Golf Digest’s Best Places to Play

Anyone Seen My Caddy?

A Review of Golf Digest’s Best Places to Play

My first impression of this CD was a good one. The program group that was created included an uninstall feature! Software manufacturers, are you paying attention? WE, THE PUBLIC, WANT THIS! The installation includes adding video capability to Windows, so if you already have this, full blown installation is only 8.6 Mb. The CD is aimed at the common, working stiff golfer (like me) who plays public links or resort (i.e. vacation) clubs. It contains info on over 14,000 courses, including all that are in my area of northwest Arkansas. Information on private clubs is also included, but the “Best Courses” feature includes only courses accessible to the public.

It is a fun CD to explore, with sound clips popping up every now and then like lawn mowers, sprinklers, stuff that makes you feel like your on the course. I heard everything but cursing over missed two footers!

Your host is one Fuzzy Zoeller. He is an amiable chap, always available to explain various areas you’ve stumbled into, or perhaps to help you to exit. You just click his image in the lower right corner.

Double speed CD ROM drives are recommended as a minimum, but the video would no doubt run more smoothly on a 4X or better. On a single speed, forget it. The full frame video is awful.

Among its features are the best values choices. Most of these are excellent values, indeed. I do question the inclusion of Pinehurst #2, at over $100 a shot for green fees. It is a classic course, the site of numerous tour events. But then again, so is Pebble Beach, which, though similarly priced, was not included as a best value.

Also featured is a listing of golf’s greatest architects, which includes fairly extensive biographies. I would recommend that serious golfers review thissection, which pays (appropriate) homage to the geniuses who design what we golfers might take for granted. This section includes a list of (once again) PUBLIC courses that were designed by each architect.

The CD includes commercial interactive areas that you can visit IF YOU LIKE. It’s not forced upon you, like the soft drink commercials I have to sit through after I’ve paid seven bucks for a movie ticket. No, these (two) areas are simply listed in the contents.

The inclusion of commercial ad space is no doubt a growing trend among software manufacturers. One only hopes that it is done with no less dignity as Golf Digest and Creative Multimedia have managed to do on this particularCD.

To sum up, this is a tremendous CD for the price, which will no doubt be less than $29.99 in the discount stores. It could have been a little better, though. For instance, it would be nice to be able to turn the video feature off. You get a little tired of Fuzzy explaining what’s on the disk every time you start it.

Another thing, a “page up/down” feature would have been nice in the state selection areas. It takes a long time to work your way down to Wyoming when each click just moves you just one position, especially at CD ROM’s inevitably slower speeds. Oh well, maybe when I get my new 6X…

Copyright © 1995 Ron Enderland for infoMedia. All rights reserved worldwide.

486 SX/25 or aboveWindows 3.1 or later4 Mb of RAM (8 recommended)7 Mb hard drive space (14 recommended for best performance)Double-speed CD-ROM drive256 color SuperVGA monitorSoundBlaster or compatible sound card with Windows drivers