Clearly I didn't get a chance to blog while away last week. The conference in Las Vegas was very hectic, and the weather was cool.
Parmasters Golf Training Centers Inc., our franchisor, made several fantastic and exciting announcements during the conference. Unfortunately I'm not at liberty to share any of the details at this time. Suffice it to say that this company is really going places! And that bodes very well for our local Parmasters Kitchener-Waterloo!
Conference attendees also roled up their/our sleeves and did a lot of work. Parmasters is a young franchise with lots of opportunities. We worked on strategies to leverage many of those opportunities, and to build an incredible experience for every Parmasters member and patron globally!
The flights back got a little interesting in the Denver area on Friday evening. We had lots of turbulence and rain as we descended into Denver. During our two-hour layover the rain became heavy snow. After a lengthy de-icing, our connector flight to Chicago eventually took to the air.
I've heard since that parts of the Denver area enjoyed upwards of a metre of snow Friday evening and Saturday morning. We were lucky to get in and out on schedule!
Saturday and Sunday were spent in KW. I coached my first ever game of ball hockey (as head coach) Saturday evening. I missed the team's first game Friday evening, but we escaped the weekend with two wins! I'm really looking forward to the rest of the season! It's a pleasure to work with a fine group of young teenage men.
The rest of the weekend was mostly dedicated to unpacking, laundry, groceries, re-packing, and lots of work. I also celebrated my younger son's 12th birthday on Sunday.
As I type I'm in Calgary, for a brief layover, on my way to Vancouver for another week of meetings. I'll fly back Friday.
I've promised a few exciting announcements related to Parmasters KW. Those will come next week!
For now, I'll sign off and find some supper.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Crazy Weeks!
I haven't blogged much this past week, and I'm not sure how much time I'll have this coming week.
I leave this evening for the annual Parmasters Franchise Owners Conference. It's held each year in conjunction with a third-party, multi-unit franchising conference. This year it's in Las Vegas.
In many ways it's crazy for us to be going. But then, it is mandatory, as per our franchise agreement.
Earlier today I called all of the players on my son's ball hockey team. I'm the head coach this year. The season starts Friday evening, a game I will miss as I fly back from Vegas. But I will be there for our Saturday evening game, and hopefully all others this season. We have some fantastic assistant coaches also.
Sorry there's no trivia in this post. The book is at home.
More to follow when travel and the conference allow.
I leave this evening for the annual Parmasters Franchise Owners Conference. It's held each year in conjunction with a third-party, multi-unit franchising conference. This year it's in Las Vegas.
In many ways it's crazy for us to be going. But then, it is mandatory, as per our franchise agreement.
Earlier today I called all of the players on my son's ball hockey team. I'm the head coach this year. The season starts Friday evening, a game I will miss as I fly back from Vegas. But I will be there for our Saturday evening game, and hopefully all others this season. We have some fantastic assistant coaches also.
Sorry there's no trivia in this post. The book is at home.
More to follow when travel and the conference allow.
Monday, April 06, 2009
Busy Weekend
Trivia: “Which of the four major championships has been contested in both stroke play and match play formats?” Answer below.
It’s a tough morning for golfers, waking to a blanket of snow in southern Ontario. In some cases I’ve heard it’s a very thick blanket!
Of course, in short order, we will all have Parmasters KW to enjoy, where the weather is always perfect, and the atmosphere and staff are always warm and inviting.
It was a very busy weekend, with many things requiring my attention. I worked up until Sunday at noon, and then relaxed with my children for the remainder of the day. They’re growing up way too fast, which brings new challenges and opportunities to grow, as a parent. It’s interesting to think back to my childhood experiences, and contemplate what my parents must have been going through, as they found their way as parents.
As I’ve mentioned, in short order, we’ll have some exciting announcements at Parmasters KW. We look forward to welcoming you all into an incredible golf haven!
And the answer: “The PGA Championship was a match play competition from 1916 to 1957 before turning to the stroke play format in 1958.”
It’s a tough morning for golfers, waking to a blanket of snow in southern Ontario. In some cases I’ve heard it’s a very thick blanket!
Of course, in short order, we will all have Parmasters KW to enjoy, where the weather is always perfect, and the atmosphere and staff are always warm and inviting.
It was a very busy weekend, with many things requiring my attention. I worked up until Sunday at noon, and then relaxed with my children for the remainder of the day. They’re growing up way too fast, which brings new challenges and opportunities to grow, as a parent. It’s interesting to think back to my childhood experiences, and contemplate what my parents must have been going through, as they found their way as parents.
As I’ve mentioned, in short order, we’ll have some exciting announcements at Parmasters KW. We look forward to welcoming you all into an incredible golf haven!
And the answer: “The PGA Championship was a match play competition from 1916 to 1957 before turning to the stroke play format in 1958.”
Friday, April 03, 2009
Mill Run Golf Club
Trivia: “THE PLAYERS Championship, the PGA TOUR’s flagship event, moved to the Tournament Players Club at Sawgrass in 1982. How many courses played host to the event prior to that?” Answer below.
The Ontario Golf eNewsletter, issued yesterday, shone a brief spotlight on the home course for our Peace Street Classic. Mill Run Golf Club is located just west of Uxbridge, Ontario. Here’s the excerpt and a picture of this beautiful 27-hole track.
Also yesterday, our cause here at Parmasters, Right To Play, released their spring report to stakeholders. They call it their Red Ball Report. I blogged previously about Right To Play and the great work they do here.
And the answer: “Four: Atlanta Country Club, Colonial Country Club, Inverrary Golf and Country Club, and Sawgrass Country Club”
The Ontario Golf eNewsletter, issued yesterday, shone a brief spotlight on the home course for our Peace Street Classic. Mill Run Golf Club is located just west of Uxbridge, Ontario. Here’s the excerpt and a picture of this beautiful 27-hole track.
Also yesterday, our cause here at Parmasters, Right To Play, released their spring report to stakeholders. They call it their Red Ball Report. I blogged previously about Right To Play and the great work they do here.
And the answer: “Four: Atlanta Country Club, Colonial Country Club, Inverrary Golf and Country Club, and Sawgrass Country Club”
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Tiger is Back
Trivia: “Two players share the record for going the most years – 17 – with at least one victory. Who are they? A) Byron Nelson and Sam Snead B) Byron Nelson and Ben Hogan C) Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer D) Jack Nicklaus and Sam Snead” Answer below.
Here’s Lorne Rubenstein’s article on the next coming of Tiger Woods. It makes for interesting reading. You can find it here, in the Globe and Mail, and also included below.
Would you bet against this man?
LORNE RUBENSTEIN
From Wednesday's Globe and Mail
March 31, 2009 at 10:01 PM EDT
PASADENA, Calif. — The big sporting event in these parts is Saturday's 72nd Santa Anita Derby, for which Pioneerof the Nile and The Pamplemousse are the favourites in one of the major stepping stones to the Kentucky Derby.
At least people know there's more than one horse in the race. Folks here and elsewhere who are contemplating next week's Masters have already handed the green jacket to Tiger Woods, golf's ace thoroughbred.
Woods is the overwhelming favourite to win his fifth Masters title. Various wagering establishments have made him the 2-to-1 favourite, ridiculously low odds for anybody, even Woods, to win any tournament, even the Masters. Padraig Harrington won last year's PGA Championship and British Open, the most recent majors, and he's 14 to 1.
Then there's Phil Mickelson at 10 to 1. He's won two Masters and a PGA Championship, and the recent CA Championship in Miami. Mickelson has won 36 PGA Tour events, including his three majors.
That's a Hall of Fame career. But Woods, who won his 66th PGA Tour event (including 14 majors) last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando, has cast a total eclipse across Mickelson's accomplishments.
Woods has eclipsed most everybody, although he still has a ways to go before reaching Jack Nicklaus's record of 18 majors. Nicklaus won 73 PGA Tour events, including the majors, while Sam Snead has won a record 82 PGA Tour events, including seven majors.
Woods should pass Nicklaus in majors and total wins, and also Snead's record if he remains motivated. But does this mean he's a lock for the Masters? Is he golf's Secretariat, the powerful Big Red who won 16 of his 21 races and was all but sure to run down his opposition down the stretch?
No.
Woods shouldn't be a 2-to-1 favourite to win the Masters. It's the difference again between being the golfer "most likely" to win a particular tournament and "likely" to win the specific event. John Allen Paulos, professor of math at Temple University in Philadelphia, explained the distinction in this space last year.
A quick review will underscore the point: Woods is most likely of all his colleagues to win any tournament he enters. He wins nearly 30 per cent of those he plays; nobody else is near that winning percentage.
But he doesn't win 70 per cent of the time, so he's not likely to win any specific tournament. The field against Woods is always a better bet.
Woods has played 12 Masters and won four, or 33 per cent of them.
Does his winning percentage justify his being the 2-to-1 favourite? Again, no.
He has not won the Masters since 2005. That might make it appear Woods is destined to do so next week. But each Masters tournament is an independent event, like the flip of a coin.
For the sake of argument and debate as the Masters approaches, consider some golfers who are, in horse-racing parlance, overlays. Further, consider golfers who not only haven't won a Masters, but any major. Such a golfer surely can't win, can he?
Yes, he can.
Mike Weir of Bright's Grove, Ont., won in 2003, Zach Johnson in 2007, and Trevor Immelman last year. Each made the Masters his first major.
Yes, they did. And someone might do so again next week.
Start with Sean O'Hair, who led Woods by five shots before the final round last Sunday at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Woods made another one of "those" putts that have become his trademark on the last green to win.
But O'Hair is a player. He's no dog. He's a horse. (Dog lovers, please forgive the reference, but sports people talk like this.)
O'Hair could cross the finish line on top in a major, as early as next week. O'Hair is listed at 55 to 1 for the 2009 Masters.
Paul Casey is another long shot who shouldn't be such a long shot. The 31-year old Englishman lost to Geoff Ogilvy in this year's Accenture Match Play Championship. He tied for sixth in the 2004 Masters, for 10th in 2007, and for 11th last year after a nasty 79 in the last round. Casey is 40 to 1.
And we haven't even mentioned Stephen Ames of Calgary, an 80-to-1 outsider. Ames won the 2006 Players Championship, the next best thing to a major.
Probability and history say O'Hair, Casey, Ames or somebody else, but not Woods, will win next week.
You can't argue against logic and history, can you?
Yes, you can, you say.
Go right ahead. But consider yourself warned.
And the answer: “C) Jack Nicklaus (1962 to 1978) and Arnold Palmer (1955 to 1971)”
Here’s Lorne Rubenstein’s article on the next coming of Tiger Woods. It makes for interesting reading. You can find it here, in the Globe and Mail, and also included below.
Would you bet against this man?
LORNE RUBENSTEIN
From Wednesday's Globe and Mail
March 31, 2009 at 10:01 PM EDT
PASADENA, Calif. — The big sporting event in these parts is Saturday's 72nd Santa Anita Derby, for which Pioneerof the Nile and The Pamplemousse are the favourites in one of the major stepping stones to the Kentucky Derby.
At least people know there's more than one horse in the race. Folks here and elsewhere who are contemplating next week's Masters have already handed the green jacket to Tiger Woods, golf's ace thoroughbred.
Woods is the overwhelming favourite to win his fifth Masters title. Various wagering establishments have made him the 2-to-1 favourite, ridiculously low odds for anybody, even Woods, to win any tournament, even the Masters. Padraig Harrington won last year's PGA Championship and British Open, the most recent majors, and he's 14 to 1.
Then there's Phil Mickelson at 10 to 1. He's won two Masters and a PGA Championship, and the recent CA Championship in Miami. Mickelson has won 36 PGA Tour events, including his three majors.
That's a Hall of Fame career. But Woods, who won his 66th PGA Tour event (including 14 majors) last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando, has cast a total eclipse across Mickelson's accomplishments.
Woods has eclipsed most everybody, although he still has a ways to go before reaching Jack Nicklaus's record of 18 majors. Nicklaus won 73 PGA Tour events, including the majors, while Sam Snead has won a record 82 PGA Tour events, including seven majors.
Woods should pass Nicklaus in majors and total wins, and also Snead's record if he remains motivated. But does this mean he's a lock for the Masters? Is he golf's Secretariat, the powerful Big Red who won 16 of his 21 races and was all but sure to run down his opposition down the stretch?
No.
Woods shouldn't be a 2-to-1 favourite to win the Masters. It's the difference again between being the golfer "most likely" to win a particular tournament and "likely" to win the specific event. John Allen Paulos, professor of math at Temple University in Philadelphia, explained the distinction in this space last year.
A quick review will underscore the point: Woods is most likely of all his colleagues to win any tournament he enters. He wins nearly 30 per cent of those he plays; nobody else is near that winning percentage.
But he doesn't win 70 per cent of the time, so he's not likely to win any specific tournament. The field against Woods is always a better bet.
Woods has played 12 Masters and won four, or 33 per cent of them.
Does his winning percentage justify his being the 2-to-1 favourite? Again, no.
He has not won the Masters since 2005. That might make it appear Woods is destined to do so next week. But each Masters tournament is an independent event, like the flip of a coin.
For the sake of argument and debate as the Masters approaches, consider some golfers who are, in horse-racing parlance, overlays. Further, consider golfers who not only haven't won a Masters, but any major. Such a golfer surely can't win, can he?
Yes, he can.
Mike Weir of Bright's Grove, Ont., won in 2003, Zach Johnson in 2007, and Trevor Immelman last year. Each made the Masters his first major.
Yes, they did. And someone might do so again next week.
Start with Sean O'Hair, who led Woods by five shots before the final round last Sunday at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Woods made another one of "those" putts that have become his trademark on the last green to win.
But O'Hair is a player. He's no dog. He's a horse. (Dog lovers, please forgive the reference, but sports people talk like this.)
O'Hair could cross the finish line on top in a major, as early as next week. O'Hair is listed at 55 to 1 for the 2009 Masters.
Paul Casey is another long shot who shouldn't be such a long shot. The 31-year old Englishman lost to Geoff Ogilvy in this year's Accenture Match Play Championship. He tied for sixth in the 2004 Masters, for 10th in 2007, and for 11th last year after a nasty 79 in the last round. Casey is 40 to 1.
And we haven't even mentioned Stephen Ames of Calgary, an 80-to-1 outsider. Ames won the 2006 Players Championship, the next best thing to a major.
Probability and history say O'Hair, Casey, Ames or somebody else, but not Woods, will win next week.
You can't argue against logic and history, can you?
Yes, you can, you say.
Go right ahead. But consider yourself warned.
And the answer: “C) Jack Nicklaus (1962 to 1978) and Arnold Palmer (1955 to 1971)”
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Parmasters Southern Ontario
Trivia: “Which player, at age 60, adopted twin infant sons in 1999?” Answer below.
I’ve been working lately on projections for our holding company, Parmasters Southern Ontario. Each golf training center will be a separate company, all of said companies ultimately partially owned by Parmasters SO.
Thus, Parmasters SO is the company that will build, open and operate at least five Parmasters golf training centers across southern Ontario.
Parmasters SO will also open and operate several Links Golf Cafes. Each Parmasters center includes a Links Golf Cafe. But the Cafes can also be built and operated standalone. And we will do so in several major centers across southern Ontario.
So I’ve been working on projections related to the schedule for opening each of the centers or cafes, the capital required, staffing of a Parmasters SO office, etc.
Parmasters KW will be the first of several southern Ontario centers. We’re getting there!
And the answer: “Jim Dent”
I’ve been working lately on projections for our holding company, Parmasters Southern Ontario. Each golf training center will be a separate company, all of said companies ultimately partially owned by Parmasters SO.
Thus, Parmasters SO is the company that will build, open and operate at least five Parmasters golf training centers across southern Ontario.
Parmasters SO will also open and operate several Links Golf Cafes. Each Parmasters center includes a Links Golf Cafe. But the Cafes can also be built and operated standalone. And we will do so in several major centers across southern Ontario.
So I’ve been working on projections related to the schedule for opening each of the centers or cafes, the capital required, staffing of a Parmasters SO office, etc.
Parmasters KW will be the first of several southern Ontario centers. We’re getting there!
And the answer: “Jim Dent”
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