. Before each

PHOTO BY AISHA KHAN

shot she visualizes her favorite golfer, Nelly Korda’s, swing to help with her tempo. She also relishes the challenge of the most diffi cult shots, even if she is short sided to a pin, she somehow manages to get up and down. She’s also a self-proclaimed equipment nerd. She will study your bag and memorize all your clubs down to the shafts and grips that you use. While she’s really good at reading greens, traditional reading throws her for a loop.

Sadie is one of millions of children who are challenged with dyslexia. Moreover, she also battles anxiety. , but Sadie has a few tricks for that on the golf course. For exam ple, if she’s having a tough time on the golf course, her mom, Traci, likes to feed her the first few words from the lyrics of a song from the Tony award-winning musical, “Hamil ton.” Sadie will finish the lyrics. She knows them all by heart, having seen the play both live, and on TV. Singing calms her down.

PHOTOS BY ERIC AND JENN PHOTOGRAPHY

For the past two years, Sadie has received help with her dyslexia from a relatively new source, the Dyslexia School of Houston. Educator Tammy Spencer, who founded the school, remembered the first time she met Sadie. “She mumbled and didn’t make eye contact,” Spencer said. “It’s a struggle for her to do her homework. She must work 10 times harder academically than her peers. But if you put her on a golf course or a running track or a softball field, she’s George Springer in female form. It completely blows you away.” Just as she does in sports, Sadie has taken her coaching well and progressed greatly with her literacy and her academic self-confidence.

Spencer who spent some 30 years in the Texas public education, including most recently as the senior manager for Dyslexia Services for Houston ISD, started the private Dyslexia School of Hous ton (DyslexiaHouston.org) during the pandemic, when most students weren’t allowed back in the classroom. Online education was especially tough for kids with learning disabilities, and Spencer

said public education, for a variety of reasons, was failing children with special instructional needs. Spencer also created the nonprofit Code Academy to help families who can’t afford to pay tuition.

According to the Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity, about 20 percent of the population has a form of dyslexia. Public education systems iden tify only a small fraction of that number and often the students who are diagnosed are not identified early enough, and they simply never get the prop er help they need. Spencer created the school to give families that help.

While most people are familiar with dyslexia, they might not fully understand what it is, or how many people they might know suffer from it. Most people think that dyslexia is simply seeing or writ ing letters backwards. It’s much more than that. According to the International Dyslexia Associa tion:

“Dyslexia is a specific learning disabil

ity that is neurobiological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities. These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction. Second ary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge.”

Actors Tom Holland (Spiderman), Keanu Reeves, and Jennifer Aniston, have all had to over come their dyslexia. Former football player and Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow has been very outspoken as well. Aniston of “Friends” fame, was quoted as saying, “I thought I wasn’t smart. I just couldn’t retain anything. Now I had this great dis covery. I felt like all my childhood traumas, trag edies, dramas were explained.”

Tammy Spencer.

“If a child can’t learn the way we teach, we need to teach the way they learn,” said Spencer of what they are doing at the Dyslexia School of Houston. “We teach them every letter and sound. If I speak the sound, what letter do you write? We’re connecting the reading, the writing, the spelling, everything.”

Warning signs that a child may have dyslexia in clude speech delay, a difficulty learning letters and struggles with word retrieval and sequencing events for preschool children. Elementary age students who might have dyslexia have trouble learning letters and the sounds they make, are poor spellers, and often avoid reading. And by the time students get to high school, youth with dyslexia, despite appearing very bright, often read very slowly, make poor grades, and are still poor spellers with a limited vocabulary.

Spencer said the key to treating dyslexics is to use a scientific approach in teaching. Standard teaching sim ply doesn’t work for people with dyslexia.

“If a child can’t learn the way we teach, we need to teach the way they learn,” said Spencer of what they are doing at the Dyslexia School of Houston. “We teach them every letter and sound. If I speak the sound, what letter do you write? We’re connecting the reading, the writing, the spelling, everything.”

So far, nearly 50 children, ages 3-15, are receiving therapy at the Dyslexia School of Houston. They come in at different hours, some before their regular school

ing, and some afterwards, as late as early evening. Spencer is amazed how talented her dyslexic students are in other areas, which isn’t unusual.

“They are amazing at math and science, and art,” she said. “They have creative abilities, but when you put a book in front of them, they freeze.”

Many of the children who attend the school have made significant progress, including Sadie. “Our meth ods are working. I’m getting results,” Spencer said.

But dyslexia therapy is an ongoing process, she said. People with dyslexia need to own it and know they will overcome it. But it never goes away.

“She will never be out of my life,” Spencer said of Sadie. “And reading will never be fun for her. But she does improve with practice.” Just like she does with her golf game, but it just doesn’t come as easy.

To follow the latest on Sadie follow her @sadiewestbrookgolf on Instagram Follow Dyslexia School of Houston on all Social Media Platforms.

PHOTO BY AISHA KHAN

Napa, California It’s just good living

STORY BY ART STRICKLIN

Golf has long been known to drive a player to drink. In fact, if Scottish lore can be believed, the reason we have 18 holes on the golf course is there were 18 good shots of Scotch whiskey in a bottle for the first rounds played at the Home of Golf in St. Andrews, Scot-land.

But what if you played at a resort at which drink, the nectar of the gods, was encouraged, if not nearly required. What if you were in the home of wine country for the USA, not to mention fine dining, indoors and out, plus two outstanding PGA Tour quality golf courses.

olf, dining or drink heaven? All titles ap ply to the famed Silverado Resort and Spa in the heart of American Wine Country in Napa.

Perhaps no resort in America does such a great job of matching golf, food, drink, historic structures and near perfect weather as Silverado.

The longtime home of World Golf Hall of Fame member Johnny Miller who first came here in the 1970s and has been involved in one way or the other ever since. His family still has a large, shaded home on the property and in 2010 reno vated the North Course.

After a decade-plus absence, the PGA Tour returned here in 2014 after first playing an event here in the 1960s and continuing to the early 2000s.

Now, Silverado kicks off the new PGA Tour season pri marily on the North Course with the fall tour event known as the Fortinet Championship won in September by Northern California na-tive Max Homa.

But the same thing which draws the pros here on an an nual basis, the chance to stay on-site in four different choic es, the great weather, two fun golf courses, along with wine tours and top-notch dining draw resort guests here the other 51 weeks of the year.

Among the dining options here is the Man sion Terrace, a perfectly scenic spot overlooking the closing hole of the South Course for drinks and snacks in the historic signature Mansion Build-ing which is believed to be nearly 150 years old and the first building on this rolling property.

There is, of course, 5-star dining in the main clubhouse with pictures of Miller and past cham pions on the wall, but the most fun dining at Sil verado comes outside.

New for 2022 is the outdoor pizza kitchen, Forno, where you can order up you own style of pizza and then watch it made by local experts. It’s located directly outside the Silverado Market and Bakery and is open for lunch or dinner most days.

On course, the best food belongs to the famed Burger Dog with stands on both the North and South Courses. Most golf connoisseurs, espe cially on the West Coast , know the Burger Dog be-came famous as the exclusive on-course snack at the private US Open site, the Olympic Club in San Francisco.

But original Burger Dog inventors (a slice of high quality beef placed inside a hot dog bun with various condiments, wanted to take their product to a more public setting as well and with ties to the area brought their tasty golfing snack to Silverado.

It doesn’t open until around lunchtime each day, but golfers have been known to line up at the small shacks to be the first in line before they complete their rounds.

“We really do feel we have the best combina tion of golf. Scenery, weather, food and wine and all kinds of drinks,” said Cody Sherrill, Silverado Director of Club Operations. “Everything Sil-vera do and Napa is famous for is here and available to resort guests, members and the best PGA Tour golfers in the world each fall.”

When you’ve had enough food and drinks, if there is such a thing, the golf is not bad either.

The North Course, redone by Miller, is a fine PGA Tour championship course with plenty of challenge for the pros and enough for amateurs to stack on plenty of balls before they head to the first tee. The course weaves between huge trees, bun kers, creeks, houses on one side, roads on the oth ers, but with plenty of charm and history, just the way Miller would want it after leaving his golf bag, clubs and photos in the clubhouse window case.

It plays 6,793 yards from the ball tees, but don’t let the relative lack of length fool you. You’ve got to hit a variety of different shots to play well here which has produced a varied groups of win ners here from Stewart Cink to Cameron Champ and many others.

In the final four holes of the North courses, there is a dangerous par 3 and two par 5s which means anything can and usually does happen to pros and amateurs alike.

The South is more wide open and accessible, but no less challenging. It plays 6,612 yards from the back tees (both courses are par 72), but like the North course finishes with a par 3 and par 5 which lead to wide ups and downs to your score. Both course offer carts to ride or are fairly flat enough to walk with weather which stays in the 60-70-80s in the summer time.

Of course, after the green grass battles, a trip to the multi-story Silverado Spa is in order with a variety of treatment options, a café and, of course, more wine. There are 10 outdoor tennis courts and a large resort pool as well.

Since you’re in the heart of California Wine Country, it would be a shame not to visit at least one local winery. The closest to the resort is the Prime Solum & Expressions Napa Valley Tasting Barn.

Even if you don’t know enough about wine to ask if there is a screw top bottle or pop top, touring a winery and seeing how it’s produced, stored and served is a fascinating experience.

There is all manner of wines here to sample along with a wine club to join to have different selections delivered to you with new releases in February, May, September and November. Of course, the town of Napa is only of few miles away which offers a wide variety of dining and drink op tions.

So come for drinks, stay for the food, and certainly

experience PGA Tour quality golf and luxury resort offer ings, all in one location at Silverado Resort. The perfect combination of what makes golf so great and inviting in this area.

Thankfully, at Silverado the golf can drive you to drink, but you should be all the happier for it!

For more information, visit www.silveradoresort. com or www.napavalleytastingbarn.com.

A FRESH TAKE: Ak-Chin Southern Dunes Golf Club

STORY BY CARL MICKELSON

So, I guess I finally reached that point where I’ve had enough missed connections and been to enough funerals already to see the way life can pull us apart and push us together. I’ve been making a more concerted effort to better prioritize time with friends I haven’t seen in a long time.

With a career, side projects, a busy family, and kids I don’t want to miss seeing grow up, it’s not always easy to be a social dynamo like we all were in our 20s and 30s. That said, an excuse can be made for absolutely anything and another thing that comes with age is a sharper focus on time management. So, when a lifelong buddy -a traveler and surfer and all-around kind of guy I wish I, honestly, was a little more like- let me know he’d be in Arizona at the same time I would be, we jumped at the chance to meet up.

y trip was centered around meet ings in Scottsdale while his was more Tucson-centric. We landed on the perfect solution when it came to meeting in the middle and playing a great golf course. Ak-Chin Southern Dunes Golf Club would be the scene of our mini reunion.

Something about this course makes is always worth the drive to Maricopa. Renowned golf course architect Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley - with col laboration from Fred Couples - set out to make this championship layout, first envisioned as a private club before the Ak-Chin Native American Commu nity took ownership and turned it public and Troonmanaged, stand out among other courses in the Ari zona desert. You’ll hear people say the design team was going for an Australian Sand Belt-style course in the heart of the desert and you’ll see that the course is sweeping and dunesy, with more plunging fairways then your typical desert track.

It makes for thrilling, cerebral golf that’s big

on shot placement, managing angles and recog nizing when to take risks and when to take your medicine. The bulging dunes add character and borders to nearly every fairway and – along with surrounding native grasses lend to each hole stand ing out and separate from neighboring holes. What other designers accomplish with forests full of trees, Schmidt and Curley did with the native features and grasses. My surfer pal was duly impressed. As much as classic desert courses stand out and bring excite ment, there’s a coolness factor this course has never lost. It’s always a unique treat to play.

I think what’s so pleasing about the playing expe rience is that, despite frequent doglegs (judiciously balanced in each direction), the landing areas are ample and well-defined and even the approaches that look intimidating are so nicely framed by the dunescapes and native grasses. The pace of holes is sharp from the beginning with a dogleg-right parfour opener with a generous green followed by a classic short par 4 at number two and a winding right to left par-five third and a fun par three with a perched up green at #4 that plays 165 from the tips but just 120 from the forward tees.

Ak-Chin Southern Dunes is a go-to venue for prestigious tourna ment play, serving as an annual U.S. Open quali fying site, The PING Southwest Section PGA Section Championship, several top collegiate Men’s and Women’s golf tournaments and home of early-state Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying School.

Five, six and seven demand solid strikes and good placement with a hard dogleg right at five and a longer par thee challenge at six. You’ll want to aim left, right then left again to navigate the long and winding par-five seventh.

This golf course tests your mettle in the middle rounds with brawny, long par fours at eight and nine and then a forced-carry tee shot at number 10. A quick respite at the pretty par-three 11th is followed by par fours at 12 and 13 that can be intimidating with native areas guarding the right side of each hole and daunting bunkers dictating direction.

The 14th brings back the fun, short par 4 – a loyal staple on Schmidt-Curley courses and a great feature on any design. Native area cuts into the fair way on the approach at 15 while the 16th presents a strategic long par five probably best played as a

three-shot hole due to extensive bunkering, mounds and native grasses down the right wide. The 17th is a longish par three wonderfully framed by the dunesy contours and surrounding native grasses.

The round at Ak-Chin Southern Dunes closes with strong par 4 the feels a little claustrophobic on the approach with water lurking right and bunkers guarding the left of the green. You’ll need all the tools, especially a sharp short game, to score at or better than your handicap here.

To be perfectly honest, the smoked chicken swings and pork belly tacos in the golf course’s Arroyo Grille never really stood a chance. My buddy and I laughed about old times over cold draft beer, made promises to connect more and reminisced on the day’s highs and lows before re membering to take advantage of one of the coolest

features at Ak-Chin Southern Dunes – the six-hole #minidunes short course that comes alive when the driving range closes for practice. The range’s target greens become the short course holes on one tight, innovative footprint. We settled all bets and agreed this is a concept more courses should try. It makes the game more fun and accessible for all ages. At this venue it’s also a way to get more Ak-Chin natives involved in the game and connected to the purpose of the property- not just to grow the game but to grow the spirit of the community.

Ak-Chin Southern Dunes is a go-to venue for pres tigious tournament play, serving as an annual U.S. Open qualifying site, The PING Southwest Section PGA Section Championship, several top collegiate Men’s and Women’s golf tournaments and home of early-state Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying School.

Ak-Chin Southern Dunes’ partner hotel is Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino Resort with its 500 luxury guest rooms surrounded by tasteful, rich landscap ing and a variety of recreational and gaming ame nities. Multiple dining options, poolside cabanas and daybeds for indulgent lounging, stage shows, and shopping add to the experience of hiding out in Maricopa.

Don’t just take my word on the Troon Golfmanaged Ak-Chin Southern Dunes. GolfWeek lists Ak-Chin Southern Dunes Golfweek’s among its “Top 100 Resort Courses,” “Best Courses You Can Play,” and “Top Casino Courses,” as well as Golf Maga zine’s list of “Top 100 Courses You Can Play.” Again, it’s worth the drive to play this unique layout that just turned 20 years old.

For more information, visit the website www.akchinsoutherndunes.com/.

Winery Spotlight: Flint Knoll

STORY BY HUNTER HAMM

On my recent trip to Napa Valley, I discovered a brand that I absolutely fell in love with and have been drinking ever since: Flint Knoll.

The tasting itself was organized by Aaron Michaelis, proprietor of the brand. We met at his home and were instantly welcomed as friends. Aar on is a kind man and an even better host, with a portfolio of wines that astonished me, one glass after an other. The wines themselves had an immense presence but such a unique personality within themselves.

Aaron has the genius mind of Philippe Melka as his winemaker, a man known for working on wines such as: Chateau Haut Brion, Tusk, Brand, and so many more. The wines that I recommend looking at for are the 2019 Noble Right Propri etary Red, the 2019 Spring Moun tain Cabernet, and the 2019 Com monwealth Cabernet.

These wines show that when a winery focuses on elite vineyard se lection, excellent care to detail, and extraordinary wine making then you can produce wines that remind one what makes Napa so good as a wine region. Aaron then told us the story of how he fell in love with wine and became enamored by the taste and

the history, and in many ways, I related. Aaron is a great host, the wines flowed coupled with the laughter. At that moment I real ized that Aaron and Flint Knoll are what wine is all about to me.

Great people risking it all to produce great wines and succeed ing. Memories are made as you swirl wine about in a glass, wine is more than tangible, it’s an essence, a memory, a moment. Flint Knoll and Aaron are a breath of fresh air to the wine industry, and I look for ward to doing business with them for as long as I can. If you are look ing for a new luxury wine brand to try out, look no further than Flint Knolls wines.

Old vs. New: Choosing the Right Cigar

STORY BY LOUIE SHAYA

Are you confused about old cigars versus fresh cigars? What does this mean, exactly? If you’re new to the world of cigar smok ing, these terms can be a little perplexing. Basically, know that cigars are never really fresh. That is, you generally can’t purchase a cigar just after it has been produced. Most tobacconists store their cigars at the proper temperature and humidity before they are stored. Also, the tobacco in most premium cigars is usually aged for about one to two years before it is rolled into a cigar.

Many smokers prefer old or vintage ci gars. Why? Older cigars are not inherently better than newer cigars. This is simply a matter of personal taste and preference. How long can vintage cigars last before they lose flavor and integrity? Cigars that are properly stored at a constant temperature of approximately 70 degrees, and about 70% humidity,

can be stored indefinitely.

What happens if an old cigar is not stored properly, and begins to dry out? Although the integrity of the cigar will probably be damaged, it can be restored significantly by re-humidifying it. This process must be done slowly and with great care to restore the ci gar’s flavor and consistency